Beauty and the Brains

After the gym incident, it seemed everything changed. Where Sophia was once able to blend into the background, now she had been catapulted to the lime light. Her cheer section turned out to be a good number of very popular athletes, all of whom were impressed (and intimidated) by a girl who could beat all of them in a push up contest.

She no longer had to worry about Billy bothering her during lunch, as she would inevitably be surrounded by a bunch of jocks the entire time. Ellie didn’t mind. She actually thought one of the guys, Mark, was pretty cute, so she never complained when he started sitting next to her everyday.

Sophia wasn’t sure how to feel about her newfound semi-stardom. On one hand, it was nice to feel like part of a group now, like she belonged somewhere. On the other, she was now being opened to more scrutiny, especially from all the girls who used to sit by these guys.

Scrutiny came in many forms, like whispered comments as she passed by groups of girls on her way to class. Or sarcastic, passive aggressive “compliments” about her plain clothing. Shoulder checks as she walked the hallways. It had only been a week, but each infraction drove her closer to going insane.

A silver lining seemed to appear when Ellie came squealing to her in between classes. “Guess who got invited to a party this weekend??” She was practically jumping with joy.

“You did?” Sophia guessed.

“WE did!” Ellie grabbed her hands. “Mark’s parents are out of town and he asked if we’d be there, so of course I said hell yea!”

Sophia felt a tight smile work it’s way across her face. “That’s great, El, but you know I work this weekend!”

Ellies’s face fell almost immediately. “No.” She squeezed Sophia’s hands. “You’re not letting me go all by myself, are you? C’mon, we never do anything for ourselves, we’re constantly working, or studying, or helping our families. We’re 18, about to go to college, and neither of us have ever been to a social gathering since that birthday party when we were 12! This is our time to be just a smidge selfish!”

Sophia mulled over her words for a moment. She had a point… she never did anything for herself. Hell, she never even thought about doing something for herself.

With a sigh, Sophia replied, “But what would I even wear?”

The giddy smile returned to Ellie’s face. “THANK YOU! And don’t worry about clothes, we can raid my moms closet if we need to.” That actually was a relief to Sophia; Ellie’s mom had always had a great fashion sense.

The rest of the week seemed to fly by. Sophia had her shift at the diner covered for Saturday, calling in one of the many favors owed to her by her coworkers for all the shifts she’d covered in the past. She completed her homework and chores in near record time so she wouldn’t have any to do over the weekend. She and Ellie did raid her moms closet. Ellie’s mom was one of those people that never let anything go, so they had quite the selection to choose from. Ellie found a nice floral skirt and simple white shirt and Sophia went with a simple pink dress. Normally, she shied away from lighter colors, always opting for black for gray, but once she saw how the dress complimented her figure and showed off how toned her body had become, she was hooked. For the first time in a long time, she felt pretty.

Saturday came, and Sophia found herself struggling with her hair. She’d braided it the night before, trying to get it to have some waves, but it didn’t turn out like she expected. Instead of beautiful beach waves, it was looking more like a bad crimp job.

By the time she was supposed to leave to meet Ellie, she’d managed to tame her hair back into a high ponytail. It felt odd for her to have her hair back, instead of the usual curtains that protected her from the world. She was far too exposed for her liking, with the cut of her dress being more on the revealing side and now her face open to the world. As a compromise, she threw on a light cardigan over her dress. It’ll just have to do, she thought.

An hour later, Sophia and Ellie walked into their first high school party. Rap music blared in the background, while groups of teenagers huddled together throughout the house, all in various stages of inebriation. The second they made it to the kitchen, drinks were shoved in both their hands, a fruity mixture with way too much vodka.

“Cheers!” Ellie tapped her cup against Sophia’s, both girls downing their drinks far too quickly. Their first mistake of the night.

