After having basically a week from hell, Saturday had finally rolled around again. Despite having met with your professor, you didn't do as well on your English exam as you'd hoped. On Wednesday you'd had a job interview that had seemed way too short, and you doubted you'd be offered the position. And then on Thursday as you were headed toward your Ethics class, you passed a student body election going on. A guy you recognized from some of the frat parties was giving his speech, his supporters gathered around him on the lawn. That was when you spotted Harry, his arm thrown casually around the shoulders of a blonde girl. Jamie.
Your blood boiling, you began walking faster, nearly bumping into a short peppy girl who was trying to hand you a flyer.
"Please vote for Alex Webster!" she exclaimed, shoving the piece of paper in your face.
You scowled at her, practically ripping it from her hand before storming off.
"Jesus, what's wrong with you?" Jimmy asked when you dropped your backpack on your desk.
"Boys!" you yelled. "You're all so fucking pathetic."
"Hey!" he held his hands up, "Don't lump me in there, please. I'm doing my best."
Your face softened as you sat down. "Sorry, Jimmy. You just may be the exception."
He gave you a grin and patted your hand. "Whoever it is, he's an idiot if he doesn't see how great you are."
You smiled back. "Thanks."
"You going to the party this weekend? I heard it's supposed to be the biggest one this year."
You slumped in your seat and crossed your arms. "Seriously doubt it. I can't deal with fraternity boys and sorority girls anymore."
"I'll be there," Jimmy shrugged. "You can hang out with me. Get drunk and talk smack about everybody."
You threw your head back laughing. "Actually, that does sound pretty sweet."
"So you'll go?"
"I'll think about it."
So now it was Saturday and you were on your way to this stupid frat party with Mandy and a couple other friends. You'd told yourself that you didn't give a shit if you saw Harry or not. He was not your reason for going.
You weren't in the house two seconds before you spotted Jimmy.
"Hey, alright you came!" he greeted you with a hug.
As soon as he released you, your friends had already scattered in different directions. With a shrug, you followed Jimmy into the kitchen where he quickly reached for two cups.
"Nah," you shook your head. "Let's do shots."
"Really?" he raised his eyebrows.
"Yep."
With a wink, Jimmy grabbed the bottle of tequila and two shot glasses, pouring the gold liquid into each and handing you one. You quickly licked the side of your hand, shaking salt onto it.
"Bottoms up," you said before licking the salt and taking the shot.
The warm liquor warmed your throat instantly as you reached for a lime wedge to suck on.
"Another," you announced when you tossed the lime in the trash.
"You sure?" chuckled Jimmy.
"Let's get this party rolling!" you danced, making Jimmy laugh harder.
He poured you another shot, and this time you downed it without bothering with the salt or lime. You shook your head after swallowing, the sting making you cringe slightly. You slammed the shot glass down on the counter and blinked at Jimmy.
"Okay," you lifted a finger, "now this is a officially a party."
You stayed in the kitchen a while with Jimmy, chatting and watching other people come in and out. Mandy made an appearance, her arm looped through Keg Boy's while they shared some kind of spiked punch that somebody made. You were apprehensive to try it yourself, though it resembled the concoction that you'd been drinking the night you met Harry.
Harry.
Almost like he knew you were thinking about him, he just happened to show up at that moment. In fact, you heard his laughter before he even entered the kitchen. He wore a cocky smirk as he leaned against the counter, with none other than Jamie tagging along. It was like de ja vu.
With a scowl on your face, you swiftly filled a red Solo cup with the punch and grabbed Jimmy's arm.
"C'mon, let's get out of here," you said.
"What the-"
Jimmy glared at you in question as you pulled him into the living room. When you reached the sofa, he stopped and released his arm from your grip.
"Is he why you didn't wanna come tonight?" he turned to you. "The reason you were so pissed off the other day?"
"Who?" you asked as though you had no idea what he was talking about.
He pursed and lips and narrowed his eyes. "Styles."
You chewed your bottom lip. "Maybe."
Jimmy sighed and shook his head. "[Y/N]."
"What?"
"I should have known. That guy's a prick."
