Evangeline was appalled - no, horrified at the situation in front of her.

So much blood, so much violence.

It was too similar to a gore scene in a bad action movie - Zarek was over Justin, Zarek's fist making strong jabs at Justin's once had been innocently flawless face. The scarlet blood kept smearing on Justin's face from his busted lip, eyes going black and nose breathing blood instead, yet no one was doing anything about it.

Everyone was either gaping at the spectrum, videotaping it so it could go viral, or not caring one bit because they were too drunk as they continued their uncoordinated swaying to the loud music that muffled Eva's screams. Eva kept telling Zarek to stop, yet her voice was mute compared to the blasting song.

Realizing that no one was going to interfere, she did. She wasn't as strong as that guy who had been standing in the corner and doing nothing apart than watching in amusement - isn't he the one Anna was dancing with to make Hunter jealous? - yet Eva was braver than him, apparently.

Phones' flashlights were blinking repeatedly as she tried pushing Zarek away. He must've thought she was someone who was going to attack him so he pushed her fragile body away with too much force. Eva's head hit the wall, the world spinning for a second, before she regained her balance.

Zarek's electric green eyes widened in shock, the flashing lights intensifying his glint. This is the first time he ever laid a hand on me. Almost an apologetic aura passed his gaze before his face went stone hard again. He spat - quite literally - on the bloody Justin, and walked out of the living room to what Eva assumed was the backyard.

Eva dashed to the bruised Justin, afraid he might die. Thankfully, his hands were shaking and lips trembling. With absolute difficulty, Justin sat upright, pushed Eva away along with her worry, and staggered out of the front door despite not wearing any shoes, mumbling a few words that were overshadowed by the music.

Eva watched after Justin in confusion. She had no idea what happened between him and Zarek, but she hoped he was okay. He was always such a nice and a sweet guy, she would hate it if he got hurt.

Eva pushed all of her sorrow away when she caught sight of Trudy. Her knees weren't carrying her property, tears building in her eyes. Concern consumed Evangeline, along with curiosity. She had never seen Trudy in such an emotional state before, always seemingly composed and in control. Eva would absolutely hate it if Trudy lost it.

"What happened?" Eva exasperated, hazel eyes confused, "Why was Zarek hitting Justin - oh my god, are you crying?"

As Trudy whispered in Eva's ears, tears were swelling in Trudy's brown eyes and snakiness being replaced with dreaminess. "I want home," Trudy chuckled at her wrong sentence, hands brushing her wavy hair out of her sweaty forehead. "I'm so sick of this party. Take me home, Eva."

Eva nodded, leaning for Trudy's ear. "Yes, of course, Trudy." Her eyes scanned the crowd. "Let's find Sandra first."

"Nooo," Trudy stomped on her heels, yanking her hand out of Eva's worried grasp. Despite the loud music, her whiny voice was clear. "Don't look for her, she eeevil." Trudy chuckled again, finding her incoherence funny.

Eva eyed her friend with concern of consuming something. "She drove us here, Sandra is our only ride."

"Drive us home." Trudy demanded, grabbing some random stranger, who was - thank god - just Ryan.

Ryan's forest green eyes were a bit glazed, watching Trudy as if he didn't recognize her and probably thinking about how crazy she must be to order him around. When Ryan's eyes glanced at Eva next to her, he took a step back. "Holy -" he cut himself off, "Evan? You're in a Hunter Adams party?"

"So?" Trudy retorted, pulling at his arm. "Take home, Ryan, now."

Ryan - for the first time - was brave enough to glare at Trudy. "Are you okay in your head?" he hissed, "You don't get to order me around, and please fix your grammar, it's horrendous."

Trudy was quiet for a couple of seconds - which made Ryan and Eva anticipating the worst - before she flipped her dark hair, the soft ends slapping Ryan's chest. "You so annoying," she said but it seemed as if she was mouthing it due to the loudness of their location.

Eva didn't know how to act around Ryan since they weren't on the best terms, but she decided to be the bigger person for Trudy's sake. "Ryan," Eva breathed in Ryan's ear, making his rising chest stop midway. "Can you drive us? Please?"

Ryan eyed Trudy with what looked like hatred - Evangeline truly thought he was about to turn her down - but he sighed, running his fingers through his beautiful hair. "Yeah, sure," he gave in, "But just for you, Evan, not for this cold-blooded, heartless-"

"Thank you," Eva chirped, doing whatever she could to prevent any more fights tonight.

