My Beating Heart (Jack Harries)

Chapter Three

~Grace~

I had just finished getting ready for the party, and I went downstairs. I had on my summer dress with the white top and flowy mint skirt, and my white strappy sandals. "Hey sis, where are you going?" Charlie asked. "To a party with Jack. His brother Finn is throwing one at his place." I said. "Alright, um... just be careful, please. Don't drink too much, and don't-"

"Take any drinks from strangers, I know." I said. "Actually, just... promise you won't drink period, okay?" he put his hands on my shoulders. "Alright, I won't." I sighed. "Swear on your life?" he asked. "Yes, cross my heart and hope to die." I made a crossing motion over my chest. I'm only nineteen, but the legal drinking age in Essex (and other parts of the UK) is eighteen. "Okay. You know I love you, and I'm just looking out for you." he hugged me. "Yes, I know. I love you too." I hugged him back. Shortly after he let go of me, somebody rang the doorbell. "Oh, that's probably Jack." I said. I opened the door and Jack was standing on the patio. "Hi Jack." I smiled at him. "Hey Grace. You look... wow." he checked me out. "Thanks, you look pretty wow yourself." I said. His hair was slicked up into a quiff, he wore a blue and white plaid shirt with the sleeves rolled up and a white tanktop underneath, black jeans and black DC sneakers. "Thank you. Are you ready to go?" he asked. "Yes, I am." I nodded. "I want her home before midnight, Jack!" Charlie said. "Don't worry, she will be." he said. I walked out and closed the door, and he walked me to his blue mustang GT. He opened up the door for me and I sat down, then he closed it. I buckled up, and he started driving down the street after getting in the drivers seat. I looked out the window, and the city looks so beautiful at night. There are so many bright, multicolored lights, but you can still see the moon and stars. "It's such a beautiful night." I sighed and leaned back. "Yeah, it is. It's a great night for a party." he reached out and touched my arm. "For sure." I agreed. It took us about twenty minutes to get to his brother Finn's house, and Jack had to park by the curb. He opened the door for me again and took my hand to help me out. He led me to the backyard, and it is huge! He has a gigantic pool, and a big table lined with food. There was also a big stereo system and a bunch of people dancing very close together. They were all packed in like a can of sardines both in and out of the pool. "Come on, let's go find my brother." Jack said. He pushed the gate open, and we both walked into the backyard. "Oh, there he is." I pointed at Finn, who was hanging out with some girl with dark-blue hair. We went up to him, and he looked so surprised to see us. "Hey, Jackson! How are you?" he hugged Jack. "Hey Finn. I'm good, how are you?" he laughed and hugged him back. "Great, thanks. And who is this lovely lady you brought with you this evening?" Finn looked at me. "This is Grace." Jack said. "No way! Little Gracie Lou?" his jaw dropped. "Yeah, that's me." I chuckled. The last time I saw Finn was at his graduation, when he and Jack were seventeen. I was just fifteen at the time, and I was very awkward and mousey-looking, so I changed a lot since then. "Wow, you're definitely not little anymore." he bit his lip. "Okay, that's enough." Jack stepped in front of me. "Hm, would you guys like something to drink?" Finn asked. "Yes, of course. I hope you have beer." Jack said. "I do, and what would you like Grace?" he looked at me. "Um, just water. I promised my brother I wouldn't drink tonight." I followed him to the snack table. "We don't have water." he said. "Well, do you have anything nonalcoholic?" I asked. "No, sorry." he shook his head. "Uh, that's okay. I guess one little drink never hurt anybody. I'll just have a bit of this punch." I said. I grabbed a red cup and took some of the punch. Jack took a beer out of the cooler. "Okay, we got our drinks. Let's dance." he said. "Okay." I nodded. He took my hand and led me to the middle of the yard. We danced around the pool and tried not to fall in, because it was a little slippery from the water that people splashed around when they jumped or dived in.