I've gotten two amazing reviews so far - thank you farawaymomo and agentfandoms74 for your lovely comments. I woke up to them and I was happy to see that you guys had taken the time to say hi. Never not do that, it makes anyone who puts their ideas out there feel appreciated.
I've seen a couple of typos so far which I will fix as soon as possible. I was just rushing to get things out of my system so they happened.

As to the question whether I plan to update regularly? Yes, I do. It helps me staying focused on other things I need to write and it helps me to stay sane in a hectich phase of my life, so defiitely yes. Onward we go ... xoxo

UPDATE: This chapter should be freed from any grammar or spelling mistake now. :)

Three.

I did not have to wait long. It did not actually take very long until one of the girls detached from the group and made her way toward me and BINGO, it was Olivia, the head cheerleader. She was actually trying to accomplish something Elle hadn't mastered. Did she not have any idea how futile and unneccessary that attempt was going to be? And did I just see her quickly take a shot, too? Olivia usually didn't let anyone even guess she could be nervous about anything. With most of the guys desperate to get her attention, she had become confident over the last couple of months, cocky even. It was annoying. I liked when girls were confident about themselves but just in those instances when they could back that claim with something substantial.

She made quite a few heads turn as she sauntered over to me. She had a sly grin on her face, Cheshire Cat-like, and was undoubtedly trying to rope me in with the slight sway of her hips. Too bad it wasn't really working. She just wasn't my type. Even though I had carefully planted the rumour that I was into blondes. I really wasn't. I was into interesting, I was into challenging and I was into substantial.

'Flyn...' she puffed and touched my right bizeps in her desperate need to establish some sort of connection we've never really had and which I didn't need. I shrugged her off non-chalantly. I didn't care if that came off too harshly, I glared past her searching for Elle. She jerked slightly when she realized I was staring. Good.

'Olivia,' I grinned in anticipation, 'what can I do for you this fine evening?'

'Look, Flynn, I know you're kinda busy with football and stuff...' she trailed off, nervously playing with a strand of her blonde hair.

'Yes?' - I just loved it when they squirmed. I intensified my stare and she stepped nervously from one foot onto the other, fidgeting, her fingers moving even more rapidly on the already beaten strand of hair.

'We have this kissing booth at the carnival...'

'No.'

'But it's gonna be so much fun...'

'No.'

'Flynn?'

'Still no.'

She, too, tried the puppy eyes. She must have gotten the impression that a pleading look in combination with a rather skimply looking black dress would do it for me. Did no one pay attention to what I really liked? My eyes wandered to find Elle again. When Olivia practically leaned into me and intensified the puppy eyes, I've had enough.

'Still absolutely no way I am doing this,' I said quietly, my expression disgusted. She was so full of hersef, thinking all she had to do was walk over, present her body in a tight dress and that was all it needed. No wonder a lot of the other guys thought every girl was easy to get.

'Whatever...' she barked, rolled her eyes at me and sauntered off back to the group of girls which all shot her sympathetic smiles. All but Elle who grinned in victory but hid her emotions when she realized I once again looked over. Their attention shifted back to Elle and I could tell that it made her uncomfortable. She escaped from the other girls grasp into the lounge where people were dancing.

At around eleven o'clock the party had intensified and so far everyone was having a good time. Not everyone was drinking but the crowd in the game room seemed to enjoy the pink and green shots someone - I think it was Dixon - had brought.

'Noah,' I heard my brother's voice, he was standing in the door frame of the game room, an expression of disbelief and exasparation on his face. What was going on?

'Lee?' I asked him quietly as I stepped closer, 'what's up?'

'Elle...'

And then I saw her, standing on the pool table swaying her hips to inaudible music. It was apparent that she had had quite a few drinks so far. Lee was flustered and embarrassed beside me. He nervously kneaded his hands together.

'I said she should get down but she refuses to listen to me,' I grinned in response, 'all she did was try to drag me up there. Dance Club, remember?'

'Someone come skinny dipping!' Elle shrieked enthusiastically and that was that. Enough. There was no way in hell I was going to allow her to strip down and go into the pool. One, because she was really really drunk and two, because I could simply not allow any of those players to see her like that ... 'Not going to happen,' I told myself and stepped toward the pool table, a shell-shocked Lee behind me. I was pretty certain my brother didn't expect me to take immediate action of the rather drastic kind.