 The girls walked around the party for the first few minutes, Ellie talking to some of the people she recognized from her classes, while Sophia hung back and listened in. Ellie had always been the social butterfly of the two. They sipped their second round of drinks as they made their way through the house, and Sophia couldn’t help but notice what a nice house it was. Mark’s family definitely weren’t millionaires, but she could tell they were comfortable. Comfortable enough to have nice looking furniture, comfortable enough for Mark to play several sports, the photos on the wall detailing all of them. Comfortable enough to have an actual house, not just an apartment. It was the kind of comfort Sophia wanted for her family one day.

The girls made it through the house and needed up in the small backyard, where a game of beer pong has been set up.

“Soph, let’s go next!” Ellie tugged on her arm. “It’s not a real party experience till we’ve played beer pong!”

That was their second mistake.

As Sophia was waiting her turn at the table, she could feel a pair of eyes watching her. All night, she’d been feeling like she was being watched.

Billy had clocked her the moment she walked in, wearing that infuriating dress. Initially, he’d just thought of her as a pretty face, maybe a little brainy too, but definitely not someone who would ever compete with him for anything. And he’d underestimated her.

That day in the gym meant a lot more to him than he would ever tell. He knew his only way out of the system was the military. The group home would kick him to the curb as soon as he graduated, with no way to look out for himself. He’d tried on the test, racking his brain for all the information he regularly tried to purge from it in class, and done well. He’d wanted to impress the recruiter, show how valuable he could be. And then he got upstaged by some little 5’3”, maybe 110 llbs girl. It was humiliating.

And Billy hated being humiliated.

He watched her chug the drink handed to her when she first got there. He’d watched it being poured, actually, and knew she would be feeling that amount of alcohol soon, especially if this was her first time drinking. He watched her and that friend that was always around her go through the party. He saw a look like jealousy pass through her face every time she walked into a new room, her eyes wandering over the decor, a feeling they had in common.

He followed them out to the backyard, choosing to stay in the shadows until an opportune moment appeared. He didn’t have to wait long.

When it came time for Sophia and Ellie’s turn, Sophia was ready at the table, but El had gotten caught up talking with Mark. She’d been looking for him the whole night. Ellie’s eyes pleaded with Sophia for forgiveness and the chance to keep the conversation going. Sophia gave her a small nod and a smile, then started looking around for a new partner.

“Need a hand, Brainiac?” A voice called from behind her.

“Russo.” She greeted him flatly as he made his way to the opposite side of the table. “You so eager for me to beat you again?”

He chuckled, tilting his head back to look at the night sky. “You’re very confident for someone who’s probably never even played before.”

Sophia was taken aback at his comment. “And what makes you think I’ve never played before?” She huffed, hands going to her hips.

“You’ve been watching the game like a hawk for the past 10 minutes trying to figured out the best strategies in that pretty little head of yours.” Billy smirked. “You’re so easy to read when you’re tipsy.”

“I am not tipsy!” As if on cue, she slightly lost her balance, but caught herself on the edge of the table before she could stumble.

“Oh?” Billy eyed the hand that caught her. “So this’ll be easy for you right? Probably too easy. We should up the stakes a little.”

Sophia pondered, the idea of embarrassing Billy further too tantalizing to pass up. “Name your terms, Russo.”

A wicked smile spread over his face. “Every shot your opponent makes, you can either take a shot,” he pulled a half full bottle of vodka from his jacket pocket, “or you can take off a piece of clothing.”

Sophia eyed Billy’s outfit- jeans, a t-shirt, flannel button down, and light jacket over top- compared to her dress, cardigan, and sneakers. “Do shoes count as a clothing item?” She questioned.

Billy had to hide his shock. No outright refusal or blushing from her, both reactions he would’ve expected. No, this little minx is debating the semantics of stripping. She just kept on surprising him.

“Yes,” he agreed hesitantly. “So we have a deal?”

“One more thing.” Sophia countered. “Obviously the clothing situation favors you a little more already. Lose the jacket and you’ve got a deal.”

