Crystal ran the brush through her blonde hair one last time. She let the black eyeliner pencil roll off of her fingertip and clatter into her massive pink, glittery Caboodle, and blinked a few times. She studied her reflection pensively. Hair up or down? Down worked better. Less mascara or more? More, always more.
She glanced at her cellular phone again. Bianca said she might not come, so she didn't really expect a call from her, but she was hoping the girl would join her. She dreaded spending the night chasing drunk Jessica around this house party.
Adrian's words floated through her head as she pattered down the stairs. The house was dark. Both of her parents were out of town, and she was alone. She was still early, though. The sun was just freshly set and the sky still had traces of pink, but inside with no light, the house seemed to loom around her.
"Be out of there before midnight..."
She shook it off. She hadn't spoken to him in nearly a week. She hadn't spoken to anyone. She'd taken a lot of down time to think about some things that had been bothering her. They were about herself, mostly, but a lot of it had to do with other people, too.
She let out PenPen, wondering why she'd ever named him after the penguin from NG:E in the first place. She was so stupid. As she waited by the door for him to pee on the neighbors mailbox, she glanced at the key rack on the counter. If dad was out of town... she could drive his car. He would never know. She walked to the keys, leaving the front door open for the dog. The Cobra or the Z06? Red or yellow? Well, she was wearing black and red, so.. she guessed she could take the Cobra. At least it'd... match?
She shut the door after the dog had gotten inside, and walked 'round to the garage to get the car, fingers still tapping her phone.
Ring. Ring, damnit. Ring.
She started the Cobra and backed it out of the driveway, pulling the E-brake and letting it warm up while she dialed Jessica's number.
"You ready?" she asked. From the way the girl talked, it sounded like it might be a bit of a drive. It was fine, she was game. Jessica confirmed, and said she'd be down in a second. Living right next door was sort of convenient like that. By the time the girl found her other shoe, the car would be well warm enough to boost on the cool night.
Still, as the girl hopped in and began talking, Crystal couldn't help but feel something dark inside her chest. Like she was walking into a room with one thousand razorblades, and she was blind.
She didn't really know why she didn't tell Kain the truth. Maybe it was because she was sure he'd begrudge her a night of fun. Maybe it was because her parents had never let her go out. Ever. She didn't want to risk that happening again. So instead she'd made an excuse about going for a walk, and dressed in a snazzy pair of black trousers and a green t-shirt -- the most 'sexy' clothes she owned -- under her jacket, she made her way out of the house and down the street to the nearest payphone*.
Fumbling up the note from her pocket where she'd written down Crystal's cell number, she put the coin in and dialled it with trembling fingers. Was she really doing this? Was she really breaking all rules this way?
"Crystal?" she said breathlessly to when she heard the sound of someone picking up. Then the payphone kicked in**, and she had to repeat it. "Crystal? I made it. Could you pick me up on the road maybe ten minutes by car north of Ramsa?"
She didn't know how to direct Crystal to pick her up inside this sorta secluded little town, so it'd be easier if she just trekked out to the road instead. Besides, hadn't Kain asked her not to tell anyone how to get there? She couldn't remember exactly what he'd said, but she did remember it had made sense, so she could humour him***.
~~*~~
*) Am assuming there is at least one in Mayhem. If there isn't, I'll have to edit it somehow.
**) Dunno how it is with American payphones, but at least with Swedish ones, there's this sorta pause after the other person picks up before they can actually hear you. Maybe two or three seconds or something. Very annoying, especially if you're calling someone who isn't aware of that and is impatient enough to hang up when they don't hear anyone at first *rolls eyes*
***) *cough* mindcontrol anyone?
Jessica actually answered Crystal's cell phone, and just said, "Oh, hold on a sec! She's driving! Real quick!" Crystal slowed down to catch the red light and pulled the phone from Jessica, trying to get the antenna untangled from the girl's long blonde hair.
"Lo? Bianca? Hey! It sounds like you're calling me from under water, are you on a pay phone?" Crystal started off in second and rolled up the window - hard to hear over Bassani exhaust. "Sure, I'll be there! Just stay close to the road. I'll.. well. You'll hear me coming."
She looked over at Jessica. "You're going to like Bianca, she's totally cool. She's so mellow it just makes me want to like lay down and listen to classical music or something."
Jessica made a face. "Whaaaat? Okay, whatever. If you say she's cool, then she's cool. Where is she at?"
"Heh, you know that one payphone off of 87? The one that sounds like you're on a clock radio? Dude I have called my parents so many times from that phone when I'd walk home from Becca's after practice and decide I didn't want to walk after all. By the gas station. With the sour candy things."
