Edited 18/6/17

[][][]

Chapter Thirteen 

The constant thump of the bar music can be heard down the street. I walk briskly towards it, a slight frown covering my face. Tommy, begging me to leave my office at 1 am to be dragged to a street bar isn't my type of fun. I had to sit painfully as Tommy sat opposite my desk repeating the word 'please' again and again. I eventually gave in because he was giving me a headache, the bar music I imagine will only make worse. 

"Are you excited?" Tommy asks from beside me, his large coat drops down to the ground making him look 'scary'. His words not mine.

"Not exactly."

"Why not A? You never let loose-"

"-and for good reasons." I finish his sentence. Flicking my blonde fake hair over my shoulder for sass effect.

Sighing, I push open the bar doors. Only to be greeted by the intense smell of beer and sweat. The crowd dance horribly, and the music around the bar is just as horrible.

"I hate this already." I mutter more to myself but unfortunately not quiet enough for Tommy not to hear. 

"Lighten up, I'm getting you a drink."

He guides me... he drags me towards two empty bar stools.

"Two shots of vodka." He yells over the music, to the bartender.

I groan but let Tommy order it.

The shots get pelted down onto the table, spilling some of the liquid. I scrunch up my nose and watch as Tommy slides one of the shots towards me.

"Cheers to us." Tommy yells in excitement.

"Why would we cheer to us?" I ask confused.

Tommy looks at me for a moment before smiling and grabbing his shot.

"Because we have the upper hand, we control the city!" He shouts, pouring the liquid down his throat.

His nose scrunches and his eyes seal shut. That does not look fun.

He opens his eyes and slams the shot glass onto the bar, letting out a howl.

Closet werewolf?

"Ava drink it! You deserve it." He says standing up and trying to catch the eye of the bartender.

I should drink this horrible liquid! I deserve to let loose for one night. Let my worries go for a little while.

After coming to a mental agreement for about fifteen minutes, I chuck my head back and swallow down the shot.

My throat burns for a second before feeling normal again. I put the shot glass on the table and laugh at Tommy's surprised face.

"You actually did it!" He says, mouth open wide, astonishment in his eyes.

I shrug. A grin plastered to my face.

"I'm a hypocrite, but only one."

As the words leave my mouth the bartender slams two more shots on the bar counter. I didn't even realise Tommy  had ordered more.

I'm not drinking that.

Just do it you humbug. 

[][][]

I feel like such a hypocrite. Call me one, blame me. Yeah yeah, I said I would never get drunk. 

The point is, I am a very angry person, and I have a right to be. However, when confronted with the idea to let loose, and give away my vulnerability, usually it would be considered an something I would rather set myself on fire than do, but right now. Being the hypocrite that I am,  all logical understanding has flown out of the window, along with my morals. 

"Tommy come dance." hiccup "With me!" I yell excitedly at Tommy. Stumbling with Tommy in tow, towards the dance floor was not how my night was meant to turn out.

The dizzy and light headed feeling makes me giddy.

I hate the word giddy. 

"Giggity- Giggity."

"You're quagmire?"  Tommy starts tumbling over, laughing his head off. I lean onto a support pole to stop myself from tumbling over from laughter as well. 

Clutching my stomach and watching Tommy roll around on the floor, makes me laugh more. It feels good to laugh.

The support pole moves.
Since when did building support poles move?

I look up to see a blurry face, holding me upright.

His arms are wrapt around my waist to stop me from falling. I ignore the warmth he radiates. His eyes widen in realisation when he recognises me.

"Ava?"

"S-support pole?"

He grins and helps me to my feet. I look at him confused. Since when did support poles know my name?

"I did not expect to see you here." He chuckles to himself, stepping away from me and leaning against the bar. I can't recognise him from the dark room.

"Who are." Hiccup "You?" I ask frantically looking around for Tommy, who unfortunalty disappeared under the feet of drunk dancers.

"Your best nightmare and even better dream." He smirks.

"Cringe." I squeal and turn to walk away.

"I'm kidding." The boy grabs my wrist to turn me around.

"I just wanted to see how you would react." He chuckles.

"You're weird." I slur. Snatching my wrist from his grip.

"I need to find my f-friend." I stutter after breathing heavily, and back away from him.

"You don't recognise me?" He asks, sounding almost disappointed.

"Nope nope." I chuckle.

"It's me." He replies seriously.

"What an odd name." I reply, feeling confused as to why his parents would name their son 'me'. 

"It's Caleb." He tries again.

I rack my brain for that name. I think I remember a Caleb. Was he that fat guy from target? No, that guy wasn't fat, I'm will not body shame. 

I lean in closer to him to check out his build. This guy is all muscle, no brain. 

"Can't be you." 

"Can't be who?"

"A man from target who was fat, but wasn't fat because I do not body shame."

