An Instant Attraction

Chapter 8

I slept incredible last night. As I twist open the blinds, I can see that the sun is shining again today. This makes me happy since Kristin has made plans for a party later. In the kitchen, I gather ingredients to blend together a quick breakfast smoothie. I grab two glasses and pour one for myself and one for Kristin. Tapping lightly on her bedroom door, I hear her say, "Come on in." I find her sitting up in bed, watching TV as I hand her the pink colored drink and sit down side her.

"I had fun last night. Thanks for convincing me to go along," I smile.

"I knew you would. Plus, you actually got to meet Dex and lay your eyes on him again," she giggles.

I shrug, "Well, I have to admit he isn't too bad to look at."

"Just wait until you see him on the ice, he's a machine. You really need to follow the team on Instagram, you'll get to see all kinds of pictures of him," she says giving me a big smile.

I stand from her bed and take my smoothie back into my own room. Time to try to figure out what I'm going to wear today knowing that we're having a party. I start to look in my drawers and closet, but can't decide. I yell across the hall, "Hey Kristin, what are you planning to wear?"

Her voice comes through the door, "It's totally casual. I'm just planning to wear shorts and a t-shirt or tank. Plus, I'll probably wear my bikini so I can swim." Okay, I can manage to pull together casual.

Just as I look back into my drawers, my phone rings and I see "Mom" appear on the screen. Picking up my phone, I swipe and answer, "Hi Mom!" It's only been a couple days, but it's so nice to hear her voice. I tell her about meeting Kristin's friends last night and about the party we're having today. She fills be in on a few mundane details about what her and Dad have been doing at home. Before we say goodbye, I promise that I'll call her again in a couple days. "I love you, Mom," I say as we hang up.

I go back to focusing on my clothes as I reach in and grab my swimsuit. I wasn't sure I was going to need it when I was packing, but luckily, I made the right decision in bringing my favorite bikini. I knew Uncle Jack and Aunt Madi had the pool, but I really wasn't sure how long it would stay warm enough for swimming in Boston. The top is a deep raspberry color bralette, with a plunging v-neck and a small knotted bow in the center and the bottom is a simple black hipster cut. I slip it on and let it hug my curves. My body is blessed with curves in all the right places, a smooth hourglass shape. My skin is glowing from spending the summer in the California sun and the bikini looks so nice complimenting my tan. I pull on a pair of cut off denim shorts and a simple black tank then slip my feet into a simple pair of flip flops. I decide to leave my hair down for now. It has a slight beachy wave as it flows down hitting my mid-back.

I step out into the hallway and meet Kristin in the living room. She's dressed similarly in a pair of short black denim shorts. Her bright pink tank holds three decorative Henley style buttons accentuating her chest, and I can see her black halter straps peeking out from under her tank top. Her blonde hair is pulled into a loose braid, with a few small pieces left framing her face.

"Okay, so what do we need to get?" I ask her, figuring we need to go to the store to stock up before the party. She flashes a smile in response as she leads me down the stairs and into the garage. Waving her arms at a large refrigerator, she opens the door and I can see it's already fully stocked with a variety of drinks and ice.

"We already have everything we need. We just need to set up," she smiles. She proceeds to explain that she's been planning my welcome party for weeks. "Remember those errands I was running when they picked you up at the airport?" she asks.

Kristin and I set up a large trash barrel right next to the fridge in the garage, for the empty cans and bottles. We exit through the large garage door and walk up to the main house. Kristin unlocks the side door, as Uncle Jack and Aunt Madi have already left for the day. We make our way through to the kitchen and find that Aunt Madi has left a small note on the counter, that reads:

Kristin –

Please try to keep everyone out of the house as much as possible.

Have fun and be safe. We'll see you tomorrow.

Love, Mom & Dad

We open the slider and step out onto the patio. The section closer to the house is covered and the area closer to the pool is open to the sunshine. On the covered half there is a large, rectangular table with eight chairs surrounding it, plus extra seats scattered around along with a few small side tables. The pool has a few lounge chairs around the outside.

"So, who's coming anyway?" I ask.

"Well, the group from last night. Plus, there will be a lot of other hockey players and their girlfriends, or whoever they're 'seeing' at the moment. Overall, the group is really nice, but the hockey team tends to have a female following so sometimes there are a few random girls who will tag along or just show up uninvited," she tells me.

Kristin walks towards the small pool shed and opens a large standing cabinet situated up against the outer wall. I can see that it's fully stocked with extra towels. She unlocks the pool shed door and calls to me over her shoulder, "Mia, come help me throw these in the pool." She pulls out a few floats, which I carry over and drop into the water causing ripples to form on the surface. She pulls out a few smaller trash buckets, handing one to me.

"Can you put that one on the patio?" she asks as she takes the other one out in the yard, leaving it in a grassy area near an already set up game of cornhole. The last thing Kristin does is plug her phone into the sound system on the shaded patio area. Music begins to come through the speakers and we begin to twirl around, dancing and singing together like we used to as kids. The song ends and I decide to run quickly back up to the apartment to grab my phone and much needed sunglasses.

Stepping back outside, I slide my aviators down over my eyes and return to the backyard patio. I see that Kristin has set out a few small snacks to start, some chips and pretzels. "I have more for later, but this will be fine to start with," she says. I take a seat around the table and open Instagram on my phone, seeing that my sister has posted a bazillion new pictures in the couple days I've been gone. I find myself searching for the terrier hockey account and hitting the "follow" button. I scroll through some of the recent posts, seeing a few familiar faces along with a bunch that I don't know. In addition to the pictures of them in their hockey uniforms, I also see a few photos and videos of them dressed up in really nice clothes boarding a bus. I feel a little intimidated to meet all of them at once, especially after seeing this. I have to stop looking before I get too anxious. No sooner have I closed the app and set my phone down on the table that we both pick our heads up hearing the sound of car doors closing.

"They're here!" Kristin squeals with a small clap of her hands.