[indent][indent][indent][center][img]https://i.imgur.com/0oF6dyf.png[/img] [sub]A [@metanoia] & [@NeoAJ] Collaboration [u]Featuring[/u] [color=steelblue]Mr. Unlucky[/color] & [color=FF66C4]The Payed Piper[/color][/sub] [/center][hr] [color=#708090]Under normal circumstances, Nicholas might say he was having a good time. The times of playing spin the bottle might not be so clear to him when he thought about it, but the feelings of nostalgia were present in the giggles and prevalent feelings of entertainment enhanced his own enjoyment from it. [/color] [color=#708090]The games were fun. Leo knew how to play it well. The boy was a gamemaster and he had all of the cheat codes in how to effectively make even the most unlikely of people fall breathless. It wasn’t present in Erica who retained much of her fire when her kiss with the King Alpha ended, but poor Cassie wasn’t so lucky. She wasn’t the only one who observed everyone. Both she and Nicholas watched others and he knew there was something between her and Leo. The latter wasn’t aware of it, but the way she perked up when his spin landed on her and how she trembled when their steamy kiss ended, it was clear the blonde hadn’t been honest with even herself about how deep her thirst for Leo’s everything ran. But if Nicholas could see it, it wouldn’t be a stretch to assume everyone else would too -- Leo included.[/color] [color=#708090]And as she excused herself, Nicholas chuckled mostly to himself. He didn’t know whether to maybe excuse himself and go comfort her or not, but before he could, his eyes followed the bottle. And as it stopped, his reaction was the polar opposite of Leo and generally everyone else.[/color] [color=#708090]Visible disgust. Absolutely vile, atrocious disgust became Nicholas’ face for the next minute. He didn’t want to watch it nor did he want to even imagine that, of all people, Leo Brooks would find a predatory home on his sister’s lips. The part inside him that was Billie’s go to response nearly took over. His older brother instincts wanted to rip Leo off of his sister and pound the life out of him, showing him what happens when the swan is cornered.[/color] [color=#708090]But Nicholas remembered this was a party. Nicholas remembered that it was all fun and games. [i]Yeah until my sister gets involved.[/i] That one reminder had allowed the boy to calm his growing ire and turn away. The least he could do was not have the cursed sight of his best friend (probably debatable but friends were hard to come by these days) and Leo lock lips like a couple of sex-starved animals.[/color] [color=#708090]When it ended and Nicholas’ faith in the big guy upstairs was restored, it was Tyler Jane’s turn to spin. He wouldn’t say he had hopes it would land on him because he would never allow himself to appear [i]that[/i] desperate, but at the same time, he felt like one of those animals who were deprived of their most primal instincts. He would be lying if, should the bottle land on him, that he wouldn’t give Tyler Jane a kiss she’ll never forget, both in his technique and how forward he might go.[/color] [color=#708090]As it twirled around, Nicholas felt every weight on his shoulder raise up, the tension releasing itself as he prepared to lean forward. But this was only to crush him all over again when it landed on Griffin Pierce, of all people. Immediately, his eyes shot sharp dagger-like glares at both of them, but specifically at Tyler Jane. If she thought he didn’t notice what she was doing, then she clearly didn’t know him at all. But that wasn’t the only thing that was getting under his skin. Her kiss with Griffin aside, it was the way she had been behaving all night long. Not that he was innocent, but there had been times where she went two steps beyond teasing him or making him reach out instead of her being the one to. It was frustrating past the point of acceptable and her kiss with Griffin was just another example of this.[/color] [color=#708090]And when it ended and she excused herself, he remained and watched the steamy and rather intriguing kiss that Sol and Savannah shared. It acts as a palette cleanser to the bitter note that TJ and Griff left. He found it enticing enough to have an idea. It would require mostly luck and hoped the big guy upstairs was looking out for him because Nicholas needed some of his magic in order to make it happen. Maybe it was going to be cruel but, honestly, Nicholas was in that kind of mood.[/color] [color=#4682b4]“I suppose it’s my turn.”[/color][color=#708090] He smiled as he leaned forward and reached for the bottle. He gripped it tightly, twisting his wrist and giving it a rough spin. It swerved on the floor and almost bumped into someone but about five inches away from them, it finally stopped. And by the literal grace of God, Nicholas met Savannah’s eyes with a smirk with one of them purposely giving Tyler Jame a quick look. [/color] [color=#708090]He rose up from his seated position and crawled closer to Sav, who sat across from him in the gathered circle. He wanted to be close to her enough so he could prep not only her for what was about to happen but also for himself. Nicholas was a tender and affectionate lover, regardless of the circumstances. He brought his left hand up to caress her right cheek. He first twisted his wrist so that the outside of his hand was facing Sav and felt the softness of her skin against his. It was a bit drawn out compared to others, but Nicholas was something of a magician in foreplay and if this was really going to work, he needed to put in the extra effort.[/color] [color=#708090]As their gaze lingered, Nicholas leaned close to her, bringing his lips close to her ear and whispered, [/color][color=#4682b4]“I do hope you saved enough energy for me, Savvy.”[/color] [color=#708090]Sober Savannah would have been doing cartwheels at how the bottle spin had landed. This would have been the culmination of many prayers and lit candles to get a shot at kissing Nicholas Grey. She would have swooned at the words in her ear like one of those middle-aged moms at a Justin Bieber concert.[/color] [color=#708090]Sober Savannah wasn’t home right now.[/color] [color=#708090]Instead, Payout almost shuddered from the feeling of Nicholas’ hand on her cheek. Compared to Sol’s rough foraging through her hair, this felt like an attempt at coercion. Like she was expected to just bend the knee at this gesture of romanticism from a man. Payout didn’t play that.