by Amanda Abram
“Okay, then.” He didn't sound like he believed me, but he said nothing else as he started up the car. “We have a party to get to.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE
When we arrived at the party, which was at a large house located at the very end of a long, deserted dirt road, the first thing I was greeted with when I stepped out of the car was the muffled sound of techno music coming from inside.
“Good thing there are no neighbors living nearby,” I said to Zach.
“That's why the parties here always end up being the best ones. People can get as loud and rowdy as they want, and nobody complains.”
I wasn't sure if that was a good thing or not. To guys like Zach, the idea of loud and rowdy parties sounded fun. To me, they just sounded obnoxious.
I followed Zach inside the house and immediately worried about losing him among the sea of people. There were so many kids packed into the entryway, it was a wonder anyone was able to breathe, let alone move. Zach must have been thinking the same thing because he instantly took a hold of my hand and guided me through the crowd.
“You having fun yet?” he yelled down to me.
“Yeah,” I yelled back. “I should probably pinch myself to make sure I'm not dreaming.”
Zach grinned. “You know, I heard somewhere the other day that sarcasm is the new sexy. And you, Lexi Turner, are extremely sarcastic.”
I couldn't help but laugh at that. Zach had to be the biggest flirt I'd ever met, and while normally that would irritate the hell out of me, this guy was proving to be exactly what I needed post-breakup with Jase.
“You want something to drink?”
“Uh...” I hesitated. My mind instantly went to alcohol when he said the word “drink”, as I realized I had managed to forget the fact I was on a date with a certified teenage lush.
“Don't worry,” he said quickly. “By 'drink' I mean soda.”
“Oh,” I said, relieved. “In that case, sure.”
He tugged on my hand and led me out of the room and into the kitchen, where there were still a lot of kids hanging around, but there were at least a couple of empty areas to stand in.
“You want a Coke?” he asked.
“Sure,” I replied with a nod.
He let go of my hand and walked over to a large cooler on the floor near the refrigerator. He grabbed two cans of Coke and when he came back, he handed me one of them and popped open the top of the other one and took a swig.
I stared up at him in awe.
“What?” he asked cautiously.
“You're not going to mix that with alcohol first?”
“Ah,” he said, understanding my reaction. “Actually, I'm not drinking tonight.”
My jaw dropped. “Come again?”
“You seem shocked.” He draped an arm around my shoulders. “I don't blame you, really. But I'm being totally serious when I say that I am partying sans alcohol tonight.”
I was shocked to hear that. Zach without alcohol at a party just wasn't Zach.
“Because of me?” I asked.
“Yeah, because of you,” he said with a slight shrug. “I know you don't drink, which I admire, by the way, and I know you would have a lousy time tonight if I did. But it's all good, because I really like Coke.” He held up the soda can. “Cheers.”
I reached my own can up and clanked it against his. “Cheers. And thank you. For not drinking, I mean. I'm actually flattered you would give it up for me for one night.”
“You should be. I wouldn't do that for just any girl, you know. In fact, some of the girls I hang out with at these parties are the exact reason why I drink so much. It's the only way I can tolerate listening to them.”
I started laughing just as Eric suddenly appeared in front of us.
“Zach, Lexi!”
“Eric!” I exclaimed back. I was so happy to see a familiar, friendly face. And I noticed he was holding a can of soda in his hand as well.
“How's everything going?” he asked, directing the question more toward me than Zach.
“It's too soon to tell,” I replied, already tired of having to practically scream every word I spoke to anyone.
“I'll bet you're glad you're not here with Herman Kessler, huh?” he asked with a sly grin.
Zach glanced at me funny. “What about Herman Kessler?”
I gave Eric a look that said, say no more, please. “Nothing.”
“So Trish didn't want to come?” Eric asked me, disappointment etched onto his face.
I shook my head. “Not at all. Which is just as well. At least this way, you don't have to worry about prying college guys off her all night.”
