Free Playing the Game by Jl Paul Page B

engaging
in ridiculous behavior. I laughed as a small group of girls plugged
in a CD player and began dancing suggestively to the music. The
whistling guys encouraged them, draining their beer glasses as
quickly as they filled them. My body relaxed even though my stomach
was still queasy and I was grateful for Gary’s presence. He settled
me on a wooden bench in the backyard and kept a hand on me, warding
off potential suitors.
    “ You feeling okay,
Aubrey?” he asked for the hundredth time.
    Smiling a goofy grin, I fell into his
chest.
    “ Wonderful,” I slurred. I
couldn’t muster enough strength to sit my body upright. He laughed
as he helped me.
    Without warning, he gripped my chin,
pressing his lips to my mouth. My eyes bolted open as my heart
pumped wildly in my chest. I froze but that didn’t deter him in the
least. His lips continued to massage mine as his tongue wormed its
way into my mouth. A wail of catcalls and cheers assaulted my ears
as my eyes watered. I managed to push him away but his hands
grabbed my shoulders, his fingers digging into my skin through my
thin blouse. I cried out as he exerted more pressure and his eyes
grew dangerously dark.
    “ Don’t be such a prude,
Aubrey. Maybe if you thaw out a little bit the judges will get off
your ass,” he muttered. He leaned in to kiss me again but I twisted
violently out of his hold. Jumping to my wobbly feet, I dumped my
Coke on his head. Samantha laughed wildly from somewhere over my
shoulder but Gary wasn’t amused.
    As he got up, he snatched my arm. “You
frigid bitch,” he said through clenched teeth.
    “ Let go of me,” I
demanded, wrenching free again. I brushed past him and headed to
the house, Samantha hot on my heels.
    “ Don’t leave yet, Aubrey,”
she called in a singsong voice. “The fun’s just
starting!”
    I ignored her as I reached the front door.
Stumbling through it, I wobbled across the yard until I found my
car. My head was whirling frantically as I fired up the engine and
put it in gear. The road blurred and I had a hard time keeping my
car on the proper side of the street. I pulled over once I thought
I was a safe distance from the house and whipped out my phone. My
instincts warned me against calling Gwen, though I knew she’d come
for me in a heartbeat. Her tired, drawn out face flashed in my
mind. No, I wouldn’t call her. I flipped through the numbers on my
phone as I contemplated calling a cab to take me to a hotel. Before
I could open up a browser on my phone, I stopped on a number. I
mused for five seconds then hit send.
    “ Hello?” the voice
said.
    “ Kendra?” I cried. “This
is Aubrey Quinn. Do you remember me?”
    “ Of course,” she said
slowly. “Are you okay?”
    The tears flowed hard and fast. “I hate to
do this but is there any way you could come get me?”
    After I gave her the edited version of my
predicament, she told me to sit tight – she’d be right here.
Closing my eyes, I rested my head on the steering wheel, inhaling
and exhaling slowly, trying to fight off the hysteria looming ever
so close.
    “ You are an idiot!” I
screamed. “You should have known better than to trust
Samantha!”
    The tears returned in full force and
streamed down my face. I didn’t bother wiping them away. My stomach
rolled again and I fumbled with the door handle, practically
falling out of the car. I ran to the other side and emptied my
stomach in the gutter. Once I finished, I sat on the curb, letting
self-pity to wash over me. What a pathetic excuse for a human being
I was. I swiped at the never ending flow of tears as I watched cars
pass. I prayed no one but Kendra would stop because I was in no
condition to fight off any unfriendly advances.
    Finally I heard a car stop behind mine and
Kendra’s worried voice call out my name. I held on to the fender of
my car as I walked around the front.
    “ Oh geez, Aubrey! Are you
okay?” Kendra asked as she took me by the shoulders. I winced in
pain at her