Ellise was miserable. She'd broken up with her cheating boyfriend two and a half weeks ago and it still hurt. She wouldn't get out of her room and her queen sized bed seemed to have become her favorite place on Earth. Naturally, her bestfriend was worried about her and was desperately trying to bring her out of her shell.

"For the third time, no! That's not happening"

"Please, Ellie. I need you to come with me to Sandy's birthday party!" Anne, Ellise's best friend pouted, big blue eyes reflecting just how desperate she was.

Ellise groaned, burying her face in her pillow.

"My parents won't let me leave this house. Not after what happened to Maddie" she mumbled, hoping that Anne wouldn't try to persuade her any further.

"I talked to your parents. They agreed"

Ellise raised her head instantly, her eyes wide with both shock and disbelief.

"What?! You're lying!"

"Nope, I'm telling the truth"

"You've got to be kidding me, how the hell did you do that?!"

"Well, it took some effort but it was well worth it. You need to have a life, sweetheart"

Ellise groaned, frustrated. She didn't want to go to a birthday party especially because she didn't feel that she was a socialite! Attending parties and social events were not her thing. The last time she'd attended a party, she'd made a total fool of herself. She was a total light weight and attending parties meant getting drunk. So, parties were a big 'no' for her. But if her parents had agreed to let Anne take her out to a party, there was no way she would be able to escape this one.

"I'll come back to pick you up by six pm" Anne said with a smug look on her face

"Fine" her friend groaned, hitting her head on the pillow, frustrated.

"Yay!"

Ellise let out a sigh and turned to face the wall.

"Bye, bestie" Anne chirped and exited the room after Ellise mumbled a half-hearted response.

"Bye"

"Well, this is amazing. I am officially screwed!" Ellise exclaimed and threw a small fit on her bed, using her limbs to kick the air until she was exhausted.

****

"Wake up! Get up! It's time to get ready for the party, Ellie!"

Ellise jolted up from her bed, groaning when she saw that it was just Anne standing there. If looks could kill, she would be six foot under.

"I told you we would be leaving by six and it's 6:15! You're still in bed!"

"Oops?"

Ellise was forced to take her bath before getting dressed in a black knee-length dress. Anne helped her curl her hair a little and also helped her with her makeup.

"Now that's better! You no longer look so miserable"

Ellise rolled her eyes and picked up her purse.

Anne could be a bitch sometimes, regardless of the fact that she was Ellise's best friend. There were times when she would wonder how she put up with her bitchiness.

At the party, the whole place was buzzing with life. Loud music blasted from the large speakers, bodies swaying in accordance to the music.

Anne went ahead to wish Sandy a happy birthday, then they both headed to the drink section.

"Oh my God, is that Dave? He looks hot, check out his hair!" Anne gushed.

Ellise rolled her eyes as she watched her display her lovesickness.

Dave was one of the popular guys in senior year. He had the wealth, the looks and the charms. He basically slept with anything wearing skirt. Anne had been crushing on him since sophomore year.

"Go and talk to him if you want" Ellise said to her friend as she leaned on the counter.

"No! Don't you think I might stop breathing? He's the sexiest guy alive" Anne cried and Ellise chuckled.

"You sure are a love sick pup"

"You can't blame me, he's gorgeous"

"Well, it looks like you will be getting lucky tonight" Ellise said, smirking.

"What? What? What are you talking about?"

"He's heading this way" she said, clearly amused.

"No! No! What if I blush too much and forget to breathe when I get lost in his enchanting eyes and- and loose consciousness!" She rambled.

"Calm down, just breathe. You read way too much romance novels" Ellise said, her lips curled in a mischievous smirk.

"Hello, princess" Dave said to her when he finally got to them.

"Hi, Dave" Ellise responded, smiling.

"Hi, beauty" he said to Anne.

"H-Hi Dave"

"You look stunning tonight" Anne blushed.

"Thanks"

"What's your name, princess?" He asked.

"Anne" she replied, her cheeks heating up.

"Beautiful name for a beautiful lady. Nice to meet you, Anne. Can I have this dance?"

Anne nodded timidly and

Dave grinned, taking hold of her hand before leading her to the dance floor.

Great, now I'm left alone, Ellise thought.

Sighing to herself, she went to the balcony. Then, she closed her eyes, feeling the cool breeze ruffle a few strands of hair on her face.

"El?"

She froze when she recognized the deep voice that had just resounded from the darkness behind her.

"Zack?" she said, turning to face her exboyfriend.

"Hey, El. You look beautiful"

"Thanks" she replied, turning away from him.

"I miss you" he whispered and she shook her head slowly.

"No, you don't"

"Trust me, I do. I'm sorry things ended up the way they did"

"Yeah I know"

"I'm really sorry for hurting you. I was wondering if you could give us a second chance"

Ellise closed her eyes, her fingers gripping the railings.

"No, I can't. You cheated on me multiple times" she choked out.

Tears filled his eyes, hurt clouding his golden brown eyes.

"I was drunk, El. It was a mistake"

"You weren't drunk when I caught you with Carmella" she replied bluntly, her eyes filling up with tears.

"I know, I am so sorry" he whispered.

His eyes were filled with tears, dark bags were under his eyes. She cleared her throat and blinked back her tears, finally regaining her composure.

"You don't have to apologise, Zack. I am over you" she said and walked away, leaving him to stare at her retreating figure with longing in his eyes.

****

An hour later, Ellise was starting to feel bored, especially since she felt out of place. She just wanted to go home and curl up on her bed. So, she went in search of Sandy. But when she couldn't find her bestfriend, she decided to go home alone, despite the fact that it was nightfall already.

As she walked down the street with her black shawl around her shoulders, she was suddenly pinned to the wall roughly. Alarmed, she let out a scream, panic coating her veins.

She could perceive the stale odour of alcohol and weed coming from the drunk man who had just pinned her against the wall. He clamped a hand over her mouth as soon as she opened her mouth to scream for the second time.

"Let me go!" she cried with a muffled voice.

"Let me go!"

"Shut the hell up bitch!" He growled, taking off her shawl with his free hand. At this point, Ellise's panic had soared to a different level entirely and she was almost hyperventilating.

She could only hope and pray for someone to save her. The man buried his face in the crook of her neck and she whimpered, her blood pounding against her ears.

No! No! This can't be happening.

Please save me!

Somebody! Anybody!

Help me please!

She squeezed her eyes shut, hot tears rolling down her pale face when she realized that no one was coming for her. "P-please" she whimpered, her eyes still tightly shut.

Suddenly, the man who was just about to assault her let out a loud groan and collapsed to the ground. Ellise sank to the ground, her heart still racing in her chest.  Someone was squatting in front of her with a hood over his head. With teary eyes, she stared into the greenest eyes she'd ever seen and before she could thank her saviour, everything went black.