I internally praised football training for that it had given me the muscle strength to simply pull Elle off the pool table in one swift movement before she was able to actually opening the zipper of her dress that she had been fumbling with. With her head undoubtely looking at my back, her feet in the air and her torso thrown over my shoulder, I made my way past my brother and carried Elle toward the stairs to our bedrooms.

'Hey!' Elle cried out, clearly unhappy about the interruption, 'Put me down! Put me down!'

I huffed in response but I was sure she didn't actually hear that. All I cared about was her, I just needed to get her out of trouble - again. We made it through the crowd and toward the stair case.

'Can I help you, Noah?' I heard my brother say and I slightly turned toward him and hissed, 'you should have paid more attention to her alcohol intake, brother, or are best friends not looking out for each other anymore?'

That silenced him. He looked hurt but I didn't care.

'I'll be fine,' I snorted and continued climbing the stairs with my precious cargo. Elle started to wiggle around in order to free herself from my grasp but that was not going to happen. I intensified my grip.

'Stop,' I said quietly but she must not have heard it, despite the music dying down significantly the further I carried her. I opened the door to my bedroom and dropped her onto the mattress and with a slight bounce she was there, sprawled across my bed. I licked my lips. There seemed to be a recurring theme with me, Elle and beds today. She somewhat quickly regained some of her composure and when I turned back from switching on my desk light, she was sitting as straight as she could, folding her legs underneath her. Cute. I had already seen her legs in that dress earlier, what did she think she was attempting to hide here? I grinned.

'Noah Flynn,' she sighed in response to my reprimanding look. Really, what made her think getting wasted was such a good idea, really? 'You're such a party pooper! I was having fun!'

'You were about to strip off,' I argued, my tension rising. Didn't she understand the degree of stupidity involved in that particular idea, especially with all the guys present? Surely she must know how cute she was, right? She must know that a lot of boys were eager to go out with her. Except they never asked her because I specifically told them that they shouldn't dare to. They were all players after all and Elle was simply too ... trusting. Yeah, let's go with trusting. I quickly dismissed the fact that my initial description of her would have been 'precious'.

'Just take a break for twenty minutes.'

'No!' she cried out and then she started pouting. Adorable ... 'Don't be such a downer. I wanted to go skinny dipping!'

I shook my head at her but could not suppress a smirk, 'Tempting as that is,' and it was in fact a very temping thought to imagine her in the water, clothes discarded on the edge of the pool ... minus the audience, of course. I feigned innocence, 'I think you're better off staying here for a little bit - at least until you're more sober.'

She sighed at my reasoning and sank back down on my pillows. Elle Evans was still lying in my bed. I could not help but wonder if her drunken state had actually yet made her realize where exactly she was. She sat back up again with a sudden movement, her eyes wide with confusion, 'Are you going to leave me all on my own?'

'No, actually, I don't trust you to stay in the room.'

'You don't trust me? Why not?' I'm Lee's best friend. You've known me since forever! You should actually trust me more,' and with that her pouting intensified. I shook my head in exasparation but also because I found her to be utterly funny. Yes, I knew her for ages and I knew who she was, she was my little brother's best friend. Granted, minus the alcohol intake and the loss of control. I walked over and pushed the door shut. The last thing I needed was Elle escaping. Or worse, Lee seeing her in here. With me. I turned the key in the lock whick made Elle jump. She looked at me quizically and her brown eyes darkened slighly. I grinned as her eyebrow shot up in response to my actions. I walked past the bed, pushed some dirty clothes off a chair and straddled it, facing Elle on the bed.

'Aren't you drunk?' she asked me.

'Not really,' simple as that, I just wasn't. I for once had been too busy watching her discreetly during the night.

'Aw, why? It's your party. Go crazy!'

'I think you were being crazy for the both of us.' After all, she had attempted to strip down and go skinny dipping in our pool.

There it was again, the pouting. 'I'm sorry, I didn't mean to spoil your fun.'

I laughed at her. She clumsily clambered to the edge of my bed and swung her legs back and forth whilst she sat on her hands.

'Noah...' She prolonged my name and looked down at her feet.

What did she want now?

'Yes,' I replied, waiting for more context.

'Will you please do the kissing booth for us?'

'No.'

'Please?' she begged and started bouncing up and down on my admittedly springy mattress. I watched her carefully, fearing the movement could make her sick. 'Please, please, please with a cherry on top?'

'No.'

'Why not?' she had turned her pout into a whine. I usually didn't have a thing for the whiny girls but this was a tipsy Elle who was sat on my bed. I would be lying if I didn't say that I thought the entire situation was very intriguing.