Once the three teens were out of the intoxication that was the party, Eva felt like she could finally breathe again. Trudy's steps were clumsier than in the party, which got to a point where she had to take off her six-inch heels and walk barefoot. Now that Trudy was in her natural hight, she was just as tall as Ryan, and Eva felt slightly like a giant next to them, but she pushed that insecurity away.

I shouldn't think so negatively. Trudy needed her at the moment, she must've had too much to drink. Eva had seen Trudy drunk before - the last being the night before the Spring Ball when she called her and asked her to come over - and this drunk was nothing like that. Trudy was intoxicated with not only alcohol, but something else entirely.

Eva tried helping Trudy to walk steadily, but Trudy refused the help. Of course she would.

"Where your damn car, Ryan?" Trudy chuckled at herself despite trying to sound threatening. "Didn't you park close or something? Unless you want to kidnap us, I don't see the point why we would walk an entire street away from the party."

The street was quiet, other than the faded music in the air. It wasn't a cold night, or a warm one either, just something annoying in between. Hunter's house, which was in the far away distance, was contrasting noticeably with the houses that were practically falling down next to it.

"Chill, I parked at the corner."

Once they reached the dreaded car, Trudy gasped, almost tripping over her bare feet. "This is your car?" Trudy shook her head, disgust tinting her diamond-shaped face. "No wonder you parked it so far. Such a horrendous sight should never be seen."

Ryan's cheeks were bright red in embarrassment. "Hey," Eva called softly, "I don't mind your car. It's, uh, homie."

Ryan nodded, still dwelling in his poverty compared to Trudy. "Let's just get in."

Trudy got in the backseat, throwing her high heels somewhere in the back. Eva was in the passenger seat while Ryan drove. Ryan's car was old and a bit small, the vibration traveling Eva's body in annoying waves while Ryan - who was so close Eva could smell the coconut hair conditioner he used - drove through the dark streets to Trudy's mansion.

For a fraction of a second, Eva wondered what her mother would have done if she knew the things her daughter was doing - attending a party behind her back, leading on two guys, and getting in a car with a male in the middle of the night.

Eva had lied to her mother, telling her that she would sleep over at Trudy's house. The burden of lying was heavy on Eva's conscious, but it wasn't like Hannah cared enough to question it. Besides, Eva was probably better off with Trudy than being alone at home.

Hannah's making me do all of this.

Yes, it wasn't Eva's fault that her mom hadn't been around. If Eva had her mother's presence in her life, then maybe none of this would have happened. Not just the party, but her shyness and her unfortunate feelings for a certain rich devil - surely her mother would have knocked some sense into her.

A hard bump, that was magnified due to the old car, jerked Eva back to the presence. She glanced at her best friend in the back, who was making faces at passing trees. Weird. She looked at Ryan, sighed, then looked at the passing trees herself. "Can I ask you something?"

"Me?" Ryan's golden eyebrows jerked upwards, shifting in his ripped seat. "Okay. Yeah, sure. Go ahead."

"Why were you so surprised when you saw me at that party?" She was feeling guilty already, going to that party was a mistake. She wished to take back the things she said and done, because even though it was only one night, it would stain her past forever. She only went there to make Trudy feel better, yet she ended up having two dangerous encounters with two shady guys and Trudy was worse than before.

"Honestly, you're the last person I expected to see there - maybe because you're a good girl." Ryan ranted, "Beside, C'mon, Hunter Adams? Everyone's bound to get drunk or stoned in his party. Not to mention, the hookups there are all the rage in the rumor mill."

Sandra's words ringed in Eva's ears, Some weed supplier from your school. It only registered in her head, connecting the dots - Hunter Adams was the host, he was the drug dealer. She hated herself more for her impulsiveness. Ryan was right, she wasn't one to party, she was good - just like Zarek pointed out.

Eva shook her head, maintaining her coolness and hiding her fear and regret. "Even you?"

Ryan shifted in his seat again, tilting the steering wheel to take a turn. "Yeah, about that, forget what I just said," He gave her a look she couldn't pinpoint. "Besides, I sober up pretty quick, so no worries. Oh look, we reached our destination."

