x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
"Whoa, whoa, hey. Where are you going?" Serena Godfrey stood at the foot of the stairs, arms crossed and eyebrows raised.
"Um. A party. My friends are outside. I'm sorry I forgot to tell you. Can I go? Please?" The words came tumbling out of Jasper's mouth as he remembered that he'd neglected to tell his parents. This was it, she'd definitely say no and he'd have to go outside and shamefully tell his friends that he couldn't go after all.
Serena surveyed him carefully, and then she gave a reply that he hadn't expected, "Yeah, okay. Don't be back too late." Jasper stayed where he was, gawking as his mother turned away and headed into the kitchen. "Before I change my mind!"
That got him moving. Checking his pockets to make sure he had his wallet and phone, Jasper hurried to put his sneakers on, yelling back, "Thanks, Mom!" before opening the door and scrambling outside. The car's horn sounded again just as Jasper yanked the front door open, laughing as he piled into the car with the other three boys who were already inside. "Hey, thanks for picking me up," he said gratefully, knowing that it would have been pretty hard to get up to Kenneth Myers's place otherwise.
Soon enough the car was pulling up near the Myers house, and Jasper squeezed through the front door to find himself in a house already packed with partying teenagers. Kenneth Myers himself was lingering in the general area near the door, and caught Jasper's eyes immediately. He was perhaps more than just a little drunk, but that was understandable. "Oh, hey—Godfrey! Good to see you, dude. Make yourself comfortable." He swept an arm out, pointing in the direction of the kitchen where the alcohol was no doubt pouring freely. "Good to be here!" Jasper managed to call back, before the movement of the crowd forced him along, thankfully in the direction of the kitchen.
The nice thing about being moderately popular was that most people knew Jasper, but not enough to commit him too much to their personal lives. In the kitchen, someone handed him a solo cup of spiked punch, and someone else tried to start a conversation with Jasper about that last lacrosse match. He laughed and drank and chatted, letting himself be caught up in the flow of the party.
At some point while his cup was being refilled for the second time, a side door he hadn't even noticed opened and a gang of girls poured into the room from outside. Between the sudden barrage of voices and the two drinks he'd had, the outside air suddenly seemed really appealing. Grabbing his cup back with a grateful smile, Jasper ducked out of the door before he got sucked back into the crowd inside the house.
Outside wasn't much better; people were still mingling in large groups and there seemed to be an impromptu dance floor by the pool. Still, the night air made it that much cooler than inside, and Jasper lingered near the gaggle of dancing people, taking a moment to soak up the atmosphere.
Someone bumped into him from behind, and he lurched forward, in turn bumping into one of the girls dancing near him. He managed to keep his drink staying relatively upright, but a few drops leaped out of the cup and onto the girl's dress. "I'm so sorry, I swear that was an accident, can I go inside and get you some napkins for that?" he offered, horrified. He looked up, making eye contact with her for the first time, and realised he was talking to Reagan Venandi. "Reagan! I didn't expect to see you here," he blurted, surprised. He'd never really known her to be the social type, even after her reported personality change when she returned from her long absence. "I'm really sorry about the drink, is your dress okay?"