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  ‘You coming, Sugar Lips?’ he asked Lizzie.

  ‘Please don’t call me Sugar Lips.’

  He winked. ‘I’ll bet they’re sweet though.’

  Taylor pouted. ‘Make up your mind who you want to go home with, yeah? I’m not into any of that threesome stuff.’

  Jason’s eyes lit up. ‘I never even thought to suggest that. Are you sure?’

  Lizzie looked imploringly at Taylor. ‘Do you really want to go home with that?’

  Taylor hesitated for a nanosecond and then seemed to mentally shake herself.

  ‘Come on, it’ll be fun.’

  ‘Do you want me to come?’

  ‘It’s up to you,’ she shrugged.

  Lizzie was torn. She didn’t want to go back to Jason and Brandon’s place, but she felt obligated to keep an eye on her friend. And Brandon also had reservations about leaving his brother alone with Taylor, so she knew she had cause to worry.

  ‘Alright. But I want to leave before three. I have some stuff I need to do tomorrow and I can’t afford to sleep all day.’

  ‘Lizzie’s a bit of a teacher’s pet,’ Taylor told Jason.

  ‘I’ll bet she is,’ he said, with a dirty smile.

  ‘Why do you have to bring everything down to gutter level?’ Lizzie asked.

  ‘That’s just me, sweetheart.’

  ‘Let’s go then.’

  ‘Can I get a lift with you?’ Jason asked Taylor. ‘Brandon took the car.’

  ‘Sure. Lizzie won’t mind, will you Lizzie?’

  ‘No. Why should I?’ she deadpanned.

  They farewelled Ethan and Alex and went back to the car park. Jason was already trying to stick his hand down Taylor’s top as they walked. She slapped it away, giggling.

  ‘Take it easy, buster. Don’t be in such a hurry.’

  ‘You’re right. We have all night to enjoy each other.’

  Lizzie wanted to barf. She couldn’t see what Taylor could possibly find appealing about someone so gross. Just because he looked like Brandon didn’t mean he shared any of his personality traits.

  ‘You don’t mind if I sit in the back with Jason, do you?’ Taylor asked Lizzie.

  ‘Go ahead,’ Lizzie said, defeated.

  She turned the key in the ignition and then remembered the alcohol she’d drunk earlier.

  ‘Jason? How much have you had to drink?’

  ‘A few beers. Why?’

  ‘I’m only on my P’s and I can’t have anything in my system. I had some vodka a few hours ago.’

  ‘Ooh, so the good girl actually is bad!’ He seemed to find this revelation quite satisfying.

  ‘Yes, yes. So can you drive?’

  ‘No problem, honey.’

  Lizzie moved over into the passenger side. Jason jumped into the front, leaving Taylor looking sullen in the back. No doubt she’d been hoping to make out with Jason on the ride home.

  Lizzie was worried that Jason would be a crazy driver, but he was surprisingly sensible. They didn’t have far to go anyway, because the guys shared an apartment right on the river in Kangaroo Point. It was small, but had an amazing view of the water.

  Jason ushered them through to the living room.

  ‘Welcome,’ he said. ‘Take a seat. What would you like to drink?’

  ‘Just so we’re straight, you mean alcohol, right?’ Taylor checked.

  ‘Yes, I mean alcohol. What did you think I meant?’

  ‘Well apparently, Lizzie’s boyfriend thinks soft drinks are an appropriate beverage to offer guests.’

  He laughed. ‘Babe, the only soft drinks I have are mixed with Jack Daniels. So would you like one of those? Or maybe some wine?’ He opened a nearby cupboard, revealing enough bottles to rival a nightclub. ‘We’ve got pretty much everything.’

  ‘Why don’t you surprise me?’ she asked.

  ‘I like your style darlin’.’ He glanced at Lizzie. ‘I take it you’ll just be having water? Or are you going to continue your rebellious streak?’

  ‘Water will be fine.’

  Brandon wandered out from his room and stared at Jason.

  ‘I hope you’re not giving my students alcohol,’ he said angrily.

  ‘What the hell, man? Can’t you fucking give it a rest? I’m over this goody-goody act of yours. Since when have you gone all square? You used to be worse than me.’

