Disclaimer: I don't own Lords of Dogtown.

A/N: Sorry for the delay. I suck. Thanks for the reviews! I can't believe so many of you are still reading this. Luckily, I have an obsession with Emile I just can't shake off, and this is my favorite movie with him in it. Jay is just… yum. I don't think I'll ever abandon this one.

This Photograph is Proof

Chapter 11: Cat Scratch Fever

The night passed by pretty quickly and at about three in the morning the only people still around were the Zephyr team, Blanca, Stacy and Kathy.

Of course for the last half hour I've been on my knees in front of the toilet, emptying out the contents of my stomach. I think everyone was basically passed out, or well on their way, so at least no one would see me being so glamorous.

Groaning, I leaning my head on the cool edge of the porcelain toilet. Now normally, the germs involved in this would completely skeev me out, but I'm still drunk, still high, and I feel a little like dying.

And I think I might've puked in my hair.

Feeling bile rising in my throat, I repositioned myself right over the toilet bowl, dry heaving while my hair fell into my face. I heard the door open as I coughed over the toilet and spit, not able to look over to see who was there, but I made out a sigh and a male mumbling about having to piss before they shuffled away.

As I braced myself against the toilet, waiting for the heave I knew was coming, I heard the screen door open, and then a little while later close again right before I rolfed up something orange… ish.

While my stomach was basically kicking any nourishment that had possibly been left out, someone came into the bathroom again and pulled my hair back for me. It was definitely a guy, I knew that much from the hand when I felt it brush my hair back from my forehead.

This time, I think I'm really done. That horrible feeling isn't sitting there in the back of my throat any more, so after coughing and spitting again, I moved backwards and hit the flusher. My hair was let go as I turned around and saw Jay standing over me, eyebrows raised, though he still looked half asleep.

"That was sexy," he mumbled, his lips twitching upwards ever so annoyingly. He hopped up onto the counter and I leaned back against the bathtub, sighing and trying to regain my composure a little bit, also hoping not to stand up and upset my stomach or something.

"Is everyone asleep?" I asked, hearing hardly any noise apart from the still playing radio.

"Passed out," he answered with a shrug.

"I'm never drinking again." My voice was so hoarse from all the barfing.

"That's what they all say," he snorted with a roll of his eyes. "I made sure no one crashed in your bed." I was thankful for that and stood up to set up my toothbrush and get rid of the lovely taste of vomit.

After my teeth were thoroughly brushed, I stumbled towards my bedroom, Jay following close behind, one time having to grab my arm to prevent me from whacking my leg on a bookcase.

"Jeeze, you're still fucked up," he laughed as we made it into my bedroom, stepping over a passed out Shogo in the hall.

I grunted in response as I stripped out of the pants I'd put on after swimming and exchanged them for a pair of shorts. When I turned back, Jay had made himself comfortable in my bed, arms casually behind his head.

"Oh, fuck off," I protested, not in the mood to argue about this. I'm drunk and cranky and I just want to sleep in my own bed for a few hours.

"Come on! I made sure no one came in here! Plus, I deserve something for holding your hair back." Wow, he could be such a manipulator. "Your bed is huge!"

It was a true statement. I really didn't need a whole queen-sized bed to myself when there were so many people scattered in the house. But it was kind of awkward for some reason… well… I guess because we were all over each other in the pool earlier. Should I be acting different? I don't even understand what all that shit meant. It kind of came out of nowhere; everything with him had tonight. "Besides, someone's gotta make sure you don't choke on your puke or something, drunkass."

I scoffed and just gave in, lifting my covers up on my side and crawling under them, having to tug some away from Jay because he was clearly come kind of blanket hog.

I lay with my back to him, right near the edge of the bed. I don't know why. I could've lain more comfortably towards the middle. But this was definitely the first time I'd ever shared a bed with a guy, and it made me really nervous, especially since he'd already made moves on me tonight.

