Troubled With Tattoos

Chapter Seventeen

Party In My Pants

"You're grounded." Cherry gritted through her teeth as she cleaned up from dinner.

"What? Why?" I asked. I don't understand why no one will give these boys a chance. They're not criminals despite what everyone says.

"Because I strictly told you to stay away from the neighbors and you brought one into my house," Cherry said angrily putting away the dishes.

"Cherry they're really not that bad." I tried to reason with her.

"Violet, you're grounded. Now say goodbye to the delinquent and don't expect to ever see him again." She gave me a stern look. I huffed but turned on my heels nonetheless. I couldn't argue with Cherry after all she has done for me.

I walked into the living room seeing Austin lurking around my aunt's fern. Did he hear all that? He turned around meeting my eyes. His jaw was set straight with chiseled features. There was no way I'm ever not seeing him again. They were the ones who took that pain and depression away. They made me forget everything and try to enjoy life. Cherry just had the wrong idea of them.

"I should go now." He said. Yup definitely heard all that. I nodded opening the door for him. He slid by me, walking out of the house but then he quickly turned back.

"You're still coming to the party tomorrow right?" He smirked. I smiled looking behind me making sure Cherry was nowhere in earshot.

"Yeah, I'll be there," I whispered just in case. Declan's parents were going out tomorrow night and he's throwing a huge party.

"Cool. See ya!" He climbed up the steps and swiftly kissed my right cheek. Then he strolled back to his house without another glance. My fingers grazed the spot on my cheek where his lips just met. I was stunned, in a daze until I realized I was still standing outside. I closed the door walking up to my temporary room. A smile crept upon my face when I thought of his kiss. I plopped down on my bed wrapping my blanket over my body and I soon drifted off to sleep.

I woke up to the sound of Cherry in the kitchen. At first, I wasn't going to go down but then my stomach reminded me that I was hungry. I slid out of bed walking down the stairs on my wobbly legs. Cherry was in the kitchen making what smelt like omelets. I sat awkwardly at the table playing with my fingers. A plate was put in front of me covered with an omelet and a glass of orange juice.

"Don't make any plans for this weekend." She muttered sitting across from me while eating her own omelet. I nodded eating my breakfast in silence.

When I finished I brought myself back up to my room.

Hours had passed and I was trapped in my room for what seemed like an eternity. I needed to get out of here. The boys had texted me to get ready a few minutes ago. I didn't want to disappoint them but looks like I can't attend tonight's party. Cherry canceled all plans so she could stay home all day. Turns out she knows me better than I thought. I slipped on a pair of ripped jeans and a cropped blouse. Hushed voices came from the balcony that was slightly ajar. Peeking over the edge I saw the boys walking towards my house.

"Hey guys," I said gloomily. They turned walking towards my balcony instead.

"There's a party in my pants, care to join?" Camden grinned from below. I looked behind me just to be sure Cherry wasn't in earshot.

"I cant guys, Cherry's on the lookout. There's no way I can walk out the front door without her noticing" I sighed. I leaned against the railing resting my arms on it. They frowned looking up at me with puppy eyes.

"Why don't you just jump?" Declan asked as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. 'Just jump' says the one afraid of heights.

"Are you crazy?" I asked. There was no way I was jumping. Those boys were strong but they could miss and my guts would be splattered everywhere.

"It's not that high up, just one level and we'll catch you." Luke offered. I shook my head no rapidly. Being grounded was better than being dead.

"Just hang off the edge and drop, it's easy," Camden said coolly. They make it sound like they jumped off balconies daily. Which really wouldn't surprise me if they did. What do I have to lose other than Cherry complete trust and possibly my life?

I hopped over the railing standing on the edge of the balcony. My heels weren't touching the balcony and I'm pretty sure my heart just stopped.

My toes and arms are what kept me on it as I held tightly onto the railing and my toes had all my body weight on them.

"Okay good, now drop your legs, haven't you ever snuck out a window before?" Luke asked.

