Blake tweaked two knives between his fingers as he picked the lock to my garage. His obvious logic was that if we were going to a party then we needed to get there somehow. I suspect that he has been doing this every night he went out since my mother took his bike off him.

The lock clicked as it unlocked, and Blake smirked over his shoulder at me mischievously. I picked the back of my nails and then wrung my hands together, I am going to be in so much trouble with my mother. I cringed when the lock clanked as it released, and the garage door sung open.

"See, piece of sponge cake, this sponging from your family," Blake spoke with a smirk in his voice. I looked at with raised eyebrows, uncomprehending. "Get it because I am sponging from your family," he joked with a giggle, referring to the fact that he is stealing his bike back from us. I shook my head at him and he cackled at his terrible joke. I glanced at him with fascination in my eyes, there was that humour again when he was in a good mood. Breaking and entering must give him some sort of high.

Blake snuck up to the bike with traipsed steps like a criminal. I realised I was fraternising with the criminal, maybe I was one now.

Blake jumped onto the bike and threw me his helmet. Due to my extremely slow reflexes I flinched and juggled the helmet in my hands as I tried to grab hold of it. It eventually fell to the floor as I tried to reach for it. It smashed to the floor with a loud crunch.

I glanced up at Blake with an annoyed look, embarrassment tainting my cheeks crimson and annoyance at his confidence that I could catch that. A smirk graced his lips from my inelegant catch and as he looked into my narrowed gaze.

"Really? Do you think I am Lebron James or something?" I muttered.

"Trust me, a donkey could have caught that, and they have no hands." I sneered at him, while he cracked up laughing at my face.

"Yeah great thanks, way to boost my confidence," I mumbled and yanked it off the floor before sliding it onto my head. Then I took a deep breath and held it to gain my courage and slipped onto the bike behind Blake. I shivered but not from the cold as he wound my hands around his waist. I held on tightly, almost cutting off his air supply, but so worth it.

Blake started the engine and we sped off into the night like lightning, leaving my unsuspecting mother behind and my usual mundane night in. He drove like a formula one racer, and I had to keep my head tucked into his shoulder to keep from screaming. That wouldn't keep his faith in me that I could handle a party when I couldn't even stand being on a motorbike. Only when Blake slowed down and eventually screeched to a stop did I take in my surroundings. We were at the top of a hill, surrounded by magnificent houses and lining the street were palm trees. We were in that kind of neighborhood.

My eyes were immediately drawn to one house in particular which was blaring with music so loud I could hear it clearly from where we were three houses away. Lights were flashing from inside the windows and the front of the house was middle with people everywhere. Teenagers drinking alcohol, smoking cigarettes and there was one girl who was chugging down beer from a funnel while the others cheered her on around them.

Instantly dread and fear rippled through me causing my face to whiten. I shouldn't have come here, I don't belong at all. I turned to Blake to tell him I was chickening out but when I spun on my heel to look at him he was already facing me. My stomach flipped as I saw the way he was looking down at me, not in hatred or disgust. But in joy, his wide smile was blinding, he had a light in his eye I had never seen there before.

He was happy that I was here, that I had the courage to burst out of my shell and become more like him. Maybe following him and being more like him made him like me more. I pressed my lips together to stop the words that were about to spill out. I am going to do this. Not just for Blake but for me, I want to be here with him. Even if it meant going through the horror of a party.

"You ready?" Blake asked as I gave him back his helmet.

"Onwards and upwards I always say." I cringed with a fist pump. He saw my fake enthusiasm for what it was barely contained horror and he smiled at me from the corner of his eye. We walked up to the party and instantly I noticed as each step I took my mind kept coming up with reasons why I shouldn't be here, making my footsteps heavier.

The most prominent reason being that I actually shouldn't be here because I wasn't even invited. To stop my jitters, I cupped my hands around my mouth and breathed into my cold hands. Then I ran then down my face. And jumped into the air and squatted down. Blake glanced at me with raised eyebrows.

"What on earth are you doing?" He perplexed.

