“Jordan!” she called back excitedly. Bea didn’t seem to notice his closeness at all. She reached out and touched his arm, pausing her dancing motion as she did so. “Uhg, you’re all wet. What the fuck?” She hardly noticed that he pulled the strip of candy from what little bosom the crazy dude in the sky had given her until he took a bite from it. “Well, that was my drinking straw.” She laughed lightly. Her facial features were much more animated as well as her tone of voice.
‘It’s a pool party, Bea.’ Jordan rolled his eyes and grinned. ‘Get with it! The water’s great though. If I hadn’t spotted a little drunk girl getting herself in trouble, I’d still be in there.’ The drink seemed to have done her good- he could barely see a hint of the shy, reserved Bea that he normally hung out with. Though over the past week she had opened up a little, she still normally stumbled over her words and struggled sometimes to talk. It seemed all it took was a few drops of booze and she was the life of the party.
“You move like cardboard. I’ve found alcohol does wonders for a boy’s dancing. Here have some tequila…” She paused to drunkenly squint at the bottle. “Well fuck, this is mezcal. Anyway, let…” she squinted at the bottle again and held back a giggle with her fingers. She raised her brown eyes filled with tears of mirth to meet his blues. “Uncle fucking Nacho help.” She held the label out to show him that it did, in fact, say ‘Tio Nacho’ on the cheap sticker.
‘Cardboard? I’ll have you know my dancing’s won awards, thank you very much. ‘Shittiest Dancer’ two years running at my old school ball. That’s some prestigious shit.’ Youtube salsa videos only taught you so much, and Jordan cocked up another simple step, stumbling as he tried to plant his foot in a puddle of water. Recovering, he latched onto the bottle Bea had procured. The clear liquid sloshed around the bottom of the bottle- there were only a few sips left.
‘God, you’ve really been getting into this, haven’t you?’ he grinned at her. The lid took only a twist to get off and he swigged down the last of good old Uncle Nacho. The buzz hit him instantly- this stuff was slightly more potent than the punch he’d been at earlier. ‘Am I moving better?’ he swung his hips teasingly and held out a hand above her head. ‘Come on darl, give us a twirl.’ She’d given him a brief lesson on spinning the previous day at school, which had consisted mostly of him fucking up and sending her flying around.
Bea let herself have a grand laugh. Had he always been this funny? Or maybe she was just drunk enough that his jokes were starting to make some sort of sense. She matched his steps stride for stride, her hips naturally moving as they should due more to muscle memory than any sort of true coherence. “You are… something,” she replied with a teasing smile. She took his hand and allowed him to spin her around and then back before being pulled against him.
Well, Jordan was a something, whatever that meant. Hopefully something good. Somehow managing the spin, he pulled Bea close to him in a technique he had learned the name of yesterday and instantly forgot. Her head smooshed against his chest, the height difference meaning her face was buried just below his pecs.
“Oh shit. Fuck, the world needs to stop moving.” She buried her face against his chest and wrapped her arms around his waist. “Mmm… You make a great anchor.” And he was warm. All wet, but his body heat felt quite pleasant.
They held the embrace for a few seconds, her hands on his waist and his around her back before Bea started swaying slightly. ‘I don’t think the world’s moving. Not for most of us at least. How much have you had to drink, exactly?’ He reluctantly took an arm away from Bea’s back to steady her and raise the empty bottle. ‘This stuff looks like it would get you fucked up pretty quick.’
“I dunno… I’ve had some shots. The bottle was mostly empty when I got it. But I didn’t exactly pace myself.” She moved her hands up his arms as the dizziness began to catch up with her. She closed her eyes and placed one of her hands over her face. “I think I should lay down.” Bea was looking a bit pale.
‘I think that’s a good idea.’ Hopefully, some shots hadn’t been too many, cause Jordan was in no way ready to start cleaning vomit off his shoes. He hooked his hands under Bea’s arms to keep her steady before looking around for somewhere to take her. He’d passed a couch earlier, but it looked like it had become a deposit for empties. ‘Let’s go back to your truck. You can have a lie-down and pray you aren’t massively hungover tomorrow.’ He put an arm around her back and they took off on a stumbling walk across the patio.
“Yeah, that's a good idea.” Bea allowed him to guide her through the mess of bodies. It was hard to keep track of where things were and her feet didn’t seem to understand that they were touching the ground so she stumbled a bit. A lot. The lights and the distance were blurred by her drunken vision. It made it all the harder to keep herself upright. Finally, she paused and looked up toward Jordan. She lifted her arms, much like a toddler and said in a silly, whiny voice, “Carry me.” She added a pout to perfect the moment before she smiled wide and laughed. “Kidding. I just need to stop a second.” Bea leaned heavily against her friend.