He frowned at the thought I'd put in his head and I automatically felt bad for that.
“O'Connor! Stevenson!”
The three of us turned simultaneously to see Cory Chesterfield heading in our direction.
“Hey, hey, what's up?” He held up his hand as though he were looking for a high five. He, I noticed right away, was carrying a red plastic cup of beer in his hands.
Zach and Eric did the whole secret handshake thing with him and when they were done, Cory caught sight of me out of the corner of his eye.
“And who is this?” he asked, giving me the once-over. I didn't feel as comfortable under his scrutiny as I had under Zach's.
“You know who this is, Cory,” Eric said impatiently. “Lexi Turner. We've been going to school with her for the last eleven years. She just recently dated your good friend, Jase. Remember?”
Cory did a double take. “Holy crap, you're serious?”
I considered rolling my eyes just as I noticed a girl standing next to Cory who was rolling her own. I didn't recognize her at all, even though by the way she was standing next to Cory, she appeared to be his girlfriend. Or, at the very least, his date. But I could not recall having ever seen her at Jefferson Elliott High.
Reaching out, the girl plucked the beer from Cory's hand and said, “If you can't recognize people you've gone to school with for over eleven years, then I think it's time you're cut off from beer for a while.”
Cory turned to her and pouted. “But sweetie—”
“Don't you guys have some stupid game to play?” she interrupted. “You should go do that.”
“Ah, yes.” Cory slipped between Zach and Eric and threw his arms around the shoulders of each one and said, “C'mon boys, we've got a poker game to attend.”
Zach reached up and removed Cory's arm. “Dude, I'm not playing. I just got here.”
“So?”
“So, I brought a date.” Zach motioned over to me. “And I would like to spend some time with her.”
“You can spend time with her afterward.” Cory looked over at me and added, “I won't keep him for long, I promise. And in the meantime, Jessica here can keep you company. Right, snookums?”
The girl looked like she wanted to smack him upside the head. “Right,” she said unenthusiastically, taking a sip of the beer she'd just confiscated from him.
Zach glanced over at me with an apologetic expression on his face. “Are you okay with that? Because if you're not, I don't have to play. I'd rather hang out with you instead.”
“Nah, it's okay,” I somewhat lied. “You go ahead, I'll be fine.”
“You're sure?”
I nodded. “Go.”
Zach grinned. “Okay. Thanks. I'll be back before you know it.”
Eric gave me a small wave before the three boys took off out of the kitchen.
“Ugh, finally,” Jessica groaned. “I thought he would never leave.”
I eyed her curiously. “Are you Cory's girlfriend?”
She nodded. “Guilty as charged.” And she did in fact look guilty.
“You don't attend Jefferson Elliott, do you?” I asked her. “I'm usually pretty good at recognizing people.”
“Nope.” She shook her head. “I attend Rockwell High over in Sanford. If I had to go to school every day with that boy, there is no way I could still be his girlfrien
d. He drives me nuts. He's best in small doses.”
I laughed. I wasn't too surprised by any of this. Cory never seemed like good boyfriend material.
“I'm Jessica, by the way.”
“I'm Lexi.”
“Lexi. Cute name. I like it.” She glanced around the kitchen for a moment and then said, “Lexi, what do you say we go mingle?”
“Sure.” I quickly finished off my Coke and placed the empty can on the counter.
We left the kitchen and entered what appeared to be a living room, where kids were taking up every inch of it. The extra large couch was fully occupied, as was every arm chair. Even the coffee table had people on it, making out.
“Don't you just love parties?” Jessica yelled over to me. Even through the loud music, I could hear the sarcasm in her voice.
I decided I liked Jessica.
“I sure do,” I yelled back, equally sarcastic. I continued to follow her through the crowd, having no idea where we were going to end up and not really caring. And I actually found myself a bit relieved that Zach had been taken away from me, especially since Jessica seemed pretty cool.
