CHAPTER 7
"But where do you want to go?" Victor asked Richard as the two friends stood in the doorway of room 316.
"We can sneak passed the teacher and take a taxi and go to a club." Richard said it matter-of-factly.
"Well, how do we get passed the teacher?" Victory asked sounding a little more enthusiastic about the whole plan.
"We'll tell him that Raven doesn't feel well and that she would feel comfortable if we stayed with her. Then he will be forced to leave us. Of course he will have a hotel staff member watched after us."
"And then what?"
"Well…I already worked my magic on one of the female staff members when we arrived. She couldn't resist my charm." Richard looked so arrogant at this moment that if Raven had been there, she would have hit him.
"Tch, yeah right. Like your looks alone got her to give into to you." Victor teased.
"Okay, so I might have slipped a fifty…two fifty's." Richard admitted.
"You've been planning this since the shuttle ride, haven't you?"
"Guilty as charged…" Richard smiled.
Victor laughed.
"So how about we go get Rae?" Richard asked with a wink.
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"That is the biggest bull shit." Raven scoffed at the two boy's plan. "One, it'll never work. That worker you oh-so-cleverly bribed will most likely tell. Two, why would I go clubbing?"
Raven had a point. She wasn't a big party animal.
Victor opened his mouth to respond, but Richard cut him off.
"Let me handle this. One, yes it will work because…let's just say I have my ways. And two, I know you want to. But it's ok, I won't force you to admit it." Richard smiled and then winked at Raven who narrowed her eyes at him.
Victor, who had been watching the two converse, was now laughing quite hard.
"Why are you laughing?" Raven asked, a little irritated.
"I can't believe that Richard gets so many girls with the way he talks."
Raven chuckled in the truth that Victor had pointed out.
"Hey, I'm not that bad!" Richard said in defense, his tone carrying a hint of whining.
Raven and Victor ignored him as they walked into their separate rooms to change.
"I'll be out here…waiting."
Raven wasn't too sure what to wear because she didn't go to clubs often (more like never.). But it's not like she was stressed about it either. She just chose the first thing she touched. Well, the second. The first thing she touched was her swimsuit. She put on one of her few mini skirts. It was a pleated black one. And it was not a slutty length. It suited Raven. It was not short, short but it showed off her long legs all the same. She slipped on a pair of black fishnets and knee high platform boots. She then slipped a short sleeve black shirt with a long sleeved white shirt with thumbholes underneath the black one.
She looked at herself in her hotel room mirror and outlined her entire eye with eyeliner. She stepped back to look at herself.
"Yep, definitely scary enough to keep guys away." She smiled to herself.
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Well, the plan had worked. The staff worker had kept it on the down-low. Victor had flagged down a taxicab. With his height and long arms, it was easy for a taxi to spot him. Richard had heard about a good club that unlawfully ignored I.D. Plus all that Richard had to do was run the fact by the bouncer that he was Richard Grayson, son of Bruce Grayson, billionaire of Gotham.
When they pulled along side the sidewalk, Richard was the one to pay the man before opening the door to the cab and exiting. The three waited in the long line to enter the club. An hour passed by and the sky became darker. Raven had been quiet while the two guys talked about sports. Or was it girls. Well, whatever boys talk about. She grew increasingly uncomfortable as her eyes scanned the line of teenagers and young adults. Everyone looked too happy and wild…and then there was her. The loner.
'Damn, why'd I let Richard and Vic drag me here?'
Some asshole bumped into Raven. She crashed into the wall. She tried to be invisible so that she wouldn't attract any embarrassing attention. It helped that she was already invisible to start with.
They reached the end of the line. Richard was so relaxed as he flashed his I.D that said his full name. The bouncer raised his eyebrow in realization of who it was and stepped aside to let the three go.
"Let's get this party started!" Richard's fervor for the party life sometimes scared Raven. She never really hung around with a wild group so this was all new to her.
