**After much confusion on my behalf, I finally cast Ethan Dolan as Joshua Garcia and Grayson Dolan (the one with the earring) as Jacob Garcia.**

***
A V E R Y
The incident with Luke left me annoyed - not upset. It pissed me off because unlike all of the other guys I'd hooked up with or dated for a short period, Luke meant something to me. Or he used to, anyway; before he left for California. Before he acted like a jerk and expected me to be okay with it.

Scowling, I reached over and took a sip from the glass of water on the counter top.

'Why the long face?' Maddie glided in, dressed head to toe in denim.

'Nothing.' I made a point of looking her up and down. 'Is it Jeans for Genes day or something? Not that you look bad or anything.'

She grinned, twirling a little, showing off her figure. The jeans clung to her in all the right places, accentuating her hips and thighs - not that it made a difference. She was beautiful no matter what clothes she wore.

I wolf-whistled. 'You look good, babe.'

Maddie's caramel coloured skin glowed in the slits of sunlight streaming through spaces in the blinds. Her eyes practically glowed, giving the effect of a panther about to pounce. Long, dark eyelashes swooped low and the shadows cast from the sun left an untouchable imprint under her eyes.

Maddie had always been good-looking. Ever since I met her, when we were toddlers, I'd always been jealous of her looks. Over time, though, the jealousy was replaced by awe and a crushing sense of gratitude that I had such an amazing girl as my best friend, my confidante. The light to my darkness.

Or perhaps it was the other way round.

I brushed the thoughts from my minds as if they were stray cobwebs. Over-thinking had never done me any good, and it certainly wouldn't help me now, apart from producing a killer headache.

Maddie swiped half of my crepe from my plate. She danced away, laughing as I squawked after her. 'Why would you do that?' I moaned, 'I really wanted to eat that, you cow.'

Maddie gasped in mock anger, but then immediately broke out a smile and snorted. 'Cow is better than bitch, I guess. And here,' she ripped a piece off, stuffing it in her mouth, 'You have the rest.'

I shot her a grateful look, savouring the feel and taste of chocolate melting on my tongue. Chocolate did that to you, I guess.

'What's the plan for today?' I mumbled, chewing slowly. Maddie shrugged, inspecting her nails.

'It's a Friday, so you know the drill-'

'Binge watch or go out.' We recited together, grinning. It had been a tradition of sorts, since we were old enough to go out on our own - around when we were fifteen year old. And when we were able to drink alcohol? Those days were so fun - memories upon memories were created. Some good, some funny, some so incredibly stupid that looking back, I regretted even thinking about them.

I thought for a moment, weighing the pros and cons. Whilst going out, getting drunk, forgetting who I was and then dancing the night away felt like a fun thing to do, a part of me wanted to skip that and just watch The Vampire Diaries with my best friend and a tub of ice cream.

What? Damon Salvatore was my mojo.

And don't even get me started on Maddie's obsession with all-things-Netflix.

I scrunched up my eyebrows thoughtfully. Stay in or go out? Stay in or go out, stay in or go out-

'Fuck it!' Maddie exclaimed, throwing her hands up in exasperation. 'Seeing as you can't choose, I'll do it instead. I pick-'

'Hey! Shut up, you-'

'You shut up,' she growled, 'this is what happens when you too long, see?' She cleared her throat dramatically, 'I pick going out!'

At my expression - probably miffed - Maddie walked over and lifted my chin with a finger, eyes lighting with concern.

'If you stay and brood in this house any longer, you're going to drive yourself insane whilst drowning your non-existent troubles.' I didn't reply, choosing instead to stare at her.

'Your eyes have flecks of gold in them,' I murmured, squinting.

My best friend clicked her fingers in front of my face, tutting softly. 'Hey. Hey. I'm serious.' I focused back on her words. 'Let's have fun tonight - forget who we are. Drink and dance until we can't any longer. You up for it?'

And maybe it was the look in her eyes, daring me to refuse and see what happened, or maybe it was that I did want to get out of the house, but I found myself rising from my seat, squeezing her shoulder.

I grinned wickedly. 'Let's go get pissed.'

Maddie slung an arm around my waste, grinning back. 'Now you're talking.'

***

Our earlier conversation replayed through my head over and over as I ploughed through the day, desperate for the night to come. Since Maddie had convinced me, I couldn't stop thinking about it.

There was something about a club that appealed to me. The feeling of belonging - even though most of the people there didn't know each other, we were all there for similar reasons.

To dance. To drink. To forget.

To enjoy that little sliver of time where we didn't have responsibilities, where we didn't have people to support or lean on, troubles to fix. I could go there and forget that I was lying to my sisters all the time. I could forget that the boy I kind of like was the enemy - literally. I could forget that a boy from the past had walked back into my life, only to walk straight back out again.

I could forget that I was alone. And afraid.

You'd probably be thinking I was mad. I had a family who loved me, my closest friend beside me, one I would gladly die for.

But when it came to my heart... I was alone. I wanted a boy to love me as I loved him. Wanted him to do all the stupidly cute things that guys do to girls in the movies. Simple stuff, like knowing everything about them, or playing with their hair, or feeling like the luckiest person alive when they looked at me.

I wanted that so badly.

In my line of work, though, it wasn't easy. The easier solution was to be with someone already in the Salvation. We'd never have to lie to each other, or pretend to be someone we weren't.

The other way was a little harder. If you wanted to be with someone outside of the Salvation, there were rules. The Salvation ran background checks on them first, seeing if anything shady popped up. If deemed safe, the agent would have two options: to either introduce them to the Salvation and demand secrecy, or leave the Salvation altogether.

