Chapter 17
Matty Mueller’s house was disgusting.
The house was outdated and smaller than it looked from the outside.
Alex and Sam had turned their noses up at the sight of it.
An actual “shithole,” Alex had announced, while Victoria hung back with Cassandra and me.
Whatever tension had built up at their house hadn’t dissipated.
Victoria had stared out of the window of the back seat for the entire drive over.
Alex didn’t say a word to her. She seemed to relax only after we’d arrived and followed the steady stream of people up the road and toward the house.
The inside of the house was being used only to lay out the snacks and for people to use the bathroom; the bulk of the party was happening in the backyard.
The glass sliding doors to the patio were open, and folding tables were set up on the concrete.
One table was littered with cans and bottles of alcohol and Solo cups.
The others were set up for drinking games, with people clustered around the beer pong table cheering loudly.
Speakers were blaring a Justin Bieber song Cassandra loved.
Sam reached into her bag, unearthing two of the bottles of liquor, and plopped them down on a table. Victoria grabbed one of the beers already out and cracked it open.
The space was packed. Outdoor lights illuminated the hundred or so bodies of high school kids all clutching their drinks. I recognized a lot of people: older siblings of people we knew, friends of Will.
“Alex!” A girl in a strapless top ran over, squealing, sounding slightly drunk. She threw her arms around Alex and hugged her tightly. It was Casey Kerrigan. A friend of both Alex and Victoria.
Casey turned to Victoria. “Hey Vic—”
Alex cut her off, holding her hands up in the air. “We’re not talking to Victoria right now,” she said. “She’s being a massive bitch.”
Casey looked from Alex to Victoria. “I don’t …”
“Come on,” Alex pressed, taking Casey’s hand and leading her toward the crowds. “I’ll explain.”
Alex and Casey disappeared into the group of people, all of whom seemed to cheer at Alex’s arrival. I watched them light up at the sight of her. Victoria stared at her sister’s retreating form, her upper lip quivering.
“Are you okay?” I asked. Her eyes were teary, but her mouth was twisted into a snarl.
Victoria gripped the beer can in her hand harder, crinkling the aluminum. “I’m fine,” she snapped, and headed into a crowd of people farthest from her sister.
Beside us, Sam sighed. “That’ll be fun to deal with later,” she said. She spared only a second for an eyeroll before she pulled on Isaac’s arm. “Let’s go. I want to introduce you to a few people.”
“Like all your past boyfriends?” Isaac joked as she led him away. Cass and I stood alone, unsure of ourselves.
She turned to me. “What do we do now?” Her eyes flitted around nervously.
“Have a drink, I guess?” I reached for a can of Miller Lite. Cassandra was bolder, picking up one of the bottles Alex had brought and a Solo cup. She poured herself a generous amount.
She caught me watching her. “Too much?”
“When in Rome,” I said, cracking the top of my can. Cassandra took a sip from the cup and pursed her lips. “It’s strong.”
I picked up the bottle. “It’s vodka.”
“Huh. I thought it would taste better.”
“I think you’re meant to mix it with something.” I held up my can. “Do you want mine?”
Cassandra shook her head. “I can’t. Alex says beer makes you fat.”
I decided to let the comment slide. Alex had a lot of opinions on what did or didn’t make you fat, despite the fact that she snacked from the vending machine constantly. Seemed she just had a fast metabolism.
I was about to suggest we take a loop around the party when Cassandra smiled and waved at a girl to her right. They’d been on a traveling soccer team together a few years ago, and the girl was a sophomore at Seminole Ridge now. Becki something.
“I should go say hi,” Cassandra said. “I’ll be right back.”
It didn’t sound like she wanted me to come with her, so I gave her a nod.
Becki squealed in delight as Cassandra approached her, wrapping her thin arms around Cass’s neck in a tight hug.
It reminded me of how people greeted Alex when she showed up places.
It made me wonder if that was how Cassandra would be when we started high school.
If she’d have a head start on everyone else socially, being Alex’s sister.
People would know her and want to be friends with her. Would it be the same for me?
I was Cassandra’s best friend and didn’t think there would be any reason I wouldn’t be invited to the same things.
But did I want that? I thought of what Tommy said about the Hopely sisters and how they acted at school.
Did I want to be like Alex? After I’d seen how Alex acted with Nick at the mall, not to mention how nasty she’d been to her sisters lately, I wasn’t convinced that was what I should be aspiring to.
Even so, I was now alone at a party. I scanned the crowd.
