Everything Better Plan
nineteen.
Alex's POV
After breakfast, all five of us sat in my living room and watched Home Alone; Jack's all-time favourite movie. This had been a tradition for as long as we'd known each other, in fact even Olivia gushed over the nostalgia as Jack sat and quoted along with the movie he'd seen approximately 1 million times.
At around 3 PM the boys all got up to get home; Jack protesting that they stay and watch Home Alone 2– just like he did every year, but Rian threatened to leave him to walk home in the snow and he promptly shut up and got to his feet. I walked them out whilst Olivia sat and waved from the sofa.
"What's going on with you?" Zack whispered, his forehead wrinkling in concern. Jack and Rian yelled for him to hurry or they'd get the elevator without him, but he took no notice. "Do you not want her to come?" he questioned further, keeping his voice hushed.
I checked back quickly to ensure Olivia wasn't listening, before pushing Zack outside and closing the door behind us. I instantly regretted it, stood in grey sweatpants, a white tee and bare feet in the freezing cold – bad choice. "It's not that," I whispered back, despite being well out of earshot of Olivia. "I want her to come," I speak at a regular volume now, "but I don't know if it's her scene," I realise instantly how obnoxious it sounds.
"Her scene? How old is she? 12?" Zack questioned, narrowing his eyes.
"I'm just not sure if she's a karaoke type of girl," I explain, bouncing from foot to foot, the cold getting to me.
Zack looked at me sceptically, "That's not the reason," he said confidently, shaking his head, "why don't you want her there?" he repeated his original question.
"Okay..." I sighed, looking away from him, "I don't know if we should hang out and get drunk together," I admit, glancing back to check his expression, "me and Olivia, I mean."
"Why?" he asks, still confused.
"I just..." I trail off, now rubbing at my exposed arms intently; Zack completely ignoring my weird dance moves/efforts to keep warm, "I don't know if I trust myself," I finally admit, "okay, see ya!" I cut him off before he can speak, noticing his eyes widening. I turn to reach for my door handle but he grabs my arm and pulls me back.
"What?!" he yells and I immediately throw my hand up to cover his mouth, which he licks and so I pull back in disgust, "What do you mean you don't trust yourself?"
"Dude, you can't just lick me," I protest, glaring at him as I wipe my hand down my pants.
"What do you mean you don't trust yourself?" he repeated firmly.
I inhaled deeply and rolled my eyes, I knew he'd make a big deal out of this, "okay, it's not that I think something might happen, it's just that if anything were to happen, I probably wouldn't stop it..." I explained, smiling innocently.
"Well... why would you even think something might happen?" Zack continued to interrogate me, puzzled further.
"I don't know," I said, acting oblivious, shrugging.
Zack's eyes widened at me, "has something already happened?!" he exclaimed and I immediately began shaking my head in response.
"Noooooooooo..." I trailed off, "we've flirted a little, that's it," I spoke quickly.
Luckily, Jack came to my rescue, "Zack... what are... you doing?" he yelled from the top of the stairs, noticeably out of breath from running up them. He bent over and placed both hand on his thighs, trying to catch his breath.
"I'm coming!" Zack shouted back before turning to me with a stern face, "don't do anything dumb!" he instructed, pointing a finger at me before walking off to join Jack.
I chuckled to myself and shook my head, my body now numb from the cold as I made my way back inside. Olivia was still sat in just a shirt, flicking through the channels; various commercials and snippets from Christmas movies. I watched her mindlessly for a moment, my eyes slowly gravitating to her bare thighs. I wondered if telling Zack that was a bad idea; it wasn't exactly untrue but I didn't want to portray myself as an asshole. I could control myself if the situation arose, but I wasn't sure if I wanted to. I shook my head, removing the thought. It wasn't going to happen; flirting doesn't mean anything – and we hadn't even flirted much at all. There was no way she reciprocated any feelings I had. Not that I had any feelings, because I 100% did not.
I sighed deeply to myself and caught her attention, quickly I looked up from her body and to her face before she caught me. "Are you okay?" she asked, smiling a little, "I won't go tonight if you don't want me to," she added, turning back to the TV, seemingly unphased by the rude attitude I had had towards the idea.
"No, of course I want you to come," I reassure, moving to take a seat beside her; stretching my arm across the back of the sofa behind her head, "just didn't know if it was your idea of fun," I explained, using the same excuse I had with Zack.
"What?!" she screeched, "I love karaoke!" she declared loudly, looking at me like I was crazy for not knowing.
"Oh, really?" I smirked, raising an eyebrow, "you gonna take part?" I asked, seemingly challenging her.
