Ariana’s POV –
“Justin, where are you taking me?” I giggle, holding his hand tightly. I stumble a little on my feet and Justin immediately wraps his arm around me, keeping me up.
“You’ll see Ari, I really am sorry for the other day,” he whispers in my ear, his adorable little face scrunched up with guilt. I shake my head and reach up with my hand, resting it on his cheek.
“Justin, it’s okay, honestly.”
“Are you saying that because you’re slightly tipsy?” He asks, a small smile on his face. It doesn’t quite reach his eyes. I shake my head a little too enthusiastically, my dark curls bouncing around my face.
“No JJ, I really do mean it,” I murmur quietly. He stops walking at the mention of my name for him and gives me a toothy smile. His eyes light up and he pushes me gently against the wall, dipping his head down so he’s eye level with me.
“I love it when you call me JJ.”
“Do you remember that time we all went out to your parents cabin… you were so drunk. I didn’t really know you well at that point but I went into the bathroom and there you were. Lying in the bath with the biggest bag of Doritos I’ve ever seen.” I chuckled, smiling at one of my very first memories of Justin.
“Yes I remember. You were asking me what my name was and I kept repeated, Justin James. Justin James.”
“You offered me your Doritos and carried on saying, Justin James. Hence why I called you JJ for so long,” I grin, pecking his lips lightly.
“Even though I was wasted, I remember thinking how beautiful you are,” Justin smiled, his fingers lacing tightly with mine. I squeeze his hand and he sighs, resting his forehead against mine.
“Our first kiss was in that bathroom.”
“How romantic,” I snort before slapping a hand over my mouth. I let out another deep laugh and Justin joins me, both of us looking like a love sick couple. A few moments pass and Justin’s laughter dies down, his features turning serious. I qui-eten myself and know he’s about to tell me something –
“Ari, we don’t have to do anything anymore unless you really want to. I’m not with you for sex, I’m with you because I love you. I don’t want to lose you,” he says firmly, his eyes clouded with distress and turmoil. My heart warms at his words and I pull his head down from the back, pressing his lips against mine. They feel safe and warm. My stomach twists in knots slightly as I know he’s expecting me to say it back to him, say that I love him too.
But I can’t.
I do care for him, so much. I just don’t know if I love him yet. Love is such a big word that involves so many heart strings and feelings. Before I commit to loving someone, I want to make sure I 100% mean it.
“Do you want to come with me tomorrow to view the apartment?” I breathe out against his lips. He immediately nods, his hands resting against my waist.
“I’ll go anywhere with you.”
I feel the weight on my shoulders lift and my body become lightweight. I love it when things between me and Justin are good. I keep my hand firmly in his and we make our way back to the club, smiles on both of our faces.
“Where did you want to take me?” I ask him, confused that we didn’t really go anywhere. He shakes his head, stumbling a little on his feet from his tipsy state.
“You know what? I can’t remember,” he chuckles, running a hand through his hair. We both enter the club, the loud beats of the music blasting through our ears. We head for the bar and Justin buys me and himself another drink. A warm hand on my back causes me to jump and I spin around, coming face to face with Alex. My eyes widen –
“Alex!” I smile, my stomach twisting with knots. His dark eyes are staring at me so intently, I feel like I’m the only person alone in the room with him. I suck in a breath, the drink in my hand shaking from my unstable grip. He looks concerned, wary. He takes a step forward to lean into my ear and his intoxicating scent causes me to swoon, stumbling on my feet.
“Are you okay?” He murmurs, his low voice sending shivers running through my body. I close my eyes and remind my-self to breathe. I don’t even notice the drink being plucked from my hands. When I open my eyes, two sets of eyes are staring at me.
“Ari?” Justin asks me, confused. His eyes are flickering between Alex and I and I see the confusion building up inside them.
“Justin, this is Alex,” I smile tightly. Justin barely glances at Alex for longer than two seconds before turning back to me.
“The guy outside your work place? What is he doing here?” Justin asks, his words sounding defensive. I shrug because even I don’t know what Alex is doing here.
“How do you know Ariana?” Justin spins towards Alex, tilting his head. He isn’t a match for him, Alex is tall and broad, muscly. When Justin is slightly intoxicated, he thinks he can take on an entire army. I place my hand on Justin’s arm, tug-ging him back.
Beside me, Alex is still staring intently at me. His chocolate brown eyes are burning brightly with a flame and I can’t stop myself from shivering despite the heat in the club. He finally tears his eyes off me and looks at Justin, his face expression-less.
“My bad, I had her confused for someone else.”
And with that, he turned around and walked away without another glance at me. I watch him disappear into the crowds, his black leather jacket hanging loosely over the broad definition of his back. I tell myself to shrug it off but I can’t get the image of his eyes out of my mind. Why did it feel like I’d been punched in the gut when he walked away?
“Who is that guy? Is he stalking you?” Justin asks me seriously, his eyes turning shades darker. I shake my head, frowning.
“No, of course not. He’s a customer at the coffee shop, I see him around.” I shrug, deciding to leave out the part where I saved his life. I don’t know why I wasn’t being entirely truthful with Justin.
“Who did he think you were?” Justin asks, snaking an arm around my waist possessively. I have the urge to roll my eyes but I don’t and instead slowly push myself away from his tight grip.
