December 31st, 2021.
"Would someone FUCKING call 9-1-1 already!" Maddy shrieked, cradling her boyfriend's head in her lap.
Nate Jacobs was sprawled out on the floor, blood oozing from every part of his face. The music had come to an abrupt halt, and the partygoers began swarming around his large body to take in the bloody mess he had become. Lexi peered over the awestruck members of the crowd just in time to see Nate roll over onto his side, spitting blood onto the kitchen tile.
He was alive, he was going to live.
That realization hit her, and she felt an immediate wave of relief wash over her body. Not because she harbored any kind of sympathy for Nate. That asshole had it coming. Of course, it was still a terrible thing to do. She was worried about Fez and what kind of trouble tonight would get him into, trouble that would have been a lot worse had Nate Jacobs been found dead. For that reason only, she was so glad Nate was going to be okay.
Lexi glanced at her phone. 11:23 pm. She had originally planned to stay at the party until midnight, but what with all the commotion, she figured she should probably just head home. She snatched her phone off the couch and was ready to head for the front door before she noticed a flash of forest green in the corner of her eye.
There, at the foot of the couch she'd spent virtually all night parked on top of, was nothing other than Fezco's green cable knit sweater. The one he had been wearing earlier that night, before the fight with Nate. She remembered now; Fez had taken it off before walking up to him. Lexi glanced around the room. Maddy and Cass were recruiting the help of bystanders to haul Nate into her car, probably to take him to the hospital. Fez was nowhere in sight. He must have forgotten to pick it up before he left.
After a brief moment's hesitation, she grabbed the sweater and rushed out the door.
The Howards only lived about 10 blocks away. Lexi figured it was probably in her best interest just to walk home quickly, rather than wait an hour for a $70 Uber. Arms folded against her abdomen; she began to walk home.
She couldn't get the images from the fight out of her head. It had all happened so fast; she was surprised she had managed to process any fraction of the spectacle. She remembered the way Fezco had marched towards Nate, shoulders taught and straight, mere seconds before slamming the glass champagne bottle over his skull. The way he had looked at her for a split second, a look of melancholy in his eye (and something else she couldn't quite place) before he'd done it.
Before long, she found herself in her own driveway. Her mom would still be out with friends, she never passed up an opportunity to become embarrassingly inebriated in public. Lexi shuffled into the doorway, kicked off her shoes, and pulled out her phone.
lex: hey, u make it back to maddy's ok?
cass: yeah im fine. u make it home ok?
lex: yeah, just got here. hows nate
cass: hes going to be ok. just needs rest.
lex: that's good
Cassie had told their mother she was staying the night at Maddy's. She'd been "staying over" there more and more since her and McKay had called it quits. But Lexi knew this was a lie. Cassie had been strangely avoidant of her best friend recently. Lexi didn't know why this was, nor did she want to want to know where Cassie was *actually* spending the night. She loved her sister, but she didn't think she'd be able to handle her typical melodrama. Not tonight, not after what she'd seen. Not when she had her own drama to think about, for once.
When she got back to her room, Lexi immediately peeled off her skirt and tights. She pulled her shirt over her head and tossed her clothes into the corner. Standing in front of the mirror in nothing but her black Victoria's Secret thong, she examined her half-naked body. It was the only semi-provocative piece of clothing she owned. Lexi felt foolish for wearing it tonight. What did she think was going to happen? She wasn't her sister. She didn't have the kind of beautiful body that made men fall at her feet. Lexi knew she was skinny, gangly, and awkward. She was too tall, too thin, her breasts were entirely unremarkable. She was objectively plain.
Lexi sighed and looked over to the green sweater resting on her bed. Against her better judgement, she pulled the cable knit sweater over her body. It was massive on her. The sleeves went way past her fingertips. The hem went all the way down to the middle of her thighs. She laughed quietly to herself; the sweater looked pretty ridiculous on her. But my god, it was so warm and soft. She never wanted to take it off.
Lexi pulled the knit collar up to her nose and took a deep breath in. She sighed. He smelled heavenly. Like spearmint, sweat, sandalwood, and smoke. She breathed in again. The smell was an immediate comfort to her, and Lexi could feel herself relaxing into the fabric of the sweater. She hadn't realized how tired she was before that moment.
Lexi crawled into bed and curled up tucking her knees into the sweater. Her eyelids fluttered closed.