She paused for a moment, eyeing me up before wrinkly her nose adorably, "I don't know," she admitted, giggling, "maybe after a couple drinks," she winked.
"Are you advocating that I get you drunk?" The flirting just came naturally, we always used to speak to each other like this, even when we were just friends, we were both just naturally flirty people.
"We'll see..." she trailed off mysteriously, flashing me a smile.
I excused myself to go take a shower, allowing myself enough time to let my hair air dry. I let Olivia know we'd be leaving at around 7 PM and so to be ready for 6:45 PM, which she seemed fine with.
As soon as I was out of the bathroom, just a towel wrapped around my waist, my hair wet and my skin glistening with moisture, I was faced with Olivia at chest height; also in just a towel with a little pink bag of toiletries. I jumped, not expecting her to be waiting right outside the door. She laughed and pushed past me, allowing me no time to evaluate the situation before the door was shut behind her.
By the time Olivia was out of the shower it was around 4:30 PM. I sat and watched cartoons on my bed, sat just in my towel, waiting for my hair to dry. I could hear her using a hair-dryer through the wall; the sound soothing, and I drifted off into my own thoughts. I was nervous about tonight. I was nervous about a lot of things; nervous about her meeting some of my other friends; nervous about other people noticing the tension; nervous I would get drunk and do something stupid like make a move and get rejected; nervous I'd make a move and not get rejected, but get myself into a very complicated situation.
After a while of pondering, watching cartoons and listening as Olivia rustled around her room getting ready, I finally got up and began getting ready at around 6 PM. I checked to make sure my hair was just the right ratio of messy and styled and spritzed myself with some cologne. I pulled on a pair of black suit pants and long sleeved, white button-up shirt.
"So, you said you dress smart, right?" Olivia yelled from her bedroom. I walked out onto the landing, checking myself out in the floor length mirror at the top of the stairs; buttoning the shirt sleeves at my wrists. Olivia's door was open and she was stood in front of her mirror, still in just a towel but with her hair and makeup done. She looked incredible; she could've left the house in just the towel and nobody would've batted an eyelid – they'd of turned their heads, though.
"Uh... yeah," I stuttered a little as I looked at her; her collarbones and tanned shoulders exposed. I now knew why they were against school dress codes. "I mean, look at me," I changed the subject and gestured to myself dressed all fancy for a change.
She turned to face me, taking me in for a solid minute before meeting my eyes and giggling – although I wasn't sure she was actually laughing. "Okay..." she breathed, looking away, "okay, well, dressing up is just what I'm good at," she laughed as she slowly shut the door on me, smiling. I instantly threw my head into my hands; I was in for a tough night.
Olivia's POV
My heart rate had barely declined since I'd seen Alex's bare torso glistening with water, but now I also had to deal with looking at him in that tight, dress shirt. I audibly groaned as I pulled on my black heels. I stood and checked myself one last time in the mirror, pulling a leather jacket over my ensemble; a strappy, black cropped top with a few cut outs, paired with a leather, nude, high-waisted pencil skirt. I threw on a few pieces of rose gold and black detailed jewellery, as well as a thick, velvet, black choker around my neck. I grabbed for my nude clutch and checked I had everything; my phone, a mirror, my purse – the essentials.
I made my way downstairs bang on 6:45 PM. "Liv!" I hear Alex yell from the kitchen, his black dress shoes clinking on the wooden flooring as he makes his way to the bottom of the stairs, "the taxi's on it's wa-" he stopped as soon as he noticed me making my way down the stairs. "Wow," he breathed, his eyebrows raised in shock as he looked me up and down. I was surprised he even commented, but it seemed like it just fell off his tongue.
"Is this okay?" I asked, gesturing to myself once I reached the bottom of the stairs. He seemed to personally enjoy it, but I wasn't sure if it was too much; too little.
"Y-yes, holy shit," he stuttered, finally raising his eyes from my body to meet mine, "you look incredible," he gushed, his cheeks a shade of pink, his eyes glazed with an emotion I couldn't quite put my finger on – although, if I allowed myself to admit it, it looked a lot like lust.
I laughed, and pushed on his shoulder, doing very minimal damage, "shut up," I blushed, feeling like maybe I should be uncomfortable with him complimenting me, but I totally wasn't. "You also look great," I praised, looking him up and down. His white shirt was now covered with a short, blazer-style trench coat. He looked very smart. His hair falling effortlessly in his chocolatey, enticing eyes ever so slightly; he hadn't shaved that morning and had instead left a light amount of stubble over his jawline; not to mention he smelled intoxicating. I had to look away after a while, because I could feel myself heating up and I didn't want him to notice.
