Chapter ten: Royal

You know when you're meeting your girlfriend's family for the first time and she has an older sibling who watches over her like a hawk and thinks no one's good enough for her. Yeah well that's what it's like with Carmella's friends. Except for there just being one there are four. And the second Carmella isn't paying attention, they are giving me death glares, all four of them.

—

My friends and Carmella's friends are all sitting around a small table in my living room drinking wine or beer. Playing Crazy eight while Apple and I hide in my kitchen and eat the entire watermelon with a spoon.

"So, tell me, why do you all speak spanish?"

"When we were in like middle school we all really wanted to talk shit about the teachers right in front of them. So we learned Spanish and just talked to each other so no one knew what we're saying."

"So what did the girl say? You didn't look very happy, whatever it was."

"She said 'fucking hot'." Carmel says taking a big bite of watermelon.

"I mean she's not too bad herself."

"Absolutely not. Fuck other people but not my friends."

"What if I fucked you?" I did not just say that. She burst out into a laughing fit.

"Are you guys coming in here?"

"Yeah, be there in a second."

"Ok come on you hyena." I say pulling Apple by the hand. We walk into the living room and sit down side by side.

"What do you guys want to play?" Cole says. There are a lot of us cramped around this small table, Carmella's four plus my two plus both of us is a total of eight.

"Truth or dare?" Serena asks.

"I'm down." Milo agrees. We all agree and now the game begins.

"Are we just asking or are we going to get a bottle or something?" Ocean asks.

"Hurry up and drink the rest of that beer Milo." Cole says lifting the end of the bottle up more. Milo finishes and sets the bottle on its side in the middle. Eden spins the bottle first and it lands on Carmella.

"Truth or dare, my love?"

"Truth Mi amor."

"God, you're no fun."

"I'm no fun? Have you met yourself?"

"Oh cállate y déjame pensar!"(shut up and let me think!)

"Ok, dumbest thing you did as a kid? And you have to say at least two."

"When I was like four I blew a peppermint patty up in the microwave and when I was like ten I swallowed a plastic straw."

Milo and Cole are already laughing their heads off.

"Wait, wait, wait," Cole says, trying to catch his breath.

"How did you blow a peppermint patty up?"

"No one was in the house and the gosh darn thing would open so my smartass was like 'the micorwave will totally open this.' So I popped it in the microwave and it blew up. We had to get a new microwave because it started a fire in it. And the glass plate on the bottom was broken." She says trying to contain her laughter.

"That's the dumbest shit I've ever heard." Milo laughs. Carmel reaches and spins the bottle landing on Milo.

"Truth or dare?"

"Mmmmm, dare."

"I dare you to go outside right now and jump in the water fully clothed." Carmella smirks. Milo gets up and walks to the door then down to the dock.

"Can I borrow your clothes after?" Milo says cupping his hands around his mouth making him louder.

"Sure." I holler back. Milo jumps in the water then hurries back inside running straight to my room leaving a trail of water.

"When you get out of there you better clean this water up."

"Yes sir."

—

We've been playing for an hour now and it's nearly midnight. Everyone's tired and getting lousy with their truths or dares. It's E's turn now to spin the bottle. It spins and spins and spins and spins and finally lands on me.

"Truth or dare, Novio?" Novio?(Boyfriend)

"Dare?"

"Ooooo, finally I've been waiting."

"That doesn't sound terrifying at all."

"I dare you to kiss Carmel."

"You dare me to do what now?"

"I dare you to kiss her."

I'm frozen, what I would give to place my lips on her. And I've just been given the opportunity to do so and I'm freezing. Like a statue.

"You don't have to." I hear Carmella say.

"I mean, if he won't I will." Milo gets up from the place he's sitting and walks over to Carmella. The next thing I know he's kissing her. Milo is kissing my Apple.

—

The last twenty minutes I've been pissed. Man at him mad at her mad at myself. We finally decide to wrap up and everyone's saying goodbye. I make eye contact with Carmella and nod my head towards the hallway before walk over to it. A few seconds later Carmel walks in.

"You asked for me?"

"Yeah, I just wanted to apologize-"

"Oh hey, apologizes aren't necessary. If you didn't want to kiss me, you didn't have to kiss me."

"That's not it." I say grabbing her waist and pulling her body flush with mine before placing my lips on hers. God it's perfection, I can still taste the faintness of wine on her tongue. And knowing Milo once had his lips on hers makes me kiss her deeper, harder. I press her back against the wall. Getting lost in the taste of her.

Someone clears their throat and I practically jump to the other wall.

"I didn't need or want to see that. Carmella, your friends just left and asked me to come get you."

"Oh ah yeah. Um, see you around Cole. Toodles Royal ." She smiles at me before walking away.