Legacy 108: Smells Like Teen Spirit
Xxx
As the quarterback of the high school football team ran across the field to score a touchdown, the entire crowd on the bleachers cheered and screamed. Among them sat Payton Halliwell, who desperately wanted to be elsewhere on her Friday night. She had a big test to study for on Monday, which was the reason she had stayed home instead of going to Miami with her sisters. She did not want to be here, she did not care about football or these people, but her cousin Henry had dragged her to the game regardless. As she grabbed her phone, Payton suddenly heard the crowd scream in anger and looked the field. The quarterback was lying on the ground.
"What happened?" Payton asked as she nudged Henry.
"He got knocked down, an obvious foul, but the referee missed it." Henry explained.
"Can we go now?" Payton asked. "I hate football."
"You need to get out more, Payton." Henry replied. "I mean, seriously, I bet you don't even know most people here. You're like invisible to them."
"Just the way I like it. I don't like the whole high school hierarchy with the jocks and cheerleaders." Payton replied. "It's a cruel and unfair system."
"Not if you can work it." Henry replied with a wink.
"I'd rather graduate and get out of here forever." Payton said. "How long is this going to take?"
"Just a couple of more minutes." Henry replied.
Payton watched the field as the game picked up again, though she did not quite understand the rules. She heard someone call out Henry's name and turned around. She saw Isaac Harrison coming over. He was a friend of Henry and a rather flamboyant figure at the school, with bleach blond hair and an outspoken opinion on everything. He sat down next to them.
"Hey, what's up?" Henry asked.
"After party tonight at my house." Isaac said. "Well, my sister is throwing the party, but whatever. Are you coming?"
"At your house? With your sister?" Henry asked skeptically.
"Oh please, Melissa has forgotten all about your sleazy hook-up." Isaac remarked. "She had moved on to bigger and better things, literally. She is dating Tommy Jackson."
"Bigger?" Henry asked as he stared at the field and shrugged. "Guess so."
Payton looked at the field and saw Tommy, the quarterback who just got tackled. He was looking at one on the cheerleaders in front of the bleachers, Melissa. Naturally, she was a beautiful blonde with a perfect figure that Payton resented. They seemed perfect together, as they were both popular airheads. Tommy was the school bully, while Melissa was the head of the mean girls.
"So you are coming?" Isaac asked. "I got some new stash and baked some special brownies. Got it from this new girl."
"Wait." Payton asked shocked. "Are you talking about drugs?"
"It is not a big deal, Payton." Henry remarked while Isaac rolled his eyes. "It is just some weed, don't freak out or anything."
"I'm not freaking out." Payton said annoyed. "I just think it's very irresponsible."
"Whatever." Isaac replied. "Anyway, since my sister has people over, I invited a bunch of people as well, so it should be epic. You can even bring captain boredom over here."
"No, thank you." Payton said.
"So who is this new girl?" Henry asked.
"Oh, she is right over there." Isaac said.
Isaac pointed at the end of the bleachers and Payton and Henry followed his gaze. A girl with short black hair was sitting at the top of the bleachers. She was dressed in a leather jacket, a short skirt and leather boots, a typical punk chick. Payton was rather unimpressed, but Henry seemed to be captivated by her, since he could not keep his eyes of her. Payton guessed the girl was cute enough, though she did not really see the appeal.
"Is she coming to the party?" Henry asked.
"I invited her." Isaac replied.
"What do you know about her?" Henry asked.
"The name is Tess and she just moved here, that is all I know." Isaac replied. "And she has access to good weed."
"Oh, we're definitely coming to that party now." Henry remarked.
"Cool, see you there." Isaac replied as he got up and ran away.
"No." Payton said instantly as she noticed Henry looking at her. "No, I am not going."
"Oh, come on." Henry called out. "It is just a party."
"Then you go. I am going home." Payton said.
Payton got up and walked away. However, she stopped and looked around when the crowd started screaming. She looked at the field and saw the match was over, and Tommy was picking a fight with the rival team and the referee. Apparently, he did not agree with what had happened. He stormed off the field and knocked over a kid taking pictures for the school paper, breaking the camera.
