Something Like Rain (Something Like... Book 8) (38 page)

“So is Jason,” William said proudly. “You’re going to love him.”

“He can’t be worse than the last one. Ding dong! The witch is dead!”

“I liked Kelly!” William protested, grabbing a belt and shutting the closet door.

“Even though he scared us off?”

“That sucked,” he admitted, weaving leather between loops of denim. “I’m still bummed that Abby moved away.”

“To Iowa, of all places,” Lily said with a grimace. “Holly is doing the born-again thing. I tried hanging out with her once, but I really don’t like her new friends. If I’m honest, all we really had in common was our friendship with Abby.”

William exhaled. “Man… I missed out on so much.”

“But now you’re back,” Lily said, shaking invisible pompoms. “And just in time for prom! Has Jason asked you?”

“I asked him,” William said, cheeks flushing. “He’s not in school anymore so—”

“Hey hey, an older man!”

“Just by little, but yeah.”

“Show me some photos!”

“He’ll be here any second,” William said. “Besides, I don’t have any.”

“Not even on your phone?”

“None at all.” He thought of how important those early photos of Ben and Tim were now and promised himself to correct the oversight. “I haven’t taken any because—well, just think of how Kelly would have reacted.”

“Good point,” Lily said. “Describe him to me.”

“Jason? Brown hair, blue eyes, cute smile.”

Lily pantomimed a yawn. “Fascinating.”

“Fine, let’s hear you describe yours.”

“Deal. Isaac is John Cusack hot, say from around the
High Fidelity
era. He’s got that black hair and pale skin combo that drives me wild, a hairy chest, and down below…” She held out her index fingers, both pointed straight up and moving farther apart, like describing a fish she had caught. And boy was it a whopper!

“You’re so bad!” he said, shaking his head.

“It’s a perfectly natural interest,” Lily said unabashedly, sitting on his bed. “So what about Jason?”

“What about him?”

“How big is his thing?”

William shook his head. “Don’t even go there! And I’m pretty sure Isaac wouldn’t like you telling everyone about his!”

“You clearly haven’t met him yet.”

The doorbell rang. They looked at each other.

“Yours or mine?” Lily asked.

They listened to his mother giggling happily.

“Mine,” William said. “She’s crazy about Jason.”

“You weren’t kidding!” Lily said when they heard more tittering. “Sounds like she’s the one going on a date!”

William grinned and waited by the bedroom door. He felt a little intimidated about introducing Jason to Lily, especially since she was in a naughty mood, but when he heard the stairs creaking and footsteps approached, he threw open the door and all doubt dissipated. Jason wore a pair of tan cargo pants and a dark brown dress shirt, the top button undone. His hair was mussed to perfection, the chestnut tangle covering his brow. This only made his blue eyes stand out more. Currently they were locked onto him like he was the only man in existence.

“Hi,” William managed. “You look cool.”

Jason made a face, then started laughing. “You’re adorable,” he responded, giving him a quick peck on the lips. Then he noticed they weren’t alone. “You must be Lily!”

“Hello there!” she said with a wave. She used the same hand to fan herself theatrically when Jason turned to face him once more.

“Am I late?”

“You’re right on time,” William said, checking his watch. “That’s worth extra points.”

“Score!” Jason said. “So am I driving? I couldn’t get the Bentley. No surprise, considering what happened last time.”

“Isaac will drive,” Lily said. “He has a nice car. Wait, did you say a Bentley?”

“I’m a millionaire,” Jason replied. “William didn’t mention that?”

“He’s a liar is what he is,” William said. “I thought we were past this!”

Jason’s face fell. “I was joking!”

“So was I.”

Jason recovered, playfully nudging him. William counterattacked by tickling his ribs, their faces getting nearer. Then he remembered Lily and looked over at her.

“Pretend I’m not here!” she said. “I’m totally into this. Oh!” She pulled out her phone. “Isaac is out front. Says we should meet him there.”

They piled down the stairs and outside. Parked alongside the curb was an old Mustang in serious need of restoration. On one corner of the hood sat a guy with swept-back black hair. William shook his hand when they were introduced, trying very hard not to think of something very large while doing so. Unlike Jason’s innocent smooch a few minutes ago, Isaac and Lily’s kiss involved tongue and lasted the better part of a minute.

“So,” Jason said, “I take it you guys have met before?”

“Yeah,” Isaac said with a dry chuckle. “Lily’s my girl! How long has it been now? Three weeks?”

“Yup!” She shot William a wink. “We go way back.”

Their date continued in the mundane style that William had been enjoying lately. They went to a pizza place, and while they ate, mostly listened to Isaac talk about the thrash metal band he hoped to start. He only needed willing participants.

“Jason can play guitar,” William supplied helpfully.

“Really?” Isaac asked, leaning across the table. “Man, that’s great!”

“Acoustic only,” Jason said hurriedly, playfully slugging William’s leg under the table. “And I’m really slow. I couldn’t thrash to save my life. Sorry.”

Afterwards they went to the movies, the ticket agent selling them on a special advance screening. None of them had heard of the movie, not that it mattered because Lily and Isaac spent most of it making out. William found this distracting, but the movie made him uneasy too, since it was about an orphan who gets adopted by a family and starts doing horrific things to them.

Halfway through the film, Jason shot to his feet, moving down the aisle. William hurried to follow. “Hey,” he whispered. “I’m sorry. I didn’t know it would be so offensive.”

Jason looked over his shoulder in puzzlement. “Are you kidding? This is the greatest movie ever made!” He plopped down into an empty seat. “I can’t hear half the words over their slobbering, that’s all.”

William sat next to him, stifling a laugh. “So the movie is accurate? This is what your life was like?”

“Absolutely,” Jason whispered back. “Especially the stuff about seducing hot dads. I used to do that
all the time
.”

