A/N: Helloooo :) SO, this is rather a busy (and long!) chapter, lots of drama happening for you all! :P I hope it doesn't get confusing at all, but if it does, just ask in the comments, and I'll try my best to clarify/explain :P hope you enjoy, and much love! :)
The club that April had arranged to meet George and his friends at didn’t look quite as classy as the one which Ezra had chosen. However, George, who met them outside with Carlos (still pouting at Morgie) and Carmen (still eyeing up Will), assured them that it was widely renowned as the best club in town. Therefore, with some trepidation, they entered.
April immediately found George at her side, smiling as widely as he had been last time she’d seen him, and they fell into easy conversation.
‘How many more days are you here?’ he asked of her, as he paid for her drink at the bar.
‘Three more full days,’ April replied, realizing suddenly that the holiday was slipping away before her very eyes. She was going to be gutted to leave Spain.
George made a sad face. ‘Spain will not be the same without you,’ he said, taking a sip of his own drink and meeting her eyes.
April felt rather overwhelmed by how attractive he looked. She smiled at him. ‘You’d better make the most of me, then,’ she said flirtatiously, which, though seemingly surprising George, made him grin back, and pull her towards the dance floor.
Will and Oscar were also by the bar, getting drinks for the others, who were sat in a little cushioned area away from the main dance floor.
‘So,’ Will said, as the bar man began mixing up some drinks.
‘So?’ repeated Oscar, looking at him rather confusedly.
‘You and Morgie.’ Will gave his friend a look.
‘What about me and Morgie?’ Oscar asked warily.
‘When’re you going to start ripping each other’s clothes off, like I can tell you so desperately want to do?’ Will inquired, looking him straight in the eye, his face miraculously staying straight.
Oscar fought the mental images that Will’s words had conjured up in his mind. Morgie with her clothes on was hot enough. He didn’t want to even start to comprehend how she’d look wearing absolutely nothing. Too late. His traitor of a brain had gone into overload.
In fact, it took several attempts for Will to get his attention. ‘Oscar? Oscar?!’
Oscar blinked the images away, and adjusted the way he was standing. It seemed tha this mind hadn’t been th e only part of his body to go into overload. Awkward.
‘Yeah?’
‘Well?’ Will probed. ‘You bloody like Morgie… Morgie likes you… what’re you waiting for?’
Oscar pulled a face. ‘Morgie doesn’t like me, not like that.’
Will made a derogatory noise. ‘Don’t give me that, mate. You two already act like the world’s cutest couple.’
‘Nah, seriously, Will, I just…’ he paused. ‘I think I’m in the friend zone,’ he admitted.
Will frowned. ‘Trust me, you’re not. Whereas I, on the other hand…’
Oscar followed his friend’s gaze to where Laurel was sat, twiddling with the ends of her straightened hair.
‘Ah,’ he said. ‘You don’t think Laurel likes you?’
Will pulled much the same face Oscar had pulled earlier. ‘Look, I know it’s not cool to admit that you don’t have a chance with a girl, but seriously, I just don’t think she’s interested.’
Oscar frowned. ‘Hm. I don’t know. I don’t really know Laurel-‘
Exactly, thought Will.Why was Laurel so in love with a guy she barely knew?
‘But she seems like she’d be just the sort of girl for someone like you,’ Oscar continued. ‘Honestly, she’s really shy when she’s with me, but with the others she seems like a nice girl.’
‘She’s…’ Will searched for the right word to sum Laurel up. Perfect? Amazing? Lovely? Everything he could ever want? ‘Great,’ he settled for, a little limply.
‘She probably has no idea you like her,’ Oscar said blithely. ‘Make it clear, then you’ll work out if there’s feelings there for you.’
The barman handed over a tray of drinks, which Will took. ‘Cheers,’ he said automatically, and, before he could see the barman’s rather confused look, he turned back to Oscar. ‘How though? I can’t just walk up to her and be like hey, Laurel, I think you’re really amazing, can I?’
Oscar shrugged. ‘Well, you could.’
Will wrinkled his nose. ‘You’re not much good at this advice, are you?’ he said, and earned a look from his friend.
