"A sea of whiskey couldn't intoxicate me as much as a drop of you" - J. S. Parker
The one good thing about Nolan and I's predicament; the mini fridge filled with beer. However, the beer is shitty, and we are only drinking it to dull the pain of being in each other's company. Somehow the alcohol that runs freely through my veins manages to bury my hatred for Nolan and what he did to me.
"Psst Nolan." I whisper into his ear. We're sitting side by side at the top of the steps, leaning against the door and waiting to be found. My phone is broken beyond repair and Nolan's... his is with his lovely fiancée.
"Yeah?" He slurs before draining all of the liquid from his beer bottle.
"You're ugly!" I burst out into laughter at the shocked look that appears on his handsome face. His amber eyes narrow into slits before a mischievous smile appears on his face.
He leans closer to me. "You have five seconds to apologize."
"Or what?"
"Five."
There is no way in Hell I am apologizing. He's the one with the ugly face, I'm just telling it as it is.
"Four."
Wait. He has a nice face. Maybe I should apologize.
"Three."
No. No I shouldn't.
"Two."
But what if I hurt his feelings?
"One."
You drank one too many beers, Kaelin. You're losing your fucking mind.
"Okay you asked for it!" Nolan yells before reaching over and tickling my sides.
I squeal and try to get away from him, causing him to pull me closer to him and continue to torture me. I'm laughing so hard I can barely breathe.
"Nolan!" I yelp. "Please stop!"
"I gave you your chance!" He says, now laughing himself. "Suffer the consequences!"
Tears begin flowing from my eyes as he relentlessly tickles me.
The door slams open, managing to hit both Nolan and I and knock us down several stairs. Pain blossoms across my back as I groan in pain. I grasp the edge of the stair I landed on tightly to make sure I don't go tumbling down the rest of the staircase.
I glare up at the top of the stairs and see a seething man standing there. "Roman, what the hell?"
His hands curl into fists as he me. What's wrong? Is there something on my face.
"Why are you crying?" Roman seethes with his Italian accent leaking into his words. "He did this? Didn't he?"
I quickly stand in front of Nolan to protect him from my rage consumed boyfriend. "No! No, Rome it's not like that."
He stomps down the stairs until we are face to face. "Then what exactly was going on down here? You've been down here for an hour!"
I flinch at how loud his voice as gotten. I am annoyed that my body still reacts to things like that even though it has been five years since all of the violence. I should be stronger than I was, both mentally and physically. I'm twenty-two years old now, I should have my shit together.
"Roman calm the fuck down." I say in a low voice. "The doorknob fell off and we got stuck down here."
His gaze softens slightly, but then darkens again. "And why couldn't either of you call someone? I guess you wanted a little extra time, didn't you?! Extra time to fucking cheat on me!"
I'm about to reply when Nolan beats me to it. "Shut the fuck up dude. Your girl just told you what happened and you have no fucking reason not to believe her. So tuck your dick between your legs like the little bitch you are and forget it."
Roman stands there in shocked silence, maybe because no one has ever talked to him like that. He has always been the popular guy, the one every guy wished was their friend and the one every girl wanted, why would anyone have an issue with him? Why would there be a cause to call him shit like that?
"Kaelin, lets go, before I beat the shit out of that little dito nel culo." Roman seethes, reaching out and grabbing my hand.
"Actually, you can go wait for me upstairs, now I have to apologize for your childish behaviour." I pull my hand out of his and cross my arms over my chest. My heart is racing from all of the commotion and to be honest all I really want is to cuddle with Luna and go to bed. All of this testosterone is turning me into a crazy cat lady.
"But-"
"Get the fuck out Roman before I do something I regret." I practically growl through clenched teeth.
He gives Nolan a deadly look before turning on his heal and walking up the steps, leaving me to clean up his mess as per fucking usual. I am sick and tired of how he acts before he thinks, especially when it comes to our relationship and how he treats me. I specifically asked him to behave tonight and what does he fucking do?
I turn around to face Nolan. He has a stony expression on his face as he stares at the spot where my boyfriend had been standing. "Look Nolan, I'm really sorry about him he-"
"Does he always talk to you like that?" Nolan cuts me off with a deadly whisper, his eyes finally flicking down to me.
I shrug and look down at my shoes. He does get angry sometimes, but he always apologizes. It usually only gets this bad when he gets jealous
Nolan slides his hand under my chin and gently tilts my face upward. "Has he... Kaelin has he ever hurt you?"
"Not on purpose," I quickly rush out because it's the truth. Then I realize who I am talking to and quickly try to back track. "I mean... No, no he hasn't."
Nolan lets his hand fall away as the fire returns to his eyes. "I'm going to kill him." He storms past me towards the party, but I quickly grab his wrist to stop him. He whips around, showing me the determined gleam in his amber eyes.
"Nolan stop. You can't."
"And why the hell not?" Nolan snarls. "I have every right to beat him to pulp."
"Just think for a second Nolan!" I yell out of frustration. "How will it look for you - for both of us - if we spent an hour alone together, and then you go and beat my boyfriend up?"
He nods slowly, but the fire does not leave his eyes. I can tell he is infuriated, but he has no right to be. What happens between Roman and I is our business and ours alone, if I choose to stay with him then Nolan has no right to try and come between us.
"Kaelin you can't stay with him-" Nolan starts with a sympathetic tone to which I quickly cut him off.