For a second Jordan considered swinging her over his shoulder. Then he remembered the empty bottle... and the shots. He took Bea’s breather to glance around the party. It seemed to be winding down a little- there were less outrageous pool dives than earlier and the crowd around the beer pong tables set up at the far side was thinning. He even noticed ball-kick guy propped up against a wall with a handle of vodka. Smirnoff was famous for nutshot recovery, apparently. ‘I’ll carry you if you really want,’ Jordan shrugged. At that height, she couldn’t weigh any more than forty kilos, far less than the weights he regularly swung around at the gym.
Her eyes widened as she stared up at him. Really? Be carried? There was an inner turmoil going through her brains. She wouldn’t have to try and stumble around. But he would be touching her and very close to her face. It was then she realized that she was already touching him. A lot in fact. She lifted her arms up again with a shy smile. “Yes please.”
Jordan grinned. ‘Here, swing your arms around my neck.’ He had to bend down almost to the ground to scoop her up, carrying her securely with his arms around her back and knees. ‘Don’t fall!’ he teased. ‘And don’t throw up on me.’ Luckily Santiago’s house was massive and open spaced. Despite Bea’s size, it wouldn’t have been fun trying to maneuver her through cramped corridors.
She laughed in delight as he lifted her up and readily wrapped her arms around his neck. “Wow, so this is what the world looks like from up here, huh?” she teased back. It was much easier to calm her dizzy head by looking at his face up close. He was quite as good looking as she had originally thought. She could see the lines of his features as well as his eyelashes from here. Lifting one of her hands she traced the line of his nose. It was well structured and she flushed before pressing her face against his neck and holding on tightly.
‘Are you poking my nose?’ The alcohol had gotten her touchy it seemed. He laughed, and she hid her face back against his neck, her cheeks red. The brush had been short, but her touch was soft and delicate. He’d never really carried anyone like this before. It brought back memories of his own dad taking sleepy Jordan back to bed from the car seat after a road trip. He’d probably been the same size as Bea back then too. The only difference was most of the time at least, ten-year-old Jords hadn’t been smashed on mezcal. That was in the past though, and this was the present.
She could feel his laughter through her fingers. It was a deep vibration. But rather than making her feel more embarrassed it was somewhat calming. “Nope, testing your bone structure,” she responded in her usual lazy tone.
‘Where’s your truck?’ he said, swinging around to try to catch sight of the slightly rusted cream and brown ute.
“It’s.. I dunno, over there in the drive somewhere.” She pointed in the general direction she thought it might be before resting the hand against his chest and revealing her embarrassed drunky face. “By some sporty looking thing.”
The streetlights had been on for hours now, and they gave off a harsh white light that created a strange, misshapen shadow of the two of them stretching across the pavement. They passed the ‘sporty thing,’ a white car that looked like it cost more than a house. Inside, he could make out the vague silhouette of a girl with her head in her hands. There were only so many girls he could help that night. He didn’t mention her and they kept walking.
‘Well, here we are.’ The truck was parked a few spots away from the sports car, in stark contrast with it’s rusted, flaking paint. ‘We’ve both had a few too many to be driving anywhere though. What do you want to do?’
This was so oddly comfortable. She had no desire to be put down. A sober Bea would have kicked and wiggled while holding on tight so not to be dropped. However, now she just wanted to take a nap. The tiny, curly-haired girl lifted her head and looked at the familiar sight of her beloved truck. “I’ve got blankets and pillows and stuff for when I go stargazing. We can rest for a while before driving back. They’re in a lock box in the back of the bed.” She stifled a yawn with her hand but didn’t seem to make any sort of move to be put down. “Sound good?”
‘Sounds good. Got a key for it?’ He asked, looking at the sizable padlock.
“Oh, yeah.” She had to leverage herself using his shoulders with one of her arms while the other pulled the fanny pack up. Carefully she unzipped it so that nothing would fall out and removed the keys. Briefly setting them in her lap she zipped her pouch back up and held up the key that would open the box from the mass of other keys and decorative mess of keychains that shared the ring. “Here. Ah. I guess I should get down huh?” Bea lifted her brown eyes to meet his blues and smiled awkwardly.
Jordan tried for an unsuccessful moment to grapple with the key while still holding onto the girl before giving up. ‘Unfortunately, this is where the fun ends,’ he grinned, reluctantly untangling his arm from beneath her knees and placing her back onto the sidewalk. The lock clicked with a turn of the key, and the open lid revealed an array of the promised blankets. He grabbed the largest and fluffiest looking, pulled it free and handed it to Bea. Turning back to replace the padlock, he noticed two bottles of alcohol packed under the space he’d taken the blanket.
