Up beat music swirled through the dim restaurant. Elliot sat on a stool, leaning against the bar, a water bottle in her hand. Cece and Milo sat on either side of her. All three were staring across the room. All three were silent as the party swam around them.

"Is he going to go for it this time?" Milo asked.

The man in reference broke away from his group. He took two steps towards a cluster of girls, then froze.

"Come on," Cece said, glancing at her watch. "Do it now idiot or I lose my bet."

The man turned around, freezing again.

"Gosh," Elliot said. "I think I'm getting an anxiety attack from just watching him."

The guy turned back to the group of girls. With a deep breath, he moved up to the blonde and tapped her on the shoulder. Elliot and Milo let out a groan as Cece tossed her hands in the air and cheered.

"I believe you both owe me $10," Cece said, stretching out a smug hand.

"Just two more minutes and I would have won," Elliot grumbled. "Not even on my birthday can some random guy not talk to a girl for two minutes longer."

Elliot pulled out a bill and handed it to Cece.

"Who is next?" Milo asked.

They all glanced about.

"This girl over here been eying the boy in the blue," Cece said. "Bets on how long it will be before she talks to him?"

Both Milo and Elliot studied the girl.

"I'll put down $15 that she does it in the next twenty minutes," Elliot said.

Cece looked at Milo as he still eyed the girl.

"Milo?" Cece asked.

"$15, but in fifteen minutes," Milo said.

"Then I take ten minutes," Cece said.

They sat back and watched as the girl laugh loudly in attempts to get the boy's attention. Elliot turned to Cece.

"Cece?"

"Uh?" Cece said, without turning towards her.

"I know this might come as a silly question-"

"Do you ask any other types of questions?"

"No, but this one seems more so, under the circumstances."

"Proceed then."

"Who are all these people?" Elliot asked, giving the packed room a brief glance.

"Your friends," Cece said.

Elliot nodded seriously.

"Ah, right, my mistake. Remind me how that came to be?" she asked.

"They were on you Facebook account," Cece said, taking a sip of her fruity looking drink.

"The account I haven't been on in two years? The one were I added these people as friends so I could stalk them to amuse myself?"

"Yup, that's the one."

"Okay as along as we are on the same page, possibly not the same book, but at least the same page."

Milo leaned forward.

"Are you saying you don't know any of these people?" he asked.

Elliot gazed around, squinting at the occupants of the restaurant. She pointed to a guy in the distance.

"He looks kind of familiar," she said. "But I can't really tell because he has a shirt on and there's no mountain backdrop behind him."

"Well, at least they showed up," Milo said, resting back on the bar.

"That's possibly because I mentioned free cake," Cece said.

"It's good to see I have so many devoted friends," Elliot said.

They fell silent again, watching as the girl building up her courage. Tristan appeared from the crowd, his expression bored. He moved over to them, his hands tucked into his slacks.

"What's the bet?" he asked.

Elliot pointed to the wavering girl.

"We're seeing how long it takes for her to talk to the boy in blue," she said.

Tristan nodded.

"The amount?" he asked.

"$15," Milo said.

Tristan turned to Milo.

"I see they have dragged you into our deplorable pass time," Tristan said.

"I fought it for as long I as I could," Milo said. "A man is only so strong."

"Elliot got you hooked into it, didn't she?" Tristan asked.

"Naturally," Milo said.

Tristan nodded and looked back at the wavering girl.

"Alright," he said. "I'll take the bet, but I will say it will happen within the next five minutes."

Elliot, Cece and Milo looked at him. Cece narrowed her eyes.

"Are you serious?" she asked.

Tristan gave a single nod. Cece looked at Elliot and Milo.

"Opinions?" she asked.

"I say yes," Elliot said.

"Same," Milo said.

Cece looked at Tristan.

"Okay, you're on," she said.

Tristan smiled, then walked over to the girl, as all three of them called out protests.

"Why didn't we set down rules!?" Cece said.

"I blame my lack of thought on the alcohol," Eliot said.

"You've only been drinking water," Milo said.

"Then I'm out of excuses."

