you're a star

“Serves you right for trying to keep up with them,” She teased, a mock condescending tone coating her voice, “I swear those two have the highest tolerance I’ve ever seen. I don’t think I’ve even seen Vayda with a single hangover.” She let out a half-laugh taking the joint from him and inhaling, she leaned back, mirroring his position and letting the smoke that flitted through her lips dance with his. 

She rolled her eyes, a small scoff escaping her lips, “only in your wildest and wettest dreams, Elijah.”  Tossing him a sarcastic toothy grin, “We’ve just revamped the dog house in the back, I’ll throw you a clean blanket and a bone and some water. Think that’ll get you through the night?” She’d seen her parents a total of two times that summer, only jetting in to attend some party before departing back to Europe for work. If anything, Eli was doing her a favor by not being alone in a big house for another night.

Eli shrugged, “If you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em.” That mentality had gotten him in trouble time after time as he tried to keep up with the Hawthorne’s and ended up with a massive hangover the next morning as a result. “Me either, now that I think of it.” His eyebrows furrowed as he thought back to all the times Vayda had out drank him and everyone else with ease. “She’s got like, a liver of steel or something.” He watched the smoke pour from between Dylan’s lips, thinning out as it floated up into the sky.

“In my dreams you’re Mila Kunis and all over me.” He clarified, pointing a finger between the two of them as he joked with her. “Ha ha ha.” He laughed sarcastically before scratching at the back of his neck, choosing his next words wisely. “I actually might chill at your place…. just for the night. My dad was on my case this morning so—” He let out a small sigh then, pausing for just a second before finishing his thought. “Probably best to lay low for a while.” He wasn’t sure if right next door was considered laying low— if anything his parents would probably know where to look for him —but he wouldn’t be under their roof for a night, which was always a plus.

She swallowed any urge to ask about what happened, knowing it’d be the last thing he’d want to talk about and instead - focused on trying to pull him out of his head and away from what had just happened. She didn’t know why she felt it so necessary to make Eli feel better; she hated the boy 90% percent of the time but she supposed if anyone was to get on his nerves and upset him - she was the only allowed to do that. 

She lit the joint, stretching out her own long legs and inhaling, leaving the lighter in the small space that separated the pair. She let him take the joint from her nimble fingers as she exhaled smoke into the darkening sky; used to hitting it back and forth between them like some kind of routine. Her head swiveled towards him, pushing back her sunglasses into dark tresses as she examined his face, lips downturning as slender shoulders lifted into a shrug, “unsurprisingly, I’ve seen you look worst.” She teased, her lips tugging into a small smirk, “like - that charity event we were forced to go to two years ago? - You know the one where you wore the ugliest suit I’ve ever seen. Did you even see a tailor?” She noted the blood slowly trickling down and she pulled off her white tank top, leaving her in a black bikini and passing the top over to him to wipe away the blood somewhere other than his fingers. “you can hide out at my place if you want - until it doesn’t look like you got socked in the face. - Or maybe you can say Dec accidentally hit you with a hockey stick.” 

He shook his head at the memory she brought up, a smile creeping onto his lips as he remembered how mad his mom had been when he’d skipped the appointment she’d set up with the tailor the morning of the event. He’d overslept at Declan and Vayda’s, still recovering from raiding their parent’s liquor cabinet the night before. “I’m lucky I even made it through that event. That was the worst hangover ever.” He handed the joint back to her before leaning back with his palms pressed against the pavement, his head tilted back towards the sky. The sun was setting and crickets started to chirp nearby as the summer night fell upon them. 

He knew she knew what he meant without him really saying anything. That was the easy thing about being around Dylan. The unspoken form of communication that they’d somehow developed over the years. She knew he couldn’t go home like this, not without covering up his bruises or having a damn good excuse for them. He pressed her balled up shirt to his brow, wiping away at the blood as he let out a short laugh. “Might have to use that one.” He’d probably still end up earning a lecture about being more careful, but it’d be better than the lecture about fighting and keeping a clean image. He shot an overly flirty look in Dylan’s direction as he suddenly joked with her. “Are you trying to take me home for the night Dyldo?”

Toes were dipped into the pool, azure orbs hidden by tinted oversized sunglasses as she sat in between Celeste and Vayda. She was unaware of anything else going on outside of their bubble; as it always was when the three of them got together. The world and everyone disappeared and they were sucked into one of their own even if they were in the middle of a very packed pool party. 