"Thank you," he said sincerely, a genuine smile on his unshaven face. At that exact moment his phone began to ring, indicating the cab was waiting for us outside. He grabbed his keys and wallet and opened the door, allowing me out first, in true gentleman fashion. He did the exact same with the taxi door too; it was the little things that mattered, small gestures like that can go a mile.
---
"Yes!" Jack cried out, bounding over and enveloping both Alex and I into a very tight, uncomfortable hug, the second we entered the building. Jack was clad in a red shirt and thin black tie, some black skinny jeans and a pair of black vans – some things never change. The place was covered in Christmas decorations, including, but not limited to, two giant Christmas trees. The karaoke machine was set up at the back, on the stage where they had done the open-mic show. There were a couple chairs set up right in front of the stage, which I imagined would be where Jack and the other judges would be seated. "I'm so glad you came!" Jack continued, bouncing with excitement, he retracted from the hug and looked at me, letting me know I was who he was speaking to, "you're gonna love it," he assured me.
The three of us chatted for a while before a elderly lady in an apron made her way over and dragged Jack away to do whatever his job entailed. Alex and I made our way over to the stage area and sat at one of the closest available tables; plenty of people were already here and the room was buzzing with energy. "I'm gonna go get a drink," Alex spoke a little louder than usual to make himself heard over the chatter in the room, "do you want anything?" he asked, getting to his feet and looking down at me. He had always been a lot taller than me, but I hadn't realised how tall he actually was until right now. He had to have been at least 6ft.
"Uh, yeah, can I have a raspberry cider, please?" I ask; in the mood for something more fruity and refreshing. I reach for my purse and begin digging through it but Alex places his hand on mine, indicating for me to stop.
He chuckled a little. "Raspberry cider, it is," he declared with a smile before walking away to the bar without taking any money from me. I wrinkled my brow, a little confused. I didn't need him to pay for me; although it was a sweet gesture.
As I'm waiting for Alex to return with our drinks I catch a glimpse of Rian and Zack, followed by two very pretty ladies, entering the bar. They stop and look around, presumably for us, and so I get to my feet and wave them down. Rian catches my eye immediately and points at me excitedly, wooing like he was already drunk.
The group make their way over and I get to my feet, ready to introduce myself to their two guests. "Liv!" Zack greets me, pulling me into a side hug. He then gestures to the petite brunette beside him, "this is Amelia," he says and she instantly grasps me in a hug. She's wearing a cute, floaty red dress which matches her lipstick and compliments her hair colour so well.
We swap greetings and compliments but I'm quickly pulled away into a hug from Rian, "this is Cassadee," he says, gesturing to the gorgeous brunette beside him.
"Hey, I'm Olivia," I say instinctively, even though she had most likely already heard me say it.
"Oh, I know," she responds, still shaking my hand firmly, "I've seen a lot of your work, you're phenomenal," she enthuses and I feel myself becoming a little embarrassed.
"Oh, really?" I laugh nervously. As a model, who doesn't work for Victoria's Secret, I didn't often get noticed for 'my work', unless I was in a professional surrounding, and even then I wasn't very good at dealing with compliments. Although I did it for a living, it still wasn't something I was incredibly confident about.
"Oh yeah, Cass is a headhunter for this local magazine, they do a lot of fashion work," Rian explained to me, momentarily distracted from his conversation with Zack about what he wanted to drink. It was exciting meeting someone who recognised me, and it was so interesting listening to her tell stories of her work, but when I noticed Alex making his way back to the table – slapping Rian's shoulder as he passed him and Zack on their way to the bar – I couldn't help but feel relieved to be back in the company of someone I knew well.
Alex handed me my drink with a cheeky wink, before taking a seat beside me and spending a couple of minutes chatting with the other two girls; asking how they were, what they'd been up to, etc. Typical small talk. For the following couple minutes I received a lot of questions; what I was doing in the city, when I would be leaving, how I knew the guys, what the hell is that on your ring finger? – a nice torrent of uncomfortable subjects.
After a good 30 minutes of all of us just sat around, drinking, chatting about nothing in particular, Jack finally made an appearance on the small stage in front of us. He greeted everyone energetically; stating rules for the tournament and how things would be judged. Then he assured everyone that once a winner had been picked, that the karaoke machine would be open to anyone, including good acts – he shot Alex a glare at that point. And then the karaoke-ing began.