‘Your secret supply, eh? Guess we’ve gone a bit too far to go back to hitting the bottles. Let’s get this blanket down.’ The beach was only a few steps away from the asphalt of the street, and he shook the blanket out before settling it down in the sand.
She steadied herself against her truck as he removed the blanket. She accepted it into her arms and it engulfed her. She peeked out over the top as he mentioned the alcohol she kept there. “I mean, I’m driving so I have to sober up. You can have some if you want.” The blanket was relieved from her hands and she accepted the keys back. She unlocked her truck and removed her sweater before closing and locking the door again.
‘Nah, I’ve had my fill for the night.’ He sprawled out on the blanket, his hands behind his head as he stared at the starry night sky. Diablo had chosen a good night for the party at least- there was no wind and the air was warm enough, though it was cooling down quickly now the sun had gone down. The sound of the waves was a nice backdrop to it all, the slow rollers crashing onto the beach.
A very wobbly Bea followed him to the sand and she pulled her sweater over her head. As it settled over her slender frame a picture of the Thundercats was revealed. The girl plopped down unceremoniously onto the blanket, tucked away her keys and pulled out her phone to send a quick text to her dads letting her know that she was alright and they would be leaving in a while. That was tucked safely away as well as she stretched out, stomach down, on all of that wonderful fluff. “Did you have fun?” she asked lightly, looking up at him with sleepy eyes.
‘Fun? Oh yeah. Had some drink, had a nice bit of salsa. Carried a drunk down the road. And now I’m chilling on a beautiful beach on a beautiful night. Life’s good, huh?’ He turned his head to smile at the smaller girl. They were quite close- even on the largest of Bea’s blankets, he doubted she’d considered needing space for someone else the size of him. Although it didn’t really compare to the proximity they’d shared just before with her in his arms. ‘And how was your night? Besides the best dance of your life, of course.’
She smiled absently as she listened to him speak. The deep timbre of his voice matched well with the sound of the lazy waves crashing onto the shore. Bea tucked her arms beneath her chin as she watched him. The light cast shadows over his face and she once again found herself admiring it. The way his light lashes touched his cheek with each blink, the way his lips moved, and how each word made the shadows around him dance.
Bea laughed lightly at his comment about the best dance but it was immediately quieted when she remembered what had happened earlier. “Uhm.. it was a bit strange,” she admitted shyly and had to look away from him in order to say anything. She watched the waves lap against the shore. “I gave Santiago a present for hosting the party and we shared a shot. And then…” Her bronzed cheeks deepened with her blush. It even colored the tips of her ears. “And then he kissed me. Twice.” Her brows furrowed as she buried her face in her arms. “It was so weird. My heart did all sort of weird things and was beating really hard. And I couldn’t think. It felt… nice I guess. I dunno. And then he said to find him if I wanted more but I don’t know what that was supposed to fucking mean. I wasn’t the one who kissed him.” After a few moments of silence she revealed a very embarrassed and confused expression. “I barely know him. Why would he? I don’t get it. I’m not even his type.” Tears pricked at the corners of her eyes and she nibbled at her lower lip. She remembered the kiss again and her face grew hotter so she was forced to hide it.
‘Santiago kissed you?’ Jordan had a brief grin at Bea’s embarrassed reaction, even as jealousy flared. ‘Doesn’t he have a girlfriend?’ A brief connection sprouted now between the aforementioned girlfriend, race car driver, and the girl he’d seen earlier in the sports car. The admission had him speechless for a moment. While going around kissing random girls didn’t seem like odd behavior for the party host, targeting the short, awkward girl seemed more of a cruel tease than anything real. He put a comforting arm around Bea’s shoulders.
‘Who knows with that guy. He seems crazy most of the time.’ Shit, now Bea was crying. What was with Santiago and messing around with girl’s hearts? A brief rush of anger came to him now. ‘He’s probably just being a twat like usual. I wouldn’t think anything of it.’ A small, lecherous thought ate at him though. He had to ask. ‘Unless you liked it. Did you?’ Hopefully, Bea had better sense than to go falling for him.
She stiffened slightly when he touched her but immediately relaxed as she revealed her face once more. Bea rested her cheek against her arms. When had his face gotten so close? It was delightful to see it this way and made her heart do a little flamenco. He was being so very nice. Such a nice person. When he asked about whether she had liked it Bea had to avert her gaze. “Uhm… I little I guess. I wouldn’t mind if he did it again.” she chewed her lower lip, hoping he wouldn’t make fun of her for it. “He used to have a girlfriend but they broke up. He’s single now.”
