Chapter Thirty-One

Chapter Thirty-One 

Aiden leads me to a staircase that in turn leads us to a balcony overlooking the entire backyard. It's made of wood, the kind that still splinters off. Aiden leans against the railing and motions for me to join him. 

"So, what are your questions?" He asks casually. 

I look out over the edge and down at the party below us. Everyone looks like blobs of color, but there's  so many teenagers here at his house. How do they get through school every day? Doesn't anyone have anything better to do other than party all night? 

I think about the questions I have. Obviously I don't want to just jump into really personal questions about him and Veronica. I have to first make sure that he is actually up for answering truthfully.

"Why the parties?" It seems like the most simple question. Aiden stays quiet and I notice him frowning. "Aiden?" 

"Sorry, what? I thought I saw something down there," he mutters and waves airily towards the people below us. I don't really believe him, but I don't press him further.

"Why do you throw so many parties?" 

He turns around and leans his back against the rail, his elbows on the flat wooden top. "You know, to provide that escape place for teens and shit. How many kids want to spend their night sitting in a house doing their homework? I know I don't. And that's why I let all these people come over." 

"But surely your parents care?" 

"I thought you had questions about Veronica?! What's with the twenty questions directed at me?!" Aiden suddenly spits out, anger rising in his light blue eyes. His black hair contrasts with the night sky above us, making him look a little scarier than normal. 

"Right, sorry," I apologize and watch as a couple guys -I'm assuming from their lack of shirts- cannonball into the pool. It's almost directly below us and everyone starts gathering around it doing dives into the water. 

"So what's your question? I've got a party to host if you haven't noticed." Aiden starts being pushy again. 

I guess I have to start asking real questions. I mean, he is open to answering them so I can only hope I ask the right ones. "Are you and Veronica really dating?" 

Aiden chuckles darkly under his breath, a sound that sounds a bit forced. "We're a couple, yeah." 

"What does that mean?" 

"It means that we are considered to be dating!" Aiden snaps at me. 

"You and Veronica."

"Yes, me and Veronica, Veronica and I. Take your pick, either way you word it, we're dating." 

"And you have feelings for her," I add.

Aiden shakes his head and starts laughing in disbelief, as if my questions were sounding completely ridiculous to him. "Are these serious questions?" He looks at me amused. 

I nod. "Yeah, I'm curious," I shrug, trying to act a little uninterested. His eyes pass over me and continue to look outward. "So, feelings?" I prompt him. 

"Obviously I have feelings or I wouldn't be with her. What kind of questions are these, Clark? Do you have some kind of interest in Veronica? God, you're acting like-," he breaks off and I wait for him to continue. 

When he doesn't, I take it as my turn to break the silence. "Aiden?" I don't know what came across his mind, but I'm curious as to the other end of his sentence. What was I acting like? 

Aiden looks over at me and his eyes meet mine. It's like he's scanning me, wondering if he should reveal the next part of his sentence. I fidget a bit under his gaze. Why is he staring at me? 

A smile suddenly lights up his face. "Sorry, what were you questions again? I get sidetracked easily." His tone of voice changes dramatically. I must have passed some kind of dude inspection. 

"I didn't ask any new questions, you were in the middle of saying something and then stopped. But my new question is, does Veronica hold the same emotional attraction as you do?" I feel the need to keep throwing questions, his answers intrigue me. 

"Nah man, I'll be completely honest with you and tell you right now that we aren't the couple we seem to be," he says casually.

Jackpot! He's bringing it up. 

"What do you mean?" I try not to sound too enthusiastic. 

Aiden laughs and starts pacing around the balcony. "Do you go to our school?" He asks and I immediately shake my head. I don't want him to have any reason to piece me with myself, as weird as that may sound. "Alright, well there's this kid, a nerdy ass looking kid named Marcel and basically Veronica has recently started to take up a liking with him." 

I knew it. I knew it! I fucking knew it. 

"Really?" My voice gets high and I cough, trying to cover it up. "Why would she do that if she has you as a boyfriend?" 

