"There's something about you
Tears me inside out whenever you're around
There's something about you
Speeding through my veins..."

✧✧✧

"How do you feel about parties?"

That was the question Tristan asked her as he leaned against his car after the game, looking at her inquisitively.

"They're great," Evelyn said. "As long as I don't have to attend them."

Tristan's face fell slightly and Evelyn frowned.

"Why do you ask?"

"I was going to ask if you wanted to come with me to one, but it's fine," he said with a shrug.

"I'll go," she said a little too quickly. "As long as you provide me with an ample amount of pineapple gummy bears."

"I always knew you were using me," he teased before opening the passenger door of his car. "Your carriage awaits."

She ignored the warmth in her cheeks as she got in the car and he closed the door behind her.

"You're not Prince Charming," she blurted.

Tristan breathed out a laugh as they pulled out of the parking lot. "Ouch."

"If this is the carriage, you'd be the coachman," she continued. "And the coachman was actually a horse, Cinderella's fairy godmother just turned him into a coachman, so you're actually a horse. Named Major."

"Are you saying you want to ride me?"

Evelyn blinked.

And then she blinked again.

And then she started laughing, covering her mouth with her hands as she realized how loudly she was laughing, before they slowly subsided to a bright smile, where she just covered her burning cheeks with her palms.

"You know, if you're going to laugh that hard every time I flirt with you, you can say goodbye to your gummy bears."

Evelyn cleared her throat. "Okay, try again. I won't laugh this time. I promise."

"I can't now," he muttered. "The moment is gone."

Evelyn tried to hold in her laugh, she really did, but that just ended in her snorting on accident, causing Tristan to give her a dirty look. "What moment? There was no moment."

"Evelyn?"

"Yes?"

"I'm going to flush you down the toilet."

"Headfirst?"

"Yes."

"But how can I ride you if I'm upside down?" she asked innocently and he stopped a little too abruptly as he parked on the street next to a house, before looking at her with wide eyes.

"What? You think you're the only one capable of a dirty mind?" she asked with a wink before getting out of the car. She intentionally slowed her pace as they walked towards the door, allowing him to get a good distance ahead of her before she gave herself a running start and jumped on his back. His reflexes were impressive as his hands immediately latched onto her thighs.

"What are you doing?" he asked, turning his head towards her slightly.

"Giddy up, Major," she just said, her voice quiet as her lips lingered near his ear. He tightened his grip on her thighs before cooperating, walking towards the door. It swung open almost immediately and she recognized him as Spencer.

"Spence," Tristan said as a greeting when he closed the door behind them.

"Sparkly girl," Spencer said to Evelyn. "What are you doing here?"

"She has a name," Tristan said. "Evelyn, this is Spencer."

"I didn't know you guys were friends," Spencer said.

"We're not," Evelyn said. "He's my horse."

"I'm not above letting you go, so you fall on your ass," Tristan warned.

"That's fine," she said before dropping her voice to a whisper. "I'm sure someone else will say yes if I ask to ride them."

Tristan groaned, shaking his head. "I'm never making a dirty joke around you again."

Evelyn ignored his comment, instead playing with the drawstrings on his sweatshirt as he led her towards the kitchen, before turning around, so there was a counter behind them. She got the message as he lowered her onto the counter, so her legs were swinging slightly as he turned around to face her.

"Hey, Major," she said with a grin.

"You are very hard to understand," he said with a fond smile.

"What do you mean?"

"When I thought you were asking me out, you thought I meant leaving the library, not a date," he deadpanned. "And now look at you."

Evelyn laughed. "I admit that was dense of me, but it didn't even cross my mind."

"What didn't?"

"That you'd think I'd ask you out, since your answer would obviously be no."

"How do you know that?" he asked with narrowed eyes.

"Tris, please," she said with a teasing smile. "You literally rejected me before I even got to the point of why I walked up to you."

He considered this, but before he could say anything back, Jerome's voice boomed across the kitchen.

"Evelyn! Tristan!" he said with a grin, literally pushing a kissing couple apart to step through them, causing Evelyn to laugh as the couple glared at him.

"These parties are such cesspools," Jerome said with a disgusted expression as he reached them.

"Then why do you come?" Tristan asked flatly.

"The free snacks," he said like it was the most obvious thing in the world, holding up his bag of Cheetos.

"Where'd you get those?" Evelyn asked.

"The cabinet," he said with a shrug, pulling another bag from the pocket of his sweatshirt. "Want one?"

Evelyn laughed. "I don't think you're supposed to rummage through the cabinets, Jerome."

"It could be worse. I saw some chick puking in Spencer's backpack," he said with a shrug, shoving a handful of chips into his mouth. "I'm gonna go find Ashley now."

"Want something to drink?" Tristan asked.

"Tequila."

"Funny," he said with a flat stare. "Soda or water?"

"Water, please," she said and he swung the fridge open, grabbing her a water bottle. As she sipped her water, she tried to focus on the melody of the music playing from the speakers instead of how cluttered the kitchen was. She downed about half the water bottle before she realized Tristan was watching her.

"Sorry," she mumbled, embarrassed. "I guess I was thirsty."

"Hmm?" he asked, his eyes still on her lips before he dragged them upwards, furrowing his eyebrows slightly. "Why are you apologizing?"

She was ready to explain before she realized she didn't really know why she apologized. "I don't really know."

"Don't."

"Don't what?"

"Apologize to me," he said, brushing his thumb against her chin, right under her bottom lip, where she'd accidentally gotten it wet from drinking. "Especially for no reason."

Evelyn's exhale came out shaky as her eyes dropped to his hand before back up to his eyes, where he cocked his head to the side, something he tended to do when he was wondering what she was thinking about.

"You're way too pretty to be a horse," she blurted before widening her eyes and covering her mouth, eternally embarrassed. Was this finally the moment where God would take pity on her and allow the floor to swallow her whole?

As Tristan just laughed, she realized nope, not yet and she slid her hands up to her eyes, covering the entirety of her face, even as she felt his hands on her wrists, gently trying to pull them away.

"What are you doing?" he asked, amusement dancing in the lightness of his tone.

"Praying to Hades to open a hole to the underworld so I can cannonball right in," she said, her voice muffled by her hands, which he finally managed to pull away.

"Look at me," he said quietly and she opened a single eye, peeking, before she opened the other one, too.

"You're way too pretty to cover your face," he countered.

Evelyn blinked, opening her mouth to speak, before she simply brought the water back to her lips, downing the other half of the water bottle, to stop her from saying something dumb. Again.

Once she was finished, she gave Tristan a sweet smile. "Can we leave soon?"

Tristan bit the corner of his lips, placing his hands on the counter beside her thighs. "You have to pee, don't you?"

She tried to think up an excuse before she admitted defeat. "In my defense, I had three cups of hot chocolate before the game. I think I've had to pee since we got here."

"Three?" he asked.

"What?" she said with a pout. "It's my comfort drink."

He breathed out a laugh, shaking his head slightly. "You're killing me, Evelyn."

"My bladder is killing me," she admitted, before he turned his back towards her, linking her arms around his neck and pulling her legs around his waist, so he was carrying her on her back again, which she enjoyed, despite the pressure in her bladder.

"Say it," he said with a small sigh as she pursed her lips, resolved to not say the words again, but he insisted. "I know you want to."

"Giddy up, Major," she said with a soft laugh, burying her head against his neck as he shook with silent laughter.

God, she loved his laugh.