"That's her," I said, a smile on my face as I turned to Natalie until she was facing the right direction.

"What? Where? I don't see her," she complained, hopping up and down.

Grabbing her waist, I easily lifted her up so she could see above the crowd and waited for her to say something.

"Well?"

"Uhhhh, there's quite a few people you could be referring to."

"She's standing next to Lou," I provided, hoping that would help her narrow things down a bit.

When I set her back on her own two feet, she looked at me with a thoughtful expression. "Okay, so, you're either talking about Donna, Hannah, Madelyn, or Stacy. Those are the only blondes next to Lou."

Furrowing my brows, I shook my head. "Doesn't make a difference to me what her name is. I just want to talk to her, thank her for helping me get over my writer's block...and maybe even makeout a little...or a lot. Whichever. If it turned into a hook up, that would be completely up to her, but you wouldn't hear me complaining."

"Riley!" Natalie exclaimed, a humored expression of disbelief on her face. "I thought I raised you to be a gentleman!"

"I'm just kidding!" I laughed.

"Mmhm, you better be," she warned, slapping my arm.

"Ow! I was! But, geez, we can't all be saints like Drew—crap, sorry," I quickly apologized, realizing what I just said. "I'm an idiot. It just kind of slipped out."

Way to put your foot in your mouth.

With a somber expression she nodded her head, looking at the floor.

"Nat-"

"It's okay, Riley," she weakly smiled. "We can talk about it later. Right now, I'd rather pretend my cream soda is beer and dance."

"Okay, then let's dance."

"No," she shook her head, still sporting that fake smile I could spot from a mile away. "Go get your mystery girl. I'll be fine on my own." Before I could argue, she added, "Besides, this is my house. I should feel right at home, right?"

Holding an unsure expression for a moment longer, trying to figure out if I should press for more or just give her what she wants, I caved and did what I always did. I gave Natalie Drake what she wanted.

"Okay," I gave in. "But, I don't care if I'm upstairs, in the middle of hot, passionate, wiiiild sex-"

"Riley!" she gasped, clearly blushing at the image I put in her mind.

"I'm just saying, I don't care what I'm doing. If you need me, I'm there. Got it?" I asked, making my point very clear.

"Got it," she agreed, adorably flustered. "Now go, you little freak."

When she saw the beginning of a smirk form on my face, she shook her head and pointed a finger at me. "Don't even."

My smirk only grew.

"Riley Baker, I swear! Do not be that guy!" she pleaded, wanting me to spare her from the cringe. Naturally, I didn't.

"There's nothing little about me," I teased, wiggling my brows.

"Oh my God, you'rr terrible!" she groaned.

Laughing at her discomfort, I waved childishly before making my way through the sea of party-goers, searching. My height helped immensely, for the most part. I could see the girl I desperately wanted to talk to again as she leaned against a wall, surrounded by who I assumed to be her friends. Lou was in front of her, talking animatedly while she looked rather annoyed. I had no idea what Lou could be saying to bother her so much, but her blue hair might as well have been glowing, the way it helped me not lose them in the crowd.

Wait, where is she going?

I still had a ways to go to get to them when she started to wave Lou off and weave her way through people, leaving. Aw man! But I was so close! I mentally groaned in frustration. A part of me really wanted to pout, but I refrained for the time being. The night was still young and I had plans to find her, now or later. Plus, I now had a more sure way of getting in contact with her again.

Lou.

Was meeting her quite possibly the worst encounter with someone I'd had in my life? Well...no, that'd be a bit dramatic, but it certainly was memorable in a not so good way. However, she just might be able to turn that first impression around.

As I got closer to the group she was with, I noticed one of the girls spot me, whistling so clear I could make it out through the music. "Looks like lover boy's back for more!" she chuckled, her voice raised so her friends could hear her, and it just so happened that I could as well.

"Would I happen to be this 'lover boy' you speak of?" I queried with a charming grin, if the flirtatious smirks in return were anything to go off of.

"If you're lucky," the woman that made the statement replied, biting her bottom lip while placing a hand on my chest. "Maybe you can taste me instead this time."

Okay, so clearly she was with the girls at the park that saw the kiss.

Not wanting to be mean or anything, I simply took a casual step away from her. Lou, however, had no problem with the whole 'mean' thing. She didn't even hesitate to say, "Donna, quit being a thot and go find Lance. I'm sure he won't mind scratching that terribly contagious itch of yours, again."

"Louisa!" she gasped, horrified. "What the hell?!"

"And you wonder why I tell people about that," she seethed. "How many times do I have to say it?! Don't call me that!"

My eyes were still wide at the implication that the girl had an STD. Not that I was interested in her, but I couldn't help imagining a drunker, less focused on 'mystery girl', version of myself here now, and I hated that I couldn't say for sure if I would have rejected Donna. She was pretty, shapely, and had the same name as my crush from That 70's Show.

I shivered at that realization. This reminded me of something my dad always said to me before I'd go to a party in highschool. 'Remember, son. Keeping it in your pants can save lives.'
I hated when he'd say it, with one of his freakishly thick brows raised and a little smirk, but now I could appreciate the gesture.

