The Party
A/N: Hello! I'm so sorry for the hiatus. Honestly, I couldn't bring myself to finish this chapter. The chapter didn't go the direction I wanted it to because I was too distracted with school and work. I apologize if it isn't the best, but I just wanted to get it over with! More chapters coming up soon!
The rest of my midterms went just as I expected. Students were usually so fried by the end of the exams that we needed a little bit of time to regroup before starting the section for our finals, so they give us the Friday and Monday off. A four-day weekend meant no Calculus on Monday, which meant that we would have to wait until Wednesday to find out our exam grade. Other than having to wait longer to see what grade Lapis got, I was excited to have a four-day weekend.
Many students opted to go home for the long weekend but Amethyst and I decided to stay at school and have our bi-annual small party to celebrate the end of midterms. Fall's party was the best because it hyped us for the soon arrival of Halloween.
With my party playlist bumping in the background, Amethyst texted the people she knew would be in town and I gathered the mixers. "Amethyst! Who is getting the liquor?" I asked.
"Ugh. I can't wait until I'm 21 and don't have to depend on others to get the booze!" I heard her yell back. "I think Garnet said she would since Pearl is too chicken to."
I chuckled at the thought of uptight Pearl doing something illegal until I realized that, other than pot, I would probably chicken out of illegal activities too. I sighed and started mixing ingredients, minus the vodka, for the perfect slime. It was my signature drink, the mixture was green and got people wasted. What more could I ask for?
As time crept closer to 9:30, people started to trickle in. Luckily, the first to arrive were Pearl and Garnet. I thanked her for the alcohol and proceeded to hand her money. She refused my offer, "You have provided the house for the party and the mixers. Let me provide the liquor."
I thanked her again and mixed the final ingredient into the green liquid. I poured the first cup for her and a second cup for me. We cheersed to being half way done with the semester and, after pouring two more cups, moved back into the living room with everybody else. "The slime is ready!" I announced. People cheered and made their way to grab their drink from the kitchen.
Amethyst and Pearl came over to us and we handed them their cups. "Hello, Peridot." Pearl greeted me with a smile.
"Hello, Pearl." I smiled back. I never knew if she liked me or just hung out with me because of Amethyst. I didn't really stress about it. At least Garnet liked me.
"Hey Garnet, how do you think you did on your midterms?" I asked.
"They didn't seem as difficult as I thought they were going to be," she said in cool composure, "but I guess we'll see."
"Ugh, enough school talk, nerds!" Amethyst exclaimed. "This party is to celebrate the end of midterms, so why are we still talking about it?"
"Fine," I rolled my eyes, "what is everyone going to be for Halloween?"
That got Amethyst excited, "Oh, yes! We need to talk about our plans for that! Peridot and I were just thinking about hitting up the bars, maybe a party?"
"Well," Pearl cleared her throat, "Garnet and I got invited to a party. You guys are welcome to join."
Garnet agreed with Pearl, "Yes, you two have to come. We can meet and go there together, if you like."
I looked at Amethyst and she smiled and shrugged. I decided that it wouldn't be too bad, "Alright, I'm in."
"So back to my original question! What is everybody going to be for Halloween? I was thinking of going as an Alien."
"I decided on being an Olympic boxer" Garnet said, giving me a quick jab in the shoulder.
I soothed my shoulder and scowled at Garnet. Pearl talked about how she wasn't sure about what she wanted to be a fencer and Amethyst described her plans for her wrestling costume "I'm thinking a wrestling leotard and-"
"It's called a singlet," I interrupted, correcting her.
"Whatever, a singlet with nothing underneath." She winked. "Maybe a mask too!"
Pearl and I were blushing, probably both thinking about Amethyst in a singlet with nothing underneath. Although I didn't think it would be appropriate for her to wear to a party, I wouldn't have minded seeing her pull it off. I shook my head to clear the thought away and chugged some of my drink.
By 10:45, the house was a full blown party. Our friend, SC, offered to DJ the party and turned it into a rave. Lights, fog, and all. I heard a familiar song play, "Burial" with Yogi and Skrillex. My living room was filled with people jumping to the music, some bodies grinding on each other. Oh my stars. My living room has turned into a night club. While a part of me was worrying about the mess we would have to clean up in the morning, most of me was proud of the great turnout.
I squeezed my way into the kitchen for another drink. Luckily, the kitchen wasn't as packed with people since more have moved to the backyard to play beer pong. I stopped in my tracks as I recognized a familiar figure. To my bewilderment, Lapis was standing in my kitchen, pouring herself a drink. She turned to find me staring, wide-eyed. She cocked her head to the side in confusion as I made my way to the slime.
"Peridot," She laughed, "I never thought I would ever see you at a party," she yelled over loud music.
I laughed at the remark. She doesn't know this is my party! "Um, this is kind of my house," I stated.
Lapis' eyes grew wide and she laughed softly, "this is your party? I didn't know this was your style... or that you knew this many people."
"Well, uh, actually, they're mostly Amethyst's friends and acquaintances. And some random people who I have no idea who they are."
"I see…" Lapis replied, taking a sip of her drink. "This is such a weird drink, by the way. Why is it green?"
"Because it's called slime." I replied in a matter of fact tone. I started to feel the buzz of the concoction loosen me up and decided to try to make conversation, "Uh, so how long have you been here?" I asked.
"I came with a couple of girls from the swim team about half an hour ago." She shrugged.
Our conversation got cut short by an enthusiastic Amethyst jumping towards us. She was very smiley and had a glow in her cheeks, giving away that she was definitely tipsy.
"Who's your friend, Peri?" She asked, clinging onto my arm.