  ‘How am I supposed to teach these people and have them treat me with respect if all they can think about is me getting smashed and acting like their friends? It won’t work. And if they told anyone at all…’

  ‘I promise we won’t,’ Taylor quickly cut in. ‘I’m sure we’d get in just as much trouble anyway.’

  ‘I highly doubt it, but I’m trusting you to keep this to yourself.’

  ‘You haven’t even done anything wrong,’ she pointed out.

  ‘Try explaining that to Sam Jenkins if he heard I had two of his girls drinking illegally at my apartment after they’d snuck, also illegally, into a nightclub to watch my band play.’

  ‘Why don’t you go back to your room, and then you can plead ignorance?’ Jason suggested.

  ‘Maybe I will. But please don’t give them alcohol. I mean it.’

  ‘Lizzie already turned it down,’ Jason replied.

  ‘Good.’ He smiled tightly at Lizzie. ‘I’ll see you on Monday.’

  He disappeared into his room again and shut the door. Lizzie sat there awkwardly.

  ‘Where were we?’ Jason asked. ‘Oh, that’s right. I was surprising you with a drink.’

  ‘Why don’t we just go straight to the bedroom?’ Taylor asked boldly.

  Jason looked like all his Christmases had come at once. ‘If that’s what you want…’

  ‘Taylor!’ Lizzie screeched. ‘What are you doing?’

  ‘You should probably go, Lizzie. I’ll just catch a cab home.’

  ‘But I can’t go back to my place! I told Dad I was sleeping at yours. If I go back after midnight, he’ll start asking questions.’

  ‘You’ll think of something.’ She stood up and grabbed Jason’s hand. ‘Come on.’

  ‘Hang on.’ He pulled away for a second and sat down beside Lizzie. ‘Is this OK with you?’

  Lizzie was taken aback. ‘Um, no. But why are you asking me now?’

  ‘You don’t want to join us?’ he asked, cheekily stroking her face.

  ‘Stop it!’ Lizzie swatted his hand and pulled away. ‘The two of you are freakin’ crazy!’

  Jason laughed manically. ‘You’re so easy to wind up.’

  Lizzie looked up at Taylor. ‘Are you taking photos?’ she asked disbelievingly. Taylor had her iPhone out and was pointing it in their direction.

  ‘I don’t want to forget this night. It’s been really fun.’

  ‘For you maybe,’ Lizzie muttered. Taylor was seriously losing it.

  ‘Go!’ Lizzie shouted. ‘Go and fuck each other’s brains out. See if I care.’

  Taylor laughed and looked at Jason. ‘You heard the girl. Let’s go.’

  ‘I wasn’t giving you permission. It was called sarcasm,’ Lizzie retorted.

  ‘Too late.’ She waved at Lizzie. ‘See you later!’

  Taylor and Jason staggered off to his room, leaving Lizzie on the couch.

  She was mad. She wasn’t sure if she could be Taylor’s friend anymore after tonight. This was by far the most selfish thing she had ever done. And that was saying something.

  She didn’t know what to do next. She wasn’t kidding when she’d told Taylor she couldn’t go home. Her curfew was midnight on the weekends, or she couldn’t return at all until the next day. Lizzie’s dad had made it clear that he didn’t want to be woken up by her coming and going at all hours. She knew he’d make the exception for something bad, but she wasn’t sure this was it.

  For a minute she contemplated going back to Taylor’s house alone, but she didn’t have a key, and she didn’t want to have to explain to Taylor’s mum why her daughter wasn’t with her. She was a pretty
understanding mum, but not that understanding.

  She couldn’t stay here on the couch though. That would be weird.

  She was just wondering if she had enough money to pay for a hotel when Brandon reappeared.

  He jumped when he saw her.

  ‘What are you doing here all alone?’

  ‘Trying to weigh up whether it’s worth getting in trouble with my dad if I go home, or use up a week’s pay to stay in a dodgy motel.’

  He smiled. ‘And why are those the only options?’

  Lizzie explained about her curfew, and how she was supposed to stay at Taylor’s that night.

  ‘And she’s in there with my brother right now?’ he asked disgustedly.

  ‘Yep,’ she said grimly.

  ‘I thought you and Taylor had already left. Damn it. Fucking Jason. Sorry, I know I shouldn’t be swearing in front of you, but fuck!’

