Evangeline

30

"Since the weather is so awful, I think it's fair to say we deserve the night off." The words were barely out of Olivia's mouth before cheers erupted through the room. How only nine people could make that much noise was crazy to me. 

Me and Seeley were still sitting in our positions on opposite sides of the couch. We had just finished our last conversation when everyone else poured into the lounge, announcing that Walter had given up on the barbecue. Which brought us to now, with Olivia declaring we could have the night off.

"Shots!" An unfamiliar man shouted from beside the fireplace, and pulled a bottle of tequila out of thin air, thrusting it above his head. I subconsciously tensed. 

A muffled beep drew my attention to the phone in my pocket. Pulling it out, I briefly glanced at the notification that told me my battery was running low, before I rose to my feet. Seeley's inquisitive look prompted me to stick my tongue out at him as I moved past him, heading for our room to grab my charger.

I couldn't have been gone for more than five minutes, but when I came back, it was chaos. Loud music hit me as soon as I entered the kitchen, some song I recognized but couldn't name. Hesitantly stepping through the room back to my seat, I passed Olivia standing on the island, a hairbrush in her grasp as she used it as a microphone.

Henderson was kneeling by the coffee table in the middle of the room, shuffling a deck of cards. A smile sprung to his face when he looked up, and beckoned me over. Seeley was silently watching from the couch.

"Now, darling, have you ever played gin rummy?" He asked, a slight glaze over his eyes. I ignored the pet name and shook my head, changing my route from the couch to the coffee table, and took a seat on the other side - opposite Henderson.

Henderson taught me the rules of the game, and then we played. And then we played another round. And another. And another. The whole time I was distracted by the heavy presence of the boy on the couch. I won two games though, which I made a mental note of to brag about to Molly when I got home. Then I realized she probably wouldn't care as much about the card games I played on this trip, than she would about me and Seeley sharing a room. I could practically hear her squeal now.

At some point, Olivia entered the room with a wobbly tray of cocktails, that she sat down directly on top of our cards, which halted our game in progress. I accepted one, and almost moaned from how good it tasted. Then she motioned me into the kitchen and taught me how to make them. I'm not sure how much time had passed before I had my next cocktail, but it can't have been long. 

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this is the shortest chapter so deal with that and prepare yourselves ;)