Choosing You Read online

“Um, yeah, it’s close to Colorado,” I say, not in the mood to give either one of them a geography lesson.

  “So I saw you with Garret earlier.” Sierra gives me a look like she thinks I’m trying to date the guy.

  “Yeah, I met him when I was moving in.”

  “I saw you leave with him.”

  I don’t like what her tone is implying. “We just had lunch. That’s it.”

  “You better watch out for that one. He’s a real heartbreaker.”

  Ava and Sierra laugh, as if they share some inside joke about Garret.

  “Okay, well, nice meeting you. I need to finish unpacking.” I pick up a t-shirt and start folding it, hoping they’ll leave.

  “There’s a house party tonight a few blocks from here. You could come with us if you want.”

  “I think I’m already going there with Garret.” I cringe as I say it. Now for sure they’ll think I’m trying to date him.

  “Garret’s taking you?” Sierra glances at Ava. “I guess we’ll see you there then.”

  They walk off and I’m left wondering what they’re hiding from me. There’s something they’re not telling me about Garret. And why did Sierra call him a heartbreaker? Does he use girls? Maybe Jasmine’s sister really did get hurt by this guy. I don’t know, but it reaffirms that I need to make sure Garret is a friend and only a friend.

  6

  At 7:10, Garret’s knocking on my door. As I open it, I prepare to comment on his lateness, but I forget all about it when I see him.

  I don’t know how it’s possible but he looks even hotter than he did at lunch. He’s wearing dark jeans and a light blue polo shirt that makes his eyes an even richer shade of ocean blue. The shirt hugs his muscular shoulders, drawing my attention to his body again, which I can’t seem to take my eyes off of. I’m sure under that shirt he’s hiding some ripped abs developed through all those hours in the pool.

  “What are you all dressed up for?” I ask, trying to sound cool.

  “I’m not dressed up. I’m wearing jeans and a shirt.”

  He’s also wearing some really great cologne.

  “Yeah, I can see that.”

  “What’s wrong? You don’t like it?” He looks at himself as if he’s questioning his choice.

  I love that I’m making him self-conscious. I don’t know why. I have no reason to keep picking on the poor guy.

  “Why do you care if I like it?”

  “I don’t.” He stands up straighter and crosses his arms across his chest. “So do I get to critique your outfit now?”

  “Sure. Go ahead.”

  He looks me up and down. “Classic black t-shirt and jeans. It looks good on you.”

  “Not that I care what you think, but thanks. Can we go now?”

  He smiles. I think he’s starting to enjoy my insults.

  We go to a Thai restaurant in a strip mall near campus. It’s nothing fancy, which is good. And the meals are $8-10. Also good. Garret says nothing when I pay for my own meal. He wouldn’t dare after the earlier grocery store incident.

  After that, we go to the party I’ve been dreading. I went to a few parties in high school but never liked them. I couldn’t be around all that alcohol. It brought back too many memories of my childhood.

  The party is in an old, run-down house. We walk into an open room that has a couple beat-up couches and a coffee table sitting off to the side. That’s it for furniture. It’s almost like the house is only used for parties, not to live in. Or if Moorhurst had a Greek system, this place would make a great frat house.

  It’s 8:30, so it’s not too crowded yet, but the people who are there are already drunk. A makeshift bar is set up in the back of the room; a long folding table topped with stacks of plastic cups and bottles of hard liquor. Seeing it brings back flashbacks of my mom and the vodka bottles that were always on our kitchen counter.

  I direct my eyes away from the bar and back to Garret, who now has two guys standing next to him.

  “Jade, this is Blake,” he says. “Blake, this is Jade.”

  I shake hands with a tall, lanky guy with wavy blond hair and a dark tan. Wearing board shorts and a t-shirt, he seems to be going for the surfer look which is odd given that we’re in Connecticut.

  “Blake’s a total ass but for some reason we still let him hang out with us,” Garret says.

  The guy standing next to Blake speaks up. “That’s not always true. Sometimes when Blake’s really drunk we lock him in a room. He’s an angry drunk.”

