Hi guys, I'm finally here with an update. Please, if you see any errors at all just comment and let me know. I want this to be perfect and I figured if I spent any more time on this, someone might hunt me down.
–BWS❄️
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I know that it may seem really weird that I just upped and went to my mother's house right out of the blue, but I really just need to get away. I need to go back to a place where things don't have to be so complicated. Just myself, my family and Grayson. Funny enough, Grayson has always been a part of my family. Of course half of my actual family is at work, so really it's only a portion of my family.
I decided to stay the night last night, then go home in the morning. Ever since I went away for school, I never seem to talk to my mother as often. I mean, I even missed Thanksgiving thanks to NYC's snowy weather. The roads just weren't safe.
"Promise me that you will call more often," my mother makes me promise, holding me in her embrace.
I hug back, "I promise I will," I assure, not letting go of her small body. I would say that I am average height, but she is considered shorter than average.
Christmas break is coming so much sooner than I anticipated. I'll come back and see the rest of my family. Maybe if James isn't still being a dick, then he could actually meet my family, all together.
"Grayson, come on. We've got to get going," I yell, my eyes looking for him.
He rounds the corner from the kitchen. Of course. That boy really does love food. Hugging my mom, he says, "Make sure to make a lot of cookies for Christmas break and I will be sure to drop by."
My mom chuckles, "Of course, dear. It's always a pleasure to see you and Vena," she smiles at the both of us.
"Well, we really should be going," I announce, slipping on my shoes and sliding my coat over my back.
She nods, "Yes, talk to you soon, Ven. Make sure to stay warm, you two," My mother tells me as I open the door.
"Okay we will, I promise I'll call you soon," I vow to her. I really do need to call her more. Especially after this last visit. I owe that much to her.
"Bye, Sweetheart," she smiles as I shut the door.
"I really do love your mom's cookies," Grayson tells me as we walk down the sidewalk. It seems that the only reason why he agrees to go places with me is for the food.
"I know you do, Grayson," I sigh. Typical Grayson.
_
_
Grayson pulls his car into his parking spot and turns it off.
"You'll be just fine," he reassures me, looking at me.
I mean, I know that already, but that doesn't mean that I want to do this. "I know," I answer in more of a whisper.
I get out, shutting the door behind me.
He walks around the vehicle and hugs me. "Maybe we can get everyone together real soon," he tells me. I hold on to him for a moment too long.
"Vena?" he asks, "Are you okay?"
I let go of him and nod, "Yeah, I'll be fine" I reassure him.
He nods and pats me on the back, "You'll be alright."
I walk up the stairs into the large building. Once I get inside the security nods to me and I give him a tight smile. I press the button to the elevator, waiting.
I hear a ding, telling me to step inside the elevator. One more step to the death of my mental sanity.
I know that I am at my floor because the floor underneath stops moving. The door opens after I heard that same chime that I heard a minute ago. I step out onto the gray carpet.
I reach into my purse and pull out my keys, they jingle as I take them out. I hold them together, making sure I cause no noise.
I take a deep breath and unlock the door.
I push the door open quietly, stepping inside. I reach behind me and lock the door.
It is absolutely silent, besides one thing; something snapping against the counter multiple times per second.
I am certain that James is chopping something in the kitchen. The last I want to do is startle him and he chop off his fingers. I'm angry with him, but that doesn't mean I want him to hurt himself. I still love him.
I walk into the kitchen, making my footsteps audible for him. Y'know, he might think that I am an intruder and stab me. Let's hope not.
I stand beside him, watching him. The green onion that he is cutting up has perfectly symmetric to each piece. His parents have clearly taught him well.
The whole time I stand there he doesn't look up from what he is doing for even one minute.
"Where have you been?" he demanded with no emotion in his voice while continuing to chop the vegetables in front of him.
"At my parents house," I confess to him, not moving a muscle.
"Who drove you?" he pushes further.
"Grayson."
He is silent for a moment after that. Setting down the knife away from us, he turns and looks at me.
"I've told you that I am sorry once before. If I say it again, will you leave again like you did?" he asks, looking at me intensely. His eyes are still so beautiful, even when he is this serious.
I shrug, "Why don't you try it?" I question him.
He bites the inside of his cheek. "I'm sorry Vena, for thinking that you were being dishonest," he apologizes.
I nod, "Okay, that's a good place to start," I tell him, nonchalantly.
He raises an eyebrow at me, "What? No yelling?" he questions, clearly surprised my calmness.
"Nope. Not this time, James," I tell him.
He gives me a half smile, "Who talked to you about all this?" He asks, curiously.
"My mother" I reply, looking at him. I still have to call her sometime today.
He chuckles, "She really is a miracle worker," he glances at my lips.
I shrug, "I suppose" I ignore his eyes.
He suddenly grabs my hips and pulls me against him.
I look up at him and raise an eyebrow at him. "What are you doing? We still haven't talked and I'm not going to just let this slide," I question his actions.
He looks at me, whispering, "I haven't been with you for a week, I missed you a shit ton. We can talk later," he presses his lips gently on the side of my neck.
"That was not my doing and I don't want to wait," I tell him, trying to hold back from his movements.
He pulls away, shaking his head, "You're right, it is mine. That doesn't mean that I didn't miss you and yes you do," he reaches up, running his hand through my hair.
He places his hand on the back of my neck and pulls me against his lips and smiles against them.
I kiss him back, pushing all the thoughts I had to the back of my head. I wrap my arms around his neck. His hands leave my neck, going to my backside. He reaches down and lifts me up. I wrap my legs around his waist, pulling him right against me.
He smiles and walks around the corner with me on him, right on into his bedroom. He kicks the door shut with his heel and sets me down on his bed.
