Chapter 7: Homecoming Party
Although to those around her, Éire gleamed with sass and self-confidence, sometimes this was just a front. She was standing in her room staring at herself in the long mirror. She ran her palms across her tight black leather shorts that she had paired with a red top and black heels. Éire had always dressed like this, racy attire for a racy girl. She looked hot and she looked confident but she didn't feel it. She didn't feel like the bubbly, sassy, self-confident girl who once used to stare back at her in the mirror.
In fact, Éire questioned herself as to whether or not she needed to change her outfit into something more conservative. The hesitation and self-consciousness that Éire felt came from the waves of paranoia and overthinking she had suffered since she got back to the house with Gemma. Seeing her parents and the Sons again made shit real for Éire and her mind went into overdrive as to what really happened in Charming when Éire went to Belfast. She questioned what others thought of her, especially the Sons. She was worried about what their opinion of her was. Did they still think she was the trouble-maker who caused a rift in the club? Did they still blame her for all the shit that went down? Were they pissed off she had returned?
Éire tried to reassure herself by thinking of how they reacted when they saw her this afternoon. From their reaction, she concluded that they were no longer resentful towards her or else they were good at covering it up. Maybe they had forgiven her. Forgiven them. It was obvious that Happy was pissed with her but she wasn't sure that he represented the opinions of the other members. He was different. Éire was snapped out of her thoughts when she heard Gemma calling her from downstairs;
'Are you gonna leave my ass waiting another nineteen months to come and party with me?'
Éire told Gemma on the way home she knew about the party. Her reaction was the opposite of Opie's. Gemma would have been more surprised if Éire hadn't found out. She basically raised her and if there was anything Gemma was good at, it was finding shit out.
Éire emerged from her room, beaming down at her step-mother;
'Does that mean I'm allowed to get drunk?'
Her current state of mind and overthinking had made her quite thirsty but unluckily for Éire, her dad rounded the corner just as she finished her question, glaring up the stairs at her.
The clubhouse was buzzing. A large crowd had already gathered in the lot and there would be an even bigger crowd inside. All these people weren't here for Éire though, just for the party. Éire walked inside behind Gemma, saying hello to some familiar faces on her way in. Once inside, she was greeted by a number of people, welcoming her home and saying they had missed her. After talking to a few old friends, she saw Gemma at the bar and walked over. She slid in on the right-hand side of Gemma, looking at her expectantly. Gemma, in her high-heeled boots, was slightly looking down at Éire, a disapproving look on her face. Éire refused to avert her eyes back down and Gemma caved;
'Fine, just one. And don't let your father see you – or we're both out on our asses.'
Éire smiled, ordering a whiskey on the rocks.
'Only lass I've ever seen drinking a whiskey neat was an Irish one.'
Chibs sat down beside Éire, pointing his head at the glass she was sipping from. She looked over at him and smiled;
'At least they thought me something useful Chibs, how to drink that is.' Éire said raising her glass and taking a mouthful.
'Not to rub salt in wounds that eh have hopefully healed by now but I don't think it was any soul in Belfast that taught you how to drink whiskey darlin,' laughed Chibs, giving Éire the side-eye. Éire slightly smiled at what he was referring to.
After a few moments of silence, she noticed from the corner of her eye that Chibs was hesitating and looked over at him expectantly. Chibs, cleared his throat and diverted his eyes straight ahead and said;
'Éire, I know what it's like over there … Another world.'
Chibs paused and then turned his head to Éire;
'Are ya sure your okay lass?'
'I'm fine Chibs,' assured Éire with a smile.
'And what about being back here with your Da and with Ja – '
'I'm fine Chibs.'
After Éire's assurance, Chibs got her another drink and before she finished it, he left to find Bobby. Éire sat on her own, making small talk with the girls working behind the bar. After a while, she felt a presence slide in beside her. By the stealth of this presence, Éire knew it was Happy. His orbs bore holes through the side of her head. She didn't look his way, unimpressed with his reaction towards her earlier on.
'Roof. Now.'
With a sigh, she got up and hesitantly followed him to the roof.
