empty gold

logan: indeed, i’ll think about it. how about that?

logan: that’s ok, i think i could keep the hope there just enough so that you carry on. or is that just evil? i think it might be

logan: yes, but we’ll also have another doggo to look after. one is a lot of effort. two is double the effort. im just saying.

“And what are your other reasons, then?” Jude asked as he looked at her. “Well, you got here somehow, didn’t you?” He asked, already knowing she was going to make him drive her home. And there she was calling him ‘daddy’ again. Fuck. Why’d she have to keep doing that? It was hard to keep his gaurd up when she was saying shit like this. Jude stared at her for a few minutes before rolling his yeas. “Alright, fine. Get in.” He caved, opening the passenger side door of his red ‘89 pontiac firebird for her to get in.

“why are you so curious?” the blonde counters, tilting her head. “i did.” she leaves it at that. she’s not about to tell jude that her driver had dropped her off - edward had been curious about why she’d chosen this place but iris trusted him enough to know that he wouldn’t spill. if she admitted it to jude then he could just tell her to call him again, and that would put a damper on her plans. her smile only grows as he finally caves in - “yay, i owe you big time,” there’s a bounce in her step as iris approaches him and giving his arm a squeeze, and placing a kiss on his cheek before she slides into the seat. “this is such a nice ride,” she compliments as she settles in.

“Wow. Impressive.” KJ rose her eyebrows, nodding slowly. “I say that to every guy like you, so don’t try to make this something it isn’t.” She warned him. KJ laid her towel out on the sand and sat down, enjoying the fact that he had left her alone, but then she heard the sound of his voice. “A typical fuckboy who may or may not have something more to him, but acts like he doesn’t,” KJ replied, taking the bottle from him. “Thanks.” She said to him as she cracked open the bottle. “The kind who can just give a girl one look or just call her ‘babygirl’ to get her to go weak in the knees.”

"well, damn - and here i thought i was special,” levi clicks his tongue and shakes his head. he can understand why she feels the need to separate herself from the rest of the party, but he’s still determined to try to get her to change her opinion on that. besides, it’s clear that her friend was going to be busy with his for a while. a small chuckle escapes at her description as he takes a seat on the sand, “ah, so you think you’ve got me all figured out then...” he pauses for a moment as he gently nudges her arm, looking at her with a grin, “- babygirl?” his eyebrows raise up as his hand reaches out to gently poke at her knee, “are they weak yet? i can’t tell.”

his words made her heart sink because she knew too well the affect his parents fighting had on him, all those nights she had spent consoling him and listening to him vent, those memories even though they were bad she held them close to her heart because it made her and beau stronger, brought them closer. “i get it babe, i get it,” she spoke still clearly in distress about everything but her tone was a little calmer. mini did understand and that was why she had allowed him to end things without going on full bitch mode but understanding didn’t stop it hurting. part of her was happy for him to get away, put some distance between him and his parents but what beau didn’t know was that mini would have packed up her life and moved with him, maybe she should have been more vocal about that but then again beau ended them before she even had the chance to open her mouth. “how could i ever move on from you? i’m in love with you and no matter how far away you were that never changed,” she told him wiping at her cheeks with the backs of her hands as the tears slowly subsided, mini didn’t fall in love with anyone and it took a long time to get to the point her and beau had so those feelings were never going to go away. in her head she had always imagined them reuniting but it being a happy occasion not something so miserable, it was strange to think that everyone in that party would be thinking they were just having sex, that was her reputation and everyone knew their history and her comments before disappearing with him would have added fuel to the fire – of course she was never just going to do that, she wanted to but she wanted him to be hers again as well, not just for a night but forever. the silence was long and anxious only for her worst fears to be confirmed and she was hurt but she didn’t deserve to be, not one little bit. she had slept with so many people, she couldn’t help her feelings though. fingers tangle in his hair as he rests his hands on her legs, “i find that hard to believe.. the only way people like me is when they are frightened to stand up to me you know when im being a cold bitch or when im opening my legs,” she muttered shaking her head a little before her blue eyes met his, “i love you too, i always will baby.”

