Another Summer Romance (Raddum x ChristyKey)

It was getting into the evening, around 7:00 PM. It was decent outside, mid-50's and the wind was weak. Bastion was walking towards an apartment building. Tonight was a big night, it was the birthday of one of his best friends, Paul Orion. Who was turning 18. He was always on the wild side, since he was around the age of 13. He had his own downstairs apartment; Number 33 of the Gladewind Apartment Complex, or... GAC. But that sounded stupid.

Bastion looked at a scrap of paper he was carrying, it had the address and apartment number on it. He smirked. "Number 33, should be around here..." He looked around, unsure until he caught sight of the number 33 door. As he approached it loud, booming music could be heard inside. It sounded quite wild, and Bastion expected as much from Paul, giving his wild attitude. He knocked politely, and within seconds the door opened and the music got ten times louder, as Paul himself was smiling at Bastion, before gesturing him to come inside. "Bastion! Good to see you made it, man! Come check it out, this party is going to be the best you've ever seen! Everything you need is in here, yeah?!" He said, as Bastion laughed quietly, walking inside. The place was crowded, it was expected, giving Paul was quite the popular guy, but Bastion knew him back before he was popular. When he was a wimpy, nerdy kid. That's probably why he kept Bastion around, because he was the friend he had before getting all of these quote on quote 'friends'. There could've been a few who were close to him also, but Bastion saw him as a brother of sorts.

As expected, there was men, women, and plenty of alcoholic drinks for the more raring people. Bastion didn't drink, so he simply slumped up on a wall away from the crowd, watching. Paul had quickly lost sight of him and just went back to partying after he slammed the door shut. Bastion wasn't here to get wasted and pass out, it was more or less just to let Paul know he didn't forget about him. He figured he might as well stick around, as a taller, stronger looking young man approached him. "So, Baastion." He started, leaning up on the wall next to him. "Go try your luck with them ladies' man, some of them are so wasted i bet they'd even give you a go!" he said, laughing. Bastion rolled his eyes. "Thanks but no thanks." He replied, looking away as a man threw up. "I'm not into one-shot relationships." He finished, shaking his head. The other young man simply hopped off the wall, walking off. "Whatever, dude. You need to let loose every once in awhile, i bet these girls could change your mind if you gave them a chance."

Bastion stayed quiet, looking downwards. He liked the way he was, and he didn't want his mind to be changed. He sighed, standing there in thought, leaned up against the wall.

Being a few minutes late to a party didn't seem to mean much to Mia especially if it is someone who didn't interest her at all, but her best friend just had to drag her along. Mia had warned her friend that all he wanted was to simply have a one night stand with as many women in one night. She was not up to getting drunk and end up in bed with some random guy she doesn't know. Maybe she was too old-fashioned, but it's just how she is. In the end she couldn't just leave her friend alone and she decided to stay and keep watch of her.

"Mia, we are going to have so much fun tonight! What if Paul ask me to stay with him the whole night?" her friend couldn't help but sound desperate for that one chance to be held by Paul. Mia couldn't help but feel sick just hearing such a need for someone. "Mia if he does just go straight home I don't want to keep you up all night." she had this seductive tone in her voice, making Mia regret coming along. Mia just had to give her a light smack in the back of the head, hoping to knock some sense into her.

"Jade, that is just disgusting to even think about. You rather be used up by a guy once than actually find a meaningful relationship? Now, hurry up before we are late " Mia hurried up to the door and opened it without even knocking. Not like no one could even hear a knock with that loud music playing. You could tell many people were already drunk and getting really physical with each other. "Okay Jade go find Paul and have your disgusting fun time with him. I'll stay sitting down and wait until you tell me to leave." Jade couldn't be happy enough to leave Mia's side for Paul. Mia couldn't help but sigh as she tried to find a seat with no luck and decided to lean against the wall.

She looked around at the people and noticed a guy who looked lost in his thoughts. He did look pretty sober and she thought maybe she would go up and talk to him. She tried going up to him, but ended up not doing so because she didn't want to be seen as a bother to him. She took out her phone and tried to do something to occupy herself until Jade was ready to leave.

Bastion sighed, the place started to smell pretty badly, considering how crazy everything was getting. He noticed two more girls enter without even knocking, figuring them to just be a couple more of those party girls he wasn't interested in. When it came down to it though, one of them seemed rather irritated with the other, and he watched her with his head kept down as she rested herself against the wall like he did. He was curious what Paul was doing, but giving it was Paul, he was probably in a backroom 'enjoying' himself, or throwing up somewhere. Bastion knew one thing at that moment, he wasn't going to help clean up anything of this.

He glanced over at the girl who leaned against the wall, she was messing around with her phone, but didn't seem to be that loose like her friend, who just ran off like she had her mind locked on one thing, god knows what it was. Thankfully Bastion wasn't God, so he didn't know. He figured he might as well past the time, it's not like he was going to do anything else like drink until he couldn't see strait, or join the loosen whore schoolgirls in their naughty endeavors. He tugged on his coat awkwardly, making his approach,. Not moving far from the wall as he became close enough for her to hear over the music and the loud party-goers. He prayed he wasn't just about to get himself into something he didn't want to get into.