I could see a break in the crowd up ahead and we were almost there when someone shoved into me from the right, not only cutting me off from Jessica, but also sending me flying into a complete stranger's arms.
Only it wasn't a complete stranger.
It was Jase.
Neither of us realized it at first, as I apologized and quickly removed myself from him. But when I pulled away, our eyes met and when I saw it was him, my heart stopped beating.
“Are you okay?”
I blinked. I glanced at him, then at Kylie who was standing next to him and avoiding my gaze by pretending to be interested in the hem of her shirt.
“Uh, yeah,” I said taking a step back.
We stared at each other for another moment before I cleared my throat and said, “Well, see ya,” before I took off back into the crowd in search of Jessica.
I found her a few seconds later, waiting for me over by the fake tree standing in the corner of the room.
“What was that all about?” she asked as I approached.
I played dumb. “What was what all about?”
“There was a weird moment between you and that guy you bumped into.”
“Oh.” I shrugged. “He's just an ex-boyfriend. He dumped me for the blonde he's standing with.”
Jessica stood on her tiptoes and peered over at Jase and Kylie. “Eww, seriously? She looks like a cheerleader.”
“That's because she is one.”
“Then double eww. You're better off without him. He sounds like a major moron.”
I had to bite back saying something that would just be defending him. He didn't deserve that. He deserved to be called a moron, because that was exactly what he was.
“Agreed.” I glanced back over in their direction, hoping that perhaps, Jase would be looking back at me.
He wasn't.
“You're still hot for him, aren't you?”
I turned to look at Jessica. “What? No way.”
“Yes, way. You want him so bad.”
I shook my head. “I'm completely over him. In fact, I'm not so sure I even liked him all that much to begin with.”
Jessica threw an arm around me. “You are so full of it, girl. You're still in love with him, and it's killing you to see him with that cheerleader right now.”
I could feel the corners of my mouth pulling downward. She was absolutely right. It killed me to see Jase with Kylie. It killed me to see how happy he was with her. I didn't want to admit it, especially to a girl I didn't even know, but I didn't have to. It was just way too obvious, which meant there was no reason to pretend otherwise.
“Yeah, it kills me,” I admitted with a sigh, just as I saw Kylie plant a soft kiss on Jase's lips.
“You know what you need?”
I tore my gaze away from the lovebirds and turned to Jessica with a curious look. “What?”
“Alcohol.” She flashed me a mischievous grin and wiggled her eyebrows. “That will cure heartbreak in an instant.”
With a nervous chuckle, I said, “I don't drink.”
“Neither do I, under normal circumstances. But in a situation such as this, having to watch some guy you're in love with fawn all over some other girl, alcohol is just what the doctor ordered.”
“But I'm not even bummed about it,” I lied. “I couldn't care less who he wants to fawn over, and I don't care that he's doing it right in front of me.”
“Right. Sure.” She didn't believe me, of course. Grabbing my arm, she pulled me away from the fake tree and we headed back toward the kitchen. When we got there, she let go of me and spun around.
“Look, girl, this is a party. You're supposed to have fun at a party. And I can tell you're not going to have any fun while that guy and his skanky girlfriend are all over each other. So...” She grabbed my arm once again and led me over to the counter. “Lexi, I would like to introduce you to Jell-O shots. Jell-O shots, this is Lexi.”
I stared down at the clear plastic cups the size of shot glasses all lined up in a row. There were quite a few missing from each row; I guess they had been quite popular. There were red ones, green ones, yellow ones and orange ones. They were so bright and colorful and looked so harmless.
“These things are amazing,” she said, grabbing a red one. “You only want a couple, though. They pack quite a punch.” She raised the cup to her lips, tilted her head back and consumed its entire contents all at once. “One or two of these, and you'll forget all about your dumb ex.”
I stared down at them with hesitation. They looked pretty good. And the thought of having fun at this party, and not spending the entire time moping over Jase, was enticing.
