Chapter six: Blame it on the vodka (Avery's POV)

We were all hanging out in Sophia's room, deciding plans for tonight. "Why don't we go take a walk or something?" Lia asked. 

"Okay, just because some people think Rome could be a little boring sometimes, doesn't mean we can't do something fun in it," I laughed. 

"Ice Club!" Sophia exclaimed. 

"What?" Lia and I asked in sync. 

"I was looking for clubs nearby and there's one like 8 mins away by car. It's called Ice Club, seems pretty good," she shrugged. "And since we're in Italy..." she trailed off with a smirk. 

"What?" Lia asked in confusion. 

She really can be dumb sometimes. 

"The legal drinking age in Italy is 16 years old," I informed her. 

"We're going!" Lia exclaimed. 

I guess we're going. 

Alcohol and I don't mix week. I don't normally drink but when I do, I become a wreck. 

"And we are drinking," Lia gave me a pointed look. "It's rare to be able to drink legally, alright?" she nudged me. 

"Alright, but I am not to blame for my actions or your hangovers," I sighed while standing. 

"Meet downstairs in an hour?" Lia asked. 

"An hour?" I asked in shock. We're getting that kind of ready? 

"Yeah," she shrugged. 

We stepped into the elevator and I got off on my floor. I was walking to my room when I heard heart-filled laughter. I looked behind me to see the guys walking down the hall as they laughed and stumbled. I don't know if they always act drunk when they're laughing or they're always drunk when they're laughing. 

"Hey," Ryder smirked as he walked past me, giving me a wink. 

I rolled my eyes as I opened my door and went inside. "Okay, where is that dress?" I sighed to myself as I sat down on the floor in front of my suitcase. I looked around for a little bit and then I found that red dress. It wasn't too fancy. It stopped mid-thigh, it was a flowy, lightweight dress with two thin straps holding it up at the shoulders. 

I took it with me into the bathroom and slipped into it before letting my hair down. Lia even made me bring a flat iron. Now I know why. I plugged it in, almost getting the life shocked out of me, literally, before I brushed it through and spent 30 minutes straightening it. Then I put some makeup on and realized that I didn't bring any heels. 

I grabbed the room phone and called Lia. She's definitely the one who brought heels. 

"Hello?" she asked. 

"Hey, do you have an extra pair of heels? I didn't bring any," I asked while lying on my stomach, rocking my legs back and forth. 

"Yeah, I'll drop them off," she replied. About five minutes later, she showed up. "There you go," she dangled the golden heels in my face. I hate heels, but shoes don't go with this look. "Okay, I'm gonna go put my dress on," she began walking away. 

"Hey!" I stopped closing the door and listened. She was talking to Colton. 

"Where are you guys going?" he asked. 

No, no, no. Don't tell him. Lia, come on. 

"Ice Club. Are you guys going anywhere?" she questioned. 

I facepalmed while silently closing my door. 

