A/N: Hey guys it's Watermalone here, back-ish after a loooong while.
So… Uh yeah, sorry I've been gone for a long time, and stuff… It's been a rough couple months, and it hasn't exactly gotten better yet, but here's hoping that the silver lining comes soon.
Review replies? Sure, why not.
EVAunit42: Haha thanks so much, I never did get to thank you for that birthday present by the way… Hmmm I'll have to make it up somehow… Ah details. Thanks for the support, although I'm not sure if I'll ever exactly get that popular. No game in particular, it was just a mashup of several copyright infringements is all!
SonicELITE: Thanks so much! Well I'll try to get on track with writing again, so no guarantees it'll work out yet.
Jacob: I don't think it'll be an issue considering I'm not that popular haha but solid advice nonetheless!
Lupus Boulevard: Me neither really, but this is sorta how I always imagined it. What? Leave? Now why would she go and do that?
deadshoot12345: You two are certainly lucky little devils, that's for sure!
SOKFACE: Awww thanks! That really means a lot to me! On a side note, I love the idea, pretty vague so it gives me lots of room to work with so hopefully I can give you my best!
Onto the chapter. This one's gonna be a two part-er. I originally wanted this update to come out on New Year's but I never got around to finishing it.
Synopsis: Marco throws the New Year's party to end 'em all, but wakes up to an unforseen surprise, with little to no recollection of the night before.
A minor twist on a classic gag. Enjoy! (Keep in mind italicised print implies flashback!)
*This chapter mentions alcohol, reader discretion is advised or whatever.*
"What? No, no I could never! I love her too much to ever hurt her in any way."
Rays of sunlight poured through the window, setting ablaze the room in its soft warm glow and gently disturbing Marco of his slumber.
Groggily, he forced his eyes open ever so slightly, laying hushed in the peaceful chaos that littered his home.
Head pounding, muscles aching, and throat dry as the Sahara desert, he gazed across his bedroom to see heaps of garbage, clothing, and house items strewn across furniture and the floor alike.
It was scene like no other.
"Hey! Great party, Marco!" Jackie approached him manning the punch bowl. "But where's *ahem* you-know-who?" She shot him a sly wink.
"Oh, Star? Heh, yeah she didn't really wanna come, she's sleeping off a head cold at her place…" Marco shrugged. "But hey! She still wished to see all you guys!"
"That's cool." A loud crash sounded off from the kitchen, drawing both of their attention.
"Yo, Marco! We found this giant pot in your cupboards, can we use it for beer-bobbing?" Justin's voice shouted across the home.
"Oh shoot. Sorry, Jackie I gotta make sure that they don't destroy anything over there. It was nice seeing you after so long though!"
"No worries, 'Safe kid'," Jackie replied with a chuckle, watching Marco sprint off into depths of the crowd, screaming at Justin 'not to scratch the stainless steel'.
Marco rubbed the remaining sleep out of his eyes, wishing he hadn't awoken to such a disastrous sight.
He sighed. It couldn't be avoided; the mess, the cleanup duty, the… smell of vomit emanating from the master bathroom… he threw the best reunion party ever, and that was final.
Of course, it would help if he could remember any of the details. For some odd reason, most of the night remained buried within the depths of his subconscious, seemingly avoiding his sense of recollection.
The last thing he remembered was being offered a couple drinks… and, well, a couple turned into a few more, which turned into another few more, which eventually led to a keg stand battle versus Justin.
"CHUG, CHUG, CHUG, CHUG!" The crowd chanted wildly as the two furiously drank from the taps of two massive barrels of beer, not even pausing for a breath.
"GO JUSTIN!" Some random girl cheered in the background for the crowd favourite, assigning Marco as the underdog.
He actually wasn't quite sure how he wound up in this competition of the Neanderthals, but a couple glasses in and he seemed to lose a bit more than a couple IQ points.
Marco found himself smirking slightly at the memory. It sure was a fun time, but hopefully everyone was too drunk to realize how embarrassing he must've acted during the party. Or the fact that he probably lost.
Faintly, in the background, was the sound of an alarm ringing, muffled, yet disturbing the tranquil atmosphere nonetheless.
Shoot, Marco thought to himself, I forgot to shut off my alarm.