The other blonde's eyes lit up. "OH, that one! Okay, yeah. Shit, this means I have to ride in the back." She swung back into the leather seat and put on a pout.
When Crystal said 'You'll hear me coming' she meant it. The Cobra was -loud-. She hadn't convinced her father to switch to a Kenne Bell yet, but the stock Eaton was at max potential and it literally -screamed- when she hit WOT. Even after backing off of the throttle, she was sure that Bianca could have heard her from INSIDE the back of the small gas station.
She pulled alongside the sidewalk and Jessica got out, and introducted herself while pushing back the seat. "Hey, come on in! Just don't put the seat back too far, or you'll squish me!"
((Our phones do that here sometimes. Depends on which one you use. Takes a second to connect.))
Bianca did indeed hear Crystal coming, and waved slightly as the car slowed down and stopped. Well, paused at least.
"Hello," she said almost shyly to the girl who got out. "I'm Bianca," she introduced herself, even if she realized the other probably already knew that. Jessica. She'd have to remember that name. "You sure it's okay for you to sit in the back?" she asked. Surely Jessica was better friends with Crystal. "I won't mind, really."
Jessica shook her head. "If you want to sit in the back, be my guest. I'm too tall for it to work without laying across the seats."
Once they had figured out whatever seating arrangement they were going to use, Crystal started out towards the address on the card. "I tried to look it up on GPS but it didn't come up with anything. Do you know where it is?" she asked Jessica, putting the car into 6th gear finally.
"Yeah. It's a pretty decent distance out. Like.. you know where that creepy old farmhouse is on the other side of the woods? There's a neighborhood past there - that's where it is." Even Jessica thought it sounded weird, but the guy had told her that's where it was and she'd been there before, or, she thought she had, anyways. It was hard to explain, so she skipped it.
Crystal nodded, and turned her music up. The CD player had DJ Irene in it, and she used the noise as an excuse not to talk while she whipped out her phone and started to send a text message.
JUST PASSED MILE MARKER 15 HEADED NORTH TOWARDS THE WOODS. HOUSE IS ON THE OTHER SIDE FRIEND SAYS. WILL KEEP YOU POSTED.
She closed her phone, hoping Adrian was able to receive them, at least.
Back in Ramsa, Adrian's phone made a very quiet sound -- too low for normal ears to pick up amidst the traffic noise, but Adrian's ears weren't exactly normal. Taking it out, he opened the message and read it.
Two minutes later, he'd sent a short reply stating Will be around, had started his car, and was on the north-bound road from the town.
He parked the car in the woods, and left it there, shifting into wolf form and making it towards the location of the bash. It wasn't difficult to find, now that he was closer; the stench of vampire was strong.
Finding it, he lay down at a convenient distance -- too far away for them to notice him without actively looking, yet close enough to be able to get there in a hurry -- under a bush. And there he waited. He wasn't stupid enough to engage in combat with several vampires at once, not around innocent humans, and so he wouldn't do anything unless there was trouble.
~~*~~
I hurried Adrian's post along a bit cos he's not gonna do anything for quite a while.
Climbing in the back, Bianca sat back and strapped herself in even as Jessica got into the passenger seat up front. To be honest she felt a little out of place. She'd agreed to come with Crystal and had thought it would be a good thing, but would Crystal spend any time with her, or would her attention be caught by Jessica all the time? Maybe she'd made a mistake by coming. If she got out now, she still had a chance to get back before Kain missed her.
But then Crystal started the car again and they were off, and it was too late. For a moment or two, Bianca debated asking Crystal to stop, but the music put an end to that.
Never mind, she told herself. She'd just have to cheer up and get ready to have some fun. She'd be fine. It was just a nice, private party, right? It would be a good place to go for your first night out.
To distract herself, she started tapping the beat of the music against her knee, her mind going through possible dance movements to it.
~~*~~
^^;; sorry, no dialogue.
Crystal parked a house down from where all the cars were lined up. She got out alongside Jessica and held the seat back for Bianca to crawl out. The Cobra was definitely another one of those 'back seats for insurance purposes only' cars. Her family had a knack for them.
"I'll be damned, this place is packed," she said, eyes wide. There wasn't anyone outside and there was no noise. It was still early, but holy Christ. She started walking towards the house and began to feel the base along the sidewalk. "Everyone must be inside," she drawled, taking out her cell phone. She shot Adrian a quick physical address and then put it in her little belt clip.
