Chapter Five

Cook's POV

We arrive at the mysterious party on time. The place we arrive at is a huge mansion. It's honestly a little intimidating. We both get out of Shakir's Cybertruck. I can hear loud music and cheers from many people from beyond the walls.

I am still a bit skeptical about this, but Shakir is confident that the invite was merely just an innocent invitation to a fun pool party.

"Wow this place is fucking amazing..." Shakir mutters in awe, his head turning in all directions to get a full view of the surrounding area.

"Sure is," I reply half heartedly. I'm still annoyed that Shakir would think that Mack was a bad guy. I knew that Mack didn't really like Shakir after what Shakir said to him, but still. Even I wouldn't stoop that low.

I hold the invitation in my hands as we walk towards the back of the house. The back gate is where it says to enter. When we open the back gate door, flashing lights and blaring music overwhelm us. There were so many people! We slowly walk in together, when somebody who I've never seen before greets us with a smile.

"You guys came!" The mysterious person exclaims. Shakir and I look at each other in confusion. The person clears their throat, "Oh sorry about that. I'm Jannock. Jannock Swag. I'm the guy hosting this party and also the guy that gave you that invitation." He points to the piece of paper I'm holding.

"Oh. You're the stranger that invited us?" I ask, crossing my arms, "Why didn't you sign your name or anything? What? Were you just hoping we'd show up?"

"Well...yes," Jannock replies, laughing, "But I'm glad you two came! It's great to have all sorts of people at these parties y'know."

"Thanks for having us..." Shakir says.

Jannock leads us inside the backyard. All around there are fairy lights giving the area a nice atmosphere. There is a DJ booth and drink bar on the left, and a few tables with food on the right. In the middle is obviously a pool. There are many people milling around, some in large groups and some alone with their own thoughts.

"What do you wanna do first...?" Shakir asks.

I shrug, "Whatever. What looks most interesting?"

Shakir looks around thoughtfully, "Maybe...the hot tub? There's only one guy in it..."

I stare over to where Shakir is looking. There it is, nestled in the corner I didn't notice before, the hot tub. With...a blue block in it? Wait, what?

"Shakir, that's not a guy."

"What? Wait...now that you say it...what the fuck is that thing?"

Now, with the both of us curious, we cautiously walk over to the hot tub, where we see a life size, blue looking soap bar, sitting in the hot tub all alone. It looks at me with a smirk that makes me angry for some reason.

"Hey," It winks at us, and that makes me shudder in disgust. Shakir also looks a bit disturbed.

I decide to be straightforward and confront it head on, "Okay, what the heck are you?"

It looks back at me like I just insulted its whole bloodline, "Excuse me? I'm Chip, Cricket Wireless! How dare you!"

Shakir and I exchange confused glances.

"Uhm, okay," Shakir says, "I don't really use Cricket Wireless...sorry..."

The thing that's supposedly named Chip replies, "What? You don't? Then...what service provider do you use then?"

I nudge Shakir to answer, which he reluctantly does so, "Uhm...Verizon."

Chip frowns and shakes its head (if it even has one...), "Tch. Stupid Verizon users. Begone!" It shoos us away, making me roll my eyes and drag Shakir somewhere else.

We end up over at the food tables, where there's various displays of different kinds of food. It looks like Jannock got good catering for this party. A pink haired girl with cat ears comes up to us. She's kind of creeping me out with her smile but I don't say anything.

"Do you see anything you like here?" She asks, "Kawaii-chan really likes the...uh..." She hurriedly looks around, "The cupcakes!"

"The cupcakes..." I turn to where she's pointing to, pink, sparkly cupcakes. Wow. They look pretty good actually, but I don't know if I should take a random strangers' advice.

"They do look good..." Shakir murmurs.

"Thank you! Kawaii-chan made them herself!" She smiles.

"Oh! You're very talented," Shakir nods.

Shakir and I each take a cupcake and hesitantly take a bite. We both eat at the same time. These are actually pretty good, at least I think. I wonder what Shakir thinks about them.

"These...these are fucking amazing!" Shakir exclaims. Wow. He really likes them...he's kinda cute...wait, what am I even saying?! Ugh, maybe those cupcakes had something in them...

"Uh, yeah. They're good," I nod, agreeing with Shakir.

"Kawaii-chan is so happy that you like them!" She happily skips away, humming a tune to herself.

Shakir finishes his cupcake and turns towards me, "This party...has a lotta strange people here, huh?" He gives me an awkward smile.

Before I can reply, I spot a familiar face...it's Mack! Why's he at the pool party? He's talking with someone I've never seen before.

Shakir seems to see him too, and points over at Mack, "Look there. It's Hollins."

I smile, "Yeah, let's go over and say hi!"

Shakir looks unsure but follows me over to Mack anyways.

Mack sees us walking over, and waves at us. He glances towards me, and then I see his face drop a little when he sees Shakir behind me. Well...maybe this pool party will help them grow closer...?

"Hey James," He says, "And, uh, hey Shakir. You two...came together?"

"Uh, yeah," I reply, "What're you doing here?"

