Chapter Eight

"I look so funny, Lu. I'm just going to wear my jeans and some t-shirt." I whined, trying to pull down the short black dress to hide my knees. The dress was really pretty with a sweetheart neckline and reached just above my thighs. We were currently in her house, getting ready for the party, and Andrew was supposed to pick us up at 7 pm.

"Are you kidding me? You look smoking hot. I don't know why you hide behind those baggy clothes." She mumbled, making me sit down in front of the mirror forcefully. After doing my hair and make-up that took around an hour, she finally let go of me. I opened my eyes and let out a small gasp.

The girl in front of me looked so different but in a good way. My hair was curled at the ends, giving it a nice bouncy look. She gave me a smoky eye effect with a soft nude shade of lipstick that looked subtle and beautiful. I couldn't believe my eyes. I actually looked pretty and wondered why I never put this effort in the first place.

Because I had no idea how to do it.

That's why.

"Do you like it?" she asked eagerly and I got up from my seat and did a small twirl.

"Yeah, I look good but I don't think I'm confident enough to go to a party like this," I replied in an anxious tone.

"Babe, there would be girls dressed sluttier than us at the party. We are going to be the most decently dressed people and today we are going to find you a hot guy." She finished with a wink, making my eyes go wide.

"No way. I didn't agree to this, Lu."

"Oh, shut up and trust me. It's going to be fun." She squealed in excitement and pulled me downstairs.

At around 7.15 pm, Lucy got a text from Andrew that he was waiting outside and we immediately collected our stuff to leave for the party. We said our quick goodbyes to her parents and rushed outside to find Andrew waiting near his car, busy on his phone.

"Woah, baby. Look at you!" Andrew let out a low whistle when he looked up from his phone and saw lucy, stepping outside, causing her to blush automatically. She was wearing a red sheath dress that complemented her olive skin tone. She was effortlessly pretty unlike me.

They started making out shamelessly while I shook my head and got inside the car already feeling like a third wheel.

"Guys, come on. Save some for the party." I shouted causing them to pull back from each other. He started to laugh and walked to the other side of the car after letting her go.

"I almost didn't recognize you there, Riley. I believe my girlfriend did her magic on you." He spoke as soon as we all were inside his car.

"Yeah, this was all her and she is to be blamed." I pouted, sitting back against my seat, and let out a loud sigh.

"You look really pretty, Riley. I bet the guys are in for one hell of a shock." He smiled at me through the rear-view mirror and I shook my head, groaning loudly.

The party was in full swing as we could hear the sound of music and people shouting even before we could reach the house. Drunk guys were making out with random girls on the lawn and empty plastic cups were scattered all over the place.

How long has it been already?

Lucy was right. The girls were hardly wearing anything. We were actually dressed far better than them and I felt a little comfortable before stepping outside the car. We walked past the sweaty bodies that were dancing in the living room and I could see almost our entire school inside his house.

"Alright, Ladies. Wait here, I'll go get us something to drink. Do not drink anything else, okay?" Andrew spoke over the music that was blasting through the speakers and we both nodded in understanding.

"No alcohol for me, Andrew," I shouted and Lucy nudged me.

"Just one drink, Ri. It won't hurt." She smirked and whispered something in his ears before he left to get us our drinks. I eyed her suspiciously.

"Why do I get the feeling that I'm going to regret coming to this party?"

"Live a little, babe. So tell me, how is the tutoring going? Is he bothering you again?" she asked with a concerned look on her face.

"No, he is actually being pretty decent which is surprising." I paused, thinking about yesterday and a small smile crept on my face. I told her everything that happened yesterday and she covered her mouth with her hands.

"Oh my God! Ri, I think he likes you." She jumped in excitement

"Do not start this again. I'm just glad that we can have a conversation now without fighting," I sighed, folding my arms in front of my chest.

"Which will soon turn into something more." she grinned widely and I shook my head at her stupid imagination.

"Here you go, Ladies." Andrew came back with our drinks and I took them from his hands, "I'm gonna go say hi to some of my teammates. I'll be right back, babe." He kissed her cheeks and disappeared through the crowd while we gulped our drinks. It burned my throat and my eyes welled up with tears.

"Jesus Christ, what the hell is this?" I coughed, trying to analyze the remaining drink in my cup.

"Oh my god, do not turn around but Tristan is here," she paused, swallowing hard, "Annnd he is looking at us." Her voice dragged and I immediately went still.

Shit! Why was is shocked?

Of course, he would be here when the entire school is here.

"Fuck, what if he sees me like this?" I started to panic, looking down at my dress and she gave me a puzzled look.

"So what? Are you shy?" She wiggled her eyebrows and I scoffed in response. She was right. So what? I was also a teenager who was having fun at a party just like the others.

I don't care if he is here.

"Is he still looking at us?" I asked out of curiosity.

"Ummm...yeah but it looks like he is confused or something." She replied and started to tap her feet to the music.

"He would hardly acknowledge me in this party in front of all his friends since all of this is a big secret," I muttered in annoyance, thinking about the fact that he was embarrassed to be seen with me. I emptied my cup in one gulp and let out a huge breath.