"I guess you can go first, Jessica, since you invited us on your behalf." She looked at her, waiting for Bianca to catch up. Jessica shrugged and pulled the invite out of her back pocket. She walked to the door and rapped on it, jumping back when someone answered.
An attractive blonde boy smiled as he saw the three girls. "Here for the party?" he asked. Jessica beamed and handed over the invite.
"Brought some friends. Hope you don't mind," she giggled.
"Of course not," he said. "Come on in, ladies. Drinks, music, pool table, actual pool in the back. Help yourselves."
Inside, the house was big. Outside it had been deceptively small but Crystal was pretty surprised to find long walls and high ceilings. Stairs, living room, den, kitchen.. she explored the place as quickly as possible, trying to make note of exits and bathrooms. Jessica had wandered off but she tried to keep close to Bianca.
Was she the only one who felt sort of weird here?
Climbing out from the car in silence, Bianca followed the other two girls to the house.
(A small, private party?) she thought in half-panic at the many cars. Maybe she'd been mistaken. Maybe...
She smiled a little at Crystal and walked a little faster, catching up to her and Jessica, reaching the door just as it was opened.
The boy opening the door was cute, and sort of reminded her of a younger Kain. The temptation to 'cheat' on Kain passed before her inner vision, but then she discarded it. Kain would most likely not really care anyway. Sure, he'd said he was fond of her, but that didn't mean he'd be jealous.
(Oh my god, they have a pool?) she thought as she went inside, and then kept on being amazed by how huge the house really was. Bianca wasn't sure she really liked it though. There were so many people around, and she knew she must seem like a kid next to all these grownups and halfway so. Even Jessica seemed not to mind, and moved among them as though she belonged here.
Bianca didn't. How could she?
Crystal ran a finger along the neck of her top (http://www2.victoriassecret.com/images/prodlgvw/V248115.jpg) and sighed. She wasn't sure what to do. She glanced over at Bianca as Jessica had already began seeing people she knew.
"Let's get some soda or something?" she suggested. She stepped back so another attractive boy could cut between them, to which he offered a grunt of apology and moved on. She was beginning to notice that most of the guys here were actually very good looking. What the hell? She didn't recognize any of them from Ramsa High. Maybe Jessica had been holding out? A vision of Adrian flittered across her mind, but it wasn't like they were even dating. Or even talking. Or anything.
Crystal sighed to herself and awaited Bianca's decision. The girl looked like she was uncomfortable here. Crystal wanted to tell her everything was all good, but then again, Adrian had her so paranoid that she just wouldn't flat out lie to her like that.
Dominic had pretty much invited himself to the bash -- although he had been nice enough to ask once he got there if it was alright. After being told the rules and to behave -- yes, yes, no feeding until midnight, don't start any fights. Gah, what's wrong with you guys? -- he'd decided to mingle with the people there.
Okay, so he looked a little young, but according to his student identity he was sixteen, so that was the story he was sticking to here. And of course a general touch of 'trust me' in his aura didn't do any harm.
"Hey," he told a girl who'd just arrived. "You're Jessica, right? I've seen you around school."
Of course, he hadn't really seen her enough to even recognize her, but that was nothing a little mindscanning couldn't fix. One little peek, and he knew her name, favourite subject and address -- should he ever need it.
"I'm Dominic."
Bianca looked away from all the strangely good-looking guys -- and girls, she had to admit. There were some really gorgeous women in there, making her feel less than adequate -- and smiled at Crystal.
"Yeah, soda sounds good. I don't... I'm sorry if I don't know what to do or anything."
She bit her lip nervously. She had told Crystal it was her first time out, hadn't she? Right now, she couldn't remember.
Jessica half turned to the guy who was speaking to her. She herself was 5'7, so that put 5 inches, plus those crazy heels she wore, putting her at a total of almost 5'10. She idly thought about sitting down to accomidate him more.. wait, what the hell? She took a drink of her Smirnoff Twisted Apple. No, it wasn't that strong.
"Yeah, I'm Jessica. I don't think I've seen you around, though. Dominic, you say? Oh wait, aren't you new?" He sort of felt familiar, but she couldn't place it. "How'd you come across an invite to this place?" Jessica asked, steadily realizing that all of the people here were like the 10% of the schools in the areas. It looked like a friggin' voting pool for Prom King and Queen. Some of the people she didn't recognize, though, but she just assumed they were from other districts.
Meanwhile..
Crystal went with Bianca into the kitchen, narrowly avoiding a beer spill. She shrank back against the wall. "Ew? Oh my god, live in a barn much?" she asked. The boy turned around - it ended up being the same person she'd been giving shit to the day she'd met Bianca. He said something nasty and walked off.
