We walk to the frat house which isn't too far located from our hall. I trail behind Darlene and Maxine as they take the lead and I let them I'm a little nervous so I wouldn't engage in a conversation with them anyway.

It's after 10 pm as we approach the house.

We didn't want to come too early because they agreed to leave when I wanted to. Knowing me, I'd like to go home before it has really begun.

I promised them not to leave before midnight, so I got to sit it out for a little under 2 hours.

We walk up the lawn of the house. People have already littered around in front of the house holding red cups or cigarettes as they have a breath of fresh air.

I recognize a few faces as we walk up to the door to get inside. Some people might even be taking some of the courses I'm in. But I don't see anyone I've ever actively had a conversation with before.

I know Oliver, my roommate, will be here. So that's at least one person I know.

I love Oli; I really do.

However, we don't have a lot in common. He is outgoing and friends with a lot of people. On top of that, he is a total gym rat. He might seem scary and intimidating, but behind the muscles, he is a big teddy bear—as his girlfriend would describe him.

I was a bit worried Tamara might be here but then I remembered the hockey team is going to be here, meaning her ex is here. The same ex I bluntly snapped at in the supermarket, but we're here to fix that.

Oli and the girls are going to introduce me to the team. Oliver is friends with a few of them. The girls are well acquainted with them too, at this point.

We walk through the threshold, where loud music greets us. Heaps of people have gathered around the living room.

As we walk further into the room, I spot Oli. He has noticed us and he beams up and moves toward us.

"You made it!" he screams loudly and enthusiastically as he engulfs me in a hug first. He greets Darlene and Maxine as well before he takes my hand and pulls me back to the people he was standing with before, "come on I have a few people for you to meet."

I let him drag me there until we come to stand in front of two broadly built guys, one has a short buzzcut, and one has gorgeous dark Disney prince-like hair.

He is aware of me being here to meet the hockey players tonight, so it wouldn't surprise me if these two are on the team, and he has been warming me up to them.

"Kiya, this is Milan and Gabriel. Guys, this is Kiya." He gestures between the two of us.

Buzzcut steps forward and opens his arms to give me a brief hug first, "Hey nice to meet you but call me Gabe please, my full name sounds too formal." He smiles as he pulls back.

After Gabe has stepped aside, prince hair pulls me into a hug.

"Kiya, you look gorgeous," he whispers into my ear, his lips grazing the shell, making me shiver. He pulls back and looks at me, "only this fucker here calls me Milan, but most people call me Taylor." He says.

He earns a confused look at my expense, so he further explains, "my last name, because of the hockey team." He says, and then it clicks.

So Oliver indeed introduced me to hockey players. Milan— or Taylor is very charming and knows how to work someone up.

Oliver wraps an arm around my shoulders as Taylor and Gabe are now standing back in front of me again. "So now that you've met Kiya, I must warn you both, especially you, Mil, don't try anything. She is practically my little sister and I won't hesitate to break your shooting hand if you hurt her." He threatens them with a joking tone but there is some sense of seriousness behind it.

"Got it, boss," Gabe nods as Mil—Taylor just smirks.

"Oh, also Kiya here is going to be joining your team as the physician's assistant so you'll all be seeing a lot more of each other."

"I haven't decided on anything yet." I quickly say when Oli finishes talking. Nothing is certain yet, so I don't want them to think I'm joining for sure.

"Sure you have. You are joining us.  I've just decided," Gabe says cheerfully and then reaches out to take my wrist and snatch me away from Oli, "we need to get you a drink as a prelude to you joining the team. Tay, gather the other guys. We need to have a proper inauguration for this one!" He screams over his shoulder as we walk over to the kitchen.

I just let it all come over me and see what happens. It might be good for me.

I lost Dar and Max as soon as we got here. So that might not be a good thing, but Gabe here seems like a nice guy, and so did Mr prince hair. I will survive. I can count on Oli if I'm in need of someone I trust.

Oliver really is like a brother to me, I've been living with him for a year now and he is a senior. From the start of me moving in as a freshman, he immediately took a protective role over me.

Gabe pours me something to drink when we're in the kitchen. I don't question what he just made me.

As I take a sip, I immediately taste the bitter taste of the alcohol and feel the burn in my throat, there is a sweet aftertaste, but that is probably the soda he mixed it with.

One thing that I know for sure: drinking Gabe's mixed drink—which is most definitely mainly vodka—will get me drunk.

"What is in this?" I ask with a sour look on my face.

