Chapter Text
disclaimer
i do not own any of the original "twilight" characters that are mentioned in this story; these belong to their creators. also not all events in this story are true to the original canon. i only own my ocs and some of the plot.
warnings
this fanfiction mentions: alcohol and drug addiction, abuse, toxic relationships, mental illness, violence, death.
| copyright © 2023, martine. |
all rights reserved. no parts of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the author.
“I can’t believe we’re lost.”
I looked at the back of Darcey’s head and painfully bit my tongue, trying not to be too mean to the girl. A promise I made to my two best friends, Maddie and Chris - well, mostly to Chris, because Darcey was his girlfriend - that I would hold my bitchy comments to myself, started to sound unkeepable. I really tried most of the time, but she wasn’t exactly making it easier for me.
It was day three of our little trip to Italy and I was actually having the time of my life. I never traveled before, at least not that far and definitely not to a foreign country, so everything was new and exciting for me. It’s not like we were sightseeing much, we only visited the bar in our motel and the liquid store down the street but it was exciting to flash my new ID in front of a cashier. That’s right - I finally turned eighteen and I could buy my own alcohol. Obviously I drank alcohol before but it was not as fun when I had to ask my friends to buy it for me. Not that I had that much money to spend on my trip.
“I can,” I shrugged.. “You’re a shitty driver and you don’t know how to use GPS.”
Maybe I wasn’t trying that hard.
For a second no one dared to speak, so it was awkwardly quiet, when I searched for the phone in my bag.
“It said ‘turn left’, I’m not deaf.”
“Well…” I looked at Daniel and raised my brows, when he suddenly went quiet. “Okay, don’t kill me but it was ‘turn left after 300 meters’.” Christian turned in his passenger seat to look at his friend and I giggled. “What? I’m not deaf either.”
“Can someone call Maddie? I can’t find my phone,” I grunted, dropping my bag onto the floor with frustration. I grabbed the denim jacket from the seat next to me and put it on. “Fuck, I hope she ordered something strong this time.”
“We’re kinda busy finding our way to the club if you didn’t notice.” Chris sighted and I sent Darcey a dirty look. Oh how I hated her and her stupid comments. How was I supposed to be nice when she was constantly tormenting me?
“Actually, miss smarty-pants,” I started but immediately rolled my eyes, when Christian hissed my name as a warning. “Maddie is currently in that club. She can give us directions or Robin can pick us up.”
Eventually Darcey did the right thing and stopped in the parking lot. I got out of the car, grabbing a pack of cigarettes and a lighter from my bag. I walked a few meters away and leaned against a street lamp. I was already a little tipsy from the glass of wine I drank in the motel while getting ready, so it was quite hard for me to care if we were actually going to the club or not. As far as I was concerned we might as well buy some booze in the store and get drunk in our motel room.
I worked in a bar for two whole years to go on this trip with my friends and it wasn’t important what we were doing. It made me happy to simply have them by my side, without all the school/university stress, teachers, exams or demanding parents - or nosy aunt in my case. This was my first trip with friends, when I could finally feel free from expectations and be myself. It didn’t have to be perfect.
“Do you have to be so hard on her?”
I looked up and blinked slowly, inhaling the smoke with greed. I wasn’t greedy for nicotine though, secretly I wished it was weed. I had a feeling that the little glass of wine I had in the motel was not enough to help me through that conversation with Chris.
“Did you call Maddie?” I asked instead, trying to delay my actual response to his question.
“She’s coming with Robin to pick us up. They have a surprise for us.” I nodded, feeling a little curious. I loved surprises and Maddie, as my best friend, always provided me with the best ones. “They’ll be there in five. Turns out the club’s not that far.” I frowned but nodded again. Chris watched me for some time when I inhaled the smoke again, completely unbothered by his company. We knew each other for fourteen years, I practically moved into his house for two months when I was twelve. There was nothing he could do to intimidate me. “So?”
“So what?” Was playing dumb my best tactic ever? No. But talking about feelings with Christian was like walking on a mine field in Crocs. Stupid and unnecessary, also probably super avoidable.
“So D is trying. I think she kinda likes you.” I snorted a little, throwing the rest of the cigarette away.
“She fucking hates me, Chris. And that feeling is mutual, trust me on that.”
For a moment I was hoping that my friend came back to his senses. But no, he only pursed his lips, deep in thoughts.
He and Darcey were dating for only three months before he decided to take her on our trip and, honestly, at first I was even excited. I hoped to bond with her a little or at least get to know her better, since my relationship with her before was… difficult.
In my head that was fine. Not everyone had to like me. If Chris was happy with her, perfect - I was happy for him. But nobody could force me into liking her.
“She wouldn’t be here if she…” He was interrupted by a loud horn when Maddie and Robin parked the car right in front of ours. They waved at us and I smiled, truly relieved.
“Holy mother of baby Jesus, thank you!” I shouted, already on my way to their car. I stopped for a second and turned around, looking at a slightly amused Christian. “Great talk, hun, I hope we would never have to do this again.”
“What tour?” I shouted, trying to be heard through the loud music in the club.
Apparently Maddie and Robin’s surprise was some sort of a late-night tour around the Volterra castle. I didn’t hear a lot of their explanations, honestly, and after a few drinks I didn’t even care that much. I’ve never seen a real castle in my life and for sure I’ve never seen one in the middle of the night.
Maddie leaned forward and started speaking to me but all I could hear was Cher Lloyd’s new song from the speakers. I smiled at my friend and nodded, trying to appear as an active listener to not hurt her feelings even if I could hear shit. As soon as she was done talking, I grabbed her hands and started singing the song, jumping in place.
Three drinks and countless songs later I needed to pee. I dragged Daniel with me for security and ordered him to wait outside, when I walked into the bathroom. It was quieter there but the music was still clear, making my head spin. I didn’t even bother closing the stall doors when I pulled my dress up and crouched over the toilet, desperate to not let my butt touch the toilet seat.
Two girls also entered the bathroom and I could easily tell that one of them was crying. I frowned, and then waved at the other when she looked at me in the mirror. She laughed quietly, handing her friend some toilet paper like she was used to seeing her in distress. I pursed my lips and turned my gaze to the stall wall, looking at the names and drawings.
“Cute dress.”
I looked up from the sink and drunkenly smiled at the girl that looked at me when I was peeing. It didn’t bother me - it was a party in a foreign country, where I came to have fun. I was allowed to be caught peeing.
“Thanks,” I said, turning off the water and wiping my hands. “She okay?” I pointed at the crying girl and leaned against the wall. It’s not like I was truly concerned, more like curious.
“Paula just broke up with her girlfriend.” I automatically nodded again, not really interested in listening to the girl's story. I wanted to have fun before my late-night tour, not play therapist in the bathroom. “You want some?” She handed me a joint and I smiled widely.
“Tough shit,” I murmured, inhaling the smoke. “I can meet you with my friend. Her name is Darcey and she’s super fun.”