"Too much for you to, huh?" He asked her, gazing out at the groups of dancing, drunken guests. "Look at them... Pathetic, all getting wasted and partying like there isn't a tomorrow..." He sighed, shaking his head as he looked back at the girl. He just kind of drifted over and started a conversation, unsure if she was comfortable with it. If not, he'd probably drift back to where he was and try to avoid trouble. If she was... Well, there wasn't many people here still sober to have a conversation with, and giving she didn't seem to think twice of looking at any men, she probably wasn't planning on drinking. It was kind of a wager...

As Mia tried to tune any inappropriate sounds from the party-goers, but when it wasn't working she thought maybe it's best to just leave the party itself. She was going to go tell her friend, Jade that she was leaving until she heard someone speak to her. "Too much for you to, huh? Look at them... Pathetic, all getting wasted and partying like there isn't a tomorrow..." said the male voice. She couldn't help but smile to herself.

She nodded in agreement to his remark. "Most guys here just want to go home and try a girl out for a night. Pick the most drunkest girl they can find to fill up their desire. It's just sick and wrong, plus they'll all regret it by tomorrow morning." she couldn't help but feel sorry for most of them anyways. She was caught in such a situation before and realized it will never happen again. The thought of her friend possibly being intimate with a guy who didn't care who he was screwing around with just made her even more mad. She just had to let her anger go since her friend was okay with just one night stands.

"By the way, my name is Mia. Nice to meet another sober person." she looked at his face and gave a simple smile. It did made Mia feel weird speaking to a guy, but at least he wasn't trying to attack her or anything.

Bastion listened to the girl as she introduced herself, and pretty much explained the plan of every man here. Well, not Bastion, but close to every man. He was glad she seemed willing for conversation, it was going to be boring here without someone to talk to. "I guess so, but sadly i can't really just step in and stop it all." He looked up at the ceiling. "Tried that last year, lost two teeth and one of my eyebrows." He commented with a small chuckle, that was a terrible night and he almost didn't want to come to this party because of it. But he went against his better judgement. He looked at Mia, returning the smile. "Name's Bastion, and i couldn't agree more, seeing a sober person here is a blessing." He said, not really used to talking to women that much. Although Paul always tried to get him into false relationships... That didn't really count.

"I'd say nice party, but it's really not." He said in a dull tone, he swore he heard something coming from the ceiling. Hopefully that wasn't what he thought it was.. Paul's neighbors. He glanced up at the ceiling, narrowing his eyes. If it was, it was quite possible Bastion should expect the police. Because even though Paul was crazy, his neighbors were not exactly the kindest. Hell, one time he swore the guy flipped him the bird while his back was turned, but it wasn't the time to think about that. "... Probably should stop talking about the negatives, though. I mean, by the look of it, this could be awhile." He said, his head throbbing from the music. He had a terrible headache already, but still stood there. "So... Positives..." He clapped his hands playfully. "We're not really a part of this. I think that's a positive." He said, looking at her with a grin, although Paul was his friend, he didn't deserve much praise for anything he did. "Not drunk, not sick..." He began counting the positives on his fingers. "Oh, and we can't forget that skipping out early is always an option, considering how drunk these people are, i doubt they'll ever notice. Hell, they might start thinking the party is out there." He put a hand up to his chin. "Actually, that'd be terrible..." He muttered, thinking about it. He hoped how chatty we was being wasn't disturbing, it's just topics like these that got him riled up.

Mia couldn't help but smile and laugh a his remarks. She took an interest in the conversation when he started to state the positives. "I would love to leave this party, but I have to wait for friend. I wouldn't want her to leave her alone in such a place. Who knows what will happen if I leave." Just the thought of leaving her friend alone could result in death itself. She shivered at such a thought. "I think maybe just being outside will be good enough for me. Unless you would rather stay inside here and talk...but I'm pretty sure you don't want that." Mia couldn't believe at the things she was seeing. Staying outside would probably make her feel less disgusted.

Mia didn't want to seem pushy, but she couldn't stand being inside. "I mean..it's okay if you don't want to. I can go outside by myself, I just have to warn my friend I'm heading outside for some fresh air." she just gave a small smile to him and left his side unsure if he was going to come along. She looked around for her friend, until he spotted her with another guy doing very inappropriate things. 'Maybe just leaving her isn't such a bad idea..she is old enough to take care of herself.' she thought to herself. She just turned back around to Bastion, giving him a simple wave goodbye without even considering what he was going to do. She headed for the door relived she was going to leave such a party.

