Massie woke up with her head in a toilet.

After flushing away what she had clearly forgotten to last night, Massie quickly assessed her surroundings. She was wearing a crumpled black velvet dress with a tulle petticoat. A silver charm bracelet with a book charm hung from her wrist. The Converse sneakers on her feet were damp. She caught a whiff of something rancid and discovered another puddle of vomit in the bathtub.

The bathroom door burst open.

"You look like shit!" Dylan said gleefully.

"Where am I?" Massie croaked.

"Todd's bathroom," Dylan explained. "For some reason you were adamant that you used his and not Claire's."

"How did I get here?"

"Claire's driver took us home after Kiss Night."

Massie dropped her head back into the toilet and spat up the final bit of whatever poison she had drank last night. Kiss Night. Of course. She had finally gotten initiated into Tri-Theta and then her sisters had dropped her off into a pit of teenage hormones.

"Apparently you and Derrick got to second base last night," Dylan said before shoving her iPhone in Massie's face. All that Massie could make out was Derrick's favorite button-down blurred with her black dress.

"I need to stop," Massie moaned, dropping her head back into her arms. "I need to go back to Orlando. I need to calm down and dry out."

"Oh, please," Dylan huffed. "Everyone has a bad night where they drink too much and puke. That hardly means you need to go to rehab."

"This isn't me, though," Massie cried. "I don't get drunk and kiss boys. I don't even kiss boys sober. I don't wake up not knowing where I am. I don't even know who I am anymore."

Dylan crouched down next to Massie.

"You know what my older sisters always tell me?" Dylan said. "Drunk minds speak sober hearts. Whoever you are now, that's who you're supposed to be. Look, I don't know how things were in Orlando, but Kristen said that you were miserable there. I know you don't want to go back there. You're just scared of change, that's all. Put on your big girl panties and deal. I'll get you some water, and then we're going to clean out Todd's bathtub before the poor kid wakes up."

-x-

When Massie came to again, Todd Lyons was carefully leaving a plate and a cup of water on his bathroom floor.

"What is that?" Massie croaked, staring at the unfamiliar food on the plate. The bathroom now smelled like Clorox, not vomit, but Massie was still sprawled out on the floor, using the bathroom mat as a pillow.

"It's a chicken biscuit," Todd explained, his voice cracking.

Massie sat up quickly, her head spinning. Had she heard Todd correctly?

"They said you were from Florida," Todd continued. "One time we vacationed down in Fort Lauderdale with our cousins. My favorite part about the trip was that every morning, my cousins would drive me to Chik-fil-a and get me a chicken biscuit. When we got back to Westchester, I missed it so much that Martha found out how to make them herself. I figured it might make you feel better."

Massie blinked, and a few tears escaped to her cheeks.

"Oh crap, you hate it," Todd said, quickly grabbing the plate.

"No, no!" Massie cried. "I'm just really touched, that's all. I haven't had Chik-fil-a in months. I'm really excited to eat this, I promise. I'm just…"

"Extremely hungover?" Todd asked, giggling a bit.

"Yeah," Massie laughed.

"I'll find you some aspirin," Todd said. "And Massie? I really hate to say this but…"

"I know," Massie grumbled. "I need a shower."

Todd smiled and left Massie to her breakfast.

-x-

Massie finally entered the Lyons den around noon, freshly showered and slightly less sick than before.

"She's alive!" Claire cheered. Claire was the only chipper one in the room, however; Kristen was lying down with an ice pack on her head while Dylan was chugging a bottle of Fiji water like her life depended on it.

"Are you guys okay?" Massie asked in a croaky voice.

"Never better," Claire replied.

"I was still drunk when I woke you up this morning," Dylan said.

"Stop talking," Kristen snapped.

Massie plopped down next to Claire on the couch. "Your brother is the absolute best, by the way. That chicken biscuit was to die for. It tasted just like Florida."

"Correction," an unfamiliar voice said. Massie and Claire whipped around to find Cam coming in the back door. "Todd is a snot-nosed suck-up. Derrick Harrington is the absolute best."

Massie blushed deeply. Had they really gone to second base last night? Was that okay?

"This is for you," Cam said, handing her a crisp white note.

Massie carefully opened it while Claire pretended not to peer over her shoulder.

Meet me at Church Street Elementary at 1 pm, please!

Derrick

"But only if you're not feeling too sick," Cam added.

Massie refolded the note and pressed it to her heart, smiling hard. "I feel just fine."

-x-

Massie arrived at the Church Street Elementary playground at exactly 1 o'clock. Before stepping through the playground gates, she gave her t-shirt one last tug, silently begging it to cover more of her bottom. Claire had dressed her for the occasion, and she had somehow left the house wearing leggings, an oversized Vineyard Vines tee, Hunter boots, and a soft pink scarf. Massie, who had always been more of a skinny jeans and graphic tees kind of girl, felt like her personality had been swallowed by a giant pink whale.

Massie took a deep breath and marched into the playground. Derrick was waiting for her on the swing set.

"Hey," he called, grinning.

"Hi," she replied, her voice cracking.

"How are you feeling?" he asked.

"I've been better." She settled down on the swing.

"I just wanted to ask you something," Derrick began as he slid off of his own swing.

"Wait, are you wearing shorts in 30-degree weather?" Massie asked.

"Don't worry about it," Derrick said. He took a deep breath and then bent down on one knee in front of her.

Massie's heart stopped. I'm too young to get engaged!

"Massie Block," Derrick said. "Will you be my girlfriend?" In his outstretched palms was his Scout Team badge – a golden crest bearing the OCD phoenix in front of two crossed baseball bats. The phoenix gripped a soccer ball in its claws.

"Oh my god," Massie gasped. There was a word for this. Her father had done it for her mother in college. Lavalier.

"Well?" Derrick said, a note of desperation in his voice.

"Of course!" Massie cried, throwing her arms around Derrick. After pinning his badge to her scarf, he leaned in for a long, deep kiss.

"You two are sickening," someone called out. Massie quickly broke away and was surprised to find Hadley standing behind them.

"Massie, your presence is requested," Hadley said.

"What? Why?" Massie asked. She wasn't quite done enjoying her moment.

"Take good care of her, Hadley," Derrick said, giving Massie a gentle push towards her pledge master. Hadley grinned and held out a familiar black blindfold.

"Are these creepy sorority traditions ever going to end?" Massie grumbled.

"Never," Hadley said before ensconcing Massie in darkness.