  Lizzie couldn’t help laughing.

  ‘It’s OK. I think the language is completely justified tonight.’

  ‘Does she often do stuff like this to you?’

  ‘No. But I can’t say I’m surprised.’

  ‘Well, we can’t have you getting in trouble with your dad, and I don’t think you should be trying to find a hotel at this time of night, so how about us two insomniacs hang around and wait for Taylor to come back out? Knowing Jason, he won’t let her hang around in his bed once he’s gotten what he wants.’

  ‘Poor Taylor.’

  ‘Don’t feel sorry for her. She ditched you. And I’m pretty sure she knew exactly what she was letting herself in for. Now, can I offer you a tea or a hot chocolate?’

  Lizzie smiled. ‘A hot chocolate would be great.’

  CHAPTER 10

  Brandon handed Lizzie the hot chocolate and sat at the opposite end of the couch. Lizzie thought it was cute that he seemed nervous about giving out the wrong impression.

  ‘I’m sorry if this is really awkward for you,’ he said.

  ‘No. I’m sorry about the whole night. I should have tried harder to stop Taylor from going to the gig. But you obviously know by now that you can’t really tell her what to do. So I figured I might as well be there in case she got in trouble. I would never forgive myself if she ended up attacked or dead because I let her go out by herself late at night in the Valley.’

  ‘You’re a good friend. But it’s not your job to keep her safe. You need to look out for your own wellbeing too.’

  ‘I know. But I’m sure you’re protective of Jason. It’s kind of the same.’

  ‘Perhaps. So was it Taylor who discovered I was in a band?’

  ‘Yes, but I admit I was curious to hear what you guys sounded like after she told me.’

  ‘And?’

  Lizzie almost laughed. He looked like he really cared about her reply.

  ‘You guys are awesome. And even better live. I’d like to go to another gig sometime, but only if it’s an all-ages one.’

  ‘We don’t really do all-ages shows. When do you turn eighteen?’

  ‘August the first.’

  ‘We have a few gigs lined up in September and October, but you should probably wait until next year when I’m not your teacher anymore before you see another one of our shows. I’m not sure the Department of Education would really approve.’

  ‘That’s cool. I understand. I’m sorry you’ve been put in such a tight spot tonight. You know what? I think I will go home. It’s one thing having Taylor hooking up with your brother, but it’s another to have me sitting here alone with you in your living room.’

  ‘It’s completely up to you. I have to admit I’m not totally comfortable with it, and even less so having Taylor in there with Jason. But it’s not really going to make much difference now if you stay for another few hours.’

  Lizzie couldn’t decide. Should she leave and risk getting grounded? Or should she stay and jeopardise Brandon’s new career? But then, as he had just said, would a few more hours really make any difference?

  ‘Maybe I’ll just stay until the sun comes up, and then I can sneak home and tell Dad I woke up early.’

  ‘No problem. So do you want to watch some TV? Listen to music?’

  ‘Yours?’ she asked, smiling.

  ‘No, not mine. I’m not in the habit of sitting around listening to my own albums.’

  ‘OK, so I need to ask. Your band seems to be going pretty well. How come you’re a teacher? And not even a music teacher?’

  ‘We’re still independent, so we have to fund all our tours and recordings ourselves. We’re obviously hoping to get signed one day, but until then, I have to do something else. And as for why I’m not a music teacher, well, I can’t read music.’

  Lizzie laughed. ‘Seriously?’

  ‘Seriously.’

  ‘But it’s so easy! I could teach you.’

  ‘Ah, thanks, but no thanks. I still have nightmares from when I was a kid, and my grandma tried to teach me the piano. I’m a lost cause.’

  ‘Could you always sing?’

  ‘Yeah. But that’s different.’

  ‘Can I tell you a secret?’

  Brandon frowned.

  ‘I don’t know. What kind of secret?’

  ‘Orion’s Head is the only thing that helps me sleep.’

  His face was a mixture of bemusement and pleasant surprise.

  ‘I’m not sure how to take that. On the one hand, I could be offended because my music literally puts you to sleep. But on the other hand, as a fellow insomniac, I appreciate the gravity of what that means. It’s actually quite flattering.’

  ‘Take it the second way.’

  He grinned. ‘So you weren’t tempted to drift off during our set tonight?’

