Chapter 5 The Party
488 Words
Lena Carter
Lena should not have come to this party.
That became obvious within the first five minutes.
Music blasted through the massive beach house while students crowded every room laughing, dancing, drinking, and screaming over each other.
Westbridge parties were always chaotic.
Which meant Ethan Hayes fit into them perfectly.
Lena stood near the kitchen counter holding a soda while her best friend Ava grinned knowingly beside her.
“You’re looking for him.”
“I’m not.”
“You literally scanned the room twice.”
“I was looking for the exit.”
“Sure.”
Before Lena could argue, cheers erupted near the living room.
Ethan had arrived.
Of course everyone noticed immediately.
Girls surrounded him almost instantly while his teammates dragged him toward the drinks table.
Typical.
Lena looked away quickly.
Annoyingly quickly.
Ava noticed everything.
“Oh my God.”
“What?”
“You’re jealous.”
Lena nearly choked on her drink.
“I am absolutely not jealous.”
“Mhm.”
Across the room, Ethan laughed at something a girl whispered into his ear.
Something ugly twisted unexpectedly in Lena’s chest.
Which made absolutely no sense.
They hated each other.
That was the whole point.
So why did seeing him with someone else bother her this much?
Before she could think about it longer, Ethan suddenly looked across the crowded room.
Directly at her.
And just like that—
everything else disappeared.
The noise.
The people.
The music.
Only him.
His gaze held hers steadily for several seconds before he excused himself from the group surrounding him.
Then he started walking toward her.
Lena’s pulse reacted instantly.
Stupid heart.
“You came,” Ethan said once he reached her.
“You sound surprised.”
“You hate parties.”
“I hate people.”
“That too.”
His eyes flicked toward her untouched drink.
“You’re not drinking?”
“Some of us like making good decisions.”
Ethan laughed softly.
Then his expression shifted slightly.
“You okay?”
The question caught her off guard.
“Why wouldn’t I be?”
“You’ve been staring at me like you want to commit murder for the past twenty minutes.”
Lena’s cheeks warmed.
“I was not staring at you.”
“You definitely were.”
Before she could deny it again, someone shoved through the crowd nearby, accidentally bumping into her.
Lena lost her balance slightly.
Ethan’s hand immediately landed on her waist to steady her.
And suddenly—
everything changed.
The tension between them sharpened instantly.
Too intense.
Too close.
Too real.
His hand stayed there longer than necessary.
Lena looked up slowly.
Big mistake.
Because Ethan was already staring at her mouth.
Her heartbeat became unbearable.
“Ethan—”
“Tell me to stop.”
Her breath caught.
But she didn’t.
Didn’t move.
Didn’t speak.
Didn’t look away.
And that was all the permission he needed.
- Writer
