I Found You, Something Told Me To Stay - (Jason Berry/Zacky Vengeance)

Chapter Thirty-Five.

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By eight o’clock, the party was in full swing.

Everyone was socialising and having a good time, which automatically put me in a good mood. For once, I didn’t care about being fussed over. I was just enjoying myself.

I had no idea where my cousins had got to while I stood by some drinks table, quietly talking to Dylan. I had a feeling that he’d been urged to come over here and start a conversation with me, but he seemed pretty content, so I chatted to him politely.

My attention, however, was distracted by the fact that Zacky was sat just across the room from me on a sofa, a drink in his hand while he typed away at his phone. I’d still not spoken to him yet, but I’d seen him around quite a few times and he’d seemed pretty deep in thought. I’d also noticed how much alcohol he’d been consuming since I got here, and it was quite a lot.

Like earlier, as if he felt my gaze on him, his eyes snapped up from his phone to look at me. I managed to look away in time, diverting my gaze to Dylan and pretending to be overly-interested in what he was saying as I nodded my head and laughed in the right places.

I was honestly kind of disappointed that I wasn’t actually drunk. I’d been drinking, but I just felt completely sober for some reason.

As I zoned back into mine and Dylan’s conversation and laughed again at what he said, I realised what I really wanted was some peace and fresh air. I was enjoying myself, but it had been non-stop since I’d got here, and a couple of minutes to myself would be great.

“I’m just going to go out and get some air.” I announced to Dylan, going up on my tiptoes and speaking right into his ear so that he could hear me over the music.

“Okay!” He loudly replied. “Want me to come with you or are you okay?”

“I’ll be okay.” I smiled back at him. “Thanks.”

He nodded and returned the smile as I pulled away and pushed past him, walking towards the patio doors. As I passed Zacky on the sofa, I felt his gaze watch me, though I refused to stare back. I just needed to go outside and compose myself.

I was surprised to see that there was actually nobody in the garden. I was expecting there to be, seeing as people had been scattered around random parts of the house, and also because it was summer. But it was completely calm and quiet out there.

Instead of staying in the main part of the garden, I turned the corner and went to the more private part round the side. It lead to the garden gate, and was just a small little hideaway bit with a bench and an old swing—I was guessing from when Charlotte was younger.

Placing my drink on the floor, I slumped down onto the bench and tipped my head back, staring up at the night sky. The air was warm and calm, so it was comfortable to just sit in and enjoy the peace.

However, a sigh soon escaped my lips when I heard the sound of footsteps nearing. I was hoping no one had seen me go outside so that I wouldn’t get followed by a load of people, but apparently, someone had.

I was pleasantly surprised when Zacky turned the corner, looking to see if anyone was round here and then continuing to walk towards me. I instantly noticed how he was stumbling and dragging his feet. Apparently, he was a lot drunker than most people here.

“Hi.” He greeted me with a drunken smile.

“Hey.” I replied with a smile of my own.

He said nothing for a moment, just standing there, before he spoke again.