Collateral Damage- A Justin Bieber Fanfiction

02. Running Into Trouble

Jess and I banged our doors shut in unison and the car chirped as she locked it. She sashayed over to me in her chunky heeled boots and put her arm around my neck. The music coming from the house in front of us was loud and electronic, with an irresistible bass beat pumping in the background. She flipped out her cell, punched in a few numbers, and absentmindedly scuffed at the pavement as it rang.

"Who are you calling?" I asked curiously.

Jess held up a finger and placed her hand over the speaking piece before continuing.

"I'm just confirming our designated driver," she responded casually.

I unhooked her arm from my neck and grabbed her phone before squinting at her warily.

"Jess, I thought we agreed that I was driving us back," I exclaimed.

Jess pursed her lips and looked back at me.

"I want you to have fun tonight okay? I know you say you're fine but I can tell you've been feeling down lately."

I opened my mouth to speak but she cut me off.

"I'm your best friend and it's my duty to give you one stress free night. I'm just gonna have my cousin Ashley drive us back. She owes me a favor anyways and she lives, like, five houses down. This way you can have a few drinks too and not worry about it!"

I kicked my shoe against the ground and groaned, handing her back her cell.

"Alright. But I'm not getting wasted. The last thing I need is a hangover."

Jess pumped her fist into the air excitedly and redialed the number.

I thought quietly to myself as she chattered away with her cousin. I'll admit, now that I was dressed and had Jess at my shoulder, I didn't feel so bad about the next few hours. This was actually the first party we'd crashed together in over two weeks, so I felt a tiny flutter of excitement in my chest.

Jess slipped her phone into her pocket and gave my arm a playful punch.

"C'mon Kaia. It's party time," she giggled, tossing back her blonde locks and tucking the stray pieces behind her ears.

We strode forward together and thunked over the chipped stepping stones that led to the door. Jess pushed it open and I was greeted by the thick smell of cheap alcohol and a wave of heat from the gyrating bodies that crowded the dance floor. We briefly held hands as we pressed our way through the mass of people to reach the back wall where the kegs stood. Jess poured herself a brimming solo cup before tossing me an empty one that narrowly missed the boy beside me.

"Nice catch," he smirked.

I chuckled and filled my drink before spinning around to face him. I took in his mop of curly hair and laughing green eyes as I sipped on my beer, his long graceful fingers tapping an unknown rythm into tabletop next to me. I stepped right to let an irritated girl with a large lip piercing access the keg.

"What's your name?" He spoke loudly over the music.

"Kaia!" I shouted back, putting out my hand for a shake.

I was shocked when he gripped my hand strongly and he seemed to hold on a second too long before releasing.

"I'm Will," he grinned, revealing his sparkly white teeth.

I tuned out Will's conversation as I let my gaze wander and I saw Jess walking into the crowd behind him; she motioned exaggeratedly for me to follow her. I nodded her a response and moved my eyes back to Will's. I spoke a few farewell words to him and he smiled again, most likely not hearing my half-hearted goodbye over the noise in the room. I brushed past him to meet Jess and she slipped her fingers through mine, tugging me next to her to yell into my ear.