Status: ACTIVE.

Learn to Fly

six

Nick smiled at Peyton as she gripped the shot glass between her fingers. “Bottoms up!” The red head yelled and every band on the tour, techies, and girlfriends all threw back the drink.

Peyton felt the back of her throat begin to burn but she couldn’t resist grabbing the tequila bottle and pouring more. She wasn’t a big drinker—especially with straight tequila but tonight they were in Vegas and she was going to have to be drunk to go through with her plans.

She smiled as everyone exited A Rocket to the Moon’s dressing room. She put the tequila bottle to her lips and ignored the burning and just held on to the feeling that it was putting in her limbs. She frowned as someone pulled the bottle from her grasp, “Slow down there, kiddo,” Eric Halvorsen laughed.

Peyton pouted, “Halvo, give it back. I’m trying to get drunk.”

“Your little body can’t hold much,” he laughed taking a swig of the drink.

She giggled, “I’m trying to get drunk though.”

His green eyes looked around the room, “Alone?”

Peyton shrugged and ignored his question. Eric walked over to her and ruffled her hair, “Try not to get too drunk, Hayes. We have to share a room and I don’t want to have drunken sex or something…I would want to remember that,” he said with a wink, walking out of the room after handing her back her bottle.

She took a seat on the plush leather couch, sighing as she fell back on to the pillows. She couldn’t decide which tattoo she wanted to get yet, she was in between two choices: te desidero or respiratio omnibus. Georgia would know.

Peyton giggled as she watched a boy stumble into the room with his shirt misplaced. He had a beer in his hands and he had definitely had multiple earlier in the night. Even when he was on the stage he was blubbering about things that didn’t matter but Peyton couldn’t tell if he was really that far gone or if he was just pretending to so that he could get his mind off of his problems. He looked at her as his eyes narrowed, “You’re not Eric.”

Peyton laughed at his toothy grin, “I am not.”

John stumbled into the room and fell on the couch next to her. He leaned back to where his back laid over her stomach, his head resting on the support of the couch. He held a beer loosely in his hands, “Are you getting drunk, Miss Hayes?”

“I am planning to, Mr. O’Callaghan,” she smiled. She could feel the heat from John’s skin through her shirt and the closeness of them made her heart flutter. Over the past few days she and John had become rather good friends and they talked nearly every day now. She was the only one who knew about his pregnant girlfriend and every time she wondered what John kissed like or how it felt to be in his arms she tried to imagine that girl so that she could control herself. “How are you feeling?” She asked, worriedly.

John shrugged indifferently, “Right now, I just honestly want to forget about it all.”

Peyton bit her lip before taking a flask from inside her purse and filling it with the bottle in her hand’s clear liquid. She smiled at John once more before grabbing his hand and pulling him out of the room. “Come with me somewhere then! I need a friend right now.”

John snickered as she released his hand and he followed her out of the exit of The House of Blues and into the Mandalay Bay casino. Peyton seemed as if she knew exactly where she was heading and John followed behind her being engulfed with the smell of smoke from the building.

Peyton smiled as she saw the sign in front of her and smiled instantly: Sin City Tattoos. She walked in and saw a tall bald headed man sitting behind a black desk. He had tattoos all over his arms, complete sleeves, and piercings in his ears and eyebrows. Peyton walked up to the desk and smiled, “Hi, just one,” she smiled.

John looked at her, “Are you for real? You’re drunk you may want to think this through, Pey.”

“I’ve wanted to do this for a while, John. Don’t worry,” she smiled. “Besides, I’m only buzzed as of right now,” she laughed, throwing back a swig from her flask.

“You know it’s going to hurt right?”

“Really? It’s not like a sticker they dye your skin with?” She replied sarcastically with a wink. “Why do you think I started drinking first?”

John laughed and they followed the man down a small hallway and into a room that was covered in a red curtain. The two walked into the room and were met with a younger looking guy; Peyton wouldn’t deny that he was quite gorgeous—he reminded her of a younger Perry Farrell.

He smiled and his lip ring moved, “How we doing tonight my lady?”

Peyton grinned and sat down on the red bench in the middle of the room while John pulled up a seat next to her. “I’m doing well…so do I just tell you what I want?”

“I’m not a mind reader,” he chuckled. “I’m Adam.”

“Peyton,” she grinned. “And this is John.”

The guys nodded at one another before the focus was back on her. “So, what do you want?”

“Respiratio omnibus,” Peyton replied with a smile on her lips and excitement in her eyes, “Black cursive font.”

Adam pulled out a few demos of the font he was most comfortable with using and she chose one after a few minutes of debate. “Where do you want it?”

Peyton moved her long blonde hair and used her finger to point to a few inches below her neck in the middle of her upper back. Adam chuckled, “I-uhm, you’re going to need to remove your shirt darling.”

She looked at John who had a small smirk on his lips. “Look away,” she ordered and he grudgingly obliged. It wasn’t as if he hadn’t seen her in a sports bra already.

Peyton laid down on the red table clad in jeans shorts and her lacy pink bra and automatically regretted her choice on the lingerie. “You can look now.”

