'The sun goes down, the stars come out

And all that counts is here and now

My universe will never be the same...'

*ALTHEA'S POV*

October 29, 2016.

I should have turned back.

I'd known it even before the 'you've reached your destination' message appeared on my phone screen, the loud echo of bass drowning the robotic voice of the GPS being the first of many warning signs...

A Superman rushing past the white fence with two packs of beers, flashing neons already dazzling me as I took in the two-story house before me, some dead bottles sending more shivers down my spine than the lit jack-o'-lanterns bordering the front porch, the welcome sign above a small bell and four names all listed under 'Rohan', a Mr. Incredible almost shoving me into the hallway wall as he was too busy making out with Harley Quinn and looking for a spare room to watch where he was walking...

They all pointed me the way... backward, and yet, I kept going, sneaking my orange and bulky figure past all of those. Why?

As I stepped into the packed room that looked straight out of a frat movie, I wasn't sure anymore, the kaleidoscopic haze of smoke and swaying people blurring everything around, including my thoughts and my lungs, and yet two clear eyes still pierced through the crowd from the other side of the room.

"Peachy!"

Asher, he was the one who had convinced me to come here, and surely also the biggest reason why I should have turned back.

It was too late now, though, as he was already joining me, his voice and tall figure hovering above everyone as confidently as... Batman.

The black costume fitted him, and even if I'd already spotted five people in the same outfit, only he could measure up to the dark hero's smugness and also muscles, without needing a 6-pack padding.

In fact, he outshone all the superheroes around, and there were a lot.

"You didn't tell me it was a superhero costume party." I crossed my arms over my chest, mostly to show him my frustration, as I'd already given up covering the large circle I'd sewed over my orange dress from the judging stares behind their masks.

"It wasn't. Everyone hyped up yesterday when I said I bought a Batman costume, and I was about to tell you at the art club, but then, you talked about the dress you've made, and your eyes lit up so much, I couldn't."

At least it wasn't some hazing ritual, and he sounded genuine from what I could catch over the thumping music and in his green eyes, no bad intention seeping through. Well, no more than the usual mischievous sparkle as he 'admired' my costume again, his gaze roaming from my orangey lips to the edge of my short velvety dress.

"And I'm glad I didn't 'cause you look smoking hot, and that's the perkiest and most unique outfit I've seen tonight. "

"Thanks. It's one way to put it for a peach outfit in a superhero party..." I chuckled, glancing down at the orange dress that I would have rather called 'out of place'.

Was it the only thing making my clammy skin pebble with awkwardness though?

"I have an idea! Come on, follow me." Asher grabbed my hand, pushing through the crowd like a superhero.

Actually, I was starting to question if he weren't one, as he seemed to read my thoughts, leading me down the quieter hallway and pulling out a key to open a room, where no curious gaze, no smoke, no flashing lights, and no deafening basses remained once he'd closed the door.

There were only him and I, the dim lighting of a desk lamp he switched on, and... a bed.

Okay, maybe I'd talked too soon about his heroic behavior.

"Your bedroom?" I asked, my eyebrows furrowing at the dark blue walls of a room that looked nothing like him.

Granted that I'd barely known him for a few weeks, I'd still expected more basketball items than one framed Lakers jersey, fewer books, and if some mess around, not as many boxes and knick-knacks.

Nevertheless, I surely should have been more worried about another piece of furniture in the center of the room.

"No, it's my bro's. I just needed the scissors."

It made more sense, for the first part at least, because I still observed him with large eyes as he slid his mask off his head and took the scissors from one of the many cardboard boxes around.

"Rule number one when you throw a party: always lock your bedrooms with all the breakable, valuable, or sharp items inside."

"You seem to have a lot of experience..." I noted, my gaze trailing on all these objects the teens in the movies would never have thought of protecting: mirrors, vases, flat-screen TV, family pictures...

All the fragile and precious things that I didn't dare touch, my finger hovering over one of the frames, where a happy couple, whose features were familiar without having ever met them, and two brown-haired toddlers were sitting in front of a basketball-themed cake.

It wasn't hard to guess whose birthday it had been again, as the twinkle these jade eyes had held in front of the two candles was still the same, even if the small boy had changed a lot, especially his height, which made me tilt my head back as he stepped in front of me.