The first guy up did a soulful rendition of R.Kelly's Ignition Remix, which was equally atrocious as it was brilliant. All of us were in hysterics watching the guy dramatically grab at the air and gesture as he sung mama rollin' that body, got every man in here wishin'. When he was done, everybody applauded, even Rian, who was scoffing jokingly the whole performance.
The night continued that way, large quantities of alcohol and gut-wrenching laughter. Alex had agreed to a system were we took it in turns to buy rounds of drinks for each other and it was now my turn; although I had no clue what round we were on. I sloppily got to my feet, Alex's hand finding my hip from his seated position, keeping me steady. I looked at him and smiled, for a little longer than was considered normal, and so quickly I averted my gaze and grabbed my clutch.
"Hurry!" Rian mumbled to me, his alcohol level slowly catching up with him, "I'm going up next!" he exclaimed, referring to me going to get drinks. I did a quick walk over to the bar, all the while watching my drunk friend stumble up onto the stage. "I'm gonna do Beyoncé's Irreplaceable," he announced into the microphone before picking his song from the machine. The audience laughed loudly, as did I waiting at the bar for my drinks. The people at the bar, with no interest in the karaoke going on, shot me glares, but I didn't care.
Back at the table, Alex now had his arm wrapped around the back of my seat. I handed him his beverage and he nodded in thanks as I took my seat, anticipating Rian's performance. I could feel the heat coming from Alex's arm on the skin showing through my top and it made me feel, all of a sudden, incredibly hot.
Rian's performance was incredible, filled with dramatic gestures and head movements; he even ended it by sliding across the stage on his knees. I was in tears from laughing at the hysterical scene, and judging by the laughter coming from rest of the tables, everyone else seemed to be as well. Cassadee got to her feet when he was finished and clapped intently for him. Jack, of course, scored him a 10/10, as did 2 of the other judges, whilst the last one only scored him a 9. "Bullshit!" Rian exclaimed, shaking his head as he left the stage, causing the audience to laugh even harder.
In the end, Rian won the tournament; his prize being a free drink – which didn't seem too smart. We all went crazy, applauding and cheering for him as Jack handed him the bottle of Budweiser, which he held above his head dramatically like a trophy. Then people began just performing for the fun of it; some of them were worse and some of them better than those who had taken part in the tournament. When Rian returned back to the table he was dripping in sweat, but Cassadee still pulled him into a hard kiss. They were incredibly cute together.
"We can leave whenever you want," Alex leaned over and whispered into my ear, his breath hitting the side of my face and making the hair on the back of my neck stand up. His voice was a little croaky from the alcohol, making it even sexier.
I turned to look at him quizzically, "no way," I half-whispered back, smiling at him, "this is the most fun I've had in a long time!" I enthused, grinning drunkenly, causing him to laugh.
"Okay, good," he breathed, incredibly quietly. His glazed-over eyes on me were burning my skin, he was smirking as he spoke, "I'm glad," everything he said was so smooth and inviting in his raspy voice. I watched as he examined my face, lingering on my lips, before meeting my eyes again. I was half expecting him to say something, to acknowledge that he had clearly been checking me out – practically all night – but he didn't seem to care. And, honestly, I didn't either. I bit my lip and quickly looked back to the stage where a girl was doing her best to keep up with a Sean Paul track.
After a couple more songs and some more chatter around the table, Alex reached over and gripped one of my knees with one of his large, manly hands. I quickly turned to him, "Another?" he asked, gesturing to our empty glasses and I nodded in response. He removed his hand and got to his feet.
Letting out a deep breath, I leaned back into my chair. My whole body was tingling. It hadn't even been a meaningful touch, it was just a way of getting my attention, but for some reason it had left me all hot and bothered. I hadn't felt like this in so long towards someone. It wasn't even that I was having strong emotional feelings, although I was a little, but just the way he made me physically feel. Anytime he looked at me or touched me or spoke to me, I felt like I was going to melt. I was so physically and sexually attracted to him – leaving personality and feelings out of it.
He was so unbelievably attractive, so suave and charming, and, tonight especially, I had just began noticing him in a different light. It felt like we had this strange magnetic attraction drawing us to eachother, our chemistry and the sexual tension so undeniable. I had absolutely no idea what to do; I knew what I should do and what I wanted to do – but they, unfortunately, did not correlate.
I let out a deep sigh and flung my head back. I had gotten myself into such a sticky situation and there was no way out of it. Well, there were plenty of ways out, but I wasn't willing to take any of them. I rubbed at my temple, agitated with myself. "This is going to end badly..." I whispered to my intoxicated self, but I couldn't resist the urge to smile at the thought of whatever bad things were going to happen.