“C'mon, try one. I promise you won't regret it.”
Just do it, Lexi, I urged myself. For once in your boring, pathetic life, do something crazy. Something forbidden. Live a little!
Before I could stop myself, I reached out and grabbed an orange one. “What the hell,” I muttered. “Why not?”
It felt cold and smooth going down and tasted sweet, just like Jell-O. Jell-O with a bite.
“Woo!” Jessica cheered, clapping her hands together. “Go Lexi!”
“That was yummy,” I said as I began eyeing the other colors.
“I knew you'd like them.” She grabbed two more, both yellow ones. She handed one to me and said, “On the count of three.”
She counted to three and then we simultaneously emptied our cups into our mouths.
The second one was even better than the first.
“Trust me,” she said as I contemplated having a third one, “you'll be having fun in no time.”
I had no reason to doubt her. I was starting to feel better already.
Chapter Thirty
Dance.
I never before, in my entire life, made it a habit to dance.
Especially with a girl.
Especially with a girl I'd just met.
Yet there I was, in the living room of some house belonging to some kid I'd had yet to meet, dancing with Jessica like the world was about to end and the only way to save it was for me to dance.
It was hot.
Oh, I don't mean the dancing was hot. Although, I'm sure there were probably some guys at the party who thought it was. No, I meant the air was hot. And stuffy. But I didn't care.
I was dancing.
“Has the fun begun to sink in yet?” Jessica asked me, bumping her hip against mine, making me stumble a bit.
“Fun begun.” I burst out into laughter as I regained my balance. “That rhymed!”
Jessica began to laugh as well. “I know! It was a totally premeditated rhyme.”
“Props!” I held up my hand for a high five.
She slapped her hand against mine with more force than I was expecting, causing me to, once again, stumble backward.
“Ow!” I cried. “That stings!”
“So
rry,” she said in a singsong voice as she proceeded to dance around me. “This party doesn't seem to suck anymore, does it?”
“Not at all. In fact, I think it's kinda fun.”
She grinned and nodded in agreement. “We should do this every weekend!”
“Yeah!” I found myself enthusiastically agreeing, even though I was pretty sure somewhere in the back of my head I was screaming, “Uh, no thanks!”
The song we were dancing to ended so I stopped moving. As soon as I did, I suddenly found myself thirsty and exhausted.
“I'm going to get something to drink!” I told Jessica. “Do you want anything?”
She thought about it for a moment. “I'll take some water. You should have some water too. You need to hydrate yourself. Trust me, later on you'll be thankful you did.”
“Yeah, sure, okay,” I said, before stumbling off.
Somehow, I managed to make it back to the kitchen, even though it was rather difficult, considering the fact the whole house was swaying back and forth the entire time.
“Water, water, water,” I sang softly to myself as I headed over to the cooler. I was mainly just trying to remind myself what I was going into the kitchen for.
I found the bottles of water and grabbed two. Life was good.
And then Kylie walked in the room.
My automatic reaction upon seeing her was to think about how much I hated her, so that was exactly what I did.
For about ten seconds.
After that, a beautiful, extraordinary idea popped into my head.
She was alone and looking for something to drink, from what I could tell. And she looked so pretty in her white blouse that, amazingly enough, made her look both sexy and wholesome at the same time.
My eyes darted to the punch bowl nearby. It was filled with a pretty red liquid.
Quickly, before Kylie could see me, I grabbed a plastic cup and filled it with the punch, and then I set down one water bottle so I could carry the cup instead.
And then, I headed straight for Kylie.
And then I walked right into her.
On purpose.
Spilling the punch all over her lovely white blouse.
She screeched and jumped back as soon as the liquid hit the fabric. At first, I didn't think she realized I was the one who had bumped into her; she was too busy staring down at herself in horror. But when she looked up and her eyes locked with my own, a look came over her face that told me she wasn't the least bit surprised I was the culprit of this catastrophic event.
