hang
by jess ryan
chapter 3

The front door was open, and Jackson found his way easily to the main party.  No one had even noticed him enter.  Now he just had to find Brittany and Tiffany.
  “Excuse me,” he said to a pretty blonde as he passed through the back door.  “Do you happen to know if Brittany Taylor and Tiffany Lalor are here tonight?”
  The girl gave him a strange look.  “I don’t know anyone by those names,” she replied.  “What year are they?”
  “They’re seniors.”
  She shook her head.  “There’s no seniors named Brittany and Tiffany.  Sorry.”
  Dammit, Jackson thought, feeling his blood boil.  The little bitches had lied to him about their names even.  Now he had no chance of finding them.  Unless…
  Jackson turned on his heel and stalked back out toward “Brittany’s” car.

  Jess had fled to an upstairs bathroom, with Catherine, Alana and Aleesha following, but she had wanted to be left alone so they trudged back downstairs.
  “That asshole,” Aleesha muttered.  “When I see that bastard…”
  “You’ll do what?  Yell at him and call him names?” Alana replied reasonably.
  Aleesha pouted.  “I’ll call him really mean names,” she told her friends.  Then she brightened somewhat.  “And make him cry.”
  Catherine grinned.  “Yeah, that’ll show him.”
  Alana sighed.  “Well, what now?”
  “I don’t know about you guys, but I plan on dancing the night away,” Catherine replied.  “You girls in?”
  Alana shook her head.  “Nah, I think I’m gonna go talk to Casey about those graphics she wants for the newspaper.”
  Aleesha spied Devin in the kitchen, fixing a drink.  “I think I’ll hang with Devin for a bit.”
  “Okay,” Catherine replied.  “Looks like I’m groovin’ on my own.  See you guys later.”  She and Alana headed out the back door, Catherine to the dance floor and Alana back to the circle of chairs on the lawn, and Aleesha crept up behind Devin.
  “Boo!” she said.  Devin grinned and didn’t turn to face her.
  “I knew you were there.”
  “Damn.”  Aleesha climbed up onto the kitchen counter beside him and swung her legs back and forth.  “Whatcha doin’?”
  “Making a very tasty, incredibly alcoholic drink known widely as a Cocksucking Cowboy,” Devin replied.  He poured Butterscotch Snaps into a shot glass, then carefully added a teaspoon of Baileys.  The Baileys floated on top like the froth of a beer.  He handed the glass to Aleesha and poured another.  “Try it – it’s yum.”
  Aleesha eyed the glass for a moment.  The liquid was the warmest amber colour she’d ever seen in her life.  She took a tentative sip.
  “No, no, no!” Devin cried.  “You don’t sip it, you shot it – straight down!”  He picked up his own glass and swallowed its contents in one gulp.
  Looking uncertain, Aleesha copied him and threw the liquid straight down.  Devin laughed as she shuddered.
  “Strong, ain’t it?”
  Aleesha took a deep breath.  “Actually, she said.  “It was kinda yum.”
  Devin took her glass and, grinning, poured another two shots.

  Twenty minutes and five shots later, Devin was still pouring.  “Aren’t you feeling anything yet?” Devin asked incredulously.  He was incredibly drunk himself, from the other stuff he’d already had before he started on the Cocksucking Cowboys, and Aleesha sat perfectly fine on the counter still.
  “I feel great!” Aleesha replied.  She did – she felt more upbeat than she had in awhile.  Devin tried in vain to pour Baileys onto the teaspoon – instead, the liquid went straight into the shot glass and mixed with the Butterscotch Snaps.
  “Oops,” he muttered.
  Aleesha giggled raucously then leaned back against the wall as a massive headspin overcame her.  “Whoa…” she mumbled.  Every muscle in her body felt like lead, weighing her down, as if she was pinned to this bench.  “I-I think I’m gonna fall down…”
  Devin helped her down off the bench.  “You’re feeling it, aren’t you?” he asked.
  Aleesha held onto the counter.  Her legs felt like jelly.  “Yup.”  Her head was swimming, and when she moved it felt like her movements were deliberate, as if she was walking through water.  And her head felt heavy, so heavy…
  “Pour me another,” she slurred.

  In the glove compartment of the green Porsche, Jackson found exactly what he was looking for.  “Well, hello Catherine Reice,” he murmured, staring down at the licence and registration he had found with a self-satisfied smirk.

  Claire was just entering the hall from the stairs when she was stopped by a tall guy in a leather jacket.  He was cute, she thought, a bit older than she was, so probably about nineteen years old.  “Excuse me,” he said politely.  “Do you happen to know where I could find Catherine Reice?”
  Ah, Claire thought.  A friend of Catherine’s.  That explained it.  “Sure,” she said.  “She was on the dance floor when I left about five minutes ago – she’s probably still there.  She’s wearing a blue dress, and she has knee-high boots.”
  The guy smiled an almost sinister smile.  “Thanks you very much.  You’ve been a great help.”

  AJ McLean was drawn to the kitchen by the sound of laughing – extremely familiar laughing.  He entered from the hallway to find Aleesha and Devin doubled-over from laughing so hard.  Devin looked up and saw him first.
  “AJ, my man!” he shouted.  Aleesha looked up too.
  “AJ, guess what?” she asked.  “We’re drunk!”  She giggled and hiccupped, and giggled some more.
  AJ raised his eyebrows.  “Uh, really?”
  “She is.”  Devin pointed at Aleesha.  “But I’m not.  I’m sober as a skunk!”  He glanced around the tabletop he was leaning heavily on.  “Where’s my glass?”
  Aleesha pointed at his hand.  “You’re holding it.”
  Devin stared at the shot glass in his hand for a moment.  “Oh.  Yeah.”  Aleesha laughed harder.
  AJ stared at them incredulously.  “What have you guys been drinking?” he asked.
  “Cocksucking Cowboys,” Aleesha declared proudly.  “Hey, how come they call ‘em Cocksucking Cowboys?”
  “Because,” Devin stated matter-of-factly.  “They’re so alcoholic that after a few even Cowboys are sucking cocks!”
  Aleesha laughed so hard that she had to sit down, but she still fell off that and slid to the floor in a laughing heap.  This caused Devin to laugh even harder as well.
  “Ohmigod,” AJ groaned, moving to pick Aleesha up off the floor.  When she was on her feet again, she reached for the bottle of Butterscotch Snaps.  “Aleesha, no,” AJ told her.  “You’ve had way too much already.”
  “No, I haven’t,” she argued.  “I’ve only just started.”  She took a big swig from the bottle.
  “Aleesha, please,” AJ pleaded, but she glared at him.
  “You’re not my boyfriend, AJ.  You can’t order me around like that.  I’m a grown woman, dammit!”
  AJ stared at her for a moment.  “You know what?” he said.  “You’re right.  You’re absolutely right.  I’ll just go and leave you two to get alcohol poisoning and drown in your own puddles of vomit.”  He stalked out, slamming the back door behind him.  She’d been right – he wasn’t her boyfriend – but he wished he were.  He’d loved her for so long, but she never gave him the time of day.  Apparently she knew about his little crush though, from the way she’d said the words that had pierced straight through to his heart.
  He wasn’t her boyfriend.