"Tell me about it," you scoffed.
"I wanted to warn you that night when he was talking to you, but I didn't wanna start anything. Now I guess I should have. What did he do to you?"
"He..." you started. "You know what? It doesn't matter anymore. I came to have a good time, didn't you?"
"Yeah," Jimmy gave a lazy smile.
"C'mon then," you raised your cup.
Jimmy slowly raised his beer and you tapped them together.
"Cheers!" you exclaimed before taking several large gulps of your drink, realizing it was more spiked than you thought. And it tasted good.
— —
"Give me the microphone!" you shouted, doing your best to try to stand up.
About an hour ago, somebody had turned on the karaoke machine. You, Jimmy, and several other people had gathered around the floor of the living room to watch people sing off key. If you weren't feeling the effects of the alcohol so much, you would have thought it cringe-worthy. But as it was, you found it completely hilarious. After your Grammy-winning performance of a Britney Spears cover, Jimmy had rolled his eyes at you and kissed your cheek, announcing he was taking a breather and going outside. You'd wanted to stay and listen until it was your turn again.
While a girl you knew from somewhere but you couldn't place was up singing some Mariah Carey, and not too badly you might add, a cute guy came and sat next to you. You'd already forgotten his name by the time the song was over, but you didn't care. He was flirting with you, and you liked it. Especially since you'd already had...how many drinks had you had? You'd lost count.
This time you sang an 80s power ballad, encouraging everybody to sway and sing along. Cute Guy was staring at you the entire time, not so much a smile on his face, but like he was drinking you in. It made you feel sexy.
Just as you were singing the last chorus, however, Harry walked into the room and leaned against the wall with his arms crossed. You gave him a go to hell look as you returned the microphone to its stand. Then you smiled at Cute Guy before sitting down beside him again. You noticed then that your cup was empty, so you stood up to return to the kitchen to refill it. You stumbled a bit and Cute Guy helped you find your balance.
"You okay?" he asked.
"'M Fine," you mumbled.
When you crossed the living room toward the kitchen, you passed Harry.
"Hi," you heard him say.
You glared at him incredulously. Then you rolled your eyes and kept walking, completely dismissing him. You entered the kitchen just as a group of people were cheering about shots. You beamed at them as you stepped closer.
"I want in!" you exclaimed.
"Hell yeah, baby!" one boy yelled, grabbing an extra shot glass.
He filled it with tequila and handed it to you. You got your salt ready and lifted your glass with everyone else. Out of the corner of your eye, you saw two other boys standing in the doorway. One was Cute Guy (damn, you wished you could remember his name), and the other was Harry. Deciding to have some fun, you seductively licked your lips before meeting the salt on your hand with your tongue. Then you threw back the shot and grabbed a piece of lime, bringing it to your mouth. You sucked on it gingerly and allowed your tongue to roll around it.
Cute Guy was grinning from ear to ear. Your little game had worked. Harry, however, didn't seem as pleased. He shook his head and crossed his arms again, looking down at the floor.
As you threw away the lime, Cute Guy walked up to you.
"Can I have one of those?" he inquired.
"A shot? Sure."
Grabbing the same glass you'd used, you filled it for him. With his eyes on you, he grabbed your hand and licked it, shaking salt on it. You watched him as he licked it again, taking all the salt before tossing back the tequila shot. Your bottom lip trapped between your teeth, you grinned at him.
Without warning, he pulled you to him, his hands on your hips. When his mouth covered yours, a tiny sound escaped your throat.
"C'mon," he whispered, grabbing your hand and guiding you out of the kitchen.
You didn't miss the look on Harry's face as you passed him in the doorway, though you couldn't quite make out its meaning.
You and Cute Guy were almost to the stairs when you heard your name called.
"[Y/N]! Wait!"
"What?" you whined as you swung around, not bothering to hide your disgust.
"What the fuck are you doing?" Harry asked.
"What do you care?" you slurred.
"You're drunk."
"Indeed I am," you nodded. "It's a party."
You turned back around, giving Cute Guy a wink, and you continued to follow him up the stairs. When you made it to the landing, though, your knees seemed to give out and you fell down laughing.
