"Another drink?" Myra shouts through the near DJ music, as I down my fourth glass since we arrived an hour ago and I nod at her. I'm already starting to feel a bit tipsy and enjoying the fading bittersweet burn the alcohol leaves in my throat. It's been a while.

"Are you sure?" She giggles when my elbow betrays me and slips from the table making me lose my balance but I quickly recover.

"Fucking sure." I playfully roll my eyes at her and she rushes to bring me one, shaking her head at me.

"Having fun there?" A voice sounds behind my ear and I remember Brad is still next to me on one of the fancy stools.

"If you consider having a hangover fun, then hell yeah. Who's party is this anyway?"

"A little oblivious, aren't we? It's the Stanley's. They're one of richest in Leeds. And this is a late graduation party to Marcus, their only son."

"Son of a bitch, I didn't have a party when I graduated. Let alone this big!" Brad laughs as Myra comes in with two drinks in her hands and places one of them in front of me and the other in front of her and sits on my other side.

"What are you two laughing about?"

"Just how fucked up my life is." I rush to say the words not leaving space for Brad to talk. And I instantly regret it when they both frown at me.

"Hanna, stop it. Look, this is a new chance you've got. You have to use it. This is a new page in a new book and you can start writing it however you like." She winks at me with eyes full of promise. "You're young and beautiful. And available. You just have to forget and not let it get into your head." She massages my back in sympathy.

It's true, I have nothing tying me up to York and its history. I'm now here with my best friend and her boyfriend. I have a new life ahead of me, a party to enjoy and new friends to make. There's nothing to worry about.

"To fresh starts!" She lifts her glass to the air, suggesting a toast and Brad and I click our glasses with hers. We all gulp the remainder of our drinks in one go and I feel the adrenaline kicking in.

The place is packed. According to Brad, Marcus' parents are not home. This explains why the place is dimly lit, bottles and red cups are everywhere, music is too loud, and everybody is dancing like there's no tomorrow. I feel a sudden urge to dance when DNCE's Cake By The Ocean plays.

"Let's dance!" Myra shouts reading my mind. She turns to her boyfriend to tell him that we're going to dance, while I'm still staring at the crowds grinding and dirty dancing. Before we go, she nudges me with her elbow because there are some guys, probably Brad's friends, who approached to say hi. And when I turn, from the three guys standing in front of Brad, only one has caught my attention.

The tall lean guy in the middle moves forward, in my direction, and I think my heart skips a beat when his cologne envades my senses. Emerald green eyes shine under the now bright lights. His face bears a contagious smile that showcases a line of perfectly lined white teeth. Soon enough, the smile disappears as his eyes meet mine, and I get confused. The piercing look on his eyes and the way his small mouth forms into a thin line remains the same, even when I lift my gaze a little and see the same heap of wavy dark brown hair combed back with few untamed strands. I lower my eyes back to his and feel the blood rushing to my cheeks, as the green of his eyes is still studying me with no glimpse of emotion in them. It's him.

What the hell is he doing here?

Myra nudges me again, and that's when I notice that my mouth is dry from being hang open and that his hand is waiting for me to shake it. His hand is warm but strong when I shake it, and I swallow the ball in my throat as I get a better view at the muscles through his sleeveless black shirt.
With all the muscules of his arms, lower stomach and chest, I get the impression that he is towering over me, but then he just backs up, and averts his gaze to Brad, without looking affected. Of course, why would he? It's always me who causes problems!

"Aidan, this is Ethan. Ethan, Aidan." Brad says, when he sees I'm still looking up into the green eyes in front me. "And these are Wren and Jake." I try to overcome my shock by tearing my glued eyes from him and shaking their hands, giving them the best fake smile I could do. After exchanging "Nice to meet you's", they turn to Brad and start chatting.

What the fuck is this guy doing here? Is this part of my punishment? Can't I just live away from bullshit for just one day?

"Are you coming?" Myra says, pulling me by the arm to the dance floor.

We mix into the crowd and my best friend holds both my hands and starts dancing in a crazy way, throwing her head in every direction, to one of Pitbull's hits. I would care if it was two minutes ago but now, I only have one thing on my mind.

Why is my life so fucked up? Why does it feel like I always run into troubles when it seems to me like I have left them in the past?

I take a glance at where Brad is sitting and I see Ethan looking at me while talking to the guys, this time his mouth bearing a smile that reaches up to his small eyes and it's so much that it makes me forget what's on my mind and smile for a second.

Ethan. This name though. I'm just so damn lucky that I've bumped into and cursed a boy I don't know and then he turns up to the very same party I'm in. And to top it off, it appears that his name is Ethan. Out of all names. Fucking perfect. Note the sarcasm!

"I don't blame you there." Myra shouts into my ear, waking me up from my reverie. When I look at her with confused eyes, she continues "I don't blame you. Ethan is hot." She says and my cheeks blush without my consent.

"No, no. It's not what you think!" I rush to say but she already has a smirk on.

