The music was blaring in my ears, bass booming, my eardrums drowning in and out of focus

The music was blaring in my ears, bass booming, my eardrums drowning in and out of focus. The party was in full swing, the lights flickering and the people throbbing. Someone steps on my foot; I wonder again why I’m here.

I pass a table laden in beer cans, squeezing through a clump of drunken people to reach the less-crowded hallway. There is a line leading to a door- the bathroom door. I cough, the thick haze of alcohol clogging my lungs.

Sinking to the floor, I breath in deeply, rubbing my hand against the fabric on my thigh. There are crumbs everywhere, and I cringe at the thought of sitting in filth.

‘Mabs’ I type out to my friend on my phone. ‘Where are you’ It’s a pretty large house.

‘kitchen’ My cell beeps. ‘found him’

I push myself off the floor, dusting off my bottom as I push the sticker-infested phone into my pocket. I had found my reason for being here. And it was in the kitchen.

There was now a smile on my face as I pushed my way back through the throng of people. I stop only to grab an empty cup, using an excuse for refreshments.

“Hey,” I whisper, sliding into place next to my red-headed friend. She smiles back, nodding her head with the conversation.

“So, you having fun?” She asked Able, my secret crush. He lifted his cup, a slow smile spreading across his face.

“Yeah, this party is rocking.” He takes a sip of his drink, I watch his every move.

“Yeah, Neil. Awesome party.” I lift my glass to the guy standing next to Able, Neil King, the host of this party. He nods back, his brows furrowed in worry over his home. I move closer to Able, pouring myself a drink.

“I’m gonna be leaving soon, though.” He says to Mabs. “My brother is coming into town, and my folks want me to pick him up at the air port.”

“Oh no, I’m sorry you’re gonna miss the rest of the party.” I say, brushing against him.

“Ah, no worries. I haven’t seen him in a long time. It’s cool.”

I frown slightly, the whole point of me being here was to see him. He can’t leave!

“Aww, you sure you can’t get someone else to do it?” I laugh, trying to make it off as a joke.

“I know you wanna spend more time with me, babe, but it just can’t happen tonight.” He continues my joke. Even though he’s playing along, I can feel my cheek’s darken. As I open my mouth to respond, Bianca, the tall- blond bombshell of our school entered the kitchen.

“Oh, you’re leaving!” She cried, sauntering into the place Neil recently vacated. “But the party’s only just begun!”

“Yeah, but I have ta go- even though I know the party will fall to pieces the moment I leave.” His phone gave a short beep, and he jumped, pulling it out of his pocket. He looked at the screen for a moment, before flipping it open and scanning the message. “Well, it looks like I’ll be leaving sooner then I thought.” He frowned, flipping the phone closed and sliding it back into his pants. “See ya Mabs, Nina, Bianca.” He waved before making his way through the crowd and heading out of the front door.

“Bye Able.” Me and Mabs chimed together. Bianca rolled her eyes and moved for the fridge.

“I guess that ruins your plans, huh?” Mabs whispered. “Good luck next time?” I sighed.

“Guess so.”

“What, your boyfriend had to leave, so now you will too?” Oliver sneered, making his way around the kitchen island. “You’re so pathetic, Parker.”

“Uggh, nobody asked you for your input, Kerr.” My hands turn to fists, and they shake slightly. Oliver was a pain in my side, my arch rival. No, seriously. I have one. I’ve known him since I was little, and he’s always made fun of me. Now we compete. We’re both pretty smart, and we like the same things- Which is annoying, because it turns everything into a competition. Who’s a better singer? Who’s a better pianist? Artist? Writer? Photographer? The list goes on!

“Are you gonna cry now? Such a baby! Just because you’re boyfriend left you’re gonna be sad the rest of the night. It’s pathetic to watch.”

“Well then stop watching!” I turn around and storm out of the kitchen, bumping against someone as I left.

“It’s disgusting, like you’ve got no life of your own!” He calls after me. I ignore him, but I’m still angry. How dare he? He’s the one ruining the party for me, not Able’s leaving.

“Nina-“ I stop and wait for Mabs to catch up. I’m in the living room now, closer to the stereo then I was any other time during the night. Just standing there gave me a headache. “Nina! Don’t listen to him!” I can barely hear her over the music.

“I’m not!” I shout back. She frowns, and grabs my wrist. We travel back through the mob to the kitchen, the hall was too crowded Oliver isn’t there anymore, and it was quieter.

“Look, Nina, Oliver is an ass, so don’t worry about him, Okay? Able is totally into you, so don’t sweat it.” I smile at her. Even though it doesn’t seem like much, she makes me feel a lot better. I grab my drink from the table, which still sat where I left it before.

“You really think so?” She pauses, I take a sip.

“Of course I do. You know that.” She smiled, and I returned it. “We probably should go now. There’s no use waiting around here when we could be doing something better. You coming to my house or…?”

“Naah.” I lean against the island counter. “My mom doesn’t even know I’m here. I should probably get back home. We’re at the mall, remember?” Mabs looked to the clock.

“Yeah, they’re suppose to close at ten, right?” I nod. “I’ll drop you off on Main st, okay?” I finish my drink, tossing the empty red cup into the overflowing trash can.

“Yeah, that’d be awesome. Let’s go tell Neil we’re leaving. Be nice, ya know?”