"i can't stand it here" pip complains to me.
pip facetimed me 15 times this morning until i eventually woke up, which she's pretty fucking bold for. she knows i'm not a morning person.
but i was supposed to wake up early today anyways, so i can't really say anything.
"pip, you're on vacation" i mumble with my eyes barely open. "aren't you supposed to be having fun?"
"whatever, i'll be there soon" pip groans, "i'm trying to talk to aria."
i think i now know why she can't stand it there.
pip has 4 siblings and she's the oldest. it's definitely because of her family.
"oh shit, sorry. i was calling to say happy birthday. am i the first one?"
i chuckle and roll onto my stomach. "thank you pippers, and no, you're not."
i almost forgot about the events of last night. good thing i was reminded the second i woke up.
"fuck! was it juliet?"
"asher."
pip angles her camera to face the ceiling, then brings it back to her face. "what do you mean asher said it first? you just woke up and you said you were going to bed early last night."
yeah. about that.
how do i even begin to explain.
what am i supposed to say? 'he said it at 12am right before we almost kissed'? 'he whispered it to me an inch away from my face'?
"we were up late from decorating the house."
pip quirks an eyebrow. "how late?"
"he said it at 12am" i admit.
technically i'm not lying. there's just more to the story. a story that should be told in person.
"you're telling me all of it when i get back" she huffs.
how the fuck did she know it wasn't the whole-
nevermind.
"deal. i should probably get up to get everything ready for tonight now" i say with a yawn.
pip nods, "have fun, call me if you hook up with anyone."
"fine, byeee pip" i smile before ending the call.
it's finally time.
maybe five more minutes though.
***
"drink bar?" i announce.
"check" jack responds.
"balloons?"
"we did them yesterday. check."
we did. i think this is driving me insane.
"party playlist?"
"check."
i sigh and slide my phone back into my pocket. "i think that's the end of the list. only thing missing is our outfits, so go get ready before the guests get here."
i kept my outfit hidden from juliet since i bought it. i think it'll be a nice surprise.
once i get into my room, i get my party outfit out of my closet and lock my door before getting changed.
im honestly not sure what juliet is wearing either, since she changed her outfit a million times. and i had to sit through all of them to give my opinions.
anything can be entertaining with jules, though.
hottest bitch at the party. just like i promised.
and for my hair, i decide to keep it simple, but still upbeat.
i've had these hair clips for awhile and never used them, so i think tonight i'll finally put them to use.
once i'm all ready, i walk out of my room and can already hear a bunch of people downstairs. guess i took a little longer than i expected.
before i'm completely down the stairs, i spot asher and jack waiting for me at the bottom.
"bunch of people are here already" asher informs, "you look really good though, miss birthday girl."
jack smiles awkwardly. "you look like you're going to a club." the look on his face is telling me he's being protective again, but he doesn't want to offend me. obviously only because it's my birthday.
"okay? it's a big party, same thing" i respond, slightly annoyed.
"you look like you work at the club in question" he chuckles. "but anyways, i'll be over at the bar" jack finishes before leaving.
i descend to the last stair and sigh. "i know he means well, but it's really fucking annoying when he has an opinion on how i'm dressed. i can take care of myself" i complain to asher.
he smirks, "you wanna know the difference between your big bro and i?"
i shrug, eyeing him.
asher dips down to my head level, slightly lowering his voice. "i can fight."
"your point?" i ask, my voice lingering with sarcasm.
"my point" he chuckles, "is that you can wear whatever you like."
"i'll keep that in mind" i smile slyly before walking around him, his eyes not leaving me.
luckily enough, i was still able to get at least a little piece of pip tonight.
"amelie! you look beautiful!" i cheer as her and evelyn walk up to me. "and you too, ev!"
"oh, stop it" amelie swoons, "happy birthday, love!"
i smile brightly and walk the two further into the house. "thank you guys!"
on my way to the kitchen, i say hi to everyone i pass and eventually get a drink that i've been craving all night. i take a jello shot first, then grab a twisted tea.
jack did good with the alcohol selection.
as i look around the room to try to spot someone to talk to, a guy approaches me.
