AN: for those confused, this is just one of the many times the group goes to the lake house, not... well you know. In See Me, in the first chapter they talk about this time, (where Seren strips.) 

After calling Cain and asking for the directions to this apparently famous lake house, since Seren clearly wasn't able to give them seeing that she was snoring in my passenger seat, I drove the almost two hours in silence.

Mostly, wondering why the hell I had volunteered to come.

I was only on heightened awareness of her proximity to me for the first half an hour, casting sideways glances at her every few miles. After that, it was pretty obvious that she wasn't going to wake up.

I wondered if she actually enjoyed being this drunk every weekend. I wondered what feeling she was chasing that she felt when she was drunk that she couldn't get sober. I've only been that drunk a couple of times in my life, and every time my body had protested like I was trying to feed it fire.

It can't feel all that good, can it?

My back was stiff from the long drive, and I muttered a curse as I double checked the address Cain had sent me against the house I was pretty sure was our destination. Before I could even see the black numbers against the white siding, the number of cars in the large driveway was a dead giveaway that this was where the party was.

I was slightly surprised at the amount of people that were already there. Then, I remembered that West Bridge was full of rich kids, almost all of those kids had access to multiple cars to be able to make the drive out here.

Though, Seren didn't have a car. I've noticed that about her. She seemed to rely on the guys in the group for rides, mostly Jax, who didn't seem able to say no to her. I wondered why she didn't have a car. I knew she had money, by the clothes and purses that she wore.

I shook my head as I pulled into the crowded driveway, there was no sense wondering about things I'd never know the answer to. Once I put the car in park, and turned off the ignition, I looked over at Seren, unsure what to do next.

Maybe I shouldn't even have brought her here. Once you pass out from a drunk like that, there's pretty much nothing in this world that can wake you up.

And, as if she had heard my thoughts and wanted only to prove me wrong, she made a small groaning sound. She lifted her head from where it had been laying against the window, slowly as if she already had a headache.

"Where am I?" She muttered out, as she blinked her eyes rapidly. "What the fuck?"

She looked over to me, her eyes scrunching with confusion like she didn't know who I was.

"Zane?" She asked me, apparently needing to confirm it was me.

"You fell asleep," I said simply, not sure what else to tell her.

"Hm," she shook her head, running her hands through her hair. I wondered how it was possible that she still looked perfect, even though she had just spent two hours with her face pressed against glass.

"Why did you drive me? I mean," she sighed as she rubbed her eyes, "that was rude, sorry."

"It's fine," I cut her off, "I offered when you didn't seem to have a ride."

"Oh," she looked over to me again, her eyes only running over my face for a second. "Well, thanks I guess."

I was about to answer her, but by the time I opened my mouth, she had already opened the door, and was stepping out of my car.

"Bye," she said simply, before she shut the door.

See? I was nothing for her to notice, even when I was right in front of her.

I stayed in my car, wondering whether I should just start my car again and drive home. I toyed with the thought in my mind for a while, answering the text messages I had gotten on the drive from O and Gavin. Finally, when it was time to make a decision, I decided to stay. The most compelling factor for staying? I really had to use the bathroom.

I climbed out of my car, not bothering to lock it in the sea of foreign vehicles. There were people from school littered across the lawn, and the front porch. They were already drunk, already loud. I pushed passed them, nodding to the couple of people who seemed to recognize me as they called out in greeting.

The house was full. There was barely any room to walk past the drunken teens. Most of which were dancing along to the song that was bouncing through the walls. The interior only confirmed how loaded Carter really was. It was spacious, the furniture was expensive, and the finishings were top notch. It looked like the kind of house you would see in a movie.

I pushed through the crowds, finally finding a bathroom amongst the sea of unopened doors. Once I finished, I decided to try the kitchen. Since I wasn't driving tonight, maybe I could have more than the one drink I usually had.

My face fell when the kitchen wasn't littered with alcohol bottles like the counters usually were at parties. I looked around, following the trail of voices to an open set of French doors. I could see the perfectly designed outdoor space, and then I saw the outdoor bar.

I walked out the doors, feeling relief when I saw Cain standing by the bar. He had a drink in his hand, but he didn't notice me. His eyes were focused on something, and by the scowl on his face, it wasn't anything he was impressed with.

"Cain," I greeted him as I approached the bar. I looked over the various bottles of alcohol, grabbing the vodka. I filled my cup with it, mixing it with a soda that was already open.

"Hey man," Cain replied to me, but he didn't look at me. His eyes remained on whatever it was he was looking at.

Out of curiosity, I followed his gaze. It didn't take me long to discover what had him in such a sour mood.

Seren was in the hot tub, only in her mismatched bra and underwear. She had a bottle of vodka in one hand, as she danced to the music. Her head was tipped back, but there was that smile that was familiar on her drunken face.

Though, that wasn't what was the problem, for Cain anyway. What bothered him, I'm sure, was that she was sitting on some guy's lap. His arm was wrapped around her waist, holding tightly to the skin on her abdomen.

I sighed as I turned back toward Cain. "Why do you torture yourself?"

"What?" He asked, finally tearing his eyes away from her.

"Yeah, you know what," I shook my head. "Why are you watching it if it hurts you?"

"I'm not," Cain rolled his eyes. "It's fine."

"Have you ever told her?" I asked him, wondering if he had ever made his feelings for her known.

"Told who?" Cain danced around my question.

"You know who," I wasn't letting him. "Have you ever told Seren that you like her?"

"Have you?" He gave me a knowing look.

"What?" I protested, feeling my face grow hot. "I don't like her. I don't even know her."

We were interrupted by the sounds of whistling and cheering, causing us both to look back over to the hot tub. Seren's hands were gripped in the unknown boys hair, her lips pressed against his. I could see from here, even though his lips were covered with hers, that he was smiling.

"You know what's going to happen tomorrow?" Cain asked me, his voice low.

"What?" I asked, confused by the question.

"He's going to think he has a chance with her, because she's paying attention to him tonight. He's going to wake up and feel like the luckiest guy at our school," Cain explained, but I was even more confused.

Why wouldn't he? If Seren kissed me, I'd probably feel that way too.

"And then you know what's going to happen? Seren is going to forget it ever happened. And even if she didn't, she's not going to like him tomorrow. And then at lunch, on Monday, we'll watch as he comes to our table and tries to talk to her, and we'll watch as she breaks his heart," Cain continued, he was still watching them kiss.

I was silent, waiting for the point of what he was saying.

"And, that's why I won't tell her that I like her, because she'll break my heart too. And, that's why you won't tell her you like her either, if you're smart."