“Hi, Isaiah. How are you doing, Beth?” Echo asked.
Beth took a long draw off her cigarette, glaring at Echo. Standing her ground, Echo stared back, pretending Beth’s fury didn’t matter to her. Pride flooded my body. Beth broke first, blowing smoke to the side. “I went to the store today, Noah, and bought glue. The crazy kind. ”
Echo’s entire body flinched and I wasn’t the only one who noticed. Isaiah hissed something into Beth’s ear as she took a long drink from her beer. Her bloodshot eyes sparked with happy condemnation.
“Come on, let me show you the house. ” Like a house tour could help salvage this situation. I applied pressure with my hand on Echo’s back, pushing
her toward the hallway.
“Enjoy the grand tour, Princess!” yelled Beth.
When Echo stepped away, I hissed to Beth, “Knock it off. ”
She shrugged and took another sip of beer.
Unfortunately, we didn’t have far to go. Four steps later we stood in the middle of the hallway, next to the pink-and-green-tiled bathroom. Echo stared at the cracked white paint on the ceiling, probably wondering how to escape.
“The room behind us is Beth’s and the other one is Shirley and Dale’s,” I said.
Echo tugged at the gloves on her arms. She had to know that this one time, Beth meant to tear me down. “Echo, what Beth said … that was a shot at me, not you. She thinks she’s going to have to put me back together after you rip my heart out and shatter me. ”
Laughter erupted from the living room and Rico cursed. Twice in one night I’d declared my emotions to her and she had yet to say a thing back. The silence between us dragged. She finally asked, “Are you any good at Xbox?”
It couldn’t be that easy. Anytime Beth tore down a girl I brought here, I spent more time convincing them to let it go than I did trying to get into their pants. I wanted to play, but I also wanted Echo to enjoy herself. “Yeah. ”
“Then why don’t you prove it?” She yanked on my hand and led me to the living room. Was this some sort of test? Should I be protesting, telling her we should leave because Beth made her uncomfortable? That’s what the other girls had wanted.
But she seemed persistent as we entered the living room and motioned for me to join in the game. I’d find out soon enough if this was a test. I snagged the open spot on the couch and pulled Echo down on my lap. “Hey, Rico, hand me a controller. ”
“Yeah, Rico, give it to someone who can actually play,” said Isaiah. More laughter and insults followed.
“You’d play better without me on your lap,” she whispered.
I added myself to the game and prepared to kick some ass. As everyone else selected their player, my lips grazed Echo’s earlobe. I loved how she closed her eyes and leaned into me. “But then I couldn’t do this. ”
After a half hour, Antonio lured her away by throwing around words like technique and shading. I planned on joining her in the kitchen when the game ended, but decided against it when she grabbed a pencil and spoke rapidly as she sketched. I’d wanted her to be comfortable and I’d wanted to hang with my friends. Somehow, I got both my wishes.
An hour and a half later, Antonio sat in the kitchen chair opposite from Echo, making out with his girl. He occasionally mumbled something to Echo while she sketched and nursed a beer.
Beth emerged from the basement, bag of pot and rolling papers in hand. I tossed the controller onto the couch. “I’m out. ”
Several of the guys groaned when Rico snagged my controller. Isaiah threw an empty beer can at me. “Come on, man, Rico sucks. I can’t believe you’re leaving me hanging. ”
I ignored the comments they made regarding my manhood in their attempt to draw me back into the game. Echo’s hand flew rapidly over the paper, her eyes darting after it. I ran my fingers through her curls, gently pulling them straight, just for them to bounce back.
She was a genius. She drew Antonio and Maria, locked in an embrace. The picture on the paper looked like it could come to life. How could she accomplish something like that in such a short period of time?
Beth sat at the table and began to roll a joint. I wanted Echo out of here, immediately. “I haven’t shown you where Isaiah and I live yet. ”
“Hold on a sec. I want to get this shading right. ” Echo was lost in her world and oblivious to me. Hell, Beth had never rolled a J that fast before. She placed it in her mouth and lit it. The familiar smell drifted into the room, catching everyone’s attention, including Echo’s.
Echo watched as Beth inhaled and held her breath. Since living here, I’d never refused a hit, but there was no way I was going to do this in front of Echo. Beth released the smoke. Her lips twisted up as she held the joint out to Echo. “Want some?”
Everyone in the room watched and waited patiently for their turn, thus putting Echo on the spot. Her foot tapped against the floor and she laid the sketch pad on the table, shoving it toward Antonio. “No, thanks. ” Her eyes shot sharply to me. “Don’t let me stop you. ”
Nice, exactly what I hoped to avoid. I held my hand out to her. “Come on. ”
Echo