After breakfast, all five of us sat in my living room and watched Home Alone; Jack's all-time favourite movie. This had been a tradition for as long as we'd known each other, in fact even Olivia gushed over the nostalgia as Jack sat and quoted along with the movie he'd seen approximately 1 million times.
At around 3 PM the boys all got up to get home; Jack protesting that they stay and watch Home Alone 2– just like he did every year, but Rian threatened to leave him to walk home in the snow and he promptly shut up and got to his feet. I walked them out whilst Olivia sat and waved from the sofa.
"What's going on with you?" Zack whispered, his forehead wrinkling in concern. Jack and Rian yelled for him to hurry or they'd get the elevator without him, but he took no notice. "Do you not want her to come?" he questioned further, keeping his voice hushed.
I checked back quickly to ensure Olivia wasn't listening, before pushing Zack outside and closing the door behind us. I instantly regretted it, stood in grey sweatpants, a white tee and bare feet in the freezing cold – bad choice. "It's not that," I whispered back, despite being well out of earshot of Olivia. "I want her to come," I speak at a regular volume now, "but I don't know if it's her scene," I realise instantly how obnoxious it sounds.
"Her scene? How old is she? 12?" Zack questioned, narrowing his eyes.
"I'm just not sure if she's a karaoke type of girl," I explain, bouncing from foot to foot, the cold getting to me.
Zack looked at me sceptically, "That's not the reason," he said confidently, shaking his head, "why don't you want her there?" he repeated his original question.
"Okay..." I sighed, looking away from him, "I don't know if we should hang out and get drunk together," I admit, glancing back to check his expression, "me and Olivia, I mean."
"Why?" he asks, still confused.
"I just..." I trail off, now rubbing at my exposed arms intently; Zack completely ignoring my weird dance moves/efforts to keep warm, "I don't know if I trust myself," I finally admit, "okay, see ya!" I cut him off before he can speak, noticing his eyes widening. I turn to reach for my door handle but he grabs my arm and pulls me back.
"What?!" he yells and I immediately throw my hand up to cover his mouth, which he licks and so I pull back in disgust, "What do you mean you don't trust yourself?"
"Dude, you can't just lick me," I protest, glaring at him as I wipe my hand down my pants.
"What do you mean you don't trust yourself?" he repeated firmly.
I inhaled deeply and rolled my eyes, I knew he'd make a big deal out of this, "okay, it's not that I think something might happen, it's just that if anything were to happen, I probably wouldn't stop it..." I explained, smiling innocently.
"Well... why would you even think something might happen?" Zack continued to interrogate me, puzzled further.
"I don't know," I said, acting oblivious, shrugging.
Zack's eyes widened at me, "has something already happened?!" he exclaimed and I immediately began shaking my head in response.
"Noooooooooo..." I trailed off, "we've flirted a little, that's it," I spoke quickly.
Luckily, Jack came to my rescue, "Zack... what are... you doing?" he yelled from the top of the stairs, noticeably out of breath from running up them. He bent over and placed both hand on his thighs, trying to catch his breath.
"I'm coming!" Zack shouted back before turning to me with a stern face, "don't do anything dumb!" he instructed, pointing a finger at me before walking off to join Jack.
I chuckled to myself and shook my head, my body now numb from the cold as I made my way back inside. Olivia was still sat in just a shirt, flicking through the channels; various commercials and snippets from Christmas movies. I watched her mindlessly for a moment, my eyes slowly gravitating to her bare thighs. I wondered if telling Zack that was a bad idea; it wasn't exactly untrue but I didn't want to portray myself as an asshole. I could control myself if the situation arose, but I wasn't sure if I wanted to. I shook my head, removing the thought. It wasn't going to happen; flirting doesn't mean anything – and we hadn't even flirted much at all. There was no way she reciprocated any feelings I had. Not that I had any feelings, because I 100% did not.
I sighed deeply to myself and caught her attention, quickly I looked up from her body and to her face before she caught me. "Are you okay?" she asked, smiling a little, "I won't go tonight if you don't want me to," she added, turning back to the TV, seemingly unphased by the rude attitude I had had towards the idea.
"No, of course I want you to come," I reassure, moving to take a seat beside her; stretching my arm across the back of the sofa behind her head, "just didn't know if it was your idea of fun," I explained, using the same excuse I had with Zack.
"What?!" she screeched, "I love karaoke!" she declared loudly, looking at me like I was crazy for not knowing.
"Oh, really?" I smirked, raising an eyebrow, "you gonna take part?" I asked, seemingly challenging her.
