LISA
"Damn, Manoban! Look at you—you're a fucking mammoth!" James stands up from the couch and moves toward me. It's true. Compared to both him and Mark, I'm fucking huge. "What are you, six foot fucking ten?" James's eyes are glassy and bloodshot. It's barely one in the afternoon.
"Six-three," I correct, and receive the same friendly greeting Mark gave, a firm hand on my shoulder.
"This is fucking awesome! We need to get the word out that you're back. Everyone's still here, man." James rubs his hands together like he's plotting something big, and I don't even want to know what that might be.
Has Jennie found the bag outside of the door yet? What did she think about it? Did she cry? Or is she beyond that now?
I sure as hell don't want the answer to that question. I don't want to picture her face when she opened the door. I don't even want to think about the way she felt when she saw only one ticket stuffed into the front pocket of that suitcase. All my clothes have been removed from it and tossed into the backseat of my rental.
I know her well enough to know that she's going to expect a goodbye from me. She's going to try to find me before she gives up. But after her one last effort, she will give up. She won't have a choice, because she will never be able to find me before the flight, and by tomorrow she'll be far, far gone from me.
"Dude!" Mark's voice is loud and his hand is waving in front of my face.
"Are you fucking zoning out?"
"My bad," I say with a shrug. But then it occurs to me: if Jennie gets lost in Thailand looking for me, what will I do? Anything?
Mark puts his arm around me, pulling me into the conversation he and James have broken into as they decide who to invite over. They name loads of familiar names and a few that I haven't heard and start making phone calls for a midday party, barking out times and liquor orders.
I pull away and go into the kitchen to look for a glass for some water, looking around the apartment for the first time since I walked through the door. It's a fucking mess. It looks the way the frat house did every Saturday and Sunday morning. Our apartment never looked this way, not when Jennie was around, at least. The counters were never covered in old pizza boxes, and the tables were free of beer bottles and bongs. I'm backsliding, and I fucking know it.
Speaking of bongs, I don't even have to look over at Mark and James to know what they're doing now. I hear the bubbling noise of the water in the bong, then the distinct smell of pot starts filling the place.
Masochist that I am, I pull my phone out of my pocket and turn the power back on. The picture I have set as my wallpaper is my new favorite of Jen. For now, at least. My favorite changes every damn week, but this one is fucking perfection. Her hair is down, hanging over her shoulders, and the light is shining on her, making her glow. A true smile fills her entire face, and her eyes are screwed shut, her nose crinkled in the most adorable fucking way. She was laughing at me, scolding me, really, for smacking her ass in front of Kimberly, and I'd snapped the picture just as she burst into laughter after I whispered to her the other, much-dirtier things I could do in front of her obnoxious friend.
I wander back into the living room, and James snatches my phone from my hand. "Give me some of whatever you're on!"
I'm quick to take it back before he can get a glance at the picture.
"Touchy, touchy," James mocks me as I change the background. No need to fuel these fuckers.
"I invited Janine," Mark says, sharing a laugh with James.
"I don't know why you two are laughing." I point to Mark. "She's your sister." Then I point at James. "And you fucked her, too." Not like this is surprising; Mark's sister is known for fucking every single one of her little brother's friends.
"Fuck you, man!" James takes another hit from the bong and passes it to me. Jenniewould fucking kill me. She would be so disappointed; she doesn't approve of me drinking, let alone smoking pot.
"Hit it or pass it," Mark urges.
"If Janine is coming over, you'll need it. She's still hot as fuck," James tells me, earning a glare from Mark and a laugh from me.
Hours pass this way, smoking, dwelling, drinking, dwelling, smoking, and before I know it, the place is full of people, including the girl in question.