She must notice me making a face, because she says, “I threw up. That’s why I left the party, because I was feeling sick. The room is still kind of spinning.”
I reach out and put my hand on her arm and she grabs my hand. Again, how can I not compare her to Karen? Meredith’s fingers feel warm and safe, entwined in mine. So why do I yearn for the cold prickling tingle?
“Let’s go to Carolina’s room, I want to talk.” She smiles at me and wobbles a bit. “Hey! You do have nice eyes.”
Her hand is so warm, so soft, so nice. So why can’t I forget Karen’s cold fingers that burn?
The music is loud and some people are still dancing. If I was expecting everyone to look at me and hiss, nothing of the sort happens. No one seems to notice Meredith and me at all, and then we are in Carolina’s room.
Have I ever been in a girl’s bedroom before? I don’t know what I expected. It’s kind of a room in transition. There is a hammock full of stuffed animals and a lava lamp, and then there is teenager stuff, like posters of some alternative rock bands. Meredith flops down on the bed and pulls me down with her.
“Everything’s spinning,” she says.
“Do you need to throw up again?” I ask.
It’s time to be nice. After all, I may have just eaten her pet. She feels really warm against me, but I don’t know what I’m supposed to do.
She shakes her head. “Just hold me.”
“Okay,” I say, and I hold her. I feel kind of strange, but she is really warm, especially compared to the air outside. Especially compared to Karen. And then we are kissing. My whole body seems to explode, and I rub my hands back and forth on her back. All my hunger and thirst is forgotten. I just have this wicked urge to bite her, just a playful nip on the neck.
I resist, though.
There is a knock on the door. Meredith jumps up and I stand, and then the door is open and Carolin
a looks in at us.
“There you are.”
She smiles. Carolina staggers in and throws herself onto the bed with us. “I am so tired,” she giggles. “And everything is spinning, spinning, spinning.”
We sit back on the bed and then we are all talking. My punch wore off a long time ago, when I changed. I feel sober now and just a little hungry. Apparently a rabbit wasn’t enough to completely sate my hunger. The girls giggle and talk about guys. I need to get out of here. But Meredith has my hand again and she’s playing with it. Her fingers are so warm.
I stay.
Carolina rolls over Meredith for a moment and she stares at me. Her eyes take a moment to focus. “Are you okay there, Stanley? You look like you got attacked by something.”
I forgot about the rips in my shirt.
“A tree. But I’m all right.”
But for all the alcohol in her, she must notice something in my face. “What?” she asks me.
“I am a little hungry.”
Carolina gets up, a little unsteady on her feet. “I should eat something, too. Otherwise my parents are going to realize I’ve been drinking. What do you want, a sandwich?”
I nod.
“Turkey okay?”
I can already smell it in the kitchen. I can almost tell you what shelf of the fridge it’s on.
I nod again.
“Boy, you’re easy to please.” She smiles at me.
“Merry?”