"This isn't your business," I begin walking up the stairs and back to the party. "We aren't teenagers anymore and you have no business meddling in my life. Stay away from me and my boyfriend."
"Kaelin-"
"Just go back to your fiancée and leave me the fuck alone!"
//
After that, Nolan and I did not even look in each other's direction. Natalia has been stuck to him like glue, while Roman has been giving me the cold shoulder for allegedly cheating on him. I know that he is aware that nothing happened between Nolan and I, but he is still acting like whatever did happen was a crime.
As I stand with Rhosyn, Nadia, Drew and a few of the men, my thoughts wander back to what Nolan said to me. Has he ever hurt you? I had quickly shut the question down, but now that I think about it, Roman has hurt me. I always brush it off as accidental, yet if he was not trying to hurt me, then why has he done it multiple times?
"Kaelin?" A voice brings me out of my thoughts. "I think your boyfriend needs some help." Rhosyn nods over to the far corner of the room where Oliver, Roman and Nolan are in a heated discussion. Oliver looks to be in control with his wild hand gestures and an angry blush that has blossomed all the way to the tips of his ears.
I shrug and chug the rest of the whiskey that Drew gave me earlier. "He can handle himself."
Nadia glances worriedly over at the three men. "Nolan looks like he is ready to pounce..."
I run a hand through my hair and heave a loud sigh. I do not want to leave the party yet, but at this point it is clear that Roman is incapable of behaving and therefore cannot be at this party any longer. I hate that I have to act like an overprotective mom instead of his girlfriend.
"I'll see you guys at practice," I say, placing my cup onto the counter. "I have to go rescue my idiot boyfriend."
Drew chuckles. "If he's such an idiot then why are you with him?"
I don't reply, I just walk towards my boyfriend. When Nolan sees me approaching, he says something to Roman before purposely running into him and storming off. Roman turns towards me with a frown on his face.
"We have to go Oliver," I say, referring to Roman and myself. "I have to...feed my cat." Feed your cat? Good job Kaelin, you really made yourself a quality excuse.
"Of course, thank you for coming." He says with a mischievous smile returning to his face. "This has been educational, to say the least."
I bite back an insult and simply say, "Thank you for having us." Before grabbing Roman's hand and dragging him out of the room. To my surprise, he does not resist and let's me pull him into the semi dark hallway.
"Kaelin stop." He says, tugging his arm back and making me stumble back towards him. "You need to tell me what happened in the basement."
I roll my eyes before leaning my back against the wall. "Well, according to you, I can't control myself, so I fucked Nolan senseless and then-"
Roman's arms hit the wall on either side of my head, his face moving dangerously close to mine. "Don't say shit like that Kaelin, it won't end well for you."
"Oh. I'm so very sorry your sensitive, little boy ears can't handle the fucking det-"
"Shut the fuck up Kaelin!" Roman roars in my face. "Stop giving me attitude and just tell me what really happened!"
I narrow my eyes into a piercing glare. "You don't get to talk to me like that you asshole!"
He grabs my hair and pulls my head back. I reach my hand up to try and free my scalp but he grabs my wrist with his other hand and pins it agains the wall. "Stop being a fucking bitch then."
"How dare you call me that you fucking dickhead?!"
My pair is pulled harder causing a yelp of pain to escape my lips. I squeeze my eyes shut to try and block out the burning that is spreading through my scalp.
Roman is ripped off of me so fast I nearly lose my balance. I brace myself against the wall and scan the scene before me. Nolan is on top of Roman, throwing punch after punch as Roman attempts to escape his grasp. Blood blossoms from Roman's face and leaves stains on the expensive carpet.
"Nolan!" I yell, snapping out of my shocked state. "Nolan get off of him!" I try to pull Nolan off, but he is way too large and does not even notice my presence
I hear footsteps racing down the hall. I look up and see Oliver and Lucian racing towards us. Their concerned faces immediately turn from me to the brawl on the floor, which has gotten even more out of hand as Roman begins landing blows on Nolan.
"Hunter!" Oliver yells, grabbing the back of Nolan's shirt and ripping him off of Roman. "Hunter let it go!"
Nolan turns to me with his eyes immediately scanning my body to check for any injuries. I gaze at him in concern, his hair is messed up from the fight and blood is dripping from the corner of his mouth. I inhale a quick breath when his eyes meet mine.
The world seems to stop as we stare at each other. The intense look he is giving me makes my heart flutter with nerves as a fire I didn't know existed rekindles in my stomach. The fire burning in me should be fury, but deep down I know he was only doing what he thought was right.
I wonder how long he was listening to Roman and I's conversation.
Natalia flies into Nolan's arms just as I remember that Roman is still on the floor needing medical attention. I kneel down beside my boyfriend and stare into his warm brown eyes and cringe when I see that his left eye is encircled with a purple bruise.
Even more concerning to me, is the pang in my heart as I hear Natalia tell Nolan that he loves her.
And worse yet, when Nolan responds with, "I love you, too."
A/N
I really enjoyed writing this chapter. Definitely in love with that picture of Xavier Serrano (Nolan <3)
I made the mistake of reading some negative comments on hg bs hb and it took me a bit to write this because of them. I just... I don't understand why people need to write negative things? Like? Just stop reading?
Anyways, thank you for reading :)
-Courtney