Anywhere But Here (17 page)

“I’m supposed to be in charge. I need to stay to make sure it gets done right. It shouldn’t take very long.” The dance was only an hour from ending, and we both knew the party would go all night, so it wasn’t like he was going to miss anything.

His shoulders slumped in defeat like a little boy who didn’t get his way. “Fine, I’ll tell Matt and Josh we have to hang around.”

While he no doubt went to sulk with the guys, I took a much needed bathroom break. As warm as it was in the gym, I’d been downing water like it was oxygen. I also needed to address the boob sweat issue I was having. Pushing open the door to the ladies room, I realized I wasn’t the only one experiencing that problem, as there were three girls shoving paper towels in their cleavage while they waited for open stalls. We all just looked at each other and laughed.

Cammie caught me coming back out of the bathroom. “I was looking for you, hooker.” She’d disappeared, and not alone, right after the homecoming court pictures were taken.

“And you thought I was in the boy’s locker room inside Matt’s pants?” Because I was pretty sure that was the only place she’d been looking. She gave me a guilty smile and shrugged.

“Jeremy wanted me to tell you that he and the guys were going to catch a ride to Mike’s with Jack and leave the limo for us to meet up with them later.”

“They left?” I looked around the gym, not spotting them.

“Yeah, just a minute ago, while you were in the bathroom.”

I sighed. “Okay, whatever. I guess that’s fine.”

“Well then come on, lesbian lover. Just because we no longer have dates, doesn’t mean we can’t dance.”

I laughed and followed her back out to the dance floor. After a few minutes it turned into a big, girls’ dance pit as we weren’t the only ones to lose our guys for the night. Some had bailed to the party, and others had just given up and were clustered at the tables.

As the dance wound down, Principal Miller pulled Cammie and me aside. “I know we planned on doing most of the tear down and clean up tonight, but I think it’s been an exhausting night for everyone. How about if we plan to meet here tomorrow at noon and we can take care of it then.”

We both nodded our heads in emphatic agreement. “That would be great.”

It meant we were freed up an hour earlier than planned. We snagged a couple girls who wanted to ride with us to the party and all piled into the back of the waiting limo. A few of the girls started pulling and shaking out their hair. I was afraid even if I removed the pins, mine would stay in place, so I didn’t bother. It was a headache that could wait until morning.

The driver pulled up out front of Mike’s house and then lowered the partition as the girls started climbing out. “Miss, what would you like me to do? I’m hired until one.” I glanced at my phone, it was eleven now.

“If you don’t mind sticking around, I know I’d appreciate it.” It would mean a safe, sober ride home.

He held up the newest James Patterson. “Don’t mind at all.”

I thanked him and then joined my friends inside. The party was well under way, mostly seniors with a few select juniors that I guess made the cut. They all had bottles, cans or red plastic cups in their hands and the smell of alcohol permeated the house. Before I even made it to the kitchen, I’d been offered several drinks, and turned them all down. I showed up occasionally, but I didn’t partake.

When I made it to the kitchen, Josie and Cammie had already located Josh and Matt and had planted themselves possessively on their laps. The third amigo was missing and Josh and Matt were both looking a little nervous. Josh stared at me anxiously while Matt tried to call someone on his phone. He hung up without getting through.

I looked around and then back to the guys. “Where’s Jer?” Their eyes moved from me to each other, neither one of them answered my question.

“Seriously, where is he?” I glanced around the room again.

“Uh, I’m not sure,” Josh finally spoke up, scooting Josie off his lap so he could stand. “But, I’ll go find him for you. He’s around here somewhere.”

“No, you can stay. I’ll go look for him.”

Josh followed me out of the kitchen. “I really don’t mind getting him for ya. You can go grab a drink and sit with the girls. I’m sure your feet have got to be killing you in those shoes.”

I turned to him, starting to get a funny feeling. “You know I don’t drink, and my feet are fine.” They’d long since gone numb. “You’re the one who should be hanging out with Josie.”