Payton wanted to leave, but realized she had forgotten her bag. She turned around and knocked into one of the football players. She looked up and froze when she saw it was Sean Keller. He had short blond hair and brown eyes and was really hot. Payton had a crush on him for years, though he never seemed to notice her. They were in completely different leagues, as Sean was popular and Payton was anything but.
"Sorry." Sean said.
"No, it was my fault, I wasn't looking." Payton quickly said as her face turned red.
"You're Payton, right?" Sean asked.
"You know my name?" Payton asked surprised.
"Of course, don't we have a ton of classes together?" Sean replied with a smile. "Are you going to the Harrison house later?"
"Uh, I'm not sure." Payton replied.
"Well, I should hit the showers, but I hope to see you there." Sean replied before walking off.
When Sean left, Payton needed a minute to catch her breath. She felt like she had forgotten to breathe while talking to him. He knew who she was, he wanted her to come to the party. Could he really be interested in a wallflower like her? She knew she needed to go the party if she wanted to find out, but she felt nervous and scared. What if she would only make a fool of herself? She would never be able to show her face again. As she walked away, Payton was unaware of the fact that she briefly turned invisible.
Xxx
As the game had ended and everyone had either gone home or to the party, quarterback Tommy Jackson returned to the locker room after working off his frustration on a punching bag in the gym. They had lost the game, and it was all the referee's fault. When he got tackled, it was an obvious foul by the other team, but the referee missed it. Tommy got undressed and hopped under the shower. The most important game of the season, and it was all over. He should have been the star of the game, but instead he was made a fool of. Suddenly the warm shower turned ice cold and Tommy jumped out from under the stream.
"What the hell?" Tommy called out.
The stupid showers were malfunctioning again. Annoyed, Tommy grabbed his towel and headed to his locker, when suddenly a creepy high-pitched laugh echoed through the room.
"Is this some stupid joke?!" Tommy yelled. "Because it's not funny. Who is out there?"
There was no response, so Tommy decided to ignore it and get dressed. When he reached his locker, all the lockers suddenly flew open. Tommy froze and looked around. How was that possible?
"Alright, joke is over." Tommy called out annoyed.
Tommy finished getting dressed. When he grabbed his bag and headed to the door, it suddenly flew shut and locked. Tommy tried to get it open, but it wouldn't budge. He angrily slammed against the door. The creepy laugh sounded again and the lights flickered.
"Let me out! I am going to kick your ass!" Tommy yelled angrily.
The door opened with a squeak. Tommy stepped out and saw the hall was deserted. He took his bag and headed toward the exit, though he stopped when he felt a cold wind behind him. Tommy slowly turned around and saw a shadowy figure standing at the end of the hall. But its feet were not touching the ground. Tommy screamed and started running. The lockers on both sides of the hallway flew open and books flew out. The creepy laugh seemed to follow him.
"Help!" Tommy screamed.
Just when Tommy was about to reach the door, something tripped him and he hit the floor hard. The creepy laughing seemed all around him and he covered his ears. He tried to crawl up, but something grabbed his legs and dragged him back kicking and screaming.
Xxx
About an hour after the game, after stopping to get some food, Henry and Payton arrived at the party at the Harrison residence. Melissa and Isaac lived in a huge house, since their dad was a successful businessman. Luckily, this also meant their parents were never home. Henry was still surprised that Payton wanted to come after all, since this wasn't really her scene. They headed inside and Henry looked out for the mysterious new girl. There was something about her that caught his attention. Sadly, she was nowhere to be seen.
"Want a drink?" Henry asked over the loud music.
"Sure." Payton said.
They made their way to the kitchen, where a keg was standing on the bar. Henry grabbed two plastic cups and got drinks for them both. Payton unknowingly took a sip and nearly spat it out.
"This is beer!" Payton called out shocked.
"Of course." Henry replied. "Drink up."
At that moment, Isaac appeared between them and placed his arms around their necks. Henry had been friends with him since middle school. Right now, he was obviously high and a little drunk.
"You came!" Isaac said. "I'm so happy. Most people here are a drag."
"Of course." Henry replied.
"And you even brought little miss responsible." Isaac remarked.
"Hey, I am not that responsible!" Payton said.
"Well, you did skip on a few days to Miami to work on a report." Henry remarked with an eye roll.
