Owning Avery Ch. 07

While engaged in conversation with Hannah, Carter kept glancing Avery's way. He hated seeing her like this. He'd thought it best to leave decisions up to her, and had further argued to Mason just this morning that they just give her time and space to figure things out. Now with her in front of him, he wondered if he wasn't now doing irreparable harm to their relationship, no matter what relationship they had moving forward. She wouldn't meet his eyes for more than a second, even when he would directly ask her something.

As the sun set, Avery had finally had enough of pretending to care about this conversation, and suddenly rose from the log. "Rachel's over there," she noted. "I'm gonna go say hi." And without waiting for a response, she took off across the way to where Rachel was standing with another group of friends.

Mason was feeling extremely guilty as he watched her become just a silhouette in the twilight. Gulped some beer, then turned back to Whitney and Hannah. They paled in comparison to Avery's beauty, but at least they were reasonably entertaining to talk to. Looking them over, he reconsidered. That wasn't totally true. Whitney had always been pretty hot. It was just that he'd fallen for Avery.

It wasn't much more than an hour later that everyone was buzzed, the music thumping, the bonfire roaring, and the dark had fully set in. So had Avery's third beer, and she was definitely feeling the pleasant buzz it brought; enough to start to laugh and have a good time. Forget that Carter and Mason were here at the very least. As she went to refill her solo cup, she looked over at the log she'd once occupied with Whitney and Hannah to find newcomers had taken their place, people she didn't know all that well.

At around eleven, Whitney ran over to Avery. "Heyyy," Whitney drawled. "It's getting boring here, we're going to Hannah's. Meet us there, okay?"

Avery nodded. A chance to escape. She could finally stop trying so hard to avoid and maybe have some fun with her friends. "Yeah, gimme a few to say goodbyes," she said, then watched Whitney run off into the dark.

Hannah's house was only a quarter mile up the road; a little one bedroom MIL apartment above a garage that was detached from the main house on the property. She was going to the community college nearby and had rented it just a month ago. Avery made the walk slowly, enjoying the colder air of the evening on her skin. It felt cleansing, and nice to be away from the bonfire. She'd had a few beers and it had helped her loosen up, but it had become increasingly clear she just wasn't in the mood to party with a large group of people while feeling this out of sorts.

When she knocked on the door, Hannah opened it and shoved a cider bottle into her hands with a gleeful laugh. "Oh my god, just in time, we are playing spin the bottle!" she cried out, then gripped Avery's shoulder to pull her into the living room.

"Oh, no," Avery sighed as she halted in place, everything condensing into a feeling of illness in her stomach as she took in the scene.

Around a coffee table in a semi-circle sat Whitney on an arm chair, Rachel and Malik side by side on a sofa, Matt and Liz on the other sofa, and Carter and Mason on two of the dining chairs that had been pulled over, with a third dining chair and the other arm chair empty.

"Oh, no," Avery groaned again, then turned to Hannah and sagged her shoulders. "No, Hannah! This is soo high school and I—"

"That's the point!" Hannah cried, hopping up and down, elated. "It'll just be silly fun! That's what summers are for!" She met Avery's eyes and rolled her own. "Besides, if you're worried about Carter and Mason it's not even like they're your real brothers."

"Soo not the point," Avery drawled.

"Then fine!" Whitney called out. "If it lands on them you just skip over to the left. That's okay with everyone, right?"

Nods and little rumbles of agreement were shared around the circle, to which Avery heavily sighed, gently closing her eyes as she tried to figure her way out of this. "You guys, I'm so tired, I should just—"

"Nope!" Hannah stated firmly, then grabbed her arm and pulled her further into the room until she was near the armchair. She gave her a little shove and Avery sat down, every iota of her protesting the entire ridiculous thing. "You stay there. Drink your cider. We'll skip you this round."

"Yeah but not the next one!" Rachel sang, raising her bottle in the air to some whoops of agreement from around the circle. Avery briefly eyed Mason and Carter, found them silent at least, but smiling. A pity smile? Maybe. Either way, she did not think she could be in the same room with them, let alone playing this stupid juvenile game.

It ended up not lasting too long, serving more as a filler to drink up and ease the tension so everyone could relax and have fun. Though for Avery, it had served as the opposite. A few times around the circle had Rachel and Ezra making out before it made the third time around. Side conversations began and one in particular had Avery continuously glancing sideways between Hannah and Mason, who had shared a particularly intimate kiss during the game.

It lasted half a minute maybe, but it had been intense. Enough that this had ended the game and Hannah stayed on Mason's lap with her arm around him. Avery felt an irrational frustration over the fact that he hadn't tried to get up; at least make an excuse. Hannah was her best friend, and that need crept in once more. Different cause, same feel. She didn't want Mason sitting with Hannah, she wanted him.

There would be no shaking them from her system. Carter was chatting with Whitney, Hannah and Mason were touchy feely, and Avery was becoming something she never wanted to be: jealous. She couldn't believe how these simple acts were affecting her. In her frustration and anger and refusal to speak to them, she hadn't once considered the alternative of seeing them with other people. If only she had more time to process, maybe it wouldn't affect her so poorly. Instead, they were moving on in her silence as she stayed still.

It wasn't working.

After some superficial conversation with Matt, Avery ended up saying her goodbyes early and took the walk back to her car as soon as she felt sobered enough, having halted the drinking sooner than she may have out of desperation to leave, and safely. When she arrived home she hurried to her room, narrowly skipping by her dad and stepmom who were turning lights off through the house. She couldn't imagine the shitstorm she'd be in if they smelled any alcohol on her, regardless of the fact that she was an adult. This house had always been all about the rules, and if you were under the roof, even after high school, you followed them come hell or highwater.