The only sound in the house was the distant tip-tapping of a pencil (or a pen) somewhere inside in one of the many rooms. Books were thrown open and some laid even on the floor, the room would have been dark normally but he was in his own bedroom today, after a very long time.

Liam sat on a red office chair, a pencil in hand as he tapped it furiously against the table while reading over the sixty-fifth page of his Biology text. 

He skimmed over, her eyes following every line, every word, every letter and soon, he stopped the tapping and underlined a certain statement with the black ball pen in his other hand and once he was done, he was back to reading and tapping. This had been going on for around two hours. 

Ever since Emily left his home. 

The room was quiet - even more because Emily was nowhere in sight - and just as Liam finished his black coffee that had become cold from sitting there for a while, the silence was lost as the front door clinched open and in came, the tapping of high heels on the floor. 

Liam instinctively turned to face the door of his room and as soon as he did so, in came Emily. Her shiny stilettoes were high in the air, her hair for once, had been it's regular shade of dirty blonde and left open. 

Her lips were tainted red and her eyes shone bright. She was excited. 

Her frame was beautifully adorned with a velvet red high-necked sleeveless top that stopped right over her naval button and with classic forest green satin bellbottom pants and silver stilettoes.

God, did he sometimes hate the places his mind took him.

Her cheeks were shiny, it was probably the highlighter she used - even though it was lightly applied - it worked wonders for her. 

Emily fell backwards into his bed and hid her face in his pillows. 

"What's wrong?" Liam chuckled.

"The usual," she mumbled, her voice faraway.

Her dirty blonde hair was on the sheets, blonde hair against the brown sheets. The fringes of her hair were all brushed to her left side as she turned over to stare at his ceiling. Her left hand lay at her side while her right was busy pinching the bridge between her eyebrows. 

Liam looked at her for a while but then he turned ahead, he needed to study a bit more. The class was catching up to him. He had to be at least three chapters ahead of the rest of them because Emily was always three chapters behind the rest of the class. 

The hepatic portal vein carries blood from the liver to the spleen and the gastrointestinal tract. The hepatic veins begin at the junction of splenic veins and superior mesenteric. The blood from the cystic veins and the inferior mesenteric gastric veins is also drained by the hepatic-

"Liam," Emily called as she sat up on his bed. She asked quizzically, "Does Nessa not like me anymore?"

"What?" a funny look came over him as the pencil in his hand clattered noisily against the wooden table. 

He turned the chair to face his best friend instead of the books. Sure, studies were important but Emily was more important. She was the most important thing to him. 

Emily's eyes glistened but she stared right back at him. She looked into his bright blue eyes and for a moment, something happened and with that, a piece inside Liam shook and a piece inside Emily broke. 

She whimpered and then broke down to tears, hiding her face as she sobbed into her hands. 

Liam was in her side in a jiffy. One arm slung around her shoulder, he gently pried the other hand from her face as he cooed, "Hey, hey, hey Emily, don't cry..."

"Venessa does not not love you," he tried his best to encourage her, "Nobody could ever stop loving someone like you, Em."

Emily dropped her hands and this time, she hid her face in his shoulder instead. Her breathing was ragged and her heart was beating so hard that he could feel it. 

He rubbed a hand up and down her back, "You're bright. Caring. And so so patient. Anyone would be a fool to leave you, love."

Her words were hitched as she said, "But she- she- she hasn't been out to enjoy with me fo- for weeks now, Li. And I feel pathe-pathetic for crying now, becaus- because she's just got too much- work..."

"Hush, Em," Liam told as he smothered her hair down her back, "It's not pathetic, you're just being human and being a bit insecure, and that's fine! Everybody deserves re-assurance at times."

Emily sniffled into his shoulder, "I'm sorry, Li. I shouldn't be complaining, I know-"

Liam told, "Oh, don't bother. My shoulder is your official crying shoulder."

She chuckled into his shoulder and he knew that she'd be back to normal within no time. Her laughter shook her frame and he could feel his insides vibrate; he felt a warm sort of happiness deep within listening to her laugh. 

She pulled away from his shoulder and looked at him. Emily still managed to look like a goddamn queen even after crying. That was pure talent. 

She slouched as she sat and looked at her long fingers and the shiny nail polish coating her fingernails. Emily sighed as she pulled her phone from the back of her bellbottoms and then handed it to Liam. 