She paused for a moment, eyeing me up before wrinkly her nose adorably, "I don't know," she admitted, giggling, "maybe after a couple drinks," she winked.
"Are you advocating that I get you drunk?" The flirting just came naturally, we always used to speak to each other like this, even when we were just friends, we were both just naturally flirty people.
"We'll see..." she trailed off mysteriously, flashing me a smile.
I excused myself to go take a shower, allowing myself enough time to let my hair air dry. I let Olivia know we'd be leaving at around 7 PM and so to be ready for 6:45 PM, which she seemed fine with.
As soon as I was out of the bathroom, just a towel wrapped around my waist, my hair wet and my skin glistening with moisture, I was faced with Olivia at chest height; also in just a towel with a little pink bag of toiletries. I jumped, not expecting her to be waiting right outside the door. She laughed and pushed past me, allowing me no time to evaluate the situation before the door was shut behind her.
By the time Olivia was out of the shower it was around 4:30 PM. I sat and watched cartoons on my bed, sat just in my towel, waiting for my hair to dry. I could hear her using a hair-dryer through the wall; the sound soothing, and I drifted off into my own thoughts. I was nervous about tonight. I was nervous about a lot of things; nervous about her meeting some of my other friends; nervous about other people noticing the tension; nervous I would get drunk and do something stupid like make a move and get rejected; nervous I'd make a move and not get rejected, but get myself into a very complicated situation.
After a while of pondering, watching cartoons and listening as Olivia rustled around her room getting ready, I finally got up and began getting ready at around 6 PM. I checked to make sure my hair was just the right ratio of messy and styled and spritzed myself with some cologne. I pulled on a pair of black suit pants and long sleeved, white button-up shirt.
"So, you said you dress smart, right?" Olivia yelled from her bedroom. I walked out onto the landing, checking myself out in the floor length mirror at the top of the stairs; buttoning the shirt sleeves at my wrists. Olivia's door was open and she was stood in front of her mirror, still in just a towel but with her hair and makeup done. She looked incredible; she could've left the house in just the towel and nobody would've batted an eyelid – they'd of turned their heads, though.
"Uh... yeah," I stuttered a little as I looked at her; her collarbones and tanned shoulders exposed. I now knew why they were against school dress codes. "I mean, look at me," I changed the subject and gestured to myself dressed all fancy for a change.
She turned to face me, taking me in for a solid minute before meeting my eyes and giggling – although I wasn't sure she was actually laughing. "Okay..." she breathed, looking away, "okay, well, dressing up is just what I'm good at," she laughed as she slowly shut the door on me, smiling. I instantly threw my head into my hands; I was in for a tough night.
Olivia's POV
My heart rate had barely declined since I'd seen Alex's bare torso glistening with water, but now I also had to deal with looking at him in that tight, dress shirt. I audibly groaned as I pulled on my black heels. I stood and checked myself one last time in the mirror, pulling a leather jacket over my ensemble; a strappy, black cropped top with a few cut outs, paired with a leather, nude, high-waisted pencil skirt. I threw on a few pieces of rose gold and black detailed jewellery, as well as a thick, velvet, black choker around my neck. I grabbed for my nude clutch and checked I had everything; my phone, a mirror, my purse – the essentials.
I made my way downstairs bang on 6:45 PM. "Liv!" I hear Alex yell from the kitchen, his black dress shoes clinking on the wooden flooring as he makes his way to the bottom of the stairs, "the taxi's on it's wa-" he stopped as soon as he noticed me making my way down the stairs. "Wow," he breathed, his eyebrows raised in shock as he looked me up and down. I was surprised he even commented, but it seemed like it just fell off his tongue.
"Is this okay?" I asked, gesturing to myself once I reached the bottom of the stairs. He seemed to personally enjoy it, but I wasn't sure if it was too much; too little.
"Y-yes, holy shit," he stuttered, finally raising his eyes from my body to meet mine, "you look incredible," he gushed, his cheeks a shade of pink, his eyes glazed with an emotion I couldn't quite put my finger on – although, if I allowed myself to admit it, it looked a lot like lust.
I laughed, and pushed on his shoulder, doing very minimal damage, "shut up," I blushed, feeling like maybe I should be uncomfortable with him complimenting me, but I totally wasn't. "You also look great," I praised, looking him up and down. His white shirt was now covered with a short, blazer-style trench coat. He looked very smart. His hair falling effortlessly in his chocolatey, enticing eyes ever so slightly; he hadn't shaved that morning and had instead left a light amount of stubble over his jawline; not to mention he smelled intoxicating. I had to look away after a while, because I could feel myself heating up and I didn't want him to notice.