"No, I'm a good girl," I muttered. I got on my knees holding on to the railing slowly letting my legs drop. Now I was only holding on by my arms. My weak, pale, skinny, spaghetti arms. That gave me very little comfort.

"Violet, you have to let go," Austin said standing below me with his arms out.

"I'm going to die!" I yelled looking down. It really wasn't that far.

"If anything you'll break an arm...or a leg...or your neck but no worries," Declan said. Austin elbowed him the ribs and he shut up.

"I'm going to catch you, don't listen to him," Austin yelled back, "besides even if you wanted to get back up you couldn't." I thought about what he said. I decided I would test out his theory, I relied on the strength in my arms to pull me back up but they failed me. He was right, I really had no choice now.

"What if I fall?" I asked. Couldn't they just get a ladder or something?

"Then I'll catch you," Austin yelled from below my balcony. In that moment I couldn't quite decipher if what he said had a much deeper meaning but it was exactly what I needed to hear so I reluctantly let go of the railing landing safely in his strong tattooed arms.

I looked at him trying to catch my breath. He whispered "I told you so" before putting me down gently. I straightened out my outfit sneaking past the living room window.

The party was only a mere hour from starting. We had just gotten to Declan's house. He needed help setting up for the party so Cam and I were put on snack duty while the boys set up everything else.

"Ya know if you're ever hungry, I know something you can have to munch on." Camden snickered eating a Cheeto. I made a face picking up a piece of popcorn and throwing it at him. He caught it in his mouth, winking at me.

"I have a talented tongue, at least that's what they tell me." He smirked sliding closer to me. I pushed him back smiling as I did so.

"You're nasty." I laughed clearing my poor thoughts.

"You know you love it." He said putting his hand on my knee casually.

"Cam, stop bothering Violet," Luke said as he glided into the kitchen. It was finally starting to get dark out. Luke turned up the music putting some alcohol in every room.

Before I knew it the house was packed with people. I hadn't seen any of the boys since earlier instead I was focused on avoiding Cash. I don't know who invited him but ever since I met him I wanted nothing to do with him. Lizzie, of course, didn't show and I couldn't find any of the boys. As if on cue, I spotted a familiar blonde playing beer pong. I pushed my way through college kids standing beside Luke.

"Hey Blondie, wanna play?" Luke glanced at me. I got a whiff of his alcohol stenched breath.

"I don't know how," I shouted over the loud music. The guys on the other team laughed and I rolled my eyes.

"I'll teach you, it's easy." He said holding two ping pong balls in his hand. I nodded joining his team much to his teammates' dismay. They had a table with 10-cup triangles on each side.

"Okay, the goal is to get that team down to no cups," he explained pointing at the other team, "you have to throw this ball into their cups. You keep throwing until you miss then it's their turn if they throw a ball in one of our cups we drink it. Got it?" He asked.

"Got it." I nodded. He handed me one of the balls and the game started. Luke and one of the boys from the other team played rock paper scissors to see who goes first. Luke won meaning we go first.

He shot his ball first, it bounced off the table landing in one of their cups. He nodded at me hinting that I should shoot, I bounced the ball like he did but missed.

"That's okay, first try." He patted my back. One of the boys drank the cup throwing it to the side. They shot, landing in two cups. Luke and I both took a cup drinking it and throwing it to the side. I made a weird face as the bitterness burned down my throat. I never really liked beer.

We were down to three cups and they were down to one. Luke was pretty good, I only made it into two cups so far. We caught the attention of surrounding people and had them watching from every angle. Luke took the shot hitting the rim of the cup. He swore as he took a step back.

"Violet this is all you, you got this." He yelled. I aimed the ball tossing it gently. It bounced twice before landing right inside their last cup. I smiled, shocked that I even got it in.

Luke picked me up throwing me on his shoulder. I laughed looking down at everyone, Luke was really strong. He carried me like this to the living room then he threw me on the couch and wandered off.

My feet led me to the kitchen where there were empty bottles and dirty cups everywhere. Not to mention the couple who was on the island making out. But they weren't the only ones, from this spot I could see a certain boy with a girl on his lap. My heart sank to my stomach as I watched Austin stick his tongue down the girls throat. The pride from winning beer pong sunk.

