Chapter 1 1

AVA

If I had known better, then best believe I would be nowhere near the four walls of this madhouse they called a party. If agreeing to Liam's stupid bet had a ranking on my list of regrettable life choices, then tonight had definitely taken the number one spot. I should have known he wasn't up to any good when he'd walked into my room two days ago.

"I have something for you." The lopsided grin he wore was still fresh in my mind. "A bet. One I think you'd be able to do."

"I'm not interested, Liam." That had been my response, but he wasn't having it. "I have other important things to do. Go on and have fun without me."

"You haven't even heard it yet, Aves." He grinned. He loved to call me that even though my name was literally so easy to pronounce. "At least give me a chance to tell you what it is."

"Two minutes." I folded my hands across my chest turning in my chair to face him. "Nothing more."

"I bet you can't come to the party at the Martell's house." I should have known his sly grin would only get me into trouble. "If you do come, and stay till the end of it, I promise I'll do anything you want for the rest of the month."

"A month is a pretty long time, Lee." I'd mused. "Would you be able to handle it."

"Try me." He chuckled taking a seat on my bed. "Just imagine it. You'll have me to bend in whatever way you like. You could even force me to study, and all you have to do to get this, is come to a party."

"I don't know." I had muttered, I had a feeling this was a bad idea. "I guess it doesn't sound all that bad..."

All it took for the memory to disappear was a loud thud behind me. I didn't bother checking it out because I could bet my life it was one of the other teenagers trying to cause a ruckus with the little ounce of freedom they'd gotten tonight.

My stomach churned and I was quick to blame it on the loud music that came tumbling from the house in front of me. Call me crazy or whatever, but I could swear the walls were rattling, all thanks to the speakers coming from the inside. Neon lights lined the walls, and the decorations screamed that a lot of time had been put into it, but it still didn't change how I felt about the place. My eyes scanned the pool in the area I was currently at, and I wasn't the least bit impressed.

Sweat slicked teenagers squeezed past one another in a blur of neon bracelets and spilled soda. I could swear the night was cold when Liam, his friend, Asher and I had set out, but right now, I felt suffocated. The air was thick with the aroma of cheap fruit punch, and smoke. It sent shivers down my spine and it only made me tug the sleeves of my cardigan lower.

Why had I worn a cardigan to a pool party?

My eyes scanned the place again for Liam and Asher. Nothing. Liam had promised he was going to stay with me, to watch me go through the night, and Asher, he'd told me he wasn't going to leave me alone.

What happened to twins keeping their promises to each other?

Asher, his best friend had always had a rebellious streak since childhood, and even though he'd ditched me the moment we got here, I wasn't expecting less. Liam on the other hand, was definitely going to get an earful from me.

All I needed to do was find them first.

I turned my gaze back to the paper cup that held my untouched sprite. Maybe I shouldn't have tried to prove to Liam that I wasn't just a bookworm who wouldn't dare step out of the house if it wasn't related to school.

Maybe. Just maybe.

Someone's laughter by the left pulled my attention back to the party. I angled my head slightly, just to see a boy laughing hysterically in front of almost a dozen cans. I wasn't paying attention, but it was obvious he'd knocked them down for his own amusement. I had barely caught that when I caught a prickle at the back of my neck.

I flinched for just a second, before pushing my glasses up the bridge of my nose. A dark haired boy from inside the living room caught my eyes, but only for a second. His expression was unreadable and curious, but before I could get a closer look at him, he was gone. Probably mashed in between the other teenagers that were having the time of their lives dancing.

Who the hell was that?

I racked my brain for who it could be, but all my brain came up with, was pure static. No matter how hard I tried to think, I just couldn't come up with who that might be.

Had I imagined it somehow? He looked like he had been staring at me. It was weird

"Relax, Ava." I muttered underneath my breath, whilst clutching the cup in my hand. "You can do this. Just hang in there till you find your brother." I told myself.

It sounded easier to be honest. After standing awkwardly by the pool, I decided to start my search all over again. In one swift motion, I ducked towards the door whilst searching for familiar faces. My eyes scanned high and low, but all I came up with, was nothing.

There was no sign of the boys anywhere.