The club was dim but you could just make out the silhouettes of the people dancing out in the middle, their body meshing into one. The music was loud and the base was pounding in Raven's ears. There were lights that flashed over the crowd like a spotlight. The bar was to the side of them and some booths were on the other side of the bar. It was hard to hear each other over the hum of music so you had to shout; even if the person you were talking to were just a couple feet away.
To Raven's surprise, she kind of found a rush in the scene…KIND OF. She liked the fact that it was dimly lit so it would be hard for people to notice her. And the crowds and crowds of people just disguised her even more.
'Maybe I'll just slip away when Victor and Richard aren't looking.' Even though she found some interest in the club scenery, she still had a hard time with being around the buzz of people. She was what you call an introvert. She hates the thought of being with a crowd of people.
Raven saw an open booth. She motioned for the others to follow. She slid into the seat and propped her head on her hand. She felt just a tad dizzy. The mobs of people that were packed to tightly that they bumped into each other constantly, was overwhelming for Raven. Like I said, this was her first time. She looked up to find that she was alone. She abruptly turned around in her seat to search for the two missing guys.
'They must've lost me in this crowd.' Raven thought, but she found it hard to believe considering that the walk from the entrance to the booth was nothing. She turned back around and laid her head down, her arms making a pillow.
'They'll find me.' Raven told herself.
"Hey." Came a voice from beside Raven.
'Oh crap.' Raven thought.
She carefully lifted her head. Standing beside her was a guy that looked to be about 18. He was grinning and held two glasses of what she could only assume was alcoholic.
"Want some company?" He didn't wait for an answer. He slid into the seat in front of her. He coolly lifted his arm and rested on the back of the booth behind him.
"Um…actually I am just here alone." Raven meant that as an, 'I'm not looking to meet anyone' type of thing, but this was a club. You never came to clubs just to be alone.
"That's why I'm here. To keep you company." He slid the drink to Raven.
'This is unbelievable. I hope those two find me soon.' Raven hoped.
"Does this have alcohol in it?" Raven pointed to the glass in front of her.
"Sex on the beach." He replied taking a sip of his beverage.
Raven mind reeled from his sentence.
"What?" Raven was appalled that this guy would just out and say something so sensual.
"The drink. It's called sex on the beach."
Her heart slowed to its normal pace.
"Oh." Raven mentally kicked herself.
"So what's your name, baby?" He leaned in across the table.
'This guy can't be for real. Baby?' She laughed at how pathetic this guy was.
Raven came back to her senses. She decided it was time to end this little 'get together'.
"None of your business. Now leave me alone!" Raven shouted.
"Playing hard to get? I know this game."
"Ugh. You won't stop!"
"Nope."
It was too dark to see what he was doing, but Raven was pretty sure it looked something like he was smiling from ear to ear at how "clever" he was.
"Wanna go back to my place?" He leaned closer. Raven scooted as far back as the seat would let her. 'Oh my god! He has got to be drunk!' He leaned over the table even more. Their faces a short distance apart. Raven franticly moved. She slid out of the booth.
But as she turned to walk away, she felt a big hand with a firm grip wrap around her wrist. Her heart skipped a beat. This freak is touching her! She did what seemed just. She spun around and slugged him square in the face.
"Now leave me alone you-" Her voiced trailed off as she realized her mistake.
"OH MY GOD! I am so sorry, Richard!"
"I know you hate me…but…" At least he had a sense of humor even when he got slugged.
Richard was holding his nose.
"I'm so sorry, I thought you were this guy who was hitting on me so I freaked out."
"Hold on. A guy hit on you. Where? Who?"
"Never mind. Just come on. I'll get some ice." Raven grabbed his wrist and lead him through the crowd to the bar.
"Hey, what can I get you?" Asked the bar tender wiping out a glass.
"I just want some ice." She replied.
He nodded and bent down.
Raven pulled Richard to the counter and sat him on one of the stools. Even when he sat down he was a little taller than she was. He was still holding his nose.
