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kind of feel sorry for him
– like he’s missing out on some good things in life, hiding under his
earphones and sketchpad and long-ass hair.
      Jeff’s place looks more like a resort
than a house.   It towers over the
cul-de-sac and is surrounded by palm trees.   The entrance is a high stucco archway illuminated from up-lights
recessed in the perfectly landscaped grass.   It looks like something out of a magazine.
    Kids are pouring in
through the front door, most of them jabbering about the football game and how
we smashed San Clemente.   I blend
right in as I come through the doorway, high-fiving Ryan Morgan and recapping
the details of the game.   It takes
me a minute to realize that Nick is standing silent next to me.
    “Ryan, this is my
cousin, Nick,” I say.
    Ryan is a stocky
guy, built like a football player, but not one.   He looks Nick up and down and says, “What’s up, man?”
    “Hey.”   Nick nods once, and his long hair dips
over his pierced eyebrow.  
    He looks totally
out of place in a house full of jocks.   The guy’s got balls to even show up here.   I wonder again why he decided to come.
    “Well,” Ryan says,
eyeing a group of girls at the pool table.   “I’ll see you guys around.”   He walks toward the girls in a cool swagger that I’m sure is
meant to impress them.
    We’re just walking
out the huge French doors into what I can see is an amazing backyard, when I
hear, “Sebastian!”
    I cringe,
recognizing Emma’s voice.   I
hesitate a moment before I turn around to face her.   She’s skipping – literally skipping – up to Nick
and me from the kitchen.   She’s got
a red, plastic Solo cup in her hand, and from the glazed look in her eye, I can
see whatever she’s drinking has taken the desired effect.
    When she reaches
us, she drapes an arm over my neck and presses her amazing tits against my
chest.   In a slurred half-whine,
she says, “Sebastian!   I’m so glad
you came.”   She releases her grip
on me and turns inquisitively toward Nick.   “Who are you?”
    It amazes me that
my cousin has been at this school for two years and no one seems to know who he
is.   “Hey, Emma.   This is my cousin Nick.”
    Nick smiles
awkwardly.   “It’s nice to meet
you.”
    She moves away from
me and takes a step closer to Nick, who seems petrified of her.   The look on his face is classic, and a part
of me wants to pull out my cell phone to record this interaction, but I
refrain.
    She smiles broadly
and hollers, “Cousin!” She throws both arms around Nick’s neck.   He flinches, twisting to break free of
her.
    At first I think
he’s just freaking out because a female is touching him, but then I realize
that in her swift motion to embrace Nick, she has spilled half her drink down
his back.
    “Shit!” he
screeches.   The confusion on Emma’s
face tells me she doesn’t even know what happened, which makes the whole thing
even more hysterical.   I’m almost
doubled over from laughing so hard.   The regret over not pulling my cell phone out to record this is almost
painful.
    Nick curses
again.   Emma pulls away from his
grip and, in the process, spills the other half of her drink on Jeff’s shiny
travertine floor.   I slap Nick on
the shoulder, trying to contain my amusement.   “Oh shit! That’s funny!”
    Nick grimaces and
pulls his shirt around so he can assess the damage.   “Yeah, real funny, asshole.”
    There’s a red
stripe down his back from her drink.   I’ve seen him wear that Dexter t-shirt a hundred times, and because I
hate that TV show, I don’t mind that it’s now ruined.
    Emma looks at his
drenched shirt and then to her empty cup, realization finally dawning.  
    “Oops!” she
announces.   “Did I do that?”   She starts laughing and tries to
comfort my cousin with another hug.
    Nick deflects and
backs away with his hands held out in front of him to ward her off.   “Uh, it’s okay.   Just…stay back.”   I try