Tristan smiled at the girl and she blushed furiously. A giggle emanated from their direction when Tristan leaned forward. A moment later he walked back towards the group. Wordlessly, he took Cece's glass and took a drink. They all watched as a second later the girl marched boldly over to the boy in blue and tapped him on the shoulder. He turned. Elliot moaned and dropped her head into her hand.

"What did you say to her?" Cece asked.

Tristan shrugged and finished off the drink.

"I merely mentioned that the boy had been sending her glances all evening," he said. "She needed very little encouragement. Now, I believe payment is due?"

With scathing looks, the three of them handed over their money.

"Great," Tristan said. "It's been a lovely party, but I'm going to leave."

"You got here ten minutes ago," Elliot said.

"My birthday gift to you," Tristan said.

Cece looked at Elliot, with a serious expression.

"You can't argue with that," she said.

Tristan took a step back and waved.

"If Elliot gets a face full of cake, someone video tape it and send it to me," he said. "Later."

"Will do," Milo said.

Tristan melded into the crowd, the three bar stool occupants watching his retreat.

"He really doesn't like being around people, does he?" Milo asked.

Both girls shook their heads.

"Okay," Cece said. "Who had ten minutes?"

Milo raised his hand. The two girls grumbled and passed him each a ten.

"Should we try to get revenge on him for cheating?" Cece asked.

"We could slash his tires," Elliot suggested.

"He doesn't have a car," Cece said. 

"Right, best to just keep him company every time he steps out of his room."

Cece gave Elliot a wicked smile.

"It's so evil," she said. "I love it."

Elliot looked around the room, taking in the clusters of friends. The front door opened and her eyebrows shot up as Beck stepped inside. He took in the crowd, as if it were his party and he cared for none of it. Elliot blinked and slid off her stool, dazedly putting her water on the bar. Cece gave her an odd look.

"You alright there, El?" she asked.

Elliot gave a muted nod.

"Beck is here," she said. "Umm...I'm going to say hi."

She walked towards Beck, while an annoyed Cece handed a smug Milo a twenty dollar bill. Elliot moved through the crowded room. Beck's gaze locked on her's as she pushed through to him. For a moment they stood there in silence, looking at each other as the party stormed on.

"Uh...hi," Elliot said. "You came."

"I did," Beck said. "This is some party."

Elliot looked around, cringing at the loud scene around her. She met Beck's gaze.

"Yeah, Cece kind of went overboard," she said. "Umm...I was hanging out at the bar do you want to come join?"

Before Beck could respond a guy stumbled into Elliot. Beck pushed the guy back. The guy turned, smiling when he looked at Elliot.

"Sorry, about that," he said.

Elliot waved it away. The guy squinted, cocking his head.

"Do we know each other?" he asked.

Elliot smiled, forcing back a laugh. The guy returned the gesture.

"Possibly we know each other through the host," the guy said.

"You think?" Elliot asked, giving him a ponderous look.

The guy looked around, as if searching for something.

"Yeah," he said, distracted. "I haven't seen Elliot yet. I want to wish him happy birthday."

Elliot coughed out a laugh. Beck took a step forward, his face impassive. He looked at Elliot.

"Elliot, you want to get that drink?" he asked.

The guy blinked at Elliot, his mouth opening and closing. Elliot smiled and nodded at Beck.

"Sure," she said. She looked back to the guy. "Thanks for the birthday wishes."

With Beck beside her, she turned and left, the guy staring at them. When they were a couple feet away, Elliot burst into laughter. The corner of Beck's mouth curved.

"Well, that was priceless," Elliot said. "Come on, Cece and Milo are this way."

She carved a path back to the bar where Cece and Milo were concentrating on a group of guys a few feet off.

"What's the bet?" Elliot asked.

Cece pointed to two of the hulking figures.

"Which one throws the first punch," Cece said. "Red shirt guy or blue shirt guy."

"I choose blue shirt. How much?" Elliot asked.

"Ten," Milo said.

He looked over at Beck and nodded.

"Sup, man," he said.

Beck nodded and looked over at the two men.

"It's going to be red shirt," Beck said.

All three of them shifted their attention to Beck. He met their surprise with calm, indifference.

"You putting money where your mouth is?" Cece asked.

