Page 7 of Calavera Society
“I guess you weren’t speaking to me when you said that girl speaking to your boyfriend kisses like a slug.”
My attention swings form the dark waters back to the guy as he turns to fully face me and holy tits on ice, is he fucking stunning.
His eyes are crazy looking with multiple colors ranging from blue to gold. His brows are perfectly thick and masculine -manly brows are a sexy thing, no one can tell me otherwise- hovering over his eyes, slightly blocking my view of their unique color. His rich tanned skin glows with the flames of the bonfire, showing off his sharp features.
He’s got a sharp jawline, cheekbones for days and a perfectly straight nose.
I instantly hate him, purely based on his looks that hit my self-esteem like a bitch.
Ignoring my internal hater, my eyes catch on the glint of a nose ring, and I have to force myself not to groan at how unfairly beautiful this guy is.
I roll my eyes when he smiles at my ogling, “He’s not my boyfriend.”
I say while still staring, surprised that my voice didn’t come out as a breathy moan.
His shoulder pulls up in a shrug, but other than that, he stands completely still. That is, until he moves closer to me, his steps eerily silent, even with the ground sopping beneath him; it sends a shiver over my skin. Only a predator moves with silent precision.
“Who are you? Did you come with someone or are you crashing the party?”
He shrugs again, “I’m no one you would know, and I came with a friend to celebrate her graduation, but she seems to have disappeared on me.”
Why does that sound ominous as hell? I do my best to keep the tremor out of my voice, my mind no longer foggy as this handsome stranger emits a dangerous vibe that has my high dulling instantly. I’ve seen too many horror movies to let a pretty face distract me from my gut feeling, and my gut is growling with nothing but warning bells.
He comes to a stop just a few feet away and gives me what I’m sure he believes is an open smile, “Mind if I sit?”
I narrow my eyes and scoot over more than socially polite, “What friend?”
“I believe you call her Sloppy Becky.” He says as he takes a seat, “Not a very nice name for a sweet girl, you know?”
I feel my cheeks flame with remorse, erasing all my worry about this guy’s identity.
“Fuck, she knows about that?”
He chuckles and shakes his head, looking back out over the water, “Nah, I just overheard a few people calling her that. I take it the name was coined by you?”
I sigh and put the blunt to my lips, inhaling deeply before replying, “Yeah. I’m an asshole like that, but if you knew the story behind it, you’d understand the reasoning.”
I gaze at his profile, wondering how he knows Becky. She doesn’t seem like she’d run in the same circles as him. This guy looks like he’d be the lead singer in a rock band or maybe the president of one of our local biker gangs, while Becky looks like she’s part of the math club. Two totally opposite worlds.
“I’m Val.” I offer him the blunt instead of a handshake, but he declines.
“Mateo Del Toro.”
I hum under my breath, taking another drag, “Why are you really here, Mateo?”
He pulls a fresh pack of cigarettes from his jacket pocket, packing it before tearing the wrapper off and lighting one up. The ember lights up his features, giving me a second view of his ridiculously beautiful face.
“Why? You don’t believe I’m friends with Becky?” He asks, the scent of peppermint and tobacco clinging to the air around me.
I chuckle, “Actually no, I don’t believe you, but that’s not why I asked.”
He blows smoke out through his nose as he looks over at me, “Again,why?”
I’ve never been one to beat around the bush, so I just tell him exactly why I asked.
“I don’t believe you because Becky is a motormouth with a peppy attitude and well, you look like you’d rather drown yourself than hang with someone like her. But the reason I asked is because I need a distraction to ride on, and you look like someone who knows how to give a good ride.”
He huffs and shakes his head, his mouth pulling up into a cocky grin as he stares at the water but doesn’t say anything. We sit in silence for a while, listening to the sounds of the ongoing party behind us, the sounds of laughter and the crackling of the giant bonfire being the only music surrounding us. I’m not embarrassed by my forwardness, in fact, I’ll do it again one day because life is too damn short not to go after what you want, no matter how primal it is.