Right about the point where I felt like I could fall asleep, I also felt something else. My body tensed, but I tried to hide it when I most definitely felt Jay's hand rubbing slow, small circles on my hip with his thumb. I felt him shift, and felt his body warmth get closer to me.

A minute later, once he'd stopped moving, his entire palm began stroking my hip, moving a little wider each time, hitting the skin between my shorts and tanktop and creating goosebumps.

I stayed still, too confused to make decision as to respond, smack his face, or just pretend to be asleep. Or to just… see what happened. There was something about him. Part of me wanted to save him, but part of me liked his bad boy attitude, even though it was everything my parents had nightmares about. I'd never known people like him, like the rest of them. They seemed so real to me, so different from the prep school jocks and trust fund kids I was accustomed to. Somehow they seemed to know who they were, and where they felt they belonged, just making the most of things, or trying to do what they could to work their way up in the world. It felt good to have them here, wanting to know me, wanting my company, because I'd always been associated with the toher breed, but I'd never been like them. Money hadn't molded me. All I'd ever wanted was to meet people I actually wanted to be around, and who actually wanted to be around me.

Jay licked his lips, very close to my ear. "Val," he whispered, voice a little hoarse with the ware and tear of the day. "Val, you awake?" I didn't respond. If I respond, something is going to happen. I don't know if it will be good, or if it will be bad, but I know something will happen. And I'm scared. "Liv?"

I gasped when his fingertips brushed under the elastic of my shorts before coming right out, totally blowing my pretend sleep cover. Jay let out a throaty chuckle as he buried his face in the back of my neck. And then his hand went under, and up, almost all the way up, lifting my shirt discretely until he got to the curve of my breasts. He wasn't bold enough to not ease his way past that point.

My heart was pounding as he pulled me back into him closer, his arm wrapped around my middle before he started kissing and sucking at my neck, his hand moving up and down the curve of my torso. My skin was getting hot; I could feel the flush on my cheeks and the pit of my stomach was in a vice-like knot.

I turned my head around to get a glimpse of him and say something, anything to postpone his actions. But I couldn't, I didn't. And instead he stole my lips again, his hair brushing against my face, the distraction his mouth was causing efficient enough to allow his hand to slip under my rolled up top and start thumbing my nipple, my back arching at the first real sexual contact I'd ever had.

At no point in my life had I ever let a guy this close to me in this way. Matt had tried to get to second base once or twice, but he'd always been rejected. And I always felt like I wasn't one of those girls who would ever hook up, or get too involved with a guy I barely knew.

But here I was. In a bed with him. Inviting it.

There was just something so bad about him, that I wanted it for some reason. I didn't care that I didn't know him that well. I didn't care that he was from the bad part of Venice. I didn't care that he was younger than me, but too confident in his actions to not be more experienced than I was.

I liked him. I don't know why, but I did. And I wanted him to like me, really, really badly.

So I just let it happen.

He pushed the rest of the fabric up, exposing my chest completely before he muttered against my ear. "Take it off."

Doing what he wanted, I had to sit up a little, Jay getting onto his knees beside me and watching with hooded eyes as I did what he asked, tossing the top to the floor.

A second later, Jay pulled my shoulder down, pushing me onto my back while he maneuvered himself between my legs. Looking down at me, he smirked before he dove for my neck again, his hand pulling through my hair.

"Damn, you've got the nicest ones I've ever seen." Normally, a comment like that would have completely turned me off. Like, how many had he seen at his age? And, should that worry me? But coming from Jay's brutally honest mouth, it seemed like a great compliment somehow.

He already had me whipped; they all did. I wanted to fit in with them soberly, I think I'd do just about anything to impress them, or prove that I could hang with them.

Jay particularly.

The kid kissed me like he was hungry for it, tasting like beer and weed and smelling like the beach and whatever musky deodorant he'd used earlier today. He smelled wild and free and real and there was something so attractive about that to me. And, god, I loved it. I loved the way his lips felt moving against mine, how his hands felt as they touched me, massaging my chest and rolling my nipples around between his fingers. I especially loved the feeling that surged through my body every single time he ground against me, the fabric between my legs becoming damp and my hips automatically moving up to meet his.