"Are you kidding me?" Isaac asked with a frown. "You're like a total nerd. And look at the way you're dressed."
"What is wrong with my clothes?" Payton asked as she looked at her jeans and green vest.
"They're bland, sweetie. Totally boring." Isaac replied. "How is any boy supposed to notice you in that baggy thing?"
"It is comfy and warm." Payton said defensively. "That doesn't make me boring."
"You need a makeover." Isaac said. "Come on, isn't there a boy here that you want to impress?"
"Well…" Payton said nervously.
Payton looked across the room and Henry and Isaac followed her gaze. They noticed Sean Keller standing by the stairs talking to one of his teammates. Henry knew she had been crushing on him or some time now, though she did not know he knew.
"Nice choice." Isaac said with a smile. "That settles it, come on, we are going to raid my sister's closet. She has so many clothes she'll never notice."
Isaac grabbed Payton and ran off with her, leaving Henry alone holding their beers. He took a sip and looked around. He noticed the brownies Isaac mentioned, so he grabbed one and headed outside for some fresh air. As he stepped out, he accidentally bumped into this kid named Neal, who worked at the school paper. He wondered how a kid like him got invited to the party. He was probably crashing.
"Sorry." Henry said.
"No problem." Neal said before slipping inside.
When Henry stepped onto the terrace, he suddenly noticed the mysterious girl sitting in a garden chair while smoking a cigarette. She definitely looked beautiful and tough, like a girl who knew how to kick ass if she needed to. She was very hot and Henry realized he was gawking at her, so he quickly shook it off.
"Hey." Henry said as he walked over. "It's Tess, right?"
"Do I know you?" Tess asked.
"No, I'm a friend of Isaac's." Henry replied as he sat down. "So you're new?"
"Something like that." Tess replied.
"Brownie?" Henry asked as he held out a piece with his most charming smile.
"Sure." Tess said with a shrug as she accepted it and took a bite.
"So where are you from?" Henry asked.
"Why do you want to know?" Tess replied with a frown as she handed back the brownie.
"No reason, just want to get to know you." Henry replied. "Something wrong with that?"
"Well, typically guys are after something." Tess said. "And most of the times, it's the same thing. So are you after that as well?"
"I might be." Henry said smiling.
"I see." Tess replied as she pressed out her cigarette. "So what are you going to do about it?"
"I figured I'd get you a drink." Henry said. "We'll talk."
"Just talk?" Tess asked with a frown.
"Hey, I'm not that easy." Henry remarked.
Henry finished the brownie as Tess laughed. They got up and headed back into the house. As Henry opened the door, he suddenly got a weird feeling like someone was watching. He looked around the dark garden, but saw nothing. He shrugged it off and closed the door. A moment later, a floating figure appeared in the shadows and a creepy laugh sounded through the garden.
Xxx
As the organizer of the party, Melissa Harrison had to make sure everything was perfect. She did not want her party to become a disaster. That would be humiliating. She looked around and wondered where Tommy was, since he was supposed to be here already. She looked at her phone and saw she had a voicemail message from Tommy. She held the phone to her ear and listened.
"Melissa. You have to help me! Something is after me." Tommy's whispering voice sounded through the phone, following by a scream and some creepy laughter.
"Whatever, Tommy." Melissa said, believing it to be some stupid joke.
Melissa put the phone away and collected some empty cups. As she headed into the kitchen, she nearly bumped into someone. It was some weird, nerdy kid. She thought he worked for the school paper or something.
"What the hell are you doing here, geek?" Melissa asked. "This party is invite only! Get lost."
The kid looked scared and quickly ran away. Melissa shook her head and went to the kitchen. Just as she threw some cups in the trash, someone yelled at her to get some more wine. Annoyed with their rudeness, Melissa took the empty bottles and headed to the garage. What was the point of a party if all you get to do was work?
As she entered the garage, Melissa turned on the light and headed to the wine cabinet in the back. She'd get the cheap wine, or else her mother would kill her. Just as she reached for a bottle, the lights flickered. With the bottle in hand, she headed back to the door, but froze when she heard a creepy laugh. She turned around and suddenly saw a shadowy figure floating behind her. Melissa screamed and dropped the wine as the figure flew at her.
xxx