by Jenny Lee
Anna lost her virginity to Alexander when she had traveled with his family to Bora Bora the summer before he left for college. Alexander’s father and stepmother rented them their own two-bedroom bungalow (with a private plunge pool), which they shared with Alexander’s half-sister, Eleanor. Eleanor was a freshman at Anna’s school and they were friends more out of convenience than anything else. Obviously, Anna would never dare to be catty about Eleanor in front of Alexander, but the truth of the matter was Eleanor was tedious.
On the second day of their ten-day vacation, Anna came back to their bungalow after getting a massage to find that Alexander had decorated the entire living room with candles and flowers. He had arranged for them to dine in their room catered by a private chef. Alexander was an incredibly thoughtful boyfriend, but this sort of grand gesture was not really his style. Anna was taken aback. “What about Eleanor?” she asked. Probably not the best response, but it was the first thing that popped into her head.
“She’s not feeling well and has decided to move into my dad and Whitney’s bungalow. You know, to be close to her mom,” he responded simply.
To this day, she had no idea what Alexander said to Eleanor to get her to go along with his plan to seduce her, because when she saw Eleanor the next day, she didn’t seem sick at all.
“But what if she comes into the room?” Anna asked. Eleanor never even watched rated-R movies because she found gratuitous violence and sex abhorrent.
“They don’t call me the Greenwich OG for nothing,” he said, shaking his head and laughing. Alexander held up Eleanor’s key card to show he already had it covered. “Can we please stop talking about my sister?”
Anna smiled. It was rare for her boyfriend to display a sense of humor about himself. She knew he found his given nickname to be ridiculous and had never once heard him refer to himself by it. But she found hearing him say it now surprisingly sexy.
She had never asked Alexander whether he was a virgin as well, mainly because she didn’t know if it was something she could ask him, and also because she wasn’t sure if she wanted to hear about the girls who came before her. By the time Anna learned that a lot of girlfriends grilled their boyfriends about their past exploits, it was too late to broach the subject with him. Then, that night in Bora Bora over their candlelit dinner, he told her it was going to be his first time, too. She knew she should be touched by this, happy that they would have a shared experience as a couple. But, in fact, she was disappointed to hear the news. While they shared a chocolate soufflé for dessert all she could think of was that if they were both virgins, how the hell were they going to know what to do?
They figured it out, of course, after much fumbling and awkwardness. It wasn’t rocket science, after all. The sex hurt more than she thought it would, but by the second day, she finally relaxed enough to enjoy it a little. Yet Anna always wondered whether there was more to sex than what she was experiencing. Even for that split second when she saw Lolly on top of her brother, she felt more electricity in the room than any time she had been with Alexander. She wondered whether this was because her brother had a lot more experience and was better able to show Lolly the way.
“Done!” Her brother’s voice brought her back to reality.
“What’s done?” she asked, having forgotten what was last said between them.
“You’re on the list for the par-tay. I’m psyched you’re going. It’s gonna be high-key lit. Set list should be dope AF. Hey, should I get a white stretch limo so we can roll up straight pimpin’?”
This was why Anna loved her brother; he knew how to have a good time and always had. “Fo-shizzle you should!” she replied and Steven shot her a smirk. “Isn’t that an old hip-hop expression? Did I use it correctly?”
“I know you’re not a dumb white girl, but you’ve never sounded more like one.”
“Hey, take that back! You’re not allowed to be mean to me yet. You owe me, remember?” Anna was holding a throw pillow and ready to smack him in the face.
He put his arms up in the air in surrender. “I take it back! You’re right. On my honor, I’ll be nice to you for…” He paused dramatically. “At least for another few days. Like maybe three.”
“Oh please, like you have any honor.” Anna smacked her brother in the face with the pillow and got up from the bed laughing. “Get the limo. Why not?” She had always told herself she needed to try to be more like her brother, less careful and down for whatever. She decided right then to text Magda not to send her dogs in from Greenwich after all. She was going to a party tomorrow night and was going to stay out late, which meant the dogs would be left alone in the apartment.
