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Chapter 33

On the day of the Charity Gala, I slept over at Maria's house. We decided to call it quits with the last-minute details at midnight and just hang out to calm our nerves. Robbie actually hung out with us, and we even played a friendly game of scrabble that I totally destroyed him in.

"Merciless," He muttered before getting up and going to his room for the night.

We were up early, and I drove with Maria and Lana to the hotel we chose to host the Gala. We spent the morning making sure everything looked as it should and making centerpieces for the tables. Around lunch, we went back to Maria's to eat and get ready.

It was later in the day, and Lana had found a dress for me to wear. It was dark blue and strappy.

"I think you should ditch the bra," she said, looking at me with a pensive expression on her face.

"What if it gets cold?"

"Then I'm probably going to regret not putting you as a headliner for blindfolded booths."

I rolled my eyes and smiled, taking off my bra.

"It's fine. Your boobs look good," Lana said.

I looked in the mirror, she wasn't wrong.

Despite its almost plunging neckline, the dress hugged me around my chest, making my otherwise smaller than average chest look like a lot more than what it was.

We were cutting it close on time, and Maria was worried that traffic would be backed up with rainy weather, so we decided to just do our makeup in the car. One of her mother's chauffeurs drove us. Robbie had gone in his own car, most likely to pick up Abigail.

The hotel was packed when we got there. Every Trinity student showed up. The nearby private and magnet school kids were invited as well.

"They're going to sneak in anyway. Might as well make money off them," Maria explained.

I followed Lana through the maze of people to a room filled with booths.

Maria stood next to a girl who looked as if she were about to pass out. I had seen her before. She was a sophomore—the very pretty co-captain of the dance team and a disciple of Abigail.

"Is she okay?" I asked

"She was fine, and now she's burning up and won't answer us. We called the ambulance to take her to the hospital." Maria said. She looked really stressed out, not to mention her own health was not getting better.

"Lia, can you fill in for her?"

"Fill in for her?"

"Yes. In a booth."

"Wait, you want me to sit in one of the make-out booths?" I said, not even bothering to hide the terror I felt.

"Yes. She was on the list, and we don't have time to cross-check anyone and make sure they aren't gross."

I must have looked like deer in headlights because she turned to look me directly in the eyes, her hand on my shoulders.

"Lia, please. I really need this day to go without a hitch. One of the University dean's daughters participates in the booth. If she likes this Gala, she'll say positive things about us to her father. We need her father to show up at the Winter Ball."

"I don't want to make out with a random person just to satisfy some little pervert's fantasy."

"You won't be kissing a random person. We cross-check everyone. It's a fake raffle to raise money. The only people who get matched up with people in the booths are people we know."

"So it's a scam."

"Yes. But for a good cause. We make a lot of money and it goes to charity."

I sighed.

"Plus, you might get matched up with Chris," Maria said, "Didn't you think he was cute?"

I blushed as I remembered the night, more than a month ago, when Chris and I made out. It seemed almost like an out of body experience now that Chris and I were friends, and he seemed more like a brother.

Maria took my blush as encouragement and smiled hopefully.

This was going to be a long night.

"Let me see the list of who gets a winning ticket."

She squealed a little bit and gave me the list of "Not Gross People."

I knew most of them from my classes. They were all pretty good-looking guys. All of them were fit and athletes. She wasn't kidding when she said it was a curated list.

"Are you sure these guys would want to make out with me? Won't they be disappointed they didn't get what they came for?"

"Lia, you're one of the cutest girls in school. I'm sure they won't walk out in disgust." She said, pushing me towards the booths.

I dug my heels in the hotel carpet, causing us to stop abruptly.

"Wait. Your brother is on this list."

"Robbie?"

"No, your other secret brother," I said deadpanned.

She looked at me with her lips pursed.

"Funny. Yes, Robbie is on the list. But don't worry if you get him; it will be the best-case scenario since he never kisses anyone. "

"He doesn't? Why? Abigail will castrate him?"

"Nah. Robbie thinks the booth is stupid. He participates in raising money as a favor to me. Having his name as a headliner racks a lot of money. Also, he always wins. I'm pretty sure once he is in there, he breaks the rules, takes off his blindfold, and just reads the news on his phone for the entirety of the event."

"What does the girl do?"

