Temi POV

The first thing that hits me once I walk into the party is the atmosphere. The music is loud, borderline deafening. Lights are flashing rapidly and I take a couple of blinks for my eyes to adjust. People are everywhere, just packed together like sardines and the stench of sweat is thick in the air.

I immediately start second guessing coming here. I sneak a glance at Isa, who is also studying the party scene before us. Her expression is guarded, and I can't tell what she's thinking.

As much as I want to retreat, to just turn around and go home, I know that this is for the greater good. Maybe I have to endure one night, but hopefully, tonight will be all I need for my plan of getting rid of Isa to work. Fingers crossed, she'd have her bags packed by tomorrow morning.

Against my better instinct, I walk forward into the room. Pushing myself through the mass of sweaty bodies, all the while trying to keep myself from retching. Isa is right behind me, silently pushing her way through as well.

It's shocking to think that not so long ago, I blended in perfectly with the sweaty bodies. I was a routine party-goer just last semester. But that feels like an eternity away.

"Temi!"

I turn my head towards Melody's familiar voice. I am actually relieved to see her, a familiar face between the mass of unknown bodies.

"I'm glad you could make it," she says. She sounds breathless and looks flushed. I wonder if she had actually expected me to show up. Melody's eyes waver and fix themselves on Isa, curiosity present in her features.

"Hi, I'm Melody," she finally says.

There is a brief pause before Isa finally speaks up. "Isabella, but you can just call me Isa." That's all she says. No further explanation. I am thankful for this, as I am not willing to have an awkward conversation about why I have a bodyguard.

Melody looks back at me, curiosity still clear on her face. I know she wants an introduction of some sorts. Or rather, more of an explanation as to who Isa is to me. But I bite on my tongue, keeping my mouth shut.

"Come meet everyone," Melody finally says once she realizes I will say nothing further.

I let her pull me through the crowd, with Isa hot on my tails till we get to another room. The lights in this room are a much warmer color and it isn't as noisy. In fact, there are far fewer people in this room compared to the one that we had just left and I feel my breathing come out easier.

"Hey guys, guess who's here," Melody announces to a group of people sprawled out all over couches.

I recognize them as Melody's friends and other people she hangs out with. I smile politely and give a little wave as I take a free seat on the edge of a couch.

"Temi, it's so nice to see you. We've missed you," a guy with long dark hair says and I smile politely. I know he's just being polite. They most definitely have not missed me. After all, the extent of my 'relationship' with Melody's friends was just partying together with them every weekend.

Someone says something and the attention soon diverges from me, for which I am greatly relieved.

I am very conscious of Isa, leaning against the wall a little distance back. Her hands are tucked into her pocket and her eyes are observing me. She blends in easily, and nobody gives her as much as a second glance. She appears to be just some other college student. No one would ever believe that she's a bodyguard.

I am suddenly nudged from the side and I look up to see all eyes focused on me expectedly.

"Um, did I miss something?" I ask, awkwardly laughing, to hide the fact that I had just zoned out.

"We asked what you thought of Kanye's last album," some girl with chopped blonde hair says. I think her name is Amy or Alice... something along those lines.

"Oh," I say, pulling at a braid awkwardly, "I haven't listened to it yet."

"Oh," the girl replies.

The air is tense in a strange way. I'm confused and squirm uncomfortably under the weight of eyes on me.

I glance at Melody, who is seated opposite me. She has a panicked expression on her face and takes a sip out of the drink in her hands.

"I get it, it must be hard," a girl with purple hair says. I don't even know her name. I had never bothered to learn it, as I found her rather obnoxious.

"What is?" I ask. But I already know what she's going to say.

"Grace. Her death. How she died. I know it must be really hard for you."

My mind is spinning and I feel rage overcoming me. All this because I said I hadn't listened to Kanye's last album? I don't even like Kanye music and I only ever pretended to in order to fit in with Melody's obnoxious friends. I choose not to pretend to anymore, and it's because my fucking best friend killed herself?

"I can't imagine how I would be in your situation," the purple-haired girl continues to say, "I can only just imagine. My dog died a few months ago, and that was so hard."

Did she just say her fucking dog?

Melody looks even more panicked than she had appeared a few moments ago. I glance at everyone else and I see the pity in their eyes. I don't need their pity. I don't want their pity.

"You're right," I hear myself snap, "you don't know how I feel. You can't even imagine it. You're all too self-absorbed to manage that."

I get up then and stomp off. I push myself through sweaty bodies as my eyes prickle with anger. My body grows hot and I wonder why I had even come here.

I can hear Isa calling my name, but I ignore her. I just keep walking. I don't know where I'm headed to, but I just keep walking through the rooms in the house, roughly shoving people in my path till I feel a firm hand wrap around my arm.

Isa is in front of me. We're standing close enough that she towers over me. She looks down into my eyes, searching them.

