so stuff happens... they finally interact.

I used to really like parties. It's a great place to meet girls and I like free beer. All in all, a great place to be for a guy like me.

But did I mention that I hate parties now? They're horrible. The beer is shit, two drinks per person? What kind of shit is that? Oh and the music. It's fucking awful; it's just a terrible throbbing in my head. Too much bass and some of the worst lyrics you've ever heard in your life.

Thom pretty much stayed by my side the entire time, even though I know he wanted to talk up some girls, but he was still feeling guilty for fucking things up with Madge. Though I told him time and time again it was all my fault.

After tasting the Natural Ice they had bought I had given my beers to Thom. I couldn't even enjoy my two shitty beers at this shit-hole.

"Dude, stop torturing yourself like that," Thom muttered, his head cocked toward me. His eyes darted toward the source of my torture, Madge swaying her hips to the music, her head thrown back in a laugh at whatever Delly had said in her ear. I was just happy that it wasn't Mellark she was attached to. My heart dropped at the mere thought, the image suddenly popping into my head.

She looked absolutely beautiful tonight, not that she ever didn't though.

It was getting colder, wispy snowflakes falling from the sky just outside. You could hardly think about that when it was so sweltering hot inside of the house, with all the body heat accumulating.

Her eyes found mine for a second, her head jerking away at the sight of me. Now if that doesn't make you feel like shit, I don't know what would. I watched her whisper something into Delly's ear, and the girl immediately grabbed her hand, whisking her off the makeshift dance floor and out of the living room. I watched her boots take each step away from me.

I could feel Mellark's glare as I turned toward Thom. I didn't need to see anything in that direction now that there was nothing left for me to torture with myself now.

"We can leave if you want," Thom said, taking a sip of his beer. The remaining three sat at his feet. He was guarding them against any sneaky teenagers, who were just as upset about the two-beer rule.

I shook my head. "I just want to talk to her." If there was an opening at this stupid party I would take it.

Thom shook his head. "Well she's got two body guards you'd have to get through first. Your chances are not good, that I can assure you. If Blondie's not with Princess then her knight will be."

I narrowed my eyes at him, giving him a good punch in the arm for that one.

He rubbed his arm, keeping his mouth shut.

Ten minutes later, Madge returned, Delly leading her through the crowd. I could spot her anywhere. In a room of drunks, I could find her blonde head of tamed curls. She had kind of shocked me when she arrived, clad in a tight black dress. It was relatively tame, covering most of her skin, and what wasn't covered by the dress was covered by another article of clothing. The dress hugged her body, reaching a few inches above her knees, the sleeves hitting her wrists. It was sexy as all hell. It just wasn't something I could see Madge wearing. She wore bright colors. She wore white sundresses all summer. Her tights were black as well, thin as hell, they couldn't keep her warm in this weather, no way. The tights weren't even opaque, her skin showing through the stretched fabric.

Mellark grabbed her hand immediately, pulling her toward him. She nuzzled herself into his chest, effectively breaking my heart. He wrapped his arms around her, his eyes finding mine across the room. He looked like he wanted to pity me and shove his triumph down my throat all at the same time. Her eyes flashed toward mine for a moment and I watched as Mellark bent down to whisper something in her ear. Madge nodded, still in his arms, her eyes never moving from mine. It was shitty. She was being shitty, even if I did deserve it. She didn't have to act like this in front of me. I didn't care if she had been drinking or not, it was not the way you treated people, not the way Madge treated people. I imagined myself dragging her away from Mellark and her other bodyguard, but it wouldn't work. They would be on my tails within moments and I needed more than a second to get things off of my chest.

I lost her eventually in the crowd, allowing Thom to ditch me for a girl while I got some air outside. The air was crisp, the late autumn wind seeping through my jacket, no matter how many layers I wore underneath it. I was glad Posy hadn't pulled the gloves out of the jacket's pockets or I would be fucked. I smiled at the thought of my little sister's most annoying hobby. The cold brick behind my head seeped through my hair, leaving my scalp feeling cool. I should've brought a hat.

I texted Thom that I was heading home and to leave without me. I couldn't stand to stand in there pretending anymore. It was all fucked and I wasn't going to get any time alone with her, at least not tonight.

I stared down the alley. The house was on the border between the Town and the Seam and the walk shouldn't be too bad, even in this weather. I heard the back door shut and re-open I walked steadily toward the direction of the sound.

"I'll see you later, Del," Madge called out, her speech slightly slurred.

"Beau's gonna be mad at you for not waiting inside for him."

From the edge of the house I watched her eyes flash in delight. "Beau couldn't be mad at me. It's impossible. It's not like I'm ditching him. I'm right out here," she called out laughing. The door shut behind Delly and Madge walked to her car, her boots making imprints in the freshly fallen snow. I could hear the snow crunching underneath with each step.

"Have you been drinking?" I asked.

She turned around, dropping her keys in the snow by her left foot. Her head whipped around, curls flying everywhere. "Yes, officer. Now you can leave me alone."