Feeling good about her decisiveness, she now turned her attention to the next important matter. What was she going to wear? Her closet in the city had plenty of dresses in it, but she knew she wanted something extra special since clubbing wasn’t something she normally did.
Perhaps she deserved a fun new outfit as a treat for being such a good sister. It wasn’t like she didn’t have the afternoon to go shopping. She smiled brightly, opened the Uber app, tapped “Where to?” and typed “Bergdorf Goodman.”
XIX
Dustin was spending his snow day catching up on his movie watching. He split his time between his parents’ apartments: his father was a doctor at NYU Langone and lived in the West Village with his second wife, while his mother lived modestly on the Upper East Side in a two-bedroom apartment. His parents had divorced when he was four years old and it had always been a pain to travel back and forth. But when he hit high school, he traded off weeks, which was easier.
During the school week he never had time to veg out because of homework, and on weekends his mom always wanted to spend “quality time” together. He knew it was because she was stressed about him going off to college, and he was trying to be empathetic and just do what she wanted. But luckily his dad was less sentimental and let him do as he wished. He would never tell his mom, but he preferred his dad’s downtown neighborhood. He had just seen two foreign films, a Jean-Luc Godard double feature—Pierrot le Fou and Alphaville—in the Village. He then walked to Corner Bistro and ate a hamburger. He was now trying to decide what commercial blockbuster he should see next. Dustin felt that to be a true film lover, one needed to see both highbrow and lowbrow movies.
A few minutes later, he got a text from Steven about a party at a club in the Meatpacking District this Saturday night. Dustin assumed it was an errant text as he and Steven were not weekend friends. But then he received a follow-up text that said: Renting limo STOP Kimmie will b there STOP ur presence mandatory! STOP. Dustin smiled at the text, knowing the “STOPs” were in his honor. He once said to Steven, during an American history homework session about the use of telegrams in the early 1900s, that it was one of his personal regrets, being born into the age of smartphones as opposed to telegrams. He found telegrams to be much more dramatic. Steven’s response had been, “You’re a weird fucking dude, but I like it. You almost make nerds cool. Almost.” Dustin had liked the compliment and thought about it from time to time.
A picture of a super cheesy white stretch limo straight out of a John Hughes movie appeared. The superrich were just different. They could do things on a whim like rent vintage limos for the night. Out of curiosity, Dustin googled the limo service and saw that a twenty-four-hour rental with a driver was running Steven two thousand bucks.
Dustin shook his head and sighed. People were starving, wars were being fought all over the world, so many people were suffering, and yet here was an eighteen-year-old dropping two Gs on some bullshit like it was nothing. It didn’t seem right that some people had so much when others had so little. He knew he shouldn’t go on principle, but when it came to Kimmie, Dustin’s convictions were like a bunny getting batted around by a bear. He sighed and then texted back two words: I’m in.
My spot 8 for grub, leave @9 to cruise in limo, cuz we straight ballin’ 2nite. Dress code 90s hip hop
Reading Steven’s
upbeat text, Dustin knew he and Lolly had made up. He guessed Steven’s sister had swept in and saved the day. He was happy for his friend, but he couldn’t help thinking Lolly should have dumped him for what he did.
He wondered what he should wear to such a party. He wondered who he should ask. He thought about texting those two girls he’d met at Steven’s on New Year’s, but worried if he asked them, they’d ask what party he was going to and what if they weren’t invited and asked him if they could come along? Also, what did two white girls in 2019 know about ’90s hip-hop anyway? Probably more than he did, a fact of which he was not proud. Dustin’s palms were now sweaty. This was exactly why he hated parties. So many machinations and preparations!
He texted the one person he knew he could ask without feeling stupid. His older brother, Nicholas, was a huge rap fan, which was the only reason Dustin knew anything about it at all. His brother also happened to be the least reliable person on the planet, which meant he probably wouldn’t even get a response.
