Hey friends. I apologize for taking so long to update. I lost my muse for a while, but I'm slowly getting it back. I hope ya'll are still interested.
Disclaimer: I own nothing.
Chapter Ten: Friends or Not?
Lizzie gasped into his mouth when she felt his lips touch hers. They were soft – softer than she imagined any guy's lips would be. Unconsciously, she opened her mouth to him and he took advantage, his tongue entering her mouth and exploring. She sighed and wrapped her arms around his neck, moving closer. He did the same, his hands wandering over her back and into her hair. She moaned when he grabbed a handful of her hair and tilted her head back, baring her neck to him. He attacked the skin there with his lips and Lizzie felt like she was flying. No guy had ever touched her like this before. Oh sure, she played it off like she was experienced, but the most she'd ever done with a guy was kiss.
The room felt like it was spinning and Lizzie was breathing harder now, practically panting through her open mouth as Cody licked and nipped at her neck. Her hands squeezed his shoulders and caressed the hair at the back of his neck. She was distinctly aware of his hands moving closer to her chest and let out a squeaking noise when his hand covered her breast and squeezed. Before she knew it, both his hands were under her shirt and pulling it up over her head. She didn't have a moment to think about what was happening before he started kissing her again, slowly pushing her back onto the couch, his body covering hers. They were kissing frantically now, Cody grinding his body against Lizzie's. She spread her legs and wrapped them around his body, her arms doing the same around his back.
Lizzie took a deep breath when Cody's lips left hers to move down her neck to her chest. She gulped in air and looked at the ceiling, only to see it spinning above her. She closed her eyes and tried to calm her stomach, which was jumping either from Cody's attention or all the alcohol she consumed. She brought her eyes down to where he was mouthing her nipple through her bra and raised a hand to run it through his hair. She had never felt like this before, but she liked it. Cody was making her feel like a real woman and not a kid, which was usually how everyone treated her. That's mainly why Lizzie had such a bad attitude all the time, because she felt that people were always underestimating her. She was much more mature than her 14 years, and she wanted everyone to know it.
Cody stopped what he was doing and pulled Lizzie up to a sitting position, making her stomach lurch. His eyes were on her chest as he reached around and unclasped her bra, pulling it down her arms and tossing it to the floor. She fought the urge to cross her arms over her chest and watched as his eyes widened in what she thought was appreciation. She would have been more flattered if she hadn't started feeling sick. She gulped and tried to force it back down, but knew she was failing. If she didn't get to a bathroom soon, there would be a big mess.
"Cody, where's the bathroom?" Lizzie said, her hand coming up to cover her mouth.
He tore his eyes away from her chest. "What?"
"I don't feel so good," she said before running up the stairs topless, her hand clamped over her mouth. She passed Liam and Neill playing video games in the living room and ran down the hall, looking into each of the rooms until she found what she was looking for. She made it just in time before the contents of her stomach splashed all over the toilet bowl. Lizzie gagged and heaved until there was nothing left and she was left feeling wrung out, hung over, yet still drunk and exhausted. Not to mention horribly embarrassed. She wiped her mouth with the back of her hand and flushed the toilet. She jumped when she turned and noticed Neill and Liam right outside the door staring at her – a mix of disgust and lust on their faces. Lizzie looked down and noticed that she was nude from the waist up and grabbed a bath towel, covering herself. "Get out of here!" she said shutting the door in their faces before bursting into tears.
It took twice as long to get to Casey's apartment from the theatre due to the weather. Derek drove slow with both hands on the wheel, determined to get them where they needed to go safely. They rode in companionable silence and Derek wished he could reach across and retake Casey's hand but he didn't think it was a good idea. The car slipped and slid on the snow-covered road and more than once they observed cars sliding through intersections and barely avoiding collisions all because they were driving too fast.
When they were finally in front of her apartment, Derek shut off the car and turned to face Casey. "Well, we made it. I had my doubts," he said, but he was smiling.
Casey huffed out a laugh. "I really appreciate you giving me a ride, Derek. It would have sucked to walk home in this," she added waving her hand to indicate the weather.
Derek's eyes twinkled as he looked at her. "It was my pleasure," he said softly before unbuckling himself and getting out.
