Tainted Love | ✓

Chapter Three

i was falling,

but you looked the other way

.・゜-: ✧ :-　　-: ✧ :-゜・．

THE ORIGINAL PLAN DIDN'T LAST LONG.

Toby was the one who ended up giving me a lift to Tyler's. I knew from the way Tyler texted me 'ok,' meant that he wasn't at all happy with the changes, but I tried my best to reassure him that it was easier for us both to arrive together than separately. It wasn't that I didn't notice the subtle, side glances Tyler would shoot at Toby when he thought I wasn't looking, but I only guessed that Tyler was the protective type and I had always felt safe when he was around me.

"You look nice," Toby complimented as soon as I hopped inside the car.

I looked down at myself before grinning, "Really? I bought this top a few weeks ago, actually. I couldn't wear it to school because of the off-shoulders, so I decided, why not tonight?"

Recognition dawned on his face after a few seconds after we slowly pulled out of my driveway, "Is this when we went shopping together and the sales assistant made that comment about it being too expensive for you?"

Immediately, I rolled my eyes at the reminder, "You didn't need to bring that up, but yeah. She was rude, I mean, do I look like I don't have twenty dollars?"

Toby glanced over at me for a brief second, before his lips curled into a mischievous smirk, "Well. . . "

I held up a threatening hand and tried my hardest to glare at him, but failed when a smile graced my face, "If you weren't driving, I would hit you."

Unbothered, Toby belted a laugh, not taking his eyes off the road, "You love me too much to hurt me."

"That's what you think," I muttered under my breath.

"You're too adorable, Omi," Toby sang, ignoring my pointed glare.

"I need to be home by ten though," I added, "Dad was kind of strict on that, but let's make it half nine for brownie points."

Toby shook his head at my comment, but couldn't hide the grin that crept up on his face, "You Ryan's are all the same, you know that? Your parent's probably won't even count that as brownie points."

Knowing he was right, but not wanting to admit, I huffed under my breath, "Whatever."

"We're here," Toby chuckled when I lowered myself in my seat, pretending to be annoyed.

At that, I poked my head out the window as we began to pull in. My eyes immediately widened at the number of people that were already here. Even from here, I could tell that the inside was going to be immensely crowded. Some were already drunk, flailing around on his front lawn, paper cups being crushed and thrown about everywhere. Music boomed out from his house, so loudly, I could almost feel it in the car.

Both Toby and I remained silent for a few moments, just examining the scene in front of us.

"Well," Toby was the first to speak, "Small party, huh?"

I held up my hands in defense, "Hey, that's what he told me. He said it was only going to be a handful of people."

"His hand must be the size of this country then," Toby unintentionally snapped, and stepped out of the car. I followed suit, immediately sticking to his side.

"Don't you even dare think of letting me get lost here," I warned as I eyed some of the strange-looking people. We hadn't even stepped inside before my ears began to ring from the sheer volume of music that pounded out. My face scrunched up when I noted all the empty beer cans and glass bottles carelessly tossed outside his door.