White Houses

Chapter 5

she's so pretty and she's so sure

maybe I'm more clever than a girl like her

And before she could convince herself that it was a bad idea, her arms had snaked around his neck, she was standing on her tiptoes, and her lips were pressed against his.

She pulled away after a moment and stumbled backward, pressing her eyes together tightly and placing her hand on her head. "Shit," she muttered, "Shit, I'm sorry, Oliver, I-"

"Hey, Lilly, it's okay, I-"

"God, I'm such an idiot," she yelled, kicking at the sand absentmindedly. "I'm so sorry, I… I think I'm going to go to bed."

Oliver reached out to grab her arm, but she dodged him, turning and sprinting into the house, slamming the door behind her. "Lilly!" he called. He sighed and ran a hand through his shaggy brown hair before turning and following the girl into the house.

Jake sighed as he looked around the party for Miley. After several girls had thrown themselves at him ("Jake Ryan, I'm a zombie, slay me!"), he was definitely ready to leave. There was no way that he was leaving the small, impressionable girl (who couldn't even handle Tila Tequila and whipped cream on the television) at a party that he was certain was about to be broken up by the cops.

"Hey, I know who you are!" a girl slurred, placing her hands on Jake's chest and stumbling toward him. "I have like a huge crush on you!"

Jake nodded. "That's nice," he muttered, attempting to peel her hands away from him.

She let out a giggle and a hiccup as she linked her arms behind his neck, pulling him closer to her. "Gawd, you are even hotter in person," she drawled.

"Listen," Jake said, trying to wriggle away from the girl's death grip. "As much fun as this is, I'm kind of looking for someone…" he thought quickly and added, "I'm looking for my girlfriend."

The girl pouted and crossed her arms across her chest (which was falling out of her shirt, by the way.) "Well, she's not here," she sulked. "And I am here. So let's go find a deserted room and…"

Suddenly, Jake spotted Miley's brunette waves across the dimly lit patio. "That sounds like a great time, really it does," he reassured the girl, patting her shoulder awkwardly, "But my girlfriend is here. I just spotted her. Sorry!"

Jake broke away from the clingy girl and jogged toward Miley. When he reached her, he noticed she wasn't alone. A boy's hand was slung casually around her waist and was creeping lower and lower by the second.

Jake's eyes practically bugged out of his head as he grabbed Miley's upper arm and spun her around. "Hey," he said, out of breath. "I've been looking for you."

Miley smiled a toothy grin and Jake immediately noticed her glassy eyes. "Jake-y!" she squealed, throwing her arms around his neck, almost knocking him to the ground. Jake put a hand on her waist to steady them. "Jake-y, I'm so glad you're here, I missed you!"

She moved to take another sip of her drink, but Jake quickly grabbed the cup and let it fall to the ground. "I think you've had enough of this," he said.

Miley stuck her lower lip out. "Hey, you meanie-head," she slurred, swatting at his chest.

Jake rolled his eyes and grabbed her hand, intertwining his fingers with hers. "Listen, Miles, why don't we head home?"

"W-Wait," she stuttered, pulling on his hand forcefully. "I want you to meet my new friend!" She wriggled from Jake's grasp and stumbled toward the boy who had been holding her earlier. She wrapped her arms around him and Jake felt his stomach begin to churn.

The boy turned around and Jake felt his fists clinch at his sides. "Miley, I think we've already met," he seethed. "Can we please go now?"

"Jake Ryan," Adam laughed (not in a friendly way.) He pulled the very drunk Miley close to him and Jake noticed that he didn't seem to be drunk at all. "Miley, did you want another drink? I'll get you one."

"As nice as that is of you," Jake interjected before Miley could respond. "We were just about to leave. Come on, Miley."

Miley blinked, looking between the two boys. "Do you know each other?" she asked.

"Yes," Jake said, reaching out for her hand. "Now, let's go."

"Maybe she's not ready to go yet, Jake-y," Adam mocked. "Or maybe she just doesn't want to leave with you."

Jake looked at Miley and held out his hand, gesturing for her to take it. "Miley, come on," he said.

Miley furrowed her eyebrows and looked between the two boys again. "Why are you so angry?" she murmured, looking at Jake.

Jake sighed and ran a hand through his hair exasperatedly. "Please, let's just leave, Miley. I don't want to stay here all night, but if you're going to, then I'm going to."

Miley finally slid her hand into his. "Bye, Adam!" she called over her shoulder as Jake dragged her away. "I'll come back to your house, it's pretty!" Jake held her hand tightly as she stumbled down the beach behind him. "Jake, are you angry at me?" she asked softly.

He looked in her big, brown (glazed over) eyes and wanted to say that he was. He wanted to ask her how she could be so stupid, how she could trust some random guy (especially when that guy was Adam, the biggest jerk on the face of the planet), why she didn't stay with him, but he didn't say any of those things because he couldn't be mad at her. He sighed and pulled her close to him, sliding his arm around her shoulders. She wrapped her arms around his middle and nuzzled her head into his chest. "No, kiddo, I'm not mad at you," he whispered, rubbing her arm gently.

She sighed contently. "Good," she whispered. "I don't like it when you're mad at me."

"Lilly!" Oliver called, pounding his fists on the door. "Lilly, please open the door!" He was met, once again, with silence from the other side. "Look, I'm not an idiot, I know you're not sleeping! Even you couldn't sleep with all of the noise I'm making!" He heard a quiet sob from the other side and he felt his heart break. "Please, just open the door," he said softly. "Please, Lilly."

He was met with more silence. "Fine, Lillian Rose," he said. "But know that I am going to continue sitting here… on the floor… all night until you open this damn door."

He pressed his back against the wall and slid down, letting his head fall into his hands. After a few moments, he heard the door creek open and he saw Lilly's head peek out.

Her eyes were red and puffy and there was mascara running down her cheeks. Oliver quickly stood up and jammed his foot into the door so that she couldn't close it. "What do you want?" she asked warily.

Oliver laughed and placed his hands on either side of her face, wiping her tears away with the pads of his thumbs. "Don't you get it?" he asked, leaning in and placing a soft kiss on her lips. "I want you."