Deep down I wanted to join the party, to have some fun and drink a little beer and feel like I was one of the cool kids, but I still hesitated. “I don’t know…”
Hunter took my hand. “Come on. I’ll teach you how to play beer pong.”
I savored the feeling of his fingers interlaced into mine as he led me out of my room and downstairs.
7
Erica
I surveyed the party as Hunter led me downstairs, still holding my hand. People were dancing in the foyer and chugging beer on the stairs. On the back patio, kids wearing underwear instead of bathing suits were jumping into the pool and splashing each other playfully. Our dining room was crowded with people, and red solo cups were arranged like a triangle of bowling pins on the table.
“Hunter, are you playing or what?” asked another guy in a varsity football jacket. I realized it was Derek Offerman, the captain of the football team and homecoming king. Hunter was probably the most well-liked guy in school, but if anyone gave him a run for his money, it was Derek. Seeing him in my dining room was jarring, in a good way.
“Hell yeah, I’m in,” Hunter said. “Just had to find my partner. This is Erica…”
I tensed, waiting for him to introduce me asBrad’s little sisterorBrad’s baby sisteror any other vaguely-demeaning titles.
“This is Erica, the savior of the party,” Hunter said instead. “She’s the one who got the snacks.”
A cheer went up in the room and everyone raised their cups to me. “Fuck yeah, snacks!” another football player said to my right, giving me a slightly-drunk high-five.
I blushed at suddenly being the center of attention, but everyone was too red-faced with graduation joy to care.
“You know how to play beer pong?” Hunter asked me over the sound of the music.
“I think so,” I said. “I’ve seen it played on TV before.”
Hunter flashed his winning smile and held up an orange ping-pong ball between his thumb and finger. “Throw the ball at the cups. If you sink one, they have to drink it, and vice versa. That’s it.”
“Simple enough,” I said.
Derek and his partner, a girl I didn’t recognize, went first. She tossed her ball and missed, but Derek landed his in one of the cups on the back row.
“Drink!” the spectators shouted.
I nervously took the cup and sniffed. I had never had beer before, and it smelled sour and foul. I gave it a testing sip and discovered it tasted even worse than it smelled.
Hunter leaned over, putting his lips close to my ear so he could whisper. “Not much of a beer drinker, are you?”
I considered lying to him to seem cooler, but I knew he would see right through me. So I shook my head.
Hunter snatched the cup out of my hand and loudly announced, “First cup’s mine!” He knocked it back and put it to the side, then leaned close to whisper to me again.
“I’ll drink most of the beer tonight. You can have little sips when you want. If you don’t want any, that’s cool too. No pressure. All right?”
“Thanks,” I replied gratefully. All of this was new and intimidating to me, and it made a huge difference knowing I had Hunter looking out for me. My Beer Guardian Angel.
It was our turn to shoot. Hunter rolled one of the ping-pong balls in his fingers, then gave a toss like he was shooting a basketball one-handed. The ball bounced off the rim of a cup without going in.
I took my ball and prepared to copy him.
“Woah, not like that,” Hunter said, coming up behind me. His right arm molded against mine as he showed me what to do.
His body is all over mine. I glanced around the room but nobody seemed to care, beyond waiting for the shot.It’s no big deal. Play it cool, Erica.
“Bend at the elbow, then release,” Hunter said, breath hot against my neck. “Nice and smooth. Okay, give it a try.”
I could still feel his body against mine, even after he stepped to the side. Warm and strong, surrounding me like a blanket of sexy man. I was still savoring that feeling as I shot the ball toward the triangle of cups on the other side of the table.