Stuffy.
The car feels stuffy.
The air hangs in weird places and I have to constantly shift in order to not feel uncomfortable in the betrayed silence that rickshaws and radiates between Oscar and I.
"Dang, that lake was huge!" Rue exclaims, shaking his head in excitement as we drive down the white winding path of Zach's driveway. His words drill shallow pockets of happiness into our silent feud, but he remains totally unaware of the stale air he chews on.
"Man, I wish we could live here. That would be really nice." Rue whistles as he comes to a stop in front of the huge mansion. It almost seems to glimmer in the dying light of the sun, but I suspect that's what the intended purpose was; if the window that showcased the huge and elegant chandelier was anything to go by.
"Yeah." I mumble, looking out at the sea of green that Zach called his lawn. I bite my lip, trying to pump my excitement back up. Everything that I had ever dreamed of was about to begin, I was about to take the first step in achieving my dream life.
I need to be happy.
I force a smile on my face and reach for the door.
The clicking of the lock stops me, and I turn to Rue with an irritated glare. He grins at me, the weak sun washing away his freckles.
"No goodbye kiss?"
I roll my eyes at him "Would you quit locking the doors?" I say with a sigh, flipping the locks up only to have him click it again.
"Well, you're welcome for the ride grumpy pants." Rue says, giving a short laugh.
I stick my tongue out at him causing him to flick his tongue at me in a sexual manner. I blush, staring at him in horror. I had definitely liked that. A shudder runs through me.
Rue laughs, motioning to my face. "What's up with you?"
I quickly slacken my features. "N-nothing." I lie, reaching forward to push at his face.
He easily dodges the movement catching my arm and pulling me over the armrest. I tumble into the front of the car, the front of my chest hitting the stick and my face barely missing the radio. "I can't believe you just tried to assault me Ash. Now I'm definitely not letting you leave without a thank you." Rue says patting my back.
I push up, rubbing at my aching chest. I squint at him, our eyes locking. He doesn't react to my stare and instead places his chin in his hands a lazy smile drifting onto his face. "I'm waiting." He hums.
"Don't you have a job to get to?" I ask, crossing my arms. I was definitely not going to say thank you.
"Oooh. Close, but no cigar. The password is only two words. Plus my job is to look as sexy as possible, and I'm always doing that." He bites at his bottom lip, drawing my eyes down to his mouth. "Oh, would a goodbye kiss suit you better?" He chuckles. I glare at him, flipping him off.
"Thank you, Rue." Oscar suddenly speaks up, his voice raising just above quiet. It's the first time he's said anything since we left our room and it seems to bring all the stale air back into the car.
Rue's eyes jump from me, to Oscar before they run over the long haired boy. He frowns tilting his head slightly.
"What's the matter Ozzie?" Rue asks, his usual booming voice taking on a softer tone. He reaches out, his slender fingers touching Oscar's neck and disappearing in our brother's long hair.
Oscar doesn't say anything. He turns his head to look at Ruben.
Rue's eyebrows furrow, pinching his faces in the right places and making him look even more gorgeous. I watch as he leans forward, pressing his lips against Oscar's.
"Talk to me." Rue says again his voice straining a bit, as if he was unused to being so gentle.
Oscar pulls away from Rueben, giving him a small smile. "I'm fine...I'm just nervous about this sleepover. I know Zach wasn't expecting me."
His explanation sounds unconvincing, and I can tell Rue thinks the same thing as his eyes travel over to me. He squints them, looking me over. "Now that you mention it—I'm actually quite surprised you invited Oscar." He says lowly, dragging a finger across his chin. I shrug a shoulder, my eyes flashing over to the lump of drugs in my bag.
"Ummmm...well, he's been down lately and I thought I would be a good brother." I lie, trying to sound as sincere as I can. The acting leaves a sick feeling in my stomach and makes me want to confess everything right there. I don't like feeling like a dick, and I was definitely acting like one.
"How sweet." Rue says evenly, but does nothing to indicate he actually believed I was being sweet. "By the way, why'd you change just to come over to Zach's?"
I shrug again, trying to keep my face normal as I stare at him. His eyes are still squinted and suspicion hangs heavily in his auburn curls. He stares at me a moment longer before he makes a sound in the back of his throat.
His fist suddenly balls into the front of my shirt jerking me towards him. Our faces narrowly miss hitting each other as he drops his head, craning it towards my neck. I feel his lips graze my skin, causing a ripple of nerves to shoot through me. "Why the hell do you smell like Augustus?" He asks pulling away from me and releasing me.