Ryan's car was parked next to the Green's mansion, its attire contrasting with the luxurious surroundings. Trudy sprinted out of the car, stumbling a couple of times before she stood on her bare foot, the pair of her heels swinging in her hands dangerously close to her face. Eva was about to go after her friend, getting out of the car too, but Ryan stopped her.

Eva turned away from the door - hands still gripping the handler - and faced the driver. An auburn eyebrow up was as she waited for him to speak.

"Don't go just yet," Ryan said, his soft voice a pleading whisper, "We need to talk."

"Yeah, we do," Eva said, glancing through the cracked glass at Trudy who was hitting on a tree - okay. "But not right now-"

"I know," Ryan cut her off, "I know I've hurt you the other day when I dumped those facts about Zarek. I know I've hurt you when I ignored you in the hallways, but I was hurt too - and I know that's no reason to justify ditching you."

Okay, where did all of that come from? "Ryan, it's okay, really. I'm over it."

"I guess what I'm trying to say is that I'm sorry," Ryan went on, seemingly not listening to Evangeline. His forest green eyes cut deep within Eva, sincerity dancing in his pupils. "It's just that we've been best friends for so long - for two years - and I guess I was expecting something more from you." Ryan shook his head, golden strands of hair intact. "I'm sorry, I'm rambling - it's because I'm nervous."

What Ryan said was true. Ever since Evangeline moved into Dessertville because of her father's job, Ryan was one of the first friends she made despite him being a freshmen and her being a sophomore at that time. He was the nice guy, a goodie-two-shoes, and a teacher's pet; he did all his homework and maintained a perfect school record - he was literally the male version of her. They were bound to get close despite the year gap between them.

Ryan was such a bubbly person and a social butterfly, being admired and liked in his childhood. However, his life took an unfortunate turn when he became a high-schooler - he ran straight into Trudy. For some reason, he wasn't approved by Trudy which made his social life take a drastic change leading to his semi-bullying experience, especially since all of Trudy's wannabes were rude to him, following their queen's opinion.

When Eva knew about Trudy, she was scared of her. Trudy would, no doubt, be mean to her, especially since her and Ryan were so similar. Evangeline was more than shocked to be declared as Trudy's best friend. That status was probably the only reason people at her high school knew she even existed. Despite the negativity that came with Trudy, Eva embraced it still. She hoped that her girl best friend turned a new leaf for changing and becoming a better person.

Ryan leaned in, his coconut conditioner smell evident than before. His hand brushed through Eva's red hair, hesitancy in his fingers. "Do I stand a chance with you?" Ryan then breathed, sending Eva into overthinking mode.

"Of course you don't, you dumbass." Trudy peaked out of the window from Ryan's side. "You literally can't stand it with her because you're too short." Trudy erupted into hysterical laugher, the sound echoing in the quiet night.

Ryan pulled back then, a blush covering his face as he ran his hand through his golden hair. "Stop it," His voice was almost pleading, desperate. "You all keep using my insecurities on me. Yes, I'm short for a guy, so what?"

"You're not that short, Ryan," Eva said, which was true. She was only taller than him by a few centimeters. "I like you just the way you are."

Ryan's eyes lit up, the forest green being nourished by the refreshing rain. "You do? So I do have a chance with you?"

"N-no, that's not what I meant," Eva's words made Ryan's shoulders crumble, making her feel guilty for rejecting him. Her hazel eyes glanced at Trudy who was done tormenting Ryan and was performing a very inappropriate dance with the help of a street lamp - oh my god, she is pole-dancing!

"Oh, I see what you mean," Pure bitterness was lacing his normally sweet voice. "You don't like me because I'm nice, you only like bad people like Z-"

"I'm sorry, can this wait?" Eva had to stop him despite wanting to correct the misconception he had of her because Trudy was unzipping her skirt in the middle of the street. "I really need to go, Trudy is in a bad shape right now."

Ryan inspected Trudy's condition before nodding. "Yeah, whatever."

Eva left a broken Ryan in the car and went after her best friend, praying to god that the night wouldn't get any worse.

Eva so raven sings huh? Yup the band is royal bluz and shz idolises Bring Me The Horizon band, me too actually, her fangirling rubbed off on me sort of, I've nevee heard of them, I'm not sure how much of their screaming your eardrums can take but you should give them a tru they're cool