"Learned the hard way when we've had to glue back together thousands of shards from my parents' wedding vase." He put the scissors away in the box beside me, thus, leaning closer but also making me realize I hadn't seen what he'd used them for, and I didn't get to look at anything when he slipped the glasses off my nose.

"What-what are you doing?"

The last time he'd made this gesture... My voice had been as hoarse as it was now, and the touch of his warm fingers as tingling.

Except tonight, there was a flimsy black fabric between our skins as he slipped a strip he'd probably cut out from his costume over my eyes and tied it at the back of my head.

It didn't dim the statics traveling along my nerves though, nor the intensity of his gaze so close since he'd scissored two holes in the black fabric to let me see his unwavering stare while his fingers moved expertly over my curls, just like he undoubtedly caught the flutters of my eyelids when he tugged on the ends of the band to secure the knot.

"Now, you're Super Peachy." He adjusted the fabric around my eyes, not making a move to lean away, and I didn't either, the only movement in my whole body being from the lips I wetted.

"And what's my superpower?"

The last time we'd been this close... the millimeters between us had quickly diminished until we'd kissed, and I knew the flashbacks were spinning behind his smoldering eyes too as they flickered to my lips, and he whispered like in a trance,

"You can drive any man—"

"Asher! What are you doing dude?"

The door burst open, letting in a boisterous Hulk and the loud music again, which at least gave the thumps inside my chest something to follow, while my thoughts were going awry, trying to process what had happened, what had been about to happen.

Had he been about to kiss me?

No, actually, the question was rather: would I have let him kiss me?

Because I'd already dodged his many attempts to kiss me again since last Sunday at the fair. Yet tonight I still hadn't moved from my spot, and it was Asher who pulled away to turn to 'Hulk'.

"You, what the fuck are you doing here?! Didn't you learn to never walk in a bedroom when the door's closed?" He threw his hands up, as if the insinuation wasn't obvious enough—well, for my spinning thoughts, it was. "How did you even know I was here?"

"Chris—Someone saw you," the green-clothed guy explained, probably one of his friends and teammates, seeing his build behind the padding, though it was hard to recognize his features with the green covering his face and mostly, without my glasses. "The beer pong's waiting for you. Ian's already saying you've run away from the challenge."

"Me? Do you know whom you're talking to? Asher Rohan never backs away from a challenge." He smirked, his gaze trailing sideways to me, just when I put the glasses back on my nose, so I could catch the wink he threw at me before focusing on his friend again, and I wasn't sure if it was a sigh of relief or something else climbing up from my chest when he added, "I'll show that fucker!"

Yet it got knocked out when he tugged on my hand.

"Come on, Peachy, you'll be my partner."

I didn't get to protest as he dragged me back through the main room, this time, with a mask covering my face. Although the flimsy fabric didn't stop the thick atmosphere, heavy stares, and soon, the unease sneaking under my skin when we stopped in a corner that looked like a sunroom, where most of the space was taken by a ping pong table covered in red cups, and I announced,

"I've never played beer pong. You should pick someone else if you want to win."

"I can replace her." Hulk grinned, while the 'Captain Vodka' on the other end of the table was already cheering with his friend about his impending easy win.

Yet none of their smiles appeared as triumphant as the one slowly stretching Asher's lips as his gaze settled on mine.

"I'll teach you everything you need to know, don't worry."

It was precisely what worried me, the assurance in his green eyes flashing as red in my mind as the cups filled with alcohol when he glanced at his—our opponents.

"Give us two minutes, and then, we'll give you a trashing."

I'd never met someone as cocky as him. But at the same time, he had, not long ago, asserted he would take me on a date, and he had. He'd claimed we would share a kiss, and we had, twice. He'd been sure I would come to his party, and here I was, in the middle of all those drunk people, despite all my alarms going off.

He'd already won over my common sense, and I quickly lost my breath as he took me aside for an intensive beer pong lesson— in more ways than one since he revealed his secrets to aim while finding every opportunity to brush a part of me, from my fingertips holding the ball to my whole body, which he helped me position. All of this in barely one minute and a half as Ian ticked the time.

"Oh, and the most important." Asher completely ignored the Captain Vodka and everyone around, staring at me with such solemnity I could have thought we were about to start the Olympics.