"Yeah? Drop dead," she snapped in return. She picked up a 2 litre of Dr. Pepper and poured herself a glass in one of those typical red plastic party cups. "Okay Bianca, there's Sprite, Pepsi, Coke, Dr. Pepper, and.. ooh, Root Beer." Immediatly she regretted going for the DP first.
In the middle of a party full of a ton of sexy people, and what is she doing? Marveling over root beer. In all fairness, almost nobody carried it or drank it around her, so she didn't see it much.
Dominic smiled at the much taller girl, not really minding the height difference.
"Yeah, I guess I'm fairly new. Me and my dad moved here this summer."
Dad, right. The guy posing as his father happened to be a bloodbond of his, but who would ever know that?
"My dad knows that guy over there-"
He gestured to one of the good-looking ones across the room.
"-so I kind of decided it'd be fun to go."
He looked up at her.
"What about you?"
Bianca's nose turned up a little at the smell of beer. Of course, it was nothing new, but she'd never come to like the smell of it. Then again, usually when she smelled it, it was mixed with other bad stuff too, so maybe it was just how she associated it.
Glancing after the boy -- he went to school with them, didn't he? Of course he did, silly Bianca, where else would he go? -- she then hurried after Crystal, looking the different kinds over and trying to decide.
"Sprite, I think," she said after a few moments, picking the bottle up and pouring it into a clean cup. She'd heard stories at her old school about people putting stuff in drinks to get at them, and while she hoped this was a nice party, Sprite would allow her to see if anything was put in there. She hoped.
"So what do you do at parties, really?" she asked quietly, not wanting anyone to overhear and laugh at her for asking such a stupid question.
Jessica shrugged a little, taking another sip of her drink. "Meet the right people, say the right things, go to the right parties... They've been raving about this one for a while now. I was pretty stoked when I found an invite. I don't see what the big deal is, except, for my best attempts, I cannot find one ugly person here. Like.. it's weird. I hope this doesn't turn into some crazy Eyes Wide Shut shit."
God, Jessica was so in the dark about everything. Oh well. She was worried about hair and grades and gas money and spring break... not vampires sucking her blood and damning her soul!
Crystal shrugged. "I dunno. Walk around. Mingle. Talk to people. Pretend you give a shit about what they're saying." She moved as a drunk girl wandered by, again sloshing beer everywhere. "Holy shit, do these people not care about how much that stuff costs? Ugh come on, we're like walking targets."
Crystal also detested the smell of beer. She was a mixed drink or a no drink sort of girl. "Let's just go outside," she said. She looked at the kitchen clock. 9:20. Funny, it seemed like they'd been there longer.
"Yeah, I know," Dominic said with a slight chuckle. "You'd think we were in Hollywood or something, and not in Ramsa."
He smiled.
"Then again, most parties get a bit more fun after midnight or so, when the boring people have left and things really get going. So hopefully this one'll be the same."
He sipped the coke he had, looking around a bit. Of course, he could just as well have been drinking medical alcohol, and it wouldn't have made a difference other than taste. As it was, he happened to prefer coke to beer. Anything stronger than that, and people would start wondering after a while why he didn't get piss drunk.
"You're staying till after that, I hope?" he smiled.
Bianca rolled her eyes.
"Well, with this house, maybe they don't?"
God knew Kain was loaded, and his house was a lot smaller than this. So if whoever lived here could afford to live here, not to mention arrange parties like this, then they had to have the money for it.
"Outside sounds good. Did they they say there was a pool?"
Bianca had never known anyone who had a pool in their back yard.
When they got outside, Crystal sat down in a chair by the pool. Hardly nobody was outside, except for a few random people. Crystal found it sort of odd that they'd basically been getting ignored. Hm. Maybe serial killers weren't into the dynamic duo for some reason. Maybe she used the right 'killer away' perfume?
Oh, there was Adrian all up in her thoughts again. She sighed and drank some of her soda. Time to chat.
"So what do you think? This place is like almost as big as my house. I didn't even think there was any property out this way." She settled back into the little fold out chair, tapping her feet on the smooth pavement as the music inside boomed enough for her to hear the beats clearly.
--
Jessica shrugged. "That depends on my friends. Knew I'd be drinking so I had her drive, and it's pretty much up to her when we leave.. I know what you mean, though. But are all of these people really boring? It seems like everyone knows everyone. Kind of weird."