She watched as John turned back to her and took a swig of the beer in his hands. His eyes traveled down her thin frame and she felt a blush creep up her neck. She listened as Adam took a seat on a rolling chair next to her and put his hand on her back, “This may hurt a little,” he said honestly.

Peyton cringed in pain at the pointed edge from the needle and mindlessly reached for John’s hand. She closed her eyes and she felt John put his large hand in her hair, “It’s going to be okay, Hayes.”

He handed her flask from her purse to her and she graciously took another mouthful and she could feel her body finally feeling effects from the alcohol—she had always been a lightweight. With some crying, tequila, and nearly ripping John’s hand off her tattoo was completed and bandaged. She placed her shirt back over her head before her and John walked back into the casino.

“Thanks for coming with me,” Peyton smiled.

John looked at her from the corner of his eye and nodded his head. He took a drink from his beer bottle and looked at her, intrigued, “What does it mean?”

Peyton followed him out of the casino and onto Las Vegas Boulevard, the Las Vegas Strip. They began walking the busy street as they admired the large, picturesque buildings. “With every heartbeat,” Peyton replied at last.

“Why did you get it?” John asked.

She bit her lip, “Just something I’ve always wanted to do.”

John nodded his head as he realized that she didn’t want to discuss the topic. He handed her his beer and she took it graciously, taking the liquid into her body. She was almost drunk now, and her vision was starting to become blurred. She wasn’t sure how far they had walked or what time it was exactly but John and Peyton were soon making their way up to the hotel rooms.

“How is your girlfriend?” She slurred as they waited in the elevator.

“Still pregnant,” he said simply, his voice just as inaudible as hers.

Peyton turned and looked at the boy questioningly, “Well, what are you going to do about it?”

John shrugged, “Be there for her. What other choice do I have?”

“You could leave her.”

He looked at her unbelievingly, “How drunk are you?”

Peyton giggled, “I don’t know.”

“So, mental note, when Peyton gets drunk she becomes heartless,” he snickered.

They exited the elevator accordingly as it approached their floors and they began stumbling down the hallway looking for their room numbers. Peyton finally found the room she was sharing with Halvo.

Suddenly heard a noise. She wasn’t sure if she had heard correct at first but when she stared down the hallway she saw her standing there, a smile on her face. Then unexpectedly she walked away.

“Peyton?” John asked, making her turn to him.

She looked at him before glancing back down at the empty hallway. She shook her head, trying to regain her thoughts before simply chalking it up to the alcohol. Peyton smiled at the boy in front of her and kissed his cheek, “Good night, John Oh.”

She opened the door to her and Eric’s room and stumbled into the darkness, kicking off her shoes. She used her cell phone light to find a t-shirt that was lying on the floor. She realized it was Halvo’s from the show that night and she slipped on the white v neck shirt not caring that it was already worn. She slipped off her jean shorts and crawled into bed wearing just his shirt and her underwear.

Peyton felt Halvo shift on the bed and she giggled as she realized he was awake. A small amount of light was shining in through the curtains in their room and she could see him opening his eyes slightly, looking at her, “Hi Halvo!”

Eric rolled his eyes, “How drunk are you Peyton?” His sleepy voice asked.

She giggled drunkenly, “I dunnooooooo.”

He arched and eyebrow, “Do you feel like doing me right now?”

Peyton bit her lip and grinned, “Mhmm.”

Eric chuckled sleepily, “You drank a lot, Missy.”

“Maybe I secretly just want to do you all time,” she giggled.

Halvo lifted his eyebrows at the girl in front of him, “Oh is that so?”

“Mhmm,” she said, before stretching out. Her midriff was exposed and her arms lifted and she watched as Eric definitely noticed. “I think you want to do me all the time too.”

His eyes left her exposed stomach and turned back to her eyes, “Oh yeah? Why would you say that?”

Peyton smirked and leaned closer to him, “Someone told me,” she said simply, not saying it was John.

Halvo became confused as the only words he had said about her was that she was hot but weird. “Who was this?” He questioned.

She shrugged her shoulders and smiled simply at the boy. His brown hair was falling into his eyes and he had sleep written all over his face. His voice was deeper than normal and he was actually being nice to her. She liked this Eric. “Doesn’t matter,” she giggled. “What matters is that we want to do each other.”

Eric stared at the girl with his mouth open in amusement. He echoed her words from a few nights ago, “Are you flirting with me, Miss Hayes?”

Peyton smiled and looked into his green eyes, slurring a bit as she spoke, “Is it working?”

Halvo felt his cheeks heat up, “Maybe.”

She grinned at the boy shyly, her drunken mind taking over her body. Peyton confidently pressed her lips to Eric’s quickly, taking away the boy’s breath. It took a moment for him to respond, but after a few seconds his mouth moved against hers delicately, an amused smile on both of their lips.

Peyton pulled away from the meaningless kiss and giggled, “Goodnight Mr. Halvorsen.”

“Goodnight, weirdo.”
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OH SHOOOOOOOOOOOOT.
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