He takes off his shirt, exposing one of the reasons why I date this guy. Like I've said probably so many times before, he has a real nice set of defining abs. I don't know when he find the time to work out, but clearly he finds it.
He climbs onto his bed on all fours and gets on top of me, hovering above. He smiles and lean down and kisses my lips tenderly and with care. He cups my cheek with his hand, continuing to kiss me like he does, making me forget what is happening around me.
Not even noticing his hand left my face, his hands were gripping the hem of my shirt. I put my arms above my head, making it easier for him to take off.
He latches his lips to the side of my neck once he got the thin material off me. I moan as his lips move across my sensitive skin. He occasionally sucks on it, causing me to close my eyes. At this point I have no care in the world, not even the fact that he is most likely going to leave a few hickeys made me care. God, I hate those stupid marks.
His hands move down and behind me to my back. It is clear that he wanted my bra off. I chuckle and sit up and unclip it for him. I lay back down on my back to let him take off my bra.
He smiles and pulls the straps off of my shoulders. He tosses my bra somewhere behind him. He looks into my eyes, smiling. He leans back down and his lips come in contact with my neck like they did a moment earlier.
His hands roam down my shoulders, down to my arms, caressing the skin carefully. His hands then move to my chest, rolling over to my sides, his thumb running across my side boob. His finger down the grooves of my curves, then down to my hips.
His two hands meet together right above the button of my jeans. Smiling, he unbuttons and unzips them and pulls them carefully off my legs, as if-if he were to pull too hard, I would fall apart.
James looks down as he unbuttons his jeans. Leaving me in only my black underwear, I start to feel chilled and a little nervous. Just as James is pulling his jeans off his legs, I quickly get under the covers.
He tosses his pants somewhere behind him, just like did with my bra. He looks back at me and gives me a genuine smile. "Babe, are you alright?" He asks me, getting underneath the covers with me.
I nod, "Yeah, I'm good. Why?" I question his curiosity.
"You're covering up, Darling. It makes question your well-being," he moves and gets on top of me, the only thing holding him are his elbows.
"I was just cold, but I'm good now" I reassure him.
He smiles and places his lips on mine, drifting down to my jaw. His hands tangle in my hair as his moves to my collarbone.
I moan and wrap my legs around his waist, immediately feeling his hard on.
He moves back to my lips and moves his hands from my hair to the sides of my hair. He pushes his bottom half against me, grinding.
I push on his chest. I just can't wait any longer. He gives me a confused look.
I bit the inside of my cheek, nervous. Yes, I am nervous. Jesus, this is not me. "Put on a condom," I tell him, feeling my cheeks warm. My god, if I am blushing, then I've lost my mind. I mean, I tease people who blush, 'cause I don't.
He smiles, rolling off me and reaches into side drawer, "You're so cute, you and your red cheeks." Shit.
James pulls out a silver square package out and shuts the drawer. He rips it opens and puts it on pretty quickly, I must say. He must have had a lot of practice to be that quick, although I try not to think about it.
He gets back on top of me, except now he has no underwear on. It wasn't that I felt uncomfortable with James, it was just that I always felt nervous with James when we get this far.
I reach down and slide my underwear off my hips, down to my knees. I kick them the rest of the way off of my ankles. Once again, we are skin on skin. Oh, Jesus.
-
James collapses on his back after we both came. He breaths heavily as I do. I feel his eyes on me. I don't know if I'm supposed to say something or what.
"That was great," he smiles lazily at me as his shiny chest heaves. I look at the way he just laid there without a care in the world. His arm is thrown above his head while the other just sits on his chest.
I nod, "Yeah, it was," I reply, completely in a daze. When I was thinking this through on the drive home, this was the last thing I thought I would be doing. I thought James and I would still be fighting or taking, but definitely not this.
He turns onto his side and reaches to my face and puts a loose piece of brown hair behind my ear.
"I love you," he tells me.
I smile, "I love you too."
"Hey, do you want to have everyone over tonight to hang out or something?" he asks moments later.
I nod, "Yeah sure," at this point I really don't care. Although I haven't forgotten about our fight or about how we were supposed to talk. I have no idea if that will really happen or not.
He nods and look at his watch. "Well we better get dressed then," he sighs but doesn't move.
"In a minute," I tell him. He smiles and pulls me into his arms. We stayed like that for awhile, no words were said. It was a comfortable silence.
One moment later I sit up. I grab my bra, snapping it back on. I glance behind myself and see James with his eyes closed, just as I was about to look away, he opens his eyes and sees me.
He smiles, "Babe if we're going to get up then, will you pass me my underwear ?"
I grab them off the floor and toss them at him. He groans and grabs them off the foot of the bed. Well sorry if you had to move, your royal highness.
"So sweet" he mumbles.
I ignore his whiny attitude and put my underwear back on.
I stand up to find my jeans, my eyes catch them and I bend over and grab them. I suddenly feel James's hand slap my ass.
"James!" When did he get up? Just a moment he was being lazy, but as soon as he sees my butt he just jumps right up.
"What, my darling?" he asks innocently as he puts his jeans back on.
"You know what," I tell him as I find my shirt that he thrown in the corner.
"It's not my fault that you are so desirable," he smirks.
I chuckle and get dressed the rest of the way. I had finally found all my clothes. Some articles were thrown in one corner and then there were others in the other corner.
"Hey man, you want to come over and hang out?"
I turn around and see James on his phone. Well, he is clearly excited for people. I'm a little tired, but I guess I can deal with it.
"Great, bring Leah," he tells, who I presume is Grayson.
There was a pause, "Because I do," he argues into the phone.
"Alright bye," he says and hangs up.
He clicks on another contact and puts his phone back to his ear without a word.
I quietly walk over to him and wrap my arms around his waist, resting my chin on his chest as I look up at him. I can feel his abs through his shirt which brings a smile to my face.
