Page 46 of The Pass
Jonah comes back with Willow at his side. She seems nice and I don’t think she’s actually trying to piss off my girl, but Sydney stiffens as Willow takes the seat across from me.
“Are you as good at quarters as you are everything else?” she asks, setting her drink on the table in front of her.
“I’m not sure. It’s been awhile since I played.”
Jonah places a glass in the middle of the table and pops the tab on a beer. He fills it about three quarters of the way. “Who wants to start?”
No one immediately volunteers, but Willow is the first to give. “I’ll go.”
Jonah slides a quarter down the table. We go all the way around the table once without anyone making it.
“Well, this is going to be the most boring game ever,” Jonah says at the same moment Willow takes her second turn and drops the quarter in the glass.
“Fuck, that’s coming to me, isn’t it?” he asks Willow as she laughs and then passes him the glass.
Willow makes it two more times, forcing me to drink and then Richard.
“You get to make a rule,” Steve reminds her.
“Hmmm…” She places a finger on her chin. Her nails are painted yellow and the bright color makes me think of Sydney. Hers are currently white and I wonder if that was also for me. “I’m banning the word drink. If you say the banned word then you have to take a...” Instead of saying the word she motions with her hand like she’s taking a drink.
I’m incredibly good at avoiding the word drink in all its variations from playing this game with Datson and our teammates. I learned the way everyone does—the super painful, incredibly drunk way where you pass out downstairs in the middle of the party.
And Sydney’s been present for a lot of those games, too, so we get to sit back and laugh as everyone continually trips up and is forced to drink. Richard is especially bad, but the tipsier he gets the more handsy he gets, and Jonah doesn’t seem like he minds.
Sydney leans over, her blonde hair acting like a curtain to hide her face from everyone else. “Where’s the bathroom?”
“I’ll show you.” I push my chair back and stand. “We’ll be right back.”
There’s a bathroom on the main floor, but there’s a line of girls waiting for it, so I take her upstairs.
“Second door on the left.” I hang back at the top of the stairs and let her go ahead.
“Thanks.”
I pull out my phone and take a seat on the top stair. Tara called again tonight and left a message for me to call her back so we can make plans for the Fourth. We always do it up big with a party at the house. The last three years have been awesome, and I want this year to be even better.
I shoot Tara a quick text to promise I’ll call her soon. I don’t hear the bathroom door open or Sydney approaching before her fingers slide over my eyes. I could tell it was her even if she weren’t the only other person up here. I’m highly attuned to her touch.
“Eww. Your hands are wet.”
“At least you know I washed them.” She takes a seat next to me on the stairs. “This house is amazing. What do Jonah’s parents do?”
“His dad is a judge. I can’t remember if he’s ever said what his mom does.”
“How did you two meet?”
“We played against each other in high school and AAU. The first weekend I came down here three years ago I ran into him. I couldn’t place him, but knew I recognized him from somewhere. Luckily, he remembered me.” I shrug. “That was pretty much it. I don’t hear from him during the year, but as soon as I get to the lake each summer, we fall back into hanging out. He’s a good guy.”
“Like us,” she says. “We don’t usually hang out during school breaks, but when we’re at Valley, we always fall back together.”
“Not exactly like that.” I slide my hand up her leg to her hip and bring my lips to hers. She opens for me immediately and I waste no time sweeping my tongue in her mouth and tasting her. Sydney kisses like it’s a competitive sport and she is a gold medal winner every single time.
We’re interrupted by someone coming up the stairs and reluctantly, I stand and we head back down. I really don’t feel like playing quarters or generally being around anyone but Sydney.
“I have an idea. You game?” I squeeze her hand.
Without even asking for more details she agrees, and with a little creativity and fast thinking, I’m able to mostly create the first date I had planned. I grab all the supplies and lead her into the garage. We sit on the workout bench facing one another.
