Thanks fictionaladventures, who said the song "The Weight" by Shawn Mendes reminds her of this story.

DivingIntoBree for the amazing cover!

"Hey, what was all that about?" Anna asked quietly. Her eyebrows were furrowed over her mask as she peered down at me. "With Mercedes?"

"She said I looked nice."

"How thoughtful of her." She remarked dryly. "Oh, there's Ryan, gotta go."

She spun on her heel and briskly walked from me, covering her masked face. I glanced at Ryan who watched her in amusement. He turned, pretending to not have seen her. Cheat.

I took a sip of the punch and grimaced at the foul taste. As the drink got lower, the more spiked it became. People were putting anything they could in there, so now it tasted even more terrible. A yawn escaped me as I placed my cup on the table. I stumbled slightly to my left. A warm hand steadied me and I gasped, not realising someone was behind me. I was spun on my heel. His lips met mine in a rush. They moved together in complete synchronisation. He stepped back. I breathlessly looked up. The blood inside my veins froze.

The eyes behind the mask were dark brown.

—————————————-

What. The. Hell.

One minute, I was by the table, having a drink. The next, Aiden suddenly appears and thinks it's alright to kiss me? Um, excuse me? I'm practically back with Carter and the mother of his unborn baby is in the very same room as us. What the hell was he thinking?

After the passionate kiss, he took off from me. Okay, so I didn't see his face - it's dark and he was wearing a mask. But I knew those eyes. I knew those lips. It was Aiden.

I was still shaking. Should I tell Carter? I don't particularly want to have that conversation with him. Do I even need to? It's not like we're definitely together. I should. I need to. My stomach clenched at the thought of it.

The game was over now - I hadn't bothered hiding from Carter. I was still in shock. He had gone to round up the other's and we were about to head to the after party.

Unfortunately, we didn't win the tickets. Not that I really cared about that now anyway. Did I still like Aiden? I'm so confused. I couldn't be with him.

1- Because we have tried and tried before, it just doesn't work. Carter is too apart of my life. It's too hard.

2- He now has a child to think about. To my ex-best friend. Awkward? Extremely.

"Ready to go?"

And it's not like I am in love with him or anything. Yeah, I think he's attractive. Yeah, I think he's a nice, genuine guy (except cheating on me with my best friend, but hey, we're all as bad as each other, so I shouldn't pin that on him when I cheated on him too).

"Lacey?"

"What?" I asked, not having realised Carter and the two others had re-joined me.

"Are you ready to go?" Carter asked, placing a hand on my lower back.

"O-oh yes. Yeah, sure." I stammered. I stared at him. We were already on shaky ground. This would definitely push us over the edge.

My drunken mind decided then and there. I'm not going to tell him.

Anna gave me a curious stare. She knew something was up.

"Later," I mouthed to her.

We started to make our way out of the venue. I focused on keeping my feet steady as I was practically drunk. I glanced towards Mercedes. Aiden was with her, holding her hand. I grimaced, turning my head the other way. Are they together? I know they're having a child together, but it doesn't mean they're dating. And it's not like I kissed him. Although, well, maybe I did kiss him a little bit back...

Carter's mum was waiting outside and we all piled into the car. The warm air was a nice change to the fierce cold of the wind outside. I gripped Carter's suit jacket tighter around my body, still shaking despite the recent climate change.

We were making a quick pit stop at my house, so we could get changed into something a bit more comfortable for the party. Ryan and Carter were going back to his to get ready as well. I'll have a chance to fill Anna in and seek her advice. She is good with these types of situations. She's more reasonable than I am.

I slipped the cream coloured dress over my body, doing a little wiggle until the dress was sitting correctly. I glanced at the mirror, impressed that my makeup and hair still looked pretty good. Anna was wearing a tight, grey dress that showed literally every curve in her body.

