The Way You Said Hello ~ Chapter Twenty-Eight

Saturday afternoon was busily spent preparing for that night's party at Kevin's house. Celebrating the breakup of two people can hardly be considered normal or kind, but if we were going to be crazy enough to do it, we were going to do it all the way.

AJ and I were assigned the task of bringing CD's, etc., for everyone's entertainment. After our quick lunch out, we searched through my CD collection to find a few good ones and then headed out to the nearest music store to pick up a few of the latest singles. Not too tough of an assignment, I suppose.

After that it was back to the house to get ready. I banished AJ to the living room to watch TV, as he was really in no need of freshening up. In the meantime, I went in for a quick shower. After getting out and pinning my hair up into a chignon, I got dressed: a pair of dark grey pants, black boots, a black halter top. My black leather jacket and a pair of tiny, silver hoop earrings completed the ensemble. A dash of makeup and I was done.

I put a few things (wallet, lipstick) into my favorite Prada handbag and went to find AJ. I found him just where I had left him - on the couch, watching a movie on cable. His eyes were glued to the screen, and he didn't notice me at first as I stood in the back of the room observing him.

He leaned back in his seat, his fingers clasped together behind his head. He wore his favorite pair of khaki cargo pants with a white wifebeater tank top and a dark green collared shirt over it. His hair (though hidden under a white baseball cap) was at the moment shorter than usual and back to its normal dark brown color. The sunglasses were mysteriously absent, and his clear brown eyes focused intently on the television screen before him. It wasn't until I cleared my throat quietly that he swiveled around in his seat to take notice of me.

His eyes widened a bit; the jaw went a little slack. "You look absolutely…" He took his time getting the words right, studying me closely. "Gorgeous." I felt a little self-conscious under his scrutiny and crossed my arms across my chest.

"You don't look so bad yourself," I smiled and walked over to him. Leaning over, I grasped the brim of his baseball cap and whisked it from his head, moving in to kiss him gently on the tip of his nose. "In fact, I'd say you look downright handsome," I grinned, and he chuckled softly, shaking his head. Unable to fight temptation any longer, he grabbed my waist and pulled me forcefully toward him, burning my mouth with a fiery kiss. The sudden forcefulness of it knocked the breath from me, and my head felt light, floating. It was a remarkable sensation.

I smiled again as he pulled away, judging my reaction. "Sorry," he said sheepishly. "You just look so great…I don't know how I've managed to keep my hands off you for as long as I have." He cast his eyes downward for a moment, but soon flicked them back up to meet mine.

"Don't say you're sorry," I sighed, standing up. "I'm surely not." I held my hand out; and he grasped it firmly, pulling himself up from the couch.

AJ glanced at his watch. "We need to get going, I guess…it's already seven, and it takes at least forty-five minutes to get there from here."

I waited while AJ got his things together, including the CD's, and we went out to the garage. I locked the house behind me and pocketed the key; bounding down the front steps, I got into AJ's car, and we sped away.

The forty-five minute drive seemed amazingly short, as AJ and I chatted and sang along to the radio the whole way. We hit light traffic on the interstate, but eventually we made it to Orlando in plenty of time.

"Parties at Kevin's are always very interesting," AJ explained to me as we turned onto Kevin's street.

My eyes danced along the sights speeding by through the window. "Why's that?"

"Three reasons mainly. First, his house is huge. That means there's lots of space for people to wander off and get in trouble."

I nodded. "Hmm… I can see how that might happen."

"Right. Second," he continued, "Kev lives alone, unlike me, so there are no pesky relatives around. It makes everyone really uninhibited."

"Uninhibited can be good," I smiled slyly at him.

"Yeah, good, but still cause for trouble. Not that I don't LIKE trouble," he grinned mischievously.

I laughed. "Trust me, I know. So what's the third thing?"

AJ reached Kevin's driveway and pulled in. He took the key out of the ignition and turned to me. "Kevin's the oldest of the bunch, as you know. So, he's always looking out after everyone - but he's still cool enough to let loose and have a crazy time. I don't know, when you take all that and mix it together, things just get…interesting."

I pushed the car door open and stepped out onto the concrete driveway. I met AJ around the other side of the car, and he led me to the door of the house. He rang the doorbell, and we waited silently for someone to let us in. I took the time to examine my surroundings.

From the outside, the house looked nearly brand new: two stories and immaculately taken care of. The front yard was planted with palm trees; it was sprawling and gave the house a very lush but laid back feel.

After a moment the door was opened by an excited, glowing Anne. Her short blonde hair was perfect as usual, and she looked chic in a casual, short blue dress. Kevin soon appeared right behind her, sliding an arm around her waist and waving us inside.