‘Only trying to help!’ Oscar replied, heading over to where the others were sat. ‘Only trying to help.’
*
Meanwhile, Morgie, sat next to Laurel, looking over at Ezra, was feeling a little awkward. Ezra’s eyes were roving the club, clearly on the look out for a hot girl, while Laurel maintained a rather stony silence, blatantly uncomfortable.
‘On the look out for a hook up, Ez?’ Morgie asked teasingly, just to break the silence.
Ezra looked over at her, his hard expression thankfully softening into a smile. ‘Why?’ he inquired. ‘Are you offering?’
Morgie laughed. ‘I don’t think so, Ezra,’ she said. ‘Tempting, but no.’
He raised his eyebrows. ‘Only tempting?’
She chuckled. ‘Sorry. Do girls usually fall at your feet?’
‘All the time.’ Ezra’s eyes honed in on a gorgeous, dark haired girl, buxom and clearly aware of it, judging by the low cut dress she was sporting. His eyebrows lifted, only for his expression to crumple as she was joined by an enormous guy, with the muscles of a professional weight lifter, the way he stood next to her protective and blatantly spelling out that he was her boyfriend.
‘Gutted,’ Morgie said. ‘You’ll have to find someone else.’
Ezra sighed. ‘What a shame,’ he commented. He leant back lazily, surveying the room. ‘Well, at least there’s plenty of hot girls to choose from,’ he said, with a sigh.
Morgie frowned. ‘Are you actually planning to hook up, then?’ she inquired.
Ezra shrugged. ‘Why not?’ he asked. ‘That’s what holidays are for.’
Morgie chewed her lip. She didn’t think April would be too happy about that.
Then Oscar and Will arrived with drinks, Will squishing down next to Ezra, Oscar left standing.
‘Oh,’ he said dejectedly. ‘Thanks for saving me a seat, guys.’
‘Oh no, I’m so sorry,’ apologized Laurel. ‘Have my seat!’
Oscar laughed, instead perching next to Morgie. ‘Don’t worry about it,’ he said.
Morgie grinned at him. ‘God, take the hint Oscar, we don’t think you’re cool enough to hang round with us.’
Oscar pouted. ‘I’m not cool enough?’
She shook her head. ‘Sorry.’
‘Why?’ he asked. ’What did I do wrong?’
‘It’s the dancing,’ she informed him, as Ezra, downing his drink in one, stared at a group of long legged girls behind them. ‘You look like a drunk dad at a wedding.’
Oscar raised his eyebrows. ‘What about your dancing?’ he inquired. ‘You look drunk even when you’re sober!’
Morgie nudged him, almost making him overbalance and fall off. Ruefully, he slid back onto the seat, lifting her smoothly onto his lap in a move which he soon regretted, as his body remembered the images of earlier, and tensed accordingly.
She turned to look at him, which was harder than it sounded when perched upon his lap; this time her eyebrows were the ones lifted.
He shrugged. ‘Well, if you don’t save me a seat…’ he said.
Morgie adjusted her seat, wriggling in a way that made it almost impossible for Oscar to breathe normally. He was sure she could probably feel his heart throbbing in his chest, along with other areas throbbing too, and he prayed that she wouldn’t realize.
‘Well, thanks,’ she said, after a while, and thank the lord, she was no longer wiggling her hips. ‘You’re a much comfier seat.’
Oscar laughed nervously, and attempted to think of something else, but her smell was intoxicating him, their closeness even more ecstasy inducing. He could see every hair on her head, a tiny mole on the back of her neck the perfect kissing spot, feel her warmth seeping into his clothing. He was going mad. But it was impossibly brilliant.
Will gave him a knowing look from over Morgie’s shoulder. Oscar took a deep breath.
After a few rounds of drinks, Ezra vanished off into the crowd, in pursuit of an attractive girl, having reached that stage of intoxication, and the others soon followed, heading for the dance floor.
Morgie grinned to see April and George dancing in the corner, getting very close. April had clearly been drinking a bit, as her dancing was rather edgier than usual, her hips surprisingly close to George’s crotch. The boy in question didn’t seem to mind one bit, his arms slipping around her waist to pull her closer.
