Revamped!

[I got so many reviews about how you guys were freaking out, so let this put you at ease.]

Beware of Sharp Thornes: Part Six

After the Party

They continue tapping through stories and scrolling through posts. All they see are the same concept of drunk dancing, shot taking, and party games. Nothing is pertinent to their investigation.

Eventually, they hear Cress stir in her sleep. She stretches her arms and back before lying there and blinking a few times. The rest of the group stands there silently, waiting for her to make the first move. Cress turns and faces her friends. She doesn't seem fazed by anything but she needs a minute for her mind to wake up.

"What are you looking at?" Cress asks them.

Nobody says anything but Cress looks down and notices that she's wearing one of Thorne's shirts. That's when she realizes she's also sleeping on his bed. Suddenly, she goes pale as many thoughts run rapids through her mind.

Before anyone could explain the situation calmly, Thorne jumps on his bed which startles Cress.

"Okay," Thorne states, looking right at her. "I don't remember doing anything like that last night. I woke up on the couch downstairs. If I remember something, it was making out with you but, I swear, we did nothing past the asteroid belt."

Cress is gobsmacked. Thorne waves his hand in front of her face to get a reaction but nothing happens.

"I think you broke her," Cinder mutters.

"Seems like you broke her last night," Kai adds.

Winter walks to the corner of Thorne's room and picks up a shirt on the floor. She stretches it out and recognizes it from the party photos. It's Cress's shirt.

"It reeks of booze," Winter comments before putting it on the corner of the bed. She didn't even have to hold it at her face to notice.

"Look, it doesn't matter what clothes you wear, only what's in your head," Scarlet tells her.

"I don't think there's anything up there…" Cress mutters.

"How?" Wolf asks her. "You didn't even drink!"

-o-

At the Party

She told herself she would never conform to peer pressure. She told herself she wouldn't drink. She's at Carswell Thorne's party as the designated driver.

But she could at least taste what everyone was so fanatic about.

Cress raises the cup. "Here's to liquid courage."

Cress takes a slow sip and Winter watches. When the beer hits her tongue, Cress immediately spits it out and gags.

"This is astonishingly disgusting," Cress comments. "People lie and get fake IDs to go to bars for this?"

Winter nods. "Some like to feel off the rails. Back in Luna, I didn't need drinks for that."

Cress looks at her. "Are you drunk?"

"I've had a few."

Suddenly, a group of people rush by and drinks get spilled on both Cress and Winter. Cress jumps a little, airing out her wet shirt and Winter shakes her head since it all landed in her hair. They're both surprised that they were dry up to this point.

"Let's fix that," Winter says.

The two girls head upstairs, looking for the bathroom. Winter opens the wrong door and it turns out to be Thorne's room. It works so they walk in and close the door.

All the air escapes Cress's lungs at the idea of being in Thorne's room. High ceilings with pictures of planes and spaceships everywhere. Everything was neat and kept together. It's like a breath of fresh air from the party just a floor below. A part of her wants to spend the rest of the night sitting at his desk, hearing muffled sounds of the beats from below as she looks at Thorne's pictures.

"Here," Winter says.

Cress looks and sees Winter holding out one of Thorne's band shirts. She doesn't ask if Winter went through Thorne's dresser but it seems like she did. Feeling anxious, Cress changes into it. It smells like fabric softener but Cress recognizes the scent from Thorne's fresh uniform. The shirt is way too big on her so she ties up the back and tucks it in.

"You look cute," Winter comments. "I'd smash you."

And, as if on cue, Thorne stumbles in.

"My room is off-limits," he spits before processing who's in his room. He's drunk. He perks up a little. "But you can stay."

Winter clears his throat. "He's not talking to me. I'm not even sure he sees me here. I'll be on my way."

Winter excuses herself, closing the door behind her. The moment that door clicks, Cress realizes that she's now alone with Thorne in his room. She can't believe it. She's dreamt of this moment before but never thought it'd come.