"Vodka Redbull." He grins as I take another sip.

"Next time, you maybe should go a little easier on the vodka because this tastes like more vodka than energy," I say.

"Well that wouldn't get you drunk as fast now does it?" He smiles, "did you know that vodka energy has the same effect on the brain as cocaine does." He randomly states, "I didn't peg you as a coke girl so vodka energy it is."

"No way that's true." I look at him doubtfully.

"It is you can look it up, I know my facts—I'm a hockey player. I don't do drugs... except weed, but I know how to cheat drugs with things like this." He informs me in all seriousness. I wouldn't have expected anything less. He is an athlete and seems like a total party guy, but hockey limits him from going all out. "Come on, let's introduce you to the team!" He suddenly switches personalities.

I almost spill my drink all over myself as he pulls me along again.

We reach the living room. I look around, and I spot my friends again. They are talking with a group in the corner of the room. Their hands are now also occupied with drinks.

I also spot some of the guys I saw in the store the other day, along with Del.

He is situated on the couch with a brunette in his lap. He doesn't seem to pay much attention to the girl. He is conversing with his friends and drinking his beer.

I'm hoping to catch him alone at good moment so I can apologize to him about my behaviour in the grocery store.

Gabe leads me to the middle of the room, where Taylor and Oli are still standing. Gabe leans up to whisper something to Taylor, who smirks at his words.

Then before I know it Taylor is in front of me as he lifts me into the air making me squeal, Gabe has crouched down as Taylor places me on his shoulder. I instinctively hold on to his head to prevent me from falling, feeling the short hairs from his shaven head tickle my fingers.

Taylor whistles loudly on his fingers to get everyone's attention on us—oh boy, I'm not going to like this.

"Listen up everyone, this here is Kiya!" he hollers out and a round of applause and cheers is heard as he hypes up the crowd. He waits for the noise to go down before he screams again, "Kiya is our newest asset to the team as she is now our new physical therapist assistant! So give it up for Kiya!" He screams gaining more roars and howls from the crowd.

My face must be bright red from all the attention they put on me.

Still sitting on Gabe's shoulders, I look around the crowd. My friends are smiling and cheering me on like most people. Some sorority girls don't seem to care for me, which I understand.

I spot Del still on the couch. He looks a bit confused at the information, but he still claps for me, like the good person he is.

When Gabe finally puts me down on the ground, I see all three boys smirking.

"That was so uncalled for. Oh my god, I'm so embarrassed by that," I say and bury my face in my hands as I try to hide my tomato-colored cheeks.

"Come on, you loved that," Gabe says as he playfully pushes my shoulder.

Did I love it? Maybe, I mean to have so many people cheering me on felt good, for once. But still, I think I would rather stay hidden in the shadows.

But I now know people don't hate me like I think they did, they rooted for me—for me.

The rest of the evening goes by in a blur as I spend time playing beer pong with my newfound friends on the hockey team.

I made friends at a party. Who is this girl and what has she done to Kiya?

After having drunk an excessive amount of beer during our beer pong game, which Oli and I lost I go to find a bathroom. Oli offered to come but I told him I could find it by myself.

I stumble up the stairs, and end up in a hallway with multiple doors. I wouldn't know where to start.

The first few doors I try are locked. It doesn't help that I'm way past tipsy. It's affecting the way I walk, but I can still think clearly. I think I make a breakthrough when I barge into a random room that is unlocked.

I almost fall to the ground, not expecting a door to open for me.

The room, however, is occupied, there are two people laying on the bed. Due to my clumsy behavior, I made enough noise to get the girl who is straddling a guy's lap, to look over her shoulder and see me standing there in the door opening.

I recognize the girl from seeing her earlier downstairs, but I don't know her.

When the guy decides to sit up and reveal himself I wish I hadn't walked into this room. Del is sitting there with a bewildered look as he sits up to see someone had come into the room, now realizing they hadn't locked it properly when they came in here looking for a hookup spot.

I become frozen in place at the sight of him. Not able to move or say a thing as I stand there—déjà vu.

Why did I have to walk into him? He will dislike me even more now since I haven't had the chance to apologize to him yet.

Del doesn't have trouble as he opens his mouth, "Soph, I'm so sorry, but could you go? I have something to discuss with her." He says.

He gestures to me, saying the complete opposite of what I expected him to say. The way he said 'her' also sounded condescending.

He wants me to stay? Why.

I'm a bit shocked.

He also didn't address me by name, does that mean he doesn't know it or just didn't want to acknowledge it?