He smiles and kisses the top of my forehead, placing his hand on my back.
"Hey man, want to come hang out?" he suddenly asks onto his phone.
"Oh, she's here?" he asks, clearly surprised.
I turn my head and put the side of my face on his chest, just like I do when we sleep.
"Yeah sure bring her. I would really like to meet the mystery girl," he chuckles into the phone.
I thought she was coming for Christmas. It's two weeks away. I guess she's coming a bit earlier than I anticipated.
"Alright, could you give Ryder a call and tell him to come too?" he asks, ending the conversation.
"Thanks, see you in a bit" he hangs up.
He turns off his phone and tosses it to the bed. He wraps both of his arms around me, holding me.
"I missed you so much. I'm such an idiot for thinking that I would actually need a break from you," he says.
I know that we have had a bit of a bumpy relationship, but I can feel that it's going to get better.
I smile, "I missed you too."
~
As I sit on the couch, waiting for our guests to arrive I hear something loud hit the counter. "James, what was that?!" I yell.
"Alcohol," he yells back. I hear him begin to shuffle around again.
"Is it okay?!" I yell. That stuff really isn't cheap, I am not made of money. Neither is my family, unlike James's family.
"Yes Vena, the alcohol is fine. I'm surprised you're worried about your now chipped countertops" he chuckles like it's a joke. It's not.
My eyes widen. I jump out of my seat and run into the kitchen. These countertops were in this apartment when I started renting it and there is no way I am financially stable enough to afford a new set.
"I'm kidding," he admits as soon as I enter the room. I guess that he's laughing about the clear panicked expression on my face. I smack his arm and he chuckles.
"I'm funny, aren't I?" he looks down at me, placing a hand on my arm, lovingly.
"No, you're not. That would cost a fortune to fix" I tell him, my anger starting to lower as he touches me.
He smiles and kisses me head. "If I ever actually broke something, you wouldn't know when it happened because I would be long gone."
There is suddenly a knock on the door. I glance at the door then back at James.
"They were your friends first," I argue before he even has the chance.
"Except for one," he argues back. I give him a look and he steps away from me.
"I'll get it," James gives in, walking to the door. He unlocks it and opens, not even nothing to look through the peephole.
I shrug and sit back down on the couch. I wait for the first whoop from one of the boys. They are all so loud.
"Oh! Someone got laid!" I hear Grant yell. Well, there is the first one.
I turn my head to the door, "How could you possibly know that?" I question Grant as pretty much as soon as he said it.
He steps inside. I notice his hand interlocked with the girl standing beside him.
She was pretty and looked smart judging, by the way, she is dressed. What on earth is she doing with Grant? I really hope he's not being a dumbass and cheating on Clair.
"You wouldn't understand, Vena. It's a guy thing" he replies. How can that he a guy thing? The only thing that could make him possible this that is if James told him or the way James looks. It's definitely not the way he looks because he looks just wonderful.
I shrug, "Sounds like a creepy thing if you ask me." It's really just not possible, even if it really is true.
"Anyways, this must be the most famous Clair" James smiles, changing the subject. I smile at him thankfully.
She nods, "Yes, that is me," she chuckles. I take this as a chance to really look at her, which confuses me so much more. Why on earth is she with Grant? I mean they are both quite attractive people, so I understand that much, but intelligence; I don't get that.
Grayson and Leah suddenly walked through the door with no knock. They walked straight passed us, right into the kitchen. Of course. They really are so much like each other. They both love food, probably more than each other.
"How nice to see you two too!" James shouts sarcastically into the kitchen. "That was Grayson and Leah. They like to eat, like all the time" he laughs. My god, James has a real sexy laugh. I know that I really don't think about it, but it's one of the many things that makes him so attractive.
"And I am Ryder, but you can call me sexy" He smirks. Once again there goes the guy who thinks he's Mr. Smooth, but he's so not.
She blushes. So Grant likes the easily embarrassed type.
"Shut up, you'll scare her away," Leah says, coming out of the kitchen with a bag of potato chips in her hand.
"No, I think she would be more scared that you would stuff her in a pot and cook her like a fucking turkey," Ryder chuckled at his own remark.
"Stop it you two" I stop the sibling fight before it got out of hand. I know quite exactly will happen based off my childhood.
Leah shrugs and sits down on the couch, Grayson following behind her. They just sat down, not caring that they were getting crumbs all other my couch.
Ryder takes off his shoes and goes to the kitchen, just the same Leah did. Except he didn't come out with food, he came out with the vodka that was sitting on the counter.
James takes the bottle from him, "I don't think so, Mister." Really we don't need anyone drunk tonight. I don't want to clean up the mess that comes along with it.
Ryder crosses his arm, "I do think so," he goes to grab the bottle, but James is taller than him.
"Why?" he whines, really trying to reach for it.
"Do you not remember last time" I remind him. God was he drunk. He should have gone to the hospital for alcohol poisoning, but he never got to that point, I guess.
Ryder glares at me. "Yes, Vena. I do, thank you very much." That's hard to believe considering how hammered he was.
Grant and Clair take off their shoes and coats and sit down beside Grayson and Leah.
"Maybe you can have a bit, but you can certainly not having the whole bottle," James tells him.
I laugh out loud at him.
He continues his glare towards me. "Oh, I can't get drunk, you little big mouth. I'll have to the pictures to prove all the dumb shit you're going to do," he threatens.
"You're just mad because you can't have what you want for once in your life" I shot back, not thinking about my words. Jesus. I haven't even known the guy for a year and I'm just assuming things.
"Enough you two!" James shouts. I could understand his anger.
