Elijah showed Sarah to the refreshment table, which was situated near the front entrance and was littered with plates of cookies, bowls of punch, and platters of fruit. Somehow, Sarah hadn't noticed it when she walked in.
Grabbing a cookie and a cup of punch, Sarah followed Eli to a corner in which a lone cooler sat—far away from the dancing couples in the middle of the room.
"What's in there?" Sarah asked, gesturing at the cooler, and taking a bite of her cookie. Oatmeal raisin.
"That is where our hosts keep the…" A small group of laughing teenagers cut between Eli and Sarah, opened the cooler, and drew out several cans of beer. Sarah's eyes grew wide with horror. As soon as the group left, she turned to Eli.
"They have alcoholic beverages in here?" she asked in utter amazement.
Elijah looked a little surprised. "Yes," he answered, "a lot of the Englischers and even some of the more radical Amish teenagers like to bring beer or wine to their parties."
"I see. Please excuse me." Sarah started for the door. Eli ran to catch up with her, and arrived just as she stepped out into the moonlight.
"Did I bother you? I am sorry, I didn't mean…" Sarah chuckled at his worried expression.
"No, no, it's not you." She reassured him. "I just remembered that people sometimes spike the punch bowls at parties, and I was coming out here to dump this." Sarah walked away from the door toward a shimmering black pond behind the house, and turned her paper cup upside down. Translucent pink liquid splashed out of the cup and soaked into the grass.
Sarah watched the punch trickle into the ground. "Good thing I didn't drink any of that."
Eli smiled. "I don't think they would spike the punch bowl. But perhaps you are right. It is better to be safe than sorry."
"I'll say." Sarah bent down and picked up a smooth, flat rock. Straightening, she gazed meditatively at the pond. "I don't think I want to go back in. Why don't you go on ahead, and if Rebekah or Jenna asks for me, tell them I'm here."
"To tell the truth…I do not want to go back in, either." Elijah admitted. "I prefer being outside in God's natural world."
Sarah nodded in agreement and tossed her rock a few times. Suddenly, she asked, "Have you ever skipped rocks before?"
"Yes."
"Great! We can have a rock-skipping contest." Without warning, Sarah danced a few steps closer to the pond, and flicked her wrist. The stone flew through the air in a graceful arc and landed on the surface of the water, bouncing three times before sinking into its inky depths.
"Your turn," Sarah tossed another rock at Eli. He caught it and looked at it uncertainly. "Go on," she urged. Shrugging, Eli stepped closer to the water and threw. It bounced four times. Sarah clapped, delighted.
"Looks like you're winning right now. But we'll soon see about that." She searched the ground for another skipping stone. As she straightened up, voices could be heard coming from the doorway of the barn. Three teenagers emerged.
"Whew! What a party! I need to take a li'l breather…"
"Same here. Dude, did you see all those awesome chicks?" The one who had just spoken gave a low wolf whistle, and the other two laughed. Sarah stiffened. They were coming closer to the lake. Any time now, they'd see her and…
"Well, well, well, what have we here? Two lovebirds having a midnight rendezvous by a lake?" The teenager gave an unnatural, high-pitched laugh, and Sarah realized that he was drunk. The other two probably were, as well. Instinctively, Elijah and Sarah stood closer together, sensing that there was safety in numbers. The newcomers noticed.
"Oooh. Scared, are we?" They came closer.
One of them stood in front of Sarah. "Hey, missy. What's your name?" Sarah groaned inwardly. Not again!
Eli was speaking. "Please leave us alone. We are not bothering you."
The three newcomers seemed to think that was hilarious. They laughed, slapped their knees, and weaved around drunkenly.
"Fred, did you hear that? Did you hear what that little Plain Boy said?"
Fred grinned wolfishly. "Yeah, I heard that." He turned to Eli. "Maybe you ain't botherin' us, but we want to bother you." Suddenly, he snatched Sarah toward him, laughing at the shocked expression on Eli's face.