"hey, happy birthday!" he smiles. "i know you don't know me because i'm just a plus one, but could i ask you a question?"
i raise an eyebrow and nod. "sure, what is it?"
the guy takes a deep breath and looks behind his shoulder. "you know that blonde girl, right? juliet?"
juliet.
juliet! finally!
"yeah, i was just on my way to see her. what's up?"
"um..." he starts, scratching the back of his neck, "could you put in a good word for me? she's in one of my classes and she always caught my eye. my name is marco."
does this dude really expect someone like juliet to be single? aw, that's cute. i almost feel bad.
"definitely, i'll go talk to her now" i smile, making my way to juliet.
"aria!" she squeals as she pulls me into a hug. "happy birthday, my love!"
i squeeze her tight before letting go. "thank you, baby! are you having fun?"
she nods with a bright grin. "definitely! have you seen jack?"
that probably explains why that marco guy thought she was single... she hasn't been around jack. better find him, because i'm not being responsible for marco's heartbreak.
"i haven't, wanna come find him?"
she nods and takes my hand, pulling me through the crowd with her.
everyone seems to be having a lot of fun already. people are jumping around dancing, having drinks with each other, and overall vibing. all thanks to the party planner, myself.
we approach the beer pong table once we spot jack and asher playing against each other with levi and one of jack's friends.
"jack!" juliet yells over the music.
he turns to her like a deer in headlights, then smiles. she skips over to him and he pulls her in by her lower back. "hey hot stuff" he chuckles, to which juliet rolls her eyes. "you wanna play after this? it's almost over."
juliet looks around the six of us and nods reluctantly. "as long as aria plays, too."
all eyes go to me, so i walk over to asher and levi. "i can play a game quick" i smile.
"mind if she takes your place after this?" asher asks levi.
he smirks and chuckles. "of course, it's for a good cause" he says with a wink.
the fuck is he talking about?
honestly, i take beer pong very seriously. doesn't matter who i'm facing, i'll never go easy on anyone. winning pong is almost like my party trick.
asher's party trick is shotgunning the fastest, and it always has been.
jack's 'party trick' is literally just being the life of the party. everyone loves jack, and i don't blame them. who could hate a golden retriever boy who gets along with everyone?
okay, i lied about the party trick part. his actual party trick is his not-so-hidden talent of being able to catch anything in his mouth.
"aaaand that's another win for me" jack boasts.
"whatever, just rerack. i have aria this round, so you're finished" asher smirks back, setting his cups back in place.
"the cup pong talent runs in the family" i say confidentially, flipping my hair out of my way behind both my shoulders. "with me on your team, you might actually be able to beat him for once, big man."
jack tosses his first ball, landing it in the very back corner cup. "we'd be on the same team, but that would be unfair to anyone who's trying to have fun playing."
juliet shoots her ball next, scoring the center cup.
"nice, jules!" i cheer.
asher nudges my shoulder and squints his eyes at me. "you're rooting for the wrong team, chica" he says before taking his turn, and somehow missing.
i stifle back a laugh and toss mine, taking the very front cup. "juliet is always an exception for me."
the game continues back and forth, the score staying close the entire time.
eventually, it's down to three cups. one on our side, two on jack's.
"all you, babe" jack smiles to juliet. "make me proud."
at this point, a crowd has formed around us and the tension is through the roof.
she nods in concentration, tosses her ball, and-
"WOOOO!" everyone screams as the ball lands perfectly in the last cup. i hear some people around us groaning about losing their bet on who wins, but i still have one more chance.
"calm down, it's not over yet" i announce loudly, dipping my ball in a cup a couple times. "we get redemption."
asher looks at me wearily, then we nod to each other confidently.
"no pressure" i say quietly to him with a chuckle.
and he scores.
"fuck you" jack deadpans sarcastically.
i smile smugly as everyone goes silent, my heart beating out of my chest. i've only missed two throws so far, this isn't going to be a third. i won't let it happen.
asher places a hand on my upper back and waits in anticipation.
three... two... one...
and the crowd goes wild.
arms shoot into the air, money gets passed back to those who thought they won their bets before, and i think i saw a middle finger thrown at jack.
