- Chapter 6 -
“We’re pulling into your driveway!” Madison teased. Gemma wedged her cell phone between her ear and shoulders as she strapped on her silver jeweled Manolo sandals. She admired the hanging rhinestones on the ankle strap as she tightened it. “In case you’re not sure, we’re the black stretch Escalade behind your brother’s tiny wuss car.”
“Did I hear her insult my car just now?” Gavin asked as he examined his hair in the foyer mirror. He wore a black dress shirt untucked over a pair of dark washed Diesel jeans.
“I’ll be right out!” Gemma said, hanging up the phone and slipping it into her Alexander McQueen silver python clutch. She ran out into the yard just as the sun was setting. The golden rays caught on the lighter-colored accessories, making them gleam against her black sequined Alexander Wang cocktail dress. She couldn’t see into the limo, but she hoped they were looking. She had thought hard about what to wear, wanting to look good but not so good that she would outshine Madison. As if I could, Gemma thought sheepishly.
Madison, Leah, Kate, Jillian and Lucas were already inside. Madison and Lucas sat on one side while the three girls sat on the other. Looking like a page ripped out of WWD in her Gucci dress, she leaned against Lucas with a leg crossed towards him. Dangling at the end of her foot was a nude lace Valentino peep-toe pump.
To Leah’s dismay, Gavin plopped down next to Lucas, instantly mirroring Madison. He snuggled up against Lucas and crossed a leg towards him, sandwiching him in the middle. “’Sup cutie,” Gavin puckered his lips and directed his pout at Lucas. The girls tittered as Lucas slowly backed away.
Gemma took a seat next to the girls. She thought Lucas looked incredibly handsome in the outfit that Madison not only chose for him, but bought for him. He wore a cornflower blue, French-cuffed dress shirt tucked into black slacks.
Gemma felt silly about her disappointment that no one had commented on her outfit yet. But Madison had made a fuss about finally seeing her outfit since she was wearing black while the girls were all wearing bright colors. She crossed her jeweled ankles and sat quietly.
“Mr. Grey,” Gavin said, leaning over Lucas and towards Madison. “If you could excuse me for a moment, I’d like to give your girlfriend a birthday gift.”
“If you try to kiss me, I’ll kill you,” Madison scowled.
“First of all, gross. Second, I’m faithful to my man Lucas, okay?” Gavin’s emerald eyes twinkled as he pulled out a bottle of Dom Perignon from behind him. “Happy birthday, you old bag.” He popped the cork off expertly, though nearly hitting Leah in the shoulder.
“Hey!” she shrieked, dodging.
Gavin leaned over and touched her bare knee. “Shit, I’m so sorry,” he said, his eyes devoid of mischief for a second. Leah blushed. Gavin turned back over towards Madison. “So, do we have champagne flutes?”
“No, Lucas forgot,” Madison lamented.
“Well I guess we’re chugging it from the bottle,” Gavin grinned. He held the bottle to Madison. “Birthday girl gets first chug.” Madison laughed and took a sip from the bottle, careful not to spill on her dress. Gavin quickly snatched it back to take a full swig.
“Such a gentleman, Gavin,” Madison rolled her eyes.
“I am. If it’s less full, it’s less likely to spill on you gorgeous ladies. Which reminds me, here you go Lucas.”
Lucas took a quick sip from the bottle before handing it to Gemma.
“Here,” he said, looking straight at her for the first time since she got into the car. She smiled at him and reached for the bottle, her fingers brushing against his. She took a sip and handed the champagne to Jillian, who didn’t notice that Gemma and Lucas’s eyes were still locked on each other. They quickly averted their eyes.
When they got to the city, Gavin convinced the group to drop into Pastis so he could “eat a burger or two.” Most of them had already eaten – or chosen not to in their tight dresses – but they didn’t mind the brief detour. “More pregaming?” Leah dared to ask Gavin, who nodded enthusiastically.
The restaurant was actually quite empty, so they enjoyed the feeling of practically having the place to themselves. They sat in a back corner booth, lounging on the deep red leather seats and sharing a bottle of wine and some raw oysters. Gavin switched between bites of his burger and a croque-monsieur. He even took the liberty of ordering Leah a French onion soup when she commented on how good it smelled. Leah poked at it with a spoon, no doubt wondering how she’d look in front of Gavin with strings of melted cheese hanging from her mouth.
Gemma noticed Lucas wasn’t drinking much, though she remembered that he never really drank much when they went out. Madison was distracted with helping Kate smooth down her blowout so she could flirt with a waiter, who according to her, looked like “an older Tyler Chase with blonde hair.” Gemma felt a little buzzed. She leaned in towards Lucas.
