Addison Lawler's Story

Addi rests her head for a minute against the tree and then her phone buzzes. She quickly grabs it, and opens up the text, chuckling a bit.

Which do-gooder did’ya get, babe? ;)

Addi grins and texts back, her fingers flying across the keyboard

Sweet old, Eleanor Carson... Swear, that poor girl will be so scarred...

Addi places her phone down and begins to strum her guitar, the chords to Wonderwall by Oasis come to her mind first and she begins to play that. Boring as this place was, Addi had to give credit, it was peaceful. The forest had good hiding places, the buildings were sturdy, and the architecture was brilliant. Of course, even with all that said, it still was a dump mostly due to the goody two shoes. Oh well. Mostly likely, the girl would end up ignoring everyone, or just mess with everyone's heads for the most part.

She would try not to think of Jaysin of course... or the drama that would go on between her and Cor, that come with her even talking to Jaysin... She sighs, trying to put the thought out of her head.

The words to Wonderwall were slowly passing through her lips, "I don't believe anybody feels the way I do, about you now..."


[[short post, sorry.]]

Addison clicked her tongue against the roof of her mouth and she slung her guitar strap around her shoulder and she places her cigarettes in her back pocket. She strolls through the campus, seeing some people. Addison cracked her neck to the side and she started daydreaming slightly as she walked, her eyes drifting towards the woods. She wondered where Jadey was, or Cor...

Or Jaysin...

The brunette shakes her head violently.

How pathetic could she get? She was like a school girl oogling over their crush, she bites the inside of her cheek, trying to keep the mushy disgusting thoughts out of her head. She walks to her room, placing her guitar in the case and she opens the window a slight bit, staring out of it for a moment, her thoughts wandering back to Jaysin. Jaysin...

No... She shakes her head, turning away from the window, Not okay. She storms out of the room, locking it up and she walks back down the hallway, cursing herself for letting petty thoughts get into her head. It always seemed that way though, she had never really thought about anyone really in THAT way, besides maybe a select few...

"Whatever." She mutters under her breath, clearly frustrated with herself. She swings the door open to go sit outside again and she flicks a blunt -- which was neatly packed away in her cigarette carton -- and lights up, and begins walking down into the forest.

Addison continued to walk mindlessly through the forest, not really caring where she ended up. Taking long drags of her joint, she would watch the smoke float through the trees up into the sky. Flicking the rest of the ashes off the joint, she cracked her neck, flicking the butt of it into the bushes of the forest.

"Woo...I am high," she laughs a bit, shaking her head, a thought floated across her mind, and she remembered:

Jackson's party.

The first party of the year, and she looked like shit, jeans... a decent V neck shirt, nothing special. She was on a bus today, what did she care? She shrugs. As she enters the party scene, she sees Jay storming off away from Cor and another guy.

"Well shit..." Addi grumbles, fixing her hair with a quick finger brush, "Drama already?"

Addison liked to watch drama unfold, she also liked to play in the drama, be a persuasive bystander, as she liked to call it. A dark, playful smile flickers on her lips and she walks over to Jay, her fingers lingering across the back of his neck as she makes her way to sit next to him.

"Something wrong?" Addi's voice is smooth, dark, almost a whisper as she takes the seat next to him. She leans a bit, crossing her legs and her bright blue eyes flicker over towards Jay. She sighs quietly, moving the bangs from her eyes and a playful smile dances on her lips. She lights up a cigarette and leans back, taking a long drag, smoke rings leaving her lips in perfect O's.

Leo's heart started to beat faster, and his palms started to get a little sweaty with every ring that went past, and Amy didn't pick up with. He wondered where she was, if she was okay, was.... everything else okay? Now that there was... a child, his child involved, everything started to seem to panic the male a little more. Was this the sort of person that he was going to be, now that there was a life inside his girlfriend's stomach? Worrying at her every movement, panicking when she didn't pick up the phone, thinking the worst to have happened. He was worried, scared, that this was the new Leo, the new person he was going to be. So much responsibility and pressure had fallen onto his shoulders within a few hours, and he was scared. Leonardo Marinos, the immortal Spartan Warrior, was scared.

The immortal male literally felt his heart leap with joy when he heard Amy's voice on the end of his phone, and verbally let out a sigh of relief, letting go of the breath that he hadn't realized that he was holding. Something about his beloved girlfriends voice was different however; she sounded, tired, or weak, or both. Again, the male felt his heart start to race, and he had to take in another deep breath before he spoke, giving him that few more seconds to put on a facade of voice that didn't show through his worry. "Hey." He repeated, wondering what else to say to the woman. Their last meeting had been a little short and brief, and in that time period, she had revealed to him that she was expecting, and Katia had arrived, seriously pissing her off before her leaving. He had made an error there too in not following her, but he hadn't been able to leave Katia alone. Leo wasn't sure what he was supposed to say to her, or how he could make any of this right again - because it wasn't right. There was an unspoken air of tension between the two of them, even down the phone he was able to detect it. He just didn't want it to last long.

"Amy..." Leo sighed, biting down on his bottom lip, a nervous habit of his that he rarely exhibited. "I'm sorry I didn't call earlier, and I'm sorry about Katia. I'm sorry about everything, but I'd really like to see you in person to talk to you about it - where are you, honey?"

---

Erin had failed. She hadn't been able to keep the handsome face of Drakethrean Quellen out of her mind for long, and soon, her drinks weren't lasting as long as her first one had. One. Two. Three. Four. The fifth was in her hand now, and it was too going down readily. The blonde girl knew that she was going to have to move onto something stronger soon, something that wasn't so feminine, and something that would get her very drunk, very quickly. She didn't like the feeling of being tipsy and woozy, which was how the Archers in her hand was making her feel. No, whiskey was in order. Or something along those lines. The girl readily finished her fifth mixer through the straw and put the glass down on the table, sighing. She went to move, to stand up and make her way to the bar, but her head instantly started to swim the second that she pushed herself to a standing position.

So, she flopped back down again, deciding to take a couple of minutes to let her head settle down, before moving to the bar again, to get her stronger drink. However, before Erin could make her move, someone came over to her; the first person to enter the vicinity of the gazebo since she had sat down there - most people didn't interact with her, unless they knew her well, and that was for three reasons - one, they knew she was a friend of Corentine Quellen, two, they knew about her power, or three, they had heard about her reputation as a whorish bitch. Either way, she didn't mind - the alone time was peaceful. But that peacefulness was soon trashed by the drunken movements of a male, tall, dark and handsome. She was surprised by his voice hitting her ears from afar. Her head snapped up as Jay crashed down onto the couch next to her, downing the rest of the expensive looking bottle that he was drinking all in what seemed to be one breath. Erin could see that he was obviously drunker than her and was lashing out at Cor.

Before the blonde could say anything to male however, he was soon gone. She hadn't had time to defend her friend, or even bitch about her friend, before Jay had left her alone, walking away and getting himself another bottle of whatever he had been drinking, or similar, at the bar. She frowned at the scene unfolding in front of her, and combined it with her confusion at the situation at what had happened. Apparently, Jay and Cor were no more. Why hadn't Cor told her? Why was her best friend sitting at the bar with Max, practically a stranger other than in bedroom, and wasn't sitting there with her, talking about it? She hadn't even replied to her previous text, anyway - about the bad day! Cor was growing higher and higher with every passing moment in Erin's bad books, and she huffed as she pushed herself up once more into a standing position. The girl moved, her heels clicking on the floor, making her way over to the table where the intoxicated male had seated himself.

She passed the bar where he friend was seated, without a word to the other blonde, and soon, she was standing to the side of Jay, her hand on her hip. She watched how Addison came over and touched the back of his neck, smirking at the girl's bravery. If Cor had seen that... well, the girl wouldn't have had those two slinky legs to stand on any more. She stopped for a brief outfit adjustment, pulling her dress down cover more of her modesty, as her dress barely reached the underneath of her bum. Then, she moved and sat down on the other side of Jay, completely ignoring Addison and her flirtatious movements towards the male. Without a word, she casually took the bottle of whiskey out of his hand and took a swig for herself, before replacing it. "She's pissed me off too, today. And seeing her sitting there, doing.... that... instead of talking to me," she paused for a moment, before looking over at the male, "so tonight, I am on your side. It'll get me killed, but why should I give a flying fuck." Erin's confidence could have been seen as stupidity by anyone that knew how Corentine Quellen would react to her best friend sitting with her ex-boyfriend and current enemy, but the blonde just didn't give a fuck. Besides, the copious amounts of alcohol coursing through her system would make her feel better about this betrayal.

---

Taking things slowly, Jackson was only on his second drink of the night, sipping away in his position, perusing everything around him. He was watching his party, which was now full in swing. The music was playing, loud enough to be heard by everyone, but not loud enough to deafen those standing closer to the speakers, people were picking at the buffet food and seemed to be enjoying it, and the bartender seemed to be incredibly busy, not being able to stop for a moment as the amount of orders were flooding in. He could see that people were getting drunk quite quickly, but that wasn't any of his concern. He knew that Mr. Marinos wouldn't be angry at him for hosting such a party, and would be angry, rather, at those who were stupid enough to drink away their troubles and not turn up for classes the next day.

He hadn't really seen anyone that he was close to yet as he looked around; no sign of Lu, Amber, or even Jess - someone he wasn't all that familiar with, but was quite excited to see tonight at his party. Why? He wasn't really sure? Maybe it was the way that she had acted earlier, and it had intruged him? That was his best guess, anyway - Jackson was rather attracted to people that he had to figure out, people who interested him. It was a rather similar situation with Amber. However, it was the complete opposite with Lulu. She was the one person in the entire world who knew him better than anyone, and who he knew better than she did herself; there was no way to describe his relationship with her, other than he was attracted to her because of her amazing personality, her stunning looks, and the way that he didn't have to explain anything to her - she just knew.

Speaking of the devil, Jack pulled his phone out of his pocket with his spare hand when he felt it vibrate, and his lips instantly changed into a smile when he saw who had text him. He made his way over to the bar once he had placed his phone back into his pocket, and grabbed a bottle of JD from the bartender, his pre-order, and left his other drink. He instantly spotted his gorgeous blonde friend by the bar with a cocktail stick with cheese on the end in her hand, and made his way over to her. The tall Irish man made his way around the back of her however, disappearing into the crowd before he could be spotted at the bar. When he was behind her, he gently placed a hand over her eyes, and rested his chin on her shoulder. "Guess who?" He spoke with his thick Irish drawl, the bottle of Jack Daniels pressed into his back, hiding it. "Drake has good taste, by the way. You look beautiful tonight."

---

Max hadn't interacted with any of the students who had come up the bar; none of them had sparked his interest, none of the women enough to rouse him from his position, crouched over his glass of vodka. He had felt that there were eyes on him somewhere, someone watching him, but he didn't pay too much attention to the notion - usually, there was someone watching him, especially at events like this. Leo was the sort of person who would send someone out to watch over him, to make sure that he was being sensible, and acting all "professional." Ha. No-one had ever stopped him from acting like this, and now that he was on a level closer to that stature of Mr. Leonardo, he still wasn't going to be controlled. Besides, the alcohol was calming him down anyway, dulling the horrible concoction of emotions that were building inside his mind.

The brunette male didn't have a preferred drink - anything strong and alcoholic was his main preference. Spirits, mainly, and tonight, he had decided on some vodka. This morning, it had been whiskey. Ah, the drink of men. Suddenly, the male was snapped out of his little reverie about alcohol, and into his personal space (which included the two seats either side of him), slid Corentine Quellen, one of the naughtiest little bitches Max had ever had the pleasure of being with. She ordered a hefty supply of shots, and expertly downed them in one go when they were finally placed in front of him. He didn't turn to look at her as she drunk, or return her flirtatious smile. When it came to Corentine, Max was careful. She was a devil in disguise, this one.

