This Cresswell story was requested by MissLunar. I understand that Jael is quite a bit OOC in this fic, but I really felt that I should incorporate a character in the book to be Cress's date and I couldn't really think of another. I haven't read "Cress" in awhile, so I apologize if Cress is little OOC as well. Maybe not my best, but enjoy.

Carswell Thorne stared at the red plastic cup in his hand and sighed. The music was almost deafening, and the room smelled of sweat, hormones and alcohol. This would usually be just his scene, and he would usually be out mingling with other people and taking shots like water, but today, he had something far more somber on his mind

He swirled the contents and looked deeper into the nonalcoholic contents, hoping it would show him some wisdom rather than just his reflection. He also wished it would turn from soda to beer, but tonight, he was the designated driver.

Well, not exactly. The thing is, he was here to night to keep an eye on Cress. Not in a creepy way or anything, just, well, every reason he had for watching her was kinda creepy.

As if brought on by his thoughts, a head of long silky blond hair flash through his line of sight. He followed her movement with his eyes and saw her laughing with a cup in her hand identical to his. Suddenly, she looked up and her eyes locked with his, and she smiled.

It seemed as if everything in the room froze. The music was silenced and lights went out and the only bright spot in his world was that smile.

"Hey." Carswell's head snapped up and his mouth opened, preparing to excuse what just happened when he met a pair of laughing brown eyes.

"Kai." He groaned. As far as he knew, Kai was the only person who knew about Carswell's crush on Cress. And Kai, being the good, supportive friend he is, never ceased to tease him about it.

"You were staring." Kai said, chuckling slightly as a light blush covered Thorne's face.

"Was not," Thorne refuted childishly, but he knew it was futile. He knew he wasn't all that subtle when it can to the whole crush thing. He had caught himself staring at her, seeking her out, and always trying to gain her approval. He noticed his lack of fascination with other girls and how his thoughts never seemed to stray from her. But he wasn't used to this, affection thing. If he it had been any other girl, he would have got her a drink, taken her home and left in the morning. But it wasn't like that with Cress. She was special, she was important to him, she…

He was in love with her.

He wasn't planning to admit that outloud anytime soon.

He looked up to see Cress again, still looking at him. Her cheeks pink as they make eye contact, but she smiles. She makes a move to meet him, but an arm snakes around her waist and roughly yanks her back. She looks startled but smiles when she meets the eyes of her date. Jael Thaumaturge, a son of a bitch with a bone to pick with everyone.

"Thorne? Earth to Carswell Thorne?"

"What?" Carswell answered, somewhat aggressively. He was still glowering at the back of Jael's head, when the man himself turned around and met his eyes. Recognizing Cress as the object of Thorne's attention, Jael smiles suggestively at him and makes a lewd gesture.

"Asshole." He mutters to himself, once again unaware of Kai's presence.

"Dude," Kai repeats, exasperated. "If you didn't want her to go out with guys like him, or any guy for that matter, why didn't you ask her yourself?"

Ignoring Kai's words, Thorne mutters something about refilling his cup and walks past the kitchen until he finds, miraculously, two square feet of his own space.

He puts his back to the wall and slides down until he's sitting, he places his half-full cup of soda beside him.

The truth is, he was planning to ask her out. He bought flowers and a prepared something to say, and he was planning to take her to the new italian restaurant across town. He thought he actually might have a chance when she came up to him, giddy and bouncing with laughter, until she told him.

….

Thorne slammed his locker shut, and started walking down the hallway, going through his mental checklist. The roses were at the florist prepaid for, all he needed to do was pick them up. He had asked her friends and made sure her Friday evening would be free, and he had already made reservation at the restaurant.

He reached into the back pocket of his jeans and pulled out the piece of crumpled notebook paper he had shoved in there this morning. He read it again until he felt the words were sealed into his mind.

