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Nina

“Have another shot!”

Carrie screamed the words into my ear, but I barely flinched Heck, I could barely hear her over the thundering, thu us in the dim, sultry blue-lit club

I could already feel the effects of the first sugary-sweet shot she’d forced on uely of lehmy head spin a little with heady rush of the alcohol Orall around us But it was probably the drink

I’d say I didn’t norary shot I’d just doasthe half-warm beer that Teddy Genaro convinced ed ross, but Teddy trying to put his hands up rosser So,was cut pretty short when I’d slapped his hand away and walked home in a huff

But Carrie? And Lauren, and Kendra? Well, they were a different breed Carrie was e Lauren and Kendra were two other girls ere pledging Delta Pi Kappa along with Carrie, and this was certainly not their first tiled at the way the guy she’d justpast the hem of her skirt, I was pretty confident they’d done a whole lot of that before too

Clubs were notup with la with Carrie as to why I couldn’t or wouldn’t go out with her for the night, I guess I finally ran out of excuses

Well, that and… well, that

What I’d seen four days before

I shookto knock the memories and the visuals of that scene fro wickedly at me like she couldn’t wait to further corrupt me She pressed another of the sickly-sweet lemon-vanilla shots into my hands, and this time, I didn’t even hesitate I knocked it back,hot as the alcohol slid down irls cheered and snapped pictures, like this was some sort of occasion

My blood pumped hotter as the shot settled into my stomach, and I forced a ses

The sounds

The side street I had no business walking down that late at night, all alone Theup at the threearound hihing as he pointed the gun at the ht in my head that this couldn’t be real—that this must be a movie shoot that I’d stuuns to other people’s foreheads in dark alleys in real life, right?

But then there was the shot, and the loudest sound I’ve ever heard And the blood, everywhere I was barely aware of the screa past me as I turned and ran I ran faster than I’d ever run in ht in my throat until I made it back to campus

That was five days ago, and not a one by when I didn’t feel like there was a shadow behind inary sound of a gun going off

So, yeah, that’s why I’d run out of excuses for why I wouldn’t coht, I was done with the feeling of dread that I couldn’t escape That night, I was trying Carrie’s way I was done being the good girl, and I was going to get drunk—real good and drunk I was going to follow these girls’ leads and let o

And maybe that’s what I needed Maybe that’s what it would take to finally just forget about what I’d seen

Another shot was pressed into , and my face felt hot God, hing, and even if I kind of got the feeling that they were laughing at uessing I just ith it

So across ain really feeling how out of place I was How not “ht then The tiny tank top that ended about four inches under my breasts The strappy heels The ridiculous short little skirt thatstep All of it borrowed from Carrie, of course, since this was a hundredeven close to what I’d usually ever wear She’d even o out with her earlier and buy the underwear I earing—this ridiculously fli