“You are beautiful. Go talk to him,” Lexi said.
Mia’s cheeks turned bright red. “I can’t.”
“I’ll go with you,” Lexi said, squeezing Mia’s hand.
“You, too, Zach Attack?” Mia said.
Zach shrugged, and the three of them walked deeper into the party. They made their way past a pair of silver kegs and walked up to Tyler.
“Hey, Mia,” Tyler said, giving her a bright grin. He held out a half-empty bottle. Raspberry vodka.
Mia reached for the bottle and took a drink before Lexi could even react.
“I guess that makes me the designated driver,” Zach said. Then he added, “Be careful, Mia.”
“You wanna walk on the beach?” Tyler asked Mia.
Mia gave Lexi a wow look and followed Tyler toward the beach.
Lexi was acutely aware of Zach beside her. He stood there, saying nothing, and yet she felt something in the quiet between them. Unable to help herself, she turned and looked up at him. “Why don’t you like me?”
“Is that what you think?”
She didn’t know how to answer. There seemed to be something going on she didn’t understand. She wished she’d never asked the stupid question in the first place.
“Lexi—” he started.
Amanda Martin appeared in front of them as if by magic, holding a half-empty pint of Captain Morgan spiced rum. She was a leggy redhead with full lips and eyes that slanted gypsylike. Zach’s latest girlfriend.
“There you are,” she purred. “Took you long enough.” She wrapped her arms around him and melted against him.
Lexi watched them walk away, all tangled together—he was kissing Amanda now—and felt a familiar sense of disappointment. Sighing, she wandered down to the beach. There, she met up with some of the kids from the drama club. For years, Lexi had been hanging out with these kids, watching them all rehearse with Mia. They sat around on the sand, talking. Of course, college came up. It was the big topic these days. From the very start of senior year, they’d been talking about deadlines and applications and admission stats. Every day, another university representative was in the library, talking to any senior who was interested. Weekend campus visits were becoming the norm. And the students from Pine Island didn’t just go to downtown Seattle to check out schools. Oh, no. Their parents flew them all over the country.
“Lexster!” Mia’s voice rose above the noise.
Lexi turned and saw Mia lurching toward her.
“I doan know how I got this drunk,” Mia said, swaying dangerously. “Lexi, how did I get this drunk?”
“Drinking, maybe?” Lexi got up and put a steadying arm around Mia.
“I love you, Lexi,” Mia whispered, but it was a drunk’s whisper, stagey and slurred. She put an arm around Lexi. “You ’n Zach Attack are my bess friends.”
“You’re my best friend, too.”
Mia slumped to a sit on the cold sand. When Lexi joined her, they leaned together. “Tyler said I’m pretty,” Mia said. “Do you think he means it?”
“He’d be a fool not to.”
“We danced,” Mia said, her voice dreamy. She swayed for a moment and then went still. “I can’t feel my lips. Are my lips still there?”
Lexi burst out laughing. “I think we better get you home. Let’s go find Zach.”
Lexi helped Mia to her feet and led her friend through the crowd. They found Zach in the shadows by the side of the house. Amanda was throwing herself at him. At least Lexi thought she was.
“Zach?” Lexi dared. “Mia’s not in good shape. I think she needs to go home.”
At that, Mia doubled over and vomited into the grass.
Zach rushed to Mia’s side. “Are you okay?” he asked, putting an arm around her.
Mia swayed unsteadily, wiping her mouth. “I doan feel so good.”
“Amanda?” Zach said. “Can she stay at your house? I can’t bring her home like this.”
“As if,” Amanda said, making a sour face. “I’m not leaving the party this early. It’s barely midnight.” She gave Zach a long kiss and then walked away, flipping her hair as she headed back toward the keg.
“Mia can spend the night at my house,” Lexi said. “Eva will be asleep by now.”
Zach looked at her. “Really?”
“Sure.”
Zach guided Mia back to the Mustang and put her in the backseat. It was like trying to make cooked spaghetti stand, and by the time he was finished, Mia was laughing uproariously and spread out across the seat. Snapping her seatbelt in place took forever.