Beck nodded and they all looked back to the group. A few minutes later the red shirted guy decked his companion.

"Tonight is not my night," Elliot said, handing Beck the money.

"Well, I know when to quit," Cece said, sliding off the bar stool.

"Do you?" Milo asked.

"No," Cece said, "but I want cake, so now seems like a great time to get it. Milo make your self useful and help me."

Cece took Milo's wrist and dragged him away. Elliot chuckled, watching them disappear, then turned back to Beck.

"So, you want something to drink?" she asked.

Beck nodded and they stepped over to the bar.

***********

Elliot moved passed layers of party goers, smiling and saying thank you as people wished her the best. She sighed as she settled on an open bar stool beside Milo.

"Well," Elliot said, resting against the smooth wood, "everyone now knows my name and knows that I'm the reason they're here."

Milo forked a piece of his cake.

"That's what happens when Cece puts you on a chair and has the whole room shout happy birthday to you," he said.

"Don't you mean sing?" Elliot asked.

Milo shook his head.

"No. They were all too boisterous for it to be on key or have any semblance of a melody."

Elliot nodded and looked around, a frown forming on her face.

"Where did Beck go?" she asked. "I was only gone for a few minutes."

Milo gestured to the front door with his fork.

"Said something about air and possibly getting some of it."

Elliot dipped a finger into the frosting of Milo's cake, receiving a stab from his fork for her actions.

"Ow!"

Milo gave her a flat look and returned to eating his cake. Elliot slid off her stool.

"I'm going to see if Beck left," Elliot said.

"If he did," Milo said, around a mouth full of cake, "then I owe Cece $10."

Elliot paused.

"You thought he would actually stay?" she asked.

"No, Cece just called the bet faster than me."

Elliot nodded, then moved to the restaurant's entrance. She stepped out into the fenced in patio. Street lamps and light from inside brightened the night. The scent of summer mingled with the murmuring of voices. As the door swung shut, the noise dimmed. Elliot glanced around.

A few feet away, Beck was leaning against the outside of the patio fence, facing the street, a cigarette in hand. A wisp of white smoke streamed from his lips. Elliot moved over to him, noticing the quiet whisperings of intrigue and the eyes of women watching him. She settled on the cool metal fence beside him.

"The party not to your liking?" she asked.

The tip of Beck's cigarette glowed red.

"Five people asked me what I was drinking," he said. "Three people asked me how I liked the party and four people asked me what I thought about the weather."

"Right," Elliot said. "You would rather cut off your left ear than deal with small talk."

"I believe it was the right ear, but the sentiment is the same."

Elliot was about to give a retort when her phone buzzed. She pulled it out.

"Sorry," she said, looking at Beck. "It's my mom."

Beck nodded. Smiling, Elliot answered the phone.

"Hi mother dearest," she said.

"Hello baby girl!," her mother said. "How is your 21st birthday going?"

"I don't know, I still haven't decided. Cece threw me a birthday party."

"Well, you can't blame her. She probably wasn't thinking straight."

"I'll try not to hold it against her. How are you awake? Isn't it crazy early in London?"

"Who knows? I threw my clock out the window," her mother said. "I find life goes better when I don't live by it's rules."

"Things go better anyways when you don't realize that you're ten minutes late to a meeting."

"Exactly!" her mother said. "Now, I have a birthday present for you."

"Is it a new father?" Elliot asked.

"Yes, his name is Marco and I think we will all be very happy together."

"Is he half your age?"

"Are there any other kinds of Marcos?"

"Not that I'm aware of."

"Me either. Anyways," her mother said, her smile coming through in her tone. "I shipped you your present. It should arrive soon."

"Did you at least poke holes in the box so Marco could breath."

"Of course, and gave him a chocolate bar."

"You're too kind," Elliot said.

"I know. I love you sweet heart. I'll see you soon."

"Love you too. Bye mom."

Elliot hung up and moved back to stand beside Beck. They stayed there in a comfortable silence for a long moment. Beck shifted his satchel and pulled out a wrapped package.

"This is for you," he said.

He held the present out to Elliot. Stunned, Elliot just stared at it for a second before taking it.