“I don’t know Justin. Go ask him if you’re that bothered about it,” I mumble, heading in the direction of my friends. Justin follows me closely behind, his eyes still scanning the crowd for another sight of Alex.
I don’t want to admit it but I’m doing the same thing too.
*****
I don’t even know what time it is.
It’s been hours, hours of drinking, laughing and dancing. My feet are starting to hurt so I take a seat in one of the booths, my body swaying from my drunken state. I let out a giggle and attempt to finish off my drink through the straw. My mouth won’t seem to line up with the straw and it jabs me in the cheek instead.
“Ouch,” I giggle, rolling my eyes at myself.
“Silly Ariana,” my friend giggles, her eyes fluttering closed as she leans back against the cool fabric of the booths. I nod, agreeing with her as I scan the crowds for the rest of our friends. The club isn’t as tightly cramped however everyone re-maining is fully intoxicated, including me.
I stand up, the air inside the room suddenly becoming too clammy and sweaty for me to handle. I use the table to support my weight but I still end up stumbling, my legs unable to walk in a straight line.
“I’m just going out for some air,” I mumble to my friend who’s passed out on the booth, her blonde hair messily ruffled in her face. I slowly stumble towards the door, muttering apologies to everyone who I bump in to.
“Justin?” I call out, my voice wobbly. I need to go home, I need to sleep. I look around for him desperately but he’s no-where to be found. Instead I step through the glass doors, the cold night air hitting me hard. I suck in a breathe and stumble past security, heading down the road. I’m using the wall to steady myself but my vision is blurred, shapes morphing into one.
“Hey sweetheart, do you need some help?”
I spin around, meeting eyes with a stranger. He’s tall and massively broad, his body three times my size. I watch his eyes roam my body, becoming hungry. I shake my head, trying my best to act sober.
“No, I’m meeting my boyfriend right now.”
“What’s your name?” he smiles, dimples appearing in his cheeks. From the sparkle in his eyes, I know he thinks highly of himself.
“Cinderella,” I mumble, craning my neck to look out for Justin. Where the hell is he?
Dimples laughs at me, his lips tugging upwards into a smirk. I resist the urge to roll my eyes at him, he doesn’t realise I’m being sarcastic. I pulled my phone out and text Justin quickly, asking him to meet me outside.
“I’m finishing the night off back at mine if you want to come along?” Dimples asks me, taking a step closer. My eyes wid-en and I pretend to look confident, cool. I wave his suggestion off with my hand –
“That sounds great but I’m meeting my boyfriend here, like any second now.”
I emphasise my words in the hopes that he leaves me alone but he doesn’t. He clears his throat and looks over his shoulder to see if anyone is walking towards us. The road is empty beside from security at the far end.
“I don’t see anyone…” he trails off, his words becoming slightly icy. My mouth dries out and I swallow the lump in my throat, taking another step back. I end up stepping into a abandoned doorway, shielded off from anyone’s view. Crap. I quickly check my phone and grit my teeth in desperation, Justin hasn’t got back to me yet.
“I’m going to go back into the club,” I mutter, my heart thumping against my chest. I take a step forward to walk away from Dimples and his hand shoots out, holding my wrist.
“Let me touch you sweetheart,” he whispers in my ear and I want to vomit. I feel the bile rise to the back of my throat and his words echo in my mind.
“Please, let me go,” I whisper, tears welling up inside my eyes. Dimples notices the distress on my face and to my amaze-ment, he lets go.
“Sorry,” he mumbles gruffly, taking a step back. I look up at him wide eyed, my hands shaking profusely in front of me.
“You’re letting me go?” I whisper and he nods, gritting his teeth and motioning for me to walk away from him. I exhale deeply and take a step forward, stumbling on my heels. I want to crawl into bed and forget. In that moment, a dark SUV drives past us slowly before coming to a screeching halt. The door swings open and I press myself back into the wall, fear filling my eyes.
“Hermosa.”
Alex.
“Oh god, Alex,” I breathe out, running up to him. I fling my arms around his neck, the tears of relief staining his jacket. He smells amazing and his strong arms hold me tightly, keeping me pressed against him. He breathes heavily against my chest, burying his face into my hair. I shiver from his touch, from the closeness of our bodies.
“What’s wrong baby girl?” He murmurs down my ear and I feel my legs buckle underneath my weight. Did he really just say that or is this my drunken mind hearing things… In one swift move, he picks me up in his arms, never once stumbling or pausing. His other hand reaches for the passenger door and he slides me in to his seats, his face and body hovering over mine.
“You good?” He says quietly, studying my face quickly. He reaches up and brushes away the tears on my face and I suck in a breath, murmuring sounds of pleasure from his touch. My body is heavy with sleep, the alcohol in my system causing my eyes to flutter shut.
“Yeah, t-that guy – Justin – oh god,” I frown, my hands reaching up to cover my face. If I wasn’t drunk, I’d be so embar-rassed. Alex sighs heavily and suddenly the warmth of his body disappears and I hear a car door slam. My eyelids strain to stay open but I physically can’t. I hear muffled bangs and yells from outside the door before the drivers door opens again. Alex slides back in, shaking his fist. He turns to look at me, a slight smirk on his lips.
“Goodnight hermosa.”
“Goodnight Alex,” I whisper back, hearing him mutter faint words to someone else in the car. Who that is, I have no idea.