However, when she spoke about him being someone who could use her type of company, Max's expression changed from an emotionless blank slate, into a sultry crooked grin that had come to be his trademark. He couldn't stop his eyes from wandering her perfect body as she twisted in her seat, the dress which barely covered anything riding even further up her thigh, exposing her creamy, supple flesh. He slowly brought his gaze up to look into her eyes. He decided not to reply to her comment, his expression revealing his answer clearly. "Your emotions are tightly wrapped today, Corentine." He spoke, taking another large sip of his vodka. "Why so desperate for, as you say, "my company" tonight?" Before the male could inquire about the girls needs for his attention further, Max received a little present in front of him, something he hadn't expected to receive that night. "A condom? Either someone's flirting with me or this is the worst coaster ever. Besides, it's the wrong size - too small for me. What's that in front of you?" He asked the blonde next to him, tossing the condom into the bin behind the bar, getting it straight in his goal.

Cor couldn’t help a little satisfied smirk when Max’s eyes did exactly what she expected them to; ride up her body. The sexy smile on his face further informed her that they were definitely in business today. Good, she thought, her own gaze not shy about taking a tour of his body. Max was incredibly handsome, his hair dark and messy, eyes intense and already filled with naughty intentions. She knew what kind of body he was hiding underneath that clothing and it was enough to make a girl squeal at the prospect of his attentions. But still, despite how much she loved being with Max, she just couldn’t shake the feeling that she would rather have Jay next to her like this. She would rather figure things out with him. But she knew it wasn’t an option. They were poison to each other, caught in a game of who hurts who the most. But she was done. Cor was done playing. For a girl who loved a little game at all times, that was quite huge. The fact was, she didn’t enjoy hurting Jay, and she definitely did not like being hurt in return. So far none of her actions had been with the intention of hurting him, except for during their argument today.

But then, who didn’t say things they didn’t mean when they were angry? Cor instantly put a lid on those thoughts again, knowing they would lead her down a dark and twisted road, which she really didn’t want. In fact, she needed to keep a clear head if she was to talk to Erin tonight. Ah hell, Erin. She hadn’t replied to the text because she had been too out of it after her situation with Jay, and later she’d completely forgotten. Then, on top of it, it was really hard for Cor to focus on Erin’s problems when her own weighed so heavily on her. When she’d arrived at the party, all she had seen was the bar, and then Max. She still hadn’t looked around her, and she wasn’t going to right now. She wasn’t sure if she would like to see what was unfolding. She had a feeling Jay would want to hurt her more after her little show in the hall today. Truly, she did feel bad about her last comment. She felt bad about going to meet Sky. Which was entirely new for the blonde. Part of her wanted to find him and apologize; to tell him all she really wanted was him, if he would still have her. And if he could be with her alone. Would Jay be able to go through with being with someone else like she hadn’t been able to with Sky? Again, she shook off the thoughts just as Max’s eyes met hers and his voice met her ears.

Cor, getting her game-face back on, laughing slightly at his words, the sound easy and flirty in itself. “Max, you flatter yourself. I was desperate for alcohol.” She gave him a little once over, a teasing grin on her lips. “You just happen to be a… delicious bonus.” She didn’t further comment on the fact that her emotions were a mess. It was none of his fucking business, although she did realize he couldn’t exactly help his powers. While she spoke, Cor noted a square package being put in front of Max, and a napkin being placed in front of her. When he picked his up, she instantly knew what it was. And recognized it too. At the sight, Cor quickly downed the three remaining shots on the counter next to her. When Max spoke, inquiring about her “gift”, she sighed. Normally Max’s comments would’ve made her laugh or at least smile, but she already knew who it was from, and she didn’t like the message it was indirectly sending. In the end, Cor decided she wasn’t going to be a pussy about this and picked up the napkin.

Reading the note, Cor froze, sitting with the piece of paper in her hands. A slight frown soon took over her expression and she raised her gaze to finally look around, trying to locate the sender of the note. Jay. They were his words from earlier, and she wondered if he had even thought before sending it. He was completely counteracting his own words. He had told her they were done, and suddenly the games were back on? She was so sick of this bullshit. So tired of trying to explain herself, trying to defend her actions. Tired of him playing with her emotions so easily, whether it was intentional or not. She just didn’t like a guy being able to do this to her. Her eyes didn’t take all that long to find Jay, and she wasn’t surprised to find him with girls. What surprised her were the particular females he was with. Erin, her supposed best friend, and Addie, also a supposed friend. And Addie was obviously gunning for him, her fingers on his neck. Erin was in no way looking hostile. Just sort of tipsy, and the guy himself was wasted. She watched them quietly, trying to quench every bit of feeling it was inspiring in her. Especially because she knew Max would feel them.

Anger, hurt, betrayal… sadness. So much sadness. Her face was impassive as she watched them. She hadn’t even known Erin was at the party, too wrapped up in her need to somehow drown her emotions. Her best friend, the only girl who knew everything Cor was feeling about Jay, and Addie, who Cor had shadily informed that Jay was not to be touched. Both girls were her friends, and more than anything, Cor felt betrayed and hurt. So hurt. She took a deep breath, realizing she had stopped the process entirely when she’d seen the threesome. Cor, without looking at Max, tore the napkin into pieces and let it fall to the ground. “Jaysin’s idea of a good time,” she replied coldly before her gaze snapped back to him, no longer caring who knew shit about her and Jay. “You see, he wants to play a game. No, rather, he wants to restart one I finished just earlier today. Who can hurt the other the most.” Then she smirked ironically, shaking her head. “I haven’t been playing it very well so far.” She added the last bit almost thoughtfully before concluding, “well, that’s changing now.”

She raised an eyebrow, fire in her eyes. “Feel like helping me out for a spell, handsome?” Cor knew there was a merciless light in her eyes. She also knew it would pretty damn short-lived. Or, at least she had a feeling it would be. She suspected that once it got down to it, she wouldn’t be able to do it. She just couldn’t do that to Jay. No matter how much he hurt her, or how much he pissed her off, she couldn’t. But then, this time it was different, because Cor was also dealing with the betrayal of two friends, one of which was her best friend. What the hell was going on today? She had a suspicion that Max was going to feel her emotions too, and a tiny part of her felt bad for it. She knew he’d figure out how to tone it down though. Besides, when she rocked his world, he’d be good. If she rocked his world. It all kind of depended on whether the blonde could really do it. It bothered her, how Jay was toning down on her ability to be a huge bitch. If only they could work things out between them, it would all be worth it. As it was, none of her “friends” were getting away with their current activities. She would make sure of it. It just might not be tonight.

---

When she heard Leo’s voice, Amy took a deep breath, calming herself. Right now she was a little confused to be honest. She didn’t like being lied to, hated having things hidden from her, and downright abhorred that Leo was doing exactly that. Too bad his little show had been ruined by Katia’s need to stamp herself as a needy whore. A term Amy would never normally contemplate, but yeah, she supposed the pregnancy was making her a bit hormonal already. Did that mean she was overreacting here? Did she really have reason to be angry with Leo? She pondered this as silence stretched between them, tension building. She didn’t like this kind of issues between them, but she wasn’t going to bow down and let it happen, because then Leo wouldn’t know that it wasn’t okay with her next time. As he hadn’t been in a real relationship in millenniums, she knew he was going to have some initial struggles finding out what she expected of him and what was natural to do or not to do in a relationship. But what worried her was, as friends he hadn’t been hiding things from her. She didn’t want him to start just because they were in a relationship.

Especially not now that she was carrying his child. Amy curled up better in the chair, her eyes scanning the room. No Chris. She wondered where he could be. Bathroom? Out? She couldn’t blame him, considering she had slept for 3 long hours. Then Leo spoke again, her name containing so many emotions she almost doubled over from the effect, but she sat still, phone at her ear, listening to the following sigh, and then the rest of his words. She sighed when he finally asked her where she was. The question she had known was coming. Only, she had expected the call much sooner. Honestly she felt more than a little neglected. Sure, she had walked out on him, but in all fairness she had had plenty reason, and at least he had called. She knew Leo loved her, she really did, but he was such a difficult man. Some women thought they had issues getting a lone wolf used to a relationship, but the men they had problems with, had maybe been alone for 20 years. Try multiplying that with 100, she thought to herself. The young nurse was quiet for a long time, contemplating.

What should she tell him? The truth of course, that much was a no-brainer, but she couldn’t very well have him meet her here, could she? That might seem just a little weird to poor Chris. Chris who had had a plenty crappy first day at Arcana. She really hoped she could help him get settled in better as a teacher here, because she wanted him to stay. With all the new Noctrem teachers, they needed some more Arcana-minded people in the mix. She was still tired, and she knew it was taking some spunk out of her. Usually Amy would be at Leo’s throat already, but firstly she didn’t want Chris overhearing, and secondly she really didn’t want to argue with him anymore today. Two had to be enough, didn’t they? The two couldn’t just keep right on arguing all day… could they? Finally Amy took a deep breath. “At Chris’.” She finally said, then closed her eyes and murmured quietly, “I don’t want to fight anymore, Leo.” The brunette got slowly out of the chair she had been curled up in and pulled out a small piece of paper from her pocket, then began hunting for a pen. She was uneasy on her own feet, but she wasn’t about to tell Leo that. Obviously he would only start babying her.

When she found a pen, she began writing while talking to Leo again. “I’ll meet you at your place, okay?” Even now, having awoken properly, Amy didn’t sound any better than she had when she had picked up. Okay, maybe she did need a helping hand. Amy was turning out to be her own worst patient; one of those people who refused to relax and take care of themselves when they were ill, no matter the kind. Without waiting for an answer, Amy hung up on her boyfriend and finished up her note for Chris, putting it on the table in front of the chair.

Had to go, but we still need to talk. Sorry about falling asleep, I’m a little out of it today – hope you’re at least feeling better. I’ll come find you soon, honey.

Love, Amy.

With that, she steeled herself and by pure stubbornness, managed to get herself to Leo’s place, locking herself in with her extra key. But that was it. As she made it inside, closing the door behind her, her legs which had been shaking obsessively all the way, gave out, and she crumbled to the floor. Hitting the floor on her bottom, Amy could only draw in a deep breath. She knew she wasn’t getting anywhere by herself anytime soon. Which really did wonders for her dignity. The dignity her own illness earlier, along with Katia turning up, had already trampled well into the ground. “I hate this,” the teacher murmured to herself, hanging her head in defeat. She just wanted to go back to sleep. Or curl up in Leo’s arms. Preferably the latter, then the former.

Jaysin Dennis

In his own state of mind, Jay found peace at last with the bottle of whiskey pointed to the moon as he lost balance in time to come back to reality. With the world coming to a stop, he watched the faces around him combine into one as his mind was washed with the liquor that was continuously being gulped down. The burn was so familiar at this point that he didn’t mind the constant flow that could drown him if he let it. The tolerance of alcohol he had built over the years was being tested as he made it to the half-way point where the bottle now seemed to be begging him to finish it. He looked at it once more in question as the wonder what would happen to him the next day if he finished this one. Would he wake up to the hell he seemed to find himself in? He let the bottle fall to the ground as he felt the slightest touch on the back on his neck. The sensation reminded him so much of Cor that he felt himself getting worked up until the blonde’s friend appeared in front of him.

"Something wrong?” Addison seemed to be in another world as she plopped down beside him, not even hesitating to light the cigarette that was now forming the most perfect rings. “Not now.” He smirked as he pulled the cigarette from her mouth. “Hope you don’t mind,” he let his wore out body take the longest drag it could manage before showing the blonde his own tricks with smoke. “I like to share.” Leaning into Addison, he found himself placing the cigarette back into her mouth, but right before pulling away he let his finger trace her bottom lip. “You look nice tonight.” He said giving the girl a look over before picking his bottle of whiskey off the ground. “Want some?” He offered before he felt the bottle being taken from him. As soon as he spotted Erin he felt his body tightening, “Don’t tell me. Cor wants me killed now? Or later?” His words were overlooked as the girl started speaking almost immediately. "She's pissed me off too, today. And seeing her sitting there, doing.... that... instead of talking to me, so tonight, I am on your side. It'll get me killed, but why should I give a flying fuck."