"Shit," you muttered. "I'm so drunk."
Cute Guy didn't seem affected by it. He reached down to pull you to your feet. You tried to assure him you could make it, but your giggles erupted and you couldn't stand straight for very long.
"[Y/N]," you heard Harry call again, only this time he sounded closer. Your vision had blurred suddenly, making it hard to see past two feet. "Please don't do this."
"Fuck off, pal!" you heard another voice say. You thought it was Cute Guy.
"Yeah, leave me alone, Harry!" you managed to shout.
Or at least you thought you did. You weren't sure if your mouth and your brain were cooperating. You started to feel dizzy.
"C'mon, baby," Cute Guy said. "Let's go in here."
"I think I need to lie down," you mumbled.
"Yeah, you can lie down in here."
When you heard a door close, you blinked, your vision coming back to you for a bit. You realized you were in another room, and there was definitely a bed. Hurrying toward it, you collapsed on it, closing your eyes. You felt the bed shift as someone joined you. You felt like you were under water until you felt a pair of lips touch yours. You opened your mouth, almost like a reflex, and before you knew it, a body was pressed against yours, someone else's tongue inside your mouth.
He tasted like tequila and smelled like cologne. You still felt disoriented and very confused, but too tired to fight him. Besides, he wasn't a bad kisser. When you felt his hand reach between your legs, however, you tried to push him off.
"No," you whispered against his lips. "Too tired."
"It's okay," he remarked. "I'm not."
You half chuckled at his words, though you weren't quite sure why you found them funny. You really just wanted to sleep.
Suddenly, you heard a loud knock at the door and the doorknob jiggle. Cute Guy cursed and yelled something like "go away".
"Not a chance, mate!" a familiar voice boomed. "Open the fucking door, now!"
You weren't sure exactly what made Cute Guy decide to abide by Harry's wishes, but you felt him climb off of you. Your eyes mere slits and your vision still blurry, you saw three things happen almost simultaneously. Cute Guy unlocked the door, Jimmy and another guy you didn't know rushed in and pinned him against the wall, and Harry picked you up off the bed.
"What are you doing?" you whined. "I told you to leave me alone!"
"Not gonna happen," he argued.
"You okay to drive man?" Jimmy asked.
"Yeah, I'm fine," Harry replied.
"Harry!" you cried, pushing on his chest as he carried you out of the room.
Ignoring your protests, he continued down the stairs and out the front door. You felt the brisk air hit you, instantly cooling the heat on your face. Harry stopped at a car, cursing under his breath.
"I have to put you down for a second," he muttered.
Throwing daggers with your eyes, you allowed him to put you down, where you leaned against the car. Harry shoved his hand in his pocket and retrieved a key fob, pressing the button to unlock the car door. Then pulling you away from the car, he opened the door.
"Get in," he insisted.
"No," you argued.
"Get in!" he repeated.
"Fuck you, Harry!" you yelled. "I'm not going anywhere with you!"
"Yes you are."
When you didn't move, Harry picked you up like before, placing you in the passenger seat. You pouted, though your limbs felt like jelly. There was no way you could have resisted.
Slamming your door shut, Harry walked around to the driver's side and put the key in the ignition. You heard loud music as soon as he did, and you covered your ears and groaned. Harry turned down the volume and drove away.
The ride to his apartment was silent except for the low radio. He didn't say a word to you, and you were fine with that. You still felt dizzy and disoriented, though you were more aware of your surroundings than you were earlier.
You were able to get out of the car yourself when you arrived, but Harry still put his arm around you to help you walk to the front door. The apartment was dark except for a dim light coming from the bedroom. You heard Harry toss his keys on the table before setting you on the bed. You watched him through heavy eyelids as he removed your shoes.
"I'm drunk," you heard yourself declare.
Harry chuckled softly. "That you are."
"And you're still with Jamie," you added.
Glaring at you, Harry didn't say a word. Instead he pulled the covers down and laid you back on the bed. You sighed when your head hit the pillow.
You didn't remember much after that except for the lamp being turned off and the bed shifting when Harry must have crawled in. All else was darkness.