Chapter Sixteen: Life

M A X

I was positively fed up.

With school. With the ridiculous rivalries. With the social restrictions imposed on me. I was done – done with all this preposterous nonsense that has haunted me all through high school. This stupid opposition of the 'rebels' and the 'jocks'. The cool kids and the bad ones. What did it matter how you dressed? How you lived? Where you lived? What dumbass sport you played?

It was how you acted.

But apparently, everyone at school is too shallow and self-centered to see what's really important. What matters most.

"You good there?" Zahra calls from next to me, her thick eyebrows drawn in concern.

I nod. "Yup. Just having a midlife crisis."

She squeezes my hand in understanding, and we jump out of my car. After everything that went down tonight, I'm thankful my best friend chose to stand by my side. Despite knowing I like her brother's arch-rival. Despite the fight that broke out on the field earlier tonight. After the referee broke apart Argent and Anas, as well as the other boys who'd gotten tangled up in the mess, the Thornfalls team called it a night.

They'd left and we hung our heads in shame.

"Sure you wanna do this?" Zahra asks again.

I let out a heavy breath, bracing myself. I lock my car, the sound of the alarm ringing like the warning bells in my head, one last deterrent to stop is from doing something stupid. I ignore it. I throw caution to the wind. And then I'm stepping forward, elbow linked with Zahra towards the house.

Not just any house. Oscar Woods' house. And a Thornfalls party.

Music blares from inside, some pop song I've heard a thousand times before, lyrics blurring together. Ariana Grande or Olivia Rodrigo maybe. Red solo cups are strewn about on the lawn, and people are chattering and drinking outside. A couple of students are already wasted, puking their guts out on bushes or simply passing out on the grass.

The sky is dark, and shadows follow Zahra and me to the porch. The front door is cracked open, and we head inside undetected. Two thieves in the night. We're not invited to parties like this, hosted by our rivals. But I couldn't care less. Not now. Not ever again. Which was why I suggested to Zahra we come out here tonight. Show that we don't give a fuck.

The entryway is crowded as we walk inside, kids dancing in the neon lights to loud music. Glistening drinks slosh from cups, bodies move around us, laughing and swaying. I can't make out any familiar faces, just bobbing heads in a sea of teenagers enjoying the night. This party looks just like anything we would throw. The kids behaving the same way we would.

No one recognises me or Zahra as we head through the living room, further into the house. We aren't all that different from each other. So why do we create these walls? This separation, segregation by status, wealth, colour. For what purpose? We listen to the same music. Dance the same and drink the same. I look at Zahra and she raises her eyebrows.

"Let's go get drinks," I lean close so she can hear me.

"Okay," she agrees. We make our way to the kitchen, where it's quieter. There are bottles of drinks in cooler boxes and on the marble countertop, open boxes of pizza, paler cups, and plates. a help-yourself sort of situation. I pour myself some whiskey and Zahra snags a slice of Pepperoni Pizza. I lean against the table, taking in the atmosphere.

"What are they even celebrating?" Zahra runs her eyes over a group of boys smoking in one corner. I know that glint in her eyes. She thinks one of them are cute.

"Our school humiliation," I shrug deprecatingly. I motion with my chin towards the boys. "You gonna go talk to them?"

"I'm surprised, Thornfalls boys are not so bad looking," she deflects the situation. "I mean Oscar is kinda hot, yeah, but the others aren't too shabby either."

I look around, unable to spot Oscar despite this being one of his teammates' parties. Yeah, he's alright with bluish-back hair and eyes like coal. But I've come to appreciate snow-white hair and eyes like gemstones a whole lot more. Argent is a refined taste, one that has gone on me substantially. And the problem with that is no other boy looks appealing to me anymore.

It's just him with those unique, heart-wrenching features.

"Z, you can go talk to them," I assure Zahra with a short laugh. "I won't judge you, heck, I'm in no place to say shit."

Zahra studies me, checking if I'm kidding. "Seriously?"

I give her an earnest grin. "Yeah. Go for it."

She leaves with a smile, asway in her step. I watch her go up to the boys, flirt mode activated. Sheknows just when to giggle when to put her hand on their arm. When to agree andhow to look. I shake my head, swirling the golden contents in the cup like alittle whirlpool. And then I throw my head back and have it in one shot.

The bottle is mostly full, and I'm having another drink in seconds. Memories of earlier tonight come barging into my mind, loud as a marching band. I hate that I care most of all. If Anas is okay. If Argent is. Luke offered to take Mason and Anas home so at least I know he'll be fine.

But Argent? I have no idea how he's doing. If he's in trouble for what happened. With that thought in mind, I drown another shot.

**

The white line pony ball slims the rim of the cup, before falling in with a plop. The girl who tossed it in raises her arm in victory and her teammate grins. I look at the boy next to me, Caden, who so courteously invited me to join him and his two friends for a beer match. They'd been a player short, and I was wallowing alone in the kitchen, only a slight bit tipsy.

And now? My vision blurred and unbarred like a camera lens losing focus. I could barely stand straight let alone walk. And I don't even know where Zahra went off to after leaving me. I think we're in the basement? Or the game room? Something like that. Wherever we are it's so much quieter. I didn't like the loud music upstairs thumping like a horse's hoofbeats anyway.

"Your turn," Caden sends me a wink.

The corner of my lips curl. I make a show of lifting the cup and depositing the ball onto the table. Ot rolls, almost falling off the edge except Caden is quicker. He catches it fluidly with one hand, eyes locked on mine. I rough the cup to my lips, biting in the inner rim softly, suggestively. His gaze tracks the movement predictably.

I needed whatever distractions I could get tonight. And Caden was perfect for that. Cute, in a boyish way, a little too short for me and he had a flaxen blond buzz cut. His skin was a bit too pasty for me, too average white boy lacking in any colour except vanilla, but he played for Thornfalls soccer team, so I knew there was some muscle under his shirt. And that's all I wanted really.

"Ugh, make it quick," the guy on the other team groans in annoyance.

"Go flirt somewhere else," his partner mutters and I set the cup upside down.

Caden tosses the ball, and he misses – but I hear a splash. Okay, maybe it went. It's hard to tell from where I'm standing but I could've sorry the ball rolled off the side of the table and not gone in.

"Was that in?" I ask, holding the table for balance as I try to peer over.

He frowns at me, confused. "Yeah?"

"Huh," I mumble. "Thought it missed."

"You okay?" He asks.

I wave nears around, grinning wildly. "Just peachy."

He opens his mouth, for what reason, I don't know when the other team throws the ball. They miss, I'm sure this time and Caden doesn't drink. My phone chimes from my back pocket, a horrible noise like screeching bats. Ugh, why are notifications so loud?

Argent sent me one message (his name is spelt wrong however, I should correct that.) My finger taps on it before I can help it.

Hey, can we walk?

I blink, no that can't be right. I read it again. Twice.

Hey, can we talk?

Ohh okay, that makes more sense. Why didn't he say that the first time? I didn't want to talk – or walk with him but it felt rude to leave the message unread.

Sure. About what exactly?

I send the message quickly and then return to the game. I don't have the energy to think about Argent and his gorgeous eyes. His smile. His respect and his honour. His passion and his fierce protectiveness. It didn't matter how well we got each other, our relationship, whatever it was, entitled too much drama, I didn't want to be involved in.

I was done playing on both sides of the field ( hah good one!) And now it was time I sat down ( another one!). The soccer team wanted to hash it out? They could pummel each other to death for all I care.

Because now, I didn't care.