She smiled at him a little. "You look a little young to even be at a party. Let me see your ID!" she said playfully. She was just teasing of course. Well, sort of. She was pretty sure he was twelve. He didn't -sound- twelve, though. But he was so friggin' short! Didn't boys have like a growth spurt at some point? Maybe Jessica was just a freak. Well, she was taller than her dad..
Dominic shrugged.
"I'm gonna call my dad to pick me up after I'm bored of things. We could give you a ride if you want to stay longer than your friend."
He chuckled and pulled out his wallet from the inside pocket of his leather jacket, opened it and pulled out his most recent ID card, stating that he was indeed sixteen.
"Here you go," he said with a wry grin. "People ask me about it all the time. And then they try to comfort me by saying that in twenty years I'll be happy I look younger than I am. Don't look at the picture, though. I look horrible."
He didn't, but people tended to always think they looked worse than they did. Dominic was good at acting.
"Yeah, it's a big house," Bianca agreed with a nod, sitting down next to Crystal, pulling up one leg so the ankle rested under her other knee. "Kain's house isn't as large as this one, but then again, he doesn't really have a family."
She looked away.
"I guess the reason for that is pretty clear now."
(No. That's not what I should think about now. I'm supposed to have fun.)
She forced herself to smile up at Crystal.
"I've never known anyone with a pool before. Have you?"
Crystal giggled a little. "We have a pool. It's in the back between the guest house and the tennis court. THAT I don't know why we have.. nobody plays tennis. But then again, I'm from California. Like, even the little po-dunk houses in the ghetto had above-ground pools. It was pretty warm all-year 'round there. Here, though. It gets cold, so I can understand why a lot of people don't." She shrugged. "It may get cold, but it still gets hot, and community pools are gross. Ever wonder why the water is so warm? Kids pee in it!" she squealed. Crystal was like a thirteen year old sometimes.
"I guess it's like using a public restroom, though. If you really have to go, you really just have to go. Can't pick and choose. When I was really little, before my parents pretty much struck oil in their careers, I remember having to swim in one. And there was this little Mexican boy who always used to hold my hand because I was scared I'd drowned, heh." She laughed a little.
--
Jessica glanced over Dom's ID. Well, sure as shit he was 16. She raised her brows. "You're not even an entire year younger than me," she said. She would've made the young/old comment, but he'd pretty much just expressed his disdain for it so she went ahead and bypassed it.
"I don't know about staying," she said. He may be a nice guy and all, but still, bailing on Crystal was bad juju. "She might stay anyways. I don't know where her and that other girl went. Maybe they found some people they knew."
All the better for her to stay and horde this one to herself.
Keaira sat beside her "cousin" Dillon as he drove her and her other cousin, Dillon's twin Rebecca to a party. Becca had somehow obtained an invite and practically forced the two of them to go with her to the party. Bella had wanted to go but her parents thought 15 was too young of an age to be going to a party.
"So how'd you get the invite Becca? Isn't this suppose to be some sort of super exclusive invite only thing?" Keaira asked with one arched eyebrow.
Becca grinned at Keaira leaning in closer to the two up front. "Well, let's just say I know people." Winking she sat back her presence screaming that she was pleased with herself.
"Stop acting so damn pleased with yourself Bec." Parking the car out in front of the house the party was to be he turned the car off and looked at all of the cars surprised by the number of them. And this was suppose to be exclusive? Who wasn't invited? The President?
"We're here! Come on guys, get your butts outta the car and let's have some fun!" Grinning she jumped out of the car and pulled the invite from her bag. Leading the way over to the house the other two hesitantly followed her. Knocking on the door she shoved the invite into the waiting hands of the person who entered and made her way into the house.
Keaira sighed following Becca into the house sticking close to Dillon. If she had to be here then she was going to stay with someone that she knew, and Dillon she knew was at least sane.
(O.C DUDE!!! Multicolored!!! ^^)
Bianca stared at Crystal.
"You're kidding! You have a pool? And you didn't tell me?"
She blinked.
"And a tennis court?"
She blinked again. Man, talk about a completely different social class. For a moment, Bianca was jealous, but then she shook her head and shrugged it off. It didn't really matter. She'd had a fairly good childhood anyway, and since Crystal was her friend, she didn't really begrudge her that money. And she wasn't going to use Crystal to get at it either. She wasn't like that.
"Can I come over at some point and use it?"
She considered things and realized the weather was getting a bit too cold to swim.
"Err... Maybe next summer, though."
If she was still here by then. She hoped she'd be.
Crystal shrugged. "Sure. Like I said, you can stay in the guest house whenever you want. We have a hot-tub, too, but it's covered up. Still not warm enough yet for it."