Bastion stood there for a moment and listened to Mia as she spoke of waiting on a friend, scared she might get hurt. If it was the girl she came in with, wasn't she old enough to take care of herself? Eh, friendship is admirable. She asked about stepping outside, in which Bastion attempted to accept but she was already walking off. By the time he started to follow, she had turned around and waved to him, then walked towards the door. He walked a little faster to make up for the distance, or maybe he just wanted to get out of there faster. Who knows. "Sounds much better than staying in here." He said as he slowed down to walk beside her, he tried not to notice the people around him and just focused on opening the door. When he did, a cold breeze began blowing through, inside the apartment. Hopefully the fresh air didn't kill someone inside, giving at this point it was entirely different from the air inside the apartment. He walked outside and took in the air, it was pretty dark, the only light being emitted from the moon and from inside the apartment. He shook his head.

He blinked, realizing something. Did this girl maybe expect he would try and flirt with her? Hopefully not, but it was a mildly embarrassing thought that made his face slightly redder. He looked up at the sky, trying to erase the thought. This was just a friendly conversation, two people who just didn't agree with something and left. Hopefully she didn't get the wrong impression and think lower of him, he figured he found at least one person who had their head on strait in that apartment.

The cold breeze made Mia feel relaxed. She stretched her arms out happily. "Ah, this feels so much more relaxing. Plus I can talk normally instead of having to raise my voice. I'm glad you came out with me though. I really didn't want to be alone." Mia said, though it did sound pretty corny but that just slipped her mind at the moment. She just smiled while staring up at the sky. "Anything you want to talk about? I'm open to anything." Mia wasn't much of a conversation starter, but this was the first time she ever talk to a stranger for a long time.

She felt really happy and started spinning around like a child. She knew Bastion thought she was weird for acting in such a way randomly. She stopped spinning around since she started to feel dizzy, she grabbed on to Bastion by accident since she almost fell. "I'm sorry. I'm acting strange right now..If I'm scaring you I'm truly sorry. I'm just really happy right now." Mia was still holding on to him, but let go once she noticed. Her face had a light blush. "Sorry..." she said softly. Mia slightly moved away from him to avoid further embarrassment. 'Maybe spinning wasn't such a good idea..I feel like such a child.' she thought to herself.

Bastion smiled at Mia's words, it was pretty loud in there, and it was nearly silent outside, yet Bastion could hear the beat of the music from where he was standing. He raised an eyebrow as she started spinning around, it was random, but hey, everyone had something they enjoyed. His other eye widened as she stopped, obviously dizzy, and grabbed onto him. She started to apologize, and he laughed quietly, as she let go and moved away slightly. "Scaring me?" He questioned, looking at her with a smile. He felt as if she thought she made some kind of mistake, when she obviously just had to grabbed onto something or should would've fell. "Nothing to be scared of, you would've fell. Wouldn't want to see you get hurt." He said, trying to cheer her up in a friendly manner. "Nothing to be sorry for, alright?"

He rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly before putting his hands into his pockets. He looked around, unsure of what exactly to say until he heard a faint mew.

Meeeow...

Bastion looked down, noticing a cat walking around his legs, rubbing up against him. "Oh, you again?" He said with a small laugh, kneeling down and petting the creature. He had fed it on the way here, it must've followed him and been waiting outside for him to return. He scratched it's head, and it simply sat there and began purring. "You don't have a home, do you?" He asked, noticing fleas. He felt bad, and gave it a small pat on the head before standing up. "Tell you what, you can just come home with me later, alright? We'll get you all cleaned up and then find you a home." He said happily, he already had a cat, and he didn't feel he could keep it. He looked over at Mia, he seemed more happy now that he had seen the cat. "Hey," He said, hoping to get her attention. "Would you want her? She'd be perfectly clean, i promise." He looked down as the cat mewed and rubbed against his leg, before looking back at Mia once more, waiting for a reply with a huge smile on his face. It was obvious animals made the guy happy, yet at the same time, very serious. Due to caring for the animal's health and well-being, as well as being happy.

Mia just stared at Bastion, than at the cat. "I'm not sure..the people I'm living with really don't like animals. It'll be kept in my room all day and a cat needs freedom I wouldn't want her to suffer in such a small room." She looked down at the cat, it was cute and she did need a little bit of company at home. "...They'll probably kill me for doing this, but sure why not? I'll take her home with me. I need someone to call as a friend at home so maybe this cat will do just fine." She smiled at the cat. "She seems to like you really well. Maybe you can come visit her...I mean that is if you want..not saying that you have to or anything.." Mia once again said something on impulse, plus it was something embarrassing.

She really did want someone to talk to at home, since everyone in the house were basically all strangers to her. Maybe if she just had someone or something to talk to it would make her feel more at ease in her house. Bastion did show his serious side when it came to the cat, Mia found that nice. Most people would usually leave an animal alone on the street, but Bastion was different and Mia found that sweet. Most likely Mia had this stupid smile on her face while looking at the cat. "I'm definitely acting weird today.." she mumbled to herself.