❝She made broken look beautiful and strong look invincible.

She walked with the universe on her shoulders and made it look like a pair of wings❞

Millions of lights glistered as I stepped inside, among the crowd. A big chandler was hanging above in the middle, twinkling brightly and faint soothing music dissolved in the air.

The walls were pastel and palest pink colored and decorated with glitter. On the corner there was a big bar, filled with various drinks and champagne.

Men and women dressed in their best formal attire were talking, dancing and having fun.

The party was huge and magnificent. From the beautifully expensive decoration to the numerous varieties of cakes and sweets, to heavenly smell of dinner, everything was just perfect.

Even Emma and Dave standing there in the middle talking to an old woman, smiling and laughing represented Perfection.

Emma was dressed in a breathtaking soft pink gown, kind of similar color to the party decoration and a white elegant tiara rested on her head gently.

Her one hand was on her baby bump, wrapped in silk fabric and the other holding Dave's hand, who was standing there cladded in a grey suit.

"Man it's crazy, isn't it?" Maria asked and came by my side, fixing her hair.

"Damn right it is" I muttered, still taking the scene in, stunned.

"What are you waiting for? Let's enjoy the party" Finn cheered and walked further, pushing past me.

I glared at him as he turned around and winked, still walking with his back facing forward. He was grinning at us, when he lost his balance and collided with an old man.

Letting out a loud laugh, Nate quickly went by his side to his rescue. The scowl on that old man's face was hilarious as Maria tried to stifle her laughter.

"I want to dance," Kate beamed, looking at Theo and dragging him to the dance floor. With a bored expression I turned around but didn't find anyone except Ethan in sight.

"I want to go back," I commanded in an unexpressive tone.

"And I want to go to the moon. It ain't happening babe, time to accept it" He said teasingly.

"Words cannot describe my hatred towards you" I told him with a straight face and glanced around.

He rolled his eyes with a smile kissing his lips and spoke up "Oh come on! don't be a party pooper. It's good to enjoy sometimes"

I turned to him as he took a step closer and instantly a frown found in it's way on my face. He let out a quiet chuckle, lowering his head and ever so slowly took my hand in his.

Intertwining our fingers, he tugged me forward to his side and started walking towards the bar, wordlessly.

"I still want to go back" My voice icy as I gave him a blank expression. Let go of his hand.

He didn't even look at me as he went to the bartender and said something in his ear. I huffed, letting go of his warm hand and let the coldness take over mine, then glared at him.

"What?" He asked me with an amused expression smeared on his face.

"I hate you" I muttered, looking away from him and crossing my arms over my chest.

"I pity your future boyfriend" He remarked. I narrowed my eyes at him as he took the drinks from the bartender.

"Well that if I decide to have one" I retorted, grabbing the glass of champagne from his hand and taking a big sip.

He raised an eyebrow at me, slowly bringing the glass to his lips and took a sip. Cherishing it.

"So, tell me wha-" His voice got interrupted

"ETHAN!" A voice called out. Tilting my head I saw a girl with rose gold hair walking towards us in her yellow off shoulder dress, which showed her pale skin perfectly.

Bouncing with happiness, she stalked towards us.

"Hey! How have you been?" That girl greeted taking a step forward and wrapped her arms around him.

"Great actually, what about you?" Ethan replied politely, pulling away from her.

Then looked at me and smiled, "Snow, this is Natalie. Dave's sister" He introduced gesturing towards the girl.

"Hii" Natalie giggled as I pursed my lips together in a thin line.

I tried my best not to show what I was feeling inside and muttered a "Hello"

Turning towards Ethan, she smiled brightly "Care to dance with me?" She spoke up grabbing his hand and pulled him on the dance floor with her.

He threw me helpless and anxious looks as she wrapped her arms around his neck and swayed her body.

Shaking my head, I let out a chuckle. A slow song started playing as I stood there, chugging down my champagne and looked at all the couple dancing.

Closing my eyes, I left the world behind, ignoring the lonely feeling I felt even surrounded by so many people. Was it possible to feel alone in the sea of people? What if I drowned?

"Hello" A voice rang, stopping me from escaping the people as I opened my eyes.

Turning on my seat, I saw a toned muscular guy in a charcoal suit smiling at me. His inky black hair was tied into a man bun.

"Hi" I greeted nodding.

"Would you like to dance with me?" He asked, taking a step closer to me and holding out his hand. Move along buddy.

"Actually I don't dance" I denied, tightly pressing my lips into a thin line and shook my head.

"It's just one dance," He urged.

"yeah but,as I said before I don't dance" I let out, gritting my teeth. Don't lose it.

"Please I insist" He closed the gap between us, grabbing my arm.

" Which level of fucking douchebaggery is this? Remove your hand " I shrieked as I tried my best not to make a scene and wriggled my arm. That guy was so dead.

"Come on, all I am asking is just one dance"

"I said remove your hand or I will rip it off and beat you to death with it" I threatened looking at him dead in the eye, venom dripping over my every word.