"Just get him a beer and he'll be good for an hour or so" Grant enters the conversation. Ryder is kind of like baby. If you give him what he wants for awhile, he'll be good.
Ryder glares at him but follows James into the kitchen anyways. He will literally take any kind of alcohol he can get his hands on.
"So what do you have planned for tonight, Vena?" Grayson asks me, leaning into Leah. As he wraps his arm around her shoulders, she interlocks her finger with his.
I shrug, "I thought we could-"
"Truth or dare!" Ryder yells from the kitchen. Of course, he'd cut me off. He really needs to learn some goddamn manners.
I groan. The game is so boring and repetitive. Kiss this person, someone takes off their pants, Someone throws up all over my carpet. It's all very familiar. Plus, I really didn't feel like getting drunk tonight.
"I don't think so," I announce. I will not be cleaning my carpets again.
I heard a series of groans. Why are these people so fond of experiencing déjà vu? I mean doesn't anyone want to do anything new?
"Why do you got to be so boring, Vena?" Leah complains. Am I boring? Are you kidding me? We do the same damn thing every time everyone comes over.
"I'm sure I'm not the only one. Y'know I'm sure that Clair wouldn't feel very comfortable playing this game with a bunch of strangers" I reason. I'm glad that came out nicer than it was in my head.
Clair shakes her head, "No, it's totally cool with me," she smiles at me. Why can't she be shy? Why can't Grant choose that type?
I sigh.
"So you are the only one who doesn't want to play, Vena" Grant tells me like I don't already know.
James suddenly sits down next to me, putting his arm that didn't have a beer in it around my shoulders.
"Are you guys still arguing about this?" James asks.
Ryder nods, "Yes we are, but only because your girlfriend is afraid of a little petty game," he crosses his arms. I wish I could throw Ryder out of here already.
I glare at him. "I am not afraid of a game, Ryder. I just don't want to have to deal with the mess in the morning, and I'd prefer to see everyone in their pants." I look at Grayson, remembering the last game we had all together.
"Okay, how I make a deal," Grant starts.
"Go on," I tell him.
"If there is any mess at all, then we will clean it to your standards and everyone will keep their pants on. That means you Grayson" Grant explains. He looks at Grayson, remembering what happened last time.
I think about eventually nodding at his deal. "Fine." I guess it's another boring game of Truth or Dare. Oh how fantastic.
He claps his hands together. "Great. Let's get started" he smiles.
"I am not sitting on the floor" Leah announces. I nod in agreement. Let's not get too cliché here.
"Ryder gets the-" James starts but didn't finish his sentence. I look over to see why he stopped and I do see now why he did.
Ryder had already snuck into the kitchen while none of were looking and got the vodka. This kid is really desperate to get drunk. I don't see why, being sober is actually pretty okay.
"Seriously Ryder? If you keep on drinking like this, you're going to get intense alcohol poisoning and die" Leah warns him. Well, we know she's no liar. She most certainly wasn't wrong. I've seen people so drunk before that they've needed to the hospital.
He rolls his eyes. "Yeah whatever, Mom," he struggles to get the bottle opened. He's got to be a real idiot considering the fact that the bottle was a twist off.
"Anyways, I'll start," Ryder says, giving up on the bottle. How surprising. You'd think that he would never let the chance of alcohol.
He smirks at me, "Let's start with worry-wart over here." By the look on Ryder's face, I knew he wasn't going to be kind.
"Truth or Dare, Vena?"
I hate this game. It's so juvenile. But here I am. I may as well make the best of the situation, as hard as it might be.
I think for a second. What could be the worst he could do if I choose truth? I mean if I were to choose dare then he could certainly do something terrible. I mean the answer was clearly right there.
"Truth, " I reply with an expression that gave nothing away. I can't just let my expressions give away what is important: the truth.
He shakes his head as he smirks, "How boring."
"You heard my choice, just get on with it" I urge him. I don't want this to go all night long.
He puts his hands up in mock arrest. "Don't get your panties in a twist."
I give him a threatening look. It's not like I could actually hurt him.
"Fine. How many guys have you slept with?" he asks. Could have been worst. Like way worse.
I don't look at James, but out of the corner of my eye, I could see him smirking at me. I could understand. I mean he already knew the answer.
"Two," I answer a moment later.
Ryder raises his eyebrows, clearly surprised. "That's quite surprising if you ask me." Is he calling me a slut or a virgin?
"Good thing no one was asking you, Ryder," James snaps back.
He holds up his hands again, "No need to get so defensive, James."
"Anyways, it's my turn. So Leah truth or dare?" I turn to her direction. She sits up a bit and bites the inside of her cheek, deciding. When she says dare, I really wasn't expecting it. Although I do have an idea.
"Leah, I dare you to switch clothing with Grayson for the next four rounds," I smile.
Grayson groans, "That is not fair to me," he whines.
Not my problem, only my dare, and Man, is it a good one.
-
-
Leah looks Grayson down. All he is wearing is a sweatshirt and sweatpants. Leah looked to be in good territory right about now, but Grayson; that's another story.
She smiles and grabs Grayson and drags him to my room, shutting the door behind them.
I heard a bit of arguing, but it then stopped and shuffling around started. Oh, this is going to be good.
No one said anything until the door opened slightly. Leah walks out and she looks comfier than ever. As for Grayson, that was another story.
He hardly fits into her jeans, in which he probably was stretching. He has Leah's blue blouse with a white cardigan over top and I must say that Grayson looks fabulous.
I hear laughter all around me. I've never seen Grayson with skinny jeans on before, until now.
Grayson just looks super grumpy, but somehow he couldn't help but slip a smile.
He sits back down in his seat and Leah sits close to him. Grayson struggles to pull the pants down. "There is literally nowhere's my balls can go, except up," he groans.
I laugh.