Stranger Caleb smirks, folding his arms over his chest. His eyebrow raised. 

He looks amused. How can he be amused?

Then it hits me, like a piano falling and landing on me from the top of a tall building. 

"I FORGOT TO GO GROCERY SHOPPING!" 

I completely forgot. Finn must be starving. I reach into my jeans pocket and pull out the grocery list. I hear laughing in front of me, but my eyes are focused on the list. I was meant to go before work.

Slapping my hand to my forehead, I frown.

Between laughter, stranger Caleb speaks, "How badly- do you need to- go grocery shopping?"

"So badly." hiccup "Out of 10, it would be 11." I reply frantically stumbling towards the door passing stranger Caleb on my way.

"I'll take you." He states putting his empty beer on the counter and following me.

"Okay." I reply quickly, stepping out of the bar and hailing a cab. 

[][][]

CALEB'S POV:

"Okay." She rushes out, tumbling over her words from the amount of alcohol that is in her system. 

Ava rushes out of the bar, tripping over a couple of times, but not falling over.

When we reach outside, Ava is standing backwards and waving her arm around.

I chuckle and step beside the road and whistle. A yellow cab pulls over and I help Ava climb inside.

Why I agreed to come with her? I have no idea. Why we are going grocery shopping? I have absolutely no idea but god help me.

"Where to?" The driver asks as I get into the cab myself.

"24/7 grocery store." I reply before Ava can. She looks at me and pouts.

"I wanted." hiccup "To say where."

I shrug and chuckle as she pathetically hits my arm, then she turns and looks out the window humming to herself. 

"Where's the list?" I ask her, she turns to me surprised.

"Caleb Peterson!" She yells, her mouth open and her eyes wide.

I laugh at her and nod.

"What are you doing here?" She asks in shock.

"You only just realised?" I ask. I suppose it was dark in the bar, and this taxi cab has a light shinning from the screen displayed at the front.

"Yes, it was d-dark." She stutters. I laugh, she's a drunk mess.

When my mates from school, Ryan and Mike wanted to go out for drinks I didn't expect to see Ava. Nerdy Ava  from school, to be drunk.

"Why you l-looking at me like t-that?" She stutters again, but chuckles at her clumsiness.

"I just find it funny how I randomly see you, drunk. In a bar." I laugh. "Who were you there with?" I ask, hopefully they don't get worried.

"TOMMY!" She shouts, fumbling with her purse, pulling out her phone eventually.

I watch with amusement as she searches the phone for the 'on' button.

I shake my head a grin on my face as I pluck the phone from her hands.

"What do you want me to say?" I ask her, turning on the phone to be greeted by emails and texts and missed calls from random people and company's.

I look over at her and find she's looking out of the window calmly.

I swipe across, like the normal iPhone says to do. The 6-digit password comes up.

"What's your password?" I ask her.

She grunts and leans over to me, her head resting on my arm as he hands wrap around mine holding the phone together. The strong sent of alcohol and perfume fills my nostrils. She squints into the bright screen and I watch as she takes 5 minutes to type in her password. One more incorrect guess and my bet she would have been locked out from 1 minute.

The phone opens and she backs away from me. The warm feeling in my stomach dies down, and I look at her home screen of her phone.

A brown haired girl, who looks an awfully lot like Ava, and a younger boy. Not much younger but they look very similar. That must be Finn, Ava's brother. The photo looks recent. Who's the girl?

The taxi pulls up to the 24/7 shop and I pay, Ava stumbles out the other side.

I get out as well and stand on the side walk waiting for Ava. I go into her messages and see the name Tommy was the most recent message sent. That name sounds familiar.

"What was your friends name?" I ask her.

She comes up to me and looks over my arm at her phone, pointing at Tommy's name.

I click into the messages. 

"Say, that I've gone h-home with a friend." Hiccup "He won't pick up if you ring." She instructs.

I can't help but read the visible recent messages as I type out what she wanted to say.

Tommy:
Sent: 12:10 am
I'm coming to your office to go over the accounts.

Ava:
Sent: 12:17
We can deal with the accounts tomorrow!

Tommy:
Sent: 12:24am
Miss grumpy...

Ava:
Sent: 12:30am
I'm stressed. If you want to piss me off, you won't like the outcome.

Tommy:
Sent: 12:32am
I have an idea. let's go clubbing!

"Caleb!" Ava yells from the entrance. I look up at her and smile. She's standing with her cheeks red from the hot air in the bar, and her hands in her jeans pocket. Her brown eyes glowing from the excitement.

I send the text to Tommy and walk towards her. She holds out her hand.

"Let's go on an a-adventure" She slurs. I grab ahold of her hand, feeling the tingle. Her hand fits perfectly with mine.

She drags me into the store and we go from isle to isle checking the things off her list.

She's no longer holding my hand.