Except the flame was flashing in his clear gaze before he leaped on my lips.

Would I let him kiss me again?

The answer hit me like the warm silk of his lips as my eyes widened for a milli-second.

No, I wouldn't only let him kiss me.

My eyelids fluttering closed and my hands reaching for his chest, I was kissing him back, while all my warning thoughts dissolved between the fire of our mouths.

It was intense like the taste of alcohol on his lips. It was instinctive like the spot his fingers always found in the back of my hair. It was fierce from the tip of his tongue to the pit of my stomach.

It was...

"A good luck kiss," he rasped on my lips as people around reminded us the two minutes were over, and I wasn't sure this kiss would bring us luck to win when my head was spinning so much I couldn't place where the voices were coming from.

Yet there was indeed a spark of something magical tingling along my nerves, in his wink as he led me back to the table, and maybe in the air too as the Captain Vodka on the other side missed his first shot.

Asher also scored the farthest cup, although this wasn't 'luck'. I had yet to see him play basketball, but I could already notice his technique as I observed carefully his firm and precise movements—to try to repeat them because my turn came next.

His instructions were still swirling in my head, though not as much as the feeling of his mouth on mine as I took a deep breath, slowly wetted my lips, focused both my eyes on a cup in the middle, and... watched it go beyond, into the second to last goblet.

"Yass, Peachy!" Asher shouted with his fist up in the air, looking more excited than when he'd scored, more excited than I was as I blinked between the cup Ian's teammate brought to his mouth and Asher's Cheshire cat smile.

"That's the magic of the good luck kiss."

Was it?

I was starting to believe it until our opponents' next shot, the sparks of magic around my grin dropping like the ball into the cup in front of me. The hardest cup to reach from their side, thus the cup filled with the strongest alcohol because an ordinary beer pong wouldn't have been enough for Asher's party.

Only the first row of goblets was filled with beer, the proofs increasing with every line to end up with the cup at the top of the triangle, and when I already had trouble swallowing my saliva, I didn't even dare find out what was the transparent liquid filling a good part of the cup. The cup I had to 'drink, drink, drink'.

The chants around were loud and exhilarating, pulling me to lift the glass to my lips. However, nothing could be as strong as the first gulp I choked on.

"You okay, Peachy?"

"Yes, yes," I assured, my voice coming out like a wisp of smoke through the burn of my throat, and it probably hit Asher as hard as the second gulp I took that I wasn't only inexperienced at beer pong.

Although I wouldn't have said it, the 'fuck' he breathed out was matching my thoughts as I glanced down at the liquid remaining in the cup.

I kept taking bigger swallows, yet it seemed to never diminish, just like the blaze in the back of my throat that was slowly spreading to my cheeks and brain.

"Come on, we don't have all night!" Ian pressed, no hint of compassion in his slurred words, as it was 'just a damn shot'. At least, for this Captain Vodka, who was clearly trained with strong beverages.

But for me, who had never tried anything more than a beer, the cup appeared like a bottomless pit to drown in, the closer I brought it to my lips.

"Give it to me." Asher snatched the drink from my shaky hand before I could take another swallow, and he downed it in one go as if it were plain water.

No cough, no hint of burn on his cheeks, only a glint making his eyes brighter once he'd quickly shaken his head and the hoarseness of his voice when Ian groused that we were cheating.

"Where is it written we can't? Show me the rules! The wins are for the whole team, so the cups too." Asher raised his chin, leaving no room for argument, and between his crooked smile and barbed comment, the rules were swiftly twisted. "Plus, I'm thirsty, and it's clearly the only way I'll get to drink something."

Indeed, Ian getting worked up, he missed his shot again.

Nevertheless, Asher could have very well grabbed a drink from one of the aplenty served around if he'd been so thirsty and have let me drink my cup. Knowing I would easily get tipsy, he could have even tried to take advantage of me that way; I doubted anyone around would have prevented it.

But he hadn't, and I wasn't sure if the skip of my heart was out of surprise or something else.

Anyway, I didn't get to think about it as the game continued, the points and cups swirling quickly on both sides.

By our second victory, I couldn't count how many, and I decided it was safer to step down, letting Asher choose another partner while I tried to clear my mind, stumbling into the open kitchen with an empty cup—and no, I didn't even glance at the half-filled bottles pouring all over the counters.

