Accidents Happen

“Well you look… different.” Gavin commented while I stood in the doorway. I could feel his eyes roaming over my uncharacteristic outfit, stopping at my feet. “Nice shoes.” He added, referring to my converse clad feet.

“Oh, shut up. You didn’t think I’d be wearing high heels, did you?” I scoffed, punching him in the shoulder, pretending to be playful, but really getting back at him for the times he’d done it to me.

“Course not.” He chuckled, shaking his head as his eyes came back up to meet mine. “Shall we go?”

I nodded. When he turned around, I took the opportunity to appraise his outfit. Tousled hair, as usual, a checkered button down shirt, black skinny jeans, and a pair of Vans. Not too shabby, I thought.

He hurried ahead, opening my door for me, motioning for me to get in. “M’lady.” He said, sounding very proper. I nodded at him, laughing lightly as I got in the car. I smoothed my skirt down, buckling my seat belt while Gavin got in on the other side.

The trees whizzed by after we turned out of my driveway. The music was on, saving me from even having to think about small talk. I crossed my legs, shockingly free in my skirt. It was an old one from middle school. I hadn’t grown any taller, so even though I wore it high-waisted, it still brushed the tops of my knees.

My head fell back against the seat and I prepared for the long ride. My mind drifted off, like I knew it would, drowning out the music. Questions lingered in my mind from yesterday as I glanced over at Gavin’s concentrated face. Why hadn’t he wanted to sit with Julia Reynolds at lunch? Hell, by the way she was looking at him, she probably would’ve jumped through a flaming hoop to get him to take her on a date, and yet he didn’t break our plans for the party and take her instead. I’m sure he would’ve been more proud to show her off to his old friends than me.

Either way, it felt kind of nice to have Gavin as a friend. I loved my girl friends, but being with him felt more safe. If I were to walk down the street with Annabelle, I’d be a bit wary of any man who walked by. But if I were to walk with Gavin, I know he’d be able to protect me. I know that with how far women have come, a few would be rolling in their graves at what I was thinking, but it was true. As much as I hated to think about it, if a man had been walking by That Night, they could have fended Gideon off. I, on the other hand, was too weak.

Somewhere along my line of thoughts, my eyes started to droop with sudden sleepiness. Car rides always tired me, especially when there wasn’t a lot of noise aside from the radio and the roads were smooth.

***

“Come on sleeping beauty, we’re here.” A familiar voice announced. I mumbled something back, a little gurgled sound. “Is that so?”

I opened my eyes, remembering where I was. The first thing I noticed was the sunset displayed through the windshield, but then upon further inspection I came across Gavin’s amused face. I rubbed my eyes tiredly, feeling the drool around my mouth. My cheeks got hot and I wiped it away, hoping he hadn’t noticed.

“Did you have a nice nap?” He raised as eyebrow, turning off his car. He unlocked it with the key fob, a click sounding through the silence.

“Car rides make me sleepy. Sorry.” I apologized.

“It’s okay.” He shrugged. “I’d have slept on the way here if I could have.”

“And I’m glad you didn’t.” I laughed. We exited the car together, joining at the driveway.

Music blasted from the house, bass shaking it and the ground increasingly as we walked forward. It was already starting to get dark outside, but the party was just beginning. Gavin slung an arm around my shoulder and rang the doorbell, making me wonder what he had told his friends about his new school. What kind of date was I exactly?

I shrugged all my thoughts away, writing this off as normal. I figured that Gavin knew what he was doing and decided not to question him.

"Hey Reid." A deep voice greeted, causing me to snap my head toward the door. Gavin and who I assumed to be the host exchanged some sort of masculine gesture before he motioned us into the house. I'd say there were at least 30 or 40 people littered through the living room and hallway, which wasn't as bad as I thought. This house wasn't as daunting ad Gavin's, which was also a relief, so I dismissed all my worries of getting lost trying to find a bathroom or something.

"This is Fiona." Gavin introduced and I shook hands with the guy before me.

"I'm Blake." He stated, giving a firm shake to my pale hand. I could've laughed; that name was like the epitome of Pretty Boy names. "Would you like something to drink?" Blake offered me his arm.

"I'll show her to the kitchen, thanks." Gavin replied for me, grasp tightening around my shoulders.

"So it's like that, huh?" Blake raised an eyebrow. "Well damn, okay then."

Gavin promptly tugged me away, through the gaggles of people, until we came upon the kitchen. There was an icy bucket filled with wine coolers and beer. Gavin retracted his arm from me, taking a beer for himself, and offering me a wine cooler. I shrugged, why not? I took the beverage, popping the lid on the counter. Gavin raised an eyebrow.

"I never would've pinned you ad the type." He said, sounding rather impressed.

"My parents are social drinkers." I explained. "My dad's pretty much an alcoholic though. You just tend to pick those kind of things up."

"So by default, you're a social drinker?" He asked.

"Actually, I've heard that Scorpios and alcohol are a dangerous mix. I'm supposed to be a partier." I corrected. "I figured I'd put the theory to the test."

"This should be fun." Gavin chuckled, popping his lid on the counter with just a bit of difficulty and clinking his bottle against mine. "To new friendships."

"To new friendships." I echoed in agreement, nodding my head. I took the first sip of my drink, familiar taste rushing over my tongue.

My mom would let me an my brother each have a dixie cup full when we were little and she got a new one. My favorite was the blue, which was what I had now. My grandma had been appalled at my mother giving children sips of alcoholic beverages, but my mom had her own ways of parenting. I couldn’t decided if it was a nice change to the other kinds of parents of her day, or if she was just on non-illegal crack. I turned out pretty much not too abnormal, right?

"Shit, I guess I can't get too drunk. My mom will find out." I thought aloud when memories of my mom brought her to mind.

"Just tell your mom that you're over at Annabelle's place and come crash with me." He suggested.

"I don't know." I bit my lip. What if Gideon tried something? What if no one heard my cries? Their house was humongous, it wouldn’t surprise me.

"Have a little fun, Malone. Let loose for once." He urged, eyes twinkling with amusement. I couldn't say no to those sparkling green orbs.

"Okay." I sighed, taking another swig. "Just don't let me get too sloppy."

“I’m not promising anything.” He replied mischievously, taking a long drink of his beer.

I called my mom after that, letting her know I was staying at a friend’s. I just didn’t tell her which one. I knew I was abusing my mother’s trust, but I’d done it in the past. I even told her about later and she just told me to keep things like that to myself. This was an extreme circumstance, but still. Mom’s words can be counted on for future reference, right? …Right? I tried not to feel guilty about what I’d done and just have fun. With all the stress from school I deserved one night of partying and crashing at a friend’s house, or that’s what I told myself.