Mack shrugs, "Jannock invited me, but he was kinda vague about it until I came."

"That happened to us too!" I exclaim.

Mack raises an eyebrow, "Wait...the both of you received an invitation? Together?"

Shakir and I look at each other, and then look back at Mack, both of us nodding in unison, "Yeah."

For some reason, Mack looks annoyed, but maybe he's just tired. I notice the guy he was talking to, standing there awkwardly.

"Oh, sorry about that," I say, "You must've been talking and I-"

The guy shakes his head and laughs, "No it's okay. I'm used to this. My gay uncle cuts me off all the time."

"Uh...who is this?" Shakir asks.

Mack rolls his eyes, "That's Jase Headman. We just met a while ago. He and I have a lot in common actually."

"Really?" I curiously ask, "How so?"

"Well, he understands the greatness of being barefoot!" Mack announces.

Shakir looks disgusted, and I just laugh. Mack is so funny. I am about to say something else, but I am cut off by a scream from a woman nearby. Shakir and I turn to look at where the screaming is coming from, the pool. I see a guy pushing people into the pool. What the?!

"The fuck??" Shakir asks out loud.

"That's Alberto Reuben," I hear Jase say, "He's a crazy guy who always tries to get into Jannock's pool parties."

"He's managed to sneak in again, huh?" Mack points out.

Jase nods, "Yeah. There's no way Jannock would ever invite him. He hates gay people! Unlike me, of course, I'm an ally."

The guy named Alberto looks crazy. He's screaming, and I watch as he pushes another woman beside him into the pool. What the...??? Did he just push a lesbian couple into the pool? No wonder no one liked this guy...

"Let's not go over there," I grab Shakir's wrist impulsively, and drag him along away from the pool. I feel as though Mack is watching us, but I don't care.

"Okay, Alberto, we're kicking you out," I hear an unfamiliar voice say.

Shakir and I see a man with pink skin sitting on the lifeguard chair. He gets up and walks over to Alberto, pushing past him and jumping into the pool to save the lesbian couple. After he's done, he turns his body to look at Alberto again.

"If you don't leave right now, I'm calling the police," The lifeguard warns.

Alberto clicks his tongue and starts to leave. He's probably been kicked out before. I'm not surprised. "Whatever. You pink freak, you haven't seen the last of me!" Alberto yells, stomping out of the pool party venue.

"Wow, that guy is...something else," I hear Shakir say, "The lifeguard I mean."

The guy with pink skin? What was Shakir even talking about?

"I guess so," I scoff, "But he looks like a freak."

"You're just quoting what that fucking Alberto guy said..."

Was he trying to challenge me again? How entitled was he? Whatever...I see that pink guy walking over to us. What the heck????

"Hey, I saw you two checkin' me out," He says, "What gives?"

I see Shakir's face turn a bit red, "We weren't..." Was he embarrassed? Or was he seriously interested in the lifeguard???? What the frickity frack bro.

"Dude, just get out of here," I groan. Even though he's the lifeguard here, I didn't care. He was really making me an angry alpha right now.

"You, you're Khalil Shakir, ain't you?" The lifeguard asks, "You're pretty cool. My name's Brad, but some guys call me 𝓯𝓻𝓮𝓪𝓴𝔂 Brad. Wanna go out sometime?"

Now Shakir looks a bit uncomfortable. I feel my body heat up. What was happening? Why was I feeling this way? Why did I care if some other guy was hitting on Shakir...it's not like I like him or anything....

"Uh...sorry, but I really don't want to go out with you..." Shakir replies.

"Seriously? But I'm so hot. Look at these abs," The guy named Brad flexes his muscles and arms, and shows off his abs in the process. He IS jacked but...then he tries to touch Shakir. That's it.

"Hey, man, he said no," I impulsively push myself in between them before Brad can touch Shakir, now staring him down at eye level.

Brad doesn't take this lightly, and scowls at me, "Who even are you? I don't care what you have to say, I want to hear from him."

"You did hear from him, and he said no," I growl, "Now leave us alone. Don't you have a job to be doing?"

Brad squares up, "Are those fighting words?"

If this guy wants to fight, I'll gladly fight him. "Sure, why not?"

Shakir looks nervous now, and tries to stop me, "Cook, it's okay! Really! Don't let this fuckass pink guy get to you...."

I don't listen. Instead, I go in for the first hit. My fist lands in the middle of Brad's gigantic forehead. He quickly reacts back, and punches me in the stomach. I gasp for air, but that's not enough to defeat the alpha that is me. I proceed to kick him in the face, and then I land another punch to his abs, which are probably fake now that I'm thinking about it.

The whole fight is a blur, just constant kicking and punching, and distressed screams from the other people at the party. I think I hear Jannock yell to call the police. I was confident that I'd win, that I'd protect Shakir and make it out unscathed, but now I'm unsure. I'm taking most of the hits now...things aren't looking good. I can taste blood in my mouth now....

I see a glimpse of Shakir's horrified face. Did I make a mistake? But before I can answer that, everything goes black.

