August 25, 2014
Walkerville High Hallway
7:52 A.M.
As Wanda passed through the front doors of Walkerville High School, she couldn't help but grin. After one long summer with no one but her brother for company, she was eager to catch up with her friends. Fortunately for the girl, it didn't take long for Wanda to spot a familiar head of auburn hair. Eagerly, Wanda dashed down the hallway and pounced on her friend's back.
"Pheebs!"
Phoebe shrieked at Wanda's sudden appearance, but quickly composed herself. She turned to face Wanda, face red for having screamed, and shot Wanda her signature weak smile. "Hi, Wanda."
Wasting no time, Wanda snatched the taller girl's schedule from her hands and compared it to her own. As she analyzed the schedules, her grin faded. Phoebe cocked her head. "What's wrong? Don't we have any classes together?"
Wanda shook her head disdainfully.
Phoebe pat her friend on the shoulder. "Don't worry, you'll have a class with someone."
Before Wanda could respond to Phoebe's incessant optimism, another familiar voice rang out. "Phoebe!"
Phoebe whipped around to the source. To her excitement, before her stood Arnold, her beloved boyfriend. Without pause, Phoebe wrapped her arms around the boy and pulled him into a deep kiss.
Wanda let the two have their moment, but soon began to feel uncomfortable standing beside the intimate scene. She cleared her throat. "So, nice weather we're having."
At the comment, Phoebe and Arnold broke apart, both blushing. "Sorry," Arnold apologized, arm still wrapped around the girl. "It's been a while."
"I get it," Wanda smirked, "but if you're going to get all lovey-dovey, the least you could do is get a room."
Arnold rolled his eyes at the remark, but before he could comment, he and Phoebe were thrust apart. Rubbing his arm gingerly, Arnold watched as an expressionless Ralphie passed between the two without so much as an apology or even a hello. Confused, Arnold and Phoebe exchanged glances with each other before watching the boy slink away.
"That was… Weird…"
Phoebe frowned. "I hope he's okay…"
Wanda watched on indifferently. "He's probably fine," Wanda reassured, turning to Arnold. "Now, give me your schedule."
Arnold squinted at the girl. "What?"
"Your schedule!" She repeated, holding out her hand. "Give it!"
Unsurely, Arnold reached into his pocket and pulled out a folded sheet of paper. In no time, Wanda had grabbed the schedule and was comparing the boy's classes with her own. "No… No… No!" Wanda cursed, throwing Arnold's schedule to the ground. "Nothing! What the hell?"
"Calm down, Wanda," Arnold replied, picking up his schedule. "It's not that big a deal-"
"Not that big a deal? What if I don't have classes with anyone?" Frantic, Wanda stole the schedule of the nearest student, a freshman who was trying to find his way around the large school. After looking over the paper, Wanda growled. "Nothing again! This is ridiculous!"
Timidly, the freshman reached for his schedule. "C-Can I have that back?"
Wanda shoved the schedule into the freshman's hands, grumbling to herself. She wandered off down the hall, now nervous for the course of her Junior year.
August 25, 2014
Walkerville High Cafeteria
11:44 A.M.
"This year's going to be great!" Dorothy Ann enthused to the group now seated around the cafeteria table. Several heads nodded in agreement.
Pouting, Wanda crossed her arms. The gang, sans Ralphie, who was mysteriously absent from the table, had been chattering all lunch about how fantastic their schedules were. From what Wanda could gather, everyone had classes together, and by some unfortunate stroke of bad luck, she had been left out.
Carlos, noticing Wanda's dismay, reached out to the girl. "Why so blue, wildcat?"
Wanda rolled her eyes at the nickname. "Everyone has classes together except for me," she muttered childishly, eyes glued to the tray before her.
"We have history together," Tim reminded, not pleased about having been forgotten.
"Oh, how could I forget?" Wanda mocked, tone exaggerated. "I have a class with Tim—the most exciting guy ever! How lucky am I?" Tim looked hurt by the comment, but said nothing.
"The day's only half over, Wan," Keesha reassured. "You'll have some classes with somebody."
Carlos grabbed Wanda's schedule and skimmed through the list of classes. "There, see? We have English together!"
Wanda sighed. "It's just not fair! Why am I always the one left out?"
Keesha was tempted to point out that Wanda was never left out, and was generally at the center of attention, but she held her tongue. Fortunately, DA spoke up. "Look, why don't we all do something tonight? We can celebrate being together again."
"Well… Okay." Wanda perked up, suddenly full of energy. "Oh, I know! Evans is throwing a party tonight—we should totally crash it!"
