“Hey, Munchkin’!” I tease my sister as I walked in the door of my apartment. She hates when I refer to her size. But at barely five feet tall, I’ve always towered over her.
“Don’t call me that!” She pouts and hugs me.
“How was your drive over?”
“It was good; I talked to a few friends to help pass the time.”
“That’s cool. How’s Mom?”
“She’s good. Driving me crazy, but good.”
“She’s just watching out for you, Cara. After the whole Mitch disaster, she gets worried.”
She gives me a non-committal shrug and changes the subject.
“I’m so glad that our spring breaks are different and I could spend mine here. I’ve already started the transfer paperwork for summer semester, and I want to know all about campus life before I move.”
“Whoa! That was fast.”
“Well, I decided I want to Rush in the fall and so being here this summer will help me meet some people.”
“You sure you want to go Greek?”
“Yeah, I think it’ll be fun and good for me. I talked to Alex Moore recently and she’s going to introduce me to her sisters this week while I’m here.”
Ugh! Alex Moore is a thorn in my fucking side. She and my sister went to high school together, and I’ve had to be polite because of their friendship. Her family is wealthy and she’s determined to get her M.R.S. degree and hitch herself to someone that will take care of her for life. She’s tried several times to invite me to date functions with her sorority, but I’ve always been able to decline.
I haven’t seen her in at least six months and the last time I did, she was on her knees in the men’s room at a bar sucking one of my teammates dick.
“I’m not sure you should focus on Alex and her group of friends.”
“Reed! She’s a nice girl and she’ll be my only friend here once you get drafted.”
“Well, maybe not. I can’t wait for you to meet my girlfriend. She’s a cool girl and the type of person you should hang out with.”
My phone rings and I see my best friend Jack is calling.
“Yo! What’s up?” I answer.
“Not much, man, you wanna hit the party scene tonight?”
“Not sure, Cara’s in town and I want to introduce her to Ari.”
“Okay, call if y’all wanna meet up. If not, see you tomorrow morning at the gym.”
“Sounds good.” I hang up and watch my sister fidget with her sweater.
“Cara, I’ll take a quick shower and then we’ll make plans for tonight. You in the mood for Italian?”
“Actually, we’re invited to a party tonight. I was hoping you would take me.”
I really don’t want to go to this fucking party, Ari hates Greek gigs.
“Let me check with Ari and see what she thinks, and then we’ll decide.”
Cara nods her head and goes to her bag on the floor and starts pulling out clothes. I head to the shower to wash the grime away from my afternoon workout. I stand under the hot spray trying to relax my aching muscles. When the water turns cold, I get out and dress in track pants until I know what my plans are for the night.
The radio’s playing loudly in the living room and I hear laughing. Cara’s singing to the top of her lungs off key and I wince at how she butchers the song. When I walk in, I freeze. Liquor bottles are strewn across my countertops and four girls are dancing around my living room. One of those girls is Alex Fucking Moore.
When she sees me, she stops and smiles seductively. I roll my eyes at her and turn down the radio. Cara stops singing and looks at me.
“What the fuck? I was in the shower for half an hour?”
“I’d already asked Alex and her friends to come over. They got here right after you went into the bathroom.”
“What’s the deal with all the booze?”
“Oh, Reed, It’s just a pre-party.”
“I don’t want a fucking pre-party. I’m not even sure I’m going to a real party!” I scream and each girl stares at me. “Cara, my room now!”
I turn and wait for her to follow me. When she comes in, I slam the door and run my hands through my hair.
“What the fuck are you thinking? Inviting a bunch of girls to my apartment to get drunk?”
She starts crying. “How dare you? You just embarrassed the shit out of me! These girls are in the best sorority on campus and Alex basically guaranteed me a spot on the pledge list.”
“Do you know what will happen if anyone finds out a bunch of girls got drunk at my apartment before a Greek party? Are all of them even legal? I just busted my ass at Combine in front of scouts for the fucking NFL draft. My name needs to stay squeaky fucking clean! Not dredged through the mud around campus as a drunk playboy. Not to mention I have A. Fucking. Girlfriend!”