"Well, he is still an asshole, remember? Forget about him. Let's go dance, Ri." She pulled me towards the dance floor and I groaned internally. I was already bored at this stupid party and my social battery was completely drained.

Just when I kept walking towards the middle of the room, I noticed Tristan surrounded by his friends and a few girls who were trying to gain his attention, his eyes went wide when he saw me. I swallowed hard, not knowing if I should at least smile at him or not.

I quickly looked away and started swaying my hips to the music. Lucy kept dancing like no one was watching her and she was pretty good at it while I was standing in the middle awkwardly not knowing how to dance or do anything.

Suddenly I felt a tap on my shoulders and turned around to find one of my classmates smiling down at me. It was Tyler Whittman from the football team.

"You are Riley Adams, right?" he asked, making me scrunch my eyebrows in confusion. I've noticed him hanging out with Tristan and his crew a couple of times but I had no idea why he was talking to me. Tristan promised me that his friends wouldn't bother me anymore.

That was our fucking deal.

"Yes. What is it?" I asked through gritted teeth and looked over his shoulders to see Tristan glaring at me.

What the hell, dude?

I'm supposed to be angry at you.

Ugh!

"I'm Tyler Whittman. I was just checking you out for a while and I thought I'll come and say hi," he replied, flashing me a huge smile and I was taken aback by his straightforwardness. He was a pretty good-looking guy with a well-built body, his curly mope of jet black hair kept falling in front of his brown eyes that he kept pushing away constantly.

He was kind of cute.

Not cuter than Tristan though!

Ew!

"Umm...hi." I gave him a nervous smile, tucking my hair behind. I wasn't expecting this and I had no idea what to say.

"Can I get you a drink?" he asked, coming closer to my ears and I looked back to see Lucy who was now dancing with Andrew.

"Umm...I'm fine. Thank you." I said, knowing very well how unsafe it was to accept drinks from random guys at a party like this.

"You look really pretty by the way." He smiled and I couldn't help but blush hard. This was all new to me but I tried to maintain my cool.

"Thanks, I guess."

"Come on, Let's dance at least." He pulled me by my waist in an instant, taking me by surprise and we started to move to the beats of the music. Lucy gave me a wink and a thumbs up while I was feeling so uncomfortable, to be honest. I hardly knew this guy and he had his hands on my waist which felt nowhere good like I felt with Tristan.

There we go! Thinking about him again.

"Hey Tyler, Scarlett is calling you." I heard a deep yet familiar voice from behind us and he let go of me immediately with a heavy sigh while I was relieved in an instant.

"I'll be right back, baby." He winked and walked away which made me cringe internally. I saw Tristan staring at me with an intense look and I felt too shy to meet his gaze.

"Upstairs. Now." That was all he said before walking away from me and I wasn't sure if he spoke to me or someone behind me.

There were plenty of rooms upstairs and I had no idea where he was or why he wanted to see me upstairs but I guess I felt safer with him than those random football guys downstairs. I was suddenly pulled inside a room which made me squeal in shock but I calmed down immediately when I saw the devil himself. He shut the door and pushed me against it, caging me between both of his arms.

Holy fuck!

My panties were almost drenched by his action as he kept breathing heavily in front of my face. I could smell his aftershave mixed with his musky cologne which was making me go crazy.

Was I weird for being turned on right now?

I knew it was Tristan fucking Harris but my mind was a bit dizzy from the drink I had. I bit my lip as I kept staring at his perfectly sculpted face and my hand itched to touch his jaw and run my fingers through his hair and--- I stopped myself before going any further with my thoughts.

Yup, I was right. I'm definitely going to regret coming to this party.

"What the hell do you think you are doing?" he asked in his deep husky voice that was not helping me control my already horny self.

"Huh?"

"Dressed like that. Do you want guys to stare at you or fuck you in that little dress that you are wearing?" he asked in a pissed-off tone, making me frown.

"Why the fuck do you care what I wear?" I asked in anger and he kept grinding his teeth. He looked like he was controlling himself as I could see the veins on his neck popping out.

"You have no idea about the dirty thoughts that run in their minds." He stated, looking down at my dress.

Damn, I was actually enjoying, seeing this side of him.

"Wh-- What dirty thoughts?" I asked, batting my eyelashes, feeling a little brave and he flicked his gaze to meet my eyes.

"Fuck, are you drunk?" he asked, licking his lips and I was going crazy. I wanted to kiss him so badly.

Jesus Christ, I've never felt so attracted to a guy in my life before.

"Just one drink," I whispered and he let out a soft sigh.

"Why did you come to this party? I know this isn't your scene," he asked and I smiled that he knew me so well.

"How do you know that I don't like parties?"

"I've known you since seventh grade and I've never seen you at any parties and I also know that you would never wear a dress like this," he explained, looking straight into my eyes.

"There are girls downstairs dressed in more revealing clothes. I mean, I don't see you complaining about them." I spoke, not meeting his gaze.

"Because they aren't you." He whispered and touched my lips with the pad of his thumb, sending jolts of pleasure all over my body. I could hear my own heartbeat as my heart was racing wildly against my chest.

Oh my god!

What was happening between us?

"So fucking beautiful!" With that, he pressed his lips to mine.