Liam's fingerprint easily unlocked her phone and going to her last messages and Liam immediately knew what the issue was. He already suspected what the issue was but looking at Venessa's chat at the top of the screen and he knew that his suspicion was confirmed. 

He didn't even need to see the messages. He handed the phone back to her and she didn't even give it a thought as she shut it down. 

"She didn't respond," Liam stated. He intended it as a question but it sounded a lot like an assumption more than a question. 

She nodded quickly as she swallowed the lump in her throat. 

"Emily," he whispered as he stretched his hand and entangled his fingers with hers. 

She did not meet his gaze but she squeezed his hand and looked at the wall shelf filled with books as she told, "She did not even remember and I had been putting things like this off for so long because of her. She is always so busy and so, I try my best to be patient, to be less asking, less demanding, less time-consuming. Am I a chore to her?"

"I'm sure that your not a 'chore', Emily," he told to her, "She was probably so busy that it missed her mind."

"Maybe," she said, not quite convinced.

Liam bit his lower lip as he looked at the wall clock which ticked steadily at 8.46. He then glanced at the books thrown open and decided that it wouldn't hurt much if he went out tonight. 

He wondered what would happen if Chris came home from some party and told himself that he'd have time to deal with Chris and his whole load of tosh later. 

He controlled the look on his face as he faced her, "Okay, this is very out of character for me, but I- I'll go with you to the bar, if you want to really go."

She looked confused at first but when she registered what he said the smile that was ever-present on her face returned and she was beyond overjoyed. She jumped up and hugged him tight. This was one moment that perfectly proved why she loved Liam Wyatt.

~*~

The line was getting shorter and Liam's never ending contagious energy was spreading and multiplying. 

Emily's head whipped as she threatened Liam, "If you don't calm down this instant I swear that I will hit you where it matters, Liam Theodore Wyatt!"

Liam winced at her using his entire name. Nobody called him that; not even his mother when she was pissed off with him. Only Emily could. Only she did that. 

He told nervously, "Can't help it now, can I, Em? We're going to a bar- do you know that I've only ever been to a bar once before?"

"Yes, I know, Liam," she told as she looked at the shortening line. It was only three people before it was their turn. 

"I was there too, remember?" Emily reminded.

Liam told, "Yes, but what if it's like last time?"

"This time it's going to be different," she told him firmly, a furrow between her brows. 

He asked her exasperatedly, "How?"

She tried to answer that question a bit trickily, "I- uh- might know someone in there?"

"Who?" he asked but when she wouldn't respond, he whirled her around, "Who, Em?"

But he didn't need an answer. The bouncer lowered the sunglasses that she wore, "Oh my goodness, is that Wonders? Emily Wonders?"

Emily took in a sharp breathe and then spun around. A half-pained smile on her face, she told excitedly, "Anya, what a surprise!" 

"Anya?" the bouncer grinned as she pulled off the sunglasses and placed it on her head, "Nah, I'm her twin, Alya!"

Emily's expression turned to a huge 'oh!' her eyes wide as she realized that initially made plan would not work as well as she wanted. She would have to improvise. 

"Alya! So fantastic to see you here," the blonde grinned and then asked, "I thought Anya did this thing-"

"Anya?" Alya grinned again as she chuckled her tongue, "Oh sweetheart, Anya was always on the bleachers, I was on the track. Who do you think they would give the guarding job to?"

Emily shrugged nonchalant. It did make sense. Captain of cheerleading team, Anya and her over sporty twin, Alya had been the hot topic of their school even after they switched to another nearby high school.

Anya and Emily had been an on-off thing but neither were too invested in it, it was mostly for the thrill of it, but it had been fun. Quite fun, to be very frank. It had been a good while since either girls met the other. 

Alya smirked as she watched the younger girl squirm under her intense gaze. A small self-satisfied smirk on her face, she told, "You thought that Anya would be here and she'd let you in without a pass."

Emily winced slightly at the accusation and told, "Maybe?"

From behind Emily, Liam had realized that Alya was also a very pretty girl. With her long black hair whipping behind her in a very tight braid that went halfway down her back and her cream coloured skin gleamed even in the shade of the red lights. Her eyes looked wider, brighter, bigger with the black mascara and eyeliner she had used. 

She was so different from her twin, Anya. While Anya was shy, reserved and was very different with different people, Alya was bold, fierce and had a no-nonsense attitude backed with a good sense of humor. 