There's still a chance that they won't go. Right? 

~~~~~ 

"Thank you," I smiled politely as I got out of the car. William had just dropped us off and would pick us up when we called for a car. Until then, the night is ours. We went inside and headed right to the bar. 

"Can we get three shots of vodka?" Lia asked. 

Oh god, here we go. 

Cut to about twelve shots later. I can barely stand, I'm just sitting here, watching people dance. "Come on," Soph slurred, pulling me to the dance floor. People don't even dance in clubs. They just grind against other people and jump up and down. After about forty-five minutes, I think, I was way too dizzy to dance so I just sat back down. I put my head down on the counter and sighed. 

"Can I get a margarita, please?" I grinned up at the bartender. 

"Coming right up," he replied with a slight accent. 

I leaned my cheek on my arms that rested on the counter and watched as people jumped around and screamed random words to lyrics they didn't know. My sightseeing of the drunk people was cut off when someone took a seat next to me. I looked up with a pout. 

"Hey," he smirked. 

"You?" I groaned, facepalming. 

"Are you drunk?" he laughed. 

Is he serious? 

"No," I waved my hand dismissively. 

"Stand up," he demanded. 

I stood up slowly and maintained my balance. "See!" I grinned before plopping back down in my seat. 

"You're drunk," he concluded. 

"Here you go," my drink was placed in front of me. 

I grabbed a straw but then he took my drink away. "Hey! That's mine!" I whined. 

"You're already wasted, I don't think you need another one," he chuckled. 

"But it's a margarita. Those things are delicious," I pouted while plucking the slice of orange off the side of the glass and eating it before I looked around for the trash. I threw the peel in there and it landed straight in. "My aim is better than yours even when I'm drunk," I laughed. 

"So you are drunk," he nodded. 

I looked down guiltily. 

Yes, I am a child when I'm drunk. 

"Oops," I mumbled. "Do you have a hair tie?" I questioned while fanning myself. 

"Why would I have a hair tie?" he scooted his barstool closer to mine. 

"I don't know," I shrugged nonchalantly. I whined, "Oh, it's hot in here," I groaned. 

He finished the margarita before turning to the bartender. "Can I get three shots please?" he asked. As they were handed to him I immediately tried to take on but he grabbed my wrist. "Not for you, babe," he chuckled. He downed all three shots while I just sat there frowning. He turned to me in confusion. "What?" he asked in confusion. 

"You didn't give me a shot!" I whined while kicking around. 

"Have I told you how gorgeous you look right now?" he asked, completely diverting the topic. 

"Thank you," I grinned widely. "You look hot," I shrugged. 

He chuckled while watching me as I rested my head on my arms. 

He looks so hot. I'm about to make a huge mistake. 

"Avery," I sighed before sitting up. 

"What?" he asked in confusion. 

"My name's Avery. I sit behind you in English, and um-" I pulled my phone out and showed him the pending request. "I'm the one that didn't accept your request," I huffed. 

He quickly clicked the accept button before turning to me. "You're the girl that sits behind me in English?" he asked in disbelief. 

"Yeah, why?" I asked in confusion. 

"You're not the girl that sits behind me in English. You can't be," he chuckled softly, "She doesn't talk, she hides behind her books, avoids people, I've never heard her speak to anyone but you..." he sighed.

"You do talk. You talk a lot, you speak your mind, you don't hide behind anything, you're ballsy, you're not scared to be confronted or to confront someone, you say whatever comes to your mind, and you are very attractive," he chuckled. "How is that you?" he asked. 

It's the alcohol or his words but I wanted to kiss him. 

I stared at him in shock. 

No, Avery. You shouldn't. 

"Well, that's me," I shrugged while standing up way too quickly. I would've fallen but he caught me. 

"Don't run," he chuckled. 

"Um- do you wanna dance?" I cleared my throat awkwardly. 

"No, I wanna do something else," he stared down at me. 

I caught his eyes flickering between my lips and my eyes. "What's that?" I asked out of curiosity. 

"I kinda wanna kiss you," he said softly. 

"Do not kiss me," I stepped back and leaned against the counter to stay steady. 

"Too late," he whispered before grabbing my waist and smashing his lips on mine. 

This is bad. 

Not the kiss, oh not the kiss at all. The kiss was fantastic. 

But this is bad, very bad. 

I pulled away breathlessly. "I should not be doing this," I pushed him back slightly. "I don't even know you," I pointed out. I'm drunk, but not drunk enough to let this pass. 

"Do you have to?" he arched an eyebrow at me. 

This would be a lot easier if he wasn't so attractive. 

"Maybe not," I sighed before kissing him. 

He pulled away shortly after. "Do you wanna go back to the hotel?" he questioned. 

I looked around for Soph or Lia but neither of them were there. 

I mean, no one would have to know, right? 

It could be like it never happened. I stared up at him, contemplating what I should do. 

Should I? 

I suppose I could just blame it on the vodka. 

Right?

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Chapter five

Bad decisions coming right up