He shoots me a glare. I can't help it, he looks absolutely ridiculous.
"Hey, don't look at me. All I did was dare, your girlfriend is the one who agreed to it," I defend myself.
"James, truth or dare?" Leah cuts in, making Grayson forget about arguing with me.
"Truth," he says almost immediately.
She smiles. "I was hoping you would say that. How long ago has it been since you and Vena started to mess around?" she grins, quite evilly I must say.
He looks at me, smiling. Oh, he knows that answer. I wouldn't be surprised if he had it written down somewheres or everywhere.
"I'd say about the mid-October break," he answers nonchalantly. I know he answered coolly, but I know better; he really wants to yell it in each and every one of their faces.
Leah's jaw drops, "So when you said you were going upstairs to make out with Vena, you were serious?!" she shouts, clearly surprised. Don't be so surprised, Leah. He's a very persuasive man.
He smirks, not answering her question. He and his stupid smirks, they could be his language. Really, they say so much.
She smiles, shaking her head. "I should have known you weren't joking, you little snake." She sure is right about that, but I wouldn't say entirely. I mean, I did come onto James a few times.
James clears his throat beside me, "Anyways, Ryder. Truth or dare?" He asks him, changing the subject.
He smiles, "Dare." Of course. I mean he thinks he's a little daredevil, well we'll see what he says to my dare. When the sinful thought enters my mind, I lean into James's ear and whisper it to him.
"Good one, Ven, " he smirks with me, "Ryder I dare you to let Vena cut your hair."
His eyes widen in terror as his jaw drops slightly. He just sits there looking incredibly stunned at the question.
"There is not any way in hell that I am letting her cut my masterpiece," He flatters himself. I'm offended. I think I'm a pretty decent hairdresser, I mean I'm not certified, but that whatever.
James smiles, turning his head and kissing below my ear. "Why would you want to cut his hair when you can pull mine?" he whispers to me.
My eyes widen. Jesus James. His dad is right; he is a Horndog.
"Fine Ryder, take a shot," I tell him, nodding to the small glass on the coffee table. I mutter, "Wimp" under my breath and he glares at me when he sets the small glass on the coffee table.
His mouth curls into a smile after his drink. He really does love the taste of alcohol. "Grant, my man. Truth or dare?" he challenges him.
The curve in Grant's face displays the fact that he is biting the inside of his cheek. "Truth." He clearly looks nervous, which isn't Grant. It really doesn't make any sense. I don't think I have every saw grant nervous ever, but here he is looking like he's going to pee himself.
Ryder smirks like he usually does when he has some sort of evil idea, which might I add is an absolutely terrible thing. "What is the one question you don't want us to ask you?"
Oh God. Here we go...
Grant stays silent for a moment. He opens his mouth to talk but doesn't. He picks up the bottle of liquor and pours himself a shot. He downs it and gives us a little nod, but no smile.
Dammit! What is wrong with him? Honestly, ever since Clair got here, he's been acting real weird.
"Leah, truth or dare?" he asks, with no emotion. Clair runs her hand down his back, showing a great deal of compassion towards him. She knows what's up.
"Dare," Leah answers with a smile. Always such a happy lady. I'm really not joking, I have never seen her angry or sad before.
Grants nods, thinking. "I dare you to kiss Grayson," he dares, lamely. What is up with him? A 'Drunk Ryder' could do better.
Leah shrugs and turns to Grayson and presses her lips to his, their lips moving in sync for a moment until they pull away.
"I was expecting something a little harder, Grant."
Grayson leans back in his seat, "Speak for yourself, Babe," he smirks. Wow, these boys are real perverts. First Ryder then James and now Grayson. Four months ago, Grayson would have never said something like that. I guess James's friends really take a toll on him.
Leah shakes her head, her cheeks turning a light pink, but the rest of us laughed at them. Looks like Grayson likes the shy type too.
"Anyways, my turn. Clair, truth or dare," Leah pops the question of the night.
Clair hums, deciding. "Dare." She smiles at her decision. Not a good idea, Leah will do anything and everything in her power to make you suffer from this game. I kidding, but really, watch out for her.
"I dare you to kiss Mr. Ryder over here," she nods to her brother. He, of course, smirks at Clair. He knows what's up.
"Drink Clair," Grant orders her.
I can't help but laugh. I bet you that Grant hadn't mentioned to her that he kissed me a few months ago. Were they even together then? Grant had told me that they have been together for a long time. Did he cheat on her? The last thing I want to do is get between the two of them.
"I'm serious, Clair. Drink, he's a little whore," Grant glances at Ryder who smirks.
His hands cover his heart, "I am very hurt by your rude words," he acts fake hurt. It's like you can hear the sarcasm screaming from his tone.
Grant rolls his eyes, leaning into Clair's ear. She giggles and nods, taking a drink. I was expecting her to flinch. It looks like she can take the alcohol. Whatever he said to her must've been pretty convincing.
Clair smiles after she downs the liquid. "Vena, truth or dare?" she asks me. She seemed pretty shy before she drank, but after she looks somewhat more relaxed.
I sigh out loud and shrug, "Dare." This game is beyond boring. When is Grayson going to embarrass himself again, that's always hilarious. I'm such a bad friend.
She smiles and glances at my boyfriend with a wicked smile. "Kiss him," she nods to him. There must be some sort of catch, I mean it's only James; my boyfriend, a person kiss very often.
I shrug and turn and peck James's lips, his barely touching mine for a second.
She shakes her head, "Do over. That was not a kiss," she exclaims leaning into Grant.
James nods in agreement, not saying anything. So that is the catch: Public display of affection, it wasn't something I usually did... on purpose. Mostly because couples who PDA don't consider others around them, like what if someone just got out of a relationship and showing affection in front of that person brings up ugly emotions. Seeing how the only person in this room that is single is a major player, I don't see the problem. I just don't see why a person would want to watch this.