As soon as he saw her in the hallway, the world around him seemed to brighten, and his heart started to pump frantically. Taking a few deep breathes, he slowly made his way towards her.

When she finally saw him, she skipped to him, giddy.

"Thorne!" She called out, somehow managing to gracefully weave in between bodies while bouncing up and down. He only realized he was smiling when his cheeks began to ache.

When she was almost right in front of him, Thorne prepared to speak, heart in this throat.

"Cress-"

"-Jael asked me out!" The shock of it was a slap to the face.

"What?" He asked, incredulously. She repeated herself.

"Jael asked me out!" She squealed slightly. Thorne forced himself to keep the smile, but found it was far more difficult than before.

That night, he called in and cancelled the reservation at the restaurant, and told the florist to keep the flowers. Thorne had girls taken from him before, some even cheated on him. But none hurt so bad as this one.

….

Thorne was at the party for another three hours. Another three hours of drinking watered down soda, of accidentally walking in on people making out and having sex, and worst of all, watching Cress with Jael.

Over the course of the night, Jael had made out with six different women, had about four too many shots and lost his shirt. He ignored Cress nearly completely, unless he saw Carswell looking at her. Then he would sloppily kiss her or roughly grab her. It took ever ounce of Thorne's willpower not to march over to them and grab her away from him. But he managed to remind himself that she didn't belong to him and she was a grown women and could make her own decisions.

Finally, it was time to leave. Thorne had just grabbed his car keys from his pocket and was about to step out the door, when he saw the drunken state of Jael and Cress. He sighed, knowing what he had to do.

"Cress, Jael? Come with me." Thorne called, walking across the nearly empty room. It took a lot of self control when he finally came up to them, watching the rough and handsy way Jael was touching his Cress. His Cress. He was too tired reminded himself that she didn't belong to him.

…..

After a long, pointless argument with a very drunk Jael about driving under influence, Thorne had grabbed Cress and had walked her to his car. Jael could get himself killed if he wanted, but there was no way in hell Thorne would let him take Cress with him.

A heavy silence filled the Thorne's car. There was a tension between them, a tension Thorne didn't know how to break.

Cress, though still very much drunk, spoke in a clear, almost sober voice,

"I'm sorry." surprised, Thorne looked at her, only to find her staring at him, tears in her eyes.

"You have nothing to be sorry for. You went out with an asshole because you didn't know better." Cress winced at the cuss word, but answered back all the same.

"I did know he was an asshole" she whispered. Shocked, Thorne stared questioningly at her again. When she didn't answer, he prodded her.

"Then why would you agree?" He was met with silence. Whatever sharing mood she had been in had disappeared.

A ten minutes later, he pulled up at her house.

"Thank you," she whispered but her hands were shaking too hard to undo her seatbelt. Sighing, Thorne got out and walked around his car, and unbuckled it for her. He walked her to the door. After thanking him again, Cress made a move to open the door, but Thorne caught her hand.

"Why did you do it?" he asked again, whispering this time. She whispered her response just as softly.

"I wanted you, and I went out with him so, maybe, you might want me too." Embarrassed, she pulled her hand away, and opened the door to her home. It took Thorne a couple seconds to process her words. All the beautiful words he had prepared flew out of his mind and he didn't have the roses anymore. So he did the one thing he could think of.

He gently grasped her jaw, and kissed her. The kiss was so different compared to all the others Thorne had shared. Those had been sloppy and drunken, but this was sweet and genuine. It made heat bloom in his chest and sent tingles down his spine.

After some time, they broke apart, smiles on their faces and blushes on their cheeks.

"Goodnight Love" he whispered to her as she stepped into her house and closed the door.

He found that when he walked to the car, he was unsteady, the world seemed full of colour, and he felt alive like someone had pumped raw magic in his veins. He felt off kilter, lost, but like anything was possible. It was only when he got in his car did he realize how he felt.

He was drunk on Cress.

Every single moment with her is purely intoxicating.