The laughter that erupted from Jay’s stomach made him hurt at the idea of two of Cor’s closest friends trying to get back at her by messing with him. “You both are going to be killed for sure.” He said as he slide closer to Addison, rubbing the spot beside him for Erin. “But if we are all going to die, we might as well watch the bitches face.” He said as he caught sight of Cor looking away from their direction. “I say we all just leave and make the bitch wonder.” He smiled at the idea, but didn’t want to leave the party so soon. “Actually.” He stood quickly, looking around the party for where everybody was at. “I want to explore a little bit then we shall all disappear together. Deal, my pretty ladies?” He asked as he handed the whiskey bottle to Erin. “Keep this until I return, please. I’ll find you both when I am ready to go. Until then, I shall flirt my fucking ass off until this pain goes away in my chest.” As he walked away he made one last remark to the girls, “thank you both for actually understanding why I shouldn’t be the enemy.” And with that he was on his journey for more girls.

Initially, Jay thought that he was wanting to find more girls, but there was really only one girl that he wanted at the moment to find. Esme. There was something about Esme that drew him to her, but of course Cor didn’t know that he had actually started spending time with Esme when Cor would run off. Jay knew for certain now because she was not mentioned with the other girls Cor had noticed he was eyeing. Of course though, Esme was not like the other girls. Jay kept her a secret for a reason because he didn’t want Cor to ruin something else he was developing. Even if they ended up being just friends, Cor would find a way to ruin this for him. Now that he was on his feet, his body was looking for her instead of anybody else. He wondered why the girl wasn’t at the party, so he made it his duty to find her now because it was one less thing he had to worry about.

As Jackson had obviously left early for his own party, Drake had been alone for the better part of the afternoon, the room almost too quiet. So, to cope, he’d turned on music. Currently Scorpions were playing ‘Rock You Like A Hurricane’ and it was definitely improving the dark male’s mood. After a bit of after-sex flirting with Erin, Drake had left and to be honest he hadn’t been planning on actually going to see Lulu again, but he’d wanted to check on her, to make sure she was alright. Besides, he had a feeling she probably hadn’t gotten around to eating anything, so after a pit-stop in the cafeteria, where he’d charmed the cook into making Lulu some soup, he’d headed to her room. And found the door torn off its hinges. The room had looked like it’d been struck by a hurricane, or, as Lulu had informed him, his sister Corentine. He’d honestly been a bit surprised. Lulu couldn’t possibly have done anything to agitate Cor already today, and it wasn’t like his sister to blow things apart unless she was seriously pissed. Well, he’d wondered until he had been told Jay had stopped by Lulu’s room. Then things had become clear.

She’d given him a brief recap of everything that had happened and he remembered wishing he’d been there to handle Cor, because obviously the things his sister had said to Lulu had gotten to the girl. Not that he was surprised. Cor was good at that. Mostly because he was the one who had sort of maybe taught her a little. How to use people’s weaknesses against them. Cor was a… quick study. Of course he hadn’t expected her to use him against Lulu, but if Jay had been involved? Drake knew precisely how merciless and fierce his sister was when it came to things she cared about, and she cared a lot about Jay. Unfortunately the two were also having issues, and Drake had actually started to wonder if maybe he should talk to the guy. Or hell, even Cor, because though Drake loved some drama to keep things interesting, he could only imagine what was going on with his sister, and in spite of everything, he didn’t want her miserable. He wanted her happy and making others miserable. Back to the Cor he knew and loved… albeit also hated sometimes. But hey, that was the way of siblings, right?

Either way, Drake and Lulu had soon dropped the issue and gone back to just being them, messing around, laughing and having fun. It’d taken some of the tension out of Drake, and he was actually quite curious to see whether she was actually wearing the outfit he’d picked out for her. Especially the lingerie. He’d more or less just thrown on his outfit, his hair kept in its usual slightly messy style. He was so late as it was, but that was just what Drake did. Although he had to say he actually had a lot of things he wanted to do tonight. Flirt with Ashy, talk to Cor, drink with Lulu and probably Jackie-boy too. In fact, Drake had big plans; getting back to himself. All this emotional shit today had thrown the male Quellen quite a bit, and he needed to get drunk and be a cold bastard just to even the score. He liked things to be even. Nice Drake equaled an equally cold and indifferent Drake at a later time. That was just how he coped and it worked for him. The world was tilting too much currently and he didn’t like it.

Drake ran a hand through his hair taking his first look in the mirror and shrugged. Should do. A grabbed one of his bottled with aged rum, like he’d promised Lulu, and walked off, taking a look at the door to the room before leaving. It’d be so like Cor to sneak in and steal more of his booze tonight, and he really didn’t have much left after living with her for the past month. He needed to get in touch with his usual supplier, but the guy was being difficult at the moment, so as it was he needed to put a lid on his little thief of a sister. Drake looked around him, gathering shadows from every corner he could spot, letting them shape and harden to form a protective shield for the door. It’d have to do. No one was getting inside now. People would probably wonder when they walked past, but what did he care. Jackson wasn’t coming anytime soon anyway. Drake put his hands in his jacket pockets and walked down to the party. However, he kept himself in the shadows at first, surveying the scene, eyes wandering.

Jay was just now leaving Erin and Addie in the gazebo, looking like he was searching for someone in particular. Someone Drake knew wasn’t Cor. Because she was pretty obviously seen, sitting at the bar talking to Max. Her posture wasn’t the relaxed one she would usually have with the teacher, but rather tense and stiff with anger, and… hurt? Obviously. If Jay and Cor were having issues and Addie was jumping at the chance. Hell, even Erin was talking to the guy. He raised an eyebrow, shaking his head. He’d catch his sister later. The male had just decided to talk to Jay when the guy found what he was looking for in Esme. Ah hell. This wasn’t going to end well. He let out a slight sigh, eyes finding Lulu talking to Jack who was obviously liking the outfit Drake had picked out. It caused a small smirk to graze his lips to see that Lulu was actually wearing it, and it again made him wonder what was underneath. Shaking it off, his eyes moved on. Amber was talking to Lora. He might have to stop by the two. Now, where was little Ashy? He’d find her soon, that was for sure.

He chuckled to himself, making his way over to Lulu and Jack. On his way he let Lulu see his eyes traveling down her body, a satisfied smirk on his lips. “I have to say this is better than I imagined.” He put the bottle of rum down beside her, “you look amazing.” Then he chuckled, looking over at Jack, “not that you don’t Jackie-boy, but you know I don’t roll that way.” Gaze back on Lulu, he began walking off with a last comment and a typical Drake grin, “rum as promised. Enjoy. I’ll see you guys later.” That done, Drake made his way over to the bar about to order something when he heard Sky’s voice just a little to the side. Calling out to Ashy? Drake followed the other guy’s eyes and located the little innocent blonde. Great. He ordered a couple of shots and went to join Sky, calling out to Ashy, “yeah, Ash, you’re looking a little too sober tonight.” Downing one of his shots, he sent the blonde a devious smirk, clearly telling her which mode he was in tonight. Ashy was just too fun to mess with. He looked at Sky then. “So are you by the way. Just got here?” He asked the Pyro, actually wondering. Sky wasn’t one to get drunk slowly. He usually partied fully from the second he stepped into an occasion.

Addison takes a gulp of Jay's drink and shivers with delight as it burns her throat. She stays quiet, and watches Jay go off in search of girls and she looks over at Erin with a small smirk, taking a drag of her cigarette.

"Well, hello, lovely," Her voice is dark and a twinkle of seduction sparked in her eye. Granted, Addison was still extremely high, and she was planning on getting drunk next, but she still knew what she was doing.

She gives Erin a small wink, "See ya around, babe." She says, standing up, taking another drag of her cigarette as she walks towards the bar, leaning over it, tilting her head at the bartender in a flirtatious way. There was a bowl of cherries on the counter and she takes one in her free hand, taking it in her mouth and playing with it a bit.

"I'll have a shot of whiskey, please."

The bartender smirks back, "Excellent choice."

She nods, taking her shot and shooting it back, letting out a small sigh of relief. She smiles a bit, at the bartender, sliding the glass back to him with a smirk.

The extremely detached girl, notices McKenna sitting alone at the bar and she rolls her eyes a bit, then starts searching for someone she could possibly get with tonight.

Leo didn't like Amy's pause when he asked her where she was. It worried him in fact, that she wasn't answering him. What was she hiding from him? It was strange, that Amy wasn't replying. She never hid anything from him, especially now that they were in a relationship; when they had just been friends however, they had still had no qualms about telling each other anything. He didn't want that to change, not now that their relationship was a little more complicated and confusing. Whilst he waited for her reply, the male sat back in his chair, dropping his head back so that his neck was resting on the back of his chair.

However, soon, Amy's voice was hitting his ears and he almost felt his heart sink when Amy told him where she had been for the last three hours; At Chris'. He literally sat there with his mouth opening and closing, looking like a fish out of water. He heard her voice shake slightly as she told him that she didn't want to fight any more, and he just nodded, forgetting that she couldn't see him. The man couldn't believe that she had been with Chris all of this time. She could have stayed with him, and spoke to him about their issues, instead of going to tell Chris, a guy that she knew he wasn't all that fond about right now. He knew that she had to have felt awkward with Katia there, but he was only helping her, giving her a job when she needed one. She didn't understand their situation., and hadn't stayed to ask him about it.

Amy then told him to meet her in his apartment, and before he could reply - the phone went dead. The male pulled the phone away from his ear and looked at it, his expression stunned. He had never been hung up on before, especially by Amy. An exasperated sigh escaped Leo's lips as he placed his phone back into his pocket and stood up, leaving his office. He didn't lock the door behind him, there was no point - every student was out at the party, and no teacher would dare go into there without his permission. So, the male slowly made his way up to his apartment, taking small steps. He was slightly nervous to see his girlfriend; their last few conversations being extremely awkward, and the tension between them could almost be cut by a knife. However, he was soon outside his front door and took in another deep breath before opening it, revealing the scene in front of him.

"Amy!" Leo gasped, rushing into his apartment, the door closing slowly behind him. The picture in front of him scared him; his pregnant girlfriend whom he had recently argued with collapsed onto his hallway floor, her skin a horrible pale hue. "Are you okay? What's wrong?" His voice was filled with panic as he knelt down in front of her, taking her cheeks into his hands, cupping them delicately. Lifting up her head so that she could look into his chocolate browns, he let his eyes frantically look over her, checking for any sign of injury.

---

Erin was kind of put out. She had moved all the way from her comfortable position in the gazebo to talk to Jay, and maybe even Addison once she had seen the girl sitting down next to him, but practically just after she had sat down, the two of them had fucked off. She had been left with a consolation prize however; Jay's expensive looking bottle of whiskey that he had placed into her hand, asking her to look after it until he returned. Yeah, right. Like he was going to return in that state. Jay was already borderline paralytic, and he was probably going off to find someone to have a revenge fuck with; this bottle was now hers, the blonde had decided. So, she twisted off the lid and took another swig, letting the warm liquid trickle its way into her stomach, filling her with a strange sense of alcoholic warmth.

The girl was usually filled with confidence, and soon, the alcohol was only giving her extra. She literally felt like she was buzzing on alcohol, her eyes clouded over, yet everything still visible to her. She was a little unsteady on her feet when she stood up, but she blamed it on the high heels that she had stuck on her feet that night. Yeah, nothing to do with the copious amounts of alcohol coursing through her blood stream, was it. No... Slowly, the blonde started making her way through the now crowded party area, her eyes expertly searching the people for one face in particular; a face that she knew all too well. It surprised her when she saw who her target was standing with and talking to, and she decided to make her way over there, and maybe provide him with some sort of... interesting companionship.