The other girl screwed her eyes into slits as she looked at Emily with a scrutinizing gaze. She stared at her for a beat but when Emily did not hesitate to stare right back at the girl. As if Emily had successfully managed to pass a test of some sort, the fierce girl in leather jacket grinned at her. 

"Well done, Wonders," letting her waltz right past the shimmery silver sequined curtain, she told, "You are as fierce as one could be, have fun but not too much fun!" 

A funny look over her face, Emily quickly grabbed Liam's hand and walked through the curtain. 

Inside the bar was totally another story. It was so much different than all of Liam's imagination. This bar was out of this world. Quite literally. 

The ceiling was so high that Liam wasn't even sure if there was a ceiling at all, he couldn't see it. There were lights, all sort. Disco lights, red and green lights against the floor. The music was tasteful but a little too loud. 

She grinned wide at Liam who looked like he was about to shit in his pants. He was quaking in his converses as looked around terrified.

 People were everywhere. Against the walls, dancing, singing at the top of their lungs, passing out on the floor and falling in a drunk stupor. People were always going out of the bar and yet it wasn't getting any emptier, it only felt like it was growing more crowded inside the bar.

She pulled Liam closer to herself as another pair of drunk teenagers - girls really - kissed dangerously knocking others in their path down. She smiled unconsciously at the pair as she passed another passed out body on the floor. 

This was what a party felt like. It was so long since her last party, she should come out more often. This was what living life meant. The taste of tequila in the air was right on her tongue felt heavenly, the warmth from all the bodies made her feel warmer against the autumn chill and the buzzing of electricity from all the bodies made her feel more alive than she had in a while. 

Emily's smile was brighter than Liam had ever seen and her excitement was contagious. He was getting energized too. She looked at him and he gave her a smile back. 

She pointed at the emptier table top where a bored bartender was wiping the counter. Liam did not have much choice or area to argue, not when people were pressing against him from all sides. His mind was buzzing with the music and the energy that surrounded him. 

After finally wrestling their way from the dancefloor and to the bar table. The man looked up and asked Emily rather bored to be there, "What would you like?"

"A shot of tequila," Emily told immediately. 

"And you?" the blue-eyed bartender asked Liam that brought his attention to the bartender instead of the dancefloor. 

Liam took in a shaky breathe, trying to clear his fogged brain and shook his head, "I don't drink."

"Of course you do," Emily countered, a frown in place. 

"I do not," Liam replied in an instant. 

Emily sighed deeply, "You don't dance. You don't like crowds and now, you don't drink apparently, what will you do here?"

"I don't know," he shrugged, "Stay here and watch?"

She shook her head, a small smile playing on her red-tainted lips. Of course, Liam came here to drag her drunk and tired ass home. She was thankful, but sometimes, she wished he would learn to let loose. 

The shot was poured and as soon as Emily could get her hands on it, she drowned it. Liam knew that she was going to whine about a terrible hangover tomorrow, but he decided to not ruin her good mood now. He'd deal with hungover Emily tomorrow. 

She was completely drunk after three shots and was barely talking properly, let alone stand but she never ceased to amaze Liam. He tried to convince her to sit with him telling her that she'd pass out on the floor, but she was one fiery-firecracker. 

"Let me go, Liiiiiaaaaam," she dragged, "I want to daanceee. I'm not stasing here."

He sighed again, there was no stopping Emily Wonders when there was something she wanted to do. He let her go and she grinned as she yelled back, "I'll be okay, Li!" 

And with that, she disappeared into the sea of people that danced and Liam did not even try to search for her. It would be a futile attempt. He instead turned and placed his heated cheek to the cold top and squeezed his eyes shut. 

"A real fireball, innit?" 

He lifted his eyes to look at the bartender who had an amused look on his face as he jerked his head in the direction Emily had disappeared off to. He had no sleeves on the shirt he wore and his blonde hair shone red with the disco lights.

"One gentle way to put it," Liam replied as he propped his elbows up on the top. 

The older man chuckled slightly as he shook his head, "She reminds me of my first girlfriend before I realised that I bode for the other team."

Liam asked, "You're more into boys then?"

"Men," he corrected with a slight smile and Liam rolled his eyes amused. 

Liam rested his chin on the top as he watched the bartender roam around, cleaning glasses and stuff. The bartender asked, "What's your name kid?"