His face turned slightly pale as he quickly let go of my arm and fidget with his tie. Twisting my wrist a little I curled by hands into a fist, taking a step forward.

But, before I could do anything, an arm wrapped around my shoulder pulling me back with force.

"Annnnd that's enough fun for tonight kids. We have to go" His annoying voice chimed as he dragged me back to god knows where, leaving that guy standing there with a frightened face.

"What the hell are you doing here?" I barked in a cold voice and shrugged his arm off roughly, stopping in the middle, narrowing my eyes at him.

"What do you mean? I was invited!" His spoke up dramatically, his eyes shined as he smirked after seeing me scowl.

"Not that you idiot! Aren't you supposed to go and.." I trailed off not knowing what to say.

"Aren't I supposed to go?" He asked, tilting his head and raised an eyebrow at me, taking an interest.

"I don't know, bump into old people?" I shrugged.

"Ha ha very funny. See I can't stop laughing" He deadpanned

"Whatever. Why did you stop me?" I grumbled looking at the guy who was still by the bar with a drink in his hand.

Seriously if looks could kill, he'd have been staked, buried, dug up and then staked again for good measure.

"It's a good thing, I did. You were going to punch him, for crying out loud!"

"So what? Can I not punch him?" I muttered under my breath and looked at him with a bored expression.

"Nope. You certainly cannot" He told me, giving a stern look.

"What about if I scratch him, a deep bloody scratch on his cheek?" I smirked at him with determination.

"Now now stop with your violent thoughts" He rolled his eyes, once again draping his arm on my shoulder.

I tried to shrug him off, annoyed, but he didn't budge and laughed.

"Oh look" He spoke up looking somewhere, I followed his gaze and saw Margaret approaching us with a big warm smile on her face.

"Your-" Finn quickly shut his mouth, before clearing his throat and said "I mean Ethan's Mom coming"

He threw me a wide grin as he saw me struggling to get out his grip. What a jerk.

"Hello Finn, Hello Winter! Are you guys enjoying the party?" Margaret rejoiced, stepping by our side.

"Hey Margaret! Yes we are, too much actually" Finn beamed at her.

I squirmed trying to get his somewhat heavy arm off of my shoulder, but he stood unbothered.

"So what are you both up to?" Margaret asked, glancing back and forth between us.

"Nothing really, just making sure these kids don't hurt themselves" Finn chuckled under his breath.

I gave him a murderous glare, silently telling him to remove his arm, thankfully he got the message as he let go of me mumbling "or me for the matter"

Margaret giggled looking at him, then turned towards me "Winter, I must say you look spectacular tonight" She elated with a fond smile.

