Stella glanced around the bustling cafeteria, looking for Harper's sleek and shiny blowout. She spied her best friend sitting alone toward the back of the room. "So, tonight's the big night, hey?" Stella grinned, sliding into the seat opposite her.
Harper looked up from her salad with narrowed eyes. "Could you lower your voice, please?" she hissed, glancing around as to make sure no one was looking over.
"No one is going to know what we're talking about," Stella rolled her eyes. "Besides, no one is paying attention to us," she said, despite the fact that it was nearly impossible for Stella Harrington to enter a room without everyone paying attention to her.
Harper speared a slice of cucumber with her fork and held it up for inspection. "Yes, tonight is the night," she murmured. "Mom and Dad are going to the opera, which means Ava will be god knows where, and you're taking care of Thomas, so it'll just be Mark and me."
"What's going on with me and Thomas?"
"When I asked him what his plans were for tonight, he said he'd probably just go over to your house."
"That's news to me," Stella sipped her Vitamin Water. Although it wasn't as though she and Thomas made set plans. "Speak of the devil," she raised her eyebrows at Thomas as he and Seth entered the cafeteria.
"Okay, no more talking about my plans," Harper said quickly, smoothing her hair back as the boys walked toward their table.
"What are you two scheming about now?" Seth asked, sitting down beside Harper. Thomas took the seat beside Stella, placing a gentle kiss on her cheek.
"Tommy, grossss," Stella pushed him away with a grin. "We were just talking about our big and exciting Friday night plans," she concealed a smirk by taking another sip of her drink. Across from her, Harper flushed and looked down at her salad. Harper was cool and collected at all times, and Stella loved to make her crack.
"Oh yeah? Going to Ava's big party?"
"What big party?" Harper looked up sharply.
"Mom and Dad are in the city for the night," Thomas shrugged, pouring a packet of Splenda into his coffee.
"And?"
"And Ava's throwing a party," Thomas said like it should've been obvious.
"Mom and Dad will kill her."
"They'll be in Manhattan," Thomas repeated. "They're not going to find out."
"They find out everything," Harper rolled her eyes. "They know what we're doing every second of every day."
"Well," Stella said, shooting a meaningful look at Harper. "Hopefully not every second."
By eight-thirty, the Crane estate was packed. Seth glanced around the kitchen – he didn't even know who half of these people were, and it wasn't just because he'd been away at boarding school the past few years. He was certain the guy with the snake tattoo on his neck did not go to Briarwood. Neither did the guy shot gunning a beer by the pantry – was that guy even in high school? He looked at least twenty-three.
It didn't help that he hadn't seen any of his friends once since he'd shown up. Stella was usually the life of the party, not moping around the kitchen like he currently was, so that was to be expected. And Ava was God knows where doing God knows what, probably with the likes of Snake Tattoo. But where was Harper? And Thomas?
Seth wandered into the foyer, trying not to look as pathetic as he felt. When Ava had first told him about the party, Seth had decided not to go – he really needed to study for his World History midterm. But then he'd gotten home from school and had heard his parents screaming at each other upstairs, and decided that getting out of the house and getting drunk sounded like an excellent idea.
So here he was. Sitting on the bottom stair, alone, hugging a glass of whiskey. He spotted Ava in the den and was about to wave her over when he realized what she was looking at. Carter Hurley had some pretty blonde in his lap, laughing at whatever she was saying. Ava drained her glass before heading towards the expansive liquor cabinet. Seth got up quickly and followed.
"Ava!" he had to shout to be heard above the thumping bass and gossiping teenagers.
"I didn't even realize you were here," she shouted back, reaching for a bottle of Glenfiddich. "Need a top up?"
"What's your dad going to say?" Seth held up his glass anyway. He knew Landon had a very large collection of expensive whiskeys that he rarely drank from, and probably wouldn't notice a little missing.
"Who cares?" Ava took a sip directly from the bottle. She coughed a little as the liquor hit the back of her throat. "I'm so over this party."
"Do you…want me to talk to Carter?"
