Staring at the device in my hands, I waited for Jay to contact me again.

I wanted him to call, or even text. Some sort of contact to let me know that he's thinking about me. But maybe he isn't, and I haven't crossed his mind once.

Jay is known for not calling back, so this could have been a one night thing.

"Are you going to stay in your room all day?" Cassy asked, barging in.

"Probably." I answered, tossing my phone onto the bed.

"Well, I have something that might change your mind." My head shot up, looking at the mischievous grin that was apparent on Cassy's face.

"And what would that be?" I asked, suddenly interested.

"There's another party tonight."

"Who will be there?"

"I'm not sure. But I heard it's at some guy's house." She answered, taking a seat on my bed. "I think he's a friend of Jackson."

"Oh yeah, Mark. He's a cool guy."

"So you know him?" Cassy questioned, probably wondering how I have so many connections.
But when you have a friend like Cassy, you have to know where to find a good party.

"Yes, I met him officially at the party" I answer, sitting down next to her.

"Is he cute?"
Of course she would ask me that.

"He is very cute" Cassy nods in approval.
"But I don't see him as the party type, I'm surprised he's hosting this."

Cassy shrugs. "As long as I'm going, I don't care."

I couldn't help but wonder if he will be there.
Will Jay act like normal?
But then again, is there really a normal for him?

Tonight, if Jay is there, I'm going to play hard to get. I cannot just fall head over heals for him right away. I'm not even sure if I like the guy. I mean, he's cute and nice but I don't know what's real. There could be a whole different side to him that I don't even know about.

"You're thinking about him, aren't you?" I look to the curious girl.

"Who?"

"Hopefully Jackson," She says with a joking grin.
Will the Jackson jokes ever end?

_________

I stared at my reflection in the mirror, and started to have second thoughts. I'm wearing a beautiful dress, but it's black lace and very short.

"Cassy, are you sure I should wear this?" I ask, my eyes not leaving the mirror.

"Yeah!" She answered, coming to stand next to me. "You look great."

"Are you sure?" I blurt.
I can't pinpoint as to why tonight is giving me such hesitance. Usually, I don't second guess this much.

"I'm sure. Now, let's go," She grabbed the keys, and we headed out.

Once we got there, I noticed that Mark's house was in the same area as Jackson's. It must be nice, living so close to your friend. But then again, I live with mine.

Mark had told me to just walk in when we arrived, so that's what we did.

Surprisingly, there was not many people here. I think that Cassy and I were expecting something larger, but the number of people was not excessive.

"You can go get a drink. I'm finding Mark," I told Cassy. She nodded, walking off.

Whenever we attend a party, Cassy and I don't stick together. We go off and do our own things.
The only thing that the two of us actually do together is the drive.

I weaved through the bodies, finding my way through the living room. I found a tall, skinny boy with artificially red hair.
That's definitely him.

"Mark," I spoke. He turned toward my voice.
His face brightened up when he looked into my eyes.

"Raina, you're here!" A smile tugged at my lips. "I'll take you to Jackson, he'll want to see you."

Mark lightly took hold of my wrist, pulling me through his house. He brought me downstairs into a basement, and there was a few guys down here. They were sitting in a circle, listening to music and talking. Some guys were off in the corner playing pool, enjoying themselves.

My eyes scanned the room, getting a feel for what is going on. I think I would actually prefer to be down here. I mean, it's much more laid back. There's more energy upstairs, and that isn't bad. But I'd rather be down here.

"Jackson," Mark called. "Look who's here."
Jackson looked up, and his gaze fell on me.

"Raina, come sit." Mark patted me on the shoulder before turning around and leaving.

Making my way over, the guys moved so that I could get to Jackson. I sat down next to him, being greeted by another one of his charming smiles.
The other guys started talking again, leaving Jackson and I alone.

"How are you?" He asked, turning his body to face me.

"I'm alright, how are you?" I returned.
I'm actually wondering how he is. Jackson always seems to be in a good mood, and I envy that.

"Great! But Jay told me that you went on a date with him," I furrowed my eyebrows.

"He told you that?" I am completely surprised. I didn't think that Jay would tell anyone about it.

"Yeah, did it not happen?" He asked in a confused tone.

"No, it did. I'm just shocked that he told you."

"Oh, that's not all he told me. Jay gave me a detailed story of the entire evening!" He answered in between chuckles.

Jackson continued to tell me that Jay was acting odd lately. He wouldn't talk to girls as often, but when he did, it seemed that he was withdrawn. Jackson also said that Jay has never spoken about a date that he has been on, let alone tell everything that happened.

Even though Jay is talking to girls less, I cannot automatically assume that it's because of me. Jackson did say that he acts withdrawn, so it could mean that Jay is going through something right now.
Plus, nothing will stop Jay from talking to girls completely. He is a playboy, and no one can change that.

"But, did you enjoy yourself?" Jackson asked, referring to the date.

"It wasn't bad. He acted differently than I expected, but Jay isn't really my type," I answered, sounding uninterested.

"He's here tonight.." He said, staring at me intently.
I look up at him.

"Who, Jay?" I ask, holding eye contact.

"Yeah." He mumbles. I wondered why Jackson had he sudden change in attitude, but I didn't even have to ask. There was a voice behind me, and that answered my unasked question.

"Hey, mind if I join?" I examine the boy standing next to me. He's still beautiful as ever.

"I'll give you two some time alone," Jackson said, getting up to leave. "And Raina, don't leave without saying goodbye."

Jay moved to the spot where Jackson was. "So how are you?" He asked.

Why is this such a popular question? It's not like he actually cares how I'm feeling.

When I didn't answer him, he leaned in and rested his chin on my shoulder. "Are you mad at me?" He mumbled.