I swiftly turn and swing my leg over James to the other side of his lap, straddling him. I cup his face in my hands and press my face to his, our lips moving together as one.
He chuckles against my lips, wrapping his hands around each side of my waist. His tongue slips in my mouth, tangling with mine.
I move my hands into his hair, running my fingers through it. After a moment or two, I remember that we have an audience. I pull away from him and look down into his icy blue eyes, trying the catch my breath. He literally takes my breath away.
"Well Vena, after that you might be pregnant," Ryder cackles. Only Ryder would say something like that.
I climb off of James, sitting back in my seat. I put my legs over his lap to cover any suspicion of the tent in his jeans.
"It's really hard to believe that you two have only been together for three months. It seems like a lot longer," Clair comments.
Realization hits me. How is it possible that I've fallen so hard for this guy in three months. It seems like such a short time, but it's feel like an eternity. Although some people say that it can only take twelve days to fall in love with someone.
"Vena," James puts his hand on my leg. He shakes him out of my thoughts. I look up and see everyone looking at me.
"It's your turn," James tells me, looking straight into my eyes. I honestly don't know why he does that. Most of the time when he is talking to me, he makes it his mission to look at my eyes every single time.
I nod, looking at the crowd, "Grayson, truth or dare?" I ask him.
He smiles, "Dare, obviously."
I take a moment to think. A truth would have been a lot easier, but this is the chance I have to embarrass him again.
James leans into my ear, "Tell him that he has to stand outside on the terrace," his lips brush against my ear as he speaks.
I smile. Those skinny jeans are going to make things terrible, not the mention the tank top. Jeans in the winter are the worst things ever. It's like you have your very own deep freeze between your leg and your jeans. Just stick a popsicle in your pants and it'll stay frozen for sure.
"Grayson I dare you to stand outside on the terrace for five minutes," I dare him.
He glares at James for giving me the idea. He stands up and cringes. I'm assuming that the pants have ridden up, way up. Grayson growls and walks to the sliding doors in the kitchen. Everyone shifts and looks at him.
Leah stands up and walks over to the doors once he is outside. She reaches and the lock clicks, holding up a hand; five minutes.
She laughs evilly. Grayson glares at her through the glass. I actually kinda feel bad for him, New York can get really cold at this time of the year. But on the bright side, it's not like he's going to be out there for hours.
Leah is going to have to give him his clothes back when he gets back inside. He's going to be so cold.
She looks down at her watch and holds up three fingers; indicating three-minute mark.
He stands there shivering. I wait another minute or so watching him. "Leah! let me in," he bangs on the glass. Please, not the glass.
She shakes her head, chuckling.
A smirk suddenly erupts on Grayson's face. "Oh Babe, if you don't let me it, I'll tell them what you like."
Leah shakes her head, not believing that he would do such thing, but I know my best friend and he would do something like that. He wouldn't pass up that kind of opportunity.
"You just love it when I suck your neck, or when I slap your ass when yo- " he cut off by Leah pulling him inside.
"Very clever, Grayson."
He smiles, "I know, now strip. I want my clothes back. I'm done with this game."
She shakes her head, "I don't think so, your clothes are really comfy," she hugs her–his sweater around her.
"Oh come on, Leah. You can borrow some of my sweats" I tell her.
She sighs, "Well fine. Grayson comes with me," she grabs his hand, leading his into the direction of my room. I heard a little bit of arguing between the two of them, but it stopped just as quickly as it started.
I glance behind me and my eyes catch Ryder. His face is emotionless. He looks almost emotionally scarred.
James notices also and gives me a confused look. "Is something wrong, Ryder?" James asks.
He nods slowly. "I did not need to know that."
I don't know what he is walking about for a moment, but then it hits me. His sister's sex life. Oh, that's funny. I burst into laughter, but Ryder glares at me.
"Listen, we'll watch a movie and order some pizza and you'll forget all about it," I promise him. The best way to end this stupid game.
He nods just as Grayson and Leah come out.
"So we're just going to order some pizza and watch a movie now, if that's alright with you guys," I tell them
Everyone agrees and gets settled in on the couch. I grab some blankets and pillows while James calls the pizza place. I go into the linen closet, grabbing a pile of blankets and pillows. No one should be complaining.
I walk back into the living room and see my friends talking among themselves.
"Who wants some blankets?" I ask. Leah nods and holds her hand out. I toss it at her, it landing on her head. I toss a pillow as well, it hitting Grayson in the same; catching him off guard.
I grab out another set to Grant and his girlfriend. I save the fuzziest blanket for Ryder, it might make him feel a little less lonely. I kind of feel bad for him, but he did choose this way of life.
I set a warm blanket in James and my spot and glance around for him.
"He's in the kitchen," Grayson tells me as he and Leah cuddle up together.
I smile at him and turn toward the kitchens. As I round the corner I see James bent over on the island on his elbows scrolling through something on his phone.
I walk in quietly, not letting him hear me. I peer over his shoulder and see that he's on the social media site that I despise out of all of them: Facebook. God, I hate that social media more than anything in my life, well maybe not everything, but I really do hate it.
I place my hand in the middle of his back. He shuts his phone off immediately and looks at me. "You aren't very good at sneaking around, Vena," he stands straight up.
"I was just wondering what you were doing" I retort. If I am so bad at sneaking around, then why didn't you turn your phone off until I let you know I was in the room?
He smiles sarcastically, "Oh sure."
I shake my head, "It doesn't matter, what are doing in here anyways, we have company," I remind him.
He shrugs, "I know, it's not like their going anywhere. Also, I was going to ask you earlier, but I distracted: are they staying overnight?" he asks me, taking a step closer to me.
