The Upside of Heartbreak

Hey Jealousy

Oh my goodness! I cannot believe the outpouring that I have already received for this story on FF.Net! Absolutely amazing! I just posted it for fun, but now I'm completely blown away. Just for that, you are getting one more chapter right away. I cannot promise when the next one will be up though. Sorry. Hopefully not too far away, as I very much doubt that you will want to wait for it... I know I don't :P

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The party was turning out to be exactly as awful as Astrid had thought it would be. Granted, she wasn't exactly putting in any effort to have a good time either. Heather and Rachel had disappeared into the crowd shortly after arriving. Leaving Astrid to stew on her own. Of course, she knew that they both had their phones set to vibrate and they would pick up right away if she called or texted, but she just didn't want to wreck the last weekend of summer for all three of them.

Still, the blaring music was making her head ache, and the piercing voices of the people shouting to be heard over it were about as soothing as nails on a chalkboard. There were drunk people everywhere. Making out in the kitchen, or passed out on the lawn. A noisy game of beer pong was going on in the dining room and Astrid had initially thought she would watch that. At least it would provide a few laughs. Then she had seen Scott standing around the table and she had quickly walked away before he could see her.

Then the icing on the cake had come when she thought she might just head out to her car and sneak away. If Dagur was here, then Heather and Rachel could just get a ride with him. If not, he would probably come pick them up if they asked nicely. Then they could stay and enjoy the party while Astrid slunk back to her room, her quilt, and her favourite sweatpants to mope. Unfortunately, when she made it down the street to her car, it was to find that it was completely blocked in. Judging by the two extremely drool-worthy vehicles, it was a couple of rich assholes that had trapped her here, but that did not make her hate them any less. Possibly more even. Clearly, Astrid Hofferson was here for a while.

Stomping back to the party and grumbling to herself, Astrid resolved to punch the first person she saw wearing designer clothes directly in the jaw. Instead of trying to blend in with the crowd and pretend she was having a good time, Astrid simply sulked off the nearest quiet couch corner and plopped herself down with a huff. Not even bothering to notice that someone was already sitting there, and almost ending up on their lap because of it. Adjusting at the last moment, Astrid crammed herself into the narrow space between them and the armrest instead. Forcefully ignoring the person and hoping that they hadn't noticed.

"I see someone else is enjoying the party about as much as I am," came a deep voice from beside her. It was somewhat nasally, but in a masculine and pleasant way, and Astrid turned abruptly to glance at the man that it belonged to. Taking in his untidy mop of auburn hair, intelligent eyes of a startling shade of emerald green, and a jawline that was sharp enough to cut straight through a woman's defences if she wasn't careful. She didn't recognize him from a hole in the ground, but he had a certain air of sophistication about him. Immediately making her wonder if perhaps he was one of the rich assholes that had blocked her car in, but she cast that thought aside as she let her eyes wander briefly over his leather jacket, white t-shirt, and faded jeans combo.

This man was definitely not dressed to flaunt his wealth if he had it, and anyone that owned either of the vehicles definitely would be. Rather, he looked just like every other twenty-something year old guy in this house. He just continued to gaze back at her. Watching her study him warily, and a slight smirk began to twist his lips. "It's okay. I don't bite," he started with a chuckle.

"Unless I want you to," Astrid countered blandly. Relaxing back against the couch slightly. "How original," she added with an eye roll. Crossing her legs and arms pointedly in hopes of shielding herself from this alarmingly attractive man.