It was a difficult feat, yes, but somehow, Erin made her way over to Drake without falling over, staying up the entire way. She was quite pleased with herself actually, and she took another victory swig of Jay's her whiskey, congratulating herself. She came up behind the male, and ignoring the fairy-like blonde that was standing in front of him, she wrapped her arm around his waist, going up on her tiptoes so she could whisper in his ear. "Hello, lover." Her lips brushed against his skin as she spoke, her voice a sultry tone that she reserved only for him. She kept her arm around him for some extra stability as she came down from her tip-toes, and turned to look at Ashy, who seemed too sober for the blonde's liking. She thrust out the bottle that she was holding in her hand towards Ashy, offering her the bottle. She knew that twinkle-toes here was quite wary of her, but she had no disliking towards her; in fact, Erin actually found her quite... cute, in a way. "You look like you need this more than I do, girl."

In a way, Erin thought that she was doing good, coming in between Drake and Ashy's conversation; why? Ashy was... too sweet and innocent and frankly, just too adorable for someone like Drake. He was cruel, vindictive, a vicious lover; someone like Ashy would only get her sweet little heart broken by this bastard of a man. She slowly made her way around to stand in front of Drake, however off to the side, so that she wasn't completely cutting Ashy out, more like... shielding her? Why was she feeling considerate all of a sudden?! Keeping her arm wrapped around Drake, Erin bit down on her bottom lip and looked up at him. "Drakeeeee," she mewed, pressing her body in closer to his, "are you trying to corrupt this poor girl?"

---

Jackson luckily hadn't seen the faltered smile on Lulu's face; if he had, it probably would have broken the Irish male's heart. He was totally infatuated with the girl that he counted as his best female friend, and he would just feel totally disheartened and destroyed if he had actually seen disappointment on her face when he hadn't turned out to be Drake. Jack knew that he wasn't the man in Lulu's heart; that he was just a friend to her, and he was fine with that - it was something that he had come to terms with recently. But, he just didn't want to actually hear it. If he didn't hear it, then he knew that he could live with it. But if he was actually told that he had no chance what so ever... he'd be crushed.

He felt himself smile as Lulu blushed at his compliment, but that soon changed as she mentioned that it was all Drake's work. He wasn't too fond of the idea of Drake going through all of Lulu's belongings and choosing her entire outfit; Drake was one of Jack's friends, however he didn't trust the man one little bit. He hid his frown quickly though before Lulu could see his expression change, replacing the smile that had just faded over the top of his concerned expression. She looked beautiful, that he had already stated and truly believed, however, she barely looked liked Lulu - the skirt was too short, her v-neck was too deep... it wasn't Lulu - it was how Drake wanted Lulu to be. And he wasn't so sure that he liked it.

Before Jackson could say anything else however, Drake made a cameo into their conversation, putting in his own five cents worth about Lulu's outfit. He stood there awkwardly for a moment as the taller, better looking male complimented his best friend on her outfit, and then placed a bottle of rum down next to her, her obvious drink of choice. He wondered for a moment if he should even bring out the drink that he had bought for them to share, knowing that she preferred the rum to his Jack Daniels, but decided against mentioning it at this moment. Then, soon, the male was gone, and it was just the two of them alone again - a situation Jack preferred.

"Oh, this - it's nothing." Jack smiled softly, brushing off her comment. He had literally had five minutes to get ready after everything had been set up, and so he hadn't put much thought into his attire at all - he had just picked the first shirt out of his wardrobe that he had found and threw it on, as well as the jeans that had been draped over his desk chair. When Lu came to stand next to him, he wrapped his arm around her waist, a usually friendly gesture of his when it came to her. "I know, I'm loved by the catering staff here." He smiled, making sure to look up and spot the lady who was the creator of this elaborate spread, and give her a curt nod. "Well, you've already found the main part of the buffet which I designed for you specially. But, if you crave something else, what about the Cajun chicken and pepper skewers?" Jack gently led her over to the meat section of the buffet and gestured to the kebab sticks filled with three pieces of spiced chicken, with slices of red, yellow and green pepper between. "They're to die for, honestly." He grinned, before picking one up by the end of the stick and offering it out for her.

"Oh," he remembered, bringing out the bottle of Jack from behind his back, "I brought this for you. It's not as good as the rum, I know. But still, I promised."

---

Max didn't say anything as he watched Corentine, her eyes looking around the crowded party room. Her mind was definitely somewhere else tonight, and she was highly distracted; whatever had been on that note in front of her had caused some sort of pain for the girl - that was something else that being an Empath had taught the brunette male to do. If someone was hiding their emotions from him, like the blonde in front of him so readily did, he had learnt to read specific body language and facial expressions, to gauge some sort of emotion from the person he was studying - and at the moment, Corentine Quellen was seriously upset and angry at the same time, a dangerous combination of emotions coming from a girl like her. Something of course, he would never tell her. Surprisingly, he cared about himself enough not to want to die a horrible death at her hands.

He took the last three gulps of his vodka as Corentine decided to tear up the piece of paper that had upset her so much. He nodded towards the bartender, getting his attention and ordered another drink, this time, a whiskey. Despite him not having a preferred drink, he sometimes fancied others more than the other - and instead of vodka, the male now wanted whiskey back. "Jaysin, eh?" He mumbled, downing half of his drink in only one gulp. He was curious as to what she was on about, but he was unable to get a grasp on her emotions that she was cloaking so well. Instead, Max had to get a grip on what she was on about by piecing together the little bits of information that he had received; apparently, Corentine and Jay had been "something", and she had upset him, so he had decided to hurt her back, sparking this little "game" that she was on about. Yeah, that sounded about right.

Then, the atmosphere around the two of them changed and Max decided to become more involved in their conversation. It was about to change? A slight break in Corentine's barriers allowed him to feel her emotions for a second, and he turned to face her. Something was different about her tonight; she wasn't her usual... full bitchy herself, she was more reserved and hurting at the moment, and that spark in her eyes, was false. However, he wasn't going to pass any sort of offer up that meant that he would be able to have a good time. If anyone, that wasn't Jaysin, was going to get Corentine to act normally again, the merciless bitch that she was, he was probably that person. "I'll help you out however you want, gorgeous." He smiled, downing the rest of his drink before ordering another. Then, he leaned forward, placing his hand on her thigh, moving it upwards slowly, his fingers just sliding under the hem of her short dress before stopping there. "How would you like me to help?"

The young teacher wasn’t feeling to well, and hell, that was probably quite the understatement. She didn’t have a lot to compare it to, but she was weak and nauseous, her limbs shaking slightly from fatigue, and thought her powers had begun recharging, they were in no way ready for anything. She felt like even healing a knife cut would send her into another slumber, and it scared her. She really needed to phone her mother. Soon. She was still on the floor, surprisingly enough, feeling completely hopeless about her situation, when she heard the door open behind her. She wanted to get up and turn to Leo easily, because she knew her current position and appearance would worry him. No, he would be downright panicked, as unsure of what to do as she herself was. It wasn’t like this was normal in any way. In fact Amy felt completely out of her league, unknowing of what to do or how to help herself get better.

Because this wasn’t just a power hangover. It was different. A power hangover, she knew how to help and she had tried it before. In fact, she would often tire herself completely when she worked as a field nurse. Of course she had had to keep her healing secret, but it’d worked and she had saved lives like she had always wanted to, so though her entire world had changed with the experience, she didn’t regret it. In the long run it had only made her stronger. Well… mentally. Obviously she was physically weak as a new born kitten right now and it bothered her. She sighed when Leo spotted her, her name flying off his lips, but she didn’t move. What could she do, really? She merely waited for him to get to her, which she knew wouldn’t be long. Not long after, he did in fact reach her, panic ruling his voice when he spoke. Amy smiled weakly in response when his hands gently cupped her cheeks, guiding her eyes up to meet his, except his beautiful ones were busy looking her over, so it wasn’t much.

“Leo,” she said softly, her voice tired, “honey, please calm down. I’m fine.” She looked up at him, wanting to put her hands on his to assure him, but she just didn’t have the energy. Never had she felt this empty, this weak and helpless. So yes, of course she wasn’t entirely truthful when she told him she was fine, but she couldn’t have him panicking like this. He needed to steady himself or he’d be a complete mess to deal with and she really needed him to just… settle down a bit. “I’m just… a little tired,” she continued in a quiet tone, almost too calmly, her fatigue showing clearly in her voice. “I…” she paused then, sighing. She knew Leo would blame Chris when she told him the truth, but she wasn’t going to lie. She just wanted to make sure she phrased everything okay, so that he didn’t blame Chris too much. Because it wasn’t his fault. Chris hadn’t known of Amy’s condition, except for the fact that he could tell she was tired. Fact was that it didn’t usually affect her powers much, and she should’ve been able to heal him easily. Hell, she had been surprised herself.

Finally, the delicate nurse continued, “I think the baby is… feeding on my powers, which sounds really bad, I know.” She bit her lower lip, knowing that Leo was going to watch her like a hawk for the remainder of her pregnancy once she was done explaining herself. Sometimes a protective man was really hard to deal with, and it made her wonder if he was going to follow her around to all of her lessons, or if he would cancel them. She didn’t want to stop working. Besides, she was the school nurse. That wasn’t really something to be ignored. Another sigh. “I think Chris met Corentine earlier, and he… has a bit of attitude.” She let it be at that, knowing that Leo knew what that meant. She looked up at him, her eyes pleading with him to understand the actions she was now going to tell him about. “I couldn’t let him suffer like that when I have the ability to help him, Leo… so even though he didn’t want me to, I… I healed him. It just… took a lot out of me, and I fell asleep immediately after. Just woke up when you called.”

With that, Amy finally took a deep breath, waiting for Leo’s reaction and reply, her heart pounding loudly in her chest. She had meant what she’d told him; she really didn’t want to argue.

---

With Max’s temporary silence, Cor’s eyes did another sweep her surroundings, and she swiftly downed her remaining shots, the alcohol burning sweetly. Oh, it was strong. She felt like she was drinking absinthe, yet it tasted slightly different. Didn’t matter if it had the same fire power; it did what she wanted it to; got her drunk in a rush, but it wasn’t enough by far. She needed more as she spotted Jay leaving the gazebo and thereby Erin and Addie. Hm, that was surprising. She’d figured Addie would make more of an effort to make the guy stay, considering how much she was obviously preening for his cock. She would be punished the most. No one, especially not her friends, went against her. Cor considered it betrayal, pure and simple, and she wasn’t a forgiving kind of person. Yes, she made friend with bitches and assholes, because those were the people she liked hanging around, but she still valued loyalty quite a bit. Now, what to do to the girl…

Cor’s mind was still playing with thoughts of revenge when the sound of Max Henderson’s sexy voice brought her back into the world of the living, and she couldn’t stop her lips from curling into a flirty smirk. She would go talk to Elijah tomorrow, she decided, knowing he was the one person she could count on; the one person who could clear her mind enough to think up something proper to remind the girl who was, and always had been, the queen bitch, and not to mess with her… or her man for that matter. Besides, someone who hated Jay might be nice. Elijah was perfect. Of course she also just loved hanging out with the guy. Cor’s clear, dark blue eyes were slowly making their way down Max’s body, his words a promise in themselves. Obviously he had figured she was a little off tonight. Max wasn’t easy to hide things from, just like her brother, but Cor liked to at least try anyway. Either way, Esme was ignored by both of them when she pushed her way between them and ordered her drunk. Fortunately she was gone directly after.