"I don't know, do you want them to stay overnight?" I look up at him, "It's not only my choice," I remind him.
He takes on more step towards me and pulls me up against him, wrapping his arms above my hips. Responding to him, I fold my arms around his neck.
"I say they stay, what about you?"
I shrug, "It's fine with me."
He smiles and leans down and gently presses his soft lips against mine. He grabs my hips and lifts me up on the counter with the help and me pulling myself up there. He steps in-between my legs and places his hands on top of my thighs.
"Oh save it for the bedroom, wouldn't you?" Ryder annoying complains.
I jump down from the counters and James places his hand on the small of my back and leads me back to the living room.
~
~
Since my friends are hungry vultures, it resulted in two empty pizza boxes. I have to say that it was mostly Ryder, but that's none of my business.
I wish Ryder would stop hooking up with random girls for two reasons: one, he's going to pick up some disease if he doesn't, two he needs something steady in his life. I don't need to ask questions to know this information. His facial expressions say it all. I'm really noisy, but right now it's only in my head.
Everyone else was asleep by this time, except for Ryder and I. I glance over at him and looks at me. He gives me no expression in particular.
It's way past three and I need to up early tomorrow for another class of mine.
"I'm going to bed, the remote is on the counter is you want to change the channel," I whisper–talk from across the room to him.
He nods silently.
I whisper an "Okay" and begin to shake James awake. He's a pretty light sleeper so it didn't take much. He sits up and rubs his eyes, "What's wrong?" he questions me.
I shake my head, "Nothing, I'm just going to bed."
He nods and stands up, holding his hands out to help me up. He holds my hand, leading me into his bedroom, tiredly.
Shutting the door quietly behind himself, he strips out of his clothes leaving him in his underwear. He flops into the bed on his stomach. Well, it's clear he's pretty damn tired. He usually puts on some sort of pants.
I smile and strip out of my pants, leaving my tee shirt on. I stop moving in mid second when I hear light snoring. He's a light sleeper, but he falls asleep really easy.
I shift him over so I have a bit of room to sleep. He rolls over onto his back. I turn the light off and climb into bed beside him.
I lay flat on my back, looking up at the roof. He never usually snores, but he really is tonight. I'm never going to be able to sleep if he doesn't be quiet. This is going to be a long night.
He rolls onto me, nuzzling his face into the crook of my neck. His arm rests on my ribs. He is kind of heavy, but it's worth it because of two reasons: I'd do anything for him and his snoring stopped.
_
_
I hear a thump and a cuss word from James. At first, I ignore it, but I eventually look to see whats up. I look around for James, but he is nowhere to be seen. From the floor, he suddenly comes to view from the other side of the bed. He sits up, rubbing his head.
I laugh at him. I shouldn't have, but I couldn't help it. He just looked me with completely utter defeat.
He mocks me, "Oh yeah so funny, maybe if you weren't such a reckless sleeper, I wouldn't be down here." He climbs back into bed laying on his side, getting back under the covers. He almost covers his whole head with the comfortable.
I did not kick him off the bed, it's never happened before. I am not a reckless sleeper. Never have been, never will be.
I smile at him. I come up behind him and rest my chin in the nook of his neck. "I'm sorry, " I mumble to him.
He groans and pulls the covers closer to him. It was only a moment before he started snoring quietly. He's such a baby. Although I can't tell if he's faking it or not.
I smile down at him. He sure does fall asleep really easy. "I love you, " I kiss his temple and grab my phone and leave the room. I close the bedroom to his room quietly and check up on everyone. It's ten o'clock and everyone is still sleeping, except for Ryder. Which is pretty weird.
He's sitting at the island in the kitchen with a cup of coffee in his hand. He just sits there staring into the cup.
"Hey," I greet him as I walk into the kitchen.
He looks up at me with a half-smile, "Hi."
I pour myself a cup of coffee myself and jump up on the bar stool. "What's wrong?" I ask him. It's really clear, I mean all he's been doing since he's got here is mope around, besides say some perverted things, at least, he's doing one thing that is normal.
He shakes his head, finally looking up, "Nothing," he lies.
I give him a 'yeah-right' look. "That's not true."
He nods, "Yeah, I know," he looks at me, giving me another one of those half smiles. He holds his coffee in his hands very carefully, like if he were to hold on too tight; it would shatter.
"So then tell me what wrong," I tell him. I didn't want to push him too hard, because really, I have no idea what this guy is going through.
He really smiles and a moment later he starts talking, "James got so lucky with you." What can you really say after something like that? I mean, I don't even know what he means by it.
I tilt my head in confusion, "What are you talking about?"
"Sure you can over-reacted sometimes, but you are such a caring and loving person," he explains sadly.
"Are you lonely, Ryder?"
He looks up again with that same half smile he has been sporting for the last few minutes. He gives me a small nod, "Yeah, Vena. I really am."
His face shows so much pain and struggle. "I'm getting tired of a different girl every night. I hate the stupid cycle. Why can't I come home to a girl that I actually care about, like James or Grayson? Y'know I see the way Grayson looks at my sister. It's not an 'I'm-going-to-fuck-you-later' look. It's an I'm-in-love-with-you look. I want to look at someone like that, Vena," he pours his heart out to me. It's such a sad thing to listen to.
Listening to him makes me want to find him, someone. Someone who he can love, but it's just not who he is, or how I've found who he is. Maybe he acts like someone he's not. Although he is a pretty good actor if he can fake liking being a player.
I smile, "So what are you going to do about it?" I ask him.
He shrugs, "That's what I need to figure out and quickly."
I nod, "Well I could give you a few suggestion, if you'd like," I suggest.
He nods, "Yeah, if you have anything at all."