‘Just give him more of your presents and he’ll be right back on you for sure. I’ll bet he’s a kiss whore for booze.’
Bea’s eyes widened in horror. Shaking her head so her curls bounced she responded, “Oh no, I don’t think I want that.” As much as she had enjoyed the kiss and wouldn’t mind another she was not about to go searching out such a scary person. He had been nice about the whole ordeal but she didn’t trust the boy as far as she could throw him. She enjoyed the sleepy silence between them with only the waves whispering their hymn to the night.
Then, suddenly, Bea remembered what came next. “And then I had a fight with Mara. She is my best friend. I don’t remember much about it, it’s hard to grasp. But she’s my best friend since we were like fucking toddlers. I feel so bad.”
A kiss and a fight, recipe for a dramatic night. ‘It’ll be fine. It’s what happens at these parties- everyone gets drunk, does some shit they shouldn’t have, and forgive each other by tomorrow morning. I’ll bet Mara knows it was the shots talking, not you.’
He was probably right about Mara. They had been through thick and thin together. “Thank you.” she whispered and her worried, flushed expression turned to one of relaxed and relieved but still very much covered in a blush. Reaching out one of her hands, Bea lightly brushed some of his hair back from his face. “Your dip in the pool messed up all my hard work,” she said with a playful pout.
Bea’s touch was slightly unexpected, her small hand shifting the wet, tangled locks off of his forehead. ‘Ah well. Good things can’t last forever I guess. Even if they’re as good as that hairstyle.’ He laid there in a second for silence, content with an arm under Bea’s head and a throw pillow under his. Content until a curious thought came through.
‘Was he your first? Santiago?’ He asked.
The question surprised her. “No… He’s not.” Her voice was very small and quiet and she frowned as if she had tasted something horrible. “There was another boy once. A few years ago.” She turned her face from him to look out toward the dark ocean. Her brows her furrowed as she sucked on her lower lip. Maybe it was the booze, but she was suddenly feeling rather ill thinking about the boy to whom she had given those precious firsts.
Jordan had a thoughtful expression. ‘Do you want to talk about it?’ He turned his head to lock eyes with the smaller girl. ‘I guess it’s a bit of a touchy subject. I’ll shut up if you want.’ She’d already teared up, and he wasn’t keen on setting her off.
Bea was surprised by the burst of hot tears that began to run down her face. She sat up wiping them away with the heel of her palms. “Ah, no sorry. I’ll tell you another time. I’d rather not think about it right now.” She smeared a bit of the eyeliner her fathers had placed on her and she tried her best to wipe the black from her cheek. “Fuck. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to become a blubbery mess.” She laughed as she looked down at him.
‘It’s okay.’ He gave her a hopefully reassuring smile. ‘We all have stuff in our past we don’t like thinking about. We can just lay here, looking at the stars if you don’t want to talk.’
The young woman smiled and sniffled as she dried up the last of those stupid tears. “Yeah, I’d really like that.” Bea lay back down, this time very close to him so she could soak up a bit of that body warmth. Though it was still summer the tiny dancer was quite sensitive to the cold. It was quiet and soft. Gentle. She was surprised at how comfortable she could feel with a boy as all the while her heart was doing this wild jig inside of her chest that she couldn’t quite explain. Due to the streetlight, she could not make out as many stars as when she went into the country. But they still twinkled down upon the world and made all of her problems seem less significant. “Do you know any constellations?” she inquired.
‘A few. The bear, the teapot... or whatever it is. I’ve never really done this before- just lying down and watching the stars. It’s calming though. Makes you feel real small. I’ve never really had the chance to do it all proper either- never been out of the city long enough. We should go stargazing in the wild some time.’
“I don’t think the teapot is a real constellation,” she said with a delighted laugh. “I would really like to do that sometime, Jordan. It’s so peaceful. And yeah, it does make everything feel small. There just a great big ol’ fucking world out there.”
‘Maybe we can invent it. Name it after ourselves.’ He made an expansive motion with his hand. ‘The Endive-Henderson Teapot. Sounds like some sciency theorem or something. Aren’t all the constellations kinda made up anyways? I swear none of them look like the things they’re supposed to be.’ He was almost feeling sleepy now. The blanket was soft and the sand underneath was feeling like his mattress.
“Sounds more like an infectious disease to me.” Bea wrinkled her nose at the thought of what sort of nasty things it could be. Propping herself up on her forearm she turned toward him. “They were made up by some smart dead dudes. Well, they made them up before they died. Not after. Not some twerpy drunk kids.” She teased him lightly, giving him a poke to his side.