He was wrong. His brother texted him right back and asked why Dustin needed to know about ’90s hip-hop clothes. Dustin hesitated to admit the real reason and briefly considered lying and telling his brother he needed to know for a school project or a short story he was writing. Dustin hadn’t seen his brother in months and hadn’t texted with him since a three-line exchange during the holidays. He had wished his brother Happy Chanukah but got a one-line response telling him he had renounced all religion and no longer celebrated any holiday. He had texted back Happy New Year, but his brother had never answered.
Dustin decided to tell the truth:
Dustin
I need to know because I’m going to a 90s hip-hop party with a girl
Nicholas
Send pic of girl
Dustin
No
Nicholas
Give me 1 reason Y I should help
Dustin grimaced when he read this, hating his older brother for being such an asshole, and then immediately feeling guilty for it. His brother was a recovering heroin addict, the black sheep of the family, but still Dustin always tried to cut him a break.
Dustin
I’m your brother.
Nicholas
Try again.
Dustin
Never mind, forget I asked.
Nicholas
ur so fuckin’ sensitive. I’ll tell you for $$$
Dustin
How much?
Nicholas
$100.
Dustin knew this was a bad idea, because he was on strict orders from his parents to never give Nicholas money. He felt guilty about it, but he felt like he had no choice due to the Kimmie of it all.
Dustin
Fine.
Nicholas
Venmo me.
Dustin Venmo’d his brother fifty dollars and waited for the response he knew he’d get.
Nicholas
only got $50.
Dustin
You’ll get rest when you give me info
Nicholas
dickwad! Wu Wear baggy jeans, FUBU hoodie, Air Jordans or the pump.
Dustin
What’s “the pump”?
Nicholas
Shaq sneakers, go 2 vintage shop.
Dustin
What shirt?
Nicholas
brand new fresh white tee, maybe a chain.
Dustin Venmo’d his brother another hundred dollars.
Dustin
I added an extra 50$. Go get a fancy dinner in MN. Outback Steakhouse?
Nicholas
Go fuck y’self
Dustin
Thank you. Take care not to slip on the ice.
Nicholas
I’m not in MN. In the Bronx
This was news to Dustin. Last he heard, Nicholas was on month three at the Hazelden rehab facility. His fourth stint in as many years.
Dustin
Do Mom and Dad know?
Nicholas
Dad, not Mom. I’m clean. @halfway house workin at taco shop.
Dustin was shocked, and honestly didn’t know what to write back. Mercifully he didn’t have to because his brother texted again. Gotta bounce lil bro. Later.
Dustin googled vintage shops that carried FUBU, found a store nearby, and headed out. He couldn’t believe his brother was back in town and hadn’t let him know. Though on further reflection, he could absolutely believe it.
XX
When they arrived at the party, Kimmie knew she looked on point and was happy to see a red carpet at the entrance. Photographers lined up, waiting for arrivals. She was used to being photographed from ice dancing competitions and knew exactly how to stand: angle the head, twist the body, cross the ankles if possible, and a relaxed face. As she moved along the step and repeat, posing for the photogs with her frozen half smile, she had only one thing on her mind: how long she’d have to wait until she saw him.
She had not heard from Vronsky all day yesterday. She tried her best not to care about one whole day passing with no word, even though it seemed to her that an unexpected snow day would have been a perfect time to hang out. But she couldn’t take the silence and caved, texting him this morning because she needed to make sure he was going to be there. She knew she was breaking the unwritten rule about girls waiting for boys to text first, but she was going crazy waiting. He had replied immediately, and they exchanged exactly seven texts back and forth. She made sure she didn’t respond to the last of his texts. She told him about Steven’s impromptu limo rental and said she’d be arriving with him, along with Lolly and Anna. She tried to word it so he’d know they had plenty of room in case he wanted to join them. But Vronsky didn’t take the bait. He said he had things to do but he’d be there by midnight and that she should save a dance for him.