Casey sat there disappointed that he seemed in a hurry for her to get inside. She unbuckled herself and smiled at him when he opened her door for her. Stepping out, she took the hand he offered her and walked with him the few steps it took to get to her door. "Well, I had a great time," she said trying not to sound too awkward.
Derek was still holding her hand and his face held a devastating smile. "Me too, Casey. I'm glad you suggested it."
Casey rolled on the balls of her feet. "Well, I guess I should go in before I freeze to the sidewalk."
Derek hid his disappointment. He was hoping that she would invite him in. "OK, then. I'll talk to you soon?" he said more as a question.
She smiled softly at him. "Count on it," she said before leaning forward and kissing the corner of his mouth. "Goodbye," she said before unlocking the door and going in.
He watched as she entered and waved to her before turning and heading for his car.
Casey trudged up the stairs and hoped that she wouldn't walk in on another porn movie. It was happening all too often nowadays, and Casey suspected that Steph had been laid off from her other job, where Casey still worked, albeit at reduced hours. It was only a matter of time before she got the call too. Casey thought Steph was trying to make up for the lack of income by "entertaining" more. She scowled to herself as she stuck her keys in the door and walked in. The living room was empty and Casey breathed a sigh of relief. "Liz? I'm home!" she called as she dropped her purse on the table and sat down to pull off her boots. After shedding her winter layers and not hearing a response, she headed down to the bedroom.
Lizzie clung to the toilet bowl as if it were a life preserver. Tears poured from her eyes as her body heaved yet again, but there was nothing in her stomach. Blearily, she heard voices through the door. "Dude, we've got to get her out of here! What if she's really sick? I mean, like, really, really sick?" Lizzie thought it was Neill who was speaking, but she wasn't sure. Another voice sounded, but it was too low to make out the words. She sighed and rested her head on her arm.
In the hallway, Neill and Liam were arguing – well, Neill was freaking out and Liam was trying to calm him down. "Look, I can't take her home, hell, I don't even know where she lives! Do you?" Neill asked Liam.
Liam shook his head. "Neill, go take a pill or something, will ya? I'll take care of it. It's a good thing that I stayed at least mostly sober," he said before knocking on the door. "Lizzie? Are you OK? Can I come in?" he asked through the door. He knew that she was in over her head when she hooked up with them earlier in the day. However, no one was forcing her to do anything, and he was mildly amused at her attempts to appear more mature than she really was. Of course, now it was all revealed – that she was nothing more than a little girl who wanted to hang with the big boys. He snorted to himself and wondered if Cody had gotten the piece from her that he was looking for. Shaking his head, he knocked again, this time harder. "Liz, open the door, OK?"
"It's open," she called feebly from inside.
Surprised, he turned the knob and found that she was telling the truth. He slowly opened the door and found her half-crouched, half kneeling over the toilet, the bare skin of her back glistening with sweat. He tried not to look at her breasts as he approached. She's just a kid! He reminded himself as he knelt beside her. "Are you OK?"
Lizzie snorted. "Does it look like I'm OK?" she answered, shooting him a glance.
Liam frowned. "Hey, there's no need to be a bitch." He got up and grabbed the remaining towel that was hanging on the rack. "Here," he said, thrusting his arm out to her. "Cover yourself up." He stood and watched as she grabbed the towel from him and wrapped it around herself. "Is your shirt downstairs?"
Lizzie nodded but remained silent, her eyes darting everywhere but at his face.
He sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "OK, stay here. I'll get your clothes then take you home, OK?" he didn't wait for her answer before turning and leaving the bathroom.
Lizzie grasped the towel around her torso and shakily stood up. Facing herself in the mirror, she was shocked at her appearance. Her hair was a mess and her make-up had migrated all over her face from the tears she shed while vomiting. Her eyes were red and her skin was pasty and had a thin sheen of sweat on it. She mentally shook her head at herself. I'm in deep shit, she thought, picturing Casey's face when she got home.
Casey was worried. Liz was nowhere to be found. She had called Lizzie's friend's house and was told that Liz met up with relatives at the mall and took off with them. "What relatives? Did you get their names? We don't have any relatives in town!" she had practically shouted into the phone. Melanie was upset at the outburst, but didn't seem particularly concerned, which made Casey even madder. She hung up the phone and paced the apartment. Suddenly, an idea came into her mind. She better not have . . ., she thought to herself as she left the apartment and hit the button for the elevator.
