21st Century Breakdown: Nathan and Ari

3 - ¡Viva La Gloria!

Y'know, I've made the decision to keep this story in past tense. I'll go back and edit the other chapters some other time. Like, maybe after I finish this...if I ever do.

I shall write now.

UPDATE: I edited the other chapters! :D

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Chapter 3

Ari Armstrong

I walked away, leaving Nathan standing on Dani's roof, scratching his head in a somewhat confused manor.

"Ari?" he called after me, just as I'd reached the door. "I think I just made up my mind..." I shook my head, ignoring him and continuing on my way back to the party. Before I even made it back to the stairs, though, Nathan slapped his hand down on my shoulder, forcefully turning me around to face him.

I let an agitated sigh escape my mouth, tapping my foot on the hard wood floor. "Nathan, I said I'm giving you the rest of the night. That means, use the rest of the fucking night to think and let me be me for a night, okay?" I snapped, jerking my shoulder away from his touch and crossing my arms over my chest.

He rolled his eyes as if I'd said the stupidest thing in the world. "No. I made up my mind."

"What was your decision, then?" I asked sarcastically, averting my attention to the stairs right behind him. Just five strides, Ari, and you're there, I thought to myself. Five strides, eleven stairs, and you can be you again, I thought to myself.

The words of encouragement in my mind must've made my attention slip away. "Ari? Did you just hear a word I just said?" Nathan asked aggressively. I shook my head. "I just asked you if you would take me back. Will you?"

I shrugged. "No," I responded, nonchalance lingering in my voice. "Now let me through." Without even as much as a nod, I violently stumbled around the stationary boy in front of me.

Once again, he pounded his hand down on my shoulder, turning my around to face him. "Arianna, I will get on my knees and beg, if I have to. It hur-"

I chuckled. "Yeah, I bet you would get on your knees...for Anthony, maybe. And you'd definitely have to beg for him, because he's going out with Cat, I think. So, sucks," I laughed defiantly, waiting to see if he could come up with a come back to that.

"Yeah? Well I bet you would get on your knees for any fucking guy in this house," he spat, the acidity in his words almost tangible in the air. "Because you're such a fucking slut."

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Nathan Pritchard

"Because you're such a fucking slut." The hurt on Arianna's face as I'd said those words was far from undetectable, it was completely conspicuous; she looked like she was going to break down and cry. Her sultry green eyes, eyes that I've always loved, were beginning to glisten with tears, her lower lip beginning to tremble the slightest bit.

The look she gave me was like a punch in the gut. Her broken composure was gone just as fast as it'd came. She replaced her hurt expression with a definite bad-ass look, and she was now staring at me, her eyes like daggers.

"Nathaniel Pritchard, you are going to pay for that," she hissed, flipping me off before running back downstairs, her devastated state returning to her face.

Well, I definitely fucked up. Big time.

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Christian Newman