  An angry drunk. Just like my mom. I can’t be around angry drunks. I’m thinking less of Garret now that I know he’s friends with an angry drunk.

  “I’m Decker by the way.” The guy extends his hand. He’s barely taller than me with short brown hair and black-rimmed glasses. He’s wearing baggy plaid Bermuda shorts, a bright green button-up shirt with the sleeves rolled up, and leather sandals.

  “Decker may look smart with the glasses, but don’t let that fool you,” Garret says. “He practically flunked out of high school.”

  Decker turns to me to explain. “They didn’t understand me there. Math and science aren’t my thing. I’m a writer. An artist of the written word. I was far too creative for that school.”

  “So what’s your story?” Blake asks me. I can already tell I don’t like this guy. He seems to have a permanent smirk on his face and his woodsy cologne is giving me a headache.

  “I just got here. I’m from Iowa.”

  “Iowa? Is that in the middle somewhere?”

  “Yeah. It’s in the middle,” I say, rolling my eyes.

  Blake doesn’t notice or care. Instead his attention wanders to the bar. “I’ll catch you guys later. It’s time to get wasted.”

  “I think I’ll grab a beer,” Decker says, eyeing the keg in the corner.

  “You want something?” Garret asks me.

  “No, I don’t drink.”

  He gets this confused look on his face. “Really? Like not at all?”

  “Why are you so surprised? We’re underage. It’s illegal.”

  “I know, but everyone does it.”

  “Obviously that’s not true because I don’t.”

  “Okay, well, they probably have some soda. You want that?”

  “Sure. Any kind but diet.”

  I wait as he goes to a cooler near the keg and gets a can of soda. He fills a plastic cup with beer for himself.

  “Do you drink a lot?” I ask when he returns.

  “Hmm. Do I drink a lot?” He takes a swig of beer. “Define a lot.”

  “If I have to define it, then you definitely drink a lot.” The smell of his beer is making me anxious and a little sick to my stomach.

  “Okay, I admit it. I drink a lot. But I try to limit it to the weekends. And maybe two or three weekdays.”

  “Then our friendship ends here. I don’t hang out with people who drink. I need to go.” I start heading to the door and hear Garret right behind me.

  “Wait. You’re seriously leaving? We just got here.”

  “Yeah, and I don’t want to be around you when you’re drinking. Or around any of these people.”

  “That’s what a party is, Jade. A bunch of people hanging around drinking.”

  “I know. That’s why I never go to parties.” I go out the front door to the outside with Garret following behind.

  “Hold on. I’ll drive you back if you really want to leave.”

  “You’ve been drinking, Garret. You really think I want you driving me home?”

  “I had like two sips of beer.”

  “I can get back on my own.” I start walking down the sidewalk.

  “Just wait.” He grabs my wrist, forcing me to stop. “I’ll make you a deal. I won’t drink the rest of the night, okay? Just stay for a few hours. It’s your first Saturday night in college. You don’t want to spend it sitting in your room, do you?”

  I hear Ryan’s voice in my head, nagging me to be social. “So if I stay, you won’t drink? Even what’s in
your hand?”

  He eyes the plastic cup. “I can’t finish this?”

  I stare at him, not answering.

  “Okay, fine.” He dumps his beer out on the grass.

  “And I’m not promising I’ll stay for more than an hour.”

  “Whatever. Let’s just go.”

  When we get back, more people have arrived. Music is blaring from some speakers in the corner. Blake is doing shots by the bar with some blond girl.

  “So are you guys close friends?” I ask Garret as I nod over at Blake.

  “I wouldn’t say that we’re close. We don’t sit around having meaningful conversations. We just hang out. We were on the swim team together in high school and now we’re both on the team at Moorhurst.”

  “Does he drink like that all the time?”

  “Yeah. That’s why he got a place off campus. He knew he couldn’t get away with drinking every night in the dorms.”

  “Hey, Garret.” A girl in a short white dress with long black hair and a golden brown tan walks up to him. She wraps her arm around Garret’s. “I just got back from Italy. I called you several times but you never returned my calls.”