I nod, "Well, for starters: stop hooking up with random girls. Stop going to all those crazy parties all the time, I know you are in that house, but you have to stop going to all those parties, you don't have to stop completely, but just slow down a bit. absolutely no one night stands. Try dating. I know you're not used to that, but I think it could really help," I give out some ideas.
He nods, "I will try that. I'm just tired of being left out all the time with you guys. I'm like the," he counts on his fingers, "Now the seventh wheel, ever since Clair came."
I glance over at the sleeping couple on the couch. Grant looks so much more peaceful with Clair here. He's finally not chewing his nails.
I hear James's door open. "We'll talk about this later," I tell him calmly.
He smiles, nodding. "Okay."
James rounds the corner with a shirt on, "Guess what guys?" he asks when he sees us. He has such a sarcastic smile on his face, I don't even think that I could pull one off that well.
Ryder shrugs, "What, Man?"
James chuckles, again: sarcastically. "My head hurts a lot, what to know why?" he asks again.
Ryder nods slowly, "Okay."
"Well, my oh so wonderful girlfriend kicked me out of bed this morning and I hit head on the corner of the drawer, but for some reason I still love her," he tells the story. Well, I didn't know he hit his head.
"I said I am sorry, James" I bring my cup to my lips.
"Doesn't change the fact that I'm injured," he whines. He sits down in the chair beside me and I turn and look at him.
"Look at me," I tell him. I look at his face and all there is is a little red blotch on his forehead. "You're such a baby," I insult him.
He shakes his head, "You don't know, Vena," he tells me dramatically.
"To make sure this never happens again, maybe sure this never happens again; I should just sleep in my bed and you sleep in yours," I bring my coffee back up to my lips to take another sip.
He turns to glaring at me. That's right, that's my threat. Oh, that'll get him.
He shakes his head, "I guess it's whatever," he grabs my coffee from in front of me and takes a sip.
I look over at Ryder and his face explains his thoughts. He clearly thinks James and I are crazy. He shakes his headset his empty cup in the sink and returns to the living room.
James turns and kisses cheek, "I love you," he mumbles against my cheek.
"Are you sure, I mean you were getting pretty cozy with that nightstand," I tease him.
His jaw drops, "How did you turn that around?" I shrug, picking up my phone. How can it already be 10:30.
How can these people still be asleep? I guess you could call me a early bird. I mean these people should be used to waking up early by now, they're in college and there are so many early classes. Although, I remember that class when, what was it... six o'clock early class. I believe I slept though that one.
I am knocked out of my thoughts when I feel a hand creep up on my hip and lips on my neck. I turn the bar stool I am sitting on and face the person, obviously, it is James. Why on earth is he always horny?
He kisses me, they weren't just little pecks either. He really just went for it. He places his hands on my thighs, opening my legs, he steps in between them and rests his hands on my legs.
It's weird how well be can multitask considering the that he's a man. Men just can't multi-task, it's just a known fact.
My hands move to his arms. It was weird feeling clothing on his arms. For the time ever that I've seen, he's wearing a long sleeve. I mean he can wear whatever he wants, but it's just a little weird seeing. It's usually tee shirt or no shirt.
I still feel butterflies when he kisses me like this. His lips were a bit warmer than usual, but really that just made it better.
He tried to go move further by putting his hand between my legs, but really I am in no mood for this.
I pull away from him, smiling at him, "Two things, we have company and I'm really not in the mood, James." I look into his soft blue eyes, they fail to intrigue me.
"That's okay, Babe, " he leans in and kisses my lips gently, "I love you," he reminds me.
"OH JAMES!" someone shouts in fake moan very dramatically.
My boyfriend leaves my lips cold as he looks behind himself. Leah. Should've known. Ever since I met her she has always been known as quite the joker.
"Have you forgotten that you have company?" Leah crosses his arms.
James scoffs at her, "Have you forgotten where the door is?"
I smack his arm, "James!" Why does he have to be so defensive when she's right.
He shrugs, "What?" He knows exactly what's up, he's giving me a look.
"This is no new behavior, Vena. He always has been this way," Leah cuts in.
James chuckles, "How is it my fault that all I want to do is kiss my girlfriend?"
Leah smirks, "More like a grope."
James raises his eyebrows suggestively at me. My god. When will he learn; there are a time and a place and he needs to learn them.
Leah starts to laugh loudly, which finely wakes up the rest of the lazy people in this apartment. Thank God, someone had to do it. These people just wouldn't wake up. What would we do if we didn't have loud people in this world? People would sleep forever.
Grayson walks in, bypassing me, James and his very own girlfriend and heads straight to the stove for some odd reason. His hand starts to do this weird movement, like as if he was looking for something.
He groans and looks at me tiredly, "Vena, where is breakfast?" Why on earth would he expect it? I'm not his damn maid.
James scoffs, "McDonalds, Bud," he gives more sass than I have ever been present for.
Grayson glares at James and as he begins to walk back into the living room, he stops and kisses Leah on the side of the head. "If you love me, you'll get the breakfast," he tells her in a louder whisper.
"Boy, is he going to be disappointed when he gets up again," Leah says when Grayson leaves the room.
________________________________
HI guys, yes I finally updated. 10,000 words as I promised. It's been a long few months.
The only thing I ask for in return is some questions on Tumblr. That's it. Please, they are so much fun to answer. The username is once again – brightwhitesnow-w –
Another question, If I was to get a box for you guys to mail me letters or something, would it be worth it? I mean please answer honesty if you would send something or not. Thank you so much.
Now regarding the next update: I have no idea yet. I really don't. I'll try to stay on top of it.
Thank you very much for all your support. Never in my life did I ever think I would get real live fans. It's just unbelievable.
Thank you again,
– BWS❄️ (Hailey)