"That bother you, huh?" He taunted. "Wanna fight?" Eli seemed frozen in place.
Sarah squirmed, but her attacker had a grip as strong as iron. She faintly heard footsteps, and then two familiar voices in the distance.
"…wonder where she went. And Elijah, too."
"I think I saw them come outside…somewhere around here…"
It was Jenna and Rebekah.
Sarah cried out. "Jenna! Rebekah! Help!"
"Be quiet, you stinking Plain Girl." Fred slapped her across the face. Without thinking, Sarah stomped on his foot with the back of her heel. Hard.
Cursing, the teen released her and fell to the ground. Sarah turned to run, but he leapt up angrily and gave her a furious shove. Sarah was standing on the bank of the pond, and her old tennis shoes were no match for the slippery mud. With a startled cry, she fell into the lake.
Jenna and Rebekah could tell something was wrong. They ran toward the pond, screaming, "Sarah! Sarah, are you okay?"
Jenna tripped, falling to her knees. "I can't see her! She's not coming up! You killed her!" Jenna scrambled to her feet, throwing clumps of sod at the three teens, who suddenly looked very frightened. They whirled around and ran away as fast as they could.
Rebekah was frightened, too. "The pond's ten feet deep! Sarah, can you hear me? Come out, please come out!"
Eli was grimly throwing off his jacket, preparing to dive into the water's icy depths. Just then, a hand appeared on the edge of the bank, and Sarah crawled painstakingly out, dripping and coughing.
"Sarah!" Rebekah and Jenna cried with relief, hugging their friend despite her sogginess. Eli stepped away from the edge and hurried toward the girls.
"Please…cough…I need to have a little room…" Sarah begged. Reluctantly, the others released her and stood a little apart. Sarah wheezed and water trickled out of her mouth.
"Are you okay?" Rebekah asked, biting her lip anxiously.
"Yes, just give me a moment." Sarah waved away her friends' concern, and took several deep breaths. The others leaned closer to her, still worried. Everything grew silent.
Suddenly, Sarah started laughing. Jenna looked at her as if she had gone crazy.
"They…they thought…that I was Amish. They were trying to…" she burst into another peal of laughter. Jenna felt her friend's forehead in concern.
"Are you sure you're alright?"
Sarah calmed herself down. "Jenna, I'm not going hysterical. Relax." She got up off the grass and wrung her hair dry. "Those boys were just being prejudiced. Don't mind them. I'm okay."
Rebekah looked angry. "Those teenagers are always claiping us! I'm sorry you had to experience that on your first visit to our neighborhood. They are ruining the image of Nappannee."
Sarah put a hand on her friend's shoulder. "It's okay, Rebekah. I understand." She said gently. Then she looked down at her dripping clothes. "I think I have to go. I'm so sorry for inconveniencing you guys. I know you wanted to have fun with your other friends."
The others protested loudly, saying it was no trouble at all, and they headed back to the Longacre buggy; Jenna and Sarah in front, Rebekah and her brother two steps behind.
Jenna wrapped an arm around her friend, to keep her warm, but Sarah's teeth were chattering, and she was beginning to shiver uncontrollably no matter how hard she tried not to show it. The cold winter wind didn't help things, either.
Soft footsteps came up next to Sarah. Elijah had taken off his coat and silently offered it to her. Sarah shook her head.
"It's okay. I'll be fine."
But Jenna said sternly, "Take it, Sarah. You need to keep warm." With a nod of appreciation to Eli, she accepted the coat and wrapped it around her sodden friend. Sarah did not argue. Slowly, her shaking grew less violent, though her teeth were still chattering from the cold. The four of them made their way to the buggy, and Eli flicked the reins, calling to the horses urgently. They raised their large heads and snorted, as if surprised that their master had returned so early. But they shook out their chestnut manes and began the long journey back to the Longacre homestead.