It was Celeste whose attention drifted first, her gaze moving to the opposite side of the pool where some sort of commotion had put a pause to the party, capturing everyone’s attention. “what the fuck just happened?” Dylan asked, her eyes locking with Eli’s for a few moments before he broke the contact and walked out of the backyard. She didn’t wait for a reply or a response from either Vayda or Celeste before quickly following after him. 

Her bare feet hit the hot sidewalk as she looked both ways, trying to see where he had gone. It didn’t take long for her gaze to land on him, just six houses down sitting on the curb. She silently walked over to him, pulling out a joint from her denim shorts and sticking it behind her ear. She didn’t even hesitate before taking a seat next to him. “– You got a light?” She asked, after a few moments of silence, pulling the joint out and placing it between her lips.

Eli hadn’t heard anyone following behind, so it startled him when Dylan suddenly appeared walking down the street towards him. He avoided her gaze, stretching his legs out across the pavement and letting out a small sigh when she took a seat on the curb beside him. Somehow she was both the first and last person he wanted to see right then. It wasn’t until she spoke that he looked over at her, a joint placed between her lips and an eyebrow raised following her question. He wordlessly fished around in his pocket, pulling out a black lighter and handing it over. He could feel warm liquid pooling at his eyebrow, and he placed his fingers there, looking down at them after to reveal bright red. Great. He thought, already rolling his eyes at the questions he knew would follow when his parents saw him the next day. 

He sat there in silence alongside the brunette, letting her get a fews drags of her joint before plucking it from between her fingers and taking a hit himself. He didn’t speak until he exhaled, smoke flowing from between his lips and into the air between them. “How bad does it look?” He finally spoke, motioning to the injury.

The group fell silent. Not only was it the first thing Eli had said in a while, but it was cuttingly blunt, although true. The guy snorted, looking over at his friends for support but receiving none. Eli continued, attempting to make light of the situation. “Just saying, I know her and she’s picky or whatever.” It was too late to apologize though, short stack had already formed a rebuttal. “I heard you’ve fucked her. You think you’re the only one who has claim? I hear she gives it up for just about any dick so you’re not special.” From there it was mostly a blur. Eli had felt his blood boil up until it resulted in him throwing punches as the other guy fought back. The whole thing didn’t last long before Declan and Owen came along to pull him away, and it was then that Eli realized most of his friends were nearby. Dylan herself was standing on the other side of the pool, looking in his direction with a questioning look on her face. He suddenly didn’t feel like himself and without a word he turned and headed out of the backyard, towards the front of the house, down the driveway and towards the street, away from the party.

“God, where did Declan even find these people? – You think it was that friend of his that he brought? Next party, I’m making him make a guest list that I have to approve. He’ll probably moan about it but it’s for the greater good.” She mused, a small smile flickering onto her lips, as she pulled a small pink lighter from the small Chanel purse strapped over her shoulder. She all but dangled it in front of the male’s eyes, head tilting to the side just slightly as an eyebrow lifted just a fraction, “you’ll smoke me up without any strings attached? Or what’s in it for you, Elijah?”

“Why not just throw the party yourself?” He suggested in a condescending tone, watching as she pulled a bright pink lighter out of the tiny purse at her hip. He rolled his eyes at the use of his full name, his arms going up in defense of her inquiries. “Hey, I’m just trying to spread some summer cheer. Now, if you wanted to spread some cheer of your own though,” He leaned towards her then, his eyes flicking over her bikini-clad body for a moment before returning to her face, a confident smirk etched onto his lips. “I won’t complain.” He reached up and grabbed the lighter then, placing the joint between his lips and lighting the end of it all in one swift movement. “Happy Summer Dyldo.” He teased as he exhaled, smoke billowing up into the air above them as he offered the joint to her.

“Fret no more, my angel I am here in the very flesh for the rest of the summer without any internships or school work to keep me distracted.” There was a small laugh that scuttled out of the girl’s lips, “did Eli go ahead and shove the girl off the boat, giving the sharks a nice bony little snack?” Vayda let the girl steer her through the boat, heels clicking with every step, “He texted me that he was bringing his friend - I don’t think I’ve met any of Declan’s college friends - is this Owen boy hot?”  