Glancing over to catch Laurel’s eye, Morgie raised her eyebrows in the direction of April and George. Laurel’s eyes widened, and she grinned. ‘Looks like she’s having fun!’ she shouted over the music.
Morgie nodded by way of reply, though her mind wandered. Why did Laurel not care? She’d been furious when she’d kissed Oscar, but didn’t mind about April and George. Perhaps she didn’t think Morgie was responsible enough to look after herself.
Her mind had gone back to the kiss again, she realized. She looked up at Oscar, who was, true to her word, dancing like a drunk dad, and felt a smile on her lips. He made her so happy, just by being himself. There was something adorably boyish about him, even when he was being sincere, something that made him stand out from everyone else. She loved that about him.
Will took Laurel by the arm, noticing her watching Morgie and Oscar dance, while awkwardly bobbing along herself, and smiled down at her.
‘Do you like dancing?’ he asked, close to her ear (obviously because the music was so loud).
Laurel smiled and shrugged. ‘It’s ok.’
‘I’m sure you’re a great dancer,’ he said. ‘You look all graceful.’
She blushed, and dropped her eyes, but, when she looked back up, Will met them steadily, with a smile on his lips. Deliberately, he let his eyes trail down her body. She looked exceptionally pretty tonight, wearing a plain black dress with a bright belt which accentuated her little waist. Her hair had been straightened, her lips and eyes made up, but she still looked like herself, Laurel, the most beautiful girl ever.
When his eyes reached her face once more, she was blushing even more hotly. He steeled himself. He needed to tell her, hint to her something of what he felt. It wasn’t right to keep hiding and concealing, and perhaps Oscar was right. He never shied away from complimenting a girl. Perhaps Will should follow his advice. He took a deep breath. ‘You look amazing,’ he said sincerely.
‘Really?’ He lip read more than heard what she said, her voice was so low and the music so loud. With that one word, he was suddenly so much more aware of the doubt she had in herself, the disbelief that someone might be complimenting her clear in his eyes.
He nodded. ‘Of course,’ he said, close to her again so she could hear. ‘You’re beautiful, Laurel.’
Her eyes grew larger as she looked up at him. She opened her mouth to reply, then shut it, then opened it, like a little fish. They were closer than ever before. Will felt his blood begin to pound in his veins, thundering through them at their proximity, and at just how much he wanted to kiss her.
He shouldn’t have done it. It was too soon. But he moved in, angling his head towards her, and, for a mili second, it looked like she was going to respond, her head tilting, eyes fluttering shut…
*
With George, April was having the time of her life. The boy in question was brilliant company, and not solely for his beautiful looks and the compliments he kept throwing her way. He had a witty sense of humour, which matched her own, and, as they danced, he would make funny little comments which had her chuckling, and, more importantly, getting that little bit closer to him.
She’d drunk quite a lot. George had been truly a gentleman, always buying her drinks, making sure she was ok, but he was fun to be with to; he wasn’t too over protective. Not like Ezra.
Ezra. April shuddered. She could see him nearby, his hands roving over some poor girl who would probably be in his bed before the night was out, but she tried not to look, instead focusing on George, who had just returned with another drink for her. It was quite a strong one, and April winced at the bitter after taste as she took an enormous gulp. It fortified her against the knowledge that Ezra was pretty much inches away from doing the deed only metres away, and so instead she flung her arms around George’s neck, giggling a little drunkenly, feeling the comfortingly masculine sensation of his firm body next to hers. She looked up at him through her mascara darkened lashes, feeling her hair slide seductively over her bare shoulders. She’d worn a sleeveless, and very short dress this evening, knowing it made the most of her long legs and ample chest. Like all guys, George had had difficulty keeping his eyes at face level at several points over the evening. Knowing exactly what she was up to, April lightly bit down on her lower lip, watching as George’s gaze honed in on her mouth.
