Starboy

Chapter 3: Locker Whiskey

I rode over to the subway and it felt like forever until I reached Benji's gorgeous neighbourhood. I always feel super self-conscious in the Upper East Side because everyone looks so much more put together than me. The excitement in me to tell Benji about NYU is over the roof and I hope he gets in too.

I wait patiently for the elevator until it finally dings. Beside me in the elevator is this beautiful, tall woman dressed in designer clothing. I can feel her looking at me, probably judging my entire appearance. I feel more insecure than ever when she finally looks me in the eye. I thank the heavens when the elevator door opens to Benji's floor.   

I hop out quickly and eagerly and walk over to his front door, which has a beautiful summer wreath hanging on it. I knock on the door and wait for an answer. After knocking and ringing the bell a couple of times, I decided to text him but received no response. 

I heard the elevator bell ding and I turned around instantly. I saw Benji, only he was with a girl—a beautiful girl at that. He was wearing his everyday school uniform which consists of dress pants, a blazer, collared shirt and tie, along with black leather shoes.

He looked completely normal, but something seemed off. His arm was around the mysterious blond girl and I couldn't help but feel jealous, which is nothing new considering Benji was with a new girl every week.  

"Brandy!!" He shouts, clearly drunk. "Hey, baby. How are ya?" He goes in for a hug and I hesitantly accept it. "Seriously, how are you? I missed ya."

"Hi," I acknowledge the girl. "I'm his best friend. Brandy." I smile.  

"Sarah. Sorry about him." She laughed. "I tried to stop him during Chem but he swiped a bottle of whiskey from Darren's locker."

He laughed. "You gave me the passcode, Sarah. This is your fault." 

"I didn't think you would steal his booze." She giggled annoyingly. 

"Come in, both of you." He suggested, taking out his keys and struggling to find the right one. 

"I got to get home." She said, and I felt a sense of relief. "It was nice to meet you, Brandy." She smiles at me. "Benji..." She walked over and kissed him, which hurt to watch. "Take care of yourself, you idiot."    

I grabbed his keys and found the right one, which unlocked the door. He was babbling on about his day and saying drunken nonsense. This was nothing new for him or for me. I was used to seeing him drunk, even on school days. He was almost adorable when he was intoxicated for some reason, and it made me like him more.  

I try to carry him up the stairs, which is incredibly difficult. "I don't want to go upstairs. Let's go out somewhere. I'm bored." He groans.  

"How long have you been drunk?" I asked.

"I'm not drunk." He chuckled. "Everything is just blurry."  

"Okay," I sighed as I lay him on his king-size bed. "Get some rest, Ben. When you wake up, I have news to tell you." I smiled as I walk out the door.

"NYU." He mumbled. I quickly turned my head to him, wondering if I heard him correctly.

"What about NYU?" I walked over to him.    

"I'm in. Whoo!" He said, but he was so drunk I couldn't even tell if he was being sarcastic. "Mommy and daddy will be so proud of me." Yeah, he's being sarcastic. 

"You got in?" I tried to confirm with him. "Benji, that's amazing," I said genuinely. I'm so glad that next year will be everything I have hoped for since I was a kid. Benji will be by my side through it all.