Page 11 of The Pinkie Pact

"But you know what?" she asked, catching my attention again. "I kind of don't mind being the bratty little sister and letting Kieran have all the responsibility."

Laughing some more, I took a sip from my drink, watching as even more people filed in. But something about what she said struck me. Being the oldest child myself, I knew that pressure, the pressure of expectations. How many times had I watched my little brothers mess up and my parents had just let it go?

The music cranked up even louder, and the bar became like a living creature, people jammed together, moving to the beat.

"It's the Saturday before school starts. Every college kid in DC is out tonight," Kara yelled in my ear as she threw back the rest of her drink. "Come on. Let's dance."

I finished my drink and followed her. We squeezed our way into the crowd and found a little spot.

God, I loved this song. After two drinks, I was feeling it for sure. Kara and I danced together like we had last night. And within moments, I felt someone near my back. I whirled around to see a sexy, tan guy grinning down at me.

"Hey," he said.

For a split second, I hesitated. But what the hell? I didn't have to hook up with him. Maybe just dance a little. "Hey," I said, smiling back.

"Want to dance?" he asked.

"Sure."

I turned around to face Kara, letting my body fall back against the nameless guy. She wiggled her eyebrows at me and grinned, making me laugh as she started dancing with the girl squeezed up next to her.

And it was just a mass of bodies pushing and pulling together while the music pulsed through the bar. I felt the hot guy dancing up against me, our bodies grinding and moving together.

That old familiar feeling washed over me, and I could hardly believe it. I hadn't felt horny for a dude in a long time. Turning around to face him, I lifted my hands up, wrapping them around his neck, our bodies tight against each other.

His face was gorgeous, and his bright smile actually seemed really sweet. Crushed together, we danced for a long time, his hands exploring my back, arms, and hips but never any lower. But my body was kind of craving it. I wanted his hands on me.

What the hell? I had to wonder if it was this particular guy. Or maybe I was actually ready to move on fromthatnight. Whatever it was, I dug down deeper into it and danced up against this guy with everything in me, loving the amazing feeling of coming home to myself, returning tome.

"What's your name?" he asked right into my ear so I could hear him.

"Sky."

"I'm Bear," he said back.

What? "Bear? Like the animal?"

He laughed while nodding.

Confused as hell, I wanted to ask more, but it was impossible to talk. All words were lost as we kept on moving together to the sick beat, bodies gliding against each other. This dude named Bear was making me hot, something I worried I'd never feel again. Un-fucking-believable.

A year and a half ago, I wouldn't have hesitated to grab his hand and find some hidden spot. But even though I was feeling it, I wasn't there. Yet.

He wiped some sweat from his brow. "Can I get you a drink?" he shouted.

When I nodded, he grabbed my hand, but I held back a second to look at Kara and her girl whose face was bright red. Once I had their attention, the three of us followed Bear as the crowd seemed to part for him.

My big hot dude made his way right up to the bar and flagged down a busy bartender. "What does everyone want?"

"Beers?" I glanced at Kara and her friend who both nodded.

"Beer it is," Bear said, turning back around.

Kara and her girl held hands, and I wondered if she'd bring her back to our place. We hadn't exactly discussed our hook-up situation which we definitely needed to since our room was small with zero privacy.

That hadn't exactly stopped me and my roommates in the past. Sometimes, I'd passed out despite the slurping sounds from the bed near me. Or if I wasn't fucked up enough, I would go to a friend's room or the laundry room couch because the noises were just gross. I couldn't complain too much about it, though, because I'd done the exact same thing myself plenty of times.

Could I ever live in a dorm with my own separate bedroom? Next year, if I lived on campus, I'd make that a definite priority.

---