“I’ve been busy.”
“Ches said you guys had got jobs out at the country club,” she prompted him.
Sebastian glared at Ches who guiltily shrugged his shoulders.
“So, what do you do there?”
“Lifeguarding,” replied Ches quickly, “and some waiting on tables when they’re short-staffed.”
“Cool!” said Brenda, flicking her hair over her shoulders again.
I wanted to leap across the barbeque pit and make her eat sand.
The men looked amused as Sebastian became increasingly and obviously uncomfortable, his cheeks reddening with each awkward second. Shirley and Donna looked sympathetic and politely tried to maintain a separate conversation. I hated to think what expression was leaking out onto my face.
“Hey, you cut your hair,” said Brenda, reaching out to run one hand across the nape of his neck.
I wanted to snap her fingers off at the wrist.
Sebastian flinched away from her and looked annoyed. I hoped that Brenda would take the hint but she hadn’t deployed her primary weapons yet.
“Well, it suits you,” she said, hitching up her bikini top.
I could have sworn her tits had magnets attached to them the way the men’s eyes seemed to be drawn towards her impressive cleavage. Even Sebastian’s.
“Although I always liked your hair long; but then you already knew that, didn’t you?”
“I cut my hair, too,” said Ches in a farcical attempt to protect his friend from Brenda’s relentless onslaught.
She glanced at him with humiliating brevity.
“Nice.”
“Have you decided where you’re going to school in the Fall?” said Stefan, trying to attract her attention.
“I’ve been accepted at UCLA – and UCSD,” she said, her eyes fixed on Sebastian.
“You should go to UCLA,” said Stefan. “It’s a really great school. What’s your major?”
But she completely ignored him and he crashed in flames, much to his brother’s amusement. Brenda drew up her knees and nudged Sebastian’s arm with her thigh.
“Can we talk?” she said softly.
“I thought you’d be talking to Jack,” he said, coolly.
She blushed.
“Please, Sebastian? In private.”
The sudden timidity in her voice made me look up. She was staring at Sebastian, a worried little pucker between her eyebrows. I had to hand it to her: she was good. And she had guts. She was making a very public statement that she still had feelings for him. In fact, speaking from recent experience, I’d say she was crazy about him.
The burn of jealousy in my throat got worse, running all the way down to my gut. She was gorgeous, sweet, rather brave, extremely determined, and had her eyes on the prize. Oh, and they were the same age. She was perfect for him; she was the sort of girl he ought to be with – assuming she wasn’t really the man-eating tramp she seemed to be channeling.
It was unfair of me to hold onto him; it was wrong.
I felt my eyes began to fill with tears; I hoped I was near enough to the smoking barbeque pit to have a believable excuse.
I waited for Sebastian to tell her there was nothing to talk about.
Except he didn’t.
He pushed himself to his feet in one graceful move.
“Okay,” he muttered.
I don’t know if he looked at me, because my gaze was locked on that damn cake: I’d never be able to eat lemon polenta ever again.
“She’s a nice girl,” said Shirley sympathetically, as Brenda walked away with Sebastian. “I was so surprised when they broke up.” She glanced at Ches, who wouldn’t meet his mother’s eyes, “I don’t know what happened between them.”
I stabbed the cake viciously.
“She’s a hottie!” declared Stefan.
“I remember when she was skinny and wore braces,” said Kurt. “Now look at the size of those bazookas!”
“Kurt!” said Donna in a warning voice.