It kind of annoyed me, if I'm honest. Not the dress, but her. She was so pretty. It made me feel inadequate beside her. Half the time I just felt self-conscious and gross. Not only did I feel like a skinny rat, her bubbly, out-going personality made me seem even more stand offish than I already was. In ways though, her constant chatter and smooth flowing words did encourage me to speak. She both did and did not boost my confidence. If that makes sense.

"Wow, who are you trying to impress?" I asked her with a laugh, as I shrugged into my black, leather jacket, firmly pushing back all my negative thoughts about my best friend. I've already lost one this year, I didn't want to lose another.

"We're ending our senior year. I'm impressing everyone." She smirked, sliding into her own, knitted jacket. It was going to be cool out tonight, but we still wanted to wear dresses. You just had to at the formal after party. You could say it was almost tradition.

My eyes had become slightly unfocused. I took another sip of my drink, although I really do need to slow down.

Mum had bought me these really nice boots back from when she was away. They were suede and knee high in length. They made me look taller than I was and made me feel way cooler. With my leather jacket, I was going to look pretty fresh.

"Woah, they are hot!" Anna gushed, leaning down and running her hands on the fabric. "Bitch I'm borrowing them soon."

I laughed as I began to re-do my lipstick. "I guess you can maybe borrow them. If you're lucky."

"You're not getting a choice in the matter."

My phone vibrated. I stumbled to my desk, trying to find it.

"It's in your hand, idiot," Anna laughed. "How drunk are you?"

"Carter says hurry up," I stated, ignoring her.

"Typical boys," she muttered.

We were practically done anyway. Just as we were exiting my room, Anna reefed me back. I cried out in shock, not having expected it. I grabbed the wall, as my legs suddenly becoming tangled together.

"What?" I whined, rubbing my arm.

"What was up with you before? You were acting like you'd just seen a ghost."

"Oh my God, you won't believe it!" I said, actually having forgot for a moment the whole thing had happened. "When we were playing the mask game, Aiden kissed me! Mercedes was right across from us!"

"What?" She squealed, her already ginormous eyes somehow getting larger. "For real?"

"Yeah! Isn't he like dating Mercedes now?"

"You guys are all so bloody confusing," she said in exasperation. "I give up."

"What should I do?" I asked as we began going down the stairs, ignoring her comment. "I can't tell Carter, he'll go ballistic."

"You need to confront Aiden."

"What should I say?" I asked, pausing at the front door.

"Um, bitch, what you kissin' me for?" Anna suggested.

I snorted. Okay, maybe drunk Anna doesn't quite give me some life-changing advice.

The car horn beeped.

"For Heaven's sake Carter, don't get your knickers in a knot." Anna snapped, slamming the door shut behind us.

The cold air slapped my cheeks and I hugged my jacket to me as I half jogged towards the car. The heated air inside felt really nice.

"You all ready to go?" Miranda asked.

"You bet," Anna smirked, giving me a wink.

Tonight's going to be interesting.

***

I was drunk. Like, really, really drunk.

I had planned to spend the night making out with Carter and dancing with Anna, but somehow I ended up being off with some girl named Olivia. I don't even know her. She's not in our year but somehow managed to make it to the party, claiming she was partnered with some guy in my year.

We had been game hopping, bouncing from beer pong, to never have I ever, to king's cup and so on. The drinking games had left me, well, drunk.

The flash of Olivia's iPhone camera almost blinded me. I staggered back, a million dots dancing across my vision.

"Sorry, that was blurry, go again," she muttered, shoving the phone back in front of our faces. I scrunched up my face and squeezed my eyes shut in attempt to shield myself from the fierce light.

"Aw!" she cooed, grinning from ear to ear. Her cheeks were crimson and her lips just as red, from the alcohol she was consuming. I squinted through the dots in my vision, vaguely able to see the image. It somehow turned out to be kind of cute. Except I did kind of look like a monkey. She was pulling a silly face, her tongue sticking out. "I'll send it to you later!"

"Yeah, okay," I said, not really caring too much.