I was just about to give up hope, when my eyes caught something in the corner. It was a narrow hallway opened on the right, and from the murmurs and voices that filtered through the first door, I already knew it was occupied.

"New plan." I huffed. "Find Asher, murder him, then get Liam to come home with me. Bingo."

As slowly as I could, I made my way towards the door. I'd barely gotten there when I peeked into the room.

There were roughly about seven or eight teens lounging in there. They'd formed a small circle made up of mismatched cushions, and with their backs against a bookshelf that held old and dusty boardgames, I was able to spot one of the devils who'd brought me here.

Liam's blonde hair seemed to catch the light, and while it may or may not be the reason I was able to recognize him, all I wanted to do was chop his hair off his head, before feeding it to him.

I was still figuring out ways to murder him when someone's voice broke through my thoughts.

"Ava?" Liam called, and I froze. A smile made its way to his face, but I didn't dare return it. "You're here. Come on in."

I didn't move. I couldn't.

"Bookworm Ava actually showed!" someone cackled. He told them? "You have to tell us how you managed to get her out of the house."

"Shut it, Travis!" Liam was on his feet in a second. As he jogged towards me, he made sure to block me from the rest of his group's view.

"I'm going home. I can't believe your friends were all in on this with you." I didn't even let him speak. "Enjoy your party."

"Ava wait." I turned to leave, but Liam was quick to stop me. Thanks to how fast it happened, the sprite sloshed around in my cup, before streaming down my leg and into my shoes. Great. Just great. "Ava, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have ditched you. Oh and about the shoes too."

"Yeah." I wasn't having it. Not one bit. I yanked my arm off.

"You really can't be mad at me sis. Come on, I'm sorry.." Liam's grabbed my free hand, while his other hand scratched the back of his neck sheepishly. "I'm sorry for being a complete ass and leaving you all alone. You should know why I brought you here."

"No." I snapped. "Not one bit."

"I don't want you to end up alone, I was worried about you." He added and I frowned. "High school is the only place where we get to make friends and have fun before the stress of college comes tumbling down. All I want for you is to experience it."

"No." I shook my head. "I think you're the one who's getting it all wrong. High school is the time to read and prepare for college. You need to study well if you're to get into a good school."

"Yes." He nodded. "But what's the use of studying if you're not going to have any fun? It balances it out, and that's all I want for you."

"Okay, what about this?" He added again. "Join us, just for tonight, and this'll be the last time I'll bother you with something like this."

"I don't know, Liam..." I muttered, just before glancing at his group. They were currently playing spin the bottle, and they'd just dared someone to drink something that was obviously expired. "I don't think this is a good idea."

"Please." Caleb begged. "Just do this for me

And remember, you'll have a month to boss me around however you like."

"Fine." I rolled my eyes after a minute's worth of silence. "But if they do anything weird, I'm leaving and I get to still boss you around."

"Can I join in?" Asher appeared beside me, all smiles, his lips looked swollen. He had been God knew where. The moment he caught the frown on my face, his smile faltered. "Hey nerd."

"Where have you been?" I asked Liam, but he didn't answer. "You know what, I don't even want to know."

His smile grew and I frowned more. This was a bad idea, I just knew it. I could have been in bed by now but I just had to let Liam drag me to this stupid place.

"What do you say, Aves?" Liam called again. "Are you in?"

"Yes, Fine." I groaned, while muttering a prayer that I hadn't made the biggest mistake of my life.

"Yes!" The boys cheered at the same time, before leading us into the room.

As we found a place to sit in the circle, I muttered to Liam."You're in a whole loads of problems bro." But I felt it again. That prickle behind my back, only this time it was more to my ear. I whipped my head to the side, and spotted the same figure by the door before he walked away.

My stomach twisted.

"Alright, let's start." Liam's voice cut in before he could respond. "It's spin the bottle time!"

The group broke into a loud shriek as he spun the bottle. It twirled, just before stopping in front of a random girl. With a huge grin, she picked dare, all while twirling a strand of her hair in between her fingers.

She was dared to give one of the other guys a lap dance, and she got loud cheers in return. Liam spun the bottle some more, and just when I thought the game wasn't that bad, one end of the bottle stopped in front of me.

"Alright Sis," Liam drawled, a mischievous glint in his eyes. "What's it going to be? Truth or Dare?"