"And do what?" Ava laughed. "Threaten to beat him up for bringing some girl to my party? Seth, he'd squash you like a bug." She bit her lower lip, then squared her thin shoulders and cleared her throat. "Let's go outside."
Seth followed Ava through the den, noticing how Carter's eyes paused on Ava for the briefest of moments before he quickly looked away. Impulsively, Seth grabbed Ava's hand, intertwining their fingers. He snuck a second glance at Carter, and sure enough, his gaze had zeroed in on his and Ava's hands. They walk past Harper, who looked slightly red in the face (was she drunk?, Seth thought with a smirk). He raised his free hand in greeting before being tugged away by Ava.
He allowed Ava to lead him to the backyard. They sat down around the Crane's big fire pit, eventually letting go of each other's hands. Seth leaned back on the bench, looking up at the pergola and the fairy lights strung along it. "That's a nice touch," he nodded up at the lights.
"Harper's doing," Ava answered woodenly. Seth turned his attention back to her – she seemed even tinier than usual, thin shoulders hunched and knees drawn up to her chest.
"I don't mean to bring him up again, but were you serious about Carter? I thought it was just…you know, you being you. Getting a rise out of your parents. Pissing off Thomas. Provoking Harper."
Ava shook her head. "Not this time. I thought – I don't know. I thought like, 'okay, this is what Harper is talking about'. You know, true love, and that feeling you get when you look at someone and just lose your train of thought. I got why Harper thinks the way she does." She took a sip from the bottle of whiskey.
"Are we having a pity party?" Stella said from the French doors that led from the kitchen to the patio. Light from the house silhouetted her lithe body. "Can I join?"
"The more the merrier," Seth patted the spot beside him. Stella sank onto the cushioned seat beside him, pulling her long legs under her.
"Fun party, hey?" Ava offered the two her pack of Gauloises, but Seth and Stella shook their heads.
"What are you doing out here?" Seth rested his head on Stella's shoulder. Blonde wisps of hair that had escaped her ponytail tickled his face.
"Harper's with Mark, Tom's with some girl in our World History class. Genevieve? Jennifer? I'm not sure," she toyed with the hem of her shirt.
"Wait, like with Genevieve?" Seth raised his head for a second to look at Stella.
"Yeah," she shrugged, looking at the fire pit. "I mean, it's whatever. We're not dating," she gave a little laugh. She was acting like it wasn't a big deal, but Seth had a feeling it was. He looked to Ava for confirmation, but Ava was staring blankly at the fire pit too.
"You know," Seth sighed, returning his head to Stella's shoulder. She rested her head on top of his. "If someone had told me that the three of us would be the loneliest people in Westchester, I wouldn't have believed him in a thousand years."
Tocca candles basked the room in a romantic glow, a bouquet of fresh peonies sat on the night table, and a thumping bass nearly shook Harper's entire room.
Losing her virginity at a party was not how Harper had planned things.
But she figured it was okay, because technically she had planned the evening before there was even any thought of a party. And it wasn't like she was a guest at the party – she was in her own home, in her sanctuary, her bedroom, with her boyfriend whom she loved.
Mark smoothed back a dark brown curl, kissing his way up her jawline. From somewhere outside her bedroom, a loud crash resounded, followed by a shriek of laughter. Harper clenched her jaw. Ignore it, she thought. Relax. Focus on right now. Everything is fine. Everything is perfect.
And it was. Harper loved when things were perfect. She smiled at Mark, pushing the sounds of the party further from her thoughts. She looked into Mark's kind green eyes and felt a frown force its way onto her face. His eyes were nice and everything…but they weren't pools of brown so dark it was hard to differentiate between pupil and iris. She didn't find time slowing down and everything around her getting fuzzy. It wasn't like when she looked at Seth.
"I don't think I can do this," she murmured. "Mark," she said a little louder, pushing herself away from him. "I can't do this."
"What?" Mark's green eyes widened. "Was it – did I do something? I'm sorry –"
"No, it's just, I'm just," Harper shook her head, raking a hand through her dark, shiny curls. "I'm sorry," she got up quickly. She could hear Mark call her name, but she raced for the door.