“Aren’t you just a saint,” she teased Max then, her voice dripping sarcasm. She didn’t doubt that Max was only helping her in any way because he got something out of it himself, not that she minded or blamed him. Hell, she was the exact same way herself. She didn’t do anything for free unless it was for a friend, and even then there was always the fact that she got friendship and gratefulness in return. Max was getting an amazing fuck, and that wasn’t her being conceited. Corentine had been a gymnast for a lot of years, since she was sick and up until she had left for Noctrem, and she had a lot of practice on her back when it came to screwing around. Of course she might also just be a damn natural. Either way, she had had guys telling her she was the best fuck they’d ever had. She knew how to work anyone when it came to sex. Female or male. Didn’t matter. When Max ordered another drink, Cor ordered three more shots of the same stuff he had given her before, and downed all three while Max's hand wandered up her bared thigh, the heat of alcohol along with Max’s touch, flowing through her. She ignored the fact that she could hear her phone vibrating in her purse, because she couldn’t make herself give a shit.

When his fingers stopped, Cor smiled wryly, one eyebrow lifted as she looked from the hand her gaze had been following, to the eyes of the man leading it. She couldn’t deny that Max had a way with her. He just knew how to set her body on fire, even with the slightest of touches. Of course it might also just be his godlike good looks, and well, she was starting to get just a little drunk, so her body was primed for him already. Before answering Max’s question, Cor ordered two more shots, downing them straight after each other. Once that was done, she leaned forward, bringing her mouth close to Max’s ear, her one hand dancing over his hand on her leg, and up his arm, only to make its way down his chest once it reached his shoulder. Her lips curved into a calculating, flirtatious smile, she didn’t speak until her fingers were gripping the hem of his jeans. Then she let her teeth gently nibble on his ear and laughed softly, the sound rolling off her tongue in a seductive purr. “Why, Max, I would very much like you to fuck me.” She murmured sultrily, yet ever so bluntly. Something you’d find was very defining of the blonde.

When she leaned back, Cor spotted Jay leaving with Esme at the corner of her eye, but the alcohol was numbing her emotions just like she had wanted them to. Well, temporarily that was the effect, but Cor could also feel her emotions pushing at the barrier she had put up before even coming to the party. Once it went down, shit would happen. She knew that much. Her powers would run amok.

---

To Sky’s reply, Drake laughed, not bothering to say any more because he was busy watching Ashy and her reaction to his words. Inwardly the male was smiling in amusement, finding the blushing both entertaining and cute. The fact that a girl her age managed to be so damned… innocent, puzzled the dark male quite a bit. How did you accomplish that in this day and age? Maybe he was even a little impressed, but nah, actually he just loved messing with her, so he supposed that was it. It was no secret to Drake that the blonde was crushing on him, and he had this tendency to play with the girls who developed feeling for him, mostly because he honestly couldn’t care less about them and their damned emotions. Why should he? It wasn’t his fault they decided to set themselves up for heartbreak, now was it? Drake didn’t exactly hide the fact that he was a womanizing asshole. Sure, he didn’t show that side to everyone, but he wasn’t hiding it either. He just knew that different people had to be worked differently, that was all.

When Ember came by, Drake gave her a short look, gaze taking a tour of her choice of appearance for the evening. Hmm. His sister was going to throw a fit about her protégé looking like that, so he could only grin, knowing that Cor would be giving the girl a lesson in how to dress herself… very soon. Not that the outfit was ugly – it just didn’t fit her, and it happened to look a little… well, not sexy. Despite the dress being short, to Drake she looked like a 13 year old trying to look sexy and it wasn’t working for her. “Not too bad, darling,” he told her in response to her question before she was on to inviting Sky to shoot shots with her. On that note he decided to tune her out and refocus on Ashleigh, his current entertainment. Clown of the evening, folks. Once she made it over, she gave Sky a hug and Drake remained silent. He was soon laughed however, her comment seemingly very funny to the male. She was so ridiculously nervous around him that was part of the fun, honestly. “Baby, you need new habits,” he murmured huskily, knowing the effect he’d have on the blonde.

He merely smiled wryly when Sky shouted that he and Ashy should dance. Drake wasn’t a big dancer. Sure, he had been forced to take classes as a kid, and he was in fact quite rhythmical, but he didn’t like it, and it brought back memories of being controlled by his bitch of a mother. He’d rather get pissed and have fun. Much more his thing, honestly. Then Sky and Ember sort of disappeared from his immediate surroundings and he almost felt relieved when Ashy didn’t comment on the dancing. Meant he could ignore it. Instead she uttered the most ridiculously, nauseatingly cute and desperate comment he had ever heard. He chuckled, not able to stop himself. And he was actually going to reply when a hand began snaking its way around him from behind, causing him to pause. Instead, Drake raised an eyebrow, looking questioningly as Ashy, as though she was supposed to tell him who was feeling him up. However, he got his answer when Erin’s voice spoke into his ear. He smirked, turning his eyes towards the skies.

“Erin,” he said in calm greeting, not feeling up to her company currently. He wasn’t really in the mood, if he had to be honest. Maybe because of their previous heart to heart. There was a reason he’d sought out Ashy, and not Lulu or Erin. The two had taken up all of his day already. He watched when Erin handed Ashleigh her alcohol and chuckled slightly, “she does have a point, Ash. Better drink it before she does, and that might end badly. You don’t really want to be responsible for that now, do you?” He teased her, his eyes flashing with humour. Honestly he was ignoring Erin a little. Perhaps because she was being incredibly clingy currently. When Erin moved, all she earned from Drake, was a raised eyebrow. He’d done her twice today already. He wasn’t in the mood for a third one. To him, it seemed like Erin was clinging to him because she was having trouble with Keirol, and though Drake was good with a bit of… physical support, he wasn’t interested in being her emotional support. He had let her talk in the forest, and he’d offered a sliver of comfort. That didn’t mean he was a teddy bear all of a sudden.

When she pressed her body closer, more or less begging for his attention, despite the way her words were centered on Ashy, Drake cast her a wry smile, still just leaning casually against the bar. “Thought crossed my mind,” he said, voice smooth and playful, eyes moving to rest on the girl in question, a mischievous, Drake-like smirk on his lips. Then he looked down at Erin, moving a hand into her hair. He grabbed a nice handful and pulled her head back instantly, looking down at her with his completely eyes indifferent. He was done being nice Drake – he needed his more bastardly side and Erin had just made herself the victim because she had gotten in the way of his teasing Ashy to rid himself of it more innocently. “What is this, Erin? Hm?” He asked her, voice dark and husky, yet cold in itself, “an attempt at getting a last night on earth fuck? Because you’re probably going to need it after sidling up to Jay like that.” Then he smirked, letting go of her hair only to order a whiskey, taking it in his hand. As he took a sip, he watched Erin with a slightly raised eyebrow, as if waiting for something.

Drake was more than aware of the fact that he was being a right asshole, but then, she wasn’t little miss innocent, and she could handle it. Or maybe she couldn’t. Hell if he cared. Ashleigh had slipped his mind momentarily, but he soon looked over at her, shrugging, eyes flashing with that same glint of playfulness when he looked at her. “Sorry about that, love. Seems we’ll have to get you drunk a bit later.”

---

Chase Westley got out of his black chevy after parking it in front of the Arcana Academy, a place he had never been before in his life. Pushing the door shut, his gaze looked it over from the outside. He had to say he was impressed. If it was as good on the inside as it was on the inside, going to school might actually not suck entirely. Not that he didn’t like learning – he had just graduated what qualified as high school already, so he was pretty certain he had been taught what he had to be taught. He was there purely because of the social aspect, and he knew it was more or less the same for his twin. Of course power control class, along with battle strategy, might be interesting. In fact, the young male was sort of looking forward to those classes. Of course he didn’t have problems with controlling his powers, but maybe this teacher here had other or better methods than his grandfather. Who knew?

The twins had been on the road for 5 days, stopping only to sleep and eat, driving around 10-12 hours every day. Now, Chase liked to drive, so it didn’t bother him at all, but he could tell Kayla was getting a bit restless just sitting there in the passenger seat, and he couldn’t blame her. If it’d been him, he would’ve jumping out of his own skin. And he would’ve let her drive… but no. No matter who it was, no one but him drove his car. Not even his twin sister. Chase patted the roof of the car, smiling to himself. “Don’t think it’ll be too bad, sis,” he commented to his sister, slightly absent. Then the male walked to the back of the car, getting their bags and suitcases out of the trunk. He put them easily down to on the ground and smiled at Kay before taking his own suitcase and extra duffel bag. Taking his own welcome note out of his pocket, he looked it over. Room 13, and he remembered Kayla being in room 8. Well, at least they weren’t that far from each other. Small favors.

Once Kayla had her things gathered, Chase shut the trunk and locked the car, before the two of them made it inside. “Rooms on 2nd floor” he murmured to himself as they walked to the elevator situated in the fancy reception. He let Kayla get in before him, a force of habit, and then entered himself. As the death trap moved them up, Chase remained quiet, thinking. He thought he could hear music and that made him wonder. Of course he didn’t really even ponder the possibility of a party, because they had school tomorrow. He knew that from his note; they were starting classes tomorrow morning. Which was why he and his sister had arrived just in time to get settled in and all before school started. Once on the wanted floor, the two got out, again with Chase letting Kayla out first and he subsequently walked with her to room 8, where he stopped, smiling halfheartedly. “Looks like this is your stop, Kay,” he noted, one hand moving to mess up her hair. On that note, his half smile turned into a grin. “Hey, I heard music, so I’m thinking we put our bags in our allotted rooms and then go explore. Generally we should definitely take a look around.” Then he looked down the hall briefly, “I’ll be back in a sec.”

On that note, Chase made his way further down the hall, finding room 13 easily, on the other side from Kayla, but a bit too far down if you asked him. He didn’t much like being this far from her in a new place like this. You never knew what might happen. Hell, her roommate might be a psychopath and he’d be too far away to hear any commotion. She can handle herself you know, a more rational part of his brain interrupted, and he sighed, knowing that part was right. Still, he had trouble letting go of the anxiety he felt. He had always taken care of Kayla, not only because he felt protective, but because whenever they’d go out, his grandfather would gruffly tell him, “you take care of her, Chase.” And he always would. Hell, he’d gotten in fights with bastards who stepped out of bounds. Guys who started feeling her up, and seeing as Chase could so easily tell when she was uncomfortable, he’d always been there to shove the guy off. Thing was that they couldn’t usually use their powers in public, and physically his sister wasn’t that scary, honestly. So she’d needed him to be there. It might not be the same way here. Not that that would stop him.

He put his bags down in the room, looking around. It was pretty neat, he had to admit. But he’d have to look at things there later, so after a quick look at the bathroom, Chase moved out into the hallway once more and made his way towards room 8, home of Kayla Westley and her roommate, whose name Chase honestly couldn’t recall. He only hoped she wasn’t a psycho like part of him feared. Stopping by the room, he called out in a playful tone, “I’m back; you can stop missing me now.”

Erin had realized that she had probably made a mistake in coming over to this area of the party; no-one was overly-pleased to see her there, and the one person that usually did enjoy even a little bit of her company was also brushing her off. Well, that was a bummer, wasn't it? She felt herself frowning as the male basically ignored her and she pulled her arm back in away from Ashy, keeping her bottle of whiskey to herself. She took another swig of the strong alcohol, again enjoying that delicious feeling of warmth as the alcohol trickled down to her stomach, creating a pit of warmth. Ashy looked almost startled that she had come over there, and it was a funny expression, at least to the tipsy blonde, and she was about to calm the girl down and tell her not to worry so much when a hand came up into her hair.