She shifted in her chair. "You know, most of the parties I've been do have been really wild. This is sort of nice. We haven't really been harassed, except for the beer spilling. Twice. I don't know where Jessica went, though.. She probably ran into someone she knows."
Crystal craned around in her chair, stretching to see her through the French doors that had led to the pool. She could see the blonde talking to someone, but couldn't tell who. She turned back around. "Probably trying to hit on someone. Shameless hussy," she said into her drink. She didn't mean it. Well, not really.
Dominic chuckled.
"Yeah, I know," he commented about the age difference. "I've always been small for my age. Well, most of me, at least."
He smiled innocently.
"Do you want us to go find your friends, or would you rather let them find their own fun?"
He wouldn't really mind either, but he preferred to talk to them one by one.
Casting a glance towards the door where a younger vampire opened the door -- a woman, this time -- he recognized the Irish girl from school. Keaira, yes. Ah well. If she saw him, he'd say hello. Otherwise he'd let it pass.
She shook her head. "No, we don't have to go find them. I'm sure she'll find her way back in here eventually." She hoped it wouldn't be for a while. She sort of liked talking to Dominic. He was so much more down to earth than most of the other guys she knew at the party.
She glanced over to the door, but didn't recognize anyone who came in. Jessica glanced back to Dominic. "So, what else do you do besides go to school and come to parties?"
Dominic grinned when she said she didn't want to go find her friends. So much better.
"Well..." He thought about it for a moment. "I work out now and then -- martial arts and stuff, not weights -- and I like swimming. Oh, and I'm currently working on designing a computer game. My dad's a programmer, so I guess I got it from him. I tend to like the games more than the programs, though, so that's what I like to do."
He smiled a little, having made sure to keep out the less healthy things he did. Like killing people.
"What about you?"
Keaira scanned the room, keeping to Dillon?s elbow, with the hope that she would find someone she knew. Then she would know that Dillon and herself weren?t the only sane ones.
?Do you see anybody you recognize?? She asked Dillon as Becca melted into the crowd. ?Well, there goes Becca.? She muttered.
?I should go after her, you know she has a habit of getting herself into trouble. Keaira try not to flirt yourself into a bedroom, kay?? He taunted knowing Keaira to be a flirt. Darting after his twin Keaira could hear him calling out to get her attention.
Keaira shook her head at the Craig twins antics. Becca had a habit of getting herself into trouble and Dillon was always there to bail her out. It was cute. Searching the crowd again Keaira spotting someone she knew, Dominic the younger looking boy that went to her school. He was talking to some blond though?oh well, the more the merrier. Wandering over to the pair she smiled at Dominic and the girl.
?Hey, hope you don?t mind me interrupting.?
Jessica looked at Keaira and smiled back, though internally she was thinking, "This bitch better back the fuck off." She sort of blinked, smile freezing, and caught herself. What? She looked back at Dom, confused. Why should she get all possessive? She just met this guy. And he looked way younger than her, even IF his ID said otherwise. What was her deal?
"You know what, I need to get some air," she said hurridly. If Dom even checked he'd sense her sudden confusion and unease. "Be back in a few minutes," she added, trying not to appear like a huge bitch to Keaira.
Meanwhile, Crystal and Bianca remained outside. Crystal idly glanced at her watch. Time was moving at warp turtle speed right now. She looked over at Bianca. "We should just ditch," she said. "We should go back to my house and make popcorn and do eachother's nails and watch lame movies."
Just then, Jessica came outside. She spotted Bianca first and hurried over to them.
"Hey!" she said, half-winded. Her cheeks were flushed. "I wondered where you guys had gotten off to! I'm almost about to have had my fill of this place. Cute guys, but lots of drunk people running around."
Now, Jessica was a party animal. That didn't seem to make a lot of sense coming from her. Maybe something had spooked her?
Crystal frowned. "Are you feeling okay?"
Keaira noticed Jessica?s current state of confusion and was at a loose as to what could have caused it. Did she just walk in on something? Her outward expression showing little confusion she smiled and waved goodbye to the blond. Watching her walk out she turned back to Dom and tilting her head to the side she raised a questioning eyebrow.
?Did I walk in on something or was that normal?? She asked her voice light. Yes she was curious as to the blonde?s abrupt exit but she did nothing wrong so she wasn?t worried it had anything to do with herself.
Jessica shrugged a little. "I dunno, just felt all flushed suddenly and came outside. Hey, nice pool," she said, surprised. "This house is friggin' huge."
