I watched as the four guys spoke amongst themselves, keeping their poker faces as they talked about putting things together. It was honestly really boring and I was pretty drunk by now, so I was having a hard time staying where I was and minding my own business. Even though I knew that they would catch me up on everything later, I wanted to be a part of the conversation, and I was just about to get up and go over until someone came over to my table.

"Hey, do you mind if I sit here?" a strange guy with dark brown hair asked me.

"Sure, go for it."

"Cool, thanks. I'm Kelly by the way- Kelly Nickels."

"Sadie Lee," I replied habitually, trying to act sober enough to come off as nice.

"Nice to meet you," he said with a smile. "So, do you know any of the guys in the band?"

"Well, not exactly; I met their singer tonight, but my friends are trying to recruit him for their own band," I explained, realizing that I didn't really need to be sharing this much information with a stranger.

"Oh, that's cool. I have a band, too. We're not as cool as Rockandi- yet- but we're working on it."

"Well hey, either way, your band is better than my friends' band; they're just getting together. If Vince joins, then things are going to start rolling."

"Then we'll be racing," he joked.

"If you're not ahead by then." I studied his face for a moment as he stared at the stage- and he had a nice profile. "So, Kelly, what's your band called?"

"Sweet Pain," he said, looking back at me. "Me and a few friends made it up."

"That's a cool name."

"Thanks. Do your friends have a name for their band yet?"

"No, not that I know of."

I didn't know what it was, but I liked this guy already; he was kind of funny- and he was very cute. I knew that if I was sober, I would like him even more- drunk me was usually pretty neutral with people, but hellbent on destruction, which I realized when I began to peel the paint off of the table.

Kelly and I continued to chat for a little bit, talking about everything from movies to our favorite music, and we had a good thing going until Tommy, Nikki, and Mick came over to get me.

"Well, it was nice meeting you," I mumbled with a smile. "Maybe I'll see you around?"

"Yeah, definitely! See you."

As we walked out of the Starwood, I swayed and stumbled, holding onto Tommy for balance. The air outside was practically silent compared to the booming club, and I realized how intoxicated I really was when the frigid January night air hit me.

"So, who's your new friend?" Nikki teased.

"Yeah, who was that guy?" Tommy followed up.

"His name's Kelly."

"Kelly? Isn't that a girl's name?"

"He's pretty cool actually."

"Yeah, and you're pretty drunk," Mick remarked as we headed down the street.

"Nuh-uh!"

"You're slurring your words all over the place," Mick pointed out.

"I am not drunk!"

"You so are," Tommy agreed. "Mom's gonna kill you."

"You took me in there!"

"You decided to get drunk... an' will you let go of my arm?!"

"Whatever. What'd Vince say?" I asked, letting go of him and grabbing onto Nikki, who didn't seem to mind.

"He said he was gonna think about it," Nikki answered. "We'll see, I guess."

Tommy mumbled in agreement as he walked ahead a bit, leading our little pack down the sidewalk.

"I don't think he's that good," Mick admitted, "but the girls like him a lot. That's the base of what we need."

"Girls?" I asked in surprise, nearly tripping over a crack in the pavement.

"Easy there," Nikki murmured as he helped me keep my balance.

"Yeah; chicks bring their boyfriends, boyfriends spread the word. Plus, girls are always good to have around in any way."

"Ew!"

"Mick, she's too fucked up to be messing with right now," Nikki said. "Don't be graphic."

"I didn't say anything specific," he argued.

"No, but it was suggestive enough; she's just a kid, man."

Tommy stopped dead in his tracks and turned around to look at me, crossing his arms over his chest for a moment.

"What are we gonna," he shook his head, "ah, shit! You can't got home like this, Sadie," he mumbled, tilting my head up. "Mom will throw a fit."

"Well, what do you surprass we should do?!"

"What do I what?" he asked, clearly confused.

"Sur-supr..." I thought for a moment as I looked around. "When you guess sumthin'."

"Suppose?"

"Yeah, that's tha one!"

"Oh my god."

"I'm tired," I whined.

I mentally said 'fuck it' and started walking a few feet, only to nearly fall on my face and be caught by Nikki, who protectively pulled me closer to him.

Tommy cursed under his breath, realizing that he had no idea of what to do with me. I could tell that he was thinking, even if I couldn't see his face very well.

"Hey, I've got an idea," Nikki piped up. "Tommy. Sadie, do you have any girl friends?"

"Yeah, why?"

"Alright, T-Bone, just tell your mom she's at one of their houses; she can come home with me for the night and I'll bring her home in the morning."

"Nikki, I don't know if that's a good idea."

I pouted, burying my face in Nikki's chest as he held me closer.

"Why not? Just tell them she stayed the night at a friend's last minute and didn't want to call and wake anyone up."

"I don't know if that will work."

"Why wouldn't it?"

"Because what if they call and ask, and she isn't there?"

"Give them my number; I'll say I'm someone's brother, or whatever, and I'll say they're asleep."

"I don't... Nikki, this just doesn't seem right."

"Why not? It's not like I'm going to let anything happen to her."

"No, I know, it's just that- I feel like I can't lie to my parents about this. Either way, we'll be fucked if they find out."

"Did you not just listen to my plan?" Nikki asked in disbelief.

"I did, it's just that if I bring her home, she'll be in trouble, but if she doesn't show up and they find out, it'll probably be worse."

"Just say someone drugged her drink," Mick suggested.

"No, my idea is better; you tell them that and they'll think we're hanging out in sleazy places," he pointed out. "Tommy, come on. You need to figure it out- it's already eleven and you told us your mom wants you home at eleven thirty. If your parents don't know, they can't get mad."

"I know- I just... damn it! I shouldn't have let her do that."