Confident I wouldn't slap him if he kept this going apparently, Jay made a trail between the valley of my breasts, down my stomach and to my hipbones, scraping his teeth along the slight protrusion while he edged my shorts and panties down my hips together. Only a little hesitantly, I licked each leg out of them as he pulled them all the way down my legs and let him throw them aside. I guess it wasn't as intimidating because it was pretty dark, but part of me wondered what the fuck I was doing.

Jay made quick eye contact with me, a little grin on his face as he pushed his hair behind his ears, then buried his face between my legs. My own voice surprised me as I let out a moan, my head falling back into the pillows and my eyes closing. I gripped the sheets and dug my heels into the mattress, trying to bite my lip to surprises the continuation of the sounds.

Stars erupted behind my eyelids while I arched my back, and my legs trembled beyond my control. That was a better feeling than drinking or getting high… or anything. I'd had to cover my own mouth with my hand to keep quiet enough so that no one else would hear. They were bound to be the types to intervene or tease us if they did.

Dropping his body on top of mine with a grin on his face, I could see the glint in his eyes even in the dark. "Wanna taste? He questioned, laughing before he kissed me and I giggled back, his teeth catching my lip and hiss hands roaming at my body again. When he pulled back, he moved my hand over the crotch of his pants between us, pressing into me wantonly.

"I like you," he told me. He looked so serious when he said it, I was kind of thrown off. I didn't expect it.

"Huh?" My voice was hoarse with lust, and he just rolled his eyes at me.

"I said I like you." He repeated it a little louder, with purpose. I heard him loud and clear. I just couldn't be sure if he was saying it to get something, or if he meant it. I wanted to believe the latter.

It was his eyes that lured me in the most though, not his words. They just stared at me, so warmly and invitingly. I wanted to help him, because I knew he was troubled. And he could keep me company, because I was always so alone. We were from different worlds, but isn't that how these things can work out a lot? It seemed like such a perfect fantasy in that moment, the deep pools gazing down at me, so I believed him. And I kissed him.

My fingers worked frantically at his fly, trying to get there before I chickened out. Jay watched my hands working, smirking when they popped the button and I pushed them down just a little.

He looked back up at me then. "You done this before?" he questioned, obviously not aware of my lack of experience, though I figured it was a little apparent by how nervous I was.

I shook my head 'no' shyly, and somehow his facial expression told me that was the answer he wanted to hear. "Have you?" I quickly countered, feeling his answer would probably differ from mine.

"Hey do you have paper—" Before he could answer, wee jumped apart, but it wasn't fast enough. Or just… yeah, well, it was pretty obvious no matter what we did. Sid stood in my doorway with a big, goofy grin on his face. "Uhhhh…."

"Fucking knock asshole!" Jay hissed, pushing his hair back with one hand as he sat back on his feet.

"Sorry," Sid giggled like a schoolgirl. "Biniak puked all over the kitchen floor. I just needed some cleaning supplies." He looked to me questioningly, my body thankfully shielded now.

"Under the sink," I groaned, doing my best to keep my blankets up to my chin and not look Sid in the face.

"All right, gotcha. You kids have fun now. Use protection." He was laughing as he shut the door just before Jay whipped a pillow at him a second too late.

"Oh my god," I gasped in humiliation.

"Go fuck yourself!" Jay yelled to the closed door, collapsing onto his back and rubbing his temples, officially ready to murder Sid.

As quickly as I could, I put my tanktop and shorts back on, the shock of Sid catching us killing the mood and bringing me back to my senses. What the hell was I about to do?

Sid was the type to tell everybody what he'd walked in on, and that was especially horrifying since he and I knew a lot fo the same people. "God, he's gonna tell everybody." And even though he could kill his friend at the moment, Jay laughed, brushing it off like nothing happened. "It was not funny," I hissed, irritated, which only made him laugh more as I fell back into my pillows beside him.