"Good.” Celeste let out a relieved sigh. “Summer can’t officially start without you.” Seconds later a tipsy giggle fell from the girl’s mouth at Vayda’s joke, and Celeste shook her head. “No, she’s still on board somewhere I guess. I’ll point her out if I see her...” She trailed off then, spotting Declan and Owen across the room at the bar. “Oh he’s cute. See for yourself.” She led the brunette a bit closer and nodded in the boys direction. Oddly enough, Declan’s friend looked up at the same time and he and Vayda met eyes before the male pointed in their direction, quickly saying something to Declan. Celeste’s heart skipped a beat when he looked up at them, and she turned her gaze to the other girl in an attempt to avoid eye contact. “Your brother’s been giving me weird looks all night, I think he somehow hates me even more now.” She quickly confided in her friend before they were joined by the two males.

He offered his friend a shrug, leading the way to the bar, “Now Owen, I’ve invited the creme of the crop tonight - take your pick. No need to play shy, my boy.” There was a teasing tone to his voice, as he tossed him a smirk over his shoulder. He lifted his wrist, eyes falling onto the Rolex but not completely reading the time; “she should be on the fucking boat by now. We’ve set sail and I even stalled the departure time so that she could make it.” His eyes scanned the room, trying to see if he could find his younger sister. “She’s probably with Celeste or Dylan. We can grab our drinks and go find them.”

"Yeah? I don’t see you taking your own advice.” He poked fun at his friend, taking note of the fact that any other time he’d have gotten at least five girl’s numbers by now. He nodded as Declan explained his reasoning for delaying the ship’s departure. “Hope she made it.” He offered up in reply before leaning against the bar. His response was sincere, by this point he’d heard so much about Declan’s sister that he was actually looking forward to meeting her. As the other male talked about going to find his sibling, Owen quickly glanced around the room, meeting eyes with a girl whose face looked familiar. He recognized the petite blonde hovering nearby and took a chance. “That her?” He pointed in the first girl’s direction, watching as Declan’s eyes followed his finger.

“I’m heading inside to get another drink,” the male stated, putting the empty glass, still frosted from the cold amber liquid on a nearby table, “you want anything?” The words tumbled from his lips, geared towards no one in particular as he flicked his sunglasses off his eyes, letting them rest atop his tawny head. 

“Uhh.” Owen took a quick look around the area, not recognizing a single face in the crowd. Everyone he’d been introduced to earlier had disappeared, and Owen opted not to sit alone while Declan got another drink. “I’ll just go with you.” He muttered as he stood up to head inside with the other male, also leaving his empty glass behind. A thought occurred to him as they walked, and he leaned forward so that Declan could hear him over the music and chattering of the partygoers. “When’s your sister supposed to get here?” He wondered aloud, knowing that his friend had been excited for the reunion with his sibling.

“I literally came straight from the law firm and onto the yacht; think my uber driver almost crashed because he was watching me change in the backseat. – Anyways, albeit late - my summer’s finally began. Have I missed anything? Fill me in.” 

“I was wondering where you were! Some girl already got too drunk and puked off the side of the boat, then a couple minutes later tried to make out with Eli. His face was priceless. Oh, and Declan bought a friend with him! Owen, I think? He introduced us all a while ago but I don’t know if anyone was paying attention. Dylan looked at him like he had three heads, but I think he’s nice. We should go find them!" The blonde chattered away before taking Vayda’s hand in her own and heading towards the bar, the last place she’d seen Declan and his friend.

“ – Gag me.” The girl exhaled, a look of disgust painted on her features as she all but sauntered down the steps the black bikini adorning her frame barely hidden under the sheer cover up. “We’ve got to start being more selective on who we let in. I must’ve passed at least 4 bimbos recreating the Titanic scene. It’s like they’ve never been on a fucking yacht before.”

“Probably haven’t.” Eli chuckled as he finished rolling up a joint and proceeded to tuck it behind his ear. “I nearly pushed some chick overboard earlier, tried to kiss me right after throwing up. I don’t think half of ‘em are even over eighteen.” He complained as he searched his pockets for a lighter, letting out a soft curse as he realized he’d misplaced his. “You got a light?” He looked up at Dylan then, surprised to find himself intrigued by the way the sunlight caught her eyes. “I’ll smoke you up if you want.” He blurted out, the invitation falling from his lips before he could stop it.