The car ride home was silent. Lizzie had her head leaning against the cold glass trying to ease the pounding of her head. She winced and clutched her stomach as Liam went over another hole in the road.
"You OK?" Liam asked, his eyes shooting over to her.
"Yeah," Lizzie answered, not trusting herself to say anymore.
After giving him directions, they pulled up in front of her apartment building a few minutes later. Liam stopped the car and put it in Park. "Do you need help getting upstairs?" He asked, surprising Lizzie.
"Uh, no. Thanks anyway." She paused and shot a glance over at him before darting her eyes away. She was too embarrassed to do anything else. "I really appreciate you taking me home. You didn't have to."
Liam shrugged. "It's nothing. I'm just glad you didn't hurl in my car," he said only half-kidding.
Lizzie mustered a smile and opened the door to get out. "Thanks again," she said before slamming the door and heading upstairs. Liam nodded and drove off.
Casey was getting more and more angry. She stood in the elevator tapping her foot, her arms crossed tightly over her chest. The elevator dinged at the fifth floor and the doors opened. Casey barely waited for them to open before she stormed out, heading for apartment 503. She pounded on the door when she got there.
"Hello? Open the door, Bob, I know you're in there!" she said loudly through the door. She could hear music, or maybe it was the television, so she knew someone was there. Besides, he didn't have a job, so where else would he be?
She stood there waiting for another minute before trying again. "Open up!" she yelled, causing a neighbor to crack open the door behind her.
"What the hell's going on? I'm trying to sleep in here!" the man said crankily. Casey thought his name was Mark.
"It's nothing, just shut the door," Casey snapped before turning her back on him. He cursed and slammed the door.
Casey continued pounding on the door until she heard rustling on the other side. "Hold the fuck up!" a woman's voice said before the door was pulled open.
Casey stood face to face with Bob's mother, who looked as if she were three sheets to the wind. "What the fuck is your problem?" she said, her breath making Casey physically wince and move back.
Casey shook her head before speaking. "Is my sister here?" she said, craning her neck to look around the drunk woman.
"Who's your sister?" she said moving forward to block Casey's view.
"Lizzie, you know who she is. Is she here? Lizzie?" Casey called into the apartment.
"Stop yellin' for Christ's sakes! Your sister ain't here!" his mother said before moving to close the door. Casey was having none of it.
"Lizzie!" she yelled, clutching the door frame. For some reason, she had a bad feeling.
Her attention was drawn to the door at the end of the hallway. She was just about to make a break for it when it opened and Bob walked out shirtless and fastening his pants. "Ma, what the hell's going on out here?" he said before noticing Casey. Upon seeing her, he got a cruel smile on his face.
"Hey Case, to what do I owe this unexpected visit?"
Casey closed her eyes for a moment to get ahold of herself. She was ready to tear his head off. "Where's my sister? Is she back there? I know you have somebody back there!" she said, her voice rising in panic.
Bob put his hands up in an "I surrender" motion. "I don't know what the heck you're talkin' about, Casey. Your sister's not here."
Casey pinned him with her eyes. "Well, I guess you won't mind if I check then, will you?" she said as she pushed past Bob's mom and headed for the door.
"What the hell . . .?" Bob's mother sputtered. "Robert, get this bitch out of here now!" she yelled while waving her bottle of Jack Daniels in the air.
"Cool it, ma, I got it," he said, stepping in front of Casey. He spread his arms out to prevent her from moving any farther. "Now Casey, you need to calm down," he said, fixing his oily gaze on her. "There's no need for all this. Why don't we sit down and talk about it? I'll help you look for Lizzie if she's missing or something . . ."
Casey sucked in a deep breath and tried to control her temper, but she was rapidly losing it. She glared at Bob. "Get out of my way," she said through clenched teeth.
Bob's eyebrows rose. "She's not here, I told you that," he said, his face turning red.
Casey studied him. He was lying. She just knew it in her bones. "Lizzie!" she called over his shoulder.
"Dammit, Casey, I told you she's not here!" Bob said, moving to grab Casey's arms and escort her out the door. Casey moved faster, however, and ducked underneath his arms. Running down the hall, she turned the knob to his bedroom and flung open the door. What she saw surprised her.
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