"Preparing my body for the inevitable fight and bruise that it is about to endure." Really, I was just trying to release the anxiety building up in my chest and keeping my mind occupied so I don't run away.

"You are mad," he stated flatly.

"Thank you," I curtsied. He gave me a half smile before his expression turned serious.

"Anyway, nothing will happen, not with me there anyway," he spoke with conviction. I blanched at the seriousness in his tone but covered it up with a dismissive comment.

"Can you promise that not a hair will be lost from my head?" I dared twirling my hands around my ponytail, Blake's eyes followed my hand motions. "I am quite fond of each strand, they took 10 years to grow you know," I grinned at my joke, but his face remained stoic.

"I promise," he swore vehemently, taking my request more seriously than I thought he would.

"Why do you think that anyway?" He suddenly questioned with a quizzical tone.

"I don't think I am welcome here." I laced my hands together to curb my anxiety.

"Of course, you are. My invitation says plus one, and you are my plus one," he gestured to me as if I didn't realise I was here. Maybe technically I was invited but I knew Sarah and if she saw me I would be out of her house in less than one seconds along with a bruised cheek.

"That invitation is inconsequential," I muttered crossing my hands over my chest.

"The piece of paper in my hands says otherwise." He spoke smugly rising his chin a fraction. I couldn't help moving closer to Blake as we began to walk down the pathway toward Sarah's porch. We reached the front door and I halted as a group of teenagers were smoking on the front rocking chair noticed us and started whispering both our names. Blake glanced over his shoulder back at me with a confused expression, unsure why I stopped. I steeled my mind and gestured for him to open the door.

"Well let's see if I die tonight." I grimaced and stepped in front of Blake to open the front door into what I could only describe as a wild animal's cage. "Welcome Blake to anarchy." He smirked at me as he strutted into the party.

The smell of alcohol and sweat assaulted my senses. The house was filled with teenagers, some dancing, some drinking and some making out. The music blared louder than my eardrums could handle, and I cringed into Blake when we stepped into the front parlour. To our left was a makeshift dance floor packed to the brim with dancing people. To our right was the kitchen where kids were refilling their drinks from supplied alcohol and I could see through the open plan house into the back garden where even more people were chilling outside by the pool.

I blanched as terror washed through me from the sight of so many people and so much noise, it dampened my senses and I felt completed out of control. The few people that noticed us walk into the house looked blatantly at us, of course we would be a sight together. The most bullied girl in school with the school bad boy.

"This is worse than facing a Hungarian horntail," I studdered. Blake glanced down at me with a flat look and from how close I was next to him I only really noticed how tall he was. I had to tilt my neck to look into his face.

"Should I know what that means?" He quizzed.

"If you can't keep up with my Harry Potter references then we can't be friends." I stomped my foot.

"Good," he stated and looked away from me dismissively. I grumbled under my break, he was always able to turn things around on me. But he didn't notice my rumbling as he craned his neck and began searching around the party for someone, but who? Maybe Liam and Dean.

"Let's get a drink," Blake announced and dragged my heavy form into the kitchen. We stopped before a large keg of beer and Blake grabbed a red cup and filled it with alcohol. I glanced at it with narrowed eyes.

"I am allergic to alcohol," I announced with crossed arms when he hands the drink to me.

"Really?" His eyes widen in shock and morph into horror as if the mere thought of that was horrific to him. I nod repeatedly, thinking about ways to get out of this.

"Yes, it causes me severe anxiety, heart stopping self-degradation and I must admit some flatulence," I explain, bringing forth all my charm. "And nobody wants that, so I better not drink it."

Blake gives me an empty look, unimpressed.

"So, you are not actually allergic?" He questions. I roll my neck and then hang it to the side as I admit defeat.

"No."

"Then you have to drink this," he orders, handing me the drink. I shuddered, and my face scrunched up in disgust.

"I could just scribble out the plus one words right now," he taunted pulling out his invitation. I thought about Sarah's face when she saw me here and I didn't have anything to use in my defense, even a worthless piece of paper.

