Chapter Ten

I wake up on top of Cameron with his arms wrapped around me.

It's the first time I've ever woken up before him. I stare at his face and try to commit every contour of it to memory. It takes control not to trace my fingers along his jaw, down the bridge of his broad nose, and across his plump lips. His hair has grown longer since we first met and wavy bronze curls fall into his face. A shadow of a beard outlines the outside of his jaw and it snakes up below his lip. How is it this handsome boy wants me?

I've stared long enough it's time to get up. I check to make sure the coast is clear. Then gingerly I roll off Cameron, so as not to wake him up, and cover him back up. Once I'm up vertical, I notice a light throb between my eyes. I squint at the morning sun which is making the ache worse. I'm experiencing my first hangover. Great.

It's mild and manageable, but not at all pleasant. I swipe up a strewn blanket and wrap it around myself. Why am I wearing a dirty blanket from off the ground? Because it's better than nothing. Which is what I'm wearing; nothing.

I search underneath the sofa for pieces of my bikini but I can't find it. I have a headache and moving my head around in the search makes it worse. I give up and head inside the house.

As quietly as possible, I slide open the glass doors to the house and creep inside. People are sleeping and scattered everywhere. Some on the floor laying in makeshift beds and others crammed on the couches.

Cautiously, I step over bodies and make my way to the hallway leading to the bedrooms. When I reach the room with my bag, I slowly open the door and peek inside. It's not the scene I'd expected. I was sure this room would be full.

Instead, there is only one person in the room, and she is sleeping comfortably on the bed. Courtney is sprawled out, using every corner of it. She's even in her pajamas. It's comical knowing there are several people on the floor just down the hall.

I crouch over my bag and pull out some clothes. I stand up and I'm met with a series of artificial shutters from Courtney's phone.

She is looking at her phone and grinning. "Walk of shame."

I scowl menacingly. She rolls her eyes, then looks back down at her phone. 

"Okay, okay. I'll delete it. You have no sense of humor." She says.

"If that ends up on the Dirty. I'll murder you." I say jokingly.

 No one would care if it did show up on the Dirty, but also I'm kind of serious. A ding comes from my bag. I glare at Courtney.

"What? I deleted it." She says innocently. "I sent you the Snap first, it's a good memory." Then she hops out of the bed. "I have a massive headache. I need coffee. Would you like one?"

"Yes, please." With a promise of caffeine, she has already been forgiven for her breach of privacy.

She winks at me, then leaves shutting the door behind her. I really need to learn to wink. I get dressed quickly pulling on a pair of skinny jeans and a t-shirt. I had brought a yellow sundress for the boat later today, but I feel too dirty to wear it. I step into the hallway and I'm about to pass the bathroom when I realize I badly need to relieve myself. I place a hand on the bathroom doorknob.

"Could you grab the Advil from the medicine cabinet?!" Courtney shouts from the kitchen. 

Her yell elicits a few groans and mumbles from the floor crashers. I wave at her in confirmation. I'm not as bold and I don't want to wake everyone.

I open the bathroom and again I'm met with a scene I don't expect to see. Two people are sleeping in the bathtub. Not any two people but James and Ari. They are fully clothed or at least Ari is. She is wearing an oversized shirt and some shorts. He's still shirtless and in swim trunks. James is laying against the tub and Ari is leaning back against him on his lap.

I should be happy for them. They look cute together. But I'm not. I can't pinpoint my feelings but it feels off; painfully wrong. There is a sharp ache in my chest.

I think a sound escapes my lips because Ari turns and groggily looks at me. She scrunches her face. Then in one swift motion, she leaps out of the bathtub and shoves her head in the toilet. The sound of retching and the sickly smell of vomit turns my stomach sour.

I try to hold back my own nausea that's forming at the pit of my stomach. I push it back and start towards her, but James is already there. He'd jumped out of the tub and is holding her hair back. His hands rub her back in small circular motions.

He does love her. Nothing said love like comforting someone while they puked their guts out. He doesn't even look grossed out.

Unfortunately, I am. If I didn't get out fast I would be fighting her for a front row seat to the toilet bowl. I reach into the medicine cabinet, find the bottle of Advil, and shut the door behind me.