With a teasingly slow pace, he freed himself of his jacket and let it fall to the ground. “We have a deal.”

They each picked up two of the small white balls on the table, set up the cups in the typical pyramid formation, and got set to throw.

“Three,” Billy began to count down, holding Sophia’s eyes as he lifted his hand.

“Two,” Sophia chimed in.

“One,” they chanted and threw in unison, Billy’s ball landing in the bottom right corner cup by Sophia, while Sophia’s bounced off the rim of the front cup in Billy’s formation.

“What’ll it be, brainiac? Drinks or clothes?” He offered her the bottle, daring her to drink.

She analyzed her situation as well as she could, her brain admittedly a little fuzzy around the edges from her first two drinks. The bottle wasn’t all that big, meaning they’d run out of it quickly if she drank. Plus, the more she drank, the worse she’d be at making her shots. Two shoes, two socks, maybe I can count my necklace as a clothing item, too? She calculated.

She toed off one of her white sneakers, tossing it over to Billy’s side of the table. “Take your second shot, Russo.”

He made his next shot, her left sneaker joining her right at his feet. “Don’t I get another turn if I make both mine?” He laughed.

“Only if you make the same cup.” Someone from the growing crowd leered. “House rules.”

Sophia sneered as she lined up her shot. With a deep breath, she sent her first ball flying through the air. Plop! it landed in a cup.

“Good shot,” Billy took a large swig from the bottle. Larger than Sophia had anticipated. if he keeps drinking like that, that bottle won’t last long enough for me to drink from…

“Thanks,” Sophia deadpanned as she focused on her next throw. She made it. Another cup joined the first on the side of the table. Billy took another large swig.

Billy’s next shot bounced off the rim of a cup, but he made his second. Sophia not-so-gracefully pulled off one of her socks before taking her next two shots. Both misses.

“Three more and I really get to see what you’re working under there, huh brainiac?” Billy eyed where her dress’s short hem met her legs.

An idea struck Sophia, her face unable to contain the mirth building inside of her.

“Looks like you’re too shy to do the same. What’s the matter, too scared you’ll prove the rumors true?” Sophia taunted.

“Rumors?” Billy’s voice grew cold.

“Oh, you know, just some girls around school saying Billy Russo’s a big talker,” Sophia let her eyes wander over Billy’s body, “but that’s about it.”

She was playing him like a violin, and he knew it, but now the people standing around the table had heard that and he couldn’t let it stand. Sophia could practically see the steam building inside his head, ready to blow any second.

Billy’s next two shots were right on target, Sophia’s socks and cardigan now gone. Sophia’s first ball went right in the cup she aimed for, and with a big show, Billy took off his flannel shirt.

“Go again.” He dared.

Sophia made it again. This time, Billy’s t-shirt came off.

A completely sober Sophia would’ve looked away immediately, would’ve been embarrassed and blushed as she averted her eyes. This slightly tipsy Sophia still blushed, but her eyes never moved.

He was skinny, like all the kids at the group home were, but with defined muscles that came from all the push-ups he would do in his room. His naturally broader shoulders and narrow frame made him look like a super model, added with his already gorgeous face, and even Sophia couldn’t deny he was incredibly attractive.

That was, until he opened his mouth.

“See something you like, sweetheart?” Billy cooed.

That shook her from her trance. “Just throw the ball, Russo.”

He did, and made it. There were now only 4 cups left in front of Sophia. “After you take off that little number, I’d like a re-rack of the cups please.” Billy’s smile sent chills down her spine.

“Give me the bottle.” Sophia glared. Billy slid it across the table, Sophia barely catching it before it fell to the ground. She scrunched her face and tipped the bottle back, straight alcohol flooding her mouth for the first time.

It stung her tongue, her lips, her throat as she forced herself to swallow. She wiped her mouth and slid the bottle back across the table, maybe with a little too much force, as some of the liquid sloshed out.

She arranged the cups into a zig-zag line, a “zipper” as Billy had called it. He barely missed his next shot.