  ‘Did I look like I was?’

  ‘No. Actually, you seemed to know all the words quite well.’

  ‘I do. Amazingly, seeing as I really only get to Interstellar before I fall asleep.’

  ‘So is that your favourite?’

  ‘Yes,’ she said shyly.

  ‘It’s mine too.’

  Lizzie sipped her hot chocolate. ‘I think I’m in the mood for a movie. Something actiony.’

  ‘Alright.’ Brandon didn’t seem to mind the abrupt change in conversation. ‘Have you seen Wolverine?’

  ‘No. But I’ve seen a few of the X-Men films, and I quite liked them, so I’d be happy to watch it.’

  ‘I have to warn you, I’ve seen it three times already.’

  ‘I assume that’s less than the number of times you’ve watched The Notebook?’

  ‘Actually, I’ve never seen The Notebook.’

  ‘So why did you say you knew the script?’

  ‘I was just trying to get a few laughs.’

  ‘But what if someone had challenged you on it?’

  ‘I would have gone back to my desk and googled it while pretending to do something else.’

  ‘That’s cheating. As a teacher, you probably shouldn’t do that sort of thing.’

  ‘Oh, so you’re an expert on teacher etiquette now?’ His eyes twinkled playfully.

  ‘Yes. I stole the manual from your desk when you weren’t looking.’

  ‘Well, see there, I’m sure stealing is another thing that you’d read is against the rules.’

  ‘Enough talking, more movie watching.’

  Brandon laughed. ‘Yes ma’am.’

  Lizzie settled into the couch and focused her attention on the TV. She tried to ignore the fact that she was sitting less than a metre away from her very good looking English teacher.

  Focus on Hugh Jackman, she ordered herself. Hugh Jackman is awesome.

  It seemed to work for a while. Lizzie lost herself in the film, but then every now and again she’d experience a surge of awareness and get all jittery.

  And while she couldn’t be absolutely sure, she could have sworn she caught Brandon looking at her every now and again when he thought she wasn’t paying attention.

  As soon as the credits rolled, she stood up. ‘I think I�
��ll go now.’

  Brandon looked at his watch. ‘It’s still only four.’

  ‘That’s OK. It’ll take me a while to get home and I can always stop at McDonald’s and get something to eat on the way.’

  ‘Do you think that’s safe?’

  ‘Yeah. I work there, so my peeps will look after me.’

  ‘Did you just say peeps?’

  She giggled. ‘Yeah, so?’

  ‘That kind of language makes me feel ancient.’

  ‘Sorry old man, but you kind of are.’

  ‘Hey! Who are you calling old man?’

  ‘You. Anyway, thanks heaps for letting me stay. I’ll see you Monday. Which is technically tomorrow. Ugh. This weekend is already going way too fast.’

  ‘I know. Hey, even though you work at McDonald’s, I still feel like I shouldn’t be sending you out in the dark by yourself. So here’s my mobile number in case you get stuck.’ He quickly wrote on a piece of paper and handed it to her.

  ‘Aw. How nice of you to look out for your students.’

  He walked her to the door.

  ‘I just wish your friend would be a bit wiser. I’m surprised she’s still in there, as a matter of fact. I’m betting Jason will kick her out any minute now.’

  ‘Not if Taylor has anything to do with it. Good luck dealing with all that.’

  He grimaced. ‘Thanks.’

  Lizzie left him there, only breaking out into a huge smile once she was out of sight.

  ***

  The rest of Lizzie’s day was a mass of confusing thoughts. Every time she thought about Gabe, Brandon’s face made an appearance. She was annoyed at Gabe for not being honest with her about the text message, because it meant she had an excuse if she suddenly decided that their relationship was too hard, and she didn’t want to feel like that. She wanted to be one hundred percent dedicated.

  Not that she was doing so well on that front today. Brandon was crowding out more and more of her brain space, leaving little room for her boyfriend.

  She typed Brandon’s number into her phone, saving it under OH for Orion’s Head. She didn’t want anyone looking through her stuff and stumbling across it by accident. She then hid the piece of paper he’d written on in her bedside cabinet. She couldn’t bring herself to throw it away. It was a physical reminder of the night they’d spent together, and proof that he cared enough about her to risk his job. Something like that was unlikely to happen again.