She shrugged. "No idea, but I know at the end he kisses them on the cheek, and the girls are pretty much just happy about the fact they get to be in the same room and potentially touch my brother."

"Disturbing," I said, grimacing at the desperation some girls had over Robbie, like sure he's hot but like he's not the last coke in the desert either.

She shrugged again. "So?" She asked slowly, "Is it still a yes? Will you do it?" She asked, her hands clasped nervously as she waited for me to say yes.

"Fine," I said half-heartedly.

She gave me a big hug,"thank you!"

"Okay, the way it works is every booth has its own number. You are going to be booth number Eight." She said looking down at the list.

 I just looked at her deadpanned with my arms crossed in front of my chest.

I said I would do it; I never said I would be happy about it.

"Anyways, we match the winners with a booth and blindfold them. Once both parties are blindfolded and ready at their booth, the timer starts. It's for ten minutes."

"What happens when the ten minutes are up?"

"When the ten minutes are up, the bell will ring, and we guide the raffle winners out, and they have to guess who they kissed.

"What if the person I am with does kiss me. Will I be able to know who kissed me?"

"Yeah, once we have a winner just ask Jenna, the girl at staffing the booths, she keeps a list on who is with who."

"Oh."

"Don't be nervous. It will be over before you know it, all you have to do is sit and wait," Maria said, trying to put me at ease.

Easy for you to say you're not going in a booth, I thought to myself.

We walked to where the booths were light up. They looked like changing booths you see at the mall. Maria opened a door in the back, and I noticed that they were actually changing booths they probably rented from a mall or clothing store.

She gestured 'after you' while giving me a big grin. I squinted my eyes at her and returned her grin with an expression that said, 'you owe me, and let's get this over with.

The booth had a cushioned bench with a mirror on one wall and a long silver bar on the other. The front of the booth was a thick velvet curtain. It was dark, the only light coming from the door Maria had opened. I sat on the bench.

"Alright, I'm blindfolding you." She said as she put a silk scarf over my eyes; she fastened it tightly with a knot in the back of my head. Then gently guided me to where I would be sitting. The booth was cold. I suddenly wished I had a jacket or a blanket and folded my arms over my chest rubbing my arms for warmth. I could hear the music blaring outside. The thin booth walls doing nothing to muffle the sound.

A song passed, and I felt someone enter my booth. My heart started racing. I stood up because sitting down felt too vulnerable. He stepped closer, and I could tell he was much taller than me. I felt his breath hit the top of my head. He smelled spicy and warm.

Suddenly a hand touched my cheek and made its way down my neck to my collarbone. It traced the bone there and went down my arm. His touch made my skin burn, a stark contrast to the cold room. Okay, Chris, never made my skin burn like this. Who the hell was this?

His hands came back up to my face; they touched my face, nose, and jaw. Trying to figure out the mystery of who I was, leaving a searing trail behind them. I placed my hands on his forearms for support. Suddenly feeling really light-headed. Then his thumb swiped my bottom lip and it felt as if flames licked my skin. 

It was too much. I broke the main rule.

My mind becoming putty let a sigh escape from my lips.

His hands suddenly froze and I heard him swallow.

My heart was pounding.

I could hear us breathing in the small room. His hands dropped to my waist, the back of his hands skimming the sides of my breasts on the way there. 

I felt his face inches from mine, his breath tickling my lips. I missed his hands touching me. Bring them back. He brought his face closer, his nose rubbing mine, and before I could miss his touch any longer, a pair of soft lips grazed mine.

I let out a soft gasp. Woah.

The kiss was quick. I would have questioned if I imagined it, but my body hummed as if electricity was running through me and my lips tingled. 

I bit my bottom lip, I wanted more.

I brought my hands back up to his chest, wanting to get back the warmth I felt seconds ago. I slid a hand up, and it tangled in the curly hairs on the nape of his neck.

He grabbed my other hand and brought it up to his lips, kissing my palm, then laid it back on his chest and pressed his forehead to mine. I felt our noses rub and his heart beating wildly. His hand grabbed the back of my neck. I could feel his breath caressing my lips and heard him swallow hard.

Before I could think, his lips were on mine again. This time there was no shyness. It was a hot, wet open mouth kiss that set me on fire. He tasted like coffee and mints. My hands came up, and I could feel the planes of his chest well defined and rock-solid through his shirt. His heart was beating just as fast as mine. His hands cradled my head, and then they moved down to hold the hands at his heart. He pulled both my hand up, and I understood the wordless message to hold on to his neck.