"Fine, fine." I sighed, I did make a promise to him. With sweaty palms I grabbed the drink out of his hands and skulled it down in one mouthful. Best way to get it over and done with. I gagged when it was all down and coughed. By the time the water in my eyes had dried out and I looked up to Blake his jaw was hanging open in shock.

"Have you done that before?" He asked with an astonished tone.

"I used to be best friends with Miss Sarah Kingley, these types of events used to be my thing," I explained in a whisper hoping he didn't think much of it. But that didn't happen.

"No way, really?" He burst loudly, his eyebrows raising. I shuttered at his reaction, I was not talking about this.

"Oh, look a plant," I evaded and pointed over toward an indoor fiddle leaf fig plant. I hurried over to it like it was the most interesting thing in the world. I was quite jealous of such a nice plant, unfortunately for me I had killed all four of the indoor plants I had tried to spruce my room up. I ran my hands along the leaf inspecting it but jumped when I felt the heat of a body behind me.

"You know my respect for you just went up tenfold," Blake spoke softly, he was so close behind me that I felt the rush of his breath on my neck.

"Why? Because I used to be a rebel, cool kid that drank alcohol?" I arched an eyebrow as I spun around to face him. He shook his head.

"No because you don't give into the norms and drink just because that is what everyone else does. You drank realised you didn't like it and stopped, easy as that," he denounced, looking me straight in the eyes. My gaze was fixed on his, from such a close distance I noticed the small flecks of white in his irises. "I wish I could do that." He glanced away breaking me from his trace and I gasped in a deep calming breath.

"Are you a recovering alcoholic?" I joked to break the tension.

His expression remained stolid as he picked up a shot of vodka sitting on the kitchen counter and skulled it down. Not recovering it seems, just alcoholic.

"Now Rose." He changed the subject suddenly taking a step away from me. "You have to go into the midst of that dance floor and tell that girl with pink hair that you love her hair," he ordered. I glanced over to the dance floor to see the girl with pink hair dancing like a maniac.

"But I hate her hair, it looks like she fell into a bucket of paint," I objected.

He just glared at me.

"You just want me to get into a fight or humiliate me to death." He smiled in response and handed me another cup of beer. "Fine I'll do it, I really am here just for your entertainment aren't I?" I took a swig of my drink as I retreated.

But I hid my smile until I turned around and he couldn't see my face anymore, I was actually having fun. And having Blake here making me do normal party things made it not so bad. Things I wouldn't have done otherwise.

I plodded into the dance floor, excusing myself as I pushed past dancing forms slick with sweat and dilated drunk eyes. When I reached the girl, she was doing a full twirl through the air, she had the grace of a ballerina. When she landed I tapped her on the back and she spun around to face me with a joy filled expectant expression.

"Hi," she grinned jubilantly, her expression beatific.

"I really like your hair," I stuttered, unsure of my words. A massive smile broke out on her face.

"Thank you, I wanted to stand out from the crowd somehow." And in those words, I realised she was just like me, she didn't care how she appeared to others she just wanted to be unique, to be herself. I couldn't help smiling back at her and her sparkling eyes.

"My name is Belinda, you should dance with us," she laughed, completely carefree. I wanted to be like her. So, I didn't object when she grabbed onto my hand and started twirling me around in a circle. I joined in on her group of friends who were screaming the lyrics to a particularly popular song on the radio at the moment. As the alcohol was probably impairing my normal sense to be on edge around people from my school I was able to dance and sing with them, carefree just like they were.

When the song ended I glanced back toward where Blake was before to find he had disappeared. I was overcome with a surprising sensation of fear at the thought of being left here without him and my eyes darted around searching for him with no success. I moved to walk back to where he was before and search for him when my gaze found him. I stumbled a step back as I saw that he was talking with Liam and Dean in the back corner of the party, who were passing him a cigarette and looking very suspicious. I tilted my head to the side as I watched him, unsure why I felt this emptiness from seeing him with his friends.

