This chapter's song is Dance in the Dark by Lady GaGa.
The ride to the restaurant was awkward, to say the least. I was crammed into the middle row between Fang and Dylan, and I was struggling not to make any sort of contact with the bastard, but it was hard. It wasn't easy around Dylan either—even though we'd managed to avoid the whole imprint deal, I knew it was hard for him, being around me. Of course, I think Lauren helped. I could feel Fang's dark eyes flickering to me every few seconds and they lingered there. He knew that I knew—he wanted me to look back, but I wasn't about to give him the satisfaction.
Nudge, who sat in the seat behind me, managed to keep up a constant chatter, filling the silence that seemed to be pressing in on everyone's nerves. At the one moment I tuned in, she happened to be discussing with Angel whether or not sparkly lip-gloss was appropriate for day-wear. I didn't listen to her again until we got to the restaurant. My mother's eyes seemed to find mine every once in a while, probing with concern and curiosity. The silence released me from its strangling hold as we tumbled out of the van like a great sigh of relief and bounced into the building.
We'd been coming to this place every Sunday night since I'd moved to Arizona with my mom. They had good, cheap food and a good DJ on the weekends. Everyone in my mother's small town seemed to know each other, so the kids were guaranteed to see a friend, and I got to see what few I had. And hopefully, it would be a good release from the suffocating tension. "Mackenzie, what should I get?" Nudge babbled, peering across the table at me over her menu. "Um…" I said, frowning as she jerked me ungracefully out of my cloud of thought. "Ribs," I said without thinking, "Get the ribs." She scowled at me, her heavily lined eyes rolling in exasperation. "Don't be silly—too messy." She scoffed, brushing a curled piece of hair off her forehead. I made a face at her. "Well pardon me," I said, but Nudge was already pestering Gazzy. I looked up from my menu and took a fleeting glance across the room.
Fang's endless eyes were piercing into mine, a small smile on those full lips. A chill ghosted up my spine at his smile, and a shot of longing coursed through me. That rare smile was one of the things I had missed most of him. I felt my lips curling into a smile too, and I dropped his gaze, shaking my head slightly. Once food was ordered, Ella wrapped her arm around my waist and was dragging me into the other room, which housed the dance floor and the DJ. Of course, Iggy followed Ella and Dylan got up also, probably in search of Lauren. Fang came too, following… me?
I shook the thought off and searched for Jace in the throng of teenagers and twenty-somethings. Nothing. I pushed into the pulsing crowd in search of a familiar face and found a group of kids that I knew lived nearby. "Hey," I said, finding the face of a girl I knew the best. "Jessica, right?" I asked, slipping into the circle next to her. She nodded and a grin split her face, her straight, white teeth glowing purple in the black lights. "Yeah," she said excitedly. "You're Mackenzie." She slurred. It wasn't a question, but I nodded anyways. "Dance with me, boo," she said, grabbing one of my wrists and twirling me in a circle. I grinned and let her lead as we spun and jumped and twirled, until the music itself washed over me, and I couldn't remember anything. Two boys stole up behind us, one leading Jessica away, the other giving me a slight smile and pulling me to the bar.
"You drink?" he asked, looking at me with clear silver eyes. I almost shook my head, then I found Fang staring at me through the crowd, his black eyes intense and flickering in the lights. "Tonight I do," I said, tearing my eyes away from Fang and giving Mystery Boy a small smile. He said something to the bartender that I couldn't hear, and a second later, two shot glasses were in front of us. I grabbed the closest one and tipped it back, before looking over to see Fang headed my way, pressing through the pulsing crowd with ease, his smirking eyes never leaving mine. "Wanna dance?" Mystery boy asked, gesturing to the floor. "Sure," I said with a small smile as I felt the alcohol flood my mind. The lights became a little less headache-inducing and a little more intense. The noise grew a little bit fuzzier, but I felt like every nerve ending in my body was on a live-wire. And suddenly the kid's hand was pulled from mine, and I didn't even care.
Didn't even care when I found myself face to face with Fang. His tan hands rested on my hips, thumbs slipping beneath my shirt, holding me to him. It didn't even cross my mind that this would end badly. I threw my arms around his neck and allowed my self to dance with him. I mean, it was just Fang… what could go wrong? He was my best friend, right? My… ex-boyfriend. No big deal, right? And then I was staring at Fang, searching his obsidian eyes for any clue as to what was going on. They, of course, held nothing. His shaggy black hair was hanging over his eyes, and it was just so, so sexy and…
He was staring at me too, I realized with a start. His head loomed over mine—I had always cursed the six inches he had on me—his eyes were intense and flashing in the lights as he leaned down. "Fang," I whispered, my heart thudding painfully in my chest. "What?" he asked, his gaze unwavering. "What are you doing?" I asked brokenly, but my words were cut off as his lips brushed across mine, ever so slightly. And in that second, my heart stilled and dropped through the floor. I could hear nothing, taste nothing, see nothing but Fang.
Fang. I realized with a jolt who I was kissing, and all the pain welled up inside me and I jerked away. Fang who had slammed my heart into the floor and left me to die. I couldn't love him. Not anymore. "Don't do this to me, Fang," I said jaggedly, my breathing heavy and my heart still pounding. "Do what?" he asked quietly, peering at me from under his thick eyelashes. "Don't break me again," I said, then disappeared through the crowd and out the back door. I leaned on the railing of the back porch, and took in big, greedy mouthfuls of cool March air. I ran my fingers through my hair several times, as I struggled to get my racing heart back to normal.
After a few minutes of silence, Angel's voice cut into my thoughts.
"Max? Dinner's here."
Coming. I sent back weakly, then headed back to the table. Fang was sitting at the other end of the table like nothing had happened, but he wouldn't look at me. I sat in my seat heavily, pasted on a smile, and tried to eat. But I couldn't. My stomach was in too many knots, and my throat was dry and painful. I pushed my food away, after a few minutes, and didn't speak for the rest of the night.