Chapter 2: Stupid Spin the Bottle

Alexis

IT’S BEEN FIFTEEN minutes since MJ and I got back from the comfort room. The same time that MJ has been ignoring me ever since.

I honestly expect her to sit with me but right now she’s with her squad and is even too busy to even shot a brief glance at me. Feeling annoyed, I decide to sit back on my place in the couch and pretend to play with my phone. But even that irritates me m0re because the characters on the screen are wobbling!

The annoyance I am feeling intensified when my boyfriend’s name registered on the screen. I press ignore and dispose it back on my pocket jeans. He will just scold me knowing that he’s angry because I am in this party. This is just the kind of parties that Gab doesn’t like and I think, he doesn’t really trust me that much.

My thoughts are disturbed when a hand nudges my side and gives me another drink. I smile at her and mumble my thanks.

"You missed my performance," Kelly says, laughing and snuggling close to me on the couch.

“Yeah, I did,” I reply. “I’m sorry about that.”

Kelly keeps me company and the two of us have decided to make fun of our friends. We laugh at the sight of Jonas and Marky while simultaneously shouting at them to go get a room. We watch Abigail and Vivian, a friend who loves wearing Harry Potter glasses—because Harry Potter is her imaginary boyfriend, take silly Tiktok videos. We also join the others on the karaoke, singing Sparks Fly and You Belong With Me like crazy.

When both of us feel exhausted, we decide to sit back on the couch and drink some more.

“That was fun,” Kelly says, giggling.

“Uh, my foot hurts,” I say, putting both of my feet on Kelly’s lap. And that’s when I notice MJ sitting close to Bella, a hot chic and also a former high school classmate who used to be the band majorette of the school’s band and bugles corp. She’s really pretty with long eyelashes and curly brownish hair. Only that, she can be so flirty and dumb at times. My eyebrows immediately raise when I see Bella sits on MJ’s lap. Geez. Do they really have to be that—that—I can’t even put a word to it! I roll my eyes as I raise a glass of beer to my lips.

"Hey, stop staring at MJ and Bella like that. They might melt," Kelly teases, disturbing my ugly thoughts about them.

"I wasn't...staring," I quickly reply, rolling my eyes at her.

"Yes, you were!”

“Not guilty,” I say, raising my hand and taking another large gulp with my beer. “Who cares if Bella sits on her lap? Duh.”

“Oh ho-ho-ho. Someone’s acting like a jelly!” Kelly presses on, laughing like a maniac. She makes small circles in the air using her index fingers and points it accusingly to me. “I know it when you’re lying, girl.”

I pinch her cheeks. "God, you're so drunk already. Give me that," getting the glass out of her hand.

"Oh, come on!" she whines, stomping her foot like a kid. “Give it back to me, jelly bean!”

"Suit you right, you blabbermouth,” I say with a chuckle.

I let out a yelp when Kelly straddles me and tickles my side. Geez, I can’t believe this crazy girl’s going to be a doctor few years from now.

“Kelly, s-stop!” I shout, giggling. Kelly only stops harassing me when she realizes that everyone is already looking at us with amusement. She settles back on the couch and extends a hand to help me get up.

Thanks Kelly, now everyone’s attention is on us.

“That was crazy. You’re crazy!”

Kelly sticks her tongue out and we both laugh. I usher her to sit closer to me and reach for her unruly hair and decide to fix it into a bun. She asks me about how I am doing with Gab and I say that everything’s fine. Though I am not quite sure with that anymore.

“Okay everyone, gather around.” We look up and see Abigail in front, her hands are settled on her wide hips and she’s grinning at us. “Let’s play a game.”

Everyone settles down as Vivian hastily gets the remote control and turns down the volume from the karaoke. I now realize that this karaoke bar is owned by her parents.

“What game?” asks Marky in his gayest voice. He and Jonas have finally peeled their bodies off. Now he’s just sitting on Jonas’ lap, maybe because the latter is afraid to expose his already big bummer. I can’t help but giggle.

“Why are you giggling?” Kelly whispers. I tell her my thoughts in hushed tone and both of us try our best to stop ourselves from laughing.

“Perv,” Kelly teases me.

“Only because I also have an equally perverted best friend,” I counter.

We’ve decided to get more serious after that and ignore our silly thoughts.

“Let’s play Spin the Bottle!” Abigail announces, filling the room with disapproval. “What? It’s a cool game!” she whines, pouting her lips.

“Fine, since it’s your birthday, we’ll do it.”

My eyes automatically dart to the person who said that. MJ.

“Alright, considering the place we’re in, that’s acceptable,” Kelly interjects, getting her leader mode on. “So what are the mechanics?”

“Anyone is free to give a task. The one who fails to do the task will drink a shot,” I boldly suggest in a loud voice. Everyone nods their heads.

“Fine. But a shot will have no challenge at all,” Vivian counters. “Why not make it three?”

The sound of cheers fills the air.

“All tasks are acceptable, except killing each other,” Kelly says which makes everyone chuckle. “Let’s prepare the glasses and the drinks!”

We gather around, sitting in circles. MJ and Bella sit across me and I am sandwiched between Kelly and Abigail. The rest of our friends scoot beside each other. Marky stands up and clicks Lady Gaga MTV’s, making us laugh like party animals.

