Hidden Behind our Secrets (ON HOLD)

Aftermath

The atmosphere pulsed around me as the beat from the loud music burst through speakers scattered around the room. Already drunk teenagers stumbled around looking for the next best make out spot as I pushed through the grinding crowed gathered on the makeshift dance floor.

Brooke had long since disappeared to find more alcohol in her Dad's cellar - no doubt with a random boy - and I was trying to fight my way to the kitchen for some Jell-O shots I'd been told about.

"HEEEEYYYY! Tammy!" Said a screeching voice from across the hall as I finally made it over the threshold. I looked up to see a small blonde girl falling forward and I just managed to grab her arm before she face planted the marble floor.
"Clover, how is it possible you are already this drunk?" I asked with slight amusement as I slung her thin arm over my shoulder.
"Never mind about moi! How are you not this drunk? Have you triiiiieeeedd those Jell-O shots, they're a work of art, by, like, Pikachu!"
"A yellow cartoon character?"
"No you numpty! The artist; you know that dude who painted that crying lady or whatever?"
I stared at her for a brief moment before I finally realised what she was failing to say.
"Do you mean Pablo Picasso?" I laughed.
"THAT'S WHAT I SAID!" She exclaimed with an irritated look on her face. "Anyway... What were we talking about? Oh, right, SHOTS!" She screamed as she suddenly grabbed my arm and yanked me towards the kitchen.

When we arrived I was shocked to see the large room almost empty - of people and alcohol. There were stray cans of beer crumpled on the floor and slices of pizza stuck to the counters and walls.
"How can there be no alcohol!" Shouted Clover in frustration as she stomped her foot and pushed out her bottom lip like a child who's not getting their way. "I'm going to find Brooke, maybe she has some in the basement."
"Okay be careful!" I called behind me only to find the place where Clover stood empty. "Okay... There has to be something to drink around here..."
I opened the large double doored fridge only to find vacant shelves staring back at me and I wasn't surprised to find the same sight behind all the cabinet doors. Sighing in defeat, I decided to raid Mr Jamieson's private stash in his office as I knew where he hid the key.

The bespoke office was littered with sheets of important documents and the plush leather sofas glistened in the moonlight streaming through the windows. Making my way to the back of the room I crawled under his desk and knocked randomly until I found the hollow cove I was searching for. The wooden panel came away easily and inside stood a single large bottle of expensive brandy. Unscrewing the top, I took a long swig as the liquid burned my throat and made every nerve in my body tingle. Slowly I replaced the panel and stood up heading to the heavy door which I locked behind me. Again, unscrewing the brandy cap, I took more long swigs until the floor began to shuffle and the hallway began to sway. I enjoyed the weightless feeling the cool alcohol allowed as I stumbled towards the raging den. The room still vibrated with the sound of a heavy base but there were fewer people on the dance floor as I began to sway to the music, careful not to drop the bottle in my hand.

"I see you found my Dad's good stash," Brooke giggled as she took the bottle and took a sip. "Urg! I hate this stuff, I will never understand the hype." Taking it back I swallowed as much as my stomach would allow and placed the almost-empty bottle on the nearest table and grabbed my best friends arm dragging her towards the dance floor. We joined the remaining people and for what seemed like forever our bodies moved together as one only changing as the playlist shuffled.
Suddenly, I felt my stomach plummet to the ground and bile travel up to the back of my throat. I glanced around for Brooke but she had left without my knowledge so I ran to the nearest bathroom as fast as my legs would carry me. Barely making it to one of the ground floor restrooms, the contents of my stomach landed safely in the toilet bowl as I tried to push my hair out of my face. In my haste I hadn't managed to put the light on so only a slither of moonlight snaked its way through the room as I leant against the wall behind me, exhausted from gagging. I sat for a while until finally I managed to stand and lean on the sink to rinse out my mouth. When I looked up my makeup was running in streaks along my face and my hair had worked itself into mess of curls around my head. Turning to leave, I was alarmed by a quiet shuffle coming from the bathtub that was hidden behind a patterned shower curtain.
"Hello?" I called out feebly, slowly walking towards the bath. The room was still spinning and a small voice in the back of my head told me it was just the alcohol playing tricks on me and I should just leave. Slowly, I reached forward and curled my hand around the curtain and began to pull it back.

"WHAT THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING?!" I screeched at the girl crouched behind the curtain, however, my face softened when I saw fearful brown eyes staring back at me. Her straight golden hair fell around her face reaching just below her shoulders and her pink lips quivered in panic causing a strangled whimper to escape her mouth. It was then that I saw her tear stained cheeks that were slowly turning scarlet; due to, what I could only assume to be, embarrassment.

"Are you okay?" I whispered, suddenly worried for the thin girl hiding in a dark bathroom; when she struggled to answer I decided to go with an easier question: "What's your name?"

"M-m-maeve," she whispered in a trembling voice as she stared intently at me.

"Well Maeve, why exactly are you hiding in the bathroom – without the lights on – when there's a party raging on the other side of that door?"

For a moment she looked at me as if I had suddenly sprouted a new head before answering, "I-I-I... Anxious. I get anxious in large crowds."

"You do realise this is a party?" I chuckled gently as I slowly lowered myself into the bath opposite her.

"My friend dragged me here then ditched with some guy."

"I know the feeling," I laughed. "So, of all the rooms in the house, why the bathroom?"

"Because all the other rooms are occupied," she smiled putting air quotes around 'occupied', referring to the couples becoming acquainted in the various rooms.

I felt all the previous tension shift out of the room as we continued to chat and giggle about the different people at the party and I soon found myself feeling like I was reconnecting with a long lost friend. As the minutes ticked by, before I knew it we had been there for almost an hour and I agreed to help Maeve find her friend so she could get them both home.

The party was still in full swing, although there were significantly more couples scattered along the hallways and hidden corners. Brooke had managed to find more alcohol and new cans littered the floor as we made our way through the drunk maze to the kitchen. We soon found Maeve's friend passed out on the pantry floor and as we said our goodbyes a large hand grabbed my wrist and spun me around so I could see big brown eyes and a playful smirk looking down at me.

"Hey Micah!" I laughed as he pulled me towards the den and onto the dance floor.

"Let's dance!" he yelled, Australian accent faltering from the Jell-O shots flowing around his body.

We danced until my feet throbbed and my throat burned from me screaming randomsong lyrics and the fresh vodka trickling down into my stomach. By 4am I hadlost Micah and was stumbling around the house and tripping over passed outpeople as I continued mumbling along to the music swimming around my head. Aftermultiple collisions with the moving walls and fast approaching tiles beneathme, a rough hand scooped under my legs and lifted me bridal style, carrying megently up the stairs. I was too drunk to acknowledge how potentially dangerousthis situation could be, but the deep blue eyes that I looked up at lookedfamiliar and protective allowing me to snuggle closer to the heat radiatingfrom his body as my eyes began to close and fall into the blackness. However, beforeI completely lost consciousness, I vaguely registered being positioned onto asoft bed as someone carefully removed my heels and lay a warm blanket across myshoulders before placing a gentle kiss on my forehead and shut the door quietlyas they left. 

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Hey guys, I know it's been forever since I last posted but I promise these updates will become a lot more frequent! 

I realise that this may seem a bit like a filler chapter but trust me, all will become clear soon! 

Happy reading,

-Whitterz xx