"Thanks," she said.

She tore away the paper, revealing a hard cover book with the black outline of a girl on an old fashioned phone.

"I know," Beck said. "Giving an author a book, such a novel thought."

Elliot looked up at him. He nodded to the book.

"It's about a girl writer figuring out who she is," Beck said.

Elliot gave him a scrutinizing look.

"I'm going to try and not read to much into that," she said.

Beck grinned.

"I hope you read the whole thing," he said. "That is what one tends to do with a book."

Laughing, Elliot examined the book, brushing her hand over the cover. She looked up at Beck, the book gripped between her hands.

"Thank you," she said.

"Sure."

Elliot watched as his pulled on the cigarette then exhaled a puff of smoke.

"You didn't strike me as the type of person to destroy their lungs," Elliot said.

"And you didn't strike me as the type of person to not use your brain," Beck said.

Elliot scowled. Beck tilted the cigarette in her direction and Elliot breathed in the smell, her brow furrowing.

"Cinnamon?" she asked. "A herbal cigarette?"

Beck nodded. Elliot smirked.

"So what?" she said. "You smoke them because they are suppose to be really good for your lungs or something?"

"No," Beck said. "They make me look extremely attractive and philosophical."

He glanced at her sideways, a smile tucked in the corner of his mouth. Elliot laughed, shaking her head. Beck shrugged.

"They give me space to think," he said, "without looking like an idiot staring at nothing. The price of reputation."

Elliot crossed her arms and looked out at the street.

"I stare at nothing and it works fine for me," Elliot said.

"Of course it does."

Elliot looked at Beck, watching as the tip glowed red. His gaze met her's.

"You want to try one?" he asked.

Elliot hesitated for a second, then nodded. Beck pulled out a cigarette and handed it to her. He lit the end for her and Elliot sucked in. Immediately she coughed, her eyes watering slightly at the intense flavor. Beck smiled and looked out at the passing cars.

"Don't inhale so deeply," he said. "Easy and slow."

Elliot did as he suggested, receiving better results. She fought back a grin as she exhaled and watched the cloud of white smoke trail away.

"Any reason as to why you are avoiding your party?" Beck asked.

"It would probably amuse you to know that I don't know any of those people in there."

"Why in invite them?"

"Cece threw the party for me."

"A surprise?"

"No, I knew."

"And you consented?" Beck asked.

"No, she just kind of did it on her own."

"But she told you about it?"

"Yeah."

"And parties are not your thing."

"Not one's where I don't know anyone," Elliot said.

"But you didn't discourage her from going through with it?"   

"No."

"Interesting."

Beck looked away. Elliot turned to him, her cigarette forgotten in her hand.

"What is that suppose to mean?" she asked.

"Nothing," Beck said. "Merely that I find you being apathetic, interesting."

"I'm not apathetic," Elliot said.

"No? Then why did you let Cece throw you a party that you had no interest in."

"Because she wanted to be nice."

"Though don't you think she would have preferred to know that you didn't care for the party and save her the trouble of setting it all up?"

Elliot scowled, her mouth working over her thoughts as if they were foul tasting.

"Yes," she finally said.

"Then why didn't you say anything?" Beck asked. "Do you find it's hard to voice your opinions to your sister since you are younger?"

"Okay, stop," Elliot said, raising her hand. "Where do you get off analyzing me and judging me on my relationship with my sister, when you yourself can't even admit to your brother that you are writing a novel with me?"

Beck flicked his cigarette out into the road, his face closing off.

"That is not the same," he said.

"Oh really? Because from where I'm standing they look pretty darn close."

Beck made no reply. Elliot dropped her cigarette onto the sidewalk and stomped it out.

"Thanks for the cigarette and the book," Elliot said. "I'll see you Monday."

**********************************************************************

Hi!

So I have to tell you, the book Beck gives Elliot is actually one of my all time favorite books. It's called Heaven To Betsy by Maude Hart Lovelace. It's seriously so wonderful. I just finished reading it for the 8th time. (I think, I've seriously read it so much I'm not sure.)

Vote, comment, follow, share! Because really? Who wants to miss out on a book with a betting ring?!