Outside of her room, the sound was ten times louder, the lights way brighter. People mulled around the foyer below, drinking, smoking, someone was even doing body shots off of that girl from Bio. Harper bit her lip, forcing the tears that had pooled in her eyes to disappear. You're fine, she mentally shouted, you're perfect.
Harper wanted to find Seth, now, before Mark came to find her with his big smile and kind eyes and passion for caring about others. She stomped down the stairs, passing a couple who were making out on the third stair. Harper stopped at the bottom of the stairs, looking around for Seth or for Stella, or God, even Ava.
And then she found two of them.
Ava passed by, tights ripped and whiskey bottle held tightly in her left hand. Held tightly in her right hand, was Seth's hand. Harper felt herself tense, lower lip dropping in surprise. Seth caught her eye and raised his free hand as he walked past her.
So that was that.
Seth and Ava. She hadn't seen that coming. Not in a thousand years.
Harper suddenly felt angry, hurt, confused, all at once. "Give me that," she snatched a cup out of a passing girl's hand. She downed it in one sip, wincing as the alcohol hit her throat. Then she turned and marched back up the stairs.
Back in her room, Mark was blowing out the last candle. "Harper, I'm –"
"I changed my mind," she interrupted, kissing him. "Let's just do this."
"Are you – are you sure?" he asked, fumbling on the bedside table for a lighter. "Should I relight the candles?"
"Fuck the candles," Harper tore off his shirt, hearing a few buttons pop off in the process. "Let's just do this."
"I don't remember the last time we were alone together," Landon nuzzled his face into Massie's neck. Massie kissed his temple, leaning into the seat of the town car.
"I'm so sleepy," she murmured, watching the lights and buildings race past them through the window. The opera had been wonderful – except that they had missed a quarter of the first act. Just as they were about to go in, he'd gotten a phone call from a frantic sounding Paige and had spent thirty minutes pacing the lobby of the Met on the phone with her.
And that's what had set Massie on edge.
They'd had a few glasses of champagne on the private flight into the city, and then Massie had had a few glasses of wine at the bar, watching Landon chat with Paige, then they'd both had a few more glasses of champagne during the intermission… And there was the little bottle of gin she'd stashed in her purse from the hotel mini bar.
She was no longer on edge, but she was a little drunk.
"I wonder what the kids are doing," Massie murmured, closing her eyes. Ava was no longer under house arrest, so she was probably out (not that she'd actually stayed in during her grounding), Thomas hadn't spent a Friday night in since he was thirteen years old, and Harper was either with Mark or Stella, so that was at least one child she didn't need to worry about.
"Let's call them," Landon grabbed her clutch, and before Massie could stop him, reached inside. Instead of pulling out Massie's Blackberry, however, he pulled out the now empty bottle of gin. Landon sat up, blue eyes questioning. "When did you drink this?"
Uh… Was it during intermission? No, that was a gin and tonic at the bar. Oh, right – Massie had drunk the mini bottle in the bathroom while Landon had been talking to Paige. She frowned – that didn't sound like the right thing to say to Landon.
"I didn't," Massie smiled at their driver, in a mind-your-own-business sort of way. She stepped out of the car,teetering in her heels as she stepped onto the sidewalk. She took Landon's hand as they walked into lobby of the St. Regis, partially to get her husband back in the snuggly mood he'd been in in the car, and partially because she wasn't sure she could walk in a straight line on her own.
"You didn't drink this?"
"I mean, I did," Massie frowned. "But," she broke off as she kicked off her heels once they were in their suite. "But it's small. Which means I didn't really drink it." That made sense, right?
Landon stared at her, a frown etched into his handsome face. "How drunk are you right now?"
"Little bit," she yawned, wanting to crawl in between the luxurious sheets and sleep.
"That's not funny, Massie. This isn't…this isn't high school."
"Isn't it?" Massie whirled around, suddenly wide awake. Suddenly angry. "Because it feels like it is, Landon. I have been in love with you since tenth grade, and I waited years for you to finally settle down with me. I watched you fool around with other girls and – and then when you did commit to me and only me, you focused on your career."
"What the hell are you talking about?!" Landon shouted back.
