I Like Me Better: Chapter 8: Slow Dance
The young teen looks out over Sigmar Field and pulls her jacket a little closer around her shoulders. The field, usually filled with the two major soccer teams (the womens and the mens), is filled with an assortment of college students all in various degrees of inebriation. Perhaps it wasn’t the best idea to come to this party.
It wasn’t like Angela was a prude, she knew how to have fun and she knew that a few drinks were rarely a bad thing, but there is something uncomfortable about the field tonight. Her eyes search the grounds for someone familiar. It’s very likely that she simply feels uncomfortable because she is sticking out like a sore thumb; the only one in her immediate vicinity that isn’t a part of a group.
Across a cluster of Seniors betting on two guys doing handstands, Angela notices Eric hanging around a few guys they went to high school with.
“I didn’t know you were coming to this party,” Angela says as she approaches the group.
“Hey! Ang!” Mike shouts out. “I haven’t seen you in ages, Ang.”
Angela gets pulled into an awkward hug and she thinks Mike tried to kiss her cheek but missed. She’s not entirely sure, but she wouldn’t be surprised if Mike was well into his 3rd cup of beer.
“Hi Mike, Tyler. How are you guys doing? How is basic training?”
“Oh, it’s miserable,” Mike answers with a grin. “I’ve got just this weekend before I go on to AIT and then I’m sent to my base. Not sure where that will be yet, but hey, you gotta live in the present! Am I right or am I right?” The short boy downs what’s left of his drink before crunching the cup in his hand.
“You’re gonna want to loosen your grip there,” Tyler laughs. “You pay for the cup, remember?”
“I’ll buy another!” Mike laughs and throws the cup over his shoulder. “Ang, let me get you a drink.”
He disappears into the crowd before Angela can reply so she turns over to Tyler and gives him a quick, soft hug.
“How about you? What are you doing in Port Angeles?”
“Mike messaged a bunch of us guys saying he’d be in the area,” Tyler shrugs. “I figured it couldn’t hurt to come check up on you guys.”
“We’ve definitely reduced in size,” Eric smiles before taking a sip of his own drink. “I don’t think I’ve spoken to Lauren once since she ran off to NYC.”
Angela nods and adds, “I’ve heard from Jessica a few times, mostly social media updates, but she checks in from time to time with a phone call.”
“How are you liking life in Seattle?” Eric asks Tyler.
“Haha, I mostly stay away from the city but it’s fun to check out the restaurants.”
“I still can’t believe you went to culinary school,” Angela laughs and shakes her head. “When are you going to cook for us?”
Tyler smiles a bit shyly. “You’ll all be invited when I open my first restaurant, don't you worry.”
“Here we go! Skald!” Mike yells as he walks up with three plastic cups full to the brim with frothy beer. He pushes one toward Angela and she grabs it before he’s able to spill it all over her shirt. The second goes to Tyler who isn’t quite as successful at keeping it off his shirt.
Angela laughs as Mike downs half his cup before anyone else replies.
“Cheers,” Tyler laughs and taps his cup against Angela’s. They smile and both take a long sip.
“So, where’s the Cullen bodyguard?” Mike asks, starting to show a slight slur in his words.
Angela is about to ask what Mike means, when Eric says, “Emmett and Angela broke up near the end of last year, remember?”
Mike flails his hand in the air and shakes his head. “I know, I know, I just figured they’d be back together by now. They’re end game.”
“Right,” Eric says before taking a large gulp. “Angela is actually dating me right now.”
Mike starts laughing very loudly, drawing a few strange glances from the others around them. Unsure what to do, Eric gives Angela a weary look before shrugging.
Keep reading here: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29065440/chapters/81029656 or here: https://www.fanfiction.net/s/13806398/8/I-Like-Me-Better