“Are you going to finish your wine?” she asked in a whisper. It came out a little sultrier than she had expected. She watched as he blushed. Lucas pushed the glass towards her.
“You can have it.”
“Why aren’t you drinking?”
“I like being a little less drunk than everyone else, just in case,” he said. Off her incredulous expression, he nodded at her glass of wine and said, “For example, if you were to get too drunk to walk, I could carry you without falling myself.” He smiled.
“This is only gonna be my third glass,” Gemma protested with a giggle. She plucked the glass of wine from him and eyed him from under her feathery lashes, taking a sip.
“You’re just…” Lucas shook his head with a grin.
“Just what?” Gemma said, tossing her glossy flat-ironed hair to the side and looking him straight in the eye. Her boldness was involuntary and her stomach began to flip.
“Just a little different than your usual self,” Lucas concluded, lowering his eyes to the table.
“Is that a bad thing?”
“No, not bad. It just takes some getting used to.”
“How am I different?” Gemma asked. She crossed her leg under the table and felt it rub against his. He didn’t move away. He didn’t speak either. “How am I different?” she repeated.
Lucas suddenly stood up from the table. He touched her arm gently, though his face was not so lighthearted. “I don’t know,” he said as he began to walk away. “But you are.”
~
The club was huge with high ceilings and two floors. The architecture was old-fashioned and intricate which contrasted in a chic way against the minimalist, space-aged inspired décor. A well-known deejay that Queen Bee had once collaborated with scratched on a stage on the lower level while Madison gathered her VIPs on the upper balcony.
Gemma wasn’t sure what had gotten into her at dinner, but she felt it was safe to say that it was the wine. The buzz had long since left her and she refrained from another drink in her nervousness. Leah, on the other hand, knocked back shots like a frat boy. She was determined to dance with Gavin at the very least. It had been awhile since any of them had seen Madison and Lucas. The last time they were in public view, the two were dancing sensually, interlocked and face-to-face. Gemma frowned at the thought.
“You look amazing,” a voice said from behind her. Gemma turned to see Damian. Her mouth dropped slightly. He looked even more amazing in his white dress shirt with the sleeves rolled up, half-tucked into a pair of fitted designer jeans.
“Oh, thanks,” she smiled, eyeing his muscular forearms as they handed her a Tequila Sunrise.
“How long have you been here?”
“I came in with Madison, so awhile… you?”
“Lucky. The rest of us had to wait outside to see if we’d get in,” Damian laughed. “I mean, the basketball team got to stand in the VIP line, so we knew we’d get in, but some people really didn’t.” He bit his lip back a little. “I was hoping to see you here.”
“Yeah? Why’s that?”
“Well,” Damian said, hooking his fingers with hers and swinging their arms just slightly. It made Gemma smile. “I’ve been trying to ask you to dinner for weeks but it was hard since Gavin banned the team from talking to you.”
Gemma smiled. She should have known that Gavin was behind the delay. “Well Gavin’s not here right now,” she said. She had meant to sound sexy but her voice trailed off with the last word because she spotted Lucas over Damian’s shoulder, making his way to the bar.
“So in that case,” Damian leaned in towards her. “Would you like to go to dinner with me sometime?” Gemma didn’t answer, looking over Damian’s shoulder as she watched Lucas order a drink at the other end of the bar. He looked in her direction.
“I…um…” she stuttered absentmindedly. He’s not looking at you, she told herself. “Of course. We definitely should.” She could barely hear what Damian was saying as she watched Lucas wait on his drinks, leaning on his side against the bar.
He was looking at her. He was staring at her.
“Awesome. I’m excited,” Damian grinned.
Gemma forced a smile. “Me too,” she lied.
Feeling bad about how inattentive she had been with Damian, Gemma decided to make it up to him on the dance floor. He was a great dancer and she was beginning to genuinely enjoy herself. Her own dancing wasn’t on par with Queen Bee’s choreographed moves, but it was nice to move about freely without having to think about choreography. She knew she was the envy of the girls around her and she reveled in it. For the first time in awhile, Lucas was not on her mind.
“They’re watching us,” Damian yelled over the music.
“Who?” Gemma looked around. It seemed like everyone was watching them.
“Your brother and the rest of the team,” he pointed up. Gemma looked up at a balcony to see Gavin whispering to some of the other basketball players. Lucas was among them. “They’re jealous ‘cause I’m the only one who can actually dance,” he laughed. Gemma smiled and pulled herself into him. It was nice to be as close to him as she was.