"Tap water, smart. I should have thought about it." A girl stepped beside me when I lifted my head from the sink.

I should have surely told her the fresh water hadn't worked on me. Then again, it wasn't alcohol I was hoping to wash away, at least not any that I'd drunk since Asher had downed all the cups I'd been supposed to swallow.

And yet, glancing back at him as he high-fived his brother, he looked perfectly fine, while my stomach was flipping in every direction, and my lips were still burning with the same taste of alcohol I'd tasted when he'd kissed me for a third good luck charm.

Well, it wasn't only my lips actually, but I quickly shook my head, focusing on the petite girl next to me.

"Yeah, knowing the host, it's probably the only thing without alcohol, but um... you surely know it already."

I was the newcomer at this party after all.

"Uh no, I don't usually come to this kind of party, and I don't know anyone except my boyfriend who dragged me here." The girl offered me a shy smile, hugging herself like I had when I'd tried to hide my outfit, although she was dressed to the circumstances as a Mrs. Incredible. "By the way, have you seen him? I went to get something in my car about 30 minutes ago, and he was supposed to wait for me."

"What is he dressed as?" I asked, my mind still blurry, as the colors of her costume didn't click until she told me they were matching, and an image of an unlikely pair of Mr. Incredible and Harley Quinn making out when I'd arrived flashed through my memories. "Um... no."

We were at a superhero-themed party, there were surely many Mr. Incredibles. I couldn't break an unknown couple without concrete proof, and why would a guy choose some drunk Harley Quinn over this beautiful girl with kind blue eyes and a warm smile?

"I'm Kylie, by the way, and you?"

"Althea." I returned her smile and handshake.

"And you, how did you end up there? You know the one organizing this party, uh... What's his name again?"

"Asher, yeah, well, I..."

What was I to him?

A friend wouldn't have had his taste imprinted on their lips more than the words to describe how they knew him. An acquaintance, even less. Yet we were far from being anything more.

"She's his new plaything," someone answered for me, the voice ringing above the loud music and even stopping the heavy thuds for a second.

When I glanced around, though, everyone was still bobbing their heads to the song, not minding the girl walking with her chest puffed toward us.

"Oh, sorry, it wasn't what you were about to say?" She widened her eyes, wearing a mask of sympathy as tight as the rest of her black leather jumpsuit.

She was Catwoman, of course... Christina. Who else than the caramel-haired cheerleader would have matched Asher's Batman costume?

And the role fitted her perfectly until even her cat-eye liner that made me avert my gaze down to my orange dress of 'Super Peachy'.

"Well, you know he's a player, at least?" she continued, not waiting for a reply, as everyone knew it.

I'd known it since the moment I'd crossed his wandering gaze.

For all that, my tight throat refused to swallow the word at this instant.

"It's not because you got his attention for a little longer than the rest that you're special. At best, you're slightly better than the average in bed, but he's a player. He'll get bored at some point and find another toy. Whatever you're doing, he'll get bored..."

She kept talking, and I should have stopped her already, yet my lips were too dry to form a word, even though I'd just drunk two glasses of water.

Parched mouth, insides shriveling, and Christina's voice pounding like a shrilling alarm between my ears. I had all the hangover symptoms, except it wasn't alcohol I'd binged on, but two jade eyes that were even more dangerous.

They too, on their shiny wrapping, came with a warning label that I'd ignored, telling myself it was just once, and I was in control. However, the thrill in my veins was addicting, pulling me in for more and more until came the wake-up call, opening my eyes.

In this case, it was Christina, but it could have been anything else around, as this whole party was a reminder of who he was and how different we were.

"Oh wait... you haven't done anything yet? It explains a lot of things... You're probably a virgin, and I can't wait to see him come running to me when he's got what he wanted," she chortled like she'd just understood the punchline of a joke, or solved one of the mysteries of the universe. "A virgin!"

"Hey, leave her alone. There's no shame in it, and sleeping around certainly doesn't make you better than anyone."

Kylie, I'd almost forgotten about the short girl until she spoke up, lifting her chin like a fierce superheroine.