  “I’ve been busy.” He seems completely disinterested in her. He doesn’t even look at her.

  “What did you do all summer? Did you go to your place on Martha’s Vineyard?”

  “No. I had an internship in DC.”

  “I thought you hated politics.”

  “My dad made me do it. I was working for one of his senator friends.” Garret moves over slightly to get some distance from the girl which only makes her tighten her grip on him and move closer. “Courtney, this is Jade. Jade, this is Courtney.”

  “Hi.” She glances at me, then turns back to Garret. “You need to be at my parent’s house next Saturday at 2. Don’t be late. And for dinner wear that light gray suit with the blue tie. I’m wearing a blue dress and we need to coordinate.”

  He yanks his arm away from her. “Yeah, I got it, Courtney.”

  “God, what was that for?”

  He doesn’t answer her.

  “You’re such an ass sometimes, Garret.” She storms off toward the bar.

  “So you two have a date next week?” I ask him.

  “Her parents always have this huge end of summer party. It’s next Saturday and I told her I’d go.”

  “Is she your girlfriend? Or ex-girlfriend?”

  “I don’t want to talk about her, okay?”

  Before I can ask more, Sierra, the girl I met earlier, comes up behind Garret. She puts her arm around him and kisses his cheek, leaving pink lipstick behind. “Haven’t seen you since Cabo. You should’ve called me when you got back. Or are you still dating that boring chick from DC?”

  “She’s not boring. And no, we’re not dating anymore.”

  “So you’re single again?” She leans in closer. “What are you doing later tonight?”

  He pushes her away. “Shouldn’t you be with Luke right now?”

  “Luke cheated on me with Kelsey. You didn’t know that? God, I thought the whole town knew.”

  More people are arriving at the party. Everyone seems to know each other and I feel completely out of place. “Garret, I think I’m gonna leave.”

  Sierra notices me standing there. “Oh, hi. What’s your name again?”

  “Jade. You came to my room earlier.”

  “Yeah. You’re from Ohio, right?”

  “No, Iowa.” I really should carry a map around.

  “How did you end up at Moorhurst? It’s such a small college and it’s so far away from Ohio, or Iowa, or whatever.”

  “I’m here on scholarship. The Kensington Scholarship.”

  Sierra’s bright pink lips slowly curve upward as she turns to Garret. “Aww, that’s so sweet of you.”

  Garret’s jaw tightens. “Shut up, Sierra. Just go.”

  “I didn’t know you were so attentive to the scholarship winner.” She looks back at me and switches to a condescending tone. “Has he given you a tour? Shown you his room?”

  Garret takes my hand. “You’re right, Jade. This party sucks. Let’s go.”

  Sierra continues to talk, raising her voice so she’ll be heard above the music. “Where are you going, Garret? You can just take her in one of the rooms here.”

  Garret pulls on me to leave and we exit out the front door, which now has a small cooler holding it open, probably so the drunk people don’t have to work so hard to go in and out. I try to pull my hand away, but he holds on even tighter.

  “What was she talking about?”

  He keeps walking fast toward the car. I finally yank my hand free. “Garret, she acts like we’re going to have sex or something. Like you’re using me for sex.” I stop walking but he continues. “Is that why you’re being nice to me? Is this all some game you’re playing? Get the naive new girl to sleep with you?”

  He whips around and walks back to me. “Seriously, Jade? Why would you listen to a bitch like Sierra? You barely know her and now you believe her over me? Sierra makes up shit all the time. She does it to cause problems. Her parents even made her see a counselor when she was 12 because she made up this story about a teacher flirting with her. She’d never even met the guy. She’s a total liar.”

  I’m not sure if I should believe him. I want to, but I don’t trust him. Then again, I don’t trust anyone.

  “I think I should walk back.”

  “Jade, no.” He takes my hand again, this time gently holding it. “It’s dark and it’s not safe to walk alone. Plus there’s no sidewalk. You could get hit, especially wearing that dark shirt.” He leads me over to his car and opens the door. “Please. Just get in the car. It’s still early. We can go somewhere else. You want some dessert?”