"A high school party?" Dorothy Ann asked skeptically. "I'm not sure that's a great idea…" Phoebe bobbed her head in agreement, never being one to enjoy large parties, but the rest of the group seemed to have no qualms with the suggestion.
Keesha considered the idea. "Why not?"
"Sounds like fun!" Carlos agreed.
"Fun?" DA furrowed her brow. "There's no way our parents would ever let us go!"
"Even better!" Wanda cried. "We can sneak out!"
Seeing as no one else seemed to be objecting to the plan, DA surrendered. Arguing with Wanda once she had her mind set on something was a waste of time and energy. Besides, maybe the party would be better than she imagined.
August 25, 2014
Evans' House
9:13 P.M.
Eventually, the evening rolled around and the group met up outside of Evans' house. Wanda was bouncing up and down as Tim and DA strolled up. "This is so exciting!" she shouted, still pumped up from the thrill of sneaking out of her room.
DA grimaced at the sound of the loud music radiating from the house. "Do we have to do this?"
"We're already here," Tim reasoned with a shrug. "We might as well go in."
Confidently, Wanda sauntered up to the front door and turned the knob. The door swung open. The rest of the gang followed Wanda into the large home, currently filled to the brim with teenagers. Reluctantly, DA joined her friends inside, dreading the night.
Once inside, Wanda almost immediately diffused into the crowd, leaving the rest of the gang to do as they wished. Keesha and Tim happily followed suit, and soon Phoebe and Arnold meandered away from the front entrance. Unhappily, DA leaned against the wall beside the front door, willing the night to be over.
Carlos shot DA a sympathetic smile. "You really don't want to be here, do you?"
"I guess parties just aren't my thing," she replied, somewhat happy for the company. The only thing worse than being at this party would be being at this party by herself, and Carlos at least made for some interesting conversation.
Carlos chuckled. "No kidding." He reached out for her hand and pulled her off of the wall. "Come on, let's look around."
"Why?"
Carlos thought for a moment. "Well… We get to snoop around some stranger's house. That's kinda fun, right?"
DA snorted at the attempt. "I guess," she conceded, and allowed herself to be dragged further into the house.
The two had been wandering around the many rooms for a while when DA suddenly retracted her hand and took a step back. Carlos frowned and looked back at the blonde, unsure of what caused her sudden reluctance. "What's wrong?"
"I just… Don't think you want to go that way."
"Why not?" Carlos followed DA's gaze to the far side of the room where, to his surprise, sat a familiar face amongst a group of partygoers. Carlos's mouth fell open. "Mikey?"
DA watched uncomfortably as Carlos made his way across the room, unsure of what to do with herself. Figuring that the boys would probably need some one-on-one time, she forced her way back into the previous room, hoping to escape the awkward encounter.
August 25, 2014
Evans' House
9:28 P.M.
Unlike Dorothy Ann, Keesha actually found herself enjoying the party atmosphere. It was fun to see her friends and acquaintances from school in a different environment, and while she wouldn't want to go out every night, the party made for a nice change of pace. Keesha was just wandering through the living room when she bumped into another person and fell backwards.
"Sorry," Keesha quickly apologized, rubbing the back of her now-sore head. "I wasn't paying attention and-" It suddenly dawned on Keesha that she had happened to bump into somebody she knew. "Ralphie?"
"Oh, hey Keesha…" Ralphie murmured, reaching out a hand to help his friend up. Gratefully, Keesha accepted.
"I haven't seen you all day," she commented, happy to be back on two feet. "You weren't at lunch."
"I was busy," Ralphie responded quickly, words slurring together slightly. "Classes and stuff…"
Keesha furrowed a brow at the boy. "Are you okay? You're acting weird." She then noticed the red cup in the boy's hand. "Are you drunk?"
"No!" Ralphie looked down at the cup he was holding and then back at Keesha. "Maybe a little…"
"Seriously, Ralphie? We're not old enough to-"
Keesha was interrupted by Wanda who, standing on a table on the far side of the room and holding her own cup up for a toast, declared, "This is the best night ever! Woo!" She then dropped the cup and began to kiss the girl who had joined her on the tabletop.
Ralphie gestured at the display, and Keesha rubbed her temples. Leave it to Wanda to step all over her point.
On the opposite side of the room, Wanda felt herself pulled away from her kiss and down off the table. Annoyed, Wanda turned to face the culprit, an equally irritated-looking Dorothy Ann. Wanda put her hands on her hips. "What's your problem?"