"atta girl!" asher cheers with a huge grin, pulling my against his side for a few seconds longer than he needed to. our eyes also locked for a few seconds longer than needed as well, his orbs shimmering.
a/n: just thought i'd mention that i've been sitting here on writers block bc wtf do u do at a party and then i was like nvm this isn't a real party this is wattpad
after another hour of talking to everyone and getting more rounds of drinks, jack summons everyone to the kitchen and sits me down in a seat that was decorated with glitter and party wrappers.
amelie pops up just a couple feet away from me and waves my attention, pointing to her phone.
she's on facetime with pip.
my hands fly to my face as my whole body lights up, and i never knew i could be this happy to see someone just over the phone.
asher comes into view with a small cake and the lights go out.
~happy birthday to youu~
there's a million phones recording me and i'm just sitting here grinning like a child, watching asher approach with the cake.
~happy birthday to youu!~
asher kneels onto one knee in front of me, the candles lightening his smile.
~happy birthday, dear aria~
asher smirks and holds the cake up a little higher,
~happy birthday to you!~
everyone cheers as i blow out the two candles, and that's the last thing i know before asher quickly pulls them out and smashes the cake into my face.
i should have expected that.
i gasp and chuckle breathily, wiping the icing out of my eyes.
"dick" i say quietly, smiling.
asher laughs and stands up, planting a kiss on the side of my head. "happy birthday, chica" he smiles, ruffling my hair.
an arm wraps around my chest from behind me, and juliet dips her head down to wipe some icing off my cheek and leaves a fat wet kiss. "don't worry, that wasn't the real cake."
i laugh and swipe my finger through the icing on the other side of my face before licking it off. "that's a shame, it's pretty tasty."
"you look stupid" i hear pip's voice as amelie walks up with her phone.
"thanks, pip, miss you too" i say, rolling my eyes playfully and flattening my hair back down.
jack places a huge tower of cup cakes on the table and allows everyone to help themselves.
i watch everyone get their cupcakes and go back to socializing with each other. at this point, i'm drunk enough to be that wasted white bitch that dances on an elevated surface. so that's exactly what i'm deciding to do now.
"hey, c'mere jules" i say over the music that started back up, taking juliet's wrist.
she looks me up and down and tilts her head to the side. "are we dancing?"
"correct, right up on this table" i smirk, approaching my table of choice. "ladies first."
juliet grins and hoists herself up on to the table and holds her hand out to help me up.
can you tell this isn't the first time we've done this?
i pull out my phone to play spoil my night by post malone on the speaker as i notice eyes moving to us.
the two of us smile at each other and begin dancing, throwing our arms around and swaying.
fuck these heels hurt. i'm gonna fall if i keep this up. damnit.
i take juliet's hand to twirl her and we keep jumping around. thankfully, i spot asher in the crowd of people dancing around the table watching us.
he looks just as fucked up as i am.
his eyes meet mine as i'm waving for his attention, then i motion my hand for him to get over here. asher shrugs and quickly walks up to the table.
i start sliding out of my heels and hold them out to him. "can you put these in my room? they're killing me."
"really" he says emotionlessly.
i furrow my eyebrows. "you want me to fall off this table?"
he sighs heavily and holds his hand out for me to give him the heels. "you'll probably end up falling anyway" he says to himself as he turns around and goes to the stairs.
juliet takes my hands again and we continue jumping around until the song is over. a couple guests take my forearms to help me down, and i thank them before they do the same for juliet.
"you seen ash?" jack asks as he pops up out of no where.
i nod, "he just went upstairs to put my shoes away, but he should be back any second. you want me to get him?"
"if you don't mind" he grins before walking away to whatever he was just doing that he apparently needs asher for.
"you can go hang with jack while i grab asher" i tell juliet. she smiles and nods before walking out in jack's direction.
once i get upstairs, i open my bedroom door and... i don't see anyone. i inspect my shoe rack and closet, but the heels aren't in here either.
maybe his room..?
i make my way down the hallway and knock on asher's door before opening it and walking in.
"sorry, i was just about to be back down. had to tell a couple people my room is off limits tonight" he informs.
i shut the door slowly and walk further into the room to look at him, confused.
