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in.”
    I’m not sure what I expected Jake’s reaction to be, but the look on his face far exceeded anything I had hoped for. Jake was one of those guys that had subtle charisma, where his expressions and body language said far more than his mouth ever did, a vast difference from Aaron’s obnoxious banter. I had his full attention and when we locked eyes, I smiled shyly at him, knowing full well I was failing at the hard-to-get game.
    “Wow girl. You clean up well,” Issy stated after whistling. “Now come over here so we can get the night started.”
    I walked over to the bar not knowing what to expect and found a spot open next to Jake. I was immediately slammed with his scent and almost closed my eyes. It was woody and inherently masculine with a slight hint of cinnamon.
    All six of us were huddled around the bar staring at five shot glasses full of a clear liquid. Personally, drinking was not really my thing. I tried it a couple of times my freshmen year and always hated how out of control I felt. In addition, anything so expensive that included a ridiculous amount of empty calories seemed like a waste. But this was my first impression with these guys, and I didn’t want to seem boring. Issy passed each one of us a shot, except for the guy with the buzzed haircut, who I assume was the designated driver for the evening.
    I felt Jake move his head closer to mine and whisper, “You look beautiful tonight,” which immediately put me at the top of cloud nine.
    Issy lifted her glass and said, “To being young and stupid.”
    Jake’s words had put me in a dream world , and I eagerly drank the shot with the rest of the group. Unfortunately, I was the only person in the group coughing and gagging on it. My throat felt like it was on fire and my eyes immediately started to water.
    “Oh my, Avery, I ha ve a lot to teach you this year,” Issy said as she got me a glass of water. I was totally embarrassed at this point and “sorry” was all I could say.
    Jake wrapped his arm around me. “No worries, I’m the ultimate caretaker, remember?” He was flirting…and I was thrilled.
    I smiled back at him, looking him directly in the eyes. “You promise?”
    The Varsity Club was in Asheville, which meant a thirty-minute drive with all of us crammed in a very small SUV.  I soon learned that the buzzed haircut guy’s name was Terry, but everyone called him T.J.  He had met Jake though their intramural basketball league. The intertwined couple consisted of Cindy and Blake. They had been dating for six months and were over the moon for each other. I guess Cindy lived in apartment 200 and had met Issy a few weeks back. 
    Jake sat in the front with T.J., which was a good thing since his mere proximity sent me into cardiac arrest. I was sitting between Issy and Cindy who were both preoccupied. Issy was madly texting on her phone to multiple friends who were going to meet us. Cindy was giggling and whispering things to Blake that I certainly did not want to hear. 
    The mix of our perfumes was becoming stifling in the closed space, and I quietly wondered why in the world I had agreed to go. My stomach was now fully growling, as I forgot to eat after my run…ok, maybe forgot wasn’t exactly true. I didn’t really want to eat, since I was wearing tight jeans and going out with Jake. I was slightly regretting that decision now. My head was already swimming a little from the shot , and I could tell by Issy’s conversations that more were coming.
    We finally got to the club and paid our cover to get in. Issy and I got red stamps on our hands that said, “Under 21” and the rest of the crew got wristbands. Almost immediately after we got in the door, Issy pulled me into the bathroom, took nail polish remover out of her purse and wiped the ink off our hands. Next thing I knew, she put a matching wristband on both of us and smiled. “Happy Birthday. You just turned twenty-one.” Before I could say a word, she pulled me out of