mini knows all about his family problems. in fact, he’s sure that she’s heard them arguing in the background of some of their phone calls before. and most of the time that led to him either going over to her place to get away, or asking her to go somewhere with him. it was usually alcohol or mini that he turned to in those cases, and mini was clearly always the better option. she’s always known exactly how to make things better for him. he wished that his brain could have reworked itself to believe that things would be different for them but he was too scared to do that. and as much as he’d wanted to ask her to come with him, he’d held back because he didn’t think it would be fair to drag her somewhere just because of him. he never wanted to give her that option because he didn’t want her to feel pressured to say yes. “it never changed for me either,” he reassures her. there were so many things that reminded him of mini, even while he was away. he’d see someone with her hair and start to miss her, or he’d hear a song that reminded him of her, or of them, and it would feel like a punch to the gut. there were so many little things like that and they happened nearly every single day while he was away. it was so hard not to pick up the phone to give her a call or to skype her, but he’d honestly thought that he’d done enough damage by leaving. “you know that doesn’t apply to me,” he reminds her, shaking his head. he hated how fake some people could be, and he hated that she felt the need to act a certain way just to get those kinds of people to like her. beau sighs softly, running his hands down her legs as he shakes his head. “baby, you don’t have to change a single thing about yourself just to impress people. you’re perfect. they’re the ones that need to change.” he didn’t miss out on the fact that she’s repeated that she loves him though and he reaches out to take her hands, lifting one up to place a kiss on it as their eyes remain locked, “can we work this out, please? our current arrangement is clearly making both of us miserable.”

“Well, it is, isn’t it? You find me exciting ‘cause I’m not one of your ivy league bound pretty boys.” Jude retorted, squinting at her. He let out a long sigh and shook his head as she fixed herself up. He kept his face straight but just hearing that dirty word in its context leaving her pretty little lips was already starting to stimulate him under his jeans. So this was how she got all those guys? Well, he had to give her at least a little credit. He swallowed thickly and walked toward his car, fishing his keys out of his pocket. “Like I said, I got stuff to do. So you should get going, princess. I’d start going now if I were you. Takes a while to get to your palace from here. We are on the wrong side of the tracks, you know.”

”you’ve got a point there, but that’s not the only reason why,” iris points out. he’s different from all the other guys that she’d grown up with. they were all boring, and seemed to have sticks up their asses. jude was exciting, and as much as it irked her that he didn’t give into her so quickly, it was part of the charm as well. it kept her wanting more. an eyebrow arches into the air as he walks away again. her bottom lip juts out, she’d been so sure that she would have gotten him to cave at that point. her lips rise again as he calls her princess though.  “i happen to like it on this side. but, it is far isn’t it?” she asks, sighing softly. “no one’s even at home. my parents are away on a business trip for the next week or so... you’re really going to make me go home all alone, daddy?” it’s one final attempt as she leans her hip against the car.

“How chivalrous of you,” KJ muttered, unamused. “Then go find a girl who’s gonna let you do that.” She gestured to the several handfuls of girls that were just dying for his attention. “If I didn’t already know what kind of guy you were, I’d probably be flattered, but unfortunately for you, I do know.” She stated, slinging her backpack and her towel over her shoulder. “And so I’m sorry, pretty boy, but I’m not gonna fall in love with you just because you know how to flirt your way into a girl’s pants.” KJ gave him a sweet smile before she made her way further down to where the water was so she could sit in the sand.

”well, you know me,” levi teases, growing more and more amused. “you know, i’m really just not feeling any of them today.” he doesn’t even glance over at them this time around. of course he knows how easy it would be to go over there, but he wasn’t looking for that right now. “hey, at the very least, you think i’m pretty. and i’m not looking to have anyone fall in love with me so let’s get rid of that notion.” he smirks as she walks away. he hangs back as one of his friends catches up to him, talking to him for a few minutes before he grabs a bottle of water and joins her in her spot. “what kind of guy do you think i am, exactly?” he asks curiously, taking a seat next to her and holding out the water for her, “at least have some water. i don’t want you to get dehydrated.”

“You don’t have to know if for it to be true.” Jude pointed out. He knew how much she hated for him to tell her shit like this, so it only made him want to do it more. “There you go thinking everything is about you.” He groaned rolling his eyes. “Alright, you asked for it,” he grabbed her by her legs and hoisted her over his shoulder. “You sure act like a spoiled brat, you know.” He said, walking her a few feet away from his car and setting her down.

