I

Artemis had always hated parties, especially house parties.

If anyone asked why she was at a end of the summer party with her best friend Zatanna Zatara she would say that the younger girl said that she needed a "wingwoman." Mostly she didn't want Zatanna getting smashed and making bad choices like the last party she went to alone. She had ended up totalling her father's car as well as fracturing a rib that was scary close to piercing her lung.

So Artemis stood awkwardly towards the back of whoever's foyer with a cup of peach Schnapps. Zatanna was in the middle of the "dance floor" bumping and grinding with her on-again off-again boyfriend Dick Grayson. Suddenly she felt a clammy arm draped around her shoulders. "Go away Cameron." She said with an eye roll as she looked up at her ex boyfriend Cameron Mahkent. He had dropped out last November and she only saw him lurking around town, making terrible life choices.

"Come on sweetness, how about the two of us just go out to the pool? Do some skinny dipping?" She scoffed and pushed his arm away. She turned to walk away but he grabbed her arm and yanked her back, making her drop her drink. "Hey! What's your damage Junior!?" She exclaimed angrily as she twisted loose.

"Don't be difficult, how about a dance huh?" "I don't want to dance to you or talk to you or even so much as looked at you. Go fuck yourself." Cameron growled. "You weren't saying that last summer." "Because you weren't in a gang or a complete ass clown last summer." She crossed her arms over her chest and glared at him. Cameron took three steps closer to her reaching out to stroke her cheek. She flinched back and grabbed his wrist. "Don't."

Artemis wanted to remind him that he was the one who broke off things between them, he was the one who shattered her heart into a million pieces. She supposed that a part of her did love Cameron before his father's influence had finally gotten to him. He had a bright future ahead of him, he had a full ride to Princeton and he threw it all away. She was angry at him but mostly she was hurt.

Cameron looked down at her with a sigh, she could smell the liquor on his breath. "You're drunk. Get some water." she said knowing that the Cameron she loved, who brought her flowers, who stole kisses and drank tea with her on Sundays was in there somewhere. "You're difficult. Find some happiness." He spat at her and sulked off. Artemis fought back tears as she went to the kitchen to get herself another drink.

She wished that he hadn't screwed himself over.

On her way she bumped into someone. She fell backwards and looked up with her signature scowl. Her expression expression softened upon seeing Wally West.

Their relationship was complicated to say the least.

When she had first moved to Happy Harbor they hated each other on sight.

They constantly were fighting, their mutual friend Megan Morris was always breaking them up, trying to keep the peace. As the years went by they had come to a understanding.

Slowly they had developed crushes on one another but neither working the nerve to say anything. That's how Artemis ended up with Cameron. He was her second choice, not that she would ever tell him.

Wally had, in turn, starting dating Linda Park. She was one of the girls on the cheer team with Megan, Homecoming Queen student council President, class Vice President and top of their class, well of the entire school. She came from a nuclear upper middle class family and she used her position of power and popularity to spread kindness and joy.

She was everything Artemis wasn't.

He extended a hand and she grabbed it, he pulled her up with ease. His eyes were bloodshot and puffy, hair cheeks red and splotchy. She recognized this expression. She sighed softly as she stood on her feet. "Are you okay? You look like you've been crying…" she said as he opened his mouth to ask about her. Wally sighed and rubbed the back of his neck. "It's nothing major." he lied. Artemis rolled her eyes.

"But it's major enough to cry about?" Wally bit his lip. "Linda broke up with me." He sighed. "Really? That's terrible!" Artemis asked shocked. They had seemed so perfect together. "What happened?" "She said that she felt as if our relationship had run its natural course and she would always love me but as friends. Plus she doesn't want to go long distance when we go to college since she'll be at Harvard and I'll be at Stanford." he sniffled.

Artemis pat his shoulder awkwardly in an attempt to comfort him. "It'll be fine Wally. Don't beat yourself up." Wally gave her a ghost of a smile. "You think so?" Artemis nodded. "I know for fact. Now, let's go upstairs away from all this noise and talk about something different."

It had been two weeks since the party and only a few days away from the first day of school. Her phone sat on her bedside table, not a single notification. She rolled over and faced her door as she heard her father's heavy boots.

Artemis always wondered what her mother saw in him.

He was leaving for work, thankfully and she didn't have to put up with him.

As she sat up to get out of bed her stomach lurched. She covered her mouth as she darted to the bathroom. She heard her mother's wheelchair creak across the floor as she turned the corner Artemis was kneeling over the toilet, the contents of her stomach splashing in the bowl. Paula did her best to wheel into the little room to hold her daughter's hair back.

She was embarrassed that her mother was seeing her in such as state but she knew Paula had seen much worse when her and her older sister were young and during her time as a geriatric nurse. "I'll be back with some warm tea and crackers." Artemis stood feebly and shook her head. "Crackers are on top of the fridge, I'll get them." Paula looked up at her daughter concerned. "Do you feel feverish?" Artemis shook her head. "Zatanna and I went to this new restaurant last night, it's probably just food poisoning." Paula nodded in understanding as she wheeled her way to the kitchen to start on the tea.

Once it was brewed they sat together at the kitchen table, enjoying to chirping birds and crisp not quite Autumn breeze coming from the kitchen window. "If things get worse we'll go to the hospital. When your father gets home we're going to the health department to file a complaint." Artemis dipped the corner of one of the corners in her tea and nibbled on it. "I should see if Zatanna is sick too."

Artemis excused herself to grab her phone, Zatanna should have been up by now. She was somewhat relieved when she confirmed that she was experiencing food poisoning too. She didn't know why but it was comforting.