[/color] [color=#708090]She let out a deep breath that she didn’t know was being held and looked the Robin Hood that managed to land this bottle shot in the eye.[/color][color=#ff4de1]“Just make this quick, Romeo,”[/color][color=#708090] she told him matter-of-factly.[/color] [color=#4682b4]“Quick?”[/color][color=#708090] He repeated back as though disappointed. The entirety of the makeshift plan he mapped out in his head was reliant on the reaction that he normally received when his hand gently caressed the cheek and he whispered into the ear. It was his signature move, but more importantly, the usual reaction would have done wonders for his [i]real[/i] plan to make TJ jealous. [/color] [color=#708090]Maybe Nicholas pushed his luck too far. Or maybe he went about it the wrong way. Something in her eyes and how...bored she was, produced something of a delayed reaction on his part. He wasn’t usually like this but Nicholas understood. Sol had ruined his usual plays; in a sense, Nicholas was cockblocked by Shady.[/color] [color=#4682b4]“I normally don’t do it quickly, but there’s no choice, I suppose.”[/color][color=#708090] With a sigh, Nicholas didn’t allow time to elapse so Sav could get a response in. He grabbed both sides of her face, looking her into both of her eyes with a daunting stare only he could produce. It was the kind of stare that always let the other person know they were the only one who mattered for however long the fixated gaze lasted.[/color] [color=#708090]And then he went head-first into her lips, commanding them, seizing them for himself. His passion couldn’t be contained and after a few seconds, Nicholas felt the need to claim more. He pressed against her body as the skin under their shirts touched. The grip around her face tightened as though he was pinching her skin (just enough to enhance the experience). Nicholas was getting lost in it all, forgetting that there were other people in the room, forgetting that it was meant to be a game, forgetting that he had Tyler Jane watching him. The only person on his mind was Savannah Payton. She consumed him like he was her. What Nicholas hadn’t realized was that he was craving more and that was a dangerous point. [/color] [color=#708090]So he slowly pulled away, a deep breath of desperation and forced restraint leaving his lips.[/color] [color=#708090]There was a brief moment in which it seemed like Nicholas may have succeeded in his attempt to sway Savannah from still visualizing how Soleil or Talya would have tackled this moment. To be fair, she already had real-world data on Sol. And she had to give Nicholas credit. He attacked with gusto. He looked at her as if she was the only woman left in the world.[/color] [color=#708090]However, after their lips parted, the events of the day caught up with her, and she couldn’t stop a yawn from escaping her lips.[/color] [color=#ff4de1]“Hah… sorry, Nicholas. No, that was great, dude,”[/color][color=#708090] she offered, trying to help him save face, but it was clear from her tone she didn’t mean it. [/color][color=#ff4de1]“Still, way behind Sol though.”[/color] [color=#708090]Nicholas refused to believe she was sincere. Even Dwayne was more receptive to his advances long before Nicholas ever made the first move. Whatever game that Savannah was playing was not only uninteresting but it was, quite frankly, getting on his nerves. [/color][color=#4682b4]“I don’t understand you, Payton. You were [i]all[/i] over me last week. You even risked that friendship you hold dear to catch my attention. And finally, when I give you it in its entirety, you brush it off like I’m yesterday’s trash?”[/color][color=#708090] It was clear Nicholas was offended and he had every right to be.[/color][color=#4682b4] “Maybe I was wrong about you and there was nothing unique about you, at least, nowhere as special as Tyler Jane is.”[/color][color=#708090] His voice was maybe just a little louder than intended, but at this point, Nicholas had lost all interest in caring.[/color] [color=#708090]A snort could be heard. Savannah rarely let herself get to that point, but the alcohol made it clear that any filter on herself was long gone. She wanted to slap the shit out of this cocky asshole, but she steadied herself for now. It wouldn’t have the effect that was necessary. [/color][color=#ff4de1]“Well, I think a lot of people were wrong about you, bucko,”[/color][color=#708090] she started. [/color][color=#ff4de1]“You aren’t worth a friendship like the one I have,”[/color][color=#708090] she motioned to TJ as she stated that fact. [/color][color=#ff4de1]“You aren’t worth the time I spent playing this game, and you aren’t worth the 20 cents of gum I’m going to need to get the taste of you out of my mouth. I don’t know who the fuck you think I am, but you are fucking nothing to me. And if you fuckin’ dare think you’re something you are not, I will fuckin’ swiftly remind you of who you are. Comprende, fuckwit?”[/color] [color=#708090]As he looked at her, Nicholas couldn’t help himself but feel pity for Savannah. Pity that she didn’t get to experience him before Sol ruined him for her. Pity that she needed to be buzzed up to finally be interesting. Pity that not even on her best day would she [i]ever[/i] compare to Tyler Jane. Nicholas knew it and, if everyone looked behind the surface, they would see it too. She wasn’t interesting. She wasn’t special. She wasn’t worth ruining her entire career.[/color] [color=#708090]And when he was able to be content with that, he let out a sigh, glancing over at TJ. Has it worked? Did Nicholas get what he wanted from this? Or did he set himself back again? Honestly, he didn’t know whether or not his plan worked. One thing was for sure, though. Savannah Payton was officially off the list forever. [/color] [color=#4682b4]“It’s too bad. If you were this outspoken all the time, maybe things would be different.”[/color][color=#708090] Nicholas allowed himself the benefit of her face one last time before he excused himself from the circle. [/color] [color=#ff4de1]“Do I care?”[/color] [color=#708090]Her words fell on selectively-deaf ears. Nicholas didn't need to deal with her right now. The only thing he needed was space and an unspecified amount of shots. And maybe, after he was slightly more buzzed than he was right now, would he have the tolerance to deal with literally everything -- and [I]everyone[/i] -- else.[/color][/indent][/indent][/indent]