"Why did you stomp off?" Isa asks, with the hint of an annoyed expression, "I don't think they meant any harm."

"Oh, fuck off," I say, angrily shrugging her hand that is still clinging unto my arm off me, "of course you would take their side."

Isa looks slightly shocked, as if what I said had caught her off guard.

"This isn't about sides, Temi. And even if it were, I would most definitely take your side."

It's my turn to be taken aback and the anger I am feeling seems to leave me.

"Really?" I ask.

"Of course," Isa replies, "It's my job. I am your bodyguard."

And just like that, the anger returns. Of course, that's what she's referring to- being my fucking babysitter-bodyguard. She doesn't really care about what I'm feeling.

A guy walks past holding a tray of drinks, and I quickly take one. No doubts, the drink is meant for someone else, but I don't care. And luckily for me, he does not notice.

Isa, on the other hand, doesn't seem pleased. Before I can think, she takes the drink from my hand and takes a sip from it.

"Hey! That's mine!"

"Not really," she replies, "and it's alcoholic."

"No shit," I say, giving her a 'duh' expression, "it's not like we're at a college party or anything."

"You're underage."

"And the sky is blue. Give me back my fucking drink, Isabella."

Isa cocks her head to the side slightly at my use of her full name, but she says nothing about it. She says nothing at all, but it's clear that she has no intention of giving me back my drink.

I raise my fingers to my temples, massaging them.

"Listen," I say, "I get that you're my bodyguard or whatever it is that you like to call yourself. But this is a college party and I'm a college student. Half the people here are probably underage. Underage drinking is something that happens here."

Isa does not hand the drink back to me, but there's a brief hesitation in her eyes. Before she can fully realize what's going on, I reach up and grab the drink from her, putting the glass up to my lips.

The burn of the alcohol on my tongue is something that I find comforting. It's a distraction that I embrace, and I keep my eyes locked with Isa's brown ones as I drink.

"Slow down," Isa says warily.

I flip her off, but pull the cup away from my mouth. Only because I don't want to finish my drink too quickly.

We stand together in silence for a while. The distant sound of music is still very loud, but the room we are standing in is a lot quieter and there are fewer people here.

"Why did you join the military?"

The question is sudden, and I wonder why I ask.

There is a silence from Isa for a while. I almost think she will ignore my question, but she replies.

"It's not what I really ever saw myself doing. I joined because it was the best thing for me at the time." Isa doesn't look at me as she talks. I nod my head, taking a sip of my drink.

Isa eyes me warily, and a small smirk creeps onto my face. I already feel a bit buzzed.

"Why did you leave?" I ask.

"You should slow down when drinking that," Isa says instead, avoiding answering my question.

"Maybe you should get a drink yourself so you wouldn't be so uptight," I reply coldly, before gulping down the remaining contents in my cup.

Isa frowns slightly. "I'm on the job."

"Yeah, you're always on the job."

I try to walk off, but stumble slightly. Like the heroine she is, Isa is immediately at my side. Her hands are on my hips in order to steady me.

"You need to be more careful," she says. Her voice is low and her brown eyes are studying me.

I know I'm drunk then because I inch closer, wanting to feel more of Isa's heat. To my surprise, Isa does not pull away. Instead, she stays incredibly still as I press my body towards her.

It is as if the temperature in the room has dropped significantly and I feel Isa's grip tighten on my hip. I am close enough that I can see the way her throat moves slightly when she swallows.

"Behave," Isa says. Her voice is barely above a whisper and it sounds forced.

"Why?" I whisper back at her. Alcohol is coursing through me and, in an erratic decision, I let my lips come into contact with her exposed neck.

A low sound escapes Isa's lips and her hands on my hips tighten, grabbing onto me rather roughly. Our bodies are fused against each other, and I can feel how both our hearts beat in sync.

"Temi!"

I immediately break apart from Isa at the sound of Melody's voice. She appears in view a few seconds later, looking absolutely out of breath.

"I'm so sorry about my friends," she says, "they didn't-"

"It's fine, Melody," I say hurriedly. My mind is spinning. I have since graduated from that whole incident. I now have bigger things to worry about- such as why the hell my lips were on the neck of my bodyguard.

"I know, it's just that.."

Melody's voice trails off in my head as my mind hurries back to Isa, standing a little distance away. I cannot make sense of the last few moments that happened. If not for Melody's interruption, Lord knows what else would have happened.

A feeling of dread crawls over me and I sneak a glance at Isa. She's not looking at me, but staring at the ground instead. She has a guarded expression up, but she's struggling to keep it there. I see confusion amongst other things that I cannot place in her expression.

I should  be trying to get rid of her. That is the whole reason we are at this party in the first place. Instead, I am doing... whatever the hell it is that I was doing with her a few moments ago.

Melody is still rambling. My heart is beating hard in my chest. Non-stop.

Before really thinking my actions through, I pull Melody towards me and kiss her.