"Ace Merrill?" Betty asks, her arms crossed.

Her red hair was pulled back in a lazy bun and she had her nightgown on. When I walked in the door I caught her leaning on the couch, peering out of the window. There I was, caught red handed.

When I don't say anything, instead plop on the sofa and pull the pillow over my face, Betty comes over to me and shoves my shoulder.

"You're crazy, you know that?"

"Can we talk about this in the morning?" I groan, pushing aside some empty beer bottles and kicking my feet on the coffee table.

"Dolly, I don't care how nice those guys seem, you remember what he did to Jackie, don't you? She'd be so upset if she knew you came home with him."

"Jeez, Betty, I know. It was just a ride home, not a big deal..."

"A ride home from where?" she looks at me quizzically.

"A bonfire."

Betty doesn't reply. She folds her arms again and sticks her nose in the air.

"Your reputation will be ruined, Dolls. Everyone will think you're one of those loose Cobra girls."

I roll my eyes. I was so tired of people saying that to me. I didn't want to care about what people thought about me. It was hard to not let Betty's words get to me. When Jackie wanted to mess around with Ace, no one batted an eye.

"Where's Jackie?" I ask, sitting up.

"She's asleep, Georgia's with her," she nods her head in the direction of Jackie's bedroom.

"Have you gotten any sleep?"

"Hardly, I was waiting on you. You disappeared...I was worried," Betty admits with a sigh.

"Look, I'm sorry. I wasn't thinking. You're right," I apologize, hoping she doesn't tell our other friends about my indiscretion. Betty was my best and longest friend. I didn't want to argue with her, even if I did think she was in the wrong. I knew she didn't see it that way. She's just looking out for me.

"It's okay, I just don't want to see you get hurt."

I give her a smile, "I'll be more careful next time."

I can feel myself lying through my teeth. I knew I wanted to see Ace and the rest of the gang again. I couldn't tell her that. I couldn't tell any of my friends, so I keep it to myself.

We end up falling asleep shortly after, and wake up to the sun glaring out of the window. It's nearly noon, and I can hear one of the girls rustling around in the kitchen.

"Get up! My parent's are on the way home." Jackie walks by and nudges me with her foot.

"Nice of you to show up," she sneers.

"Oh...yeah." I mumble sleepily.

"Come on, I need help cleaning this place up."

We all slowly rise and begin filling trash bags with cigarette butts and beer bottles. This was always the worst part of any party. It takes us over an hour to go through the wreckage. The house was trashed. We had to open the windows to get the stink out.

Afterwards, I get to change and hurry home. I slip on a white skirt and a wrinkly navy blouse. I try and tame my hair to no avail. I end up putting it in a ponytail. I wash my face and don't bother to put any makeup on. I'm definitely taking a shower when I get home, anyway.

"You ready to go?" Georgia asks, heart-shaped sunglasses covering her tired eyes.

I follow her out to her Pontiac and climb inside.

Georgia is a quiet girl, raised by affluent Christian parents. She wasn't allowed makeup, boyfriends, or too much candy. She was sneaky, though. She begged to get her license for months before they finally gave in and bought her a red Chieftain. She was very much 'Daddy's little girl' and was the first of our group of friends to have the newest, nicest things.

She tossed her blonde hair over her shoulder and made a right down my street.

"Well, see you at school on Monday?" She asks with a smile, putting her car in park.

"Of course," I wink. I grab my bag close the car door behind me. She waits until I get inside my house before she peels off down the road. My parents are home and making lunch when I step inside. My father looks up from his model airplane and greets me with a grin.

"Hi, honey, how was the sleepover?"

"Fun! We did some Mad Libs, and played jump rope."

"That sounds swell."

I excuse myself to the bathroom where I promptly shower and brush my teeth. I feel like a new woman, with a bit of a hangover.

My mom made me a grilled cheese and brought it to my room on a plate. She gives me a sly smile, she could always see right through me.

"Dolly, I need you to go to the market and pick up some potatoes for dinner, I think the fresh air would do you some good."

"Has Dad budged on getting me a car yet?" I groan, taking the plate from her hands and tearing a huge bite from it. Cheese gets stuck to my chin.

"Sorry, top secret," she says, shrugging her shoulders. She places a crisp dollar bill on my nightstand.

"I want my change, too," she winks.

I finish my sandwich and head out to the grocery store. It wasn't a long walk and the air really did feel nice. I clutched my purse closer to me and watched kids ride by on their bicycles.

Castle Rock was so small. Everyone knew each other by name and waved as they drove past you. It was a nice, homey feeling. I briefly wondered what life in a big city was like. I was just a baby when my parents moved us out of Portland. They said they wanted a quiet, peaceful place to raise their child, near family.

My aunt and uncle, Helen and Donald lived a few blocks away, and my grandmother was just a ten minute drive away.

The market was run by a local farmer who grew most of the produce and a butcher drove in from the next county over with fresh cuts of meat. It was the kind of town with lemonade stands, one barber shop, and a rowdy group of teenage boys that drove around and destroyed mailboxes.

I hear a whistle to my right and look over at Eyeball, leaning out the window of his car.

"You need a ride?"

I erupt in a big toothy smile, "I'm just headed to the grocery store up the road," I point ahead.

"Get in!" He hollers, opening the passenger door from the inside.

I have no choice but to get in.

"You get home alright, last night?" I ask.

He shrugs, "got a little drunk, Vince gave me a ride back."

"That's what Ace said," I reply, "I woke up and you'd already left."

"Ace gave you a ride home?"

He sounds surprised. I furrow my eyebrows.

"Yep!"

"Hmmm."

"It's too bad I won't see you at school tomorrow," I pout my lips.

He clears his throat, "Well, I'll probably be at Irby's if you wanna swing by..."

"That's a bar, isn't it? I couldn't get in," I chuckle sadly.

"He'll let you in, just say you're with us," he gives me a wolfish grin.

I have flashbacks to what Betty said to me at Jackie's house. I try to push them out of my head, but they keep coming back. Kind of like thinking of ghosts in the dark when you're supposed to be asleep.

"Alright, maybe..." I give him a shy smile and look at him from under my eyelashes.

He puts his car in park in front of the grocery store.

"Thanks for the ride, Eyeball," I push open the door and climb out.

"See you around," He says. I give him one final wave before he drives off.

I wait until he turns down a different street, out of my view, before I turn around towards the store. I see a few ladies across the street watching me. I don't immediately recognize them but I offer a smile, which they don't return. Okay, then...

I get my potatoes and Dum Dum root beer sucker and start my journey home, unaware of the can of worms I just opened.

Reviews and feedback is always appreciated. I haven't written in a few years and am still trying to get back in the swing of things. Stay tuned!