"You're so cool," she said, pocketing her phone. "We should hang out some time."

"Yeah, sure," I said distractedly, searching for Carter. I had hardly seen him all night. I guess he was avoiding me a bit. We still had to talk. It seemed like he was just having a guy night. Which was okay, I guess. I'm lucky I found someone like Olivia to hang out with, seeing as Anna has been MIA with Ryan, doing God knows what.

Mercedes had, thankfully, not attended tonight. Not that I am aware of, anyway. Eventually, I was probably going to have to face her and sort through our issues. But honestly? I couldn't really be bothered.

"Hello, Lacey?" Olivia asked, her big, brown eyes mere inches from my own. "You, like, totally just spaced out."

"Huh? Oh, yeah, sorry."

"I was asking your advice on-" she stopped and looked at her phone. She quickly began looking around for someone. I quirked an eyebrow at her.

The bass of the music was beginning to give me a headache. I was heavily contemplating finding a room to pass out in.

"I have to go - it was nice meeting you Lacey!" Oliva said, kissing me on the cheek. It was sloppy and made me stumble. I didn't even have a chance to say bye before she was scampering off towards some guy I vaguely recognised.

I began wading through the clumps of sweaty bodies, trying to find Anna. I suddenly was feeling quite alone without having Olivia beside me. She was pretty cool and kept me company most of the night. Was a bit random, really.

A sigh left my lips as I was losing hope of finding Anna. I turned to go back to where I was, when I saw him. Aiden. As I was heavily intoxicated and not thinking clearly, I obviously thought confronting him in front of a public audience was appropriate.

I stormed towards him. Jabbing my finger into his chest, pushing my face close to his.

"Why the hell did you kiss me?"

He grabbed my wrists, stopping me from jabbing him further.

"Don't touch me!"

He tugged on my arms and dragged me towards one of the quieter rooms. He kept repeating "shh" as my protests became louder. Was he bringing me in here to kill me or something?

"Shut up for a second!" He whispered. I did as I was told. He dragged me further into the room. I snatched my hand from his grip and folded my arms defensively across my chest. I was swaying dangerously and his figure was blurry.

"Look, I'm sorry - I didn't plan for that the happen. I just... I miss you."

"Aren't you dating Mercedes?" I asked.

"Not officially."

"You still shouldn't have done it."

"I don't regret it."

"And you - what?"

"I love you," he murmured.

"Stop it, Aiden."

"Why?"

"Because it just doesn't work between us. We've tried. And tried again. It just doesn't, okay?"

He edged closer to me. I stepped back and somehow tripped, landing in a painful sprawl on my backside. He grabbed my hand, pulling me with ease, back to standing position. Before I had any time to react, he fiercely pressed his lips to mine. Okay, I'm going to say I kissed him back because I was drunk, not because I wanted to. Yeah, that's definitely the reason.

His tongue brushed mine and his hands tightened around my body. I gripped his arms, feeling his muscle underneath my fingertips. His hand ran down my back, landing on my butt. He squeezed it hard, making me gasp into his mouth. All the time we were together, he never did anything like this. It was always soft, gentle kissing. This kiss was hot and urgent, like he thought this was the last time he'd get the chance. He pressed his body to mine, gripping my head with both hands.

Suddenly, I snapped back to reality. I stepped back breathlessly, feeling guilty but yet, slightly exhilarated. I kind of liked doing something reckless. Something I wasn't meant to do.

That kiss just made Aiden hotter. I wish he had took some control like that in our relationship. Might have worked out a bit better if he didn't treat me like I was made of glass. Maybe that's why I find Carter so alluring? Because even though he treats me like a princess (sometimes), he knows how to take control.

He stared at me, his lips slightly parted, also breathless. Our stare was heated and I didn't know what to say. I quickly turned, planning on making a hasty exit, when I met eyes with Carter. He looked so hurt. I guess it has always been Carter with someone else. Although I had dated Aiden, it was when I was on the outs with Carter. But now that we were practically together, me being with Aiden was something different.

