A/N: Soooo...when I said no Ashden kisses, I hope most of you assumed that I meant on the lips, because there are kisses in this chapter (and possibly in following chapters, can't remember), but none of them are on the lips. By the way, anyone else amused by the fact that I'm giving out Ashden warnings before chapters?

Spencer's boldness has only just begun! And yes, seeing more of what Ashley's really like definitely turned Spencer off for a moment there, but as we all know, it can't last too long, and neither can Ashley treating Spencer like a charity case.

Also, I think it'd be interesting to know what you guys' opinions are on happy endings vs nonhappy endings. This just happens to be on my mind due to the fact that this story could've gone either way at one point while I was writing it, and I eventually made a decision and now it's finished and definitely final. Personally, I'd have to say that when I'm reading a story, I generally prefer the happy endings, but when the occassion calls for it sometimes a sad one would fit better and in those cases it's cool with me (even though I might end up bawling my eyes out, haha). What do you guys think?

Anyway, here's chapter four!

When we get to the party, it's already in full swing. The inside of Aiden's house smells like beer and sweat, and Spencer's nose wrinkles the second we're inside, making it obvious that she's not used to this. "C'mon!" I shout over the music, pulling her through a crowd of people to the other side of the living room, where a large cooler is being manned by one of Aiden's basketball friends, Jack or Jason or something like that. "Two beers," I tell him, holding up the appropriate number of fingers in case he can't hear me. He hands me both of them, free of charge just because he knows me, and I offer one to Spencer, who looks hesitant but takes it anyway. "Try it!" I command once we're standing in a corner of the room, watching everyone dance. I'm tempted to join, but I'm not coldhearted enough that I'd leave Spencer alone by herself when she's obviously new to this.

She bites her lip and stares down at the bottle warily for a moment, and I nudge her encouragingly, taking a swig of my own for good measure. She watches me swallow, raises the bottle to her lips and takes a small sip…then immediately spits it out, just as Madison's walked up to talk to me. The result is a thoroughly pissed off Madison, an embarrassed Spencer, and a me that is trying very hard not to laugh.

"What the hell was that?!" Madison's giving me a look that's silently asking "Why are you here with her?" I choose to ignore it.

"S-sorry," Spencer stutters out, looking to me for help, and I manage to contort my expression into one of sympathy just in time.

"She's never drank before, Maddy," I offer in explanation. "I have some extra tops in my car. It's unlocked; you can just borrow one if you want."

"Fine," Madison spits out, shooting one last glare in Spencer's direction, before storming off in the direction of the front door.

"Alright, c'mon," I say quickly, grabbing Spencer's hand and pulling her towards the stairs, in the opposite direction of where Madison just went.

"Where are we going?" she asks loudly, looking briefly over her shoulder.

"Away from Madison," I laugh out. "I'm pretty sure there's nothing for her to wear in my car; I just said that so she'd leave without kicking your ass."

"Thanks?"

"Yeah, well…" I shrug, pushing a door I happen to know leads to Aiden's parents' bedroom. They must be out of town. "…No problem."

I close the door behind us once we're inside the room, shutting out the noise coming from downstairs so that we don't have to keep shouting at each other.

"I thought Madison was your best friend," Spencer points out, looking around the room awkwardly, like she isn't sure if we should be in here. I roll my eyes in response to her statement and down the rest of my bottle, then set it on the dresser next to me.

"I don't know. She's kind of a bitch. She's okay for fashion advice, I guess. Not that I need any."

"Right," Spencer says slowly, eyeing the bottle I just emptied and then glancing down at her own. She holds it out towards me all of a sudden. "Do you want this?"

"I have to drive you home," I remind her. "Besides, I got it for you. You should drink it."

"I don't drink."

I grin at her. "Yeah, I kind of figured when you spit it out all over Madison a minute ago. Seriously, though, drink it. You'll get used to the taste."

She raises an eyebrow. "How do I know you aren't just trying to get me drunk?"

"Maybe I am," I reply, smirking.

"Yeah, you are," she agrees with a sigh, staring down at the bottle again. "Alright. This is stupid, but I'll try it." With that, she pinches her nose and drinks the whole thing even faster than I downed my own. My eyes are wide by the time she's done.

"Wow. That was impressive."

She lets go of her nose and blinks a few times, wincing simultaneously. "That tasted awful."

"I know, but like I said: you'll get used to it," I promise her, turning towards the door. "Now you wait here while I go get a couple more bottles. I'll be back in a minute."

I can see her opening her mouth, probably to argue, but I duck out of the room and close the door behind myself before she can get a word in, then proceed downstairs to go find what's-his-name and grab some more beer.