It hurt a little, Drake dragging her entire head back by a fistful of her hair, making sure that she was looking into her eyes. She was especially unstable on her feet in this position, due to the copious amounts of alcohol coursing through her system, but she stayed upright. She made it obvious that she wasn't happy with him by the expression on her face changing into a frown, and she felt a small growl rumble towards the back of her throat. When she was let go, she ran a hand through her now messed up bun, before giving up and un-clipping it, letting her blonde locks flow freely down her back like a golden waterfall of curls. "I don't need you to show me a good time, Drake. Besides, I can fight for myself - you should know that better than anyone." Her voice was dark as she spoke to him, the glare in her eyes never weakening.

Slowly, Erin walked away from the man who had just technically abused her, and she moved to stand next to Ashy. After another sip of her confidence drink, the blonde pointed towards him, and leaned in to talk to the innocent girl. "And that, Ashy, was the real Drake Quellen. Get out whilst your still can, love. Run for the fucking hills. Because if he even can't even have a stupid conversation with me and be fine with it, a bitch who knows him inside and out," she paused for a moment, turning to look at the girl properly, eye to eye, "then how the hell do you think he's going to act around a truly nice girl like you?" Her voice was menacing as she spoke, dark and cold. She took a step back and from the girl and took a moment to read her facial expression, before making her way out of the room, heading towards the grounds once more. Before she left however, Erin turned around for one last time and blew a kiss towards Drake, an action filled with sarcasm and anger.

Then, she turned on her heel once again, and left. Once she was outside, the blonde took in a deep breath and went to take another sip of her drink. This bottle really was becoming a god send at the moment. She walked over to her original seat in the gazebo, one area which was almost empty. So, this party was going so well at the moment; She had been left by Jay after only a few minutes, Addison had also walked away, and Drake had abused her before shunning her off as if she was nothing more than a piece of dirt on the bottom of his shoe. Maybe she had been a little lonely and wanted to actually stand with someone that understood her; was that too much to ask? Yes, she may have been trying to replace Keirol with her stupid "arrangement" that she had with Drake, but if she didn't do that.... Erin knew that she would crack. Break down, cry, and just end up doing something stupid. Drake was suppose to be that barrier, between her and those feelings. Well, now, that had changed, hadn't it? Embarrassing her like that in front of everyone who was around in that area? He had definitely moved onto the wrong side of her now.

"Fuck him." She muttered under her breath. "Fuck everyone."

Addison watched the party unfold, drama was on the rise. She could feel it. She rolled her neck a bit and her shoulders back, standing up from the seat she had taken at the bar, her eyes flickering around a bit... Who could she get alone?

Killian...? Nah...

Jessica?. ... She laughed at the thought, a delighted smirk flickered onto her face. Maybe later in the year. No doubt that girl had some bisexy tendencies up her sleeve.

The girl continues to look around as Jay drags someone off to his room. Oh, my, drama...Drama, drama.

Of course, she knew Cor would soon have her revenge on her for sure. She most definitely saw the flirtatious act that Addison had displayed when talking to Jaysin. But, Addison was a bit too mentally gone to start giving two shits about it at this point. Walking away from the bar, she feels a bit like a bubble head, the alcohol and weed in her system was the perfect balance to make her lose her focus for a bit.

Where the fuck was Jade?

She shrugs, Jade must be around here somewhere. She had to be. If not, Addison would track her down eventually to see what her bestie was up to.... She began to meander through the party, people watching was so much fun for Addie, she loved to induce, create and watch drama bubble over. Mostly because she didn't find anything more amusing, plus the fact she had nothing better to do at this damn school. She got straight A's and did everything she was told.

A thought passed her by and a smirk flies across her face, Leo...

Oh, the things she would do to that man... She shakes her head a bit as she takes a seat alone on one of the benches, not even hesitating to light up another cigarette. She leans back on the bench, folding one arm over her torso and bringing the cigarette to her lips. The sweet taste of nicotine in her cotton mouth was nice. She clicks her tongue as she exhales and begins to think.

This party, of course, wasn't up to par with the Noctrem parties, but these Arcana kids had no idea how to have fun. But, there was free alcohol. She really couldn't complain with that. She shrugs a bit, taking another drag, tilts her head back and closes her eyes as she inhales deep, then slowly exhales, watching the smoke float above her head. She begins to sing a song under her breath, "I wanna be drunk when I wake up, on the right side of the wrong bed...".

---

McKenna had been sitting there for a while, a few shots in her system and she was mildly buzzed. It was a good kind of buzz though, which was nice. She notices Jackson and Lulu standing over by themselves and she stands up, bouncing over to them.

Where the hell was Jessica? She looks around, but then notices she had seated herself next to Killian. Oh well... She shrugs quietly as she approaches Lulu and Jackson.

"Good evening, Lulu, Jackson... You look nice tonight, Lulu, and you as well Jacks--" She then notices Jackons' arm around Lulu and she adds quickly, "I...Hope I'm not interrupting something."

She suddenly becomes slightly embarrassed, her cheeks turn a rosy pink. She had always had this small quirky crush for Jackson, although she never said it to him. He thought of her like a best friend, nothing more, nothing less.

"I just wanted to say this is a great party you have put together..." She says to him with a small smile. She bites her lower lip and lets out a small sigh.

[[Sorry for 'Kenna's post being so small]]

Hate when she’s drunk, Drake mused as Erin responded to his words. Admittedly, Drake knew he was crossing some lines, but he didn’t really care, and Erin should’ve honestly known better than to bother him like that, considering she claimed to “know him”. No one knew him. Not really. She might know him better than a lot of others, but she was still ignorant. She was glaring at him as she told him she didn’t need him to show him a good time, and that she could take care of himself. To hide the sarcastic smile almost appearing on his face, Drake took a sip of his alcohol, letting it loosen him up a little. Mostly that was his issue; he was tense and uncomfortable. Being with Lulu had helped, but as soon as he’d left her and Alli’s room, that rigidness had come back, and it wasn’t like him. He did appreciate the fact that he was completely indifferent regarding Erin’s anger, because it made him feel more like himself. In fact, he found it hilarious. She didn’t need him to show her a good time? That was rich. And a lie. And she could handle herself again Cor? That was just a bad joke. Erin’s powers were too physical. Cor would throw her around like a puppy. Except Drake knew his sister would handle things differently with Erin, because she was a friend. Or a former friend. Whatever.

He remained silent and took another sip of alcohol, expecting her to leave after her little self-defense, but no, she moved on to Ashy. Drake’s gaze followed her, his attention on the two blondes. He was slightly surprised, yet he shouldn’t have been. Drunk Erin was just annoying as fuck. Ashy, however, looked rather dumbstruck and sort of terrified, her eyes wide and surprised. He couldn’t very well blame her for that, considering how she’d never seen that side to him before. Hell, he very rarely saw it himself. So when Erin began telling ashy how this was the real Drake Quellen and so forth, he raised an eyebrow, watching how Ashy’s facial expression became even more scared. He didn’t actually give a crap about what Ashy thought of him, if he had to be honest, but he did think it rather fun that the girl was so easily manipulated and he knew it wouldn’t be an issue to rectify everything Erin had just said. So he just let Erin have her little bitching session, looking at her with definitely indifference, just to show her exactly how little he even cared about what she was telling Ashy.

Ashy’s face was a mask of terror when Erin left her, blowing Drake a kiss on the way. In return, Drake smirked at the angry blonde, eyes glinting with humour. He had lost his temper briefly with her before, but that was a very short breach in his usual demeanor; something that only happened once every other year. Honestly he wasn’t entirely sure why it had been today at that exact moment, but hell, he’d figure it out eventually. And it didn’t mean her little escapade would get to him in any way, so if that’s what she had wanted, she was just making a fool of herself. Then Ashy’s voice cut through his inner amusement, and he couldn’t help chuckling casually, casting her a heartstoppingly gorgeous smile, feeling a lot more relaxed already. He took another sip of his whiskey, watching her silently for a little while, then he shook his head slightly, smile falling off his lips as a sigh escaped them. He ran a hand through his hair then, his attitude changing from arrogant, amused and flirtatious, to slightly frustrated and regretful.

“Look, I know you don’t know me very well, and I know you definitely aren’t familiar with Erin, so you sure as hell don’t know about our relationship. All in all, I get why you wouldn’t have any idea what just happened here, and it’s complicated.” He rubbed the back of his neck, casting Erin a glance. “She flips her shit when she gets angry, hulking out and all, so she needs someone to calm her beast. That’s me, because apparently others don’t work. And it gets a little rough.” He smiled slightly, shrugging. “So that,” he gestured towards Erin, “whole thing… wasn’t actually as bad as it may seem. It’s just part of our relationship. I think the fact that it was in public might’ve ticked her off a little.” His eyes fell on Ashy once more, dark and deep, captivating in themselves. “On top of that, Erin just gets were dramatic when she’s drunk, and that’s all this was. Fact is, I’m not in the mood for it tonight, and I’m sorry you got messed up in it all. Contrary to popular belief, I’m not like my sister, and I don’t enjoy hurting people. I’m not going to do anything to you that you don’t want me to, okay?” His voice, his eyes, everything about the male, was completely honest and soothing, attempting to explain things as well as calm the blonde in front of him down.

All the while, Drake considered his options. He’d probably have to do damage control with Erin too, and dealing with her tonight might either make things easier or harder, depending on how he chose to go about it. Which again depended on her. He knew she was pissed, and that much was understandable enough. Fact was that she was also hurting from everything with Keirol, and thinking that Cor had neglected her on purpose today, along with, if he understood things properly, Jay and Addie leaving her to her own devices. Maybe him brushing her aside had just been that last drop. Oh well. He could technically just leave it be, because she was going to come to him herself when she was about to lose control next time, so why did part of him want to smooth things over and make her feel better about herself? Going soft, Drake? He asked himself, truly wondering. On that thought, he glanced at Lulu and Jackie-boy. The girl he was probably falling for looked like she was trying her hardest to drown herself in Jack D, and it made him inwardly smile.

He couldn’t help it, really, the thought was just funny. As long as she didn’t hurt herself. In fact, maybe she shouldn’t get drunk already. She had only just started getting better after her power hangover along with the whole Cor/Jay deal, and he worried that the alcohol would make things worse. Again with the worrying. What was with him turning into a pussy like that?

Amy could practically see the wheels turning in Leo’s head as she explained how she’d ended up in the condition he’d found her in, weak and tired, curled up on the floor. By the look on his face, Amy almost expected him to tell her off for being stupid, and more than that, she worried he’d blow up and take it out on Chris. Fortunately, however, Leo was better than that and instead just moved to pick her up. Once in his arms, Amy closed her eyes, sighing softly. Her head came to rest upon his shoulder as she finally relaxed, breathing in his scent and revelling in his heat. It felt good to be back in his arms like this considering the day she’d had. Things had been intense, and her head felt like it was about to blow. The day she’d had, well, she couldn’t think of days worse than this. She hated arguing with Leo as it was, so adding everything else to the list, the only positive thing to tell of, was meeting Chris again. Which had also resulted in her tapping herself out. She also knew that the blame for most of it, was on her shoulders, so she didn’t want a pity party. She just wanted to fall asleep in Leo’s arms and wake up a new day.

When Leo began talking finally, his arms tightening around her, Amy smiled weakly, loving him so much for not freaking out at her, loving him for knowing exactly what she needed; him, with her. She could feel when he began walking and figured he was either taking her to his couch, or to the bedroom. Most likely the bedroom since he probably knew she wouldn’t be awake for much longer, and the bed was by far more comfortable. She’d just slept three hours in a chair; a bed sounded like heaven to the young nurse. When he mentioned their baby, Amy’s violet eyes fluttered open. Was he on board? He wanted it too? Her eyes slowly looked over his face, attempting to read him. She thought maybe part of him did want to become a father, but she could also tell he was terrified of the idea. She thought maybe both the responsibility, but also the fact of the baby growing up and dying before him, was what pushed down on his shoulders presently. It worried her if she had to be honest, because she knew Leo would make an amazing, albeit slightly over protective father.