Without removing his lips from mine, he grabbed my thighs and lifted me off the floor. My legs wrapped around his waist and he pulled me flush against him. 

His lips were dominating, and nothing made sense in my head. He sat on the bench and placed me on top of him, straddling his lap, his hands going down my back; his fingers were gentle and left goosebumps wherever they touched. His tongue was working against mine. My hands were in his hair; it was soft and thick, my nails raked against his scalp. I felt like I was in a dream. Nothing made sense.

Who even am I?

I was doing things that had never even occurred to me before. I bit his lip, and he groaned and ground me into him. His lips left mine, and they decided to move to my neck. Kissing, licking, biting, making their way down. His hand slipped up my thigh to grab my ass.

Suddenly the alarm rang.

Time was up.

I pulled away. My heart was pounding in my ears. He stood up after me, and his hands found mine in the dark. His lips kissed the top of my head. We were both panting. What the hell just happened? More importantly, who was this?

"Alright," A voice came from the outside. "We will be getting our donators for the competition. Do not remove your blindfold until we guide you out of the booths and instruct you to do so. Removing them before then will disqualify you."

I sat in my booth, waiting to have my blindfold taken off. The air had cooled down since he left my booth, yet I still felt warm.

Finally, they slipped the blindfold off my face, and as soon as I was able to leave the booth, I ran to the bathroom.

I looked at myself in the mirror. My hair looked tousled, my cheeks were flushed, and my lips were swollen. There were splotches on my neck and a bite mark on my shoulder. I touched my bottom lip gently. I could still feel his mouth on mine, and it caused my heart rate to speed up.

What the fuck just happened?

I fixed my hair as best as possible and put on some lip gloss I had in my purse. I stepped out of the bathroom and ran into Lana.

She smiled, "You look like you had a good time in that booth."

I felt my self turn redder than a tomato, "Is it that obvious?"

She laughed lightly and pushed me back into the bathroom.

"Kind of your straps are messed up. Here let me help you." She said I turned around so she can fix the dress straps on my back.

"So, do you know who it was?"

"No."

"But you want to know." She asked, wiggling her eyebrows.

"I guess," I said, woozy.

"Oh my goodness, is that bite?" She said, laughing her mouth open in shock.

I gasped and covered it quickly with my hand feeling my cheeks burn.

She looked at it closely, "It's super faint, you won't see it in an hour."

She took off the ballet cardigan she was wearing, and I slipped into it.

"That good, huh? Well, lucky for you, there's probably a list of 10 potential guys somewhere. Or maybe a potential girl."

"No, it was definitely a guy. I could certainly feel it."

"Like in your heart?" She looked at me, quizzically.

"No like...on my hip," I said. The memory made me twitch in places that had ached in the booth.

Lana burst out laughing again.

I looked at her; her blue eyes twinkled with mirth.

"Let's go," I said, walking out of the bathroom.

We ended up leaving soon after the booths. Maria had a fever and threw up in a decorative vase. I looked for Robbie to tell him his sister wasn't feeling well, but I couldn't find him anywhere.

Lana and I worked together putting Maria to bed. Tucking her in with some warm tea at her bedside table.

Lana and I went to the guest bedroom. We stripped down to our undies and put on some shirts she stole from Robbie's dresser and laid down, covering ourselves up with the thick comforter.

"So. Do you have any idea who kissed you?"

"No."

"Chris?" She suggested.

"Definitely not."

"Really? He's popular with girls."

"No. I'm one hundred percent sure it was not Chris."

"Hmm. Well, that narrows it down. I know it was not Derrick because he guessed correctly that he made out with Gabrielle." Her voice was getting sleepy.

"His hair had curls, and he was tall," I said dreamily.

"Hmm. That narrows it down quite a bit." Suddenly she laughed, "I cannot wait to tell Maria tomorrow." I grabbed the pillow from underneath me and smacked her with it. She laughed even louder before calming down and falling asleep.

I stayed up a bit later. Unable to go to sleep. Around an hour later, I saw a shadow pass by underneath the door.

Robbie had come home. I thought briefly about how he didn't stay late at the party before falling asleep. 

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A/N

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