"You enjoying the party?" Cam slurred a little pouring some kind of alcohol into his cup. I shrugged looking back at the two. I went to grab a cup of what looked like water but Camden took it out of my hand and sniffed it.

"That's not water." He said dumping it down the sink. I frowned.

"Who's that?" I gulped asking Camden.

"Oh, shit. Im sorry you had to see that. That's Austin's ex-girlfriend." Camden said looking inside his own cup frowning.

My heart sank to my stomach as I watched Austin lightly push her off of him. She was pretty, way prettier than me. She had dark hair that was curled, her long legs were tan and skinny. She wore a skin-tight black dress that showed every curve she had, every curve that I didn't have. But what about when he caught me today or when he kissed my cheek last night? Did none of that matter to him? Or was I just overthinking it and turning these things into something they're not because clearly he wasn't into me.

"I think I'm going to head home, I'm not really feeling well," I muttered taking my eyes off the two. I should've never snuck out. Maybe Aunt Cherry's words got to him.

"Want me to drive you home?" He slurred again losing his balance a little. He's a bit too tipsy to drive.

"No thanks, I'll just walk. Have fun!" I shouted out to him leaving the party. I pushed my way through drunk teenagers and college students. Eventually, I found the door leading myself out. Outside it was quieter, the stars shined bright and there was a better smell than drugs and alcohol.

I walked down the brick walkway heading to where I thought was my house. Actually, I didn't know how to get home from here, that could be a problem.

"Violet!" I recognized his voice instantly. But this time, I didn't stop, I kept walking. Wasn't he busy just a second ago?

"Where are you going? The party's not over." He chuckled wiping his lips. I stared at him blankly, arms crossed over my chest. Just hours ago I would've been more than happy he ran out to find me but now I was just frustrated.

"What's wrong?" He asked reaching his hand out. I desperately wanted to sink into his touch and get lost in his eyes but that was all fake. I dodged his hand turning back around to keep walking. His hand grasped my arm pulling me back crashing into his chest.

"Nothing, you should head back, I think someones waiting for you," I said a bit too harsh my voice cracking just the slightest. Austin's girlfriend had stepped outside Declan's house watching us, she must've followed him out. He looked taken back by my sudden outburst and turned to see what I was staring at. Here I stood practically on top of my crush's chest, my heart ripped into two and he was laughing.

"She's my ex and she is completely psycho. If I didn't know any better I'd say someone's a bit jealous." He grinned poking my nose with his finger.

"Psycho?" I questioned with a hand on my hip.

"She kissed me and I pushed her away. I wouldn't do that to you, Violet. I need you to trust me on this." His eyes pleaded. He kissed her back, or maybe the alcohol was getting to my head. My heart that had sunk to my stomach slowly rose back up to the empty spot in my chest it was before.

His fingers crept upon my chin turning my face to look at him. I fell under his gaze hopelessly lost in those blue eyes of his. Those eyes could convince me to do nearly anything. I just wish he would be more honest with me. How could I trust him if he couldn't even trust me enough to tell me what was really going on?

"Promise?" I asked with the slightest bit of hope.

"I promise. Now stop being jealous." He smiled.

"I am not," I said confidently as I crossed my arms. I looked around noticing we were in the middle of the road outside of Declan's home.

"You're jealous." He grinned as he led me back to his car parked on the side of the road.

"No, I'm not," I argued back.

"Austin? Austin! There you are I've been looking everywhere for you." The girl with the long black hair walked over clawing on his shoulder. She had these really big blue eyes, mine are nothing compared to hers. But hers were nothing compared to Austins.

He peeled her arm off his shoulder with a look of disgust. He said nothing to her as he opened the passenger door of his car for me and I slid inside. I thought I heard him mumble something to her when the door shut but I could just be imagining it.

"Um, you passed our road?" I asked looking back watching the road slowly fade away into the darkness.

