As A Friend

27: Beat You at Your Own Game

hi guys. finished my finals today. let's not talk about them alright. ANYWAY, here's an update. :) 350 votes and yall get the next chapter. If not, see you in a week or so.

"Are you going out tonight?" West asks me as we all sit in Dominic and Jack's room on Friday night.

"No," I answer with a shrug.

"What about your boy Eli?" Jack pipes.

"He's not my boy, but what about him?" I laugh, which earns a 'oooh' from West.

"You don't claim him?" Jack presses.

"What's there to claim?" I ask. West 'oooh's even louder and I groan. Dominic smirks at me as I struggle to communicate myself clearly. "Not what I meant, guys."

"For someone who doesn't claim him, you spend a lot of time with him. You're always with him now," Jack blurts and I give him a confused look.

"What? I hang out with him a couple times a week," I retort and Dominic snorts.

"You hung out with him three times since Monday," Dominic explains, which gets a shrug out of me.

"Okay that was this week," I respond. "Last week-."

"Same amount, 3 times," Dominic finishes, which earns a glare from me.

"Is he your boyfriend yet?" Jack presses.

"No," I respond. "And he's not going to be."

"She doesn't claim him, remember?" West insists.

"Ah, friends with benefits," Jack proposes, which earns a glare from me.

"What are the benefits? I think we'd notice. She's always mean and she never has hickies," Jack retorts.

"Maybe I don't want them where everyone can see them," I mumble quietly and Dominic's head snaps in my direction.

"So does Eli know?" West prompts after they get over their silent shock.

"Know what?" I ask.

"About how attractive you find Dommy?" West finishes with a smirk. The guys fill the room with laughs and Dominic grins smugly.

"Beer goggles, guys," I explain in exasperation. Dominic tilts his head at me in slight surprise and offense.

"That'd be a valid excuse if you had sex with him. You were just looking at him and you were completely blown away," Jack comments. I roll my eyes as my face burns. I don't even risk looking at Dominic because knowing him, he'd wink or lick his lips, which would only make this worse.

"Is he your Valentine?" Dominic blurts. He's been rather silent for the majority of the conversation, leaving the questioning and interrogating up to West and Jack. He's just been sitting there stretched out in his chair, making points and comments when he deemed necessary. His long legs are extended and facing my direction. I would occasionally nudge his foot with my own and he'd offer me a small smile.

"Eli?" I ask, which gets a few sarcastic remarks from West and Jack. Dominic simply nods in response. "No, he didn't ask me."

Dominic slowly nods and I narrow my eyes at him. So is he going to ask me? I continue to stare at him and he just gazes back in pure amusement as if he can tell what's going on in my head. "Yes?" he prompts when I don't break my gaze. I give a short head shake as I turn my attention to West and Jack, who're watching us intensely.

"I'm looking for a Valentine," West blurts, taking the topic in a different direction.

I sit with my arms crossed as I tune out the conversation. Dominic was my Valentine last year. He asked me a week prior and surprised me with chocolates and a teddy bear. I figured with how much closer we've gotten, he'd have done something similar seeing as neither of us are dating anyone. But I guess not. I come out of my trance and find myself glaring at him. He watches with the same entertained look as before. He chuckles quietly as I relocate my gaze on his feet.