Mason (Fallen Crest High 0.5)

“I…” I turned to Heather. It had been, but now—she shrugged. “I guess not.”

“Well, in that case, you want to play me and Mark in a game of beer pong?” Logan flashed me a smirk. “Losers lose their shirts.”

Heather laughed. “That’s not an equal loss. If you lose, you’re my beer bitch for the next weekend.” She elbowed me. “Mark’s her bitch at home.”

“And if you guys lose?”

She glanced at me, but I shrugged. She said, “What’s our punishment?”

I felt his gaze again. Without looking, I knew he wanted to say that I would have to tell him what was wrong, but I glanced up. A warning flashed in my eyes and he saw it. Then he shrugged. “You’re my beer bitch instead, Jax. How about that?”

“And Sam’s Mark’s bitch at home?”

“Sounds like a good trade.”

They were both pretending to be having lighthearted banter, but it was camouflage on both ends. I had a problem. Heather knew it. Logan wanted to know it. I forced out a laugh. “Since we got those terms decided, let’s do this.” I headed off, leading the way downstairs. The entire conversation had been awkward and I knew the game would be too.

When we went downstairs and headed for the pong table, it was a surreal moment for me. The room was filled with people from my past. Natalie and Jasmine were in one corner, drinking and talking with some guys. They both paused when we came into the room, but went back to doing their thing. Then, across from them was Cass and her group. They were glaring across the room at the two girls, but I saw the fear lurking in Cass’ gaze. She was holding an ice bag to her eye and her lip looked swollen. Her friends were rallied around her as well. Adam was in the background, leaning against the wall with Mark beside him. The two were talking and laughing together. Then my gaze trailed right in front of Adam and I saw Becky. She was watching me. There was a hidden emotion in the depths of her eyes, but I didn’t want to decipher it. We had sort of made-up. She had been invited to my birthday party, but she’d been absent from my life since then. That was fine. I had made a decision to let her and Adam both go. There was always drama involved and those two kept hurting me, in some manner. When she looked at Heather, I saw the hurt and jealousy there.

She’d been replaced. That’s what she was thinking, I saw it in her face. But the truth was that Heather had been a true friend. Becky had never really been a true friend.

As Logan took position by the table, he hollered, “Decraw, get your ass over here. Jax and Sam are challenging us.”

“WHAT?” Mark pretended to roar back. A wicked grin was on his face, but he acted insulted, pressing a hand to his chest. “How could this be? This is blasphemy. We are the unconquered gods of beer pong. They are threatening our throne?” He left his group of friends in a dramatic flair, as if Logan had hooked him with a fishing line and reeled him in.

“Seriously?” Heather took up position next to me. She shifted on her feet, sticking a hip out, curling her lip up at them. “Can you be more dramatic? Kade challenged us. It wasn’t the other way around.”

I grinned. Mark had gotten funnier over the summer. He’d been an easygoing guy before, going with the flow, but since Logan decided that Mark would be his new best bud because Mason was gone, the two had become some form of a comedy duo.

Ignoring Heather, Mark jumped and landed with a thud in front of Logan. They pretended to do some form of handshake before sticking out their groins at us. The crowd around us started laughing.

“Anyone else and they would get roasted for being a dork, but since Logan Kade did that, it’s the funniest thing they’ve seen.” Heather shook her head, then glanced to the sidelines and poked me. “Are those two your old bffs?”

I looked over. Jessica and Lydia were standing by a wall, sipping on their drinks. Two guys were with them, both had their arms around their waists. When they saw I was looking their way, both sucked in their stomachs and stretched their heads, as if trying to look long and sleek.

Heather started laughing. I couldn’t hold back my own grin, but the old hostility was there. Lydia turned away after a moment, but Jessica held my stare. She lowered her drink and glared right back. I sighed and murmured, “Yeah, they used to be. That seems so long ago now.”

“They’re bitches. You’re better off.”

Then I frowned. I hadn’t seen Jeff at the party at all. Scanning the crowd, I ignored the envy from the girls and the interest from the guys. A year ago, I’d been out casted and I had to fight for my place at Mason and Logan’s school the semester after that. For once, there was no one planning my demise. Even now, remembering Natalie’s veiled threat, I wasn’t worried. I felt it in my gut. This year was going to be different. Since Mason was gone, the target wasn’t so big on my back. It was still there because of my closeness with Logan, but not as much. I took a breath in. It was freeing in that moment and that sucked because I knew it was mostly because Mason wasn’t there.

“You okay?” Heather had been waiting, watching me.

I nodded. “Yeah.”

“Strattan,” Logan barked from across the table. He held a ping pong ball in his hand and gestured to the cups of beer in front of us. “You ready to be our bitches next weekend?”

He was grinning. He looked like the usual carefree Logan that most knew, but I knew part of it was an act. He wouldn’t let go, knowing that something was wrong. It was only a matter of time before he’d get it out of me. I just wasn’t ready for that day because when it came out, when I told him that I knew, everything would change. No matter what was the truth, I was scared of losing him and Mason. At that thought, sudden tears came to me and I blinked them away.

He saw my emotion and lowered his hand. The grin faded to a small frown. Concern flashed across his face.

Then I shook it off. I couldn’t lose them, either one of them. They were my family since I had lost my last one. I gave him a reassuring grin and vowed that the truth wouldn’t come out. It couldn’t. I would be destroyed the day it did.

He lifted his hand again, but the dark concern was still there. As I watched, he masked it with his trademark smirk and threw the first toss. It landed in the cup right in front of me and without a moment’s hesitation, I downed the beer. He could win. I wouldn’t care. I was ready to drink that night.

“Well, then.” Heather grinned at me. “Looks like Sam’s ready to party this year.”

I gave her a half-grin, but hung my head at the same time. Mason should’ve been there. When I looked back up, Logan was studying me. Our gazes collided and he saw the pain in mine. Somehow I knew that he understood. He nodded, growing serious again. In that one second, we were on the same page. We both missed Mason.

That made everything worse. A burden like I had never felt before was placed on my shoulders. No one could get hurt. It was on me. Tate told me the secret, whether Logan’s feelings were true or not, I would shoulder it myself.

I didn’t wait for them to throw again. I grabbed another cup and downed it.

Mark’s mouth fell open, but he lifted his arms up in victory. “Keep going, Sam. Mom won’t do my laundry anymore so guess what you’ll get to do?” He dropped his arms and rubbed his hands together in an evil motion.

I didn’t car

e. My chest and throat were burning. I was willing to do anything to make that sensation go away.