Kelly starts spinning the bottle. We hold our breaths as we watch it go around and around and around…until the bottle slows down and points at Marky. He has to kiss Bella on the cheek after that so he’s really upset. He has thrown a fit of tantrums before his lips barely touch Bella’s reddened cheeks.

The game continues with Kelly on the line.

“So, Miss Smarty Pants, tell us how you lose your virginity.”

I chuckle at Jonas, not because it is funny but because he’s being stupid. “He doesn’t have a boyfriend since birth,” I say, smirking at him.

“A-actually,” Kelly says in a very unsure and guilty voice, as if telling me that I know nothing at all. Wrinkling my forehead, I look at her with suspicions.

“I lost it already.”

Everyone lets out a gasp. I, in particular, shout “What?” in front of everybody.

“I’m sorry,” she says, awkwardly biting her lips.

“So you didn’t tell me.”

“I’m sorry Lexis, it’s just—it was just a spur of a moment and things got heated and—and.”

“So when exactly?” taunts Vivian.

“Two years ago?”

Damn you, Kelly. “You know what, I’m out.”

I try to stand up but MJ and Abigail stop me from leaving. “Stay, please,” they all say.

So at the expense of Abigail and MJ, I decide to shrug the hurt off my sleeve. I silently get the bottle from Kelly’s hand and spin it. Everybody is silenced and tension suddenly fills the air. Surprisingly, the bottle points at MJ. I nod at Vivian, urging her to give MJ the task, then I rest my back on the chair. Never speaking again.

"O-okay, MJ. Sing us a song," Vivian says, trying to sound excited. Without a word, MJ pours drinks on three glasses. Hah! No one can ever ask this girl to sing.

The game continues and each of my friends has started to take their tasks seriously. My mood has been ruined but it doesn’t stop me from enjoying my friend’s ridiculous stunts. Abigail does a lap dance in front of Marky. Jonas is challenged with a hundred push-ups with Bella sitting on his back. They make Vivian lick her elbows, and Bella dances Budots on top of the table. That has given Jonas an advantage of staring at her pink panties. Uh, such a perverted bisexual. I wonder how Marky manages to stay with him.

MJ has been picked several times already and yet, none of her tasks are accomplished. She has already consumed twelve glasses for the cheat. The same thing with mine. I even feel dizzier since I’ve just had six glasses of cheat.

”Okay, let’s change the mechanics of the game since MJ and Alexis are not really doing their dares,” says Abigail. “You should do something for us so it’ll not be unfair.”

“What’s so unfair? We’re drinking this stupid thing.” I whine pointing at the empty three bottles of large beer.

“Still,” Vivian and Marky say in chorus.

“Fine,” says MJ.

“What do you want us to do?” I ask in an annoyed tone, raising a glass on my lips.

“Make out with MJ.”

Upon hearing that, the beer seems to go up when it’s hardly reaches the middle part of my throat. I see MJ rolling her eyes at Abigail as the latter throws her a mocking face. I feel Kelly’s hand on my back as I choke on my beer. “A-are you out of your mind?” I billow.

“So what do you guys think?” ask Abigail with a sassy tone. “Fair enough, right?”

“I think it’s gonna be sexy.”

I roll my eyes at Jonas.

“Yes, do it! Do it! Do it!” Vivian squeals.

“I’m not doing it!” I say, standing up on my feet. The floor seems to tumble down. Kelly pulls me back on the couch and I suddenly feel my stomach flips. “We’re not doing it, babe.”

Hiding my face on my palms, I listen as everyone debates amongst themselves. Loud pop music rattles on my brain as I heave long tedious sigh. Fuck this stupid birthday party. Fuck this stupid Spin the Bottle, I say, cursing on mind.

I feel someone scoots beside me then a hand touching the back of my neck. The touch makes me stiffen and almost immediately, I realize who the owner is.

“Let’s just do it, babe.”

Shocked and feeling electrified once again, I stare at her, blinking. “Are you even serious?”

MJ cups my face with her hands. Her warmth travels my skin, sending goosebumps and funny tingling sensations just below my lower abdomen.

“Let’s just pretend that this is a movie,” she whispers.

Right, a movie.

MJ’s face leans closer to me, her nose lightly brushes my cheek. I watch her breathlessly as her lips come closer, covering just a few inches of thin lines.

Everything’s still. One moment the room’s loud and my head’s throbbing with pain. But now, I feel my breath stirs into an unsteady swerve. Realizing that for the first time in my life, a girl is going kiss me, and above all, it’s MJ. I stare at her and realize that her face looks more beautiful now that she’s just few inches from me. I am drowning with excitement despite of my revolts. Are we really doing it?

Alright, Alexis. It’s just a kiss. Just one kiss won’t hurt, I say on my mind.

But just as I slowly close my eyes and decide to live in the moment, I feel a vibration inside my pocket jeans. Cold water splashes itself on my head and I’m instantly brought back to reality.

Someone is screaming somebody’s name on my head.

Gab’s name.

Almost immediately, panic sinks in, setting the whole place with loud noises again and sending back the pain that has been whacking my head just a while ago. I look away and whisper, “I’m sorry. I just can’t do this.”

I stand up, scamper on my feet and head for the door. I have to leave the place. So I run, almost blindly.

I run away from that karaoke bar filled with disco lights.

Away from the confused look of my stupid friends.

Away from the betrayal of my best friend.

Away from MJ.

xoxoPAxoxo