"You don't want to get ice cream?" He asked grinning. I nodded having no idea what he had secretly planned. He parked his car at the ice cream shop downtown. The same shop we went to last time. Again, we both ordered the green monster. I couldn't help but stare at Austin and wonder about his past relationships.

The moon only defined his looks even more. His dark blue eyes had a glossy look to them but not the sad kind. We sat in a booth across each other.

"You know you still haven't taught me how to drive." I suddenly remembered. My knee accidentally came into contact with his from under the table but he didn't seem to notice. He grinned a little, his full lips coated lightly with ice cream.

"How's tomorrow sound, after school?" He asked.

"I'm grounded," I frowned.

"So what?" He shrugged. I did sneak out tonight when I wasn't supposed to. What's one more time?

"You got a little ice cream on your cheek." I laughed. He smiled using his napkin to wipe it, except he missed it completely.

"A little more to the right," I smiled. He moved it to the right but still missed the spot. I leaned across the table grazing my hand against. I took his napkin wiping the ice cream off his cheek. My eyes focused on his lips, his full pink lips. I looked up at him noticing our close proximity. His blue eyes hypnotized my brown ones and I found myself slowly leaning in just a bit more. My lips were just an inch away, a small measly inch. I was so close.

"Sorry to interrupt but we're closing." The young employee who served us our ice cream interrupted. I slid back into my realizing I almost just kissed Austin after he kissed another girl not even twenty minutes ago. I definitely am not exaggerating this one, we were going to kiss. Right? We left the ice cream shop and were now on our way home.

"He totally checked you out." Austin snickered glancing at me. My cheeks heated up.

"No, he didn't," I said crossing my arms.

"He did. You were bent over the table, who wouldn't steal a peek?" He laughed stopping at a red light. It was 11 o clock at night and the roads were completely empty.

"Look who's jealous now." I pointed out my own observation.

"Im not jealous, I get the same view everytime you get out of my car." He smirked. My jaw fell open, and I thought Camden was the only one who stared.

"So I'll pick you up at school?" He asked as I stepped out of his car. I hesitated to walk knowing he'd be staring.

"I'll be there." I nodded. I said bye to him as I walked across the lawn to Cherry's house. He was so imperfectly perfect it was in-explainable. Oh, crap. How was I suppose to sneak in through the front door? A thought popped into my head and I walked around to the bathroom window Cherry always left open. To my success, it was left open and was low enough that I could climb through. Let's just hope Cherry's not in the bathroom, now that'd be bad.

I jumped up using my arms to sit on the windowsill and slid into the bathroom easily. I let out a breath, now I just have to sneak up into my room. I opened the bathroom door slowly, seeing no sight of Cherry. I pushed my blonde hair out of my face tiptoeing past the kitchen. I heard the water running which meant Cherry was in there. I took that as my chance to flee and jogged through the living room and up the stairs.

My heart rate finally slowed once I got out of the shower and was laying on my bed. I looked over at my balcony, from here I could see partly into Austin's room. His curtains were in the way but I could see the light shining through. I wondered what he was thinking of when we almost kissed.

I wanted to talk to Cherry and see if we could have another girls night so things weren't so awkward between us now.

I know she's still up because the water was running earlier. I tiptoed down the stairs hearing Cherry talking. I slowly peeked around the corner. Cherry and her old friend Jeanine were drinking tea on the couch. I didn't know they still talked. I leaned up against the wall behind the living room as I eavesdropped.

"How's Violet been?" Jeanine asked. The last time I saw her was at one of Cherry's annual family baseball games.

"She's always been one to see the good in everyone." Cherry sighed.

"What do you mean?" She asked sounding concerned.

"She's hanging out with bad people after I told her not to and she just snuck out tonight." She mumbled. My face grew hot at the mention of sneaking out.

"But Sharon you have to understand that before she didn't get to be a normal teenager, she had to grow up fast with her situation, now she has the chance to be her age and you're not letting her which is only going to make her act out more," Jeanine spoke. I didn't want to listen anymore, I tiptoed up the stairs to my room deciding to end this long night.