Up on the balcony, Gavin grimaced and shook his head. The team laughed, unaccustomed to his serious, protective side.
“Calm down, Gavin,” one of the boys said. “You can’t expect your sister to be a nun.”
“I’m just gonna go downstairs and keep a closer watch,” Gavin finally decided as he weaved through the crowd.
“Don’t be a cockblocker, Hunter!” Matt, a stocky football player, yelled after him. “Your sister needs some play too!” Gavin gave him the finger as he made his way down the staircase. Matt laughed to himself and turned his baseball cap backwards before leaning over the balcony again. He nudged a few of the other guys as they watched Gemma dance.
“Careful, bro,” Adam, one of the basketball players shouted over the music. “Gavin gets serious when people talk about Gemma.”
“Who’s saying what about Gemma?” Madison peered inquisitively at the boys as she sauntered towards them and wrapped her arms around Lucas’s waist.
“Nothing bad, we’re saying she’s hot. It’s a compliment,” Matt said. “And that we can see straight down her dress from up here. Not that there’s a whole lot to look at.” Another boisterous laugh rumbled from his mouth before he knocked his beer back and threw the empty plastic cup over the balcony.
“Oh please, just because a girl’s got smaller boobs doesn’t mean she can’t be attractive,” Madison chided. She rested her chin on Lucas’s shoulder, frowning. “Babe, your muscles are all tense,” she craned her neck to see what he was looking at over the balcony, but all she could see was Gemma.
“I didn’t say that she wasn’t attractive, Maddie, you did,” Matt snorted. “I was gonna say she makes up for it with those lips. Mad DSL right there.” The other boys laughed, loosening up in Gavin’s absence.
“Feels like she could be a closet freak,” Adam said as he finished his beer. “Crazy’s gotta run in the family.”
“Alright, well that settles it,” Matt declared, holding out another beer in a mock toast. “Here’s to boning Gemma Hunter before the end of the football season, huh? Can’t imagine it’d be too hard.” They boys cheered, toasting their beer cups and making obscene gestures.
“Don’t talk like that.”
The boys quickly stopped and looked over in surprise. Lucas hadn’t said a word the entire time on the balcony and they had practically forgotten that he was there. Madison squinted at him in curiously as well.
“It’s okay, honey, they’re just idiots,” she comforted Lucas, resting a hand on his chest though feeling uneasy herself. “Guys, Lucas is really good friends with Gavin and you’re all being really disrespectful.” She looked up at Lucas, whose jaw was clenched tight. He took Madison’s hand from his chest and set it down gently on the balcony.
“It’s warm in here,” he said into her ear. “I’m gonna get some air.” She blinked in confusion as she watched him turn and leave.
“Oh shit, Maddie,” Matt said. “Looks like your boy might have a boner for her too.” They all laughed. Madison was silent as she looked over the balcony and watched her boyfriend make his way out of the club.
~
Gemma was relieved when she found out that her friends weren’t the type to make a big deal of Halloween. From her knowledge of pop culture, Halloween was the day that girls had the excuse to dress in a way that would never otherwise be appropriate. Since her career as Queen Bee was all about disguise and dressing to the nines, she grew to find the practice rather routine and was happy to hear that Madison had already gotten everyone’s Halloween costumes.
“I just stepped into the supermarket and Lucas started flipping out,” Madison explained. “Apparently some guy who plays for The Jets was there and Lucas, like, loves him. They practice nearby or something. He was really nice and was completely checking me out but Lucas was like, actually happy that he approved.”
The football player, whose name Madison couldn’t remember, ended up inviting Lucas and Madison to a game and giving them passes to the locker room. Madison apparently convinced the boys to literally take their shirts off for her.
“So now I have like, five authentic jerseys. I had them dry-cleaned so they’re not disgusting and I think we’d look cute wearing them over bike shorts and pumps. Then afterwards, we can give them back to Lucas because he was totally bummed that I didn’t give him one.”
“Can I keep mine?” Kate asked. “I think my dad is a Jets fan. Or a Giants fan. Shit, I don’t remember which…” she trailed off.
“You can keep yours,” Madison said, nonchalantly. She turned towards Gemma and did a quick sweep of her from head to toe. “Actually, you can all keep them. Lucas will really only want the one I wore anyway.”
“We should wear these to The Turkey Bowl!” Leah squealed. “It would be like good luck! And they’re big enough that Jillian won’t have to wear three sports bras to hide all that bouncing.”
Jillian shot Leah a look. “I’m not playing this year, I’m just cheering,” she said. “Some of the guys tried to cop a feel last year. It totally went from touch football to molestation football.”
