Liam's parents' house was spacious, two stories tall, located in a quiet residential neighborhood not far from the Dunphys' ho.
But the party wasn't inside the house.
Everything was set up in the large backyard, accessible through a side gate that led straight from the street.
Liam, while relaxed and sociable, wasn't stupid.
He knew exactly what could happen when loud music, guys his age, and illegally obtained beer mixed together.
His parents were out that night, and the last thing he wanted was ruined couches, stained carpets, soone throwing up in the hallway bathroom, or, worst-case scenario, soone using the bedrooms to explore emotional chemistry in the dark.
That's why he was clear from the start: everything would happen outside. And to reinforce the idea, he locked the front door, hid the keys, and left a sign on the glass door that read:
"No entry. If you want privacy, go ho or rent a hotel room."
The night was pleasant, not too hot or too cold. A perfect temperature to be outside.
By the ti Andrew arrived, the yard was already packed.
Students from all years at Palisades were mingling: juniors, seniors, and even a couple of kids from other schools, no one knew who had invited them.
There was a small, makeshift stand with non-alcoholic drinks officially, although... that depended on the cup you picked.
As for the bathroom situation, Liam had placed two portable toilets discreetly on the side of the yard. Not glamorous, but functional.
Andrew walked through the crowd, looking for his friends and for Pippa. He moved calmly through the crowd, scanning faces as he searched. Along the way, he got handshakes, shoulder slaps, and more than one stare.
So treated him like he'd just co back from the NFL draft.
Others simply looked at him like they couldn't believe he was actually there, in the flesh.
Andrew spotted Liam with more teammates and headed over.
When Liam saw him, a wide smile appeared on his face.
"Andrew, you ca! So, is the 'one-party-a-month' rule true?"
"More than true," Andrew replied with a smile, accepting Liam's enthusiastic handshake and a half-hug.
Then he greeted Kevin, Archie, Reggie, and the rest.
"Told you. My intel was solid," said Reggie, taking a sip from his cup.
Liam glanced at Andrew for a second and lit up, like a genius idea had just struck him. He stepped up onto a small platform and shouted for everyone to hear:
"Attention, Palisades! Give it up for our quarterback! Seven touchdowns and he still showed up to party! The MVP! The untouchable! The million-subscriber kid: Andrew!"
All heads turned to Liam, then to Andrew standing beside him. There was a brief pause.
Then the yard erupted in cheers: whistles, applause, people raising their drinks, and even a few chanting his na through laughter.
Andrew just shook his head and smiled, slightly uncomfortable but amused.
He raised a hand in a calm gesture, waving to everyone.
"What'll it be, captain?" asked Liam, heading toward the drink stand.
"Sothing non-alcoholic, please," Andrew replied, following him.
Liam gave a sly grin as he opened a blue cooler and pulled out an ice-cold soda can.
"I knew it. You're predictable, but in a good way," Liam said, handing him the soda. "I'm not drinking tonight either."
Andrew looked at him, surprised, "You're not? Seriously?"
"I got the beers thanks to my older brother, just to make it a fun party, but I'm skipping them tonight. It's not the right ti," Liam replied with a more serious tone.
Andrew nodded and said, "Alcohol every now and then doesn't kill you, but it can cost you sothing big down the line... especially if you're in the wrong place at the wrong ti."
"Exactly," Liam agreed, raising his own soda can like a toast.
"Tonight, we celebrate without losing focus," he added, and they clinked their cans together.
After that, they returned to join Reggie, Archie, Kevin, Steve, and the rest of the team, forming an impromptu circle.
Inevitably, the conversation turned to the recent ga, it was still fresh on everyone's mind.
"That second pass to Nico was a masterpiece, man. I didn't see it coming," said Kevin, clinking his can with Andrew's.
"Nah, the third one was better," Archie chid in. "The cut inside, the fake, and boom. Clean touchdown."
"And what about my 35-yard run?" Reggie cut in, feigning hurt. "Co on, at least pretend it was impressive."
"Yeah, yeah, it was solid," Liam said with a smile, waving his hand, "But Andrew's pass was insane, and not just that: Nico caught it in midair, with one hand, Reggie. One hand."
"Well, it wasn't just the offensive plays that were the best. When Liam broke through the offensive line in the second quarter and tackle the QB, that was epic too. I could see real fear in the guy's eyes when he got up," Andrew added with a smile.
Liam laughed, lowering his head, almost embarrassed by Andrew's praise, although it was a nice feeling of validation, strange since it was from soone younger than him.
The conversation flowed easily.
Until Steve, who had been quieter than usual, staring blankly at his can, broke the mood:
"Would've been nice to break the 80-point record, huh? Just eight points away..."
"Mm, true... we were close," Reggie said after a few seconds, once the laughter died down a bit.
Last year, they had won a ga 80–0, the highest-scoring ga in Palisades history.
It had been during their championship season in Division 5. A crushing victory that set a record not just for the school... but for the entire division.
Andrew ca out like a man possessed, so players had mocked his parents, and he was determined to humiliate them.
Everyone knew Steve's comnt wasn't really about the points. It was about his absence.
"Tsch, if Coach had put in, we would've broken that record. Easily. Hell... maybe we'd have even hit a hundred," Steve said with a crooked half-smile. "Can you imagine that?"
A tense silence followed. So looked down. Others pretended to look elsewhere.
Andrew took a sip of his soda, eyes fixed on Steve.
But Nico, the new kid, with less than a sester at Palisades, didn't hold back. His brow was furrowed and he spoke firmly:
"Or maybe if you had been on the field, we wouldn't have even reached seventy."
"What?" Steve blinked rapidly.