She let herself smile innocently up at him, pressing herself closer. And, as he obliged her by moving his head down to meet her lips, her eyelids fluttered shut in the familiar prelude to a kiss…
*
Morgie seemed to have lost Oscar. She’d been dancing with him only a few moments ago, but, as ever, her smallness, and lack of strength had made her an easy target to those bull dozer people who just powered on through a crowd with no regard for who they might be trampling over. Therefore, she’d found herself lost in a sea of people, unable to spot Oscar’s familiar face, and had instead been stumbling around looking out for him.
This place seemed a bit…seedy, she couldn’t help but notice. Everywhere, couples were practically declothing each other, people wild with intoxication and hormones. She felt vulnerable without Oscar, she realized suddenly, and it wasn’t a feeling she liked.
Chewng her lower lip, she picked her way through the crowds. It was difficult to see anyone she knew, she couldn’t see Laurel, or Will, or April, and she didn’t particularly want to look for Ezra anyway, knowing he would, most likely, be doing something true to his word, and would be passionately kissing some girl all the way to his bedroom.
So, when she bumped into Carlos, it was actually quite a relief.
‘Hello Morgie!’ he said cheerily, his cheeks flushed red as if he’d had quite a bit to drink. ‘How are you?’
‘Good thank you!’ she replied. ‘How are you?’
He nodded. ‘I’m happy you are here!’ he said, shouting loudly above the music. He steered her out of the way of some people trying to get through, so they were instead in a little corner of the club.
‘You are looking sexy,’ he said, looking down the length of her body.
Morgie laughed nervously. ‘Well, um, thanks,’ she replied.
‘It is true,’ he said, and suddenly, Morgie couldn’t help but think that he was rather too close for her liking.
‘Um,’ she began, looking for a way past him, but there was none. She started to feel panicked, her heart fluttering in her chest like a trapped bird in her ribcage. Except she was trapped too.
‘You know, I think you are a very sexy girl,’ Carlos continued, getting closer. ‘Do you think I am a sexy guy?’
‘Well, this is all quite awkward but I-‘
Morgie was cut off by Carlos harshly mashing his mouth against hers, thrusting his tongue into her mouth, and squashing her hard against the wall…
*
Ezra plunged his tongue deeper into the girl’s mouth, pressing his groin hard into her to wordlessly let her know just how much he wanted her. Which was a lot, to be fair. He was definitely up for another hook up.
He let his hands wander all over her, roving over her skin as their mouths mingled and her hands tangled themselves up in her hair. She wasn’t a bad kisser, but…
She emerged, breathless, her lipstick smeared all across her face. Oh yuck. Ezra was pretty sure she hadn’t looked this ugly when they first started kissing. But then again, he’d been kind of distracted by her chest. He shook his head to clear his head. He could do better. There were so many hot girls, he didn’t need to waste his time here.
Stepping away from her, he escaped before the poor girl could do more than shake her head confusedly, wondering what on earth had just happened. He prowled around the dance floor, looking for girls who might be willing for some fun. He didn’t have to look too hard…
*
To Will, there only millimetres from Laurel’s face, so close, each second seemed to become its own individual century. He couldn’t breathe, the blood in his veins had almost completely drowned out any other thought in his mind. He moved closer, almost able to taste her, tantalizingly close…
But then she was stumbling back, saying something incoherent that he couldn’t hear or make out, her entire face flushed red, and she vanished into the crowd.
Will felt like sinking to the ground. God, of all the stupid things to do. He should have backed away himself, leaving her wanting more, not zoomed on in there and tried to make out with her.
He let his head fall into his hands. This was crap. It was all his fault.
He’d been doing so well up to that moment; Laurel now just had to know that he felt more than just friendship towards her. So why had he gone that far?
Rubbing his forehead, he chewed on his lower lip. She’d just been so enticing, entrancing even, with her innocence, the way she’d been so unconscious of how stunning she’d looked, and of just how much he’d wanted her. He was drawn to her, irresistibly, and there was nothing he could do to stop himself. No amount of cold water would cool down this crush he had on her, he knew that. It was different to anything he’d felt before. He wanted her so much.
But she didn’t want him. Of course she didn’t. Because he was stupid and always got it wrong, and she was clever and beautiful and perfect. Why on earth would she want him?