Josh’s eyes flicked toward the stairs and I followed his gaze, my brow furrowing. “Maybe you should go check and see if he’s around back of the house. I know a few of the guys went out there.” He was trying to steer me in the opposite direction.

“Is Jeremy out back, Josh?”

“I don’t know. He might be,” he shrugged but couldn’t stop his eyes from going to the stairs again. It was the only confirmation I needed.

“You do know whether or not he’s up those stairs, don’t you?” There was only one reason anyone went upstairs, and it was rarely to find the extra bathroom.

“Just go back to the kitchen, Shaeleigh, and let me get him for you.” He was pleading with me now.

“Tell me if he’s up there,” I demanded.

“Please just go back to the kitchen.”

It may as well have been a yes. I shoved past him and made for the stairs. There were five doors at the top, all shielding who knew what. I’d been to Mike’s before, so I knew the four on either side were the bedrooms. Josh was hot on my heels, still trying to talk me out of what I was about to do. The more insistent he was, the more determined I became. And angry. Because I knew what I was going to find, and it only took two tries to get the right door. When I did, shock, disgust and betrayal registered, each one stronger than the previous emotion until I was shaking in the doorway, unable to look away from the scene.

The moment I’d clicked the door open, everything froze and I was able to take it all in. A yellow silk dress lay strewn across the floor along with the pink shirt I’d picked out and the silver vest that matched the pants now falling around Jeremy’s ankles. A pair of slim legs were wrapped around his waist as he stood at the foot of the bed, still inside her, staring back at me in horror. Daisy lay on her back on the bed, her eyes wide with panic.

Slowly, Jeremy pulled out of her, “Babe,” a soft plea falling from his lips and breaking the moment, sending everything rushing into motion again. I turned, slamming the door, and bumped into Josh’s chest. He stepped out of the way as I shoved past him and tore down the stairs, but I didn’t know where to go once I reached the bottom. In another ten seconds he was going to be behind me and then we were going to be
that
couple. The one from the movies, where the guy is chasing after her, giving all kinds of bullshit excuses, while everyone watches as he humiliates and makes an even bigger fool of her with his lies.

I didn’t want to be that pathetic girl who cried in front of everyone, all the people who knew and felt sorry for her because she was the only one who hadn’t known what was going on behind her back. This was about to be one of those scenes whether I wanted it or not if I didn’t move. I bolted for the kitchen where I knew Cammie was. She looked up and right away I could tell from the look on her face that the look on mine told her everything. She jumped up from Matt’s lap. I couldn’t even bring myself to meet his eyes, because he’d known as well as Josh had what I would find if I went searching.

I heard my name being shouted and I looked over my shoulder, panicked. I didn’t know what to do, but Cammie jumped into action. She turned on Matt so fast. “If you ever want another chance at getting in these panties again, you better keep him out of this kitchen.”

That’s all Matt needed and he went to cut Jeremy off.

“How is this happening right now?” I asked Cammie pitifully.

She didn’t say a word. She just handed me the cup that she’d been holding, and for once I didn’t think twice. It tasted like I imagined piss and sweat tasted, but I poured it all down anyway. Jeremy’s voice had risen and I could hear him fighting with the guys, trying to get in here, to me. Eventually he was going to get past them. I couldn’t hide out in here all night, nor did I want to. I felt like the joke of the party.

“I can’t see him Cam. Not right now. I just can’t. Not after seeing him–” I couldn’t even bring myself to say the words,
with her.
“God, it was so awful.” The tears I’d been keeping at bay started pouring over, and I could feel the eyes of everyone in the kitchen on me. Cammie took my cup and refilled it with something a little stronger this time before handing it back.

She rubbed her hand up and down my back as I drank greedily. “I know, babe. I know. Just drink.”