With a shock I realised that no matter how much I tried to be like him I could never go over there with his friends and fit in with their group like a normal girlfriend would be able to. With a frustrated sigh I ran my hands down my face and decided it was time for me to leave, I didn't belong here. But just as I was about to leave I was yanked back into the dancing crowd by one of Belinda friends. He had scruffy apricot coloured hair, a long pointy nose and his arms hung awkwardly by his side from having such long lanky limbs.

"Don't leave just yet, the best song just came on," he insisted and began dancing with me. I really wasn't in the mood to dance with him, but he was so enthusiastic to be dancing with me, so I decided to stay for one more song. But as the song progressed he started moving closer to me. We were in such a tight space that I had nowhere to step back to.

Then he placed a hand around my waist and I knew then that I was too uncomfortable to continue dancing. I tried to move away from him, but he stopped me by placing a hand onto my cheek and then tucked my hair behind my ear. I couldn't help the cringe that sneered onto my lips. I was just about to scream like a crazy woman and knee him in the groin when suddenly his hand was yanked out of the way.

My heart jumped when I saw Blake was gripping the guys forearm in his fist with an unrelenting force. Blake's face had darkened into a murderous glower directed right at apricot coloured hair guy. The black bags around his eyes and tattooed forearm made him look all the scarier.

"Back off," Blake seethed as he squeezed the guys arm. Apricot guy yanked his hand out of Blake's grip and held his hands up in surrender, stepping back from me.

"Sorry, I didn't realise she was taken."

Blake didn't say anything back he just glared at his retreating form with nostrils flaring. I gaped up at Blake my eyes open wide, shocked at his strong reaction.

"You know I had that covered," I spoke dismissively. After another beat Blake gradually turned his still deadly eyes down to me which only then did they soften and lose their dark edge.

"I was just keeping my promise. When he touched your hair, I knew I couldn't stand back anymore." He shrugged, his black hair falling over his eyes. So, did that mean he was watching me the whole time? A giddy thrill ran through me and set flight to butterflies in my stomach at the thought.

"Oh," I breathed, stumped by his words.

"Come with me," he said and grabbed my hand into his. He directed me out of the house, pulling me by my hand. I had no objections to his request now, that is exactly what I wanted. As we walked through the crowds I wasn't much aware of the people around us as my eyes were focused on our clasped hands. His hand was big and engulfed mine which was more like a skeletal hand compared to his. And he was warm, his warmth soaked into my skin especially when we walked out into the back garden and the cold air hit me like a wave.

The party was raging just as much outside as it was inside. A lot of people were actually in the swimming pool and further down the back of the garden was a bomb fire. For the first time I noticed Sarah who was sitting out the back around the bomb fire with her friends, smoking something remarkably alike to the weed I have seen on TV. Luckily, she was facing away from us, so we passed her silently without her notice.

Blake stopped at a large oak tree that had homemade wooden stairs nailed into the trunk that lead up into a tree house.

"Ladies first," he gestured up the ladder and I looked at his face in ambivalence to see if he was serious. His expression was vailed, serious but I also saw the taunt tension around his eyes. I did as he asked and uncoordinatedly started climbing up into the tree house, it didn't help that I had alcohol in my system. Blake must have realised this because he was close behind me and placed a steady hand onto my waist when I stumbled.

With a gasp of relief, I reached the top and collapsed onto the floor of the tree house with exaggerated motions.

"You are really trying to kill me," I horrified, wiping sweat from my brow. Blake had already climbed up and was standing easily over me, without even breaking a sweat.

He smiled down at me and reached a hand out to me which I took, any excuse to touch him. He pulled me up to standing and I realised that the tree house was tall enough to allow both myself and him to stand easily without cramping. The house was small but homey. There was a miniature kitchen like a child used to play make believe up here.

It opened up into a balcony that faced back to the house, just like how I remembered. But now tree stems, and leaves had overgrown into the house giving the impression it hadn't been used for many years. It looked just like how it did when Sarah and I used to come up here.

"Why are we here?" I asked Blake.