He took William’s hand, attention on the screen until the next scene ended. Then he tilted his head closer. “I freaking love horror movies!”

I freaking love you!
William thought, wishing they were in the kind of seats made for cuddling. He settled for shooting the occasional glance in Jason’s direction, adoring his easy smile and quiet chuckle each time something really gruesome happened. When the movie ended and they stumbled out into the parking lot, Jason seemed eager to discuss the plot, but clearly he’d been the only one really paying attention.

“You guys suck,” he said. “That was an advance screening! We should feel honored!”

“I felt something!” Isaac cackled.

“Yourself,” Lily said, “and that’s all you’ll feel if you keep bragging.”

“Sorry, babe.”

“So what’s next?” William asked before they could start making out again.

Isaac tossed his keys in the air and caught them again. “Let’s go for a drive!”

Lily and Jason both seemed eager, so William agreed, hiding his reluctance. He soon regretted this decision. The backseat of the Mustang was so cramped he had to sit at an angle, and Isaac drove like a maniac, picking up speed as they left the city and headed east. Between the roar of the engine and the thrash metal pumping from the speakers, conversation was impossible, leaving William with nothing to distract him from the potential accidents he kept imagining. He was embarrassed by his sweaty palms when Jason took his hand, and was relieved when Jason patted his lap, inviting William to lay his head there. This involved some serious twisting and squirming, but he managed, feeling much better when he could close his eyes and focus on the gentle stroking of his hair.

He sat up again when the car stopped, the engine and music shutting off simultaneously. Not much could be seen outside the windows besides shadows and trees.

“Where are we?”

“The middle of nowhere,” Isaac replied, leaning forward to peer up through the windshield. “Check out the stars.”

William couldn’t see the sky from the backseat, but he was glad they were no longer in motion. He was about to ask what they were doing here when Lily murmured something to Isaac and they began kissing again. He looked over at Jason, who shrugged as if to say
why not
? Even though he felt a little awkward kissing so close to another couple, he still reveled in tasting a hint of buttered popcorn on Jason’s lips and the tang of his cologne when nipping at his neck. Another smell soon overpowered those he had been enjoying, and man was it pungent!

William pulled away in confusion and saw a glowing ember being held out toward him. A joint! Isaac was fighting against exhaling, trying to communicate with facial expression alone.

“Oh. Uh…” William was tempted to indulge, but his urge to be a normal teenager stopped when it came to compromising his career with the Coast Guard. “I can’t. Not that I mind! You guys go ahead.” He looked at Jason, the joint offered to him now.

“I’m feeling pretty high already,” Jason said, beaming at him. “No thanks.”

That was sweet, and had William feeling all bubbly inside, but it also triggered another thought. The car interior wasn’t exactly airy. What if being in here was enough to actually
get
high? Isaac had turned to Lily again, so William moved closer to Jason. When they kissed, he held his breath at the same time, not wanting to inhale. Pretty soon he was gasping.

Jason pulled back in puzzlement. “You okay?”

William moved his lips to Jason’s ear, keeping his voice down. “Do you think a contact high would show up on a drug test?”

“No idea,” came the whispered response.

“I really
really
can’t get high. Seriously!”

Jason searched his eyes, then thunked the seat in front of him. “Hey, let us out. William and I are going for a walk.”

Isaac was happy to comply, smiling at them like he knew exactly what they wanted to do. William had no such plans. Once free of the vehicle, he sucked in fresh air eagerly. Then he glanced up. Away from the glow of the city, the sky was filled with hundreds of tiny pinpricks, lights beaming through a dark void and offering hope.

“That’s crazy beautiful,” Jason said. “I haven’t seen the stars like that since I went camping ages ago.”

“It’s gorgeous,” William breathed. “I’ve heard it’s always like this in the middle of the ocean. At night, anyway.”

“You better hope so or you won’t be able to steer your ship.”

He laughed. “The Coast Guard has more modern navigation equipment than that.”

“Oh yeah?”

“Yeah. They have rolls and rolls of maps, and a pocket telescope we all get to share.”

“Very impressive,” Jason said, grinning at him. He nodded to the car, the interior getting foggier by the second. “That’s why you needed to leave, isn’t it? Because of the Coast Guard.”

“Yeah,” he said, waiting for Jason to roll his eyes or chastise him for being square.

Instead he looked back to the sky. “Cool. I thought you got accepted already.”

“I did, but random drugs tests are… random. You can get high if you want. I don’t mind.”

Jason shook his head. “I’ve never been into that sort of stuff. I’ve tried a few times, and yeah, it’s fun, but I could never afford it. Cigarettes, booze, and drugs are for people with money. More money than me, anyway.”

William could think of plenty of people who couldn’t afford those habits but managed anyway, but he liked that Jason had priorities. “So what now?”

“Let’s go for a stroll.”

William glanced around. Isaac had parked on a dirt road next to a line of thick trees. To their left was a barbed-wire fence and farmland. Only a waning moon provided useful light. The idea of walking in any direction made him feel spooked, but Jason had his hand extended in invitation, and that was all the encouragement he needed.

“Where are we?” William asked.

“No idea,” Jason admitted.

“How long do you think it would take to walk home?”

“Hours.” Jason looked over at him. “You don’t do so well in cars. I thought it was my driving that bugged you the last few times, but it’s not. Is it?”

“No,” William admitted. “Ever since the accident— Ugh! That’s the last thing I want to talk about right now.”

“We don’t have to,” Jason said, swinging their arms playfully. “I’m just confused because you’re the guy who wants to jump from helicopters, which sounds way worse than driving around Austin. And then there’s boats. I’m picturing waves. Really big ones. It’ll be like a roller coaster. Hey! Do you like those?”