I stepped forward, moving to grab the keys before she could. I figured I had a good chance since I hadn't drank much and she obviously had had more than the two allotted beers per person. She kneeled in the snow at the same time as I had dived for the keys, her small body pressing against mine. It would've been cute if she still liked me especially.

"Gale," she said, attempting to sound stern. "Give me my keys."

I shook my head, tucking the keys into the pocket inside of my jacket.

"You can't drive in the condition you're in."

Her blue eyes rolled. "I know that. I'm waiting for Beau. He's saying goodbye to all of his friends, so you can leave." The part of her sentence was practically growled in my direction. I took a step back.

"It doesn't have to be like this."

She narrowed her eyes at me, taking a step toward me. "Are you kidding me? You made it like this?" She paused, her eyebrows furrowing and her finger coming up to stab me in the chest. "You completely humiliated me, Gale. You took me for a fucking fool and I fell for it every single step of the way." Her voice broke. "You were supposed to be different with me. I wasn't supposed to be like the rest of them, but that's all I was." A tear fell down her left eye, glistening in the moonlight as it trailed down her cheek.

My throat tightened at her words. I had spent most of my time thinking about what Madge must be feeling, but to hear her actually say what I had done to her, resort our relationship to that, well it made me sick.

"It wasn't like that Madge."

She put her hand up, her palm staring me in the face. "Just stop. I don't want to hear it, Gale. This isn't a teen romance. I am not going to fall in your arms because you say sorry. What you did was shitty, really shitty." Small hands reached up, wiping her face clean of tears. "It's so fucked up, Gale."

All I wanted to do was wrap my arms around her, let her bury her face in my chest. I wanted to comfort her over myself, over what I had done to her, even if she was punching me in the chest to get out all of her aggressions that was fine. I just wanted her in my arms again. I pulled her in and she did just that. Small fists coming up to beat against my chest. My jacket did almost nothing to shield me from her hits. I would've grabbed her wrists to stop her, but I deserved it. I even deserved the slap that hit my right cheek. She was sobbing. I wrapped my arms around her, burying my face in her hair, breathing in the sweet scent of strawberries and an array of fruits. It had been so long, way too long since the last time she had been in my arms, close enough for me to breathe in her scent.

Her punches were coming at a much slower rate, but her arms stayed at her sides. We stayed like this for a few minutes. The snowflakes continued falling, completely covering mine and her hair.

She shivered, roughly pushing me away from her. I took a few steps back, failing to catch myself before I fell in the freezing grass. She looked down at me, her finger still stabbing as if I was still standing where I had been. "Stop fucking with me, Gale!" she cried, the tears glimmering on her pale skin. "It's over, alright?"

I scrambled to a standing position, grabbing her. I was desperate now, she had just said the last sentence I had ever wanted to hear. "You can't say that, Madge."

"I already did Gale."

I shook my head, my wet hair sending drops of cold water in every direction. "But I love you."

I could feel her entire body tense underneath my fingertips. "Don't-Don't say that." She pushed me away again, simultaneously stepping back and running her hand through her hair. "You can't say that, Gale!"

"I said it!" I stepped forward, taking her in my arms. I'd take any damage she could inflict upon me. She just needed to listen to me. "I love you so much Madge and I'm so sorry. I'm so fucking sorry."

She shook her head against my chest, attempting to push me away, but I held on to her, whispering my apologies against her hair.

"Just please, Madge. Give me another chance. Don't be with Mellark. Be with me. We can start all over again. I promise. I'll be better this time. You mean everything to me. You changed everything."

"And you fucked up everything," she murmured between sobs.

I stepped away, holding her face in my hands. "You changed the game and threw me a curveball."

She stared back, her eyes searching mine for a good thirty seconds before pulling herself out of my arms.

"I'm not a fucking game, Gale! This," she gestured between us, "should have never been a game." When she turned around she paused, finding Beau behind us. I had no idea how long he had been out there beside her car. I threw the keys to him before turning my back to the couple, burying my hands in my pockets.

xxx

I never made it home. I had sat on the swings right in front of her house. I watched the lights flicker on and off in her room, switching between the main light and the lamp I knew was beside her bed. I swung, not caring that the metal chains were starting to burn my freezing hands or that I was completely wet.

I fought with myself. She was so close. I could practically see her tucked into her bed, watching reruns of 30 Rock or Parks and Recreation.

It wasn't hard sneaking into her window. The tree beside her window was low, one of the easiest trees I'd ever climbed, even with the snow that was beginning to cover it. My feet only slid a few times, but I was able to catch myself, thankful for the drinks I had passed on to Thom. I took my time sitting on the branch right outside the closed window, her curtains also pulled shut.

I leaned forward to tap, my nails hitting softly against the glass.

I could see her silhouette in front of me. she paused for a few minutes, probably fighting the urge to ignore me and return to her bed.

I tapped again, sighing. This was my last chance.

She opened the curtains, cracking the window open so she could hear me out before shutting the window and leaving me in the cold.

"We need to talk again, please?" I tried my hardest to look as pathetic as possible. I wasn't above pity at this point.

And though she didn't exactly open the window more, her returning to the door, window still open was enough of a welcoming gesture for me.

so what do you guys want to happen next? i'm open for suggestions, good or bad.