Dusting my shirt off with the thought that somehow I could catch something just by her touching it, I took a step closer to Lou and watched as Donna glared at her before storming off rather clumsily. Clearly she'd drunk more than most.

"So," Lou moved on, rolling her eyes before looking up at me. "You ready to meet my friend?"

Nope!

"Uh, actually, I was hoping you could introduce me to the girl you were talking to just before I came over here."

With furrowed brows, she tilted her head. "You mean, Madelyn?" When I didn't respond, since I had no idea what her name actually was, she chuckled. "Oh my God, you're the hottie from the park! Dude, she's the friend I wanted to introduce you to. Small world."

No kidding!

Keeping my cool, I nodded my head. "Then, I'd love to meet her."

"Mmhm, I'm sure you would," she snickered before grabbing my arm and tugging me through the crowd. "Come on, Blondie."

I let the little woman lead me through the house, my eyes briefly looking back to where Nat was. I barely spotted her encouraging smile and raise of her drink before I was pulled around a corner and up a set of stairs. My eyes scanned the countless framed pictures hung on the wall as we climbed. Judging by how each photo had the year labeled underneath, with a group of sorrority girls in front of this very house, cheesing together as a group, I figured they took one each year. By the time we reached the top, I saw the one for this year. I easily spotted Natalie, since she was shorter and placed in the front. I vaguely saw Lou, only because of the splash of blue her hair gave this picture.

Knock knock!

Tearing my gaze from the frame, I walked further to where Lou stood, knocking on a door. Leaning against the wall next to it, I let her do her thing.

"Mads, open up!" she yelled, compensating for the heavy base and loud music still raging on the floor below us. "I want you to meet someone!"

"Go away!" the person behind the door replied.

"You know I'll just pick the lock, so you might as well save us the trouble!"

I couldn't hear any response, so I just waited, feeling awkward.

"This'll only take a second," Lou smiled over at me, like there was no chance the girl would just ignore her.

When I heard the door click, I actually looked at her in disbelief. How did she know?

The door was only half opened when I heard the familiar soft, smooth voice of my recent muse. She couldn't see me from where I stood, and I decided to keep it that way when I was able to make out what she was saying.

"Lou, how many times do I have to tell you that I don't like when you try to set me up? They guys are always creepy, or not my type. Plus, nine times out of ten, their names are Tim! What is up with that? I have nothing against the name, but it's definitely a red flag now because of you!"

Appearing like she was about to burst into laughter at any second, Lou looked at me and questioned, "Still want to meet her after hearing all that?"

"Absolutely," I chuckled.

"What?! He's standing right there?!"

Stepping into her vision, I smiled at the beautiful blonde peeking her head out her door. It's definitely her. Her blue green eyes were striking against the dark brown shadow on her lids as she stared at me, surprised.

"If it helps, my name's not Tim," I teased, breaking the ice.

Quickly clamping her mouth shut, I watched as amusement danced on her face. "No? That's a good sign then, isn't it?"

"The best," I grinned.

"Well, I think my work here is done. I've got a beau of my own to get to anyway, soooo, you two behave yourselves," Lou grinned wickedly, waving as she headed back downstairs. "And, Mads, I expect all the juicy details later."

"Oh my God, she's is so—I'm so sorry you had to...meet her," Madelyn apologized, her hand covering half of her face in embarrassment. "I'd say she's not usually like that, but...she totally is."

"Welln I'm not sorry I met her," I shrugged, stepping closer. "I don't think I would have been able to find you without her. I mean, you didn't even give me your name last time."

Her pale cheeks hinted at a blush as she bit her lip and looked down before back into my eyes. "It's Madelyn," she confirmed, holding her hand out for me to shake.

"Pleasure to meet you again, Madelyn. I'm Riley," I replied, bending over a bit as I grabbed her hand, bringing it to my lips. I barely brushed them against it before letting go, hoping I was making a good impression.

"Wow," she smiled, her pink lips stretching as she showed off her perfect teeth. "You're good."

"Yeah?"

"Oh yeah. Tim's got nothing on you." I was not expecting her to say something so witty, causing me to I burst into laughter. I had just begun to calm down when she added, "Hey, I don't usually do this but...can I show you something?"

When she said that, I quickly sobered up and took in her expression. Eyes bright and daring, flirty smirk in place, and her bedroom door was opened significantly wider than before. It didn't take much more for my mind to go somewhere I was not opposed to at all.

Yes. I would very much so like you to show me something. Or everything. Whichever you're more comfortable with. Thank you.

Filtering my thoughts to a more collected reply, I shrugged, "Yeah, sure."

"Great. Come on in, then," she chuckled, stepping to the side and motioning for me to enter her room.

I didn't even hesitate.

I'm back! And it's only been five months! 😃😅

Heh...

Well, I just wanna say that I am excited to get back into writing this story! I've missed my characters and am excited to show you guys more of the new ones I've created. Mainly, Madelyn and Lou, but there are others yet to be introduced 😉

Also, her name is Madelyn! Isn't it perdy? I was stuck between Madison or Madelyn, asked my friends for their opinions, and well, you see which I ended up going with. Plus, I've got a lovely friend up here with the beautiful name, soooo Madelyn, in a way this character was named after you. 😗 MadelynJoy2