‘Speak for yourself, you twerpy drunk. I’m wicked smaht.’ he teased back. She giggled.
Laying back once again, she sighed and tilted her chin upward so she could see him. “I’ll bring a book on astronomy with us.”
‘I’d like that. You can teach me the stars. I know the Sun already, at least.’
“The Sun, huh? That is the most important one.” She laughed again before coming closer and snuggling up against him. “Its fucking chilly out here. Come on body, work out that alcohol so I can go home!” She placed her head and her hand against his chest. She could feel the rise and fall as he breathed. And could hear his heartbeat.
They were almost embraced now, their two bodies huddled together to keep warm. Her head was slightly below his, buried again in his chest. ‘So quick to be off?’ He grinned, lowering his chin so it rested on her hair.
“Mmmm,” she responded in a sleepy sort of way. It all felt so wonderfully natural. Just laying here in this way. Bea was beginning to feel as if the rest of the world didn’t exist as her thoughts and concentration were all on the boy to whom she had cuddled up. “I guess not. I just hate being cold.” Her upper half was mostly okay. It was her bare legs that were the coldest. She intertwined one with his closest. Her smoothly shaven leg could feel the texture of the hair on his. The top of her bare foot brushed against his calf as she enjoyed the sensation. She was like a little baby sloth clinging to the nearest thing.
‘I’ve got a solution for that. I call this... the sushi roll.’ He reached over Bea to take a hand of the blanket, wrapping it over the top of the girl before doing the same on his side. ‘Cozy now?’ The blanket’s surface area had been reduced even more now, forcing the two of them against each other. Her breath was hot against his face, only inches away.
She laughed in complete felicity as the blanket came around them, sealing them from the outside. As her giggles died she realized just how close his handsome face was. Her eyes stared into his for moments longer than one generally should. They flickered down to his lips and then back up to his eyes. “I feel a bit like a burrito.” Her tone was quiet and unsure. She could already feel the heat between them.
Her heart was pounding out a wild tempo to which she could not even imagine what sort of ecstatic dance one could do to it. She slid a hand up his chest, feeling out the muscles there, danced along his collarbone that showed through the opening in his button-up shirt, and up along his neck. Her eyes never left his as her slender fingers ghosted along his jaw toward his chin and back toward his ear before she rested the palm against his cheek. “You have really great bones,” she murmured.
She traced a trail of fire across his chest, her light fingers gently brushing the skin underneath his shirt. His hands moved in parallel, caressing her shoulders and brushing the hair away from her face like she had done to him minutes ago. ‘Thanks. I made them myself.’ Even at a moment like this, he couldn’t resist an opportunity for a quick quip.
For the first time in a very long time, the touch did not feel foreign or uncomfortable for Bea. Instead, it sent sensations of electricity coursing through her nerves. She shivered lightly and pressed herself closer. The hand moved from his cheek into his hair. Bea gently tugged away tangles and her fingertips massaged his scalp. Her breath quickened as she brushed the tip of her nose playfully across his chin. “I would imagine so,” she responded in a heady and breathy tone. “As people naturally do.”
Her voice was like an alarm clock waking him from a deep sleep, sending energy rushing through his veins like a drug. The feeling of her hand in his hair and the gentle tugs at his long strands only exacerbated the effect. Jordan’s heartbeat was resonating in every artery, thumping like he’d just run a mile. His fingers were dancing around Bea’s back now, tracing shapes into the hot skin. It was strange how only last week he’d never met her before, and now here they were, sushi-rolled in a blanket under the stars.
They locked eyes again, Jordan looking downward from hooded lids to match Bea’s gaze. He’d never really paid attention to her eyes before- her iris was the rich brown of unpolished amber, flecked with darker shades of burnt caramel and lighter shades of sun-dazzled gold. The kind of eyes you wanted to invent words to describe. The kind of eyes you could easily get lost in. He raised a hand to run a finger gently along her cheek, brushing against the skin of her cheekbone. Jordan’s voice was slow and raspy as if he was in a trance.
‘I love your eyes.’
“Thanks, I grew them myself,” she responded but her words were not playful. Instead, they had become breathy and low, betraying the deep swirl of feelings that washed over her like the waves which rushed the shore. Something hot was growing through her lower stomach. Made her desperate and pleasantly uncomfortable. Bea wanted something but what she did not know. She leaned closer and wrapped her arms around him, a hand finding its hold in his hair. “I think,” she murmured softly, her lips just a breathe away from his and her eyes never breaking the intoxicating stare. “I think I should like to kiss you. If that’s alright.”
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