“Are you okay, Ava?” Brian asked.
“I’m fine!” I cheerfully shouted. “Cheese is throwing me how to pack a punch! I mean, showing me!”
“You seem a little drunk,” he said quietly. “Are you sure you’re okay?”
“I’m fine!” I shouted a little too loudly. “I’m having fun for a change!”
“Ava,” Brian spoke quietly in my ear. “Don’t you think that given the current situation and the fact that we don’t know where Dominic is, that it would be smart if you stayed a little more sober tonight?”
“What are you, my father?” I belligerently protested. “I’m not a child! I can do what I want, and what I want is another drink!”
“Ava,” he warned. “I’m not your father, I’m your bodyguard and I’m just saying that I think you should stay a little more in control of yourself tonight.”
“Back off, SEAL!” I slurred as I pushed him away. “I’m in charge of things, and what I go says! I mean, what I say goes! I’m not afraid of that coward and I’m going to prove it by having a damn good time tonight!”
“Dude, I think the lady has expressed her wishes and it’s time for you to step down,” Cheese advised Brian.
“Fine,” Brian nodded, but from his expression it was easy to see that his ego had been bruised by the frat boy’s enforcement of my decision. “I’ll be over here if you need me, Ava. Let me know when you’re ready to go home.”
“I will,” I cheerily tossed off as I linked my arm through Cheese’s arm and skipped over to the table, where they quickly refilled my punch glass. Soon I was dancing up a storm with several of the now-dry cannonballers who had latched onto Lara and Jessie. We sang along with every song the DJ played and made up new dances that we had little hope of remembering the next day, all the while laughing and drinking. The guys kept refilling our glasses as we emptied them, and I lost count of how many I’d had, and then I felt the floor begin to undulate. It was like I was standing on a ship’s deck during an ocean storm. I staggered to the nearest couch and landed with a thud right on Cheese’s lap.
“Uf!” he grunted as my elbow hit his chest. “Ouch!”
“I’m so sorry Mr. Cheese It!” I slurred. “I didn’t mean to…mean to…what did I do again?” I was way over the legal limit and in danger of losing control of all of my faculties, and Cheese seemed to be more than willing to help me cross the line.
“N
o, baby, you’re fine,” he purred as he stroked the offending elbow. “Are you sure you’re okay? Do you need me to kiss any boo-boos?”
“Oh Cheesey, you’re so funny!” I laughed as I swatted and missed his shoulder. “I’m fine. No boo-boos.”
“Are you sure?” he whispered in my ear. “There are a lot of places I could kiss, you know.”
“I’m going to get up now, Mr. Cheese,” I slurred as I attempted to push myself up off of his lap, but the Cheese Man had other ideas and he pulled me back down, which, admittedly, wasn’t terribly difficult to do.
“Just stay, baby,” his tone was a little more urgent and I could feel the beginning of something stirring, and it was more than I wanted to encourage.
“Nope, I’m gonna get up and find the ladies’ room,” I laughed as I pushed up again. This time Cheese had a firm grasp on my arm and pulled me down hard.
“I said, stay,” he ordered in a quiet voice.
“No!” I yelled. “Let me go, Mr. Cheese! Let go! Let go! Let go!” An instant later three of the Fijis surrounded us; one pulled me off of Cheese’s lap and the other two pulled the offender up off the couch. Brian had quickly crossed the yard and now had an arm around me as he watched the fraternity brothers deal with their loose cannon member.
“Listen, Jackass,” one of the brothers said in a serious tone. “What the hell is wrong with you? Do you want to get us shut down? We’ve warned you about this kind of behavior and we have told you that we do not tolerate any kind of abuse or stupidity when it comes to women in this frat house. If they say no, they mean no, and you stop whatever you are doing and get them to a safe place. Under no circumstances do you ever use force. You’re such a screw-up. Get the hell out of the house!”
“Wait, guys! No!” Cheese yelled. “I can explain!”
“No, you can’t,” said the taller brother. “You’re done. We’ll have a meeting tomorrow and decide whether to eject you or not. Now, go find somewhere else to sleep tonight.”
Cheese shot Brian and I a dirty look as he slunk out of the house. Brian nodded at the brothers who’d evicted their offending member, and said, “Thanks, guys. I’m going to get her home. I think she’s had a good enough time tonight.”
“Hey, no problem,” the tall brother said. “Sorry about our idiot friend. He’s not a bad guy, just a little clueless.”
“Yeah, well, you’d better watch out that that cluelessness doesn’t get you guys suspended,” Brian warned. “You know how they’re cracking down on misconduct.”
“Yeah, we know. That’s why we’re policing it ourselves,” the brother replied. “All it takes is one idiot to ruin it all.”
“Well, thanks for intervening,” Brian said as he began walking me toward the car. I could barely stand up anymore, so he reached down and scooped me up in his arms and carried me to the car. He gently put me in the passenger’s seat and attached my seatbelt and then added, “And for God’s sake, if you have to throw up, warn me!”