“Look, guys don’t care about that kind of stuff. We would not be against equal-opportunity nudity. Ever.” He slowed as we neared the exit off the interstate. “That’s girls hating on girls.”
I turned my head slowly in his direction, but he was focused on the road.
“I could easily see a girl calling another girl a slut for driving their car wearing a bikini top and then telling a guy who’s doing it shirtless that he’s hot.”
Sebastian had a point, but hell would freeze over before I admitted that. I pulled my feet off the dashboard and shifted in my seat as I watched the trees blur past. Abbi and Megan were coming out, catching a ride with Megan’s cousin Chris, who played football with Sebastian.
I had a feeling the little barbecue was going to turn into a massive party before the night was over. Wouldn’t be the first or last one to go from a small get-together to a gloriously out-of-control rager within hours. Especially when it involved Keith.
Sunlight filtered through the trees crowding the narrow, curvy back road. Whoever built this road must’ve followed a snake or something.
Leaning my head back against the seat, I watched the taller maples and ferns give way to apple orchards. They went on as far as the eye could see, lined up in rows, on every hill, and Keith’s family owned most of them.
I’d been down this road so many times with Sebastian and with my friends, and it struck me then that this would be the last Saturday before our last year of school. I wouldn’t have another Saturday like this ever again, and in a year, Sebastian and I wouldn’t be riding down this familiar road in his Jeep. He wouldn’t be randomly appearing on the balcony, and Dary wouldn’t be popping into Joanna’s to rub my bad life choices in my face.
I sucked in a shaky breath as my chest burned.
Oh God, I suddenly wanted to cry like a baby. And I shouldn’t cry now, because everything that was about to change was good. I would go off on my own, and if I was lucky, Megan and I would both be accepted at UVA, and she would still remind me every Friday that I was going to grow old alone, surrounded by cats, eating cheap canned tuna. Dary would point out all my future terrible choices through FaceTime. Abbi would be going to a college not too far away and we’d be able to see each other on the weekends.
Sebastian would go to whatever college offered him a full ride to play ball if he stuck with football, and let’s be honest, he would. And we’d stay in touch. We’d call each other and those calls would eventually give way to texts, and those messages would become more sporadic until we talked only when we were both home for the holidays.
We would grow up and grow apart, and that was terrifying, but for right now, right this second, we had tomorrow. We had next week. We had the whole year. Practically forever, I told myself.
I didn’t have to face the inevitable yet.
Sebastian tapped his fingers off my knee, surprising me. I looked at him.
“You doing okay over there?” he asked.
“Yeah,” I said hoarsely. I cleared my throat.
A concerned expression settled over his features. “What were you thinking about?”
I shrugged. “I was just thinking about how this time next year we’ll both be at college. That this is the last summer before school, you know?”
Sebastian didn’t respond. He was staring at the road, his jaw a hard line. It got like that when he was mad or had something to say that he was keeping quiet about.
I started to ask him what he was thinking about, but he said, “You’re always going to be a part of my life—you know that, right?”
Not expecting that statement, I didn’t know how to respond.
“Even if we end up at different colleges,” he continued like there was a chance that we’d be at the same place in a year. “We’re not going to become strangers.” It was almost like he could read my mind. But he just knew me so well. Too well. “That’s never going to happen to us.”
I wanted to tell him that happened to everyone no matter their best intentions. My sister swore she’d stay in contact with all her friends who went to different colleges, but she was now a junior and had all new friends and a new boyfriend.
When people left you and they didn’t see you every day, they stopped wanting to see you. I, more than anyone, knew that was the truth.
Even if they said they loved you.
“We’re always going to be friends.” His eyes briefly searched my face. “No matter what.”
Holy crap, was I just friend-zoned?
Yep. That was what it sounded like.
Breathing past the burn, I ignored the hollow achy pain in my chest as I smoothed my hands over my shorts. “Aye, Captain.”
His lips twitched into a small grin.
“Is Skylar going to be at Keith’s?” I regretted asking as soon as the words were out of my mouth.
“Don’t know.” The response was clipped, which was very unlike him.
I nibbled on my bottom lip as he slowed down, hanging a right onto the road that led to Keith’s monstrosity of a house adjacent to the miles of orchards. The home was on a massive farm, and it was the kind of house no one needed unless they were polygamists and had fifty children.
His family had money. They’d run the orchards for generations, and I figured Keith would take over the family business at some point, though I knew he planned to go to college and play football like Sebastian. From what I heard, he’d already been accepted to WVU. He had the size to play college-level defense.
The paved driveway was already lined with cars, a few of which I recognized. I didn’t see Skylar’s BMW or, thank God, Cody’s SUV. “A small party?”
Sebastian chuckled. “Yeah, that was the plan.”
“All righty, then.”
He parked the Jeep behind a Honda, leaving enough space between the vehicles to get out later. I grabbed my purse off the floor and then climbed out. We hoofed it the rest of the way, bypassing the double glass doors and following the large river-rock pathway that led around the side of the house. With each step, the sound of laughter and shouts grew louder, along with splashes of water. I could smell meat grilling, making my empty stomach grumble happily.
Sebastian was right: I would never turn down grilled cheeseburgers.
“Hey.” Sebastian nudged my arm with his. “Whenever you want to leave, let me know, okay? Don’t roam off with someone.”
“I’m pretty sure I can catch a ride home with anyone. No need to worry.”
“Not worrying. I’ll just take you home when you’re ready.”
He slung his shirt over his shoulder. I guess putting it on would take too much effort.
To the outsider, Sebastian could come across as bossy, but he was just the type of guy who didn’t bring someone to a party and then leave it to them to find their own way around or home.
“Maybe I don’t want a ride home with you.” I swung my purse. “I’m sure there are a ton of people who’d give me a ride.”
“Wouldn’t that be stupid, since we live next door to each other?”
“Don’t question my logic.” I stepped around Sebastian, I walked in front of him. “And seriously, I don’t want to stay out forever.”