“I’ll cheer with you,” Madison said. “Do we want to do matching outfits?”
Gemma was surprised to hear the girls planning more for the Turkey Bowl than Halloween. On their first date, Damian had told her that “Jock Row” held a yearly football game – a longstanding tradition that was organized by the varsity basketball team members. It was done in a secretive manner since their coach had banned them from engaging in physical activities that could result in injury. The girls invited also played, usually resulting in flirtatious bouts of contact. Damian said there was absolutely always a post-game hook-up. Apparently this year, bets were on Gavin and Leah – simply because Leah announced she would make a major push for it despite the fact that Kylie would be in attendance.
Halloween turned out to be pretty boring – the students of Beauford High were either too stoned or apathetic to dress up or care. Despite what little they did, the girls did receive nonstop attention for their costumes. Gemma wasn’t sure if it was because of the story behind the jerseys or the fact that their skintight hot shorts were barely covering their behinds. She had to admit, paired with her four-inch Louboutin pumps, her legs looked incredible.
At home, Mira had taken the day off and invited friends over to assist with the finishing touches of her elaborate Marie Antoinette costume. While still at home, she took pride in distributing little bags of rum-infused truffles to the children. When Gavin told her that the chocolates were a questionable choice for children, she replied, “They’re meant to be the leftovers that the poor parents get for walking door-to-door with those sugar-crazed rascals all night.” She personally handed out as many as she could before leaving in a town car to attend her own affairs. It was her idea of participating in suburban trick-or-treating despite having to attend her friend’s yearly Halloween bash at Capitale in Manhattan.
Gemma was definitely more excited for the Turkey Bowl than she was about Halloween. She didn’t know much about football, but she knew that she enjoyed watching it when Gavin’s friends came over the house to play in their huge backyard. She also had a cute outfit picked out to honor the school colors – an orange raglan t-shirt over a pair of dark blue leggings and white thigh-high socks tucked into white Nike hightops.
Gavin was also excited because he and Damian were appointed captains and had plans of playing the entire game in elaborate superhero costumes. Gavin had chosen Ironman, which was undoubtedly going to be a challenging costume to run in, while Damian opted for Batman.
“There’s some elastic in it,” Damian said. “So I should still be able to move around pretty decently.”
“You’re not afraid the boys are going to make fun of you guys?” Gemma questioned.
“Not at all,” Damian grinned. “Last year Gavin convinced our team to dress up as Power Rangers, so everyone expects it again. We can’t disappoint.” Gemma rolled her eyes at her brother’s antics and Damian laughed. His laugh was mischievous but somehow sweet. She wondered what it would be like to kiss Batman. Her eyes ventured to his lips and wondered if they could be the couple that hooked up after the game. A large part of her hoped that they would be. Damian’s lips turned up in a smile – she could tell he was hoping for the same.
~
The day of the game was pleasantly breezy and sun-drenched. Leaves crunched under her sneakers as Gemma walked beside Damian’s. As silly as the whole game was, Gemma was proud to be arriving with Damian. He managed to look pretty sexy in his Batman outfit.
Madison also looked undeniably sexy in her short, pink cashmere sweater dress. Jillian, dressed in the same outfit, paled in comparison despite her two-cup advantage on Madison. The pair brought orange and blue pom-poms with them. Gemma watched as Madison used one to tickle the back of Lucas’s neck as he tied his shoe.
Leah and Kate had taken old, fitted t-shirts and shredded them down the middle. They strategically ripped horizontal slits to show off bits of cleavage and toned midsections. Kate went around painting lines of black under everyone’s eyes – everyone except for Kylie of course. All the big talk that Leah had made prior to the game about seducing Gavin seemed unlikely now. She stood all the way across the field and watched as Kylie draped herself around him, wearing a football jersey sheared right under her bustline. She showed off muscular abs and to the boys’ delight, occasional glimpses of her lacy black bra.
Damian chose Gemma for his team along with Leah while Gavin chose Kate and Kylie. The rest of the boys were chosen at random with Lucas ending up on Gavin’s team. While the game started out seriously, it soon became a show of who could run the fastest and throw the hardest. While the majority of the boys were busy flexing their biceps and showing off the yardage on their passes, Damian opted to keep his arms wrapped around Gemma. She had made a passing comment about being cold and didn’t realize that it was dating code for “hold me and never let go.” Not that she was complaining – Damian’s arms were strong and warm and she felt peaceful with her head tucked under his chin. Every once in awhile, the ball would land in front of them and they would kick at it lazily with no real intention of playing.