Soon, the brunette was placed on the bed, Leo sitting down on the edge next to her. A slight sigh of comfort escaped her as softness enveloped her, encasing her delicate body. The pillow below her head was heaven on earth. Her gaze sought out the man she loved, not able to stop looking at him now that she had started. She wanted to reply to him, but she had a feeling he wasn’t quite done talking, and she didn’t exactly have energy to waste as it was, so instead she watched him, waiting for him to finish saying what he needed to say. Another weak smile came onto her lips when he linked their fingers, that slight tingle of electricity still there despite her own fatigue. That amazed her, honestly. Then Leo asked her again, ”promise?”, and she nodded slowly, not quite sure what to say. He had surprised her a little by remaining calm. And she didn’t want to lose the baby either. Plus, Leo had asked her to take better care of herself, so though she had no clue where her limits here currently, she still couldn’t say no.

“I’ll try,” she said softly, looking up at him, breathing pattern heavy and a little laboured. “Just need to get used to my powers not being quite as… resourceful as usual.” With that, she offered another half smile, squeezing his hand weakly. “Baby, you need to go get some food. You haven’t eaten all day.” She said it mostly to get focus off of her, and also because he did indeed need to eat. There was no way she was going to be able to keep anything down currently herself, but that didn’t mean he shouldn’t eat. Almost on second thought, Amy added, “then afterwards, could you maybe join me down here? Cuddling sounds amazing right now.” Admittedly, Amy’s voice was still weak and she knew she sounded completely off, but at least she was talking. That was better than nothing, right? All she knew was that she definitely needed to go to sleep early, and she didn’t want to sleep alone. Or… at least she didn’t want to lie in bed alone. Besides, she felt like after all the two had been through, they needed to mend things somehow. On top of that, the young teacher just felt like curling up in Leo’s arms.

---

Cor didn’t miss the fact that Max’s gaze was directed at the same pair hers were. She knew he’d probably figured almost everything out now, aside from the details. He probably had the series of events lined out in his head right now, and he was probably right about all of his calculations. Somehow it only bothered Cor more that it had been Esme of all people Jay had chosen to head off with. She had never been more grateful for alcohol, because this thing with Jay… was breaking her. Not just her heart, but her as a whole. It felt like he was hammering at her, trying to break her into little pieces, and he was so damned close. The blonde had a feeling this was it between them. They had both gone so far; hurt each other so much, that they couldn’t go back. They just couldn’t, no matter how much she loved him. The thing was she only just realized that fact this exact moment. Watching Jay leave with Esme made Corentine realize exactly how messed up and lost things were, so she might as well stop fighting.

On that exact note, Cor’s purpose in being with Max, changed. She didn’t want to hurt Jay, she didn’t want revenge… she just wanted to feel better. She just wanted to pull herself back from breaking point and last time she had done that in two ways; screwing around like a whore, and spending a whole lot of time with Elijah. Of course that had only worked after her big breakdown, one she was desperate to avoid this time. Getting over Jay was a hell she didn’t want to go through, but even the stubborn bitch that she was, could recognize that it was time to throw in the towel. Jay didn’t want her and her alone. He wanted her… and a lot of others, and Cor just couldn’t live with that. She’d never be able to accept him looking at others like that, knowing that he’d love to be with them. One thing was for your boyfriend to look at others with appreciation, that made sense – she wasn’t going to stop looking at others either, but Cor knew how to read Jay, and the way he looked at Esme for instance, or Lulu, or Addie… she could tell it was more. That was what scared her shitless.

She took a deep breath after a little while, once the two had turned a corner and were out of sight. Her heart was pounding out of control and her breathing pattern was slightly uneven, so she was rather frazzled when Max’s heady, seductive voice sounded right by her ear, accompanied by the feeling of lips she had kissed many times. She hadn’t even noticed him moving from his barstool at her side, so her head moved swiftly to look at him, her eyes looking into his, light blue against dark blue. Her lips were slightly parted until her brain registered who was in front of her, at which point his lips were nipping on the skin bellow her ear, a very sensitive area to the blonde. She took a deep breath, biting down on her lower lip. Max was definitely the right person for her to go to, she decided as she looked up at him, her hand moving into his almost by itself. In the same movement, Cor slip down from her stool, her body almost gliding against Max’s due to the proximity.

Then the blonde placed her free hand on Max’s chest, slowly beginning to walk and push him at the same time, in the direction of the stairs that’d take them upstairs to the living quarters… more specifically the teachers’ quarters. She wasn’t actually allowed to be in there, but who cared? It wasn’t like Leo was going to do jack about it. Cor hadn’t spoken a word, mostly because she didn’t trust her own voice not to break if she did. She was worried speaking even a little would set about the second break down of her life. And in front of Max? Hell no. This vulnerability he’d seen tonight so far was plenty in her books. Rather Max than some others, sure, but if she was going to cry, she was definitely going to make sure she was alone. As she moved, she noticed Erin storming off, away from Drake, out of the corner of her eye, but for once Cor wasn’t mentally capable of containing more. Besides, Erin had rid herself of Cor’s friendship just earlier that night.

Thoughts drifted by Addison's mind. Mostly about how she desperately needed to get laid. And that her high was wearing off. She had seen the drama between McKenna, Jack, and Lulu, which just made her laugh. She continued to watch the people come and go as they pleased, talking about petty things that would just be too boring even to think about.

Where the fuck was JADE? She hadn't seen her since after that stupid assembly. Shaking her head, she realizes her high seemed to be slowly waning to a small buzzing sensation. But, of course, that would just mean she needed to drink or smoke more. The brunette turned her attention towards Aldous walking into the party scene. Addison was a bit shocked, considering Aldous was more of a closed off, introvert. She smirked, and flicked the butt of her cigarette, watching him for a moment and she stands with a bit of a stretch. She meandered her way down to the bar placing herself next to him.

Aldous and Addi had a strange sort of relationship, it was almost a love/hate. They both had similar interests, academically, hobby wise, and simply just playing with other people's minds.

"Vodka please," She bats her eyes at the bartender with a small smirk of a smile. Her dark blue eyes turn towards Aldous and she crosses one leg over, resting one of her elbows against the table. She reaches for one of his cigarettes and his zippo, her eyes not leaving his.

"Mind if I take one?" She raises an eyebrow, sliding the cigarette from the pack and placing it in her mouth. She flicks open the zippo and the flame bursts out from the wick and she lights the cigarette. Smoke fills in front of her face as she exhales slowly. Placing the zippo back, she takes another drag, looking at him with a smile.

"It's nice to see you are out of your room and trying to be social. Although this is nothing compared to the Noctrem parties..." She shrugs, almost in a pouting manner, but she couldn't really complain. There was free alcohol and some sexy-ass people around. Out of the corner of her eye, she notices the bartender coming back with her vodka.

"Thank you," she smiles to the bartender and she takes the small glass, her delicate fingers wrapping around it and she shoots it back. The alcohol burns the back of her throat and she places the shot glass down with a smug smile and she licks her lips a bit. She flicks the ashes from the cigarette and takes another drag. She looks over at him with a small smile and shrugs.

Leo wasn't sure what his girlfriend was thinking at the moment, but the immortal teacher definitely wasn't the better man that she thought him to be. At this precise moment in time, he wanted to go and kill Chris, put all of his Spartan training into action and take it out on the one man who had made him feel jealousy for the first time in his life, and the man who had put his beloved Amy in such a state. However, he knew he couldn't tell her that right now. He obviously wasn't going to do it; he would never hurt someone again after how many people he had killed in the past, but he just didn't want to tell her how he was feeling - it would upset her, definitely, and she would get stressed out about him instead of the person she had to worry about, which was herself. So, the male stayed quiet, keeping his feelings wrapped up inside, carrying her quietly into the bedroom.

The immortal male felt a small smile twitch at the corner of his lips when Amy nodded, telling him that she wouldn't push herself this far, promising him. "Thank you." He whispered to her softly, bringing her soft, porcelain knuckles up to his lips and kissing them gently. He felt like he had to be so careful with her, barely touching her - she looked as if she was about to break at any minutes, and she was just so pale; she looked like a ghostly version of her usual self, and Leo just didn't like it. It terrified him, and even though he was doing his best to hide from her how scared he was about her condition, he was sure that she had picked up on how he was feeling. Amy had always been good at that; reading him. She had always been the one person he didn't mind reading him.

He didn't speak when Amy spoke to him, explaining that it would take time for her to get used to her powers being weaker, at least for a while. But, then, she turned the conversation onto him, worrying about him. "Oh no, you don't." He smiled, squeezing her hand lightly, playfully. "I'm not going to leave your side, at least for a little while, Amy. Once your asleep, I'll make myself a quick sandwich or something. Please, don't worry about me. If you had seen how long I've had to go without food in the past, you'd realize that a few hours is fine for me." Leo let go of her hand then, and slowly made his way around the other side of the bed, his side. He laid down on the bed as gently and slowly as possible, as not to jolt his girlfriend around. He then opened up his arms, letting Amy get herself comfortable. "You were right; cuddling is amazing." He sighed, a smile on his lips once more - genuine, this time. He pressed his lips softly to her forehead, and slowly, very slowly, his hand moved. Hesitantly, the immortal Leo moved his hand from his side and laid it gently on his girlfriend's stomach.

---

Erin sighed.

Her bottle was nearly empty - just like everything else around her. Her heart, her mind, the entire gazebo that she was sitting in tonight. There was literally no-one around that she could talk to now. She had briefly thought about going to find Jade, her second best friend, but she hadn't seen any sign of the girl that night, and if she was here, Addison would be with her - one person she really didn't want to talk to any more. The girl was uncomfortable, cold, and just feeling rather down, at the moment. She pulled her leather jacket closer around her shoulders, and pulled up her legs underneath her, keeping them warm with her own body heat.

Then, there was movement near her, and for a brief moment, the girl thought that maybe, just maybe, someone had actually come to apologize to her. But, then, a cute, soft, shaky little voice hit her ears and she turned her head to look across at Ashy. Ashleigh Fox wanted to come and sit with her? The girl who had just seen her be utterly humiliated in front of everyone? However, the girl wasn't one for pushing away any company right now, and she just nodded once, gesturing to the seats all around her. "There's no-one else here." She sighed, letting her eyes gaze across the large gazebo. "As soon as I came in, everyone left. They're all petrified of me, you know. But, I'm not the crazy Hulk girl that everyone thinks I am. I have control. Well, at least some. And it only happens when I'm really angry anyway." A problem with Erin drinking was that she did ramble, but right now, she didn't care. Anyone being there to talk to was better than her drinking and pining the night away alone, at least in her eyes.

"So," the blonde sighed, shifting properly in her seat so that she was looking at the girl that she had never really spoken to before, a girl that she had once laughed at because of her aversion to alcohol and sexual activities, but someone who at the moment, she was really beginning to envy. She wanted Ashy's life; one that wasn't so complicated and dark, a life that wasn't filled with heartbreak, and trysts in the woods with handsome men who had control over shadows, and one that wasn't so alone, and filled with people that hated her. The girl twisted the lid off of her drink once more and placed it on the table in front of her; she wasn't going to be replacing it any time soon. She wanted the rest of this expensive drink in her system, and she wasn't really going to stop until it was empty. After another long sip of the drink, which was now almost empty, she carried on with the sentence that she had started minutes ago.

"What happened to Mister Happy, eh? Couldn't take five minutes out of his busy schedule to come and apologize for his fucking actions? Wasn't like I expected him to anyway; I'm much lower down on his list of "things that he cares about" than most people think. I'm nothing to him other than a worthless girl who he can get a fuck out of, am I?"

