Breaking The Rules: Book 2

Chapter 33: Pulling The Cord

𝚂𝚊𝚝𝚞𝚛𝚍𝚊𝚢, 𝙾𝚌𝚝𝚘𝚋𝚎𝚛 𝟷𝚜𝚝
Griffin POV

The one and only reason why I agreed to come to this party was because of the free alcohol.

My parents are lame as hell. They lock up the liquor cabinet at home every time there's not guests over or some special occasion to attend too. That doesn't mean they disapprove of Roselyn and me drinking, they just try to be proactive.

But, they're also not stupid. They know that we drink when we go out to these parties. As long as we're dropped off at home by a sober driver or we spend the night with a friend, they're okay with it.

And after the past few months I've had, I deserve to let go and live a little again. This night is celebratory to me because when I was at the doctor on Wednesday for my weekly appointment, I finally got upgraded to a less-constrictive brace.

No more itches I can't reach, no more clunking up and down stairs, no more laying on my back all night.

This new son of a bitch is wrapped around the knee with Velcro, so any time I want it off, it's off. Which is only at night, according to the doctors orders, but it's still a win.

Don't get me wrong, I'm definitely not back in my prime and never likely will be, although it's a relief to know that I'm getting better.

My knee still aches every morning, and the muscles from the knee down are numb, I find it hard to wiggle my toes on my left foot, there's no way I can move faster than a hurried walk, and I rely on my cane more than I've ever relied on any person in my life, but still.

Like I said, I'll take my wins where I can get them.

Even now, I keep up with Roselyn and Forrest as we walk up the driveway to Josh's house.

We're late, thanks to my sister and her inability to pick one fucking outfit, and this is the first time that seeing a massive crowd of partying people makes my skin crawl. They're absolutely everywhere. The lawn, the porch, the pavement, the dark corners and shadows, spilling out of every door and even a few windows.

"When's the last time we've seen a party like this guys?" Forrest asks, his thumb running over Roselyn's hand.

"Never. This is insanity," I reply.

"And just think, this is the first one of the month! I wonder how much Josh paid the neighbors so they wouldn't call the cops." Roselyn looks up towards the third story on the house, her artificially straightened hair falling off her shoulders.

Forrest chuckles. "Probably a lot. Grif, will you be okay in there?" He tips his head to look around Roselyn, over at me.

"I'll be fine. Don't be worried about me. Pray for the idiots who get in my way." I pick up my cane for one odd stride and point it at him knowingly.

"I'd love to see you smack someone with that."

"Don't feed into his fantasies," Roselyn scolds Forrest and squeezes his hand.

Our lineup falls apart as we climb the stairs to the house. I have to step behind the pair because of the amount of people that are flowing up and down the stairs. Someone's toe catches the cane as they fly over the steps and I grunt as my stability is stolen from underneath me. I don't have the time to swing around and yell at them. They're already gone.