Only after they texted had she found out from her sister that Steven had invited Dustin to join them in the limo, and she was relieved Vronsky hadn’t asked to come along. That would have been terribly awkward. She knew some boys would get jealous to find out she had caught the attention of a senior, but Vronsky was not one of those boys. Why would he ever need to be jealous of anyone when he was sure to be the hottest guy at the party?
The limo ride was more fun than she’d thought it would be. She was initially very disappointed when she climbed into the large cavernous car to find Anna absent from the group. Kimmie was developing a full-blown girl-crush on Anna, and it was a toss-up whether she was more excited to see what Anna chose to wear to the party or have Anna see what she wore. When she asked why Anna wasn’t in the car, her brother said Anna had instructed them to go without her because she got stuck on the phone with her boyfriend, Alexander.
Apparently, some issue arose about Anna’s decision to stay in the city for the weekend because she’d be missing Alexander’s younger half-sister’s monthly tea party. Anna had texted her regrets to Eleanor, and even though Eleanor texted back k she clearly meant no such thing. As soon as she had sent the text, Eleanor immediately called Alexander in Cambridge and pitched a fit about Anna’s last-minute cancellation. Alexander was left with no choice but to call Anna to see if she’d reconsider. “Why not just head back to Greenwich after the party instead of staying in the city?” he asked her on the phone. Anna had told Alexander she would have maybe changed her mind if Eleanor had asked her directly, but this behind-the-back tattletale shit pissed her off.
When Steven relayed the story in the back of the limo, he acted the entire thing out using funny voices and soon the four of them were laughing so hard they could barely stay upright. They were clutching their stomachs in pain and screaming for Steven to stop. After Lolly got the hiccups she told Steven if he didn’t stop, she’d throw up and then she’d have to change again. Still on his best behavior and knowing she was totally serious about the outfit change, he obeyed.
When the limo pulled up to 1 OAK, the photographers started taking pictures immediately, which was exactly the effect Steven had intended. After a quick discu
ssion it was decided that Steven would exit first so he could help Lolly out of the car. Dustin would get out next, followed by Kimmie. Obviously, she couldn’t object when she had no alternative, but Kimmie wondered if it would look like she and Dustin were a couple since there were only four of them, as opposed to five. She decided that when they got out of the car, she’d make sure to put a little distance between herself and Dustin so the paparazzi wouldn’t take them for a couple. And if they asked to get a picture of the two of them, she’d insist her sister and Steven join them. She felt bad for thinking these things, but she knew Dustin had a crush on her and it felt wrong to give him any false hope. To make matters even more annoying, her sister was Team Dustin, and as they stood side by side in their shared bathroom putting on their makeup, Lolly went on and on that Dustin was a genius and sure to be very successful in the future. This line of reasoning did nothing for Kimmie. She was only a sophomore in high school and just didn’t care about such things.
Exasperated, she finally snapped that she didn’t care about Dustin’s perfect SAT scores, she only liked him as a friend and that was it. Lolly, knowing the real reason Kimmie wasn’t interested, countered, “FYI, Count Vronsky has screwed half the senior girls at Spence.”
Unwilling to let her sister have the last word, Kimmie said, “Well, won’t they all be jealous when I’m his new girlfriend?” Kimmie regretted sharing her secret desire with her sister, but at least her sister went back to styling her hair and didn’t say another word.
The driver opened the back door and Kimmie listened to the shouts of the photographers. She was ready for the best night of her life to begin.
XXI
While they went through security and waited to check in, Dustin told Kimmie again how gorgeous she looked. This made her happy and she repaid the compliment, saying she loved his outfit, too. She had googled “’90s hip-hop style” earlier and Dustin was dressed exactly like many of the guys in the pictures. “You look very authentic. Like you just arrived here from the nineties Terminator-style.” She felt the urge to be extra nice to Dustin now since it was sure to be difficult for him to watch her spend the night dancing with Vronsky.