Crystal nodded. "I was going to suggest to Bianca that we go exploring since you were caught up. It looks like it's a two story but I bet there are tons of rooms to check out. Maybe we can find some video games or something.. something better than standing around bullshitting."
?Hey, hope you don?t mind me interrupting.?
Dominic smiled at Keaira as she came up to them. Actually, he did mind, but it would be rude to tell her that straight out.
"Well... Just a-"
"You know what, I need to get some air," Jessica suddenly said, excused herself and turned to walk away. Shit. There went his lunch. He should have tried to control her a little bit more than he had. But he rather liked the challenge of making them accept it of their own free will -- not knowing exactly what they agreed to, of course.
?Did I walk in on something or was that normal?? Keaira asked as he looked after Jessica.
"I wouldn't know. I just met her," he replied, keeping his annoyance to a minimum as he eavesdropped on Jessica's conversation with her friends.
She wanted to leave? That would be such a pity.
"I don't think she's feeling too well," he said almost absently.
He didn't really want to risk losing this one either, however, just to go after Jessica... Call him greedy, but two snacks were a lot better than one, especially if he didn't want to kill them. Normally, he wouldn't care, but he didn't want to pick off too many students.
Smiling up at Keaira and exerting a tiny bit of influence on her, he apologized.
"I'm really sorry... Would you mind waiting if I went to see if she's alright?"
"We should just ditch," Crystal suddenly said. "We should go back to my house and make popcorn and do eachother's nails and watch lame movies."
That sounded like a rather fun idea, but no. Bianca had decided to go out to a party, and she wasn't going to chicken out just like that. She didn't have the chance to suggest anything else, however, before Jessica came out, looking decidedly... not as confident as before.
And her arguing for leaving this early didn't really match with what Bianca had seen of her so far, and apparantly Crystal agreed since she asked if Jessica was okay.
Crystal's next words, however, startled Bianca, and she stared at her friend.
"I was going to suggest to Bianca that we go exploring since you were caught up."
What? That hadn't at all been what Crystal had been saying. Then she smiled. Exploring sounded like a better option than just leaving.
"Yeah, that sounds like a good idea," she therefore said. "What do you think?"
(For reference, this (http://www.istockphoto.com/file_thumbview_approve/703357/2/istockphoto_703357_blonde_model.jpg) is Jessica. Well, best I could come up with on the fly. An idea anyways.)
Jessica looked down, and then shrugged. "I guess I just got a little anxious. I don't know why. I'm being stupid." She laughed, suddenly mind not feeling very foggy at all, and wondered why she'd just done what she'd done in the first place.
"You guys go ahead. I was talking to a cutie in there and I totally just ran off. What a moron I am!" She giggled again. Poor Jessica. So confused. So utterly teenager.
Crystal looked at Bianca. "Well that leaves us two." She stood up and ran her hand through her hair. "Where you think we should start? Top and work our way down? I bet they have a creepy attic we can snoop in."
Keaira tilted her head to the side noting Dominic's distracted manner. Rethinking her interuption, she was debating one looking around for someone else to talk to. After all it was a party, and Keaira normally liked parties. But when he asked he to wait, well he was so far the only one she reconigized. And besides, she could always mingle later.
"No problem, I'll be in here." She replied, she had no where else to go anyway.
Dominic smiled at the human.
"Thanks, Keaira. I owe you one."
Had she been of more average height with him, he'd have given her a quick kiss before leaving, but as it was, he simply blew her one before winking and turning to follow Jessica.
He did notice her change of heart halfway there, and smiled contentedly. He made sure to turn his smile a little worried as he stepped out on the tiles leading up to the pool and where Jessica's friends were sitting.
"Hey, Jessica..." he called out softly. "You okay? You weren't trying to ditch me, were you?"
Bianca smiled at Crystal.
"Yeah, top down sounds like it could be interesting."
She wasn't too keen on the creepy attics, but then again she guessed that a house such as this wasn't bound to have too creepy an attic. After all, it wasn't an old house.
She turned her eyes to the door when it opened, and her eyes widened at the sight of the boy there. Sure, he was just a kid, even if -- like with Eek -- appearances could be deceiving, but when he grew up? Man, he could even rival Kain. Not that she was going to leave Kain for anyone, no. Eek or no Eek, she'd win Kain's heart.
Shaking herself a little, she looked back to Crystal.
"Well, she seems set? Should we go?"
Crystal nodded. "Yep, let's get to it." She smiled at Dominic, though she didn't really know him too well. She touched Jessica on the arm. "You going to be okay?"