“that may be true, but i think you’re a little bit of a liar.” iris grins, laughing softly, “you’re the one that brought up the fact that you think that your attitude is one of the reasons why I’ve got the ‘hots’ for you,” she says, fingers lifting into air quotes at that. she squeaks softly as her body slides off of the car and into his arms, honestly enjoying the view as she dangles from his shoulder, “i do know, actually.” she fixes her hair and then her skirt as her feet hit the ground. “you know, i may not listen to my dad’s orders but...” iris steps closer to him again, leaning in closely to whisper in his ear, “it’s a whole other story when it comes to daddy’s orders.”

Attention was the last think KJ wanted, but of course, it’s what she got. “Oh, please,” she scoffed. “I wonder how many shitty compliments you had to sift through before getting to that lovely, very original one.” She said, watching as Erin’s eyes light up before she ran off to find his friend. “And no, I think it’s a step back. Means more prying eyes off hormone induced boys like you.” She said, shoving her sweatshirt into her backpack. “I’d save your breath for one of the lovely ladies over there who’d really dig for you to undress them with your eyes.”

to be honest, a part of him had known that that line wouldn’t have worked on her. his lips tug further up, watching as her friend ran off before looking at her again, “you’ve got me. i was going to say that you dress down really nicely, but i was trying to be respectful.” levi glances over towards the rest of the party before he shakes his head, “oh come on, what would be the fun in that? i’d rather do the undressing for real.” he shrugs, “and like i said, i wouldn’t be a good host if i let you be miserable all night long, so what exactly is going to make this better for you?”

“You’re delusional. Must be because unrequited attractions aren’t something you’re used to.” He chuckled, rolling his eyes at the small girl. “You can’t fix what isn’t broken, Iris.” He teased her. Jude let out a long sigh once she sat on the hood of his car. “And here I thought that was the reason why you’ve got the hots for me.” He titled his head at her. “This is very cute and all, but I have things to do, so you need to get off my car.”

for a moment there she’s a bit taken aback by the blunt rejection, eyebrows creasing, “i don’t know about that.” she shrugs it off, the stubborn side of her refuses to believe him but there’s a part of her that’s wondering if she’s just making herself look like an idiot right now. she ignores his comment, rolling her eyes instead. “oh, is that why you do it then?” she teases. iris shakes her head, clicking her tongue, “i told you, jude, i’m perfectly comfy here,” she lays back instead, sighing contently before crosses her dangling ankles. “if you want me to get off of this car, you’re going to have to do it yourself.”

KJ offered a forced smile, crossing her arms over her chest. She looked at the drinks in his hand and shook her hand. “Thanks, but I think I’ll pass. Besides, I don’t think there’s anything that could change my mind about being here.” She muttered, watching as Erin grabbed one of the drinks before setting it down so she could take off her shorts and crop top so she could show off the tiny little bikini she’d bought only a few hours prior. Now, no shame to her friend, but KJ didn’t understand why she was so obsessed with the idea of boys. Erin mumbled something about KJ taking off the big sweatshirt she’d taken for her dad, and when she said no, she was soon pulled to the dressing tents and shoved into one. After spending at least fifteen minutes of arguing, KJ finally stepped out in the most modest yellow bikini her friend would let her get.

levi nods as she turns down the drink, eyebrows raising up at her words, “we wouldn’t be very good hosts if that turns out to be true.” he hands the spare bottle to one of his friends instead as erin strips down, not too surprised when kj refuses to do the same. he chuckles softly as the two of them disappear, shaking his head as he joins the rest of his friends. glancing over at the tent every few minutes, he’s curious about what was going on in there and he’s in the midst of a half-assed conversation with another girl that’s joined them on a log when kj emerges. he’s used to seeing her riding around in her big sweaters - not this. “sorry,” he mumbles, excusing himself before he approaches her. “that colour suits you,” he goes for the more innocent compliment that’s running through his brain as he looks her over again. “now that you’re dressed the part - that’s a step closer to having a good time, no?” he flashes kj a grin before looking at erin, “hey, i think adam was looking for you.” it’s an absolute lie so he can talk to kj alone, but he’s sure that his friend wasn’t going to complain about erin’s company.