"And you are?" Christina wasn't impressed though, her hand already moving to wave her off when her haughty gaze landed on her costume. "Mrs. Incredible? Oh, right, Mr. Incredible's girlfriend. Well, you're in an open relationship, aren't you?"

Exactly like she'd done with me, she didn't let Kylie a second to open her lips for a word, nor a breath, and if the wake-up call was harsh for me, I couldn't imagine how it was behind her widening blue eyes.

"At least, that's what he told Nat before sneaking out with her—"

"Stop. We're at a superhero party, so there are surely plenty of Mr. Incredibles," I tried to assure, looking between the two girls, though both Christina's narrowed gaze and Kylie blurring stare made my voice waver.

"Easy, we can check." Christina shrugged, glancing at her black nails as if she were talking about the most random thing. "What's his name again? Steeve? Steven? St—"

"Stefan," Kylie finished, her sweet tone now dark and cracking like seeped in a sour poison, and I could almost taste it in the back of my throat when Christina added,

"Yes, that's him! And they headed down the hallway if you wanna catch them in the act."

"Really?" I gaped at the cheerleader.

"What? I'm just trying to help. I'm not the bad one in here."

And yet, her wicked smile was a little too large.

I might not have been an expert in relationships, but I was pretty sure there were smoother ways to find out this kind of thing, and the image I'd got of them shoving each other's tongue down their throats already turning my stomach, I couldn't fathom the sickness Kylie would feel if she caught them 'in the act'—when she would catch them, as she was already rushing out of the kitchen, and Christina stepped in front of me before I could follow her.

"See what I'm trying to avoid you."

"Let me pass," I seethed with a protective instinct I didn't know I could have for a stranger I'd just met.

"Aw, come on, stop playing the heroine." She rolled her eyes, still managing to look down on my orange outfit when I was about five inches above her. At least, until her next words...

"We're not in some cliché romance movie where the player changes his ways for the poor, orphan girl."

It was a low blow I should have seen coming. Even if it wasn't something I mentioned to everyone—I didn't mention a lot of things about myself to anyone actually—it was easy to find out, and she wasn't the first to look down on me for it.

Yet for an instant, under her haughty gaze, I turned back into that poor little girl, alone on the school steps, her tears not so far away behind my eyes.

Until something brought me back to the present.

"I've warned you. So don't come crying like Mrs. Incredible when he comes back to me because he already has come many times, after being disappointed by his toys."

Whether it was the turn of my stomach at the image she painted in my head, the shrill sound of her voice never stopping, or the heated air around, I quickly straightened up.

"Don't be jeal—"

"I'm not jealous."

You couldn't be jealous when someone wasn't yours. It was the reason why I'd never experienced this emotion before, and I didn't plan on doing it anytime soon.

Though I didn't know how to call this tension from the pit of my stomach until my lips as I added,

"And if we're not in some cliché movie, why are you playing the mean girl part? I've never asked for Asher's attention and would love to get him off my back, so you should see this with him."

I forced my best tight-lipped smile, my muscles ready to snap when she opened her mouth to retort something. But instead, it was a familiar voice that made my heart skip a beat.

***

*ASHER'S POV*

"You know you're lucky you're my brother, and you just scored a killer point, but I might forget it if you keep drooling over my Peachy," I warned, leaning an arm on Paxton's shoulders, who blinked around like Ian after downing an umpteenth cup I'd aimed at.

"Your Peachy?" The fucker quickly came back to his senses, coking a taunting eyebrow. "Since when is she yours?"

Maybe I'd drunk too much too because the thought of her being mine swirled too long through my mind before I replied,

"She's in my line of sight."

"Yeah, sure..." Paxton chuckled. "Well, don't worry about your Peachy. I have someone else in my line of sight. Who's the blond girl talking with her?"

Following his nod, I pushed my gaze towards the girl in red, looking farther than the boobs I'd caught before, when I'd checked it wasn't some bastard trying to hit on my Peachy. It was hard to see much with the many people and dim lighting, but...

"I don't know her." Like half of the crowd around. That was the sign of an epic party, along with...

"The booze's waiting for you, dudes!" Max called, and I dragged Paxton out of his daze to finish the game—the last one, and we would be the grand winners, and I would join Althea to celebrate.