There is now a clear pathway to the kitchen. People have already started to get up and collect themselves. I wonder if Courtney's shout had been more purposeful than I'd thought. Her version of a wake-up call.

Also, the energizing smell of coffee was starting to drift through the house. I walk over to the sink and fill up two cups of water for us to wash the pills down. I turn back toward Courtney, place a cup of water next to her, and open the Advil bottle. I shake a couple into my hand and put them in my mouth. I take a swallow of my water.

Courtney screams, "Oh my god!"

I jump in surprise and nearly choke on the pills. There are more groans from the floor crashers. I glare at her. Courtney is staring at her phone with a hand covering her mouth. She is by nature an extremely overdramatic human-being, it's part of her snarky charm but something about her expression scares me. It's real shock. It's also the same expression Kris and Katie have when a jaw-dropping post shows up on the Dirty.

Curious, I reach for her phone. She yanks it back and places it on her chest so I can't see it. It's strange and more than a little concerning. I'd never had someone not want to show me the Dirty. It's super sus. I reach for her phone again. She steps out of my reach and raises a hand to fend me off.

"Don't." She warns seriously.

Her expression now has me a hundred percent sure it's somehow about me. I'd done several things last night Dirty-worthy. I have to see it. Now.

Was it a picture of Cameron and me?

"I know you're reading a post on the Dirty. I'll just go get my phone."

I look at her sternly and hold out my hand. She searches my face; looking helpless. Then she sighs, unlocks her phone, and places it in my outstretched hand.

The latest post on the Dirty, was uploaded by an anonymous user. I'd half expected to see Kris and Katie's name, but they'd never have posted anonymously. They would have wanted the glory.

Courtney's gaze is boring into me. Which I don't understand because the post isn't about me. It's a picture of Ari sitting in the center of the bed drunkenly smiling at the camera in her red bikini. What's concerning about the photo is there are four guys on the bed behind her. They are making a series of goofy poses all of them in states of half dress. It was a pool party. It wasn't completely out of place.

I recognize all the guys in the photo. Two of them are Cameron's frat brothers. One of which is the guy Dechlan had pummeled. In the photo, he is rocking a bloody lip and large bruise forming on his face. The third guy is John. And the fourth is Cameron.

I look up at Courtney and her eyes are still staring at me like a deer in headlights. It's really not that bad of a photo. I've seen worse. They took a picture in an awkward location. I trusted Cameron and Ari. No big deal. I scroll down to the next picture.

This time it's much worse and I feel terrible for Ari. It's a photo of John making out with Ari on the bed. It's intimate and personal. I'd seen them a moment before they had entered the bedroom. Again, someone had invaded her personal life. Ari had dealt with worse she would get past this post as well. Then I scroll down again to the next picture.

A boulder drops in the pit of my stomach and I feel dizzy.

I look at Courtney again, this time I'm in shock. She puts her hand out for her phone. I don't give it back but clutch it tightly in my hand. Then I run towards the bathroom.

I slam the door open. It crashes loudly against the wall.

Ari is kneeling by the toilet and falls back into a seated position. Startled she turns to look at me. 

"Holy fuck, Chica! You scared the shit out of me."

I ignore her crude exploitive and James's astonished expression. I shove the phone out for them to see. Courtney reaches for her phone behind me, but I swat her away.

Ari scrunches her face in confusion and squints at the phone. 

"I can't see it from here."

I throw the phone at Ari.

Courtney squeals in concern as the phone leaves my fingers. Her concern is either for Ari or the phone, I'm not sure which. I don't know if I'd been intentionally aiming for Ari's face or if it's just the direction the phone went when I'd flung it.

It doesn't matter, Ari's reflexes are fast, and she snatches it out of the air. Both her face and the phone are unharmed. She looks down at the screen and scrolls. She stares silently at the phone. James is peering over her shoulder and goes rigid.

 However, Ari doesn't move. She's deadly quiet and continues to gawk at the phone. Finally, she looks up at me and our eyes meet.

She opens her mouth. No words come out.

Then she swallows and says in a low whimper, "I am so sorry."

TBC...Chapter Ten.

The cliff-hanger doe...mmm I might update again this weekend. Depends on how many people I upset. 

As always thanks for reading Lovelies ❤️❤️