I shook my head lightly.
"Then why aren't you talking to me? I thought that we had a good time," He whispered, resulting in the clearing of my throat.

"We did," Jay's lips pressed against the skin of my neck. I look at him in awe, but he continues to kiss my neck.

"What, you don't like it?" He hummed against my skin. Goosebumps rose, but I shoved him away.

"I don't even know you that well," I mutter.

"Yes you do" He answered, making eye contact.

"We've been on one date."

"Is that not enough?"

"Um, it's not enough to be making out." I retort. Who does this guy think he is? Just because he is good looking doesn't mean that he can do whatever he wants.

"Then let's go on another date."

_________

I pushed my way through the bodies once again. More people have showed up since I got here. It's still not excessive, but there are definitely a lot of people here.

"Where is he?" I mutter to myself.

An idea popped into my head, and I decided to find my way upstairs. Jackson is famous for attending parties, but he usually finds a bedroom and plays video games with his friends.

Walking through the long hallway, I found a door that had Mark's name on it. I raised my hand to the door and knocked.

Moments later, the door swung open. I was greeted by none other than Mark.

"Hello again." He said with a smile.
I return the gesture.

"Hey, Mark." He steps to the side.

"The crowd too much? Come inside."
I obey, walking into his room. Jackson was on the floor, violently pressing buttons on a controller. Just as I had expected, they were gaming.

"You have a nice room," I commented, running my fingers along his nightstand. He grinned.

"Thank you."

"Hey, Raina. Didn't expect to see you here," Jackson said, pausing the game.

"Really?" I ask, sitting next to him.

"Yeah, I thought you would be with Jay-"

"Well, she's not." Mark butted in.

I watched as the two boys played their game, completely engrossed by it. Loud bumping of the speakers downstairs shook the whole house, and I started to wonder why they even have parties.

I mean, they don't even take part in the gathering. The most they do is socialize for awhile-- then they come up here.

Another knock on Mark's door interrupted us, and he got up to go answer it.

"Is she in here?" The voice asked.

"Yeah, why?" Mark asked. He didn't step aside for the boy to come inside.

"I'm taking her home. Her friend is passed out on the couch," He answered.
I mentally curse Cassy for getting so drunk. Sometimes I worry about her drinking habits. I don't think that she knows when to stop.

"Raina," Mark calls, turning to me. "I guess you have to leave."

When Mark stepped to the side, my curiosity was confirmed-- It was Jay.

Jackson got up, helping me stand as well. He pulled me into an embrace, telling me to text him so that he knows I returned safely. After that, Mark hugged me quickly. We bid our goodbyes, and I walked up to Jay.

Without a word, I followed him through the house. "I know that you probably don't want me to take you home, but-"

"It's fine," I interrupt.

We found Cassy laying on the couch in the lounge room. She probably came in here because it's so quiet and comfortable.

"How are we going to move her?" I ask, examining the sleeping girl.

"I don't know, should we carry her?" He asked cautiously.

"You can carry her," I say with a chuckle. There's no way I will be able to lift another person.

"Serious?" He asked, gawking at me.

"You're the one with the muscles!" I shout jokingly.

"Yeah, you're right. But I don't want to touch your friend."

"Why not?"

"She scares me."

"You'll be fine, baby." His face brightened.
I tilted my head, confused.

"Did you just call me..." Jay trailed off.

"Oh!" I slap my forehead in realization.
"I was calling you a baby, not some pet name that you use too freely ."

"Whatever you say, sweetheart." He answers, lifting Cassy into his arms.

She would kill me if she knew that Jay was the one who carried her.

Jay lead me to his car, groaning the entire way. But once we got to his car, he remembered that it's locked.

"Well, where are your keys? I can go get them."

"They're in my pocket," He answers while eyeing me closely.

"You're crazy if you think I'm reaching into your pocket," I shoot back.

"Please? Your friend is heavy."
I sigh in frustration. Reaching into his pocket, I fish out the keys and unlock the doors.

He drops Cassy in there, and opens the passenger door for me to get in. It reminds me of when he did the same thing the night of our date.

The drive home was silent. Jay didn't try talking to me at all, but I guess that I shouldn't be surprised. Even though I agreed to another date with him, I probably shouldn't have given in that easily.
So much for playing hard to get.

Maybe now Jay thinks that he is reeling me in slowly. Then he will stop trying, and I don't know how I will take that. I don't necessarily like Jay, but for some reason I can't picture him losing interest in me. I don't want to picture it, that is.

"You're awfully quiet," He breaks the silence.

"I could say the same about you," I answer.
After all, he's usually the one who is talking.

Jay pulls into my driveway, putting the car in park. "I can help you bring her inside."

"It's okay. I'll just wake her up," I answer, trying to open the door.

"Wait." He commands, locking the door so that I can't escape.

I look over at him, waiting for an explanation. He stares at me before talking again.
"Uh, a-are you sure that y-you don't need help?" He stammers out.

"I'm pretty sure," I say, shaking the door knob as a reminder that it's locked.

"Then I guess I'll see you tomorrow," he mumbles.

"Yep, I'll see you tomorrow," I respond, and Jay plants a kiss on the corner of my mouth.
I stare at him in awe, the blush rising to my cheeks.

He unlocks the door, and I hurriedly get out of there. I then wake up Cassy and assist her into the house.

Once we are inside, I lay Cassy in her bed. I get a glass of water and a few painkillers for when she is awake.

Sighing, I decide to go take a shower.
The hot water relaxes my muscles, washing away my problems of today. But while I was showering I heard my phone go off.

"Shit." I mutter, remembering that I have to text Jackson before I go to bed.

Turning off the shower, I step out and change into some comfortable clothes. Then I walk over to the counter and retrieve my phone. Gliding my finger across the screen, I unlock it and read the message.

[Goodnight, beautiful.]