"Here, tilt your head back so the blood stops flowing." Raven said softly. She gently tipped his head back. The bar tender passed her a cup full of ice.
"Can I get a few napkins too?" She asked, noticing that Richard's nose was bleeding pretty badly.
Raven felt so guilty. She had seriously slugged the wrong guy. I guess she was as scary as she thought in her clothing.
"Where's Vic?" She asked.
"He's in the bathroom. I told him to meet us by the water fountains over there." Richard pointed to a far corner.
The bar tended came back with two hand fulls of napkins. Raven took a few and lightly pulled his hand away from his nose. It was defiantly bloody.
"Sorry." Raven said again.
"Don't worry about it." Richard said kindly.
Raven handed him the napkin. He held it to his nose. She took another napkin and then snatched an ice cube from the cup. She spread it on the napkin until it had melted and the napkin was damp. She held up his free hand and began to wipe away the blood.
"Why didn't you just get water?" Richard inquired noticing the cup of ice.
"Cause this way, I can also chew on the ice." She smiled at how dorky that sounded. He laughed as he raised his eyebrow at her.
"What? I like sucking on ice…" She said, popping one in her mouth.
Raven took the bloody napkin from Richard and handed him another.
"Does it hurt?" She still felt guilty.
"No. I'm fine, seriously." He insisted.
"Hey, ya'll…Wow, what happen to you, dude?" Victor said returning from the bathroom.
"How'd you find us?" Richard ignored his question.
"I looked…" Victor teased. "But seriously, what happened?"
"I ACCIDENTLY punched Richard…" She emphasized the accidentally so Victor would know that she did it unintentionally.
"Ooooh! Richard was slugged by a girl." Victor laughed. Richard took away the napkin for a few seconds to make a face at Victor.
Victor leaned against the bar's counter. He ordered a beer. It's a good thing Victor looks older than he really is. Well, close enough.
Richard removed the napkin from his nose. The bleeding had stopped. Raven had just finished cleaning the dried blood off of his hand. He looked down at her. Raven looked away. She still wasn't sure about Richard and she didn't want to let herself slip again.
Victor nudged Richard. He was caught off guard as Victor elbowed him. Richard turned his head to look at Victor.
"Check it out!" Victor whispered excitedly as he pointed to a group of girls. One of the giggling girls smiled at him. He gave a little wave and wink. "Excuse me." Victor grabbed his beer and made his way to the girl who had smiled at him.
Richard turned his attention back to Raven. He took Raven's fragile hand in his strong hand. Raven tense at his touch. She looked at him with surprised eyes that actually looked like they held a hint of fright. Richard was surprised at this emotion that he saw in her eyes.
"Why are you scared of me?" He asked in his serious voice.
Raven hesitated at his question. She was so used to him being the goof off, and now he looked so solemn.
"I-It's not you. I'm not…afraid…of you…" Raven said looking away again.
"Then why do you like me one second and then avoid me the next?" Richard was gently rubbing Raven's hand with his thumb.
Raven had to think about it for a minute before answering him.
"I guess I am afraid. But not of you…I just haven't…" Raven stopped realizing how stupid she sounded.
"What?" Richard asked.
Raven knew exactly what she wanted to say. She was afraid because she had never been in an honest relationship where the guy loved her just as much as she loved him. It was always that she couldn't have him because she was…well…Raven. Nobody ever really accepted her because she was different. It's not that she was feeling sorry for herself, she just was being careful.
"Are you for real, Richard?" She looked into his eyes. She had to know.
"What do you mean?"
"Do you, Richard Grayson, actually like me, Raven Roth."
Richard smiled down at her and pulled her closer. He stood up and leaned in.
"Why? Is that so unbelievable?" He breathed into her ear. She didn't answer. His lips were on hers before she could even try to answer.
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A/N: Here's the next chapter. Hope you enjoyed. It's not longest but it's definitely longer than the previous. Thank you for the kind reviews. THANK YOU!!!! Sorry again for the shortness of the prevous chapters…homework sucks.