I go get the milk for her and come back to find her opening a bag of marshmallows. Immediately she starts throwing them at me. I laugh and grab an umbrella from the rack. Grocery stores are weird.

I use the umbrella as a shield. The sound of giggling and marshmallows hitting my umbrella  makes me grin.

Until a grocery worker come over to us and starts yelling.

"You will pay for that!" He looks furious but equally as jealous.

The raining of marshmallows stops and I know the bags empty.
She's still giggling. I chuckle and pack away the umbrella.

I get some cash from my pocket and hand it to the worker.

"For the marshmallows." I say, walking past him. I added an extra five, just to be kind.

I walk towards a still giggling, lying on the floor drunk girl. He arms are spread out and her shoulder is exposed from her jacket and shirt being pulled down from the floor. I look down and notice a bullet wound on her shoulder.

Kneeling next to her, she notices my confused look and stops giggling. On instinct, she pulls her jacket over the scar.

How did she get a bullet wound?

She tumbles to stand up but does eventually. I recompose myself and stand up aswell. Picking up her grocery basket.

We finish the shop as if nothing happened. Ava giggles at random things and hums a tune while walking. Occasionally making jokes and making me laugh.

I pay for her groceries. After a million times she tried to.

"See you later Griffindore." She says over her shoulder at the man at the checkout. He grunts.

"My name is Griffin!"

We both laugh and walk towards the street for a cab.

"Did we get everything?" I ask her. She looks at the list, her eyes slowly scanning over the words.

"Yip." She says in satisfaction.

The cab pulls over and we both get in.

"24 bluedale road." She tells the cab driver. I ignore the fact she forgot I was in the car, and how for some reason never wants me to know where her house is.

I know it was close to the park though. She makes me drop her there instead. She must be too drunk this time to realise her mistake.

I get her phone from my jacket pocket and put in my number while pretending to check if Tommy replied.

"Did he?" She asks giggling.

I go into her messages.

Tommy:
Sent: 3:12am
O ka y

"He said okay." I tell her, handing the phone to her.

She smiles. I smile.

I like that smile.

"We are here." The cab driver says, pulling up outside a gated house.

I hand the cab driver the money and get out, holding all of Ava's grocery bags. About six.

I look at her house- mansion.

My mouth flies open. How does a girl who lives alone with her brother have a mansion. Her parents must have been millionaires.

The gate opens and we walk up the dark driveway towards the entrance. It's hard to see the house clearly because it's dark but there is no mistaking that it's a mansion.

Ava fumbles with door trying to unlock it. I wait paitently. Holding very heavy groceries. Milk is heavy okay. I'm not weak.

The lights are on when we walk in eventually, and I follow Ava to the kitchen. The incredibly huge kitchen.

Placing the groceries on the counter I sit at the stool as Ava stands at the sink. Her eyes closed.

"I'm tired." She says breathlessly. I chuckle and walk towards her. Wrapping my arm around her shoulders I guide her towards the large stairs leading to the second story.

"Where's your room?" I ask, guiding Ava. She trips on the stairs a couple of times and chuckles but I catch her.

"I'll tell you if you make me pancakes." She says excitedly. Her brown eyes staring into mine.

"Definitely." I reply smiling at her. She smiles back and leans into me further for support.

"Second door." She yawns.

"Gotcha."

I help her to her room and open the door. Turning the lights on.

"Woah." I state taking in her huge room. A king bed with a large balcony with a spa on it. Also incredibly clean.

I spy her desk in the corner and see her unfinished weekend homework. I chuckle and set her down on the bed.

Closing the curtains, I help her into bed.

"Caleb?" She says exhausted.

"Yeah?"

"Don't ever bring it up again, but stay with me."

I don't wait to be asked twice, and jump over her onto the other side. She giggles, and turns to face me.

"Don't tell Tommy." She whispers.

I raise an eyebrow. "Don't tell Tommy what?"

"That I enjoy being distracted by you." She replies, her eyes closed a smile on her face. She snuggles into the sheets of her bed.

"Distracted from what?" I ask curiously. Wrapping my arms around her.

"Work." She breathes out. Her breathe tickling my face.

"I won't." I promise.

She smiles, opens her eyes and kisses me on the cheek.

"Thank you." She whispers.

I want to ask more questions. I have so many. But not now. I can't do that. I'll ask her when she's in the right mind. I won't ask her when she's drunk and she doesn't notice.

"Goodnight Ava." I reply, pushing a loose strand of hair behind her ear.

She smiles. But doesn't reply. She's already asleep, and so am I.

[]

[]

[]

Regrets. I was meant to go to sleep 2 hours before this.

But, late night slow typing chapters are the best :)

I hope you enjoyed this chapter!

Please vote, comment and share if you are enjoying the story so far. 

Mcjennels Xx