"You look really cute in that," Thorne tells her.

Chills run throughout Cress's body as he steps closer to her. "It's yours."

Thorne laughs a little as he holds the small of her back. He finds the knot she tied and undoes it. Cress goes tense a bit, feeling a bit exposed but she doesn't mind.

"Do you want me to kiss you?" Thorne asks her.

Cress nods, smiling. "Kiss me."

Thorne holds her head in her hands and she takes his shoulders. Then, they're kissing and Cress's mind goes blank. For the first time tonight, she wasn't thinking about the party or anything but Thorne's lips, hands, and body. In that moment, nothing and no one exist except her and the boy she's loved for so many years from afar.

He leads her backwards and they end up on his bed. Keeping their lips together, Thorne climbs on top of her and she runs her hands through his hair.

Suddenly, they get interrupted by the sound of something breaking downstairs. Sounded expensive.

"Aces…" Thorne mutters as he runs down to see what happened. "I'll be back."

Cress watches him go with a smile as she remains lying on his bed.

-o-

At the Party

Wolf hangs back, looking discreetly around the room. He quickly finds who he was looking for. There she is, looking as good as always. He stands quietly as she meets his eyes, looking at one another as they sip their drinks. The closer he walks to her, the more he could smell her perfume and he appreciates how her shirt clings to her chest and shows her curves.

"Are you used to hard liquor or are you more of a wine chiller girl?" Wolf asks playfully, holding her by the hips and guiding her against him.

Scarlet looks up at him with a grin. "Ice-cold beer, baby."

He has moves. She could feel his breath on her neck as his hands hold her hops firmly and their bodies grind into each other.

Meanwhile, Kai and Cinder are intertwined in the armchair they share. It's not only them kissing continuously but there's no space between their bodies. Kai tucks a lock that fell out of Cinder's ponytail behind her ear and her lips twitches to a smile. Then, she whispers something to him and they kiss again.

-o-

At the Party

Winter finally finds the bathroom. She opens the door and interrupts a couple making out. They head out when they see her although she would've left and she locks the door. Now, she's alone with the bright lights and her reflection in the giant mirror.

Winter rips a piece of paper towel from the dispenser and dampens it with cold water from the sink. She dabs it on her face to cool off. She takes some breaths to calm down.

Winter knows that the drinks she's had are influencing her mind, but even if she was sober, she would notice the same thing: everyone around her is in love. Even if those random people she walked in weren't in love, at least they were sharing some intimate connection.

She misses her boyfriend so much.

Winter takes a seat on the edge of the bathtub and takes out her phone. She dials Jacin's number and hopes that he picks up. The last thing she would want to do is leave a sad drunk voicemail that she'll forget the moment she leaves the bathroom. She isn't even sure if he's awake and can't be bothered to calculate Luna's time. She's sure it's the middle of the night since it's dark here.

Jacin Bae: Hey, I see you're at a party. Are you drunk calling me?

Winter feels so happy to hear his voice. "It was a sober decision but I'm buzzed."

Jacin Bae: That makes no sense but okay. What's up?

Winter sighs. "Earlier tonight, I was feeling like that emoji that's laughing and crying. But now, I see glimpses of tangled legs in an armchair across the house, couples kissing everywhere you turn, and it made me realize that I miss you. I really, really miss you."

She hopes he can't hear her lightly sobbing. But knowing Jacin, he probably knows.

Jacin Bae: Oh, Trouble, you know I miss you too. But, listen, we'll talk when you're sober and not wasting a good party crying in the corner talking to me.

"I'm in the bathroom."

Jacin Bae: Oh, that's even sadder. Don't do anything stupid, drink a lot of water, and get home safe. I'll text you later to make sure.

"Alright…" Winter mutters. "I love you."

Jacin Bae: I love you too.

[There is the Jacinter fluff we all wanted. Don't worry, Jacin will be in the story again (*coughs* next arc *coughs*).]