The crowd around him was indifferent, apathetic, none of them even glancing his way. All around him, couples were making out, hips thrusting against each other, those who were alone painfully obvious in comparison. Right now, however, Will felt like the only one alone. He could see Ezra, his tongue currently employed in the task of thrusting itself into some girl’s mouth, and he could see George and April not too far away, seemingly close to kissing themselves. He felt horribly alone.
Steeped in self hate, Will went to the bar in a vague attempt to drown his sorrows.
*
Her arms locked around George’s neck, April felt the tentative touch of his lips upon hers, and immediately threw herself into the kiss. He was warm and inviting, and the taste of him made it all the more delicious; his tongue met hers, and then he was biting down on her lip and she was clinging on to him, pressing against him, moaning into his mouth as his fingers began rubbing tiny circles in her back.
His lips left hers, trailing down her neck, biting, nipping, teasing the skin, and she completely let herself go, let herself forget that they were in the middle of a packed club. Everything within her felt alive and turned on, every nerve ending on fire with the feel of him pressed against her, the feel of him exploring her body as if he knew every curve, every detail like the back of his own hand.
She yanked his head back up to meet her lips, feverishly kissing him, feverishly making it clear that she wanted more…
Someone’s hand was suddenly on her arm, pulling her away, ripping her roughly from George’s embrace.
Blinded by lust, April blinked away the crazy feelings bubbling inside her to see… Ezra?
He was drunk, she could see that, and he was dragging her through the crowds. She struggled against him, yelling at him to stop, looking back to see a bewildered George slumped against the wall. What the…?
Ezra pulled her outside of the club, roughly letting go of her.
‘What were you DOING?!’ screamed April. ‘You have NO RIGHT, no right to interrupt me, NO RIGHT, Ezra, get the hell out of my life-‘
‘I can’t just stand there and watch you bloody having sex!’ Ezra shouted back. His words were slurred, but his face was flushed with anger, and April felt furious just looking at him.
‘You were doing it too!’ April yelled. ‘You were worse!’
‘Just stop being such a slut!’
‘How dare you?!’
Neither of them were entirely sure when their conversation turned from screaming at each other to pretty much devouring each other, Ezra’s tongue exploring her mouth, her hips pressed into his, but when they both surfaced for air, April was sure of one thing. She was just as angry with him.
Staring at him, the taste of him still in her mouth, familiar despite the fact that it was tainted with alcohol, April felt her knees go weak. What was going on? What was…? So many questions rang unanswered through her mind, and it was all she could do to watch as Ezra, a disgusted look upon his face, turned on his heel, and stormed away.
*
Struggling against him, Morgie pushed at Carlos’ chest, attempting, and failing, to get away as he continued to kiss her, hard. He tasted horrible, of alcohol and something unfamiliar, and, as she thrashed against him, his hands began to rove over her body.
I’m going to be raped, she thought, her heart pounding in her chest, sick with fear. She’d never had anything like this happen before, and, helplessly, all she could do was struggle, and attempt to push his mouth away from her own.
One of his hands began to slide under the material of her dress. She tried to scream but his mouth was against hers. It was like being underwater, struggling and struggling to get to the surface, panic overtaking everything…
Focusing all her energy into one area, she kneed him sharply in the crotch, just as he was roughly pulled away from her, and she sank to the floor, breathing in great gulps of oxygen, feeling like she was about to faint…
Oscar reached down to her, nothing but concern in his eyes, before turning round to Carlos, his fists clenched. ‘Get the hell away from her,’ he shouted at Carlos, who gave him a saucy look.
‘Why?’ he asked.
‘She’s my girlfriend!’ Oscar said angrily, picking Morgie up from the ground, steadying her on her feet and holding her close to him, one arm protectively around her waist, cradling her, almost. Morgie felt waves of relief wash over her, and a tremor pass through her at the word girlfriend. If only, she thought. If only.
Carlos gave them both a look of pure dislike, before slinking away. Oscar took one look at Morgie’s pale face, and quickly pulled her outside into the fresh night air, his arms still around her, encircling her.