"Sure it's not." She wiggles her eyebrows mocking me. "You have been staring at him from the minute you saw him." She's right. I have. But not for the reason she thinks. He sure has the looks and what it takes for girls to fall for him, but he must be so pissed at me.

He is sort of handsome, and built and tall. And those eyes, those eyes are so green and sparkling that you'd want to get lost in them and never be found. And that small mouth with very pink lips that is laughing right now is all I need. If his name wasn't Ethan, I would've gone for it.

No, focus Aidan, what are you thinking? 

I'm not really mad at him. If anything, he's the one who should be mad. I cursed him and didn't let him say a word. And now he's here, and he looks...good. I think my mind is playing tricks on me. I think the alcohol is ready to turn its effect on.

By this time, I'm only moving my legs on the dance floor while my eyes are absent-mindedly wandering through the crowds. When Myra notices, she tells me to come have a cup of water with her.

"What's happened? Are you okay?" She says as I drink half of the cup of water in the empty kitchen. I nod at her.

"What is it? You don't seem happy. What is it about?"

"Ethan." I blurt out without hesitation. Her mind seems to travel a bit but quickly comes back to reality. "You're so funny. He's nothing like the Ethan you read about in the book." She laughs a nervous laugh when she sees my eyebrows are still deeply creased.

"It's not that. He was in York today at the train station and he bumped into me. And I was so pissed at Mark that I just said shit to him and left without hearing him out." I let out a loud groan. A girl stumbles her way into the kitchen, opens the cupboard and takes out a bottle of alcohol. Then she disappears again. I hurry to the same cupboard, take a bottle and pour a glass of red wine in the cup.I can't get enough of its taste, it's killing everything inside.

"Is this all what's this about?" Her features turn into amused ones and a sudden smile takes over my face. "Ethan is such a sweet guy, don't worry about him. A little 'sorry' will fix the mess you made. This will be your chance to learn how to say sorry and maybe you can get a plus from it." she winks and laughs her ass off. Myra knows how hard it is for me to say the word sorry. I know it's a bad habit, I just hate when I'm vulnerable. My brain catches up with the second part of what she said and I drink directly from the bottle, hoping she doesn't mean what I think she does.

We go back to the same spot where we left Brad and I feel grateful that he is alone. I don't think I'm ready to confront him just yet.After Myra's words, a small tiny part of my brain is bugging me and nagging on me to find Ethan and say sorry to get it over with. I push the thought aside and tell myself that I'm here to enjoy the party while it's still on.

Brad and Myra exchange some knowing glances, and I act like I didn't see them, while I'm sitting on a near sofa, with my heels off. My feet hurt from dancing and standing in general and I just want to chill and drink.

"We're going to dance. Wanna come?" My best friend shouts and I decline, giving her a reassuring smile.

After another cup or two, or maybe three or four, my body can't take it anymore and my head is spinning like it has a mind of its own. Brad and Myra are nowhere to be found, and I can't bother to go find them. They must be still dancing. I don't even know how much time has passed.

I stand up to get a better view at the dancers but as soon as I'm on my feet, the ridiculous amount of alcohol I drank weakens my knees and spins my head. I also realize if I don't use the bathroom right now, I might piss on myself.

I push my way through red cups, kissing and grinding couples and dancing bodies to get out of the room. I stand at the start of the hall and see many doors right and left. The alcohol begins to play again and doubles the door, giving me no chance to find the bathroom. I look in front of me and I see a staircase. I rush to it and hold the wooden sides as I'm going upwards.

The music upstairs is much lower. I begin to carefully walk past doors that appear to be of actual rooms. As I'm walking, I wonder if there is a bathroom upstairs and whether I should just go ask someone, instead of lurking in some strangers' house.

I'm still thinking of where my feet are leading me when I hear a faint cough. I walk steadily and the cough gets nearer and much more intense.

My heart begins to race fast in anticipation and when I reach for the doorknob of the room, the light from the hall is bright enough to see the guy- Ethan- standing in front of the sink, in a hysterical state.

His hand is on his chest, an empty glass in his other hand and he looks like he might faint any second. He supports his weigh by leaning on the sink but I don't think he would be able to catch himself before falling.

"Ethan! Are you okay?" I hurry and place his arm on my shoulder when I notice he's about to fall. When I drag him out of the bathroom to the bed, the smell of vodka fills my nostrils.
I suffer to reach the bed, and try to lift him on the bed. His body is so heavy that I nearly fell on top of him.

My face is only inches away from his. When I breathe a reassured sigh, he opens his eyes slowly and takes in mine. From up close, his eyes have a golden shimmer in them, one you can't see from afar. I drown a little more in them and they are softening around the edges, the white in them so bright that it could light the whole room, and his mouth...is so close that his breath tickles my lips. His mouth forms slowly into a smile when he sees me staring at his mouth like I'm about to make a move.

A/N: Please vote and leave a comment if you like it.

Next update: 19/01/2017 (I'm trying this new schedule thing so bear with me if I'm late.)