"My problem? What're you doing?"
Wanda looked up to the girl on the table in confusion. "Um… Enjoying the party?" Fed up with the interruption, the girl clambered off of her perch and disappeared into the crowd.
"Don't you think you might be enjoying it a bit too much?" DA scolded, picking up Wanda's discarded cup and handing it back to her.
Wanda shook her head. "There's no such thing—it's a party, DA! Lighten up!" Grinning once more, Wanda raced away through the house, leaving DA standing by herself.
August 25, 2014
Evans' House
9:34 P.M.
"So, how was your summer?" Arnold shouted, trying to make his voice heard over the ruckus of the party.
Phoebe shook her head and leaned closer to Arnold. "What? I didn't hear you."
"Your summer!" He repeated, louder this time.
"Oh! It was fine…" Phoebe replied, not really sure what more to say. The truth was that her summer had sucked without her friends around, but now didn't really seem the time to discuss that. In fact, at the moment it was difficult to discuss anything at all, given the noise all around.
Arnold sighed and ran his hand through his hair. This wasn't how he had imagined his long-awaited reunion with his girlfriend. "I wish it weren't so loud," he commented.
"What?"
"I wish-" Arnold cut himself off, an idea forming. "Look, why don't we head someplace more private?" he suggested.
Phoebe grinned and nodded. Eagerly, the two headed up the stairs to the less populated second floor, hoping to find a room to themselves.
August 25, 2014
Evans' House
9:39 P.M.
Carlos and Mikey sat in silence for a while, neither sure what to say. However, after twenty minutes of awkwardness, Carlos couldn't take it anymore. "What are you doing here, Mikey?"
Mikey was quiet for a few more seconds, not sure what his brother was thinking. "My friends mentioned this party," Mikey explained weakly. "I thought it sounded like fun."
"You're too young to be here!" Carlos exclaimed, every brotherly instinct taking over.
Mikey grew defensive at the remark. "I'm not a baby, you know—I'm in high school now, Carlos!"
"That doesn't make you mature enough!" Carlos pinched the bridge of his nose. "I have to tell mom and dad about this."
"What are you going to tell them?" Mikey challenged, calling Carlos's bluff. "That you snuck out to a party and ran into me? You'll get into just as much trouble as me!"
Carlos considered the argument. "That's true… But I can't condone this! There's drinking at this party!"
"I'm not drinking, Carlos." Mikey assured. "I haven't done anything wrong—except for sneaking out, but you did that too!"
Carlos shook his head in disappointment. "I need to think…"
Mikey grew quiet once more, unsure what he should do. "So… Can I get back to the party?"
Carlos sighed, defeated. "Fine. Just… Don't leave without me, deal?"
"Deal."
August 25, 2014
Evans' House
9:45 P.M.
As Ralphie continued to nurse his drink from the wall of the living room, Keesha stood beside him, arms crossed. "I don't understand what you're doing, Ralphie."
"I'm relaxing at a party," he countered, refusing to look at the girl. "Try it, would ya?"
"See, that's what I mean!" Keesha argued, refusing to back down. "Since when are you a jerk?"
Ralphie growled. "Look, I didn't ask you to start hanging around, okay?"
Keesha shook her head. "Not okay! I'm not just going to leave you here to get drunk by yourself!"
Wordlessly, Ralphie pushed himself off of the wall and began to walk away. Stunned for only a second, Keesha followed. "Where are you going?"
"I need another drink."
"Stop for a second, Ralphie!" Keesha grabbed Ralphie by the arm and forced him to turn around. "Will you take a break from the alcohol and just tell me what's going on?"
"Butt out!" Ralphie shouted, pulling his arm away from the girl. Around the two, the party grew quiet as all eyes fixated on the furious Ralphie. "All I wanted was one night alone, but you couldn't let me have that, could you? I don't need you guys interfering in my life! Just leave me alone!"
"I didn't come here to interfere in your life or whatever!" Keesha argued, pissed that Ralphie would shout at her. "I just wanted to have a good time with my friends!"
The two shared an intense moment of eye contact. Ralphie scoffed. "Then have your good time, and let me have mine!" With that, Ralphie turned away and stormed off into the crowd, leaving Keesha by herself on the verge of tears. Why was Ralphie acting so irrationally?
Slowly, the party resumed, and the fight was soon forgotten.
August 25, 2016
Evans' House, Second Floor
9:47 P.M.