"are you putting my shoes in your room?"
"yeah, i just didn't want to go in your room so no one would get any ideas."
what fucking ideas?
oops. i said that out loud.
"there's multiple reasons" he chuckles. "one, i didn't want anyone thinking they were allowed to go in your room. and second, there's a lot of people here who could see me go in there and think we're hooking up."
and seeing us both walk into his room wouldn't be any more suspicious?
i sit on his bed and look up at him. "how would they know it's my room anyways?"
"your name is on your fucking door, chica."
oh. right.
that's something petty i did when we first moved in. jack and i were fighting over who gets that room, and since mom confirmed i already called it prior to getting there, i put my name on my door to remind him he didn't get the room he wanted.
i guess no one ever decided to take it down.
"true. but why are you scared of people thinking we fucked if we didn't?"
putting him on the spot. my favorite.
asher groans and walks up right in front of me. "because we aren't fucking. "
not yet we aren't.
wait. what am i thinking right now?
"not even on my birthday?" i laugh tauntingly.
he leans down and places his hands on the bed at each of my sides, caging me. "no, aria. not on your birthday, not ever."
fine, he can have it his way. i cant force him to fuck me.
but thinking about it so much does have me craving it right now. guess i'll find another way.
i'm down for anything right now, so let's play some chess.
"then i'll take my heels back to my room and find someone else to fuck" i shrug. "there's a lot of people here, you know."
his jaw ticks, and he glares dangerously into my eyes. "what's your point?"
i smirk and stare right back into his eyes. "i'm sure we both know there's at least a couple people here that would just love to bend me over. hearing their name screamed over, and over, and-"
"knock it off" he interrupts.
"but why?" i snap quickly, "it's my birthday, why wouldn't i want to get pinned down to my bed with someone's necklace dangling in my face, and letting that someone fold me like a lawn chair with my legs on their shoulders" i tease as i read his eyes. venomous. "i'd let them throw me around like a rag doll however they please, and they'd have me begging on my knees for more..."
asher bites his lip and visibly gets more frustrated. he tilts my chin up and studies me, waiting. so i smirk again.
"it really would make my birthday the best one yet. sinking my nails into someone's skin and leaving my mark with scratches all over their back, desperately gasping for air as my throat is being choked by their-"
"fuck you" asher spits before traveling his hand from my chin to my neck, squeezing, and crashing his lips to mine.
i smile against his lips and lay down, pulling him on top of me. his movement is menacing, his lips tasting even more sinister.
his grip on my throat tightens as i wrap a leg around his waist, my dress riding up to my hips. he places a knee on the bed in between my legs to get over me further.
the hand that isn't busy with my neck squeezes my thigh, and i let the quietest moan escape into his mouth.
"fuck you, too" i mumble.
asher bites down on my lip for that, causing me to gasp and grip onto his arm. his thumb sinks into my thigh, and i lock him in completely by tightening my leg around his waist.
our bodies come flush together, and i'm honestly surprised he isn't hard right now. i'm fucking soaked.
maybe that's what he meant when he said he's able to control himself.
which probably means...
"fuck" he whispers as he pulls away, panting. we stare into each other's eyes in disbelief, and neither of us have any words.
i slowly leg go of his arm and retract my hand back to myself, lazily resting it next to my head.
"there. are you gonna shut the fuck up now?" he says roughly.
checkmate.
"mhm" i smile devilishly, releasing him from my leg.
he hums contently and swipes his finger under my lip. "good. but you might wanna go fix your makeup, chica" he smirks before standing up and adjusting his shirt. "i'll see ya downstairs."
and as i sit up, i watch him walk out of his room, shutting the door behind him. i better wash off my lipstick completely before i leave...
happy birthday to me.
once i'm in my own room, i pull out my phone and immediately facetime pip, just like i said i would.
"heyy pippers" i greet.
"what?"
i purse my lips and sit down on my bed, fidgeting with my necklace. "you know how you said for me to call you if i hooked up with someone tonight?"
***
your first kiss chapter has been served. thank you for ur patience.
i had a ball writing this one
hope you had a ball reading it
to be continued xx