I did, until the cup was empty again. The commotion outside the kitchen had quieted and I hoped that meant they’d dragged Jeremy off somewhere. This was such a nightmare. Not at all how this night was supposed to go.

I could feel the warmth of the alcohol spreading from my belly, slowing down my breathing and heart rate, keeping me from going into a full blown panic attack, but it did nothing for the sick, twisted feeling in my gut that made me want to just curl in on myself and stay in a ball until some of this awful pain went away.

I thought alcohol was supposed to numb the pain, but the longer I stood in the kitchen, meeting the pity filled gazes of my classmates, replaying the scene from upstairs in my mind over and over, the worse it got, no matter how many times Cammie told me he was an ass who didn’t deserve my tears.

“I need out of here.” I gulped from the cup and then sucked in a deep breath. “I’m going to lose it, Cam.” I was on the verge. The shock was wearing off and the ugly reality was settling in to stay. Thoughts like,
this can’t be happening,
were being squashed under the devastation that this was really happening and there was nothing I could do to make it stop or go away or wake myself up from this nightmare, and the nightmare only got worse.

I thought Jeremy was the last person I wanted to see, but I was wrong. He was the second to last. The last person just walked into the kitchen in her rumpled yellow dress, with her freshly fucked hair. That my boyfriend was responsible for.

Oh shit, I was shaking and I wasn’t sure how much longer my knees were going to hold me up. It felt like someone was sucking the oxygen out of the room, because everything in my head was getting hazy and I could barely see through the tears.

“Shaeleigh, I’m so sorry,” her voice quivered as if she was on the verge of tears. “I–”

“I swear, if some bullshit excuse like I didn’t mean for it to happen, or I was drunk, comes out of your mouth, I will come over there and beat the shit out of you.” Daisy cowered under Cammie’s threat. “Now get the hell out of here!”

Daisy turned and ran out of the kitchen, but the damage was done. My cheeks flamed with shame and embarrassment even though I didn’t know what I had to be ashamed or embarrassed by. They were the ones who’d done something wrong, but I was the one hurting for it.

“Do you want me to find someone to give you a ride home?”

“The limo,” I remembered. “The limo is still here.”

“Okay,” she said softly, nodding and handling me with kid gloves. “Do you want me to come with you?”

“No, you should stay. I just–I just want to be alone.”

“Okay, but call me if you change your mind. I’ll go make sure you have a clear path outside, and just ignore everyone. Don’t let them get to you. He’s the one who should be hiding his face, not you.”

I nodded and let her go and clear the way, but from the shouting that followed, I didn’t think she was successful. Jeremy was slurring curses and yelling my name and I couldn’t stand here and listen to it another second. The door leading out the back was open. I only paused long enough to grab the bottle of something gold out of Mike’s hand before escaping into the back yard. There were no fences to climb to get to the front and I would have made it clear of the house, but Jeremy was on the front porch, struggling with a couple of the guys to get back inside, until he spotted me cutting around the front. He broke free of them.

“Baby, wait, just let me explain.” He leapt of the porch.

I ignored his pleas for me to wait and wished Mike didn’t have such a long driveway and that the limo wasn’t parked so far down the street.

“Shaeleigh, stop!”

I didn’t, and a quick glance over my shoulder showed none of the guys were making a single move to pull him back. They were all willing to just let this play out at my expense. At the end of the drive there was a small cluster of guys and girls, their heads turned toward Jeremy chasing after me like some screwed up version of Cinderella gone horribly wrong. As I got closer, I recognized one of them.

I stopped. “Hey, it’s Jeff right?”

He nodded and separated himself from the pack.

“You’re friends with Kellen, aren’t you?”

Another curt nod. Not big on words, this guy.

“You want to do me a favor?”

He didn’t even need to ask me what I meant. A smile curled his lips and he handed his bottle off to his girlfriend, Sam I think was her name. Jeremy came stumbling to a stop just a few feet behind us.

“Shaeleigh, baby, just hear me out. It didn’t mean–”