But every once in awhile, Gemma would hear cheering and look up in time to see Lucas doing something spectacular. Though his long and lean body was clearly made for basketball, he was obviously not limited to one sport. He moved around swiftly and made what Gemma had always deemed a violent sport look like art. Damian gave her a squeeze.
“He’s pretty good, huh?” he said with a big smile. “Hey, if we kept playing we probably wouldn’t be freezing right now.”
“I’m not freezing,” Gemma said.
“That’s ‘cause you’re wearing me as a jacket,” he laughed. He pulled Gemma in tightly and brushed his lips against the side of her face. She turned her head to look up at him. His smile was sweet and content as he planted a small kiss on the tip of her nose. She giggled as she turned back to the field in time to see Lucas miss a pass. He had been looking at them. Instead of picking up the ball, he marched over.
“Hey,” he called across the field as he made his way to the pair.
“Uh oh,” Damian joked. “We’re about to get yelled at…”
Lucas stopped at an arms-length from Gemma and Damian. His sober face forcefully broke into a silly grin. “You’re letting your team die out there, Batman. I’m not even on your team and I’m embarrassed for you.”
“I know, I know,” Damian laughed. “But you know how it is,” he looked down at Gemma. “Got more important things to take care of.”
Lucas bit his bottom lip. His smile disappeared as he looked at the ground, kicking at some dried leaves. Madison began to run towards them, pom-poms in the air as she cheered loudly.
“Are we done playing?” she shouted from across the field. “Let’s go get dinner!” Gemma looked around. The game was no doubt over – it was clear that no one even knew where the ball was anymore. Damian wrapped an arm around Gemma’s waist as he began to make his rounds to chat with team members. “This okay?” he asked, tickling her. “Don’t want to piss off Gavin.”
“It’s okay.”
“Just tell me if I’m moving too fast,” he joked with a look of feigned seriousness. “We can always take it back to holding hands. Just let me know.”
“Oh, I will,” Gemma laughed.
She turned away from Damian to see that Lucas had remained standing in front of them, still gazing at her. Her eyes fluttered in surprise.
“Are you okay?” she asked quietly, timidly. She was unsure if it was the right thing to say. He nodded. A breeze blew a strand of hair across her face. Without thinking, Lucas reached over and brushed it away, his hand lingering for a second behind her ear. She smiled, brushing her fingers lightly over his.
“What’s going on over here, kiddies?” Madison glided over. There was a smile on her lips but not a hint of it in her voice. She slipped one arm around Lucas’s waist and placed the other possessively over his chest.
Upon hearing Madison’s voice, Damian turned back to face Gemma. “What? Did we get caught?” he asked playfully, letting go of Gemma’s waist and putting his hands in the air with exaggerated innocence.
“Someone definitely got caught,” Madison said, looking Gemma in the eye.
“I…I…” Gemma stuttered.
Damian examined Gemma’s face of panic and then looked up at Lucas, who watched Gemma with worried eyes before shifting them to the ground. He nodded briefly to himself as if he suddenly understood what they were thinking. He moved his hands up from Gemma’s waist to her shoulders, giving them a squeeze to get her attention.
“We got caught red-handed, Gem,” Damian said. She looked at him, confused. “No point in trying to hide it now.”
“What are you talking about?” Madison scowled.
“Gemma and I have been dating for awhile but we didn’t want Gavin to know. We were just trying to lay low so we wouldn’t get him upset,” Damian replied.
Madison’s expression softened though her brows remained furrowed. “You two are dating?”
Gemma and Damian nodded. Yes, we’re dating, Gemma told herself sternly. No reason to be looking at Lucas when you have a boyfriend.
“Lucas,” Madison broke the brief silence. Her eyes were still locked on Gemma, who stood frozen in anxiety. “I was thinking maybe we should get dinner just the two of us? What do you think, babe?”
The four stood awkwardly for a beat.
“Okay,” Lucas replied. He took her hand from his chest and held it by his side, leading her away. “Bye guys. Good game,” he said with a faint smile. Madison glanced over her shoulder, once more at Gemma. It gave her a chill as she watched them walk away. Damian ran his hands up and down her back to soothe her.
“I think there’s something big that you’re not telling me,” he said. He looked contemplative but offered a smile as he draped an arm around her shoulder. “Hey. If I can’t be anything more than a listener, I’ll still be happy to be something for you.”
Gemma sighed, burying her head into the crook of Damian’s neck. She felt her heart wrench with emotion. It was a longing for Lucas’s attention, guilt over Damian’s compassion, but most of all, fear of Madison’s wrath.