Leaving the Salvation would still have one condition - you could not breathe a word of your previous work to your partner until at least six months after.

When I'd asked Damien why the period was so long, he'd explained, 'Six months is enough time for us and the agent who leaves to check up on any loose ends.'

At my confused expression, he hurried on to elaborate. 'We clear any remaining ties linking the agent straight to us. And seeing as most of our agents leave after years, there's a lot of stuff to sort out. If the other person does end up spilling the secrets, they won't find anything.'

'What happens if they do?'

'Do what?'

'Find something, I mean.'

Damien had sighed, running a hand over his stubble. 'Then we find them first. And deal with it.' I'd nodded then, understanding.

'Dealing' with the traitors meant interrogations and sending them away to foreign countries with new identities so they couldn't be tracked. For our safety as well as theirs.

I walked to the front door, after spending half an hour on making myself look presentable. Pyjamas and a messy - no, seriously messy - bun had been replaced with soft curls and shimmering makeup. Maddie had done the hair, seeing as I would probably burn myself.

As if I'd summoned her, my best friend strutted down the stairs. Dark golden hair swished around her, her pose sturdy. Proud.

She shot me a grin, glorious in all its mischief. 'Now it's time to get pissed.'

***

The bar was pounding - literally. Every thump in the beat of the music reverberated through the ground. I honestly felt like I was about to fall over.

But I didn't worry about that. I let the music fill every fractured part of me, high on the drinks I'd downed earlier. It was partly Maddie's fault - she'd boasted about how she could drink more than me because, and I quote, 'You're the fucking lightweight, babe.'

Obviously, outraged, I'd ordered the barman over and lost count of how many shots I'd taken.

I stayed dancing in the crowd until my feet were on the verge of blistering, and after that I continued swaying, the alcohol in my veins urging me to dance, drink, forget.

So I did.

I danced. I drank. I forgot.

Until two similar looking boys popped up to steady me when I nearly careened into the DJ.

The one with the earring whistled. 'Damn, Josh, our firecracker is absolutely wasted right now.'

The other figure looked a little more concerned, reaching over to grab one of my arms, 'Yeah, she's completely out of it.'

Amidst the booze, my mind shouted at me that these were the twins. The twins. As in the-damnation-twins. As in Mason's-best-friend-twins.

Wait. That didn't make sense. What were they doing here? Was I hallucinating?

I stepped closer and squinted at them. They blurred, their faces flashing with colours. I said as much and The One With The Earring laughed again. It was a nice laugh. A loud, warm one. One that made you smile.

Until my drunk as hell body decided to collapse into the arms of The Earringless One, as he grunted and caught me just before I kissed the dance floor.

'Thanks,' I mumbled drowsily into his shoulder.

'No problem,' he replied, shifting me so he could support me better. Distantly, I thought to ask him why he was helping me, or why he was here, or if Mason was here, but speaking was too difficult a task at the moment. I groaned into his shoulder again, and The Earringless One glanced down at me worriedly.

'You okay, firecracker? Don't die on me now.'

'Shut up.'

He laughed, the sound, like his brother, lively and full of joy. How were they so happy when they worked for a place like the DM? How could they stand it?

'Hey! Get the fuck off my best friend before I castrate you!' A feminine voice snapped at my right.

Two other voices joined in, each hissing and snapping at the other. They were sort of like wolves, I supposed.

'Why the fuck is she talking about wolves?'

'No fucking idea, mate. Leave her be.'

I was dimly aware of being passed from one pair of arms to another, the second being smaller than the first - though no less in strength.

'Jesus. I told you get pissed, but not pissed enough that you couldn't handle yourself.' A sigh, then: 'I'm the shittiest friend in existence.'

Unable to speak, I patted her arm. She squeezed back, this kind friend of mine, and I knew she understood what I meant to say; it's okay, and I don't blame you.

Bodies shoved against us as Maddie, a tiny, immovable force, pushed her way out of the dancing drunks and onto some chairs just next to the bar. I collapsed into one, hair spilling over the headrest. And suddenly, all the feelings of loneliness crept in, just like that. Maddie immediately came over to my side, her warm hands wiping away tears before they had a chance of falling.

'Hey.' She soothed, 'Hey, hey, it's okay, Ave. You're okay.'

I hiccuped, trying to get air into my lungs. 'I'm alone, Mads. All alone.' She opened her mouth, forehead creasing in concern, but I ploughed on. The booze had released a dam of emotions, and I sure as hell wasn't stopping now.

'I know I have you, and my sisters, and Damien and Martha, but I'm still alone. I don't know what it's like to love someone - someone who can be mine, only mine. And man, I want that so bad. I want the cheesy moments and the cute moments. I want the days where we spend the day together, and that's okay, because we're happy to be with each other.'

I sobbed harder, my vision blurring. 'I want what I can't have, and it hurts like hell.'

'Oh, my love,' Maddie breathed, her eyes shining in a way I hardly ever saw, 'You'll get that one day.'

I shook my head. 'I don't think so anymore.'

She squeezed my arms after pulling away from a hug. 'You will. I swear to you, Avery, that you will find that special someone. And I will too. And it might take time, but we will. Together.' She smiled a little, brushing the hair off of my face, the gesture so loving, so maternal, that I had to swallow the lump in my throat so as not to start bawling again.

'And if that doesn't happen in the next few years... I'll let you kick my ass in hand-to-hand combat.'

I let out a hoarse chuckle.

'Deal.'

***

What's this? An double update? Why, it must be Christmas already... 😉

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-M