Billionaire's Childhood Love

LIII. Soft Lips

Hailey's POV:

"N-No reason." I turn my head towards the bright light in the swimming pool.

"You don't have to buy anything." Madison sways her hair to the other side. "Chill in town. You need to get away from those stocks."

"Well, sorry. Not everyone has rich parents."

Madison smirks, "Why don't you ask your step-daddy for some money?"

Step-daddy? Step-father?

Taniyah glares at Madison, "Don't."

Madison places two hands in the air as her way of surrendering.

Jasmine was staring at me.

"What?" I ask, unable to keep my gaze on her.

"You have a lot of stretch marks."

She saw it.

She noticed my stretch marks.

Which meant everyone else did too.

Those stretch marks I got from when I was fat.

Crystal notices my discomfort, "What's the big deal in having stretch marks? I have them too." She stood up and turned around. With both hands, she smacks her butt, "Mother nature, baby."

Everyone burst out laughing.

Taniyah shrugs, "I got stretch marks." She held up her boobs, "Everything comes with a price, baby."

I couldn't fight the smile that steadily raced across my face as the girls continued to talk about their imperfections.

Jasmine was still staring at me, not as openly as before, but still strong.

"So-" Madison said, with a mischievous smile. That smile is never a good sign. "I got something."

"What?" Crystal asks.

Steadily, she grabs her bag and pulls out a bottle of alcohol. "Let's have a little fun tonight."

I raise a hand. "I'm fourteen."

Madison waves the bottle slightly, "So?"

"I cannot consume alcohol. It's illegal."

"Fine. We'll drink without Hailey." She grabs a bunch of glasses and lines them up on the bench.

I look at Crystal and elbow her.

"What?" She asks.

"Don't tell me you're going to drink," I whisper.

She scrunches her nose and shrugs, "Meh. Why not?"

"Crystal. You're fifteen."

"Going sixteen," she smiles softly, "Hailey. You don't have to drink if you don't want to. No one will tease you for being sober. I, on the other hand, kind of want a few shots."

Madison passed out the glasses and gave me one with clear content. "It's water," she said. I took it, rolling it around the edge of my fingertips.

Madison raised her glass, "To another great year with old and new friends," she said.

Our glasses clang together, and everyone dove into their shots.

After one glass.

It's two.

Then, three.

Taniyah fell asleep.

"Wow. She's a lightweight," Madison said.