"If you're on the bench, it's for a reason. You're not playing like last year. Everyone knows it, except you," Nico shot back.
The tension in the air thickened.
Jack, the other freshman wide receiver, took a small step back, his eyes alert. A fight could be about to start.
"Who do you think you are?" Steve snapped, taking a step toward Nico with a scowl. "So transfer from a no-na school who thinks he's better than the guys who won last year's championship?"
"I don't think I'm better than anyone... but I know that right now your level sucks. And that Jack and I are better options than you," Nico replied.
Steve's eyes imdiately turned to Jack.
'Don't drag into this,' Jack thought, swallowing hard. He hadn't said a word. He just caught passes. That was his thing, not fights.
Steve took another step toward Nico, but before he could throw a punch, he looked over at his friends: Reggie, Kevin, Archie, and Andrew.
His childhood friends. His teammates since elentary school, middle school, and now high school.
He hoped they'd say sothing. Sothing to defend him.
But no one spoke.
Reggie crossed his arms.
Kevin looked down.
Archie adjusted his cap uncomfortably.
"Nico's right," Andrew said, his voice firm.
Steve looked at him like he'd just been stabbed, "What?"
Even Nico was surprised that Andrew backed him. Everyone knew how close the five of them were and that they'd known each other since childhood. The old guard as they are known even though they were fifteen years old
"Your performance dropped. Coach noticed it. I noticed it... everyone noticed it. Compare your stats from last season to the gas you've played this year: fewer receptions, fewer yards, less effort," Andrew said, taking a step forward.
"You didn't get your spot taken. You lost it."
Steve looked down slightly. The anger seed to give way to sothing deeper... maybe guilt.
But then Andrew stepped even closer.
And everyone who knew him well tensed a little, because Andrew rarely lost his composure.
And when he did... well.
"You're frustrated because Coach benched you?" Andrew said, lowering his voice, but with clear sarcasm.
Then, without warning, he grabbed Steve by the collar and lifted him like he weighed less than fifty kilos.
Steve's eyes went wide. The guy who seed aggressive just seconds ago now looked like the victim.
He tried to break free, but Andrew held him firmly, not violently, just with overwhelming authority.
"You're frustrated? I'm the one who's frustrated! Do you have any idea how many touchdowns we could've scored if you were playing like last year? You were my best partner! My star receiver! We trained together since we were kids, perfected routes, I taught you how to read defenses!"
Andrew lowered him slightly, getting closer to his face.
"Think, Steve! Think! Why did the coach bench you? Just use your damn brain for once!" Andrew snapped, letting out all the frustration he'd felt with Steve since the first ga of the season.
Everyone was silent.
Liam stood with arms crossed, equal parts proud and concerned.
Reggie had his mouth half-open and ntally made a note never to slack off like Steve, not with Andrew on the team.
Kevin watched with a strange expression. He agreed with what Andrew was saying, though maybe not entirely with how he was saying it.
And just when it looked like Andrew was about to say sothing even more intense—
"Andrew."
Andrew and the others turned their heads. There they saw Pippa arriving with Clara, Leonard, Zach and Howard.
Pippa walked toward Andrew with one eyebrow raised, arms crossed, and a barely contained smile that clearly fought not to turn into laughter. She knew how passionate her boyfriend was about football, and how angry he was at his childhood friend.
"Ahem..." Andrew cleared his throat and slowly lowered Steve, who hadn't suffered any physical harm... but had clearly been hit where it hurt the most.
He stood still, thoughtful. Not like soone humiliated, but like soone who'd just been hit with a good dose of reality.
Now calr, Andrew gave him a pat on the shoulder and began smoothing out the wrinkles in his shirt, as if feeling a little guilty for the "aggressive handling."
"We've been playing together since what... six years old?" Andrew said in a gentler tone.
"I enjoy playing with you. You're fast, reliable... when you take it seriously. I hope you co back, but you're gonna have to prove it to Coach," he added, direct but with a half-smile.
If it were up to his feelings, he'd ask Coach to keep Steve in the starting lineup. With Andrew's backing, he could make it happen.
It might be their last year playing together, his childhood crew: Reggie, Archie, Kevin... and Steve.
But he couldn't do it. He wasn't like Jason and the others. He valued rit and work ethic over personal bonds.
Steve nodded, "You're right..." he said, staring at the ground.
Then looked at everyone with a mix of sha, scratching the back of his neck, "Sorry for being late, for not taking things seriously... for being an idiot."
"That's the attitude," said Liam, giving him a pat on the shoulder.
Everyone smiled, their shoulders relaxing.
Even Nico held out a fist, and Steve bumped it without a word.
"I'm heading ho," Steve said suddenly. "If I stay, with the state I'm in, I might end up getting drunk, and that's not a good first step."
He said goodbye to each of them.
And when he got to Andrew, he said quietly, "Thanks for telling like that..."
Andrew just nodded and Steve left, calm.
"Well, that was quite a speech, quarterback," said Pippa as she approached, linking her arm with his and giving him a quick kiss.
"It was like Oprah's New Year's special, but with more yelling," comnted Leonard, holding a soda can.
"A bit aggressive though... we could hear your voice from the entrance," added Clara, with a strange smile.
"I wasn't that dramatic," said Andrew.
"You yelled, 'Think, Steve, THINK!' while lifting him off the ground like he weighed nothing. What are you, a superhero?" said Howard, unable to hold back a grin.
"Superman, but more evil," Leonard added with a smile.
"It's this drink's fault," said Andrew, raising his soda can. "Liam tricked . This has alcohol in it."
"Lies! Slander and defamation!" Liam shouted from a few feet away. "That soda is purer than a golden retriever's soul!"
Everyone laughed, and the party carried on. The mood was light again.
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