Always keep your eyes on the prize; or more exactly, I kept throwing glances in her direction to make sure she wasn't leaving and admire the costume she'd put so much effort into.

Mamma Mia, it was perfect from the cute front that represented a peach to the tight back, hugging her peachy booty, and from this side, I had the perfect view.

Until someone stepped in front of her.

Even from afar, I instantly recognized the two cat ears of Catwoman, 'Batman's iconic and sexy lover', according to Christina, who had raved about it for 10 minutes earlier, and whatever she was saying to Althea couldn't be better.

The second I caught her peachy lips pursing together and the girl beside her ran towards the hallways like she'd seen a ghost, a bad feeling kicked in my guts faster than the vodka I'd just downed.

So like Bruce Wayne would have, I abandoned the game, and after a few words to Paxton, I rushed into the kitchen.

I didn't get any applause though, as the two girls were too busy glaring at each other to notice me, and the loud and hazy atmosphere covered my grand arrival.

Still, I could catch each of Christina's words and each flicker of reaction on Althea's features.

"We're not in some cliché romance movie where the player changes his ways for the poor, orphan girl. I've warned you. So don't come crying like Mrs. Incredible when he comes back to me because he already has come many times..."

Two times. I'd fucked her two times with maybe another blowjob she'd insisted on giving me, and that bitch took it as an engagement ring.

I would have rolled my eyes if they hadn't been too fixed on Althea, from the flinch of her whole body to the lower lip that she rolled more and more under her teeth. It was a habit she did all the time and that always turned me on.

But tonight, it was another kind of fire that lit up inside when I noticed the faint shakes she was trying to hold.

For a second, she appeared so small and fragile, a lot like on our date in front of the cemetery. Only for a second, a blink, and before I could play the hero, she straightened her spine.

"I'm not jealous. And if we're not in some cliché movie, why are you playing the mean girl part?"

Fuck, that was my Super Peachy, and those plump lips barely stretching that could drive any man insane, and that drove Christina nuts.

Fuck, that was turning me on again, even when she added,

"I've never asked for Asher's attention and would love to get him off my back, so you should see this with him."

"Sorry to disappoint you both," I spoke up, finally making my grand entrance as they snapped their wide eyes toward my proud grin. "But I think I like the clichés, and you won't get rid of me, Peachy."

For someone who'd just assured she wanted the contrary, Althea didn't look that disappointed, shaking her head lightly.

Though it was hard to beat Christina's outraged gasps as she gaped between Peachy and me.

"Don't say I didn't warn you, orphan girl."

And with one last glare at Althea and a flip of her hair, she walked away, as if having two parents who were lawyers made her better than my Peachy. As if I'd ever cared about the social status and family of a chick before.

Actually, Althea being an orphan appeared more like a bonus: I wouldn't have to worry about her daddy beating my ass for 'tainting her virtue'. That made my mind run even wilder...

Unless it was these dark doe eyes trying to read through me and avoid me at the same time.

"Um... I should go check on Kylie. She was pretty upset, and..."

"The girl who ran off towards the hallway? No need to. I've already sent Paxton after her." Who hadn't needed to be told twice, by the way. "He's been drooling over her all night, and she was heading in his bedroom's direction, so I decided to push fate a little."

That was what superheroes were doing, weren't they?

Still, I didn't get any applause, as Althea pulled her head back to stare at me like I'd killed someone.

"What? The girl has just learned her boyfriend is cheating on her. I don't think this is a good idea..."

"Paxton won't take advantage of her. He's not like that, don't worry." I quickly tugged her back by the hand. "Just let him play the hero. What's the worst that can happen? She takes out all her anger on him and sends him packing?"

She considered my words for a moment, narrowing her gaze enough to pierce through me, my bullshit, and maybe the future before raising one eyebrow as she asked,

"And the best?"

We all know the best scenario for Kylie and Paxton! 😉

But what about Asher and his Peachy? 👀 Aren't they so cute? 😍

I hope you liked this flashback! I'm sorry for posting it this late, but blame Asher for it because I hadn't planned it to be this long, and he just took over like Batman to raise all our standards! 😅🔥😈

As always, don't forget to vote ⭐ and comment if you like the story so far and can't wait for more!

I love you, my Super Peachies! 😘🥰🍑❤️❤️