"erm thanks" I muttered, bashfully looking down at my feet. I didn't care about how I looked or what everybody told me, but for some reason her opinion made me really happy. Spectacular.

~~~

God knows how much time went by as I sat on the stool by the bar sipping another glass of champagne.

After Dinner, no one was in sight which left me wondering, where the hell did they die? People seemed tired as they slowly started to scatter away.

Letting a sigh, I hopped down the stool and decided to go look for at least someone, I know among the unknowns.

Passing those tired couples and men, I saw the main gate falling in my sight as I quickly went towards it with fast strides.

Stepping outside, I saw people rushing in cars, desperate to reach back home. Men carrying their children, with their wifes by their side. Some friends cheering and laughing getting in a cab, clearly drunk.

Turning my head, I looked around but saw no one. Disappointed I turned around to go back inside, but stopped in my tracks, when I saw a dark silhouette standing in the farthest corner in the shadows.

Frowning I moved towards it, trying to see who was there and as I stepped closer and closer, the mystery itself solved, revealing the culprit standing there with his back rested against the wall.

"I didn't know, you smoked" I voiced out, slowly approaching him.

"You don't know a lot of things about me, Snow" He replied, tiredly taking a drag of the smoke.

The cigarette lit between in his fingers, like a soul burning under his touch. It cried with joy, every time he brought it to his sinful lips, taking long delicate draws of smoke and released it mercilessly after using it.

"Touché" I muttered and went by his side, rested my back against the wall, leaving some gap between us and enjoyed the night air.

We stood there silently, just inhaling the contentment in, just enjoying each other's company. There was something in that moment which felt so calm.

The silence filling the air was peaceful as it seemed to silence all my tormenting thoughts.

"Wanna smoke with me?" He spoke up after moments of quietness. His voice sounded raspy, tickling my skin .

I chuckled, turning my head towards him and met those unrepentant striking eyes "Invitation to death huh?"

Looking down at ground he smiled lazily and murmured "I guess you can say that"

The moon above us sang chorus of a sweet lullaby and the stars danced in unison. The air around us felt as if the time had stopped, when we stood there staring at each other.

"Sure, I am in" I nodded my head with a teasing look.

Grinning, he let me take the cigarette from his hand and without hesitating a bit I put the thin paper stick to my lips, my throat tightened and felt dry as I inhaled the smoke in.

After holding the drag in, I blew out the smoke slowly. A warm and dizzy feeling settled inside me.

"So how was your night? Did you have fun?" He asked, murmuring in a soft throaty tone and took the cigarette from me gently.

"Of course! It was amazing!" I muttered bitterly.

"Are you okay?" I could feel his eyes on me from beside. Looking right through my soul.

"Yup yup" I rolled my eyes, nodding half heartedly.

I heard him mutter something incoherent, when he threw the cigarette on the ground and crushed it under the sole of his shoe.

"What? that's it?" I asked him to mouth agape.

"Yeah. Besides you already seem drunk" He joked and let out a quiet laugh.

The corner of his eyes crinkled into the most beautiful pattern of art as his face gleamed under the feeble rays of moonlight. His slick hair looked vaguely glossy, making me want to run my fingers through it. Snap out of it.

I didn't got the chance to fully enjoy that glorious sight, when a voice interrupted "Here you are, I was looking for you everywhere" Alex rolled his eyes

"What is it?" I asked, pushing myself off of the wall and straightened my dress.

"You guys, ready to go? Those party animals look about to pass out at any given moment" He grumbled, crossing his arms one his chest.

"Sure, let's go" Ethan announced, coming by side.

Tiredly walking towards the car, I waited for Alex and everyone to come out with a frown etched on my face.

"Weeeee will always stay together and laugh" Sharon's voice boomed, making my eyes widened as I realized that she was drunk, completely drunk.

Alex grabbed her, cursing loudly and tried to balance her weight and himself, walking out of the party.

"God damn babe, how much did you drink?" He asked

"Not enough! Lemme go back" She whined like a child, trying to escape from him.

Quickly letting go of him, she tried to run towards the entrance, but Ethan came in front, blocking her way, like a wall.

"Go back to your pretty little boyfriend" He spoke with a stern face, making Sharon pout.

Again a loud voice echoed in the empty sky as our head snapped at the director and saw Nate walking out of the party like a mad man.

"Stop right there you psycho! Stand still" Finn yelled from behind and went to hold Nate from walking further.

"I am standing still. The world is spinning round and round like a horse on carouseeeellll" Nate sang or well tried to sing as Finn struggled to control his best friend.

"Why the fuck am I friends with you? It's like being friends with a five year old!!" Finn exclaimed, running his hand over his face, frustrated.

"But five years old don't drink!" Nate countered and stuck out his tongue.

"Fine! being friends with a five year old who drinks, happy?" Finn yelled, extremely annoyed. I would be lying, if I say that I wasn't enjoying it.

"Is it even legal for a five year old to drink?" Nate turned towards him with a confused face.

"I don't want to go.. Please, let me stay. I swear I won't tell anyone about your pornhub subscription" Ethan choked on his laugh as I saw Maria being carried out in Theo's arms. The night was getting better and better.

Behind them was Kate, who had Maria's clutch and stiletto in her hands and a tired expression on her face.

"You've got to be kidding me! Is she drunk too?" I hollered looking at Maria and groaned

"No! I am not! You are just too blurry" She retorted jumping off of Theo's arm, but lost her balance and fell on the floor, smashing her face.

I cursed under my breath as she looked up with a pained expression and muttered "I am fine"

Theo quickly went by her side and picked her up, mumbling "Idiotic girl"

"Hmm you are so warm and cuddly" Maria sighed leaning into Theo's body and wrapped her arms around him. Kate rolled her eyes, but there was a cute grin on her face.

I don't know if maybe it was the cold air surrounding me or maybe it was the drinks finally kicking in, but in that moment, I craved a hug so bad. It was a weird feeling that suffocated me, almost like loneliness.

The extreme desire of the warmth, of that tight embrace was seducing me.

"Let's just go, I don't wanna witness any of this anymore" Ethan muttered, running a hand through his hair roughly and unlocked his car.

Nodding, Theo fished out the keys from his pocket, with a half asleep Sharon clinging to him and went to unlock his car too.

Our ride back home was an absolute, complete mess, with Maria whining that she wants to puke in the car and Nate singing 'Too drunk to fuck' on top of his lungs.

The car pulled in the driveway with Theo's car followed close as I quickly got out, feeling hazy.

Those drunken animals were carried out by others and brought in. Nate was still singing loudly as Alex tried to shut him up, because of the sleeping beauty in his arms.

Finn groaned walking inside, after them, massaging his neck lightly with his right hand.

I just stood there uncertain, not knowing what to do and feeling extremely confused about myself.

"What's wrong? Why are you standing here?" Ethan's voice called out from behind as he walked towards me with lazy steps.

"Nothing, it's just.. my head hurts a little. I am going to sleep now" I muttered, walking inside, pushing past him. My voice sounded unfamiliar to my own ears as I once again killed a small part of me.

I don't know about you guys, but yes I do get sudden cravings for hugs. Like I crave hugs in the most weirdest and strange situations, something is clearly wrong with me.

Anyway, hope you like this chapter, what do you think about those as Winter said and I quote 'Drunk animals?

Now imma go and study, got an important exam tomorrow. Pray for me, that I don't get panic attack and die. I mean, I still have to complete this book.

Bye, Take care little flies. Just smile :)

Love, Zee...