"Thank you," he said sincerely, a genuine smile on his unshaven face. At that exact moment his phone began to ring, indicating the cab was waiting for us outside. He grabbed his keys and wallet and opened the door, allowing me out first, in true gentleman fashion. He did the exact same with the taxi door too; it was the little things that mattered, small gestures like that can go a mile.
---
"Yes!" Jack cried out, bounding over and enveloping both Alex and I into a very tight, uncomfortable hug, the second we entered the building. Jack was clad in a red shirt and thin black tie, some black skinny jeans and a pair of black vans – some things never change. The place was covered in Christmas decorations, including, but not limited to, two giant Christmas trees. The karaoke machine was set up at the back, on the stage where they had done the open-mic show. There were a couple chairs set up right in front of the stage, which I imagined would be where Jack and the other judges would be seated. "I'm so glad you came!" Jack continued, bouncing with excitement, he retracted from the hug and looked at me, letting me know I was who he was speaking to, "you're gonna love it," he assured me.
The three of us chatted for a while before a elderly lady in an apron made her way over and dragged Jack away to do whatever his job entailed. Alex and I made our way over to the stage area and sat at one of the closest available tables; plenty of people were already here and the room was buzzing with energy. "I'm gonna go get a drink," Alex spoke a little louder than usual to make himself heard over the chatter in the room, "do you want anything?" he asked, getting to his feet and looking down at me. He had always been a lot taller than me, but I hadn't realised how tall he actually was until right now. He had to have been at least 6ft.
"Uh, yeah, can I have a raspberry cider, please?" I ask; in the mood for something more fruity and refreshing. I reach for my purse and begin digging through it but Alex places his hand on mine, indicating for me to stop.
He chuckled a little. "Raspberry cider, it is," he declared with a smile before walking away to the bar without taking any money from me. I wrinkled my brow, a little confused. I didn't need him to pay for me; although it was a sweet gesture.
As I'm waiting for Alex to return with our drinks I catch a glimpse of Rian and Zack, followed by two very pretty ladies, entering the bar. They stop and look around, presumably for us, and so I get to my feet and wave them down. Rian catches my eye immediately and points at me excitedly, wooing like he was already drunk.
The group make their way over and I get to my feet, ready to introduce myself to their two guests. "Liv!" Zack greets me, pulling me into a side hug. He then gestures to the petite brunette beside him, "this is Amelia," he says and she instantly grasps me in a hug. She's wearing a cute, floaty red dress which matches her lipstick and compliments her hair colour so well.
We swap greetings and compliments but I'm quickly pulled away into a hug from Rian, "this is Cassadee," he says, gesturing to the gorgeous brunette beside him.
"Hey, I'm Olivia," I say instinctively, even though she had most likely already heard me say it.
"Oh, I know," she responds, still shaking my hand firmly, "I've seen a lot of your work, you're phenomenal," she enthuses and I feel myself becoming a little embarrassed.
"Oh, really?" I laugh nervously. As a model, who doesn't work for Victoria's Secret, I didn't often get noticed for 'my work', unless I was in a professional surrounding, and even then I wasn't very good at dealing with compliments. Although I did it for a living, it still wasn't something I was incredibly confident about.
"Oh yeah, Cass is a headhunter for this local magazine, they do a lot of fashion work," Rian explained to me, momentarily distracted from his conversation with Zack about what he wanted to drink. It was exciting meeting someone who recognised me, and it was so interesting listening to her tell stories of her work, but when I noticed Alex making his way back to the table – slapping Rian's shoulder as he passed him and Zack on their way to the bar – I couldn't help but feel relieved to be back in the company of someone I knew well.
Alex handed me my drink with a cheeky wink, before taking a seat beside me and spending a couple of minutes chatting with the other two girls; asking how they were, what they'd been up to, etc. Typical small talk. For the following couple minutes I received a lot of questions; what I was doing in the city, when I would be leaving, how I knew the guys, what the hell is that on your ring finger? – a nice torrent of uncomfortable subjects.
After a good 30 minutes of all of us just sat around, drinking, chatting about nothing in particular, Jack finally made an appearance on the small stage in front of us. He greeted everyone energetically; stating rules for the tournament and how things would be judged. Then he assured everyone that once a winner had been picked, that the karaoke machine would be open to anyone, including good acts – he shot Alex a glare at that point. And then the karaoke-ing began.
The first guy up did a soulful rendition of R.Kelly's Ignition Remix, which was equally atrocious as it was brilliant. All of us were in hysterics watching the guy dramatically grab at the air and gesture as he sung mama rollin' that body, got every man in here wishin'. When he was done, everybody applauded, even Rian, who was scoffing jokingly the whole performance.
