SWNOVELS What Are The Odds?: Chapter 9
Grace
With Stella and Ava’s hands clasped in mine, we squeezed through the crowd. Music vibrated the floor beneath my feet. We could officially tick frat party off the American college experience. It was as wild as I expected. Busier than a nightclub. Looser than a music festival. The dance floor was happening outside on the grass. It was packed, the heat of the many bodies subduing the cool air.
“Let’s do shots,” Stella shouted.
We didn’t have training tomorrow morning, and Stella was making the most of it. We’d already done shots. And danced. And played beer pong with a group of guys who’d been wearing matching Hawaiian shirts. I think they belonged in the frat. I wasn’t entirely sure how it worked. After dragging us inside, Stella scanned the alcohol littering the kitchen bench. She yelped in excitement after locating a bottle of Fireball. Lining up three glasses, she poured the shots.
“What are we toasting to?” Ava asked.
“To Grace.”
I frowned. “To me?”
“For breaking Phil-U’s Women’s 100m Freestyle record.”
Our coaches had hosted an internal meet this morning. It was a trial to prepare us for our upcoming meet in Washington and a chance for them to secure places and relay teams.
“I’ll toast to that.”
We all turned towards the deep voice. Levi was standing in front of the fridge. Even in a party full of frat guys, his confident energy was in full swing. He was dressed in a grey hoodie, dark jeans, and flannel jacket, one ankle lazily crossed over the other.
“Hi, Hughes.”
“Hey, Holloway.”
He reached around me, grabbing a cold water from the sink full of ice. This close, I could smell his intoxicating muskiness. But something told me it wasn’t cologne, just him.
“Cap,” a guy shouted, appearing in the doorway. “You’re needed.”
With his face mere inches from mine, Levi’s mouth curved up slightly before he backed away. The moment he did, Ava nudged my arm.
“Who the hell was that, Grace?”
“Nobody. Just a guy from a group project.”
Ava scoffed. “That wasn’t nobody. He was quite possibly the hottest guy I’ve ever seen. And it totally looked like he was into you.”
“I think he’s into everyone.” I picked up my shot then downed it. “Come on. Let’s go dance.”
The music here was not my vibe. It switched between techno dance tracks, to popular chart toppers, to RNB. Ava and Stella were enjoying it, but I think that was mainly because of the cluster of Hawaiian-shirt-wearing-guys dancing with them. I was tipsy, but not tipsy enough to enjoy the drunken flirting. With Ava and Stella’s attention preoccupied, I edged off the dance floor to catch my breath. The air was only refreshing for a moment before it just became cold. Wrapping my arms around my body, I craned my head to look at the dark sky. It was strange to think it was the same moon my brothers had seen last night. Standing here, it seemed so big and close. Yet home felt opposite to that. If we could see the same things, it felt like we ought to be closer.
“What are you looking at?”
My attention pulled to the figure now standing beside me. I adjusted my gaze, finding Tripp. The Phil-U cap he was wearing cast a shadow over his face as he stared up at the sky. Tripp had short blonde hair and green eyes. And, like Levi, he was incredibly tall. Even beneath his borg jacket, I could make out broad shoulders. He looked me up and down before a smile broke across his face.
“You look good, Grace.”
Stella had vetoed all my clothes, so I was dressed in her things. Tight black jeans. A fitted crop that I’d found myself continuously tugging down. Tripp reached for my wrist, pulling me against him to dodge two Hawaiian-shirt-clad guys play fighting. They rolled around on the grass, covering themselves in dirt.
“Come on. Follow me to safer territory.”
Tripp edged inside, parting the crowd until he reached a set of steps that led to a basement. There were still a lot of people down here, but it wasn’t as crowded.
“Cap. Look who I found.”
Levi looked up from where he sat. He was perched on a barstool, one arm resting on the built in bar Will stood behind, and the other resting on the backside of a blonde girl dressed in a short dress and heels so high it made me feel squeamish. It seemed like the entire hockey team was down here. Most of them were huddled around a pool table, playing a game.
“Would you like a drink, Grace?” Will offered.
“What are the options?”
“Um.” He scanned the many open bottles. “There’s vodka. And tequila. And Cointreau.”
I pressed onto my toes, leaning over the bar. There was practically every spirit here, as well as a random collection of mixers. I’d be able to make something out of this. I rounded the bar, bumping Will with my hip as I rummaged through the bottles. Laughing, he took the hint and stepped out of the way.
“What are you making?”
“A pina colada.”
“I want a pina colada,” Tripp said, resting his forearms on the edge of the bar.
“You got it.”
I measured the portions, dropping them into the cocktail shaker. I could feel Will’s eyes on me, watching me with interest. Smoothies and cocktails – or mocktails when I was younger – had always gone hand in hand in our house. Dad loved experimenting, testing out new flavours and mixes. Mum’s favourite was always a pina colada. Simple. Yet bloody delicious. After locating enough ice in the bar fridge, I shook the ingredients. I’d made enough to fill three glasses. Tripp took one, and Will took another. I brought mine to my lips, taking a sip. As always, the drink went down well. Too well. It reminded me of home and warm nights spent outside. Not the basement of a frat house and an icy breeze waiting outside.
“Fucking delicious, Grace,” Tripp moaned.
“Seconded,” Will agreed.
Ryan strolled over, dark eyebrows furrowed. He was the most clean-cut of these guys. His hair was neatly brushed from his face, and there wasn’t a speck of dirt on his white sneakers.
“What’s with the girly drinks?”
“Don’t knock it ‘til you try it babe,” Tripp jested.
Tripp was clearly the clown of the group. I was still trying to figure the others out. I think Ryan might be the player, especially given the two girls trailing him. Will took me as the serious one, the one that kept the rest level-headed. And Levi was undoubtably the captain. Even now, in a room full of people, he emanated a level of authority. I pulled my phone from my back pocket out of habit. It was pointless. It was still on airplane mode. Though the time did work, and it was getting late. I might not have training tomorrow, but I did have an early class.
“You can have mine,” I told Ryan, handing over my drink. “I should get going.”
Tripp pouted. “But you just got here.”
“I’ve been here for hours,” I countered. “You just found me.”