They stayed like that for a while, until her breathing had finally gotten back to normal, until Oscar’s soothing words, whispered into her ear as he held her tightly had finally done the job and calmed her down.
He stepped away from her. ‘God, I wanted to kill him. Are you okay?’ he asked, and in his eyes, genuine concern was the only emotion.
Morgie nodded. ‘Thanks to you,’ she said.
‘You did a pretty good job kicking him,’ Oscar told her with a smile.
Morgie wrinkled her nose, and then grinned up at him. ‘Handy girlfriend boyfriend lie always works, doesn’t it?’
Oscar smiled, but then his expression grew serious. He looked at her, taking a deep breath. ‘Hey, it doesn’t have to be a lie.’
Morgie blinked in surprise, unable to believe her ears. ‘Eh?’
Oscar bit his lip. ‘It doesn’t have to be a lie,’ he repeated. ‘You could, er, you know. Be my girlfriend.’
‘Are you serious?’ Morgie gasped, unable to get out anything more coherent.
Oscar bent his head to meet her eyes, his gaze intense. ‘I’m serious,’ he assured her. ‘I really like you Mrogie,’ he said. ‘I’ve never met a girl like you, you’re hot, you’re hilarious, you’re… real.’
‘Nicely spotted,’ she put in, unable to help herself.
He swatted her. ‘Hey. I was trying to be serious.’
‘Oops,’ she said. ‘Trust me to muck up the nicest thing anyone’s ever said to me.’
Oscar smiled, his nose lightly nudging hers. ‘Well,’ he said. ‘I want to say so many nice things to you, but right now I can think of something better to do with my mouth.’
‘Oh really?’ Morgie tilted her head so her lips were mere inches from his. ‘I have no idea what.’
‘No?’ Oscar chuckled softly, moving even closer.
‘Not at all,’ Morgie said resolutely. ‘You’ll just have to demonstrate.’
‘Your wish,’ Oscar said, so close that there was barely a molecule between them, the pause between his words tantalizingly long, ‘is my command.’
Then their lips met. Immediately, Morgie relaxed into him, her arms reaching up around his neck as his slipped protectively around her little waist, pulling her to him as their lips moved in the sort of natural harmony that comes as easy as breathing. They breathed as one, chests touching as he bent over her, almost protectively, fully exploring her mouth, trying to take away the taste of that boy, making her forget the panic and the nausea that Carlos had created.
They drew apart to take a breath.
‘God, Morgie,’ Oscar breathed. ‘I really like you.’
She beamed, suddenly looking even more beautiful than Oscar had ever seen her look, and reached up on tip toes to whisper in his ear. ‘The feeling’s mutual.’
‘Well, thank god for that,’ said Oscar, promptly capturing her mouth with his own, his tongue outlining the seam of her lips and then plunging between them, holding her closer, keeping her safe within the circle of his arms. He was struck, in some hazy place aside from the hormone fueled ecstacy that was making his brain erupt in multicoloured fireworks, with an intense desire to keep her there forever, away from the creepy boys who wanted to feel her up, and away from anyone else who might ever want to do her harm. She felt so fragile in his arms, despite the fire of the kiss almost burning him up inside, so delicate despite her fearless, headstrong nature, and he wanted to keep her safe forever.
As they drew apart, Oscar couldn’t help an enormous grin crossing his face. ‘I thought you didn’t think of me in this way when you were sober,’ he said.
‘I didn’t for a long time,’ Morgie said. ‘But… I don’t know. You’re just different to any other guy I ever knew.’
‘So does this mean you’ll let me take you out on a proper date?’ Oscar asked, unable to help the feelings of pure joy rushing through his system.
She raised an eyebrow at him. ‘A proper date?’
He nodded. ‘Tomorrow,’ he said grandly, ‘I shall take you on a Proper Date.’
Morgie grinned. ‘That sounds perfect.’
They looked at each other, both of them with eyes alight. Oscar could hardly believe this was happening. Bending down, he pressed a kiss to the tip of her nose, then wrapped his arms more tightly around her, holding her to him and feeling like he’d never be able to let go.