'You're so mean!'

'I don't want to do a kissing booth, simple as.' - Jeez, woman, why must you keep coming back to this. I just didn't want to.

'But why...'

Oh, Elle.

'I don't want to.'

'Please? It's - I think it's for cancer. Or dolphins. Yeah, maybe it's for the dolphins. That's a funny word, isn't it, dolphins. Dolphins ... Dol ... phins. Like dolly-fins.' - Ok she was clearly losing it now.

'I'm not going to do the kissing booth, no matter who or what it's for.'

She got off the bed, wobbly feet set on the ground carefully and then testing whether to trust her walking skills or not, Elle slowly made her way over to me. With me still sitting down, straddling my chair and her standing in front of me, we were almost the same height. I straightened my posture to gain more leverage. She came closer in a daring, unlike-Elle move, and our noses were almost touching.

'Not even for me?' - What was I supposed to say to that? That I had had a crush on her for the last couple of months? That she was driving me crazy? That I loved how she teased me by calling me 'Noah'? That ... I shook my head.

'Man, Elle, your breath stinks! How much vodka did you actually have?' - My blatant honesty shocked me sometimes.

'I don't know ... Dixon poured it.'

I sighed. 'Those guys ... I swear ...'

'What?' - Oops, maybe I should not say much else. She was tipsy but she wasn't stupid. There was no way I was allowing her to know that I had told all of them off.

'Nothing,' I quickly said and hoped she had not realized that there was more to the story than I let her know.

'Fine, don't tell me then,' she said, pouting again and shot back up fully only to stagger back and almost tumble. I immediately jumped off the chair and all I heard was 'I think I'm gonna be sick.'

I shoved her into the adjacent bathroom and pushed her over the toilet bowl. Just in time because mere moments later, Elle puked her guts up. I flinched back for just a millisecond but continued to hold her hair back in an attempt to make things at least slightly better. I didn't think she noticed my feather light touches on her back and shoulders. I was desperate to confort her even if she brought the misery on by herself. She transitioned from puking to dry-heaving in the span of a few minutes and I got up to pour her a glass of water which I pushed against her lips once she was sat up and leaned against the bathtub.

She looked at me sheepishly but I just jerked my head with a small movement, gesturing her to drink the entire glass of water.

'I'm really, really sorry, Noah,' she whimpered. She must feel all gross and sick after throwing up. For better or for worse, though, right? I pushed that thought away. Focus, Noah! 'I'm really sorry. I didn't mean to ruin your party.'

'You didn't ruin my party, Elle,' I told her. I could tell she wouldn't believe me and she shook her head in denial.

'Yes, I did. I'm really sorry.'

'It's ok,' I laughed, 'just calm down, okay?'

She scowled, clearly not done with apologizing and then punched me on the chest. Her eyes widened and I grinned with pride.

'Don't laugh at me.'

'Am not,' I murmured almost inaudibly and laughed harder. I pulled Elle to her feet but she wasn't expecting the sudden move so she half fell. I quickly caught her, steadied her with an arm around her waist to support her. I loved her tiny waist and just how curvy it made the rest of her body look. I helped her stagger over to my bed and dropped her on top of the covers.

'I'll be back in ten minutes to check on you, Elle, ok?' I asked.

Small snores told me that she was out like a light.

I quickly made my way toward the door, unlocked it and went downstairs to get Lee. Moments later he snickered at Elle's snoring and her being sprawled across my bed.

'I bet the girls you usually invite into your bedroom aren't out like a light, huh?' Lee half teased me and grinned.

'When have you last seen one in here?' I asked him, matter-of-factly. That threw Lee off and he had to think pretty hard.

'Couple of months?'

I just hummed.

'Noah...'

'Yes?'

'You know that's my best friend, right?'

'What a great best friend you've been to her tonight,' I retorted, clearly wanting to change the subject.

'What's that supposed to mean?'

'Well, I don't have a best friend so I don't know what the rules are here, but I am pretty certain that a best friend should look out for me in case I have too much to drink in a room full of highschool boys that wanna make a move!' I barked at him and he fell silent.

'I'll sleep in the guest room,' I said and started to retreat.

'You're not coming back downstairs?'

'No,' I said, my mouth a fine line. Lee turned back to face the stairs and was headed down. Didn't he see that I needed to stay close to check on her, in case she got sick again? Obviously not.