I'm not even to the stairs yet when a hand grabs my wrist and yanks me backward, and for a second I think it's Madison, back to yell at me for lying to her, but then I'm being pushed backwards into the wall and lips are pressing against my neck insistently. I furrow my eyebrows, then shove Aiden away, glaring at him while he stumbles. Something tells me he's had a little to drink. "What the hell are you doing? Madison's gonna see you, you idiot."

"Don't care," he mutters hastily, pressing back into me again and trying to kiss me. I turn my head so his lips meet my cheek, then push him away again.

"Okay, but you're also buzzed right now. Go away Aiden; Spencer's here with me and I have to take care of her tonight."

He sighs, slumping against the wall. "Spencer? What the hell are you even doing with her, anyway? She's a loser, Ash."

"So? She's fun to mess with," I retort. "Anyway, I promised her I'd only be gone a minute, so I can't be off having sex with you…even though that probably wouldn't take more than a minute, either."

"Shut up," he snaps, cheeks flushing red as he steps towards me again. "Fine, I'll leave you alone. But you're coming over to my house tomorrow, alright? I haven't seen you in a week."

"You see me every day, Aiden," I say, rolling my eyes.

"That's not what I meant," he replies lowly, probably thinking he's being sexy or something. I have to stop myself from rolling my eyes again.

"Yeah, whatever. If I'm not busy, I'll see you tomorrow," I tell him noncommittally, heading for the stairs again. Luckily, he doesn't follow, and I'm not interrupted again, so less than a minute later I've gotten the beers and I'm back to the bedroom I left Spencer waiting in.

She's looking at the pictures on the nightstand when I enter, and I scoff when I realize it's basically just a collage of Aiden's parents smiling together. There are maybe a couple of pictures with Aiden in them, too, but I happen to know that his parents aren't really around too much and they basically let Aiden do anything he wants. This party is proof.

"Why are you looking at old people?" I speak right into her ear, and she jumps, obviously not having heard me come in. Her cheeks are pink by the time I get a good look at her.

"They're not old."

"They're forty-something. That's old," I argue, handing her one of my newly acquired bottles. She accepts it reluctantly. "I'd stay a teenager forever if I could. Especially since I'd always look this hot."

She rolls her eyes and pinches her nose again, replying only after she's taken a couple of gulps and then lowered the bottle. "I don't know. I think I'd rather be grown up."

I scoff. "You're crazy."

"Well, I've always wondered what it'd be like, being over eighteen. There's nobody around to tell you what to do."

"Hmm." I raise an eyebrow at her approvingly. "Good point. But it's not like anyone's around to tell me what to do, anyway."

She's silent for a while, chewing on her lip. "…My parents are pretty strict, I guess. I can't really blame them, though."

"Why not?"

She shrugs. "They're overprotective, but I know it's just because they care about me. Don't want anything bad to happen to me, you know?"

"Oh," I reply. "Yeah, I guess so. Our maid makes me sandwiches sometimes."

She takes one look at my serious expression, and starts laughing. "What?" she asks incredulously, and I wince inwardly when I realize that probably sounded stupid.

"Well, I don't have the whole 'loving family' thing going on so much, but at least it's something. And my dad takes me out every weekend to do something special."

"Oh," she says, her grin fading into a comfortable smile. "That's good. What are you doing this weekend?"

"Nothing; he's busy," I admit. "But most weekends, he's here. His favorite place is this bridge near the ocean; we go there and listen to the waves together sometimes. It's nice." I don't know why I'm telling her all this. I think maybe that one bottle had a larger effect on me than I originally thought.

"It sounds nice."

"Yeah. It's my favorite place to go, too. Just…when I need to think or something."

"I wish I had a place like that," she replies sadly, looking down at the ground before taking another swig from her bottle. I notice she's starting to slur her words a little, and I don't know whether I'm happy about that or not. On the one hand, I've been trying to get her to drink and I kind of want to know what a shy and quiet girl like Spencer Carlin is like when she's drunk. But on the other hand, I'm actually enjoying talking to her, and I can't remember the last time I actually liked having a conversation with someone. "But I don't get to leave the house unless it's to go do volunteer work or go to school. Otherwise, I have to have one of my brothers with me all the time."

"Why?" I question, offering her a third bottle now that she's finished the first two. Well, actually, she takes it from me without asking, which I guess kind of makes the decision for me: I'm about to see Spencer drunk. If I wasn't going to see her at school every day for the rest of this year, I might consider taking advantage. But one thing I don't need is another Aiden; one friend with benefits is already annoying enough.

She shrugs halfheartedly. "Like I said; they're protective."

"But why?" I repeat. "There must be a reason."

She laughs bitterly, taking yet another swig from her new bottle. I kind of wince, knowing she's not going to feel too good in the morning. "Not one I'd tell you."

I raise an eyebrow, scoffing loudly. "Whatever. You're drunk."