"Hey, guys!" Anne beamed. "We are having such a good time! What took you so long?" She led us into the living room, where several people were hanging out.

"We came as fast as we could," I responded, taking off my jacket and laying it across the back of the couch. "Is everyone else here?"

"Yep," Kevin said, nodding. Looking at AJ, he continued: "Did you bring the music?"

"You bet!" AJ grinned, handing over the stack of CD's we'd chosen.

"Sweet!" Kev exclaimed as he flipped through them. "This is great. Let me just give them to D - he's playing DJ tonight." He left us abruptly, and AJ turned to Anne.

"Where's the man of honor? Damn, I've gotta go congratulate him," he grinned. Anne laughed and pointed toward the kitchen, where I could hear lots of people talking and laughing cheerfully. AJ practically sprinted in that direction, and Anne followed him. I was left alone in the room.

I sat down on the couch for a moment before joining the others. Sighing, I listlessly glanced at the items on the coffee table. Spying an old picture of the guys posed in front of some building and laughing, I reached out to pick it up.

As soon as I did, though, a shock ran through my arm straight to my heart. Touching this picture gave me a premonition: something tonight would go very wrong. I put it out of my mind for now but vowed not to forget it: my instincts were almost NEVER incorrect.

Uneasy, I set the picture back on the coffee table and stood up. Following the sound of voices, I strolled into the kitchen. Several people greeted me with hugs, and I smiled and joked with them all, though my mind was clearly somewhere else. Suddenly, music started playing from the next room - a CD I had brought. I walked in to see Howie and a girl I didn't know hanging out by a CD player.

"Well, if it isn't Howie D!" I grinned in greeting, giving him a hug. "Como estas, chico?"

"Great!" he laughed. "Becks, I want you to meet my new girlfriend, Keri," he said, indicating the girl next to him.

"It's a pleasure to meet you," I smiled, shaking her hand.

"Same here!" she said happily. "I've heard so much about you."

"Oh boy," I joked. "That may not be such a good thing. So… have you two known each other long?"

"Yeah," Howie said, putting his arm around Keri's shoulders. "Actually, I've known her for years. We've just always been friends until now."

"That's so sweet," I responded. "Well, you know what they say: the best relationships, the ones that last, are often the ones that are rooted in friendship."

"Really…who says that?"

"Scully on the X-Files," I grinned. "Very educational program. Well Keri, it's wonderful to meet you. I'm sure you'll fit in great with this group of wackos." I slapped Howie playfully on the arm. "I'll talk to ya later." I gave a little wave and walked back into the kitchen, where many things were going on simultaneously.

The kitchen was certainly the hub of the party, probably because of our group's obsession with food… ha ha. It was bustling with people laughing and talking loudly. I ducked through the small groups of people who were deep in conversation to get to the refrigerator. I opened it and grabbed a can of Diet Coke, and was just getting ready to take my first sip when -

"Beckles!" someone screamed into my ear after creeping up behind me. I must have jumped six inches into the air; Coke was spluttered very ungracefully from my mouth.

I whirled around to find Eilene absolutely dying with laughter. Soon I was cracking up with her - Eilene was one of a kind, that's for sure.

"Okay, my theory has been proven," I laughed. "You are definitely psychotic."

"But it was SO funny!" she cackled. "You looked like you were on a seesaw and a four hundred pound circus clown jumped on the other end!"

Gillie appeared at my side just in time to witness the delirium Eilene was experiencing. "Smile and nod," she muttered to me under her breath. "Just smile and nod."

She and I looked at each other knowingly. A party just wasn't a party without Eilene acting like she was under the influence of some as-yet-undiscovered drugs.

Gillie and Eilene started to chat about the "old days" - my surprise sixteenth birthday party when we had the biggest food fight the world had ever seen. It seemed like ages ago: though I was only eighteen, I was almost nineteen, and at times I felt even older than that. I was the oldest of all my friends, and I (usually) acted the most mature, despite my various shortcomings.

As my mind wandered, so did my eyes, and I spotted Ryan talking animatedly with Brian. She was telling him a story, probably about one of our crazy times. AJ was quietly observing them, a small amused smile gracing his lips.

It didn't take a genius to see that Ryan was flirting shamelessly with Bri. Maybe she was just helping him celebrate his newfound independence, I don't know - but it was blatant. Brian seemed to be enjoying the attention, but he looked a bit uncomfortable: probably because he had noticed what it had taken me a few minutes to realize.

Nick. There was one word to describe the look that had taken over his features: pissed. And I mean really, really pissed. He was standing in the door of the kitchen, his arms crossed tightly across his chest, his eyes harsh and lips frowning angrily. Jealousy was written all over his face.