"Liam," he replied, not thinking twice. Overthinking only ever wasted time. 

"Liam, huh?" the bartender mused, "I once had this fling who had the same name. Liam Stellars. Great guy he was... I wonder where he is now."

And with that, he plunged into tales about his previous flings to entertain Liam, but after a while when he realised that Liam was awfully quite he told, "Surely there is something else you can do than stay here with this pathetic bartender such as myself and listen to his story? You could dance or drown in some shots until the pretty bird comes back-"

Liam shook his head, "Nah, I can't get wasted. Emily needs me to take care of her."

No words were spoken for a while and Liam sat up to look at the bartender. He stood there staring right at Liam with his blue eyes. He was wiping a glass with a tissue but had paused mid-way. A funny far-away look on his face, he looked at Liam in what he could only describe as disbelief. 

"You really do love her, don't you?" the bartender asked. 

Liam's cheeks heated up and he turned bright red in shade as he stuttered, "How could you tell?"

The older man sat opposite to Liam and told him, "The look on your face when you look at her, the way you care about her, how you are still by her side even when it hurts, it all shows that you really really love her."

"Do you think she knows?" Liam panicked, "She can never know or it'll be a disaster-"

The bartender took in a deep breath. It was not like he had anything else to do than talk to the younger kid that reminded him so much of himself. He wanted to help kind souls like his. 

"She might not know," he told in honesty, "She definitely doesn't know-"

Liam let out a deep breath he had been holding in but the other man spoke again, "But you should tell her."

"No," Liam shook his head, firmly, "Absolutely not."

"It'll help your heart, the more attached you are to her the more your heart will break to pieces, take it from me," he told truthfully. 

His blue eyes were completely honest but Liam refused to look at him, he stood up instead, "No, Emily means more to me than anything. I don't care if it breaks my heart a million times later, I want her anyway possible. If Emily knew, she'd keep her distance and I- I can't afford that."

The bartender knew that Liam wouldn't listen and he was about to counter but then remembered exactly how he had been when he was around the younger boy's age. He shook his head, a bit nostalgic, a bit sadder. Instead, he grabbed a piece of paper from inside his pocket and wrote on it with the pen he had tucked behind his ear and into his shoulder-length blonde hair. 

He handed the note to Liam before he could leave, "If you ever need any help or just someone to talk to, I'm here."

Liam gave a nod to the man as he disappeared into the sea of people. Emily should be absolutely tired by then. He looked for her in the mass of sweaty bodies, but finding her would not be an easy job. 

At one point, he was so exhausted that he slumped against a wall as he pulled the sheet of paper from the back pocket of his jeans. 

'Geovani Young' was written and below was written a phone number. For a moment, he remembered the older man's advice and wondered whether it was the right thing to do but he immediately shook the thought away. Never. 

"Excuse me-" came a voice to his right and swiftly in a blur of red and green. After a moment, he then remembered that Emily was wearing red and green too. He tried to keep with her as he repeatedly called her name. 

Until she stopped. 

Liam took his chance. He pushed his way past the drunk people there. Sure, he could ask them to move aside but no one would be able to hear him over the thumping of the bass in the huge party. 

"Emily!" he called to her but she did not turn. She was yelling at the person in front of her. 

Liam's eyes widened by a degree when he registered what was happening. The male in front of her had poured his red juice - whatever it was - all on Emily and- she. was. livid. 

She could not form a coherent statement and opened her mouth over and over just to shut it without any response coming to her. 

Liam pulled her to the side. When she was angry it was best to stop her from breaking someone's nose. 

And accordingly, Emily lifted her knee suddenly, hitting the male where it really hurt. He clutched his lower part in agony. His black hair over his eyes, and a pained expression on his face, he was saying something but Liam couldn't hear him over the music. 

Emily turned swiftly but the boy swung his fist wildly. Just in time, Liam had pulled Emily down to duck and he hit another bulkier man who was dancing. 

And shit broke out. Soon, there was a brawl and Liam decided to drag Emily away from this before either of them got hurt. 

Covered from top to bottom is all sorts of drinks, Emily and Liam ran from the party. Eyes full of laughter as they ran all the way to Liam's place and he had never been more terrified and mesmerized at the same moment. Nevertheless, he knew that Emily was going to wake up with one of the biggest hangovers of her life.