He must know my name, considering Taylor screamed it multiple times through the room he was in while it happened. Plus, he must know me through Tamara. So I'm positive he knows my name.

Soph looks rather annoyed at his request but still follows up with it. She snatches her shirt from the floor, pulls it over her head, and then marches towards the door as she looks at me with an exasperated expression.

She shoulder bumps me as she leaves the room, maybe it was intentional, or maybe just because I am still standing in the middle of the doorway.

Either way, I know I lost my chance of ever befriending her as I ruined a potentially good round of sex for her.

When she is gone, I questionably look at Del, not knowing why he didn't just make me leave.

"Come here, close the door please." He says and I finally seem to snap out of my frozen position as I take a step further into the room and turn around to push the door closed, "lock it." I hear him say, he probably doesn't want to take the risk of being seen with me in here.

When I have switched the lock, I turn back around to face him and dare myself to walk closer to where he is sitting.

He hasn't put his shirt back on.

I allow my eyes to scan over his body, his abs are the nice and defined centerpiece of his upper body. The sight makes me want to lick them, slowly slide my tongue all over his torso.

I can't think like that, I think to myself and shake my head. When did I become so horny?

It's the alcohol it must be.

He pats the spot on the bed next to him for me to sit down, so I obey and sit down. I sit silently, watching how he has now taken out a joint and lighter.

He places it between his lips as he carefully lights it. I watch as he inhales the smoke before taking the joint out from his lips between his thumb and forefinger. He exhales the smoke after holding it in his lungs for a few seconds and then turns to me, he offers me to take a drag of it, but I politely shake my head no.

I'm not going to take marijuana tonight. Me being here and having consumed alcohol is a big step. So let's not exaggerate now. 

He leans back against the wall as I still sit up straight as he continues to get high off his joint. Why doesn't he speak? Is having me awkwardly sit here entertaining him?

I decide to break the ice and speak first. I consider it a bold move.

"Listen, I wanted to apologize... the other day, I was rather rude to you for no reason," I say.

"Yeah." He responds, agreeing but not saying more than that.

Well, him saying yeah is better than ignoring me, I guess.

"I shouldn't have acted that way. It was completely uncalled for because you did nothing wrong. So I wanted to clear the air between us. Before I take the physician assistant position on your team."

 He already knows about how I'm joining the team. But when I looked at his face back in the living room, he didn't seem so stoked about it. So maybe now, by mentioning it again, I can gauge a better reaction from him up close.

"So if I'm getting this right, you're only apologizing to me now because you want in on the team." He says and if you put it like that it would seem like that is what I just did.

Fuck.

That must've offended him.

"No, I'm genuinely sorry. You just made me nervous when you started talking to me. I thought you were going to make fun of me or something." I tell him honestly. 

The alcohol clouds my judgment as I tell him about my insecurities.

"Now, why would I do that?" He asks. He is confused as to why I would think that. "Do you think that poorly of me?"

He genuinely doesn't seem to comprehend why I would think like that, but I would argue that it's rather palpable.

"Well, it's quite obvious, isn't it? You dated Tamara. She hates me. So it's practically a given her boyfriend would have negative thoughts of me too," I tell him like he should've known that.

"That's where you are wrong. First, we dated as in the past tense. We're clearly not together anymore. Second, I am very much capable of having opinions on people on my own, I don't need someone else to form opinions for me if that's what you might think." He scoffs.

I obviously offended him again.

"Yeah, I know, sorry," I mumble.

After that, we are quiet for a while. I don't know for how long, but the joint that Del was smoking is no longer between his lips as I dare to look at him again.

I suddenly feel claustrophobic sitting here on the bed with this guy, so I abruptly stand up from the bed. I earn a questionable look from him before I explain myself.

"I should go; I'm tired. I never planned to stay here this late," I say in a hurry.

"Okay, then," he says and rubs his thighs. I walk over to the door, wanting to get out. Before I can leave, I hear him speak up one last time, "I'll see you at the rink."

I turn around and give him a small smile before slipping through the door, leaving him alone in that room.

It's well past 2 am as we get back to the dorm, which is late for me, and I am beyond tired. I reek of beer and feel sticky, having beer spilled on me all night. I go for a night shower to feel clean again. When in my shower, I put on some music and sing along.

It stays silent on the other side of the wall—as I had expected. Who the fuck would take a shower at half-past two in the morning.

It disappoints me, wanting to live this alcoholic rush down by singing songs with my shower buddy.