I shrink away from him, trying to stop my blush with anger before my face can turn red.
I punch his forearm. "Stop asking me dumb questions you creep...Augustus smells the best and I wanted to change clothes because I had food on them. Jeez. Should I also tell you about the shit I had today?" I huff.
Rue stares at me a moment before his face goes blank, he doesn't even acknowledge my punch.
I blink giving a nervous cough, hoping I hadn't somehow given myself away. My eyes once again dart to the lump in my bag.
The ringing sound of loud laughter suddenly fills the car making me jump. I turn to Rue in confusion.
He stares at me, his eyes shining as he laughs.
"Did I just hear him say that?" He asks, turning to Oscar who doesn't even give him a courtesy laugh.
"Say what?" I grumble distracted. Oscar has his hand raised to his mouth and his eyes turned upward. They seem to be watering. His eyes suddenly meet mine as he glances at me in the corner of his eye. Our eye contact only last a second before he's quickly looking away, whipping his head to look out the window.
"That you think Augustus smells the best!" Rue's voice drenched in laughter suddenly catches my attention and I turn to him. He leans towards me and ruffles my hair roughly.
I attempt to dodge his hands, but fail miserably and feel his fingers run through my hair, roughly pulling at the strands. "What?" I ask gruffly confused, trying to pull away again. I grab his wrist pulling his hands from my hair only to have him move on to pinching my cheeks. "Quit it." I growl.
"I never thought you would ever say anything nice about him. Wait until he hears this." Rue teases, abandoning me to reach for his cell phone. I roll my eyes, unlocking the door and throwing it open.
"Come on Oscar." I say, opening his door for him. There a slight pink hue to his eyes, and I watch as he rubs his sleeves across them before slipping out, not even glancing at me as he does so. I turn, watching as he walks up the porch steps and stops at the huge oak doors.
"Guess what big bro, my ship has sailed. Asher Finch thinks you smell really nice. In fact he thinks you smell way better than anyone else in the house." Rue talks into his phone his eyes on me. His voice had taken on a stereotypical 'gossip girl' tone.
I don't bother getting mad at him as I watch him chuckle at something Augustus must have said. "Fuck you." I grumble not quite sure if he even heard me. I close his door and turn around.
"You'll have to wait until you get home for that." Rue calls back before I hear the squealing of his tires speeding down the path. I shake my head, making my way up the porch.
I come to a stop, standing to the left of Oscar.
"Ozzie?" I whisper, waiting for him to acknowledge me. He doesn't and I let out a sigh. My fingers twitch at my sides, wanting to push his hair behind his ear so I could at least see the side of his face.
I turn away from him, stepping up to the door and knocking harshly on it. The wood soaks up my knocks and leaves my knuckles stinging. I shove my hands in my pockets, allowing the wind to tousle my hair.
The faint sound of running feet are muffled, but still drift through the thick door, before the beautiful wood is being pulled open. "Hey Ash, look what I got." Zach has a large grin on his face as his grey eyes flicker with excitement. His hand suddenly shoots out in front of my face, his fingers wrapped around a box of condoms. "I don't know your size, but—oh shit. Umm...hey Oscar." Zach nearly falls over as his eyes drift over my shoulder. He sputters a couple of times, his mouth opening and closing like a fish before his face turns a deep shade of red. He immediately throws the box over his shoulder.
I hear a soft laugh behind me and I turn to see Oscar with a cute smile on his face. His hazel eyes shine with amusement as they gaze at Zach.
"Hey Zach." He nods, tucking hair behind his ears. His eyes slowly turn to me and he opens his mouth as if he's about to say something, but he ends up shutting it, his eyes jumping away from me.
I frown, turning my eyes to my feet.
"I-I didn't know you were coming..." Zach trails off, drawing my eyes back to him.
I shrug, tightening my grip on my bag as I push past him and into his house. "He knows about the party." Zach blinks a couple of times before shrugging and going to retrieve the box of condoms.
I don't bother waiting in the small front room as I walk further into the house, vaguely aware of where I was going. I had been here only two times during our friendship. His parents never really encouraged Zach to invite me over, they had a thing against anyone who wasn't some posh billionaire.
"So, you said he knows. Does he know know, or just knows?" Zach asks falling into stride with me his voice light.
"He's seen the drugs." I say flatly giving him a stare. "He won't tell, don't worry."
"Okay...good." Zach says, returning my stare. I give him a light smile throwing my arm around him.