Rolling over onto his side, Marco reluctantly pushed himself up, allowing his legs to fall down the side of the bed, then immediately froze when the bedsheet shifted slightly beneath him.
He hadn't noticed in his half-hungover, half-sleep deprived state, but while he reminisced on the recent nights events, there was someone sleeping soundly next to him. In his bed.
Dare he look? Slowly, and expecting the worst, Marco twisted himself to face the source of the shuffling.
And saw her short bleach blonde hair, with a turquoise-blue streak falling down the right side.
"So… Tell me again what exactly it is that you do?"
Marco set down his drink on the countertop and suppressed a small hiccup before turning back to face Jackie.
"It's kinda complicated at the moment. I've actually completed the majority of my undergrad, but during the last semester I volunteered to do some research into nanotechnology and its capabilities in precise neurological imaging by increasing ion concentration in the cranial region. Mostly through magnetic resonance and induction."
Jackie raised an eyebrow.
"Er-... I stare at brains." Marco stated with a grin.
"Haha don't worry Marco, I'll never understand how doctors do their thing. But I'm happy to see things have been working out for you!" She flashed a genuine smile.
"Well, how about yourself? What have you been up to the past few years?"
Jackie shrugged. "I couldn't stand school anymore so I dropped out and tried to start up a skateboard shop here in Echo Creek."
"Oh! And how's that going?"
Jackie downed the last of her glass, gesturing a hand-teetering motion.
"Decent, huh? Well I remember you were really good at skateboarding, have you ever thought of giving lessons?" He quickly stopped himself short. Giving career advice… not smooth. "Uh, I mean.. Never mind…"
"Nah it's cool. In fact I actually have thought about it, but I can't imagine anyone being interested."
"What? Why not? You're amazing at boarding! You're like… The Tony Hawk of Echo Creek!" He lifted his glass to his lips, internally chastising himself once more for being so intrusive.
This brought a smile to her face. "You're sweet, y'know that, Marco? Almost makes me wonder why I didn't ask you out back in high school."
Marco immediately choked on his drink. Coughing and sputtering, he tried to regain his breath.
"Whoa, you good Marco?"
"Yeah, *hack* sorry, but… *cough* did… did you know I had a crush on you back when we were kids?"
Jackie nodded. "Yeah, but I used to always imagine you would end up with Star, so I kinda just... let it go. Shame huh?"
Shame didn't even begin to describe what he felt at that moment. Jackie Lynn Thomas, the girl for his dreams for nearly 8 years, the girl he spent night after night fawning over in desperate hopes to one day have a chance with, the girl that built up and destroyed so much of his self esteem, had a crush on him all that time.
"No." Marco whispered under his breath. "No, no, no, no no no no nooooo."
He wanted to scream, he wanted to shout, he wanted to tear his entire being up into miniscule shreds over and over until there wasn't a slightest hope of reconsolidation.
How could he have let this happen? How could he have been so stupid?
He quietly staggered out into the hallway, pinching himself, begging that this had all been a cruel nightmare. Some big winded misunderstanding, or anything but what it looked like.
What would he tell Star? Hey beautiful, guess what? I accidently slept with my ex-crush last night in a drunken fit of weakness. So we cool?
Oh, how he would die an excruciatingly painful death. At least, not unless he took all his belongings, changed his name, moved into the arctic to become an ice fisherman...
No, he had to confess to her directly. He would take whatever consequences as a man, because he knew he deserved it.
Dragging his guilty and regretful self in the direction of his phone, still continuing to blare his muffled alarm, he found himself inside of his main living room, equally, if not, more ruined than his own bedroom.
The mess, however, did not phase him. Instead, he ignored the clutter and garbage and plunged his arm in between the cushions of the couch, and, eventually with difficulty, fished out his phone and quickly muted the volume so as not to disturb the rest of the neighborhood.
He scoffed in annoyance when the screen displayed a minature assortment of animated fireworks and streamers, revealing the words "Happy New Year" in rainbow print behind its mess.
A/N: Like I said, part two will come out after this one, don't worry it's already done.
And as always, reviews and comments are always deeply appreciated, requests are still open for this story, and I hope to see you all next week for the conclusion to this chapter despite the fact that regular updates have still not resumed!