"Things are exactly the same as they were twenty years ago! You're always at work lately. The last time we had a family dinner was two weeks ago at Thanksgiving. And you're always with that blonde bimbo!"
"Paige?" Landon looked stupefied. "I… What are you on about? Paige is really smart, which is why I hired her, Massie. And as for missing family dinners – our kids are nearly out of the house. They don't want to be having family dinners every single night."
"I have a career, too, Landon. I still make it home for dinner."
"You're right, you do have a career. You have a wonderful career," Landon raked a hand through his graying curls. "And you're wonderful at it. Which is why I don't understand why you're being so…so insecure."
Just as suddenly as Massie's anger had erupted, it was extinguished. She felt weary and sad. "I don't want to fight with you right now," she murmured. "Which is why I'm going to ask for a second room. I'll see you tomorrow."
"You're out of your mind," Landon shook his head. "I don't know what's gotten into you. I'll get the second room," he grabbed his suit jacket that he'd thrown on an armchair. "You're in no shape to speak to the people at the front desk." He slammed the suite door behind him.
Massie sank onto the soft bed. What the hell had just happened? She struggled to unzip her dress, then slipped into bed, but not before grabbing a mini bottle of scotch.
Thomas lay on his back, sweaty and still slightly out of breath from his run. His parents had gotten back from the city, both in absolutely foul moods. His mother had headed into her office almost immediately, and while Landon had hung around for a while, asking the children how their Friday night had gone, he'd eventually disappeared into his own office. Three hours later, the two had yet to emerge.
Harper was also in a foul mood. She'd been slamming doors all morning, and had snapped at Thomas when he asked what was up. Sorry for trying. Ava was in her room, sleeping off probably the world's worst hangover, so Thomas had decided to run. And he just kept running.
Never one to actually run from problems, however, Thomas had returned. His father had gone golfing with Josh, and his mother had gone to pick up some swatches from work. Ava and Harper were still in their bedrooms, so Thomas had gone to his.
His phone rang, and Thomas fumbled around on his bedside table until his hand connected with it. "Hi, Stel," he answered. Maybe he'd go over to Stella's. They hadn't had sex in a week – in fact, Thomas hadn't seen much of her at all this week.
"Thomas," she founded quiet, which was certainly odd for Stella. "I, um, Harper's not picking up right now and –"
"You sound terrible," he interrupted. Was she calling him because Harper wasn't answering? He wasn't a consolation prize. "Have you got that bug that's going around?"
"No, Thomas," she choked on a sob. Thomas sat up in bed, holding the phone a little tighter. Stella, always affable and bubbly, crying. Thomas couldn't even picture it. "It's my mom. She's in the hospital. She – they think she had a heart attack."
"A heart attack? But," Thomas frowned. Claire was the picture of health – she played tennis regularly, ate a healthy amount of carbs, unlike most Westchester women, she was involved in over a dozen charities. "How did this happen? Where's Derrick?"
"At the hospital," Stella sniffled. "They were at the club, playing tennis. That's all I know. I don't know what to do," she hiccupped. "I don't know what to think."
"Hey," Thomas said softly, "That's why I'm here, okay? I'll think for you. Do my parents know?"
"I'm not sure."
"I'll let them know," Thomas said firmly. "Then I'll come grab you and Poppy. We can wait at the hospital, okay?"
"Okay," she said quietly. The sad tone to her voice was enough to break Thomas's cold heart. "Tommy…thanks."
Thomas hung up, quickly changing out of his running gear and into slacks and a sweater. He hesitated before grabbing a second sweater for Stella, just in case. It got cold in hospitals. He was about to inform Harper and Ava of the situation when his phone buzzed.
Claire in hospital – picking up Mom and going. Tell A & H. See you at home.
Thomas frowned. Could his father be anymore vague in text? And what was this about seeing you at home? They were expected sit at home, twiddling their thumbs, and wondering what the hell was happening with Claire?
Usually Landon's word was law, but this was an emergency and Claire was family. She was Harper and Ava's godmother, for crying out loud!
"Harper, Ava," he called, grabbing his car keys. "Get dressed – we're going to the hospital, I'll explain on the way."