"Wow, Lacey." he said, his eyes watering. My stomach was clenched so tightly I felt like I was going to vomit. "You really know how to hurt a guy."

What the hell do I do now?

***

"Carter!" I cried out.

He strode from me, his back rigid. I attempted to run after him, but Aiden's warm hand swallowed mine.

"Don't go."

"Aiden, leave me alone. You've caused me enough trouble as it is."

"You kissed me back."

"Well, yeah, Aiden, I'm drunk!" I yelled out, slapping his hand away. "You know I've always been attracted to you, of course I was going to."

"You shouldn't have if you don't like me."

"I don't know what I want, okay? Just, let me go after him-"

"Why? I treat you better than he does! Trust me, it will be different this time-"

"You have a child to think about now. I want to travel, explore, live. I can't be tied down like that! Not when I have no idea who I am!"

"Lacey, come on." he pleaded, reaching out for me.

"No." I snapped, shoving him. My wrists ached in protest but the pain hardly registered in my mind. "You should have thought twice before fucking my best friend."

My words were like venom. The sting on his face was heart breaking. I couldn't help it though, I needed to get through to him. I needed to severe the ties between us, once and for all.

"Look," I said, feeling too guilty to leave things like this. I let my face soften as I stared intently into his eyes. "I'm a total bitch. You deserve better."

This time, he let me go. But now I had no idea where Carter would be. Probably long gone by now. I hastily dialled his number. Straight to voicemail.

"Carter," I whined, sounding like a seven year old. "Please talk to me. I'm so sorry. Call me."

I rang Anna but there was no answer as well. My heart was hammering inside my chest. I hope Carter wasn't about to do something stupid.

"Hey, Lace, you alright?" I turned, seeing a guy to my right. It took me a second to realise I went bowling with him once, when Anna and him were talking. Right now, I could not remember his name for the life of me.

"Oh hi, yeah, um, have you seen Carter anywhere?"

"Yeah I passed him like a minute ago. He was heading upstairs."

"Alright, thanks," I said, giving him an awkward pat on the shoulder. I jogged upstairs. I instantly regretting doing so, suddenly feeling nauseous. I bit my tongue, refusing to vomit. I had to find Carter and sort this out.

I reached the top and met his back. He was leaning into a girl's ear. I had seen her earlier. It was hard to miss her. She was a foreign exchange student from France. I couldn't even tell you her name. She was attending our school for six months as someone in our year had stayed with her in France six months prior. She had worn a bright, fuchsia dress with diamonties scattered across the top. It was a bit blinding, if I'm honest.

She grabbed his hand and tugged him towards a vacant room. My stomach was in knots by the point. My eyes were burning with the desire to cry.

He turned back. His eyes meeting mine. They were void of emotion. The old Carter that I finally had gotten back, was gone. He gave me his trademark smirk. The one I had grown accustomed to and hated.

A tear slid down my face. I began to walk towards him.

"Don't," I whispered, my voice breaking. "Don't do this."

He reached toward the door, never breaking eye contact.

In one fluid movement, he slammed the door in my face.

----------------------------------------------

This is some clips from one of my favourite shows ever and this character (the actor is actually the cast member I chose for Lacey) has been a huge amount of inspiration for Lacey! So, basically, this is Lacey in my mind.

Poem by naturallytaylore:

The knifes her friend

The knifes her pal

It helps her escape the pain of now

The tears and the sorrow

The lies and regret

But it's only temporary

The pain comes around again

She feels so alone

So small so weak

Lost in a daze

She cries and weeps

But here my words

Because gods above

Wanting you to live

So you can fly like a dove

Her wrists drips with blood

As she looks to the sky

And her hand grazes the knife

Before saying goodbye

She hands it to her parents

Shaken and destroyed

They hide it from her eye

So she doesn't listen to the evil little voice