Lifeline

22. Don't Waste Time

Third Person POV

When she was twelve, Katy and Ricardo had made Astra go to a few therapy sessions. Of course, the therapist had not been told everything, but had only known that Astra had gone through a trauma, with no real idea of what that had been.

Now and then, Astra might go to one, but more often then not, she can handle whatever it is she's dealing with. Astra had always been strong, and usually her first resort after a bad day was to hit something. She didn't know why today was a bad day, she had just woken up and been completely unmotivated to do anything. And then, of course, she had a bunch of crap to get done. So now, here she was in the training room, beating the lifeless punching bag until her hands were raw. After she used the healing rune, she went to take a shower and get ready for the thing tonight. She then stood in front of her closet, wondering what would work for tonight. In the end, she chose a vibrant crimson cocktail dress. It had a sweetheart neckline with a strap going from each shoulder around her neck and never meeting the back of her dress. The neckline only dipped slightly, and was relatively modest in length, ending just below her knees. It was tight at the top, but the parallel to where her ribcage ended, the dress poofed out, cascading down in waves of smooth, shiny silk. Over it, she wore a black leather jacket that ended where the dress poofed out.

She also had a fair few weapons hidden here in there, like under her jacket or in hidden pockets, with a seraph blade and stele hidden under the folds of her dress. Just to be safe, of course. She then finished the ensemble with some black leather ankle boots, then did some make-up. She barely touched her eyeshadow, instead applying winged eyeliner and mascara, coating her lips with a deep scarlet color to match her dress, adding a touch of lip gloss in order to make them shiny.

She put her hair in a messy high pony tail, allowing a few hairs to escape and frame her face. As she and Jay headed down to the docks, he asked her if Hunter was coming. She simply shrugged, replying "I don't know. I actually haven't talked to him in a few days."

Jay looked at her. "No."

"What?"

"Oh, Astra!" He threw his head back with a groan. "Please don't do this, not again."

"Do what?" She asked. He shook his head, but only sighed. "Just forget it."

Jay knew that Astra knew exactly what he was talking about. He also knew Astra, and nothing he could ever say would change her mind. He just wished she wouldn't push Hunter away, or that she would at least admit to what she was doing. But he knew why she did this, and he understood it. Between the Malfoy's and their own parents, she had every right to have trust issues. If it got super bad, he would make her go to another therapy appointment for professional help, but until Jay thought Hunter would give up on waiting for Astra to talk to him again, he decided to leave them be.

***

Mainly, the party took place in a huge warehouse at the docks. There were stings of lights inside, all of them multicolored, and as a whole the place was in low light. Tonight, it was almost like a club, with smoky air and a disco reflecting off of the multicolored lights, as well a DJ from the pack. There was also a lot of food (including some stored blood for vampires) and an open bar.

Still, there were a few people who had gone outside - half of which wanted quiet, some had followed there friends, and the rest either just wanted a place slightly more private. A few were even gonna jump off the docks to swim (which the weren't technically supposed to do, but no one called them out). Hunter was hanging out with some of his friends from the pack, and he saw Astra walk in with Jay. For reasons he would later blame on the alcohol (though he hadn't actually had any yet) his breath left him for a moment, and for a few seconds, the world seemed to disappear. In a haze, he realised Derek was calling his name. With a start, he looked up.