Chapter 18: A Stolen Kiss

                                    

                                          
             
                          
      "Your girl gave you a free pass." Heather stumbles into me, a beer in one hand. 
                          
"I should have gone home with her." I steady Heather and pull her closer to the wall so she doesn't have to use me as support. 
                          
"C'mon." Heather giggles, she's definitely had more than she should.
                          
"Have some fun." She giggles harder and grabs my shoulder to keep from falling over. She smells like a terrible concoction of cheap beer, vodka and skunk.
                          
"Are you high?" I ask pushing her back once again. She lurches forward and winds her arms around my neck, her beer sloshes out and down the back of my shirt. 
                          
"Okay..." I grab her wrists and push her back "you've had way too much for one night." 
                          
"Why are you being such a buzz kill?"  Heather pouts trying to latch onto me again. 
                          
"You're not thinking straight right now, Heather." I try to guide her away from me but she's pressed herself against me and she keeps wrapping her arms around my neck the second she gets her hands free.
                          
"How serious are you and Lauren?" She looks at me with bloodshot eyes.
                          
"Heather?" I shake my head at her "you know I love her, why are you asking me about Lauren?"
                          
"I like you, Alex." Heather declares.
                          
"I like you too." I say, "you're a good friend." She frowns and shakes her head. 
                          
"No, I mean I really like you." She smiles and she pulls me down toward her. 
                          
"I get it, Heather." I try not to laugh, I forgot how weird Heather gets when she parties.  
                          
"Break up with Lauren." She says. 
                          
"What!" I exclaim trying to unlatch her arms from my neck "what are you talking about?" 
                          
"Break up with Lauren and then we can date." She giggles and pulls herself closer.
                          
"Heather, you need to let me go right now." I grab her wrists again.
                          
"NO!" She yells jumping onto me, she wraps her legs around me.
                          
"Heather!" I stumble back and my foot catches on something and we both fall. 
                          
Heather grabs my face and kisses me. I lay on my back with Heather straddling me and her mouth on mine and she smells like the first girl who kissed me in high-school. It was a house party, we were dumb and drank too much and it was a girl I had seen every day in school and never spoke to, kissed me and then puked on me. 
                          
"Heather!" I grab her by her shoulders and roll her off. Lauren actually showed me that, she learned it at a self -defense class she went to. Well... it works. 
                          
"Alex!" Heather pouts at me on the ground, her eyes drooping and her lipstick smeared. 
                          
"Why would you do that?" I demand, I feel sick like I've cheated on Lauren and angry that Heather would do that and scared because now I have to tell Lauren and with that guy bothering her and a terrible reunion with her mother I don't know how much more stress she can take. 
                          
"Help me up, Alex." Heather holds her hand out to me and for some stupid reason I help her to her feet and I guide her to the couch and then I'm running.
                          
            New York city is a place that never sleeps, it's full of so many people it's stressful just to think about. Lauren loves that about New York. She loves people and movement and lights but unlike everyone else here she notices everything around her. She knows the guy down at the flower shop and she knows the old lady that walks her cat passed our house every morning and she knows every person in our building and invites them to thanksgiving dinner, maybe one person will show up but she invites them anyway, she makes cards and hand delivers them. She always wants to make everyone else happy. What does anyone do for her? Her mom treats her like garbage, she's got some guy stalking her and I cheat on her? What kind of person does that to a girl like Lauren?