-RED RUM-

Friends.

Best Friends.

BFF's.

Practically blood sisters.

Her initials AO.

Mine NL.

She always had my back.

I always had hers.

Nothing EVER came between us.

Nothing.

Not Billings.

Not Taylor Bell.

Not Calvin Klein adored model Kiran Hayes.

Not even Dash.

Dash McCaftrey.

My dreamy boyfriend of months now.

The one who still loved me,

Even after the Reed ordeal at the Legacy.

I still remember the picture.

Scared me for life.

But that whore ruined Ariana's life,

Not mine.

She had to hook up with that bastard Pearson.

She just had to.

Easton knew I had my issues with Thomas.

Of course they did.

I didn't exactly keep that hatred hidden.

But Ariana was happy with him,

Which is all I could ever want for my "sister."

When they were together she was in sheer bliss.

I wouldn't dare take that from her.

But someone did.

Reed Brennan from Croton-Ass Pennsylvania.

First day of school.

Snatched hi up in her nasty hands.

Like he was anybody's game.

Yes Pearson was a stud and knew it.

But Brennan had the control.

I'd seen it in her a million times.

The look on Ari's face when they hooked up,

Shattered my heat.

Like a mirror cracking into billions of glass shards.

It was like she had nothing to live for.

She hid behind Dickens, and Emerson, and Austen.

Most people thought it was her love of reading.

But I knew it was to conceal her pain.

She hated seeing them kiss.

She loathed the way he talked to and about her.

She overall despised her.

She tried to get me to help her.

But I had everything to lose if I did.

Fortunately she understood completely.

I knew she would.

That's why she took matters into her own hands.

Her on Southern Osgood hands.

I was staying out of this one physically,

But mentally I was rooting for Ariana's team.

But not a soul knew that.

Not even Ariana herself.

They harassed him on a pole.

She went back to help him.

He was stoned out of his mind.

That bastard cursed at her and spat at her.

She was devastated.

Heartbroken.

I was pissed as hell.

No one talks like that to a Billings girl.

Let alone my best friend.

No one got away with such things with me as president.

I could have slit his throat right then,

But I kept my cool.

I just kept thinking about how that bitch reed had ruined it all.

She was so done at Easton Academy

So done.

Soon he was over though.

All it took was Boy Scout's bat.

And a little upper arm strength.

Both of which Ariana had.

Part of me was ecstatic.

The other at a loss for words.

The Easton Legacy was done with.

Taken to the grave with.

I stood there eerily silent and watched her.

Watched her bewildered look turn to anguish.

And it was all Glass Licker's fault.

I saw her rage.

Her tears.

I felt my own.

I remembered early that night.

In Ari and I's room in Billings.

The party.

My wine glass filled with Zinfandel.

A canister of Absolut Vodka for Prozac popping Hayes.

An ice cold bottle of beer for Dash.

Corona Light his favorite.

A can of Diet Pepsi for Taylor.

Tap Water for Trey Prescott.

Then I again saw the terror and shock in her eyes.

As if she had committed treason.

But I then remembered something else.

My BFF.

My sister.

My forever friend through ANYTHING.

The one who if I jumped off a cliff,

Wouldn't follow after me.

She'd be the one at the bottom,

Waiting to catch me.

Her drink choice was special.

Unique.

Only she would have thought of it.

I remember looking over to her glass.

She possessed Rum,

But not just any type of Rum.

She chose Red Rum.