Ryan had not yet noticed her boyfriend's presence in the room, as improbably as that may seem. She was far too absorbed in her narrative, gesturing wildly and frequently placing a hand on Bri's shoulder, leaning in and smiling flirtatiously. All I could think was: What on earth was she doing? Were she and Nick fighting? It certainly was a mystery to me, and only me - so far no one else in the room (save for the parties involved) had picked up on the drama that was unfolding.

Suddenly, it was as if something inside Nick snapped; he flew across the room, pushing through the small group of people in his way. I was shocked as he grabbed Ryan's arm and pulled her roughly away from Brian. When he spoke, his voice was loud and unforgiving.

"What do you think you're doing?" he yelled in Ryan's face, glaring.

She matched him and more in defiance, twisting out of his grasp, her eyes narrowing. "Talking to Brian…what does it look like I'm doing?"

Nick was accusatory. "It looked like you were doing a lot more than just talking."

Her jaw dropped - she took a step forward confrontationally. "Excuse me? You are totally overreacting, Nick!"

"Am I? AM I?" He was quickly growing hysterical. "I'm overreacting because I'm a little upset when my girlfriend throws herself on my best friend? Why don't you just go out with him instead?"

"Go to hell, Nick," she growled. "Last time I checked, this was a free country."

The two of them suddenly realized that the entire room had grown silent, and everyone's eyes were on them. Kevin took a step forward and, as the "supervisor" of the group, cleared his throat.

"Why don't you guys take it outside," he said slowly and distinctly, giving them a look. Nick and Ryan stared each other down angrily and followed Kevin's orders, brushing past everyone to make their way outside. As soon as they had left the room, the room relaxed again, and the conversation started back up.

I breathed a sigh of mixed relief and apprehension and went back to talking with Gillie and Eilene. They were equally confused about what was going on between Ryan and Nick, but we didn't speak a word about it between us. Gossiping was pointless. We would find out from the source later when I could get Ryan alone.

A minute or two later, Anne and Kevin came over to our group to see how we were doing. After we'd assured her that we were having a wonderful time, she leaned in close to me and lowered her voice significantly.

"Guess who's been giving me dirty looks all night?" she whispered to me, her eyes jumping to her left.

"Eva?" She nodded. I followed her glance to see everyone's favorite person (ha ha) standing in the corner with her arms crossed. I hadn't even known she was there: she hadn't moved a muscle in the time I'd been in the room. Her sharp green eyes were cutting right through Anne, but as soon as she saw me, her gaze shifted. I was now the focus of her hatred. I could not bear the intensity of her eyes, and looked away quickly.

"I don't know why she's here," Anne whispered to me. "Nobody invited her, and AJ didn't bring her. But she is his cousin, so I don't want to be rude and ask her to leave… I mean, she's not hurting anybody…"

"Yet," I muttered. "She really looks like she's up to something. Do you want me to say something to her?" I offered, hoping Anne would say no. As much as I seemed to not be intimidated by her, I dreaded the thought of a confrontation with a person so full of hate and bitterness.

"No, that's okay," Anne said determinedly. "I'm going to have a few words with her myself." She boldly walked up to Eva, to my astonishment.

I couldn't make out exactly what she was saying, but it certainly was forceful. I watched as she pointed at Kevin and then at herself. I could just picture her saying: Back off, honey, 'cause that man is mine! I had to smile at the thought.

Eva seemed to back off slightly, giving Anne a final look and striding away into the now-empty living room… probably to sulk. Anne rejoined Kevin, Gillie, Eilene and I with a smug smile on her face.

"I think I just took care of that problem," she said triumphantly.

"You go girl!" Gillie grinned and gave her a high-five.

Kevin kissed her cheek and said, "I hope this means she won't be bothering us any more…it was kinda freaky, if you know what I mean."

Anne grinned and kissed him back. "Well, I can definitely understand her obsession with you."

Eilene rolled her eyes. "You two…are DISGUSTING!" she yelled. The rest of us just laughed. She was only joking - as usual.

At that moment, my premonition came rushing back to me: I felt very strongly that what had happened between Nick and Ryan was NOT the thing I had been afraid of. It was something else. Something else that involved me… something that involved Eilene… that was all I could figure out. My instincts were very hazy.

And then everything snapped into place. I knew it - I was right. Something WAS going to go terribly wrong - maybe more than one thing at that. I felt it for certain the second I saw Eva motion for me to follow her into the living room, and Brian walk over to Eilene and ask her if they could talk.

~

Continue to chapter twenty-nine

Send feedback to Becky

~

Back to TWYSH Index
Back to Becky's Page
Back to Backstreet Crew main page