Aiden turns back to me, pacing at a leisurely pace towards me. "She has this little game she likes to play with the geeks at our school. We call it Mockery. Basically what we do is we find the most pathetic girl or guy, depending on which one of us is up, and make them fall for us. Little do they know that they're just being Mocked." His words slide over me and I feel the truth in them. It would be a reasonable game for them to take part in, some sick twisted game that they created together. 

"So she doesn't actually have feelings for Marcel," I state, feeling hope draining out of me. Whatever I came here to achieve was suddenly leaving my grasp. 

Aiden tosses his head back and laughs. "Absolutely not."

Oh. I question myself as to why I even came here tonight. What did I think I would get out of this? A confirmation saying that Veronica was actually in love with me and would break up with Aiden to be with me?! Wow was I wrong. There's nothing even close to happening like that. 

In fact, I'm just a part of her stupid game with Aiden. 

"Hey, Clark, don't look so down man," Aiden suddenly wraps an arm around my shoulders. "Guys like us don't have to worry about geeks like him. We're separate people from different worlds. The geeks don't mix with the normal society. Never have and never will," Aiden says laughing, his breath against me at his sudden closeness. 

I just want to leave the party now before I start crying. Thoughts of Veronica just won't leave my mind. 

"Consider this to be a bit of Aiden Advice," he says cockily and turns me back towards the balcony railing, facing out towards the night sky. "Don't land on your face," he whispers.

"Wha-" I don't even get to finish my word before Aiden grabs my legs, and in one swift movement, throws me over the balcony. 

And I fall.

I'm in too much of a shock in order to even begin to scream and within seconds, I slam against the pool, my body exploding with pain. It's not exactly a  giant drop, but it's enough to rattle my bones. I force myself to swim upwards and once I break the surface I gasp in a breath of air. I cough out water I had swallowed. 

"LADIES AND GENTLEMAN, IF I CAN HAVE YOUR ATTENTION PLEASE!" Aiden calls out from the balcony and I just know something bad is going to happen. He holds his arms out wide and then gestures down at me. "EVERYONE WELCOME OUR SPECIAL GUEST, MARCEL!" 

Everyone gasps and turns towards me, every single pair of eyes watching me bob up and down in the water. My jaw starts clattering in the cold air. I have to get out of this water and then away from this party. 

"What the fuck is he doing here?!" 

"How the hell did he get in?!

"Damn it! Not Clark Parker!" That one is Vic and he throws a beer can at me. It splashes water across my face and suddenly there's just an incoming rush of items being thrown at me.

I shield my face and get out of the pool. Their insults and garbage hit me hard. 

I can't believe this was ever a good idea. 

I wrap my arms around my body and rush towards the back gate. The boos follow me and I keep my head down. I don't know if it's the water, my lack of glasses, or tears that are making everything blurry ahead of me. My guess is all three. 

I feel pathetic. 

Just because you change your exterior, doesn't make you any different. Veronica's words find their way back to me, taunting me even when she's not physically present. 

The crowd stops following once I close the back gate. They must all want to continue partying and drinking. I find relief in being alone. 

Soaking wet and dripping everywhere, I get to my car. A dark figure leans against it and as I approach I notice them immediately as the one and only Veronica. Of course. 

"What are you doing here?" I ask her, fishing out my keys from my pocket. My hands shake from the cold too violently and I can't put the key in the lock. The buttons on the pad don't work since they've been consumed by water. 

"I could ask you the same thing," she says.

"Touche," I mutter, not wanting to even deal with her right now. I just want to get away from this place. 

Veronica sighs and comes over to me. I notice the towel in her hand and she hands it to me, taking my keys in turn. She unlocks the driver's door then does the rest of the car. She opens the back door and reaches in, grabbing the clothes I had left there. 

"Go dry off and change so that you can leave," she tells me calmly. 

I want to argue with her, but I've already gone through my energy tonight. So instead, I take the clothes, the towel, and go to the same empty side yard that I changed in the first time. 

It's funny how Veronica and I keep going in circles.