“I’d like a re-rack too, please.” Sophia asked. “Another pyramid.”

The cups her aligned, and both her shots somehow went into the first cup in the formation.

“So that’s three cups out, and I get to go again?” Sophia widened her eyes, feigning innocence. “Does that mean you get to take off three things now or…?”

Billy huffed and removed his shoes and a sock. “Just go, sweetheart.”

She did, and made one more, leaving Billy standing in his jeans.

The crowd surrounding them has ebbed and flowed as the game went, with several girls eyeing a shirtless Billy and several boys checking out Sophia in her dress. Of course, Sophia noticed none of this. She was too focused on the game at hand.

Billy had four cups left to victory, and she had three pieces of clothing on. He was determined to bring that number down as quickly as possible.

“Hey, what‘s the house rules on bounce shots?” Billy asked some guy in the crowd.

“Counts as two!” The guy yelled back.

“Fantastic,” Billy mumbled as he bounced his first ball off the table. It landed right in the front cup of zipper. “There’s two for you, darling.”

Sophia took a deep breath and took two more drinks. At this point, she’d had a significant amount of alcohol and her vision had started getting a little blurry. Hold it together, you just have to make two more cups and that's it.

Billy's next shot went in the next cup, no extra bounces. He was down to his last cup.

Sophia lifted the bottle back to her lips, only to be met with drops of alcohol. Panic set it as she realized what was happening. Meanwhile, Billy was feeling the exact opposite of panic.

"Nothing left?" He was almost singing with glee. "Just gonna have to take off that dress now, I guess."

Sophia's breath caught in her throat as she accepted defeat and reached for the zipper on the back of her dress. But when her fingers brushed over the clasp of her bra, she had a brilliant idea. She unclasped the bra, pulled it out of the front of her dress, and tossed it onto the table towards Billy. A near silence fell over the crowd, an expression of shock frozen on Billy's face.

"You never said we had to take the clothes off in a specific order, Russo." Sophia leaned towards him and grinned. He barely heard her. He was too busy noticing how her nipples had started to poke through the fabric of the dress.

Sophia got set to make her next shots, while Billy remained frozen. She only had two cups left, if she could just make them both, she'd win.

The ball left her hand and almost magically dropped itself in a cup. That's when the realization hit Billy as well. If she won, he'd be naked. Shit.

He made sure to maintain eye contact as he unbuckled his jeans and let them slide down his legs. His black boxer briefs didn't leave much to the imagination of the now sizable crowd, his dick half-hard after Sophia's little performance. A little pride welled in his chest when Sophia couldn't tear her eyes away, her mouth popping open ever so slightly. When she didn't move to make her next shot, he cleared his throat, bringing her back to the present. "If you're done picturing me naked, I think you still have a shot left."

Sophia's cheeks were the exact color of her dress. "Right," she muttered, hurriedly tossing the ball. It missed by several inches. She cursed herself for getting distracted.

Billy lined up his shot, tossing the ball like it was the easiest thing in the world for him. It landed, and an evil grin covered his face. "So when I make this next one, too, how're you going to get out of that one?" He called as his second ball flew through the air. It landed in the cup with a taunting drip.

Sophia's face paled. She was surrounded by people, as the entire party had heard of the game of strip beer pong going on outside. Her heart was pounding so hard it threatened to beat straight out of her chest, her throat tightening, her breathing becoming shallow. She started to scratch at her palms, like she always did when she was nervous. "I..."

She was interrupted by a boy, Henry?, jumping in and shouting, "She gets a redemption shot though!" The look Billy gave Henry probably could've killed him on the spot, but the way Sophia looked at him was like he was an angel sent straight from heaven. Like the clouds had parted and he was being bathed in sunlight, a fucking halo on his head while he strummed a harp.

The rest of the crowd joined in, all jeering that she should get the redemption shot first. Billy took a step back from the table, motioning for Sophia to go ahead.