"Oh! Uh, Amethyst, this is Lapis, Lapis this is Amethyst, my roommate." I introduced. Her eyes widened and a teasing smile played on her lips.
"Well, Lapis Lazuli. You need to catch up and get on my level!" Amethyst grabbed her wrist and pulled her to the refrigerator. She took out a round of jello shots and handed each of us one.
"You don't have to take that, Lapis. Amethyst gets a little pushy when she's…uh… intoxicated" I said.
"Hey!" Amethyst protested. "I am not intoxicated!"
Lapis laughed in amusement, "Don't worry, Amethyst. I'm no punk." And with that, Lapis swirled her finger around the edge of the cup to loosen up the jello. "Cheers to being half way done with the semester," she said as she raised her shot.
"Cheers!" Amethyst and I shouted in unison. We touched cups and then swung it down the hatch. The shots, made by Amethyst herself, were the perfect combination of tasty and "take too many and you'll be fucked up."
Amethyst took three more out of the fridge, "I'm gonna go make Pearl and Garnet take these!" She moved towards the living room and danced her way through the crowd of people.
Lapis took a sip of her drink and we stood there, awkwardly. "Well, enjoy the party," I said to Lapis. I rubbed the back of my neck and waved "Feel free to have more of those shots." I smiled lopsidedly and walked back into the living room with the rest of the party.
"Shit! All that and I forgot to grab my drink." I sighed but then quickly remembered my alternative. I searched the house for a sign of my roommate.
I finally saw a glimpse of her. Her pale lavender hair was glowing in the blacklight. Her body was pressed against another, both moving in a rhythmic pattern. I looked over at Pearl, sitting on the couch with her arms crossed glaring at the pair. Somebody is a little jealous.
I walked over to her, "Hey Pearl, are you having fun?"
She turned her head to me, glare still intact. "Oh yes. I'm having a blast. Watching those two grind against each other all night is my idea of a good time." She hmphed and turned her attention back to the two girls dancing.
"Don't worry, I came to steal her for a bit." I smiled.
"Are you two going to go do what I think you're going to do?" She rolled her eyes.
"Uh...maybe? Would you like to join?"
Pearl scoffed, "As if. You two go have fun."
I got off the couch and went up to Amethyst, which was a mistake. She pulled me in and starting dancing on me. My face was burning from her suggestive dancing. I should be used to this by now. I pulled her face in to whisper in her ear. She immediately stopped dancing and perked up. Garnet asked what we were whispering about and Amethyst shared the plan. Garnet smiled and nodded over to Pearl.
"Would you like to come, Pearl?" Garnet asked in her smooth British tone.
Pearls mouth went agape but she stood from the couch and followed us up the stairs while the rest of the people partied on. I led them into my room and we all sat down. I was on my computer chair while the three shared the bed.
We rolled a blunt and teased Pearl about how she was getting a contact high. "You might as well hit it, Pearl," Amethyst joked.
"No, thank you." She insisted.
"If Pearl doesn't want to smoke and get lifted into our transcendence then we should not pressure her to do so," Garnet defended her.
Amethyst was about to continue her harassment but was interrupted by the bedroom door slowly opening. We all whipped our head in the direction of the door and were confused when we saw the familiar face.
"Oh, uh, sorry. I thought this was the bathroom." Lapis said as she backed out of the room.
"Wait!" I shouted. Everybody turned to look at me, awestruck and my whole body felt hot. "I mean, uh…do you want to join us?"
Lapis shook her head, "no, no thank you."
"Aw come on, Lapis. Pearl has already rejected us, don't break our hearts too!" Amethyst pouted her already pouty lips. Who could say no to that?
"Or," Pearl started, "You can keep the non-stoner company." She smiled at Lapis and patted the space next to her.
"Lapis hesitated, "I, uh…I just really want to find the bathroom."
Pearly looked slightly taken aback and glared at her, "Next door on your right," she sat flatly. Pearly turned he attention to me, "Honestly, Peridot, I don't know how you can have a crush on someone so…ill-mannered."
I rolled my eyes, "first of all, I do not have a crush on Lapis Lazuli, and second, she is not ill-mannered. Some people prefer not to be around this kind of stuff and we have to respect that." Pearl crossed her arms and pouted and Garnet broke the silence by suggesting we all return to the party.
The party had reached its peak. SC toned down the music and played a remixed version of Tove Lo's "Talking Body." The slow and sexy Young Professional's version had the effect of making people dance as if they were having sex with their clothes on.
I searched the crowd for the familiar blue hair. I can't explain why, but I felt a pang of disappointment when I didn't see her anywhere. I guess she left. I sighed and went over to pour myself another drink.
It was around 4 a.m. when the last person stumbled out of our house. Luckily, a lot of them lived in the apartments nearby. The best thing about college is definitely that everything is within walking distance. I offered Amethyst's bed to Pearl and Garnet, "you guys are really more than welcome to crash here. Amethyst can sleep in my bed so I can make sure she lives to see another day," we all glanced over to the drunk lump on the couch. Amethyst mustered up a thumbs up and we all laughed hysterically.
"Alright, sure. We'll take her bed. Thank you Peridot," Garnet turned to Amethyst "Good luck, Amethyst." Amethyst sloppily raised her hand to give another thumbs up and dropped the full weight onto her lap.
After getting Amethyst into bed with a bottle of water and a trash can by her side, I cuddled up between the sheets and read my missed texts. My stomach twisted into knots and it wasn't because of the slime.
Lapis 1:32 am: I'm sorry if I offended your friend, in any way. I really just was looking for the bathroom! Sorry I had to leave so early…stuff got in the way. Anyways, nice party. Enjoy your break.
I read the text over and over again until I drifted into sleep. I didn't even bother to take my glasses off. It was a nice party.