The night continued that way, large quantities of alcohol and gut-wrenching laughter. Alex had agreed to a system were we took it in turns to buy rounds of drinks for each other and it was now my turn; although I had no clue what round we were on. I sloppily got to my feet, Alex's hand finding my hip from his seated position, keeping me steady. I looked at him and smiled, for a little longer than was considered normal, and so quickly I averted my gaze and grabbed my clutch.
"Hurry!" Rian mumbled to me, his alcohol level slowly catching up with him, "I'm going up next!" he exclaimed, referring to me going to get drinks. I did a quick walk over to the bar, all the while watching my drunk friend stumble up onto the stage. "I'm gonna do Beyoncé's Irreplaceable," he announced into the microphone before picking his song from the machine. The audience laughed loudly, as did I waiting at the bar for my drinks. The people at the bar, with no interest in the karaoke going on, shot me glares, but I didn't care.
Back at the table, Alex now had his arm wrapped around the back of my seat. I handed him his beverage and he nodded in thanks as I took my seat, anticipating Rian's performance. I could feel the heat coming from Alex's arm on the skin showing through my top and it made me feel, all of a sudden, incredibly hot.
Rian's performance was incredible, filled with dramatic gestures and head movements; he even ended it by sliding across the stage on his knees. I was in tears from laughing at the hysterical scene, and judging by the laughter coming from rest of the tables, everyone else seemed to be as well. Cassadee got to her feet when he was finished and clapped intently for him. Jack, of course, scored him a 10/10, as did 2 of the other judges, whilst the last one only scored him a 9. "Bullshit!" Rian exclaimed, shaking his head as he left the stage, causing the audience to laugh even harder.
In the end, Rian won the tournament; his prize being a free drink – which didn't seem too smart. We all went crazy, applauding and cheering for him as Jack handed him the bottle of Budweiser, which he held above his head dramatically like a trophy. Then people began just performing for the fun of it; some of them were worse and some of them better than those who had taken part in the tournament. When Rian returned back to the table he was dripping in sweat, but Cassadee still pulled him into a hard kiss. They were incredibly cute together.
"We can leave whenever you want," Alex leaned over and whispered into my ear, his breath hitting the side of my face and making the hair on the back of my neck stand up. His voice was a little croaky from the alcohol, making it even sexier.
I turned to look at him quizzically, "no way," I half-whispered back, smiling at him, "this is the most fun I've had in a long time!" I enthused, grinning drunkenly, causing him to laugh.
"Okay, good," he breathed, incredibly quietly. His glazed-over eyes on me were burning my skin, he was smirking as he spoke, "I'm glad," everything he said was so smooth and inviting in his raspy voice. I watched as he examined my face, lingering on my lips, before meeting my eyes again. I was half expecting him to say something, to acknowledge that he had clearly been checking me out – practically all night – but he didn't seem to care. And, honestly, I didn't either. I bit my lip and quickly looked back to the stage where a girl was doing her best to keep up with a Sean Paul track.
After a couple more songs and some more chatter around the table, Alex reached over and gripped one of my knees with one of his large, manly hands. I quickly turned to him, "Another?" he asked, gesturing to our empty glasses and I nodded in response. He removed his hand and got to his feet.
Letting out a deep breath, I leaned back into my chair. My whole body was tingling. It hadn't even been a meaningful touch, it was just a way of getting my attention, but for some reason it had left me all hot and bothered. I hadn't felt like this in so long towards someone. It wasn't even that I was having strong emotional feelings, although I was a little, but just the way he made me physically feel. Anytime he looked at me or touched me or spoke to me, I felt like I was going to melt. I was so physically and sexually attracted to him – leaving personality and feelings out of it.
He was so unbelievably attractive, so suave and charming, and, tonight especially, I had just began noticing him in a different light. It felt like we had this strange magnetic attraction drawing us to eachother, our chemistry and the sexual tension so undeniable. I had absolutely no idea what to do; I knew what I should do and what I wanted to do – but they, unfortunately, did not correlate.
I let out a deep sigh and flung my head back. I had gotten myself into such a sticky situation and there was no way out of it. Well, there were plenty of ways out, but I wasn't willing to take any of them. I rubbed at my temple, agitated with myself. "This is going to end badly..." I whispered to my intoxicated self, but I couldn't resist the urge to smile at the thought of whatever bad things were going to happen.
Okay! I'm finally all caught up and now I'm sad because there's no more to read. PLEASEEEE update more soon!
9/17/16