She had to make both her shots for the redemption to count. With a deep breath, she stilled herself and let go of the ball. Her eyes closed, her breath held, it was like time stood still for a moment. And then the crowd cheered.

Her eyes flew open to see the ball in the final cup, floating in the light amber liquid inside. She couldn't help herself, she started jumping for joy and cheering along with the spectators.

Once they'd all calmed down, she took her stance for her final shot. Billy took a step towards the table, a strategic step, because now the cup was directly in front of his crotch from Sophia's sight line. Sophia glared at him, while he smirked back. Just ignore him. Make the shot and wipe that smug look off his face.

This time, the ball sailed slightly too high, landing in Billy's waiting hand behind the cup. "I win, brainiac." He taunted, eyeing her dress.

Before she could even think, she was grabbing Billy's hand and pulling him inside the house. When she reached a room that might have been a bedroom, she pushed him inside and slammed the door.

"Woah, darling, slow down there," Billy jeered, turning to face her. "You finally giving in to your feelings for me or something?"

Sophia quelled the urge to smack him right then and there. "Only in your dreams would I have feelings for you, Russo." She spat. "No, I brought you in here because I understand the terms of our agreement, but no way was I getting naked in front of all those people."

With that, she started to undo her zipper, the straps of her dress falling down her shoulders. Billy’s eyes roamed freely as she let the fabric fall to the floor. He appreciated every second, soaking in her smooth skin and trying to engrain her body to his memory.

“Don’t forget the underwear too, sweetheart.” He eyed the white cotton panties still clinging to her body.

Once those came off, he couldn’t keep his eyes away. Every part of her called to him, begged him to be held, kissed, licked. From her small, but perky, breasts, to the small pouch on her lower stomach, to the dips in her thighs. His hands reached almost instinctively to pull her closer to him, but she caught both his hands at the wrists.

“You get to look, not touch, Russo.” She held his hands firmly away from her body. But that also meant he was pulled in closer to her. From this distance, he could see the little goosebumps crawling across her arms and chest. How her nipples were taunt, just begging for his mouth on them.

“Jesus, brainiac. You have no idea how bad I want you…”Billy breathed.

“Oh trust me, I can see just how much you want me.” Sophia’s eyes flicked downward, where Billy’s very obvious erection was mere inches from her stomach. “And like I said, only in your dreams.”

With that, she pushed him away and turned to gather her clothes. Billy was going to complain, but then he get a great view of her ass as she bent down. Oh, if only I could get my hands on her…

“Why do you deny your obvious attraction to me?” Billy sat back on whoever’s bed this room belonged to and watched as she got dressed. “I saw you staring out there. You think I’m hot.”

A heavy sigh escaped Sophia’s lips as she turned to face him, her dress still not zipped all the way. “Because there’s a huge difference between thinking someone is hot and liking who they are as a person. You, Billy Russo, are arrogant, careless, and selfish, all qualities I despise in a person. You only look our for yourself, never wondering what effects your actions might have on those around you, never caring how your words might hurt people. No matter how handsome you are, how smooth and charming, the pretty exterior cannot hide what lies below.” Sophia paused her rant to take a breath, as her speaking had gotten significantly faster and louder as she went. The last sentence came out only as a whisper. “You’re nothing but a selfish jerk wrapped in pretty packaging.”

She would’ve loved to turn and leave, but her dress wasn’t cooperating as she tried to zip it the rest of the way. She struggled in vain as the zipper remained in the middle of her back.

Suddenly, Billy’s hands replaced her own, his fingertips grazing her spine. She felt his breath on her neck as he leaned in to say, “That’s what you think.”

He zipped her up, then walked his way in front of her, staring her down with the most serious expression she’d ever seen him have.

“And if there’s anything I’ve learned in the past few weeks, it’s that I love proving you wrong, sweetheart.”

He left her in the bedroom, with her mouth open in surprise and goosebumps on her spine where his fingers had been moments before.