Jessica nodded, and shrugged a little. "I'll be fine. Don't know, just.. needed some air is all." She giggled a little. Dominic was out there.. maybe he really was interested? Usually if a girl runs off a guy doesn't chase after. She wasn't even trying to play coy about anything. Hm. She turned her attention back to the blonde, blushing slightly.
"I wasn't trying to ditch you, honest. I just felt a little suffocated inside. Hey, do you know what time it is?"
Meanwhile, Crystal began exploring, starting with the staircase. She and Bianca would elbow past a few couples thinking the stairs were a good place to make out and after she'd gotten to the top step, she'd stop. "Which room?" The hall was long - really long, like that Five and a Half Minute Hallway song by Poe. She got a little dizzy looking at it.
Bianca smiled a little at Dominic and Jessica as she passed them, and then hurried her step a little to catch up with Crystal. For some reason, there seemed to be people everywhere, including on the stairs, and she kept bumping into them as she tried to get past, which awarded her a few angry glares amidst the kissing and not always so decent fondling. Blushing embarrassedly, she apologized to every one of them until she finally reached the top, catching her breath slightly as she looked down the way long hallway.
"Umm... The furthest off one?" she asked back.
"Sounds good to me!" she said. Good ol' enthusiastic Crystal was back, it seemed. She practically bounced down the hall, relishing the thought of being able to go through someone else's stuff for a change. She wuoldn't "go through" it, though. She just wanted to peek inside and have a look-see.
As she opened the door, she half-turned, waiting for Bianca before she flipped on the light.
"C'mon slowpoke, those people probably don't even notice you. I'm surprised they didn't try to pull you into their friggin' make-out session. With all these rooms you'd think they'd find a bed somewhere or something." She snorted.
At those words, Bianca flushed almost as red as her hair, and she looked down at the floor.
"T-they wouldn't, right?" she squeaked out. She had no interest in joining in anything -- well, other than Crystal's exploring. Besides, she was interested in Kain, not these people, even if some of them were almost as gorgeous as Kain.
So she followed Crystal through the door, not taking notice at all of the lone vampire studying them from the top of the stairs before smiling to himself and slowly and silently making his way towards them.
Crystal looked back at her, and gave her a flat face. "You never know.. hormones. Ugh!" She waited for Bianca to catch up and then pushed into the room. It was sort of strange. The room that must've led to the attic, she thought, as she stepped through the door. It was mostly empty, except with a small table and a chair, and some papers. There was an old bookcase, too, but it was almost empty.
"Jeez, this room doesn't even look like anyone's been in here for years," she breathed to Bianca. "Look, there's like an inch of dust.. on.. everything." She narrowed her eyes for a second, getting a creepy sensation on the back of her neck.
"God, freaky empty rooms are so.. weird." The blonde had a massive vocabulary, really.
"Uh-huh," Bianca agreed, biting her lip slightly as she looked around the room. "You'd think they'd at least clean in here, right? I mean, even if no one actually uses this room."
For a fleeting moment, she considered if they perhaps didn't live here, but only used the house now and then to party in. Then she dismissed the thought. Who'd have a house like this and not live in it?
(Celebrities,) her mind supplied quickly. The kind with too much money to know what to do with it. The kind of people some of the ones downstairs seemed to be.
"Did you two get lost?" a velvet voice asked from behind them, and Bianca spun around.
"I- No, we just..."
Taken by surprise, she found herself blushing and stuttering at being caught somewhere they probably weren't supposed to be. She backed up toward Crystal, seeking some kind of confirmation.
"Ah, I see." The gorgeous guy grinned suddenly. "You were just getting some... privacy, weren't you?"
For a moment, Bianca didn't catch his drift, but when she did, she gaped at him, eyes huge. Shocked at being accused of something like that, she couldn't think of something to reply with.
~~*~~
Just tell me if I'm moving too fast, or if there's something you don't like, and I'll edit ^^;;
Crystal didn't like how the guy had just followed them into an empty room - in fact, she still had Adrian's warning floating around in her head and some bells and whistles were starting to go off.
"Yes, actually. We did want to be alone," she said, and put her arm protectively around Bianca. She prayed the girl would just play along. She flashed the man one of her 110% smiles and flipped her blonde hair around a little. She hoped he would go away...
"Sorry, but if you don't mind, my girlfriend and I were about to have a small talk." She looked at Bianca seriously, and suddenly snapped into super-jealous mode. "So who was that guy I saw you talking to? Is he better than me or something?"
Men usually tried to stay away from catfights when it came to lovers; she hoped he was no different. She squeezed Bianca's hand reassuringly though, trying to get her to play along.
(Nah, s'fine!)