  I take a moment to think about it. I really don’t want to go back and sit all alone in my dorm room. And for some crazy reason I do want to spend more time with Garret even though part of me is screaming to stay the hell away from him.

  I agree to go and he takes me to a small diner that’s in a renovated old train car. There are small, high-backed wooden booths along each side of a narrow aisle and the ceiling and walls are covered in dark wood panels. The floor has black and white checkered tiles and short, red drapes hang on all the windows.

  As I’m reviewing the dessert section of the menu, the waitress arrives.

  “We’ll have the Boxcar Bonanza,” Garret says to her. “Two spoons.” She takes off without even asking what I want.

  I slam the menu shut. “Did you just order for me?”

  “No, I just ordered for us.” He sits back in the booth. “I used to love this place as a kid. They have great burgers.”

  “Excuse me, but going back to what just happened. I don’t care for the way you just ordered without even considering what I wanted. It’s rude. Maybe I won’t like the Boxcar whatever it was.”

  “Boxcar Bonanza. And you’ll like it. Everyone likes it. It’s their special dessert.”

  “And we have to share it? Maybe I wanted my own dessert.”

  “It’s huge. You have to share it.” He sips his water. “So tell me about yourself, Jade. This whole time we’ve been hanging out you haven’t said one word about home.”

  “There’s nothing to say.”

  “Tell me about your family. That guy, Ryan. What’s he like?”

  “I don’t want to talk about Ryan.” Hearing his name reminds me that I haven’t heard from Ryan all day. He should’ve called with an update on Frank. “We have to eat fast. I have to call him as soon as we get back.”

  “Why? Is something wrong?”

  “I don’t know. Never mind. Talk about something else.”

  “Jade, I can tell you’re worried about something. Go call him right now.”

  “I don’t have a phone. It’s okay. I’ll call him later.”

  “You don’t have a cell phone?”

  “No. I don’t need one.”

  “I don’t think I’ve ever met some
one who doesn’t have a cell phone.” He pulls out his phone and sets it on the table in front of me. “Here. Use mine.”

  “It can wait. Really.” I slide it back over to him.

  Our dessert arrives; a giant orange bowl that contains eight scoops of different-flavored ice cream topped with broken up chocolate chip cookies, chocolate syrup, and whipped cream. It’s the largest dessert I’ve ever seen.

  “What do you think?” Garret asks, taking a bite using one of the oversized spoons that came with it.

  “I guess it’s all right.” I taste the cookies. They’re incredible. Definitely homemade. “Okay, it’s good. Really good.”

  It takes us a half hour to finish the whole thing. As we eat, Garret tells me more about the area and what there is to do there. When the check arrives, he insists on paying, saying it’s his punishment for ordering for me without asking first.

  When we’re back on campus, he walks me to my room. I get my key out and unlock the door. “Well, thanks for dessert, but I still feel like I owe you.”

  “You don’t owe me. Can’t a person be nice without expecting anything in return?”

  “People always expect something in return.”

  I’m not sure why he’s waiting there. It’s not like I plan to invite him in.

  The phone in my room rings. “That’s Ryan. I have to go. I’ll see you later.”

  Garret leaves and I hurry inside my room to answer the phone. “Ryan?”

  “Hey, Jade. How’s college?”

  “Who cares about that. How’s Frank?”

  “I just talked to him and he said he’s sore from his injuries, but that he’s starting to feel better. Now tell me about your day.”

  “Where are you calling from?”

  “I’m at a restaurant somewhere in Ohio. I needed a break from driving. So what did you do all day?”

  “I ran on the track and then I had lunch at the park. Oh, the dining halls don’t open until Tuesday. Can you believe that?”

  “See? It’s a good thing I gave you money. What park did you go to? I don’t remember seeing a park near campus.”

  “It’s not near campus. We had to drive there. We got sandwiches from a deli and ate at the park.”

  “So you already made friends? That’s great. Did you go out with those girls you met last night?”