Cassandra was talking animatedly to Becki and a few older girls I didn’t recognize.
I didn’t know what to do with myself. I usually let Cassandra or Victoria lead in moments like this.
I lifted the can to my mouth again and took a hearty swallow of my beer, desperate for something to do with my hands.
“Hey.” A voice behind me made me turn around. “Aren’t you Tommy Dearling’s sister?”
A boy was standing behind me. He was tall. I had to look up to see his face. I didn’t recognize him. He had comically large ears that stuck out almost parallel to his short brown hair and a smattering of acne scars across his cheeks. He was smiling at me, eyes locked on mine.
“Yeah,” I said, playing with the tab on the can. It was strange to be called Tommy’s sister. It was always Will people asked about. “I’m Rose.”
He smiled. “I’m Trent. I went to camp with Tommy.”
I raised an eyebrow. “Science or Boy Scouts?” My brothers had always been signed up for a barrage of extracurricular activities by our parents.
Trent chuckled. “Science. I wasn’t Boy Scout material.”
I didn’t know him but had to agree. He did have that look about him that Tommy had too; you could tell they were indoorsy.
“Don’t take this the wrong way,” I said, finishing my drink. “But science camp always sounded very boring from the way Tommy talked about it.”
I liked the way Trent’s face opened up when he laughed. “It was a little bit. Except for Space Week. They give you all kinds of delicious, freeze-dried food then.”
He held up the Solo cup. “Actually, it would’ve tasted good alongside this.”
I peered into the cup he held. “What is it?”
“Captain Morgan.”
I thought that was rum but didn’t want to embarrass myself, so I just took another sip from my almost-empty can.
“So, are you a freshman?” Trent asked, changing the subject. I hesitated. If I was honest and told him no, that I was fourteen, he’d surely walk away. I nodded quickly, crushing my empty can in my fist. I’d be a freshman in a few months, so it didn’t feel like much of a lie.
Trent smiled. “That’s cool. That was a fun year.”
“Are you a senior?”
“Sophomore.” He was big for a sixteen-year-old. “Matty’s my cousin.”
“Ah. Nice of your grandparents to let you throw this party then.” I smirked.
“Funny,” Trent said, smiling. “Hey, can I get you another drink?”
I opened my mouth to say yes when a sound cut me off. Someone was yelling from farther down the yard. A shrieking that sounded vaguely familiar.
“What the hell?” Trent said. Then another yell.
I realized whose voice it was. I scanned the yard and saw Alex, her beautiful face turned up in sneer as Victoria screamed at her. A boy I recognized vaguely from Alex’s Facebook photos stood between them.
“Stop it, Alex!” Victoria shouted. “Stop!”
I couldn’t see Cassandra or Sam, but I knew this was going to get ugly. The tension had been building between Alex and Victoria for days. I didn’t say anything to Trent; I just left my empty beer can on the nearest ledge and made my way toward the sisters.
“What? I’m not doing anything!” Alex asked loudly, inviting the people nearby into the conversation. She looked at the broad-shouldered guy standing next to Victoria, suggesting they’d been having a close conversation that Alex had walked into.
“Seriously, stop!” Victoria said.
“It’s a funny story, Vicky. Calm down.” Alex snorted and turned back to the guy. “Anyway. So she can’t give blow jobs, like at all. The last one she tried, she choked and vomited all over his dick.”
I froze in place. That secret was one of Victoria’s worst. She’d sworn Cassandra and me to secrecy, and here was Alex parading it around the party. It was humiliating, something Victoria never wanted people to know. No one would.
Victoria’s face hardened as she took her Solo cup and tossed its entire contents down the front of Alex’s camisole. The dark liquid soaked the top, turning it see through. It clung to Alex’s body, revealing her hot pink bra.
“What the fuck?” Alex shouted.
Victoria threw the empty cup at her and stalked off toward the house. Scowling, Alex shook her hands, now sticky and covered in the drink. Cassandra and Sam suddenly appeared at her side.
“Are you all right?” Cassandra asked.
“Stop worrying about me,” Alex said, pushing her away. “Worry about Victoria. I’m going to kill that bitch when we get home.”
Sam shot her younger sister a critical look before following Victoria, leaving a baffled Isaac in her wake. Alex took off in the opposite direction, toward the woods.
Cassandra ran her hands through her hair. “Why are they being like this?” she said. “They’re going to ruin the night.” She was looking in the direction Alex had stomped off to. I could see her form retreating deeper into the woods.