Stairways | A Surviving Summer FanFiction

Part 51 - Crashers

At 6 o'clock, you finish eating dinner with your mum (Marlon is still nowhere to be found), and head upstairs after making the excuse that you're getting ready for an early night.

Ari headed home after your chat, your mum ushering him out the door muttering something about you needing rest and the house being 'stressful enough as it is'. You keep thinking about what he said, and yet you've not really thought about it at all. About what it will mean. Will Poppy care? You still haven't forgotten about that little moment she had with Ari a few weeks back.

You grab a pair of jeans and a top from your wardrobe and at 7 o'clock a text appears on your phone from Summer, saying she's just outside your house.

It's still completely light outside, with no sign of the sun setting yet, which makes your escape plan seem even more impossible - running along the drive in broad daylight doesn't seem like the best plan, especially when you can hear your mum watching television below you in a room that overlooks the front garden.

You decide that sneaking past your mum and through the front door like you did on Summer's first night is not the best solution, so you open your window, and look down at the drop - only a seven foot drop at most, and if you use the drainpipe, it won't be very high at all.

After slinging your bag over your shoulder, you place both feet out the window and turn onto your front, feeling your way down the side of the house with your feet as you gently drop down with your arms. Then, you let yourself go and feel yourself plummet the last few feet, hoping the sound of your feet hitting the ground doesn't make enough noise for anyone to hear.

When you make it to the end of the driveway, you expect to see Summer, but what you don't expect is for Ari to be with her. You try to hide what you expect to be a very surprised look on your face as you put the issue with Ari to the back of your mind for the sake of Summer.

"So I guess you guys made up." you say, grabbing both of their attention as they turn around.

"Not exactly." Ari says begrudgingly. "But she can be pretty persuasive." he shrugs.

"Relax, Gibson. You know you love having me around," Summer smiles. "And what better place to forget about all this stuff than a party!"

"I can think of a million different things I'd rather do than go to a party right now." Ari groans.

"Lighten up - I'm sure Bodhi wouldn't want to hear you say that." you say. The three of you have started subconsciously strolling along the coast path, Ari's protests about the party doing nothing for his cause.

"The fact that it's Bodhi's party is the only thing making me go," he complains. "I don't want to disappoint her or anything."

"The only reason? Really?" you ask incredulously, grinning up at him as you watch him roll his eyes.

"Shut up." he replies, struggling to hide his smile.

"Okay, chill out lovebirds. I can't go the whole way listening to you two flirt," Summer rolls her eyes and laughs with her usual exuberant tone. But it fades off, and you watch as she avoids your gaze and clears her throat awkwardly. There's something going on with her, you think. You thought about it the other day, when she came to visit you, but you didn't push it, and you're not about to now. Not if she doesn't bring it up first. You end up brushing it off as Summer being tense about the situation with her mum, and you decide to keep your mouth shut. It's her business, after all.

Eventually you reach the surf club, where Bodhi's holding her party. The place is already pretty busy.

You and the other two make your way to the front desk, which has doubled up as a makeshift bar for the evening, with Poppy and Bodhi standing behind it.

"Happy Birthday Bodhi!" Summer sidles up to her.

"Yeah, Happy Birthday Bodhs." you congratulate her, and Ari does the same.

"Thanks guys," she smiles. "Can I interest you in a drink? Nothing alcoholic this time, I learned my lesson from the VIP party."

"Are you sure you haven't got anything so we can have a little fun tonight?" Summer grins widely.

"No, Summer," Poppy smiles. "If Manu was to find out we'd been drinking, he'd probably kill me."

"Whatever, we can still have fun," Summer smiles. "C'mon, let's dance." She pulls Bodhi and Poppy away, leaving you and Ari standing awkwardly at the makeshift bar.

"So, d'you...wanna dance?" he offers with a slight laugh.

"Ari, are we not going to talk about what you said...last night?" you say - this might be the only time you get alone with him.

"What...this?" he grins, leaning forward with both hands clasped around yours as he places his lips on yours. You stay there for a few seconds, enjoying the warmth and safety you feel with your back against the wall.

The comforting feeling is ripped away, however, when a voice suddenly pulls you from the moment. Ari pulls away at the sound of a familiar American accent.

"Hey...what's up losers?" she laughs awkwardly, her normal sarcasm and comical tone sounding somewhat forced.

"Oh, hey Summer, we were just..." Ari stutters. "...me and Y/n were just...getting a drink."

"Well you're keeping her from the party," she smiles, grabbing your arm. "C'mon, Y/n." she says, dragging you towards Poppy and Bodhi on the 'dancefloor'. You manage to turn round and mouth a quick 'sorry' to Ari, who also smiles apologetically.

You don't know if Summer saw much, but if she did she doesn't mention it. In fact, she seems to plaster on a fake smile for all the time you're dancing with the girls, and you don't want to bring it up.

You realise you're actually kind of enjoying yourself tonight, which is rare these days, especially after Stairway and all the drama with Ari.

But it's short lived.

The music suddenly comes to an abrupt stop, and a murmur sweeps across the crowd as you look towards the source of the music. Instead of seeing someone fiddling with a broken music player, you see the last five people you'd expect to see here: Marlon, Griff, Sheridan and a couple of their mates. They walk forward, slightly cautiously, probably not the way you'd walk in if you ever decided to crash a party.

"What the hell are you doing here?" Bodhi asks them - the rest of the crowd has gone almost silent and you feel bad for Bodhi as she impatiently waits for a response from Griff or one of the others. But the response doesn't come from any of them.

"I invited them."