"Dude, relax. Everything is under control."
Zach nods, hesitantly returning my smile.
We come to a stop in the large living room. My eyes trace the white walls and gold stained curtains. Two large speakers sit pushed against the wall. Zach had also moved all of the furniture to a corner of the room and the large marble statues that usually sat in the room were gone.
"I like this new look." Zach grins at me, splaying his fingers out and gesturing to the now almost empty room. "Come on, I'll show you something cool." He nods towards the kitchen before walking over to it.
"Okay." I mumble, taking a moment to check on Oscar. He stands in the middle of the room, his eyes wide in awe even as he takes in the paintings and expensive looking furniture. I smile, wanting to try and make up with him again, but decide not to ruin the small peaceful moment he was having. I head into the kitchen instead.
This room is slightly smaller than the living room, with a wide large marble island in the middle and an assortment of cabinets and hanging kitchen utensils.
A few bowls of chips are out on the counter. A huge stack of beers sit in the corner, and that's where Zach stands a wide smile on his face.
"I thought I would order the pizza when people start arriving." He says, before patting the closet stack to him. "But this, I thought I would order in advance."
"Awesome!" I laugh going over to give him a high five.
"Guess what? I am now twenty five." He flashes a fake If at me. "You want one?" He asks his grey eyes shining as he stuffs the plastic card in his back pocket before cutting open one of the boxes and emerging with two cans.
"Hell yeah." I grin taking it from him. I pop it open, staring into the little hole. My heart begins to hammer as I raise it. This will be my first drink, they would so kill me if they knew what I was doing right now.
I grin.
Good.
I bring the beer to my lips, but the sudden vibrating of my phone in my pocket makes me freeze. My eyes flash around the room looking for my brothers on instinct.
None of them pop out from anywhere and I give a breath of a laugh. Of course, why would they be here? I need to calm down.
I fish my phone out of my pocket, not recognizing the number on the screen. I furrow my eyebrows and bring it to my ear.
"Hello?" I answer, superstitiously setting the can on the counter.
"Hey. Let me in." The voice on the phone says before hanging up.
I bring my phone away from my ear before staring at it.
Well that was fucking rude and creepy.
"Who was that?" Zach asks around the can on his mouth.
"Don't know. Are you expecting anyone?"
Zach shakes his head.
"Alright, I'll be right back." I head out of the kitchen passing Oscar who is so engrossed in looking at a painting of two women playing harps that he doesn't notice me brushing past him.
I eye the big door as I approach it. I pull it open steadily, not even leaving enough room for a body to fit through.
I peer through the crack my eyes catching brown ones.
Connor stands on the porch, his hands in his pockets and his curls blowing gently in the wind. He gives me a smile.
"Connor!" I yell, throwing the door open, my excitement not allowing me to think straight as I run into him. His eyes widen, but he opens his arms for me.
"You're early." I chirp looking up at him.
"Yes I am," He chuckles, running a hand down my back. "And, I see you're still working on being cool."
I laugh, rising slightly to kiss him.
The sound of someone clearing their throat makes me pull away from Connor.
"Sorry to interrupt, but it's kind of cold out here." A girl with a high ponytail and chokers says. A few other people that I hadn't noticed at all stand near her.
I feel my face redden as I pull away from Connor entirely.
Fuck they had all just seen me act like a crazy fangirl. Great fucking job Asher, please make all the cool kids think you're obsessive freak.
"I thought we could help set up." He says an amused look on his face as he studies me.
"Oh...umm yeah. Come in." I clear my throat, returning to the door and pushing it open wider to let them in.
They file in, some of them snickering as they pass me. "Uhhh just follow this hallway." I say turning to them with a smile. Someone laughs loudly, but they do as I say. Even Connor leaves.
I sigh when they are all finally out of sight. I turn back to the door, closing it before I let my head fall against it in defeat.
Man, I'm such an idiot.
"You okay there Ash?" A hand touches my shoulder making me jump. I turn to see Connor staring down at me.
He had come back.
I smile at that and lean into his lean frame.
"Yeah, I'm feeling just dandy. It's not like I just embarrassed myself in front of all of our friends. You know, only the coolest kids in school. Nah, nah I'm fine." I say giving him a fake laugh.
"No you didn't." Connor chuckles, pushing his fingers through my hair. "Those were only some of my friends."
I glare at him causing him to outright laugh. His fingers grab my chin, bringing our lips together. I wrap my arms around his waist, pulling us closer together.