---

Yeah, Max wasn't stupid. He was a terrible drunkard, and an emotionless bastard, but he wasn't stupid. Whatever was going on between Corentine and Jaysin was clearly affecting the girl in front of him more than she was truly letting on; not that he expected her to be all open and chatty with him about her personal problems, but she had to know that it was futile hiding things like this from him. So, what the male had had in his head for the night's plan was quickly changing, to something he would rather not be doing. He wasn't too impressed with the situation - he didn't like being the one to sort things out that weren't his problem to begin with, but he wasn't that much of a dick to leave her in a state like this.

Standing behind her, Max finished creating his new plan, his lips against her ear, inticing her towards him. He knew that Corentine needed some sort of release right now, and she wanted to use him sexually for that. Usually, the guy wouldn't care about how she was feeling inside and would take her body the same way that she was taking his, but tonight he just felt different. He knew that if something happened between the two of them that night, he would regret it as it would probably destroy her emotionally. He couldn't have that on his shoulders; no fucking way. So, he was going to have to get emotionally invested in this situation. Brilliant.

Soon, the gorgeous blonde was pushing him towards the stairs which would take them both to his bedroom, her hand on his chest, directing him. The male kept up his pretense, a flirtatious smirk situation on his lips, and he made his way to her side, wrapping his arm around, his fingers dancing on the base of her spine, just above her ass, touching the bare skin showing through her form-fitting dress. No words were spoken between the two of them as he led her, this time, towards the teachers quarters, the sound of their breathing and their shoes on the linoleum floor the only noise breaking the silence. It didn't take long for the two of them to reach the door which adjoined the two sections of quarters together, teacher and student, and he took a brief look around to check for other teachers before pulling out his key and opening the door.

Within a minute, Max was opening the door to his own room, closing it behind the blonde when he was sure that she was inside comfortably. Then, he dropped his arm from around her waist, and stood by his door, looking at her. How was this going to go down, he wondered? Probably not well, that was for sure. She was going to hate him for prying into her life, but the man felt oddly worried about her right now. She definitely wasn't herself. "Corentine," he breathed, his voice quiet and gentle, a tone of voice that he usually used when he was speaking to someone in his office, "what's wrong?"

While the barkeep was looking for the right-sized glass, several groups of people started to stream out of the party. Aldous was kind of disappointed, most Noctrem parties went on till the some went up. These Arcanas would end up being “corrupted” by the other Noctrems sooner than later if these phoniness kept on going. Strangely enough, a younger looking girl he'd never met before chose to sit near him. Due to the rather unmistakeable issue of her ordering a soda, she was an Arcana. She had clear and honest gestures of nervousness hidden between those eyes of her. Even more, she looked like she was desperately looking for a friendly face, something he was in a very small way able to relate to. Under other circumstances, had she not been an Arcana, he might have said hi and tried to make her feel less of an alien. That would however have ended up being more troublesome over the long run, he wasn't looking for a good reputation after all.

Once he got his water, he poured a small dosage of cold water into the Absinth-glass and filled the rest up to the top with it's natural content. Unlike most people, he wasn't the kind of person to chug decent alcohol, such a waste. Every sip was a controlled action, even like a ritual to some extent. At some point before finishing his first glass, one of his old clients finally appeared behind a crowd of people. This brunette had always been one of his most loyal customers, which meant she had a highly addictive personality. Her eyes wore the usual dark make-up that made her look like a scorpion's descendant on the motherly side, if you know what I mean. She was poisonous to most people who got close to her. In the past, there'd been some bad blood between his best friend, if he could ever manage to call Lu that, and her. Nonetheless, he'd never allowed his personal opinions to define his business transactions, a shapeshifter's blood was after all a very valuable ingredient for some fun concoctions.

“Vodka please,"
She said as soon as she got to the bar, Aldous had met many flirty girls at the old academy, but he had always been immune to sporadic advances from their side, unlike many men, the young good-looking bartender being one of them. Poor bastard,.... he thought while hide a smirk behind a half-closed fist. As soon as her eyes left the bartend, who's face clearly showed how easily men fell for that kind of woman, the brunette and the alchemist had this academic year's first pre-business interaction. Normally, Lawler knew better than to grab one of his cigarettes, but he chose to led it slide in name of good-will and the party going around them.
“Mind if I take one?"

He couldn't help but grin at her question. She was looking at him, but he knew better than to give that woman too much attention, instead he turned around and looked at the dry-humping horde in front of them.
“When was anyone able to stop you from taking what you wanted, Ms. Lawler? Should I fear you softened in my absence?”

We knew our game and we both liked to play it rough. His face returned to his usual indifferent look.

"It's nice to see you are out of your room and trying to be social. Although this is nothing compared to the Noctrem parties..."

“Ah yess, how could anyone forget nights bathed in blood dancing over the fresh tombs of foolish humans being sacrificed. Good times.”

Aldous tried to keep drinking in his usual manner, but Addison's eyes made it impossible to relax, he wasn't the kind of person who liked attention and she was well aware of it by now. That was the game after all. Her look was different from the usual grimaces she offered him when she was in “need of party materials”, but he couldn't quite put a finger on what she was trying to communicate.

“Anyway, as far as I enjoy the charming quality of our oh so rare conversations, what can I do for you today?”

Addison takes a drag of the cigarette, the world spinning behind her closed eyes and she smiled with the rush she was getting. The taste of vodka on her lips tingled and her blue eyes flickered open when Aldous voice breaks her buzz for a moment, his voice cutting in like a razor.

“When was anyone able to stop you from taking what you wanted, Ms. Lawler? Should I fear you softened in my absence?”

Addison snorted for a moment, shaking her head. Soft? Her? Not by a long shot. The conversation continued with small talk.

“Ah yess, how could anyone forget nights bathed in blood dancing over the fresh tombs of foolish humans being sacrificed. Good times.”

She smirks quietly, the game was easy to play... Too easy. The discomfort Aldous was emitting was terribly noticeable, for Addi at least. She knew when he was trying to keep cool.

She takes one look around the party, things were... Boring, dull. Addi craved excitement, freedom... Seriously? Did any GOOD story start with the words, "So at home last night..."? Rarely... In fact, almost none. The Noctrem students seemed to be waning from the party, leaving all the goodies around, which made the shape shifter cringe a bit. She didn't want to be contaminated with their hand-sanitizing rituals..Or whatever they did for fun at Arcana...

Addi began to wonder where Jaysin had run off to... Probably to go sleep with another girl, yeah? Addi scolds herself with the shake of her head for letting him slide...Then again, did she really want Cor's crazy ass yelling at her? Drama, drama, drama.... Addi used to believe she was the keeper of chaos, until she met Cor and the other girls at Noctrem. Addison was almost mild compared to some of them... She lets out a bit of a sigh and chews on her lower lip for a moment, turning back towards Aldous.

With a moment of her watching him closely, he breaks the silence, “Anyway, as far as I enjoy the charming quality of our oh so rare conversations, what can I do for you today?”

Addison knew what she wanted and the plan begins to formulate in her head. A devilish smile flickers across the girls face as she takes another drag of cigarette, and leans back, blowing the smoke into the air. She stands up, grasping his hand.

"My teachers always preach: Show... Don't tell..." She nods for him to finish his drink as she grabs his cigarettes and slides them into her back pocket, "Now, let's blow this minuscule Popsicle stand and take a walk, shall we?"

And so they went for a walk. Addison wasn't really aware of how discomforting it was for Aldous to leave that bottle of Absinth behind. He had forgotten to bring more of it back from europe during his last trip. Annoyed as he could be under that kind of circumstances, he walked along with her, leaving the party behind and Arcana's goody two-shoes. That girl was too vengeful not to play along with her for a bit more, but Aldous wasn't gonna break any of his rules for a little girl. He let her lead the way, very much aware she wanted him to admire her utterly perfect behind. Not that he wanted to, but he did. Why not, right? He was a man after all.Every now and then, she looked at him to make sure he was still following her. Always flirting and looking repulsed in a very unique way, Aldous was slowly starting to grasp where this might perchance be going. Still, he wasn't the kind of person for that kind rendezvous and there was no way that would change tonight...

"Lawler, if you need something to get high on, you know you just need to ask and pay, right?" He looked with a rather amused face, he couldn't believe she really was trying to get anything else from him.

A while back, a few weeks after Aldous gained his freedom:
A young fifteen year-old Aldous was in a hotel room watching the third season of breaking bad. Suddenly, someone knocked on the door. Due to prior arrangements, Aldous was aware who that was. He walked up to the door and invited a beautiful girl in her twenties into the room. She had a very special kind of natural innocence in her looks. Aldous wasn't really attracted towards her, but he felt an enticing degree of curiosity towards some of the sensations felt during intercourse. Once he'd closed the door, the girl had already vanished into the bathroom, so he just relaxed and returned to his bed. A few minutes later, the girl came out wearing nothing, but a pair of handcuffs. Unlike most boys in the age of fifteen, he barely managed to show any kind of "reaction" to the view. Nothing unnatural after seeing hundreds of human sacrifices being made in his father's lab, I guess...

Slowly, she slendered towards the bed and then crouched on top of him. She was about to try to handcuf him, when he changed his mind about that part.
"Y...you know what? I'd rather prefer you not to use them, ok?"
At first, she tried to smile his request away, but once he started fending her intents off, she began to get far more forceful than any normal person would be. Something wrong was going on. Without a second thought, he grabbed a knife out from under his pillow and rammed it twice, once between the 3rd and 4th left rib and a second time ripping the carotid artery apart.....

That was the one and only time Aldous got close to woman. She'd been paid by an assasin to disable him for enough time. Fortunately, he hadn't survived up to that point being trustworthy and that wasn't gonna change for years to come.....

Addi turned a few times as they continued to walk, making sure Aldous was still following her. They ventured deeper into the woods, darting through trees, and stepping through the brush. Eventually, the girl took off her shoes and began to hold those. As she turned around to check for the umpteenth time, she hopped around, facing Aldous, walking backwards for a moment.

A look of discomfort lingered on Aldous's face and he clears his throat a bit, "Lawler, if you need something to get high on, you know you just need to ask and pay, right?"

"I guess," She shrugs, continues to walk backwards, her movements becoming fluid, almost feline-like. She could feel her more primal instincts begin to tick, but she suppresses them and she shrugs, "But, since you offered, what do you have?"

She tilts her head to the side, stopping for a moment next to a willow, and she listens for a moment, her blue eyes floating towards the sound of water. A smile flickers onto Addison's face, it was a sly one though, a secretive one.

"Come, Mr. Montague." She fakes an extremely convincing British accent, tugging at his jacket and she strips off her leather jacket, slinging it over her shoulder and she comes to a clearing where a pond resided. The moonlight became fractured on the still pond and a small breeze bustles through. A willow tree dips over the pond, almost shading it from the rest of the world and Addison smiles a bit turning back towards Aldous.

Raising an eyebrow, she continues to play the game, "Alright, we can match," She pulls out the rest of her weed, and a few acid strips, "What do YOU have?" The brunette's head tips to the side a bit, her lips parting slightly into a smile. She stares at him for a moment and her heart jumped a little... He was... Cute... She never realized how captivating his eyes were. He wasn't like Drake, or Jaysin... He was more aloof...

Addison felt a strange attraction towards him, not the kind of primal attraction she normally felt, but that stupid kind of curiosity... The kind that made her want to get to know him, like the back of her hand....

Or maybe he just had secrets that she wanted to uncover....

She had known Aldous for quite a while, and yet their conversations had always been short, to the point. No real depth to them.... If the girl didn't know any better, she would say that she had a crush on Aldous...But Addison was a fickle girl, and she wasn't about to simply tie herself down to someone who wanted a simple, strictly professional, dealer, druggie relationship...

If that was even considered a professional relationship. The girl smirks at the fact, laughing a bit.

But who was to say what he wanted? Maybe he secretly wanted to get to know her too?

Now I'm just getting my head in the damn clouds... She thinks to herself with a sigh. No way was that going to happen, no fucking way....