________________________________________

Shakir's POV

I look down at what I'm seeing in disbelief. I watch my hands shake as I kneel down to touch Cook's face. After that pink freak started to hit on me, Cook got angry. He lashed out, and the two of them started to fight. The pink freak made it out rather safely, and was now being detained by all the rest of the party goers. Cook, however, wasn't so lucky.

The sound of his scattered wheezing blocks out every other sound around me. I turn to look at Hollins, who I assume is on the phone with the police. He nods, and then stares at me with disappointment. A lump forms in my throat.

"The police are on their way," Hollins informs. He gives a solemn glance over at Cook, "This...this didn't have to happen."

I stare at him with watery eyes, "What...what the hell do you mean?"

He clears his throat and turns away, "This shouldn't have happened. If only you did something...called me over even. I could have prevented this. You could have prevented this."

I bit my lower lip in frustration. Was what Hollins was saying...true? I didn't want to believe it, believe him, but deep down, maybe he was right, annoyingly enough. I want to feel mad at him, angry with him, but I can't even bring myself to. I can't even say anything back. I'm so fucking pathetic.

I knew Cook had anger issues. I knew he had a short temper. I could have done something. Anything. Why didn't I? I'm a football player for god fucking sakes!

Filled with regrets I stood up, looking down at Cook, bruised and unmoving, all because of me. I clench my fists and wait for the police to arrive.

Eventually, the police show up. Two officers, a woman and a man, get out of the first car.  Alongside them is an ambulance, with paramedics ready at the hand.

The woman looks totally out of it. Her hair is a mess, and her eyes have dark bags underneath. Her clothes looked like they were slapped onto her last minute. On the other hand, the man looks much more professional and put together, though he looks sort of bored. I wonder if they're even qualified for the job.

"Uh, is this the place?" The man asks, his head turning in all sorts of directions, before locking onto me, "You're...Khalil Shakir...right?"

Even though I am a famous football player, this still caught me off guard, "Uh, yes. That's me, sir."

He just nods in response. My eyes look over at the man's badge that reads, Draco. Strange name, but I wasn't going to question it. Not after all that happened tonight. I wistfully watch as the paramedics clear the area, and take Cook into the ambulance on a stretcher.

Draco seems to be watching alongside me, "And that's...James Cook."

"Yes, that's Cook."

Draco then sighs, and pulls a pen and pad of paper out from his pants pocket, "Alright...what happened here exactly?"

For a second Hollins's eyes meet mine, and I'm quickly pulled out from my trance after seeing that Brad guy punch the officer that arrived alongside the man.

"Is...is she okay?" I ask worriedly.

Draco shrugs, "Yeah. She'll be fine."

I doubt it, but I don't object any further, "Uh, anyways, as you can see...that guy over there with the pink skin is...a bit violent."

He doesn't say anything, and silently jots it down on the paper.

I continue, "Well...that same guy was harassing me. So...Cook stepped in to help me, and they got into a huge fight..."

"I see..."

Our conversation is cut off by more screaming and yelling.

"YOU'LL NEVER DETAIN ME! NEVER!!!" Brad is still resisting the police...not surprising.

"Ugh..." The woman looks defeated, "Draco...are you done yet?"

In response, Draco clicks his tongue, "No. Why?"

"This guy...sucks." The woman groans.

"I SUCK??? YOU SUCK!!!!" Brad yells again. I cover my ears, his voice is so annoying.

Draco cups his fingers over his eyebrows, "When we drove here, you said I had to question if I wasn't driving. That decision was on you, Lunar."

The woman, who I presume is named Lunar, frowns, "Well, now I'm regretting that decision."

"Whatever." Draco shakes his head and turns to focus on me again, "Sorry about that. Anyways, is there anything else you'd like to tell me?"

"Uhm..." I take a deep breath, "Can you just make sure Cook is okay...?"

Draco gives me a look that tells me he isn't impressed, "Yeah. Sure." He then walks away and starts to help Lunar, despite his objections earlier.

In the corner of my eye, I see Hollins sending Cook off in the ambulance. My eyes follow the vehicle as it drives away, until I can't see the vibrance from the flashing lights anymore.

My chest feels tight, and I can't seem to focus on anything anymore. I see all the party goers cleaning up Jannock's pool party. I should apologize to Jannock...after all I ruined his big pool party.

"Nah, don't worry about it," Jannock says, "I hold these kinda parties all the time. There's almost always a fight bound to happen."

Still, I offer to help him clean up the rest of the mess. While we're cleaning, I overhear the two police officers talk to each other as they take their leave.

"That Shakir has...something going on with that Cook guy," I hear Draco mutter.

"You think so?" Lunar's voice sounds even more hoarse than it did before, "I mean, I guess I could see it."

Draco sounds exasperated, "Whatever. Let's get home. I'm starving."

"I wonder what Rainbow's made for us..." Lunar adds thoughtfully.

They both throw Brad into the backseat of their police car. The two of them proceed to hop into the car, and begin to drive away.

It takes a while for the party goers to file out, but eventually, I'm the only one left, alone with my thoughts. Oh James...I hope you're okay...😔