Words & Whiskey

EDITED VERSION: Chapter Eight

The next two weeks was hell. School was kicking me in the butt, Darian was gone all the time so he could see Justin, and I avoided Nathan at all costs. The only thing I was looking forward to was Samara's birthday party that would be happening this Friday.

Right now, Sam and I stood in the middle of some boutique she's obsessed with so we could shop for the special occasion.

She inspected each rack, her eyes narrowed in concentration as she was determined to find the perfect dress. One caught her eye and she held it up to her chest as she inspected it in the mirror. "I like it, but I don't know how I feel about the colour purple."

I crept up beside her and stared thoughtfully at her reflection in the mirror. "Why don't you try a red? A bright cherry red. I think it would go well with the lipstick you always wear."

Samara arched a perfectly shaped brow as she nodded her head. "I like the way you think."

Without saying anything more, she put the plum-coloured dress on the rack and searched intensely for a red dress that was the perfect shade. Meanwhile, I half-hearted looked for something for me to wear. The last party I went to was the one at Justin's nearly three weeks ago, I could simply wear the same dress that I wore to that, but I knew Sam would pester me about wearing something different to amp up my wardrobe.

Although I was looking forward to my friend's party this weekend, part of me was dreading it because it took me quite a few days to recover from the last one. I wasn't used to partying all that much. A party back at Trillium Creek was five people getting drunk off coolers in a basement, this was a whole other level.

I walked to a different rack and sifted through the dresses until I found one that I liked. It was honestly the simplest dress ever, but it was nice. Taking it from the rack, I went to the fitting room to see how it looked.

Quickly undressing out of my skinny jeans and my contrast cropped hoodie from Tommy Hilfiger, I slipped the dress on. I inspected myself in the mirror, it may be simple but it certainly hugged all the right areas. It was a black, short sleeve off-shoulder dress that cut off mid-thigh.

I stepped out of the fitting room so Samara could see it and she pointed at me with a stern look. "If you don't get it, I'm honestly going to kill you."

"Fine, I'll get it," I laughed and added, "But only because you asked me so kindly."

Samara rolled her eyes and pointed to the dress she had on. "Yay or nay?"

I tilted my head as I inspected her. It had a similar fit as mine, but it was a bright red, which she paired with golden strapped heels and a nice chunky metallic gold bracelet. I nodded my head in approval. "You look like a Goddess. If you don't get that whole ensemble, I'm going to kill you."

"No need to murder me, darling, I was going to get it whether you approved of it or not," Sam replied with a wink, turning back to her fitting room to get changed.

I rolled my eyes and went back to mine, silently hoping that this party would be different than the last.

***

When I got home, Nathan sat on the couch with someone I had never seen before, although, sitting wasn't the most appropriate term as the girl was straddling him in nothing but her lace bra and mini skirt. I stopped in my tracks at the sight and the apartment door slammed as the auto-lock kicked in. I winced as the girl stopped what she was doing to Nathan and snapped her eyes in my direction. She had long, unnaturally red hair and thick dark eyeliner, which made her penetrating gaze more intimidating.

"Who is this?" she demanded, turning to Nathan looking incredibly pissed.

"S-Sorry," I stuttered as I walked slowly to my room before Nathan could respond to the girl.