"Well, I thought it was really cute." He says, dropping his head to kiss at my neck. My eyes slide shut at the feeling of his lips. I raise my hands burying my finger in his hair. He lifts his head kissing my lips again before he pulls away. "Come on."
He opens his hand for mine and I intertwine our fingers. We head down the hallway coming to a stop in the living room. The first thing I notice when we enter the room is the loud laughing. It's nothing like Rue's. This sound seems to have a menacing after taste, something just a little bit bitter hidden within. I gaze around the room, my eyes immediately landing on Oscar.
He stands with his elbows drawn in at his sides and his arms tightly crossed over his chest. His head his down, but I can hear a light sniffle coming from him.
"Well, come on, tell us then Oscar." The girl with the choker laughs, elbowing a guy next to her. Oscar shakes his head, causing someone to reach out and grab at his forearm.
I don't think as I rush over to them. "Get your fucking hands off him." I growl, roughly snatching the guy's hand away. "Fuck off all of you." I yell taking Oscar's hand and pulling him towards the kitchen.
"Awww, isn't that sweet your little brother is coming to your rescue." A voice coos, causing my jaw to tighten. I whirl around, my eyes running over the group to identify the voice. A beefy looking boy with a shaved head smirks at me. I flip him off.
"Suck a dick." I say with a smile.
The comment seems to make his friends lose it as they all start laughing. The boy immediately reddens and glances around at his friends. Someone pushes at his shoulder and he turns to me with a glare.
"You talk about dicks, but we all know how much you want Connor's" The boy say, causing Connor to cough. His friends' breakout into even more laughter and the bald guy looks around at them with a grin. I feel Oscar's fingers loosen on my hand and my face redden slightly. The group of teens grin at him before their eyes turn to me, obviously enjoying what was happening.
"Chase, quit it." Connor says, waving at them all to quiet down.
"No, no Connor, let him continue. I know he doesn't get much human interaction. I'm so happy they finally let you out of your cage."
The boy immediately jumps up, causing an even louder roar from his friends.
"Ha, nice one Ash." A girl winks at me. I resist the urge to roll my eyes at her as I pull Oscar into the kitchen.
Zach greets me with a thumbs up before he point at the phone, totally unaware of the assholes he had sitting in his living room. "Pizza." He whispers before turning back around.
I don't respond, instead I turn to Oscar. "You okay?" I ask running my hand halfway down his cheek before I realize what I'm doing. I quickly withdraw it causing us both of us to stare off awkwardly.
"Yeah." Oscar finally coughs. I turn my eyes back to him, he chews on his bottom lip. "But, this is what I was afraid of—."
"Hey, are you guys alright?" Connor asks cutting Oscar off. His face is full of concern as he enters the kitchen. I give him a shrug, crossing my arms over my chest defensively.
Connor raises his hand in mock surrender and stops in front of me. "I'm sorry my friends can be dick sometimes." His dark eyes move from me to Oscar and he gives my older brother a soft smile.
"Yeah, no kidding." I scoff, drawing his eyes back. I stare at him, a breath of embarrassed air escaping my lips as I shake my head. "Why did you tell them about...you know?" I step closer to Connor trying to keep my voice low enough so that Oscar wouldn't hear.
"Ummm..." Connor says unsteadily his eyes back on Oscar. I turn to my brother to see him staring at Connor. I push at Connor's shoulders and his eyes flicker back to me. I raise an eyebrow at him waiting for his explanation. "Oh, um, I actually only told Maria. She's usually pretty good at keeping a secret." He gives me an apologetic look. "I'm sorry, so much for being a help." Connor gives a huff of a laugh.
I stare up into his face, debating on whether I should trust him or not. My eyes trace his full lips and high cheeks. I let out a breath of hair, running a hand through my hair. I actually really do like him, even if his friends are jerks.
"Alright." I say, giving him a smile. I turn back to Oscar.
"Oscar, just stay away from them for the night," I say, touching a shoulder to his arm. He doesn't respond, but keeps a steady stare on Connor. My brows furrow as I try to figure out the aggressive behavior. "He's not that bad Oscar." I tell him causing my brother to look at me with wide eyes. He gives me a long stare before turning and walking further into the kitchen. I sigh, rubbing the back of my neck.
Jeez, he has an attitude.
"Ash, if it's really that big we don't need to fuck." Connor says placing his hands on my shoulder. His brown eyes stare down at me and I want to lean up and kiss him.
"No, no." I blurt out. "Umm...I want...I want to fuck." I stutter, causing him to chuckle.
"Good so do I."