"I'm right here, you know," I muttered against Nikki's chest.

"I'm aware, smartass." Tommy thought for a moment, and tilted his head back, letting out a heavy sigh. "Alright, Nikki, you can take her with you for the night- but don't let anything happen to her!"

"I won't, man. Don't worry about it."

"And don't let her destroy anything!"

"I won't!"

Mick began to laugh hysterically, shaking his head as he continued to walk without us. "I'm going home; tell me how everything goes. See you guys later."

"What a creep," I mumbled into Nikki's chest.

"I know, he's a little odd. Well, good night, Tommy. See you in the morning," Nikki said, trying to help me straighten out as we began to head to his apartment.

"Mm-hmm. Be good, Sadie!"

"Good night, Thomas," I called out, giggling as we walked.

"Okay, listen to me, Sadie. We are going to my house, but we have to be quiet, okay?"

"Why? I thought you had an apartment."

"Well, I'm renting a room at someone's house. I don't want them to wake up and see you because I might get in trouble."

"Why?"

"Because you're a drunk minor and I'm a sober adult."

"So?"

"Really? You're not getting the point here, are you?"

"No."

"I don't want them to think I'm trying to take advantage of you," he explained.

"You wouldn't do that... Would you?"

"No! No. I would never do that to you, Sadie."

"Y'know something?"

"What?"

"I don't know... I think I'll tell you later."

"Okay," he mumbled with a soft laugh.

We walked for a bit longer and I tried to ignore the cold as I began to shiver, my head swirling.

"Are you okay?"

I nodded, staring at the ground.

"You're cold aren't you?"

"No."

"Liar," he teased. "Here, stand right here." He let go of me, making sure that I wasn't going to fall over before taking off his jacket and putting it on me. "Better?"

"Mm-hm. Thank you," I mumbled. "Aren't you cold now?"

"Nah, I'm fine. We're almost there anyway."

"Is Tommy mad at me?"

"I don't know... I think he's mad at himself more than he is at you; he let you do it."

"That's what I was saying!" I insisted, almost falling over when the ground became uneven.
"You're not gonna make it uphill."

"I am too!

"We'll see about that, Princess. Come on."

"I can't," I whined, hanging my head. I stood in one spot as Nikki turned around and looked at me, an amused glint to his eyes.

"Told you so. Come here." I did as I was told and he picked me up without a problem, carrying me up the hill. "So, tell me about that Kelly guy."

"What about him?"

"He's got a girl name, but what do you think of him?"

"He seems nice. He's kinda funny, and super cute. He said he might see me around soon, which would be cool."

"Nice," he mumbled absently. "What else?"

"I dunno."

"Nothing else?"

"Well, he told me he was in a band but that was all."

"You two talked for forty-five minutes and that was it?"
"Well I don't remember all of it," I grumbled in defense. "How'd you know it was that long?"

"Because I was there? I was timing it when we were talking to Vince."

"Were you worried 'bout me?"

"Sorta."

"That's so cute! Why?"

"Because I didn't know how drunk you were, and I didn't know if he was going to try anything with you. Someone's gotta pay attention, and Tommy and Mick were locked on to Vince."

"Mm. Thanks, hero."

"No problem. Okay, we're here. Remember what I said, Sadie, you have to be quiet."

"Okay," I whispered as he set me on the ground.

He opened the garage and led me in, quietly closing the door behind himself and flicking on a lamp to reveal a messy little makeshift room.

"Sorry it's a mess; wasn't expecting anyone," he said, throwing clothes into a pile on the floor.

"S'okay, dude."

He continued to clean- more like rapidly throwing shit in places that it wasn't in the way, and I watched, swaying on my feet when he threw a shirt past my face.

"Sorry." I wasn't sure if I was that drunk, but it looked like his cheeks were slightly pink as he fumbled around."

"Nikki?"

"Yeah?" he asked, looking up at me.

"You're sweet."

"No, I'm not," he argued with a chuckle.

"Yes, you are. You pretend you're not, like you're all mean and hard, but you're so soft and sweet."

He shook his head and fixed the covers on his bed. "You need to go to sleep, Saids."

"I'd rather talk to you," I admitted, sitting beside him on the bed. "I don't wanna sleep yet."

"Well, honey, you have to. We can talk in the morning, okay?"

I pouted, earning a deep sigh.

"What do you want to talk about?"

"I dunno."

"Well, that's... helpful. Oh, uh, do you want some different clothes to sleep in?"

"Nope, just help me get my pants off."

"Okay," he mumbled, smiling as he shook his head.

"You really are sweet, y'know?"

"That I ain't, kid. I'm just doing my best."

"And that's enough," I said, kissing his cheek as he helped me under the blankets.

"You're too nice to people, Sadie. Too trusting of strangers."

"But you're not a stranger."

"But I was... Either way, you're a good person, and you see the best in people. It's amazing."

"Yeah. You would think after the shit my parents did to me I wouldn't be like that."

His smile faded. "What do you mean?"

"We tol' you about how I'm sort of adopted, right?"

"Yeah."

"Well, it's because I ran away and Tommy found me. His parents took me in."

"Why'd you run away?" He crossed his arms, suddenly interested.

"My parents used to beat me and stuff," I mumbled, feeling myself grow sleepy. "I was starving myself, and when Tommy found me, I looked like a skeleton with a giant black eye. Pretty gnarly."

"I guess we both got shitty parents," he said softly, running his fingers through my hair.

"That was part of why they went off the last time."

"What was?"

"I cut my hair off. It was super long and I chopped it all off."

"Parents are fucking crazy. I think it looks nice."

"Thank you."

"You're welcome. Now, go to sleep; I have to get you sobered up and hangover-less by the time you go home tomorrow."