Upstairs, away from all of the drama, Arnold and Phoebe made their way down the long central corridor, whispering to each other and kissing along the way. As they went, Arnold swung open each door, hoping to find a room where he and Phoebe could properly celebrate being together after the long summer. Most of the doors were locked, intended to keep the partygoers out. At the end of the hall, Arnold finally found a door that remained unlocked. Grinning, he pulled Phoebe close and swung the door open.
To Arnold's dismay, the room was already occupied, and the occupants were clearly in the middle of an intimate hook up. "Oh, sorry!" Arnold cried, quickly covering his eyes. "We were just—never mind. Sorry!"
"Arnold?"
Phoebe frowned at the familiar voice. "Janet?"
"Phoebe?" A masculine voice rang out.
"Tim?"
Arnold cleared his throat, unsure what to make of the awkward encounter. "We'll, uh… We'll just go now… Sorry…" Arnold quickly pushed Phoebe out of the room and slammed the door behind him, anxious to escape. "Tim and my cousin?"
Phoebe bit her lip. "I mean, I guess they've liked each other for a while now…"
"But… Tim and my cousin? Ugh!"
Phoebe chuckled at the immature reaction. "Come on, let's find someplace more private."
"I'm not sure I'm in the mood anymore," Arnold murmured, the image of Tim and Janet together now etched into his brain forever.
"Maybe I can change that…" Phoebe grabbed Arnold's hand and pulled him to the next room. After listening at the door for a moment, Phoebe confirmed that nobody was in this one and swung the door open.
From behind the door appeared the head of a small animal, a corgi puppy. Phoebe audibly gasped, excited. "Oh, Arnold! It's so cute!"
Arnold rubbed his temples. "Maybe the room across the hall will be empty."
"Can we just… Stay here for a moment?" Phoebe pleaded, clearly taken with the puppy.
Sighing, Arnold nodded. As Phoebe dashed into the room and began to play with the tiny creature, Arnold realized that his moment with Phoebe might have to wait for another night.
August 25, 2014
Evans' House
10:02 P.M.
Dorothy Ann sat on a sofa by herself, willing the party to pass by quicker. She was just contemplating whether anyone would notice if she abandoned the affair all together when Wanda appeared from the crowd, panting. Seeing DA, she smiled widely and hopped onto the couch.
DA took notice of the heavy breathing immediately. "What's with you? Out kissing other girls?"
Wanda frowned at the hostile response. "So what if I was? Would that matter? I can kiss whoever I want."
"You're not gay, Wanda!"
Wanda shrugged. "Labels are overrated. I just like kissing people."
"What does that even mean? Are you going to kiss me?"
Wanda laughed at the reaction. "Please, you're not that kissable. Get over yourself."
DA stood up from the sofa, clearly on edge. "Just… Give me some space, okay?"
"Uh… Sure, whatever." Wanda stood and looked around the crowd. Spotting a girl from the cheerleading squad, she waved and ran off, leaving Dorothy Ann with her thoughts once more.
August 25, 2014
Evans' House, Second Floor
10:06 P.M.
Tiredly, Janet fell back onto the bed. "Well, that was sure something." Tim nodded breathlessly, but said nothing. After glancing at the clock on the bedside table, Janet quickly sat up. "We should get going."
Tim raised a brow. "Right now?"
"People will start wondering where we are," Janet explained, motioning to the clock. It was true, the two had been absent from the party for a good half-hour, and someone was bound to notice soon.
Slowly, Tim stood and began getting dressed, unsure what to say. Janet moved much quicker, clearly in a rush to resume the party. She was just brushing out her curly hair with her fingers when Tim spoke up. "Shouldn't we… You know, talk about what just happened?"
"What's to talk about? We had sex."
Tim fumbled at the word. "Right, but…"
"Tim." Janet turned Tim's face towards hers and kissed him. "This was good. I promise."
Tim relaxed, glad to know that Janet wasn't regretting any of the evening. "I just-"
"Stop overthinking," Janet smirked.
With a deep breath, Tim nodded and finished getting dressed. Janet was right—the night had been good. There was no need to say anything else. Tim felt some words burning on the end of his tongue, but he held them back. Now wasn't the time to speak.
With a final kiss, the two snuck out of the room and made their way downstairs.
August 25, 2014
Evans' House
10:29 P.M.
Carlos was standing by the doorway impatiently when Mikey rolled over. Carlos looked down at his brother. "Are you ready to go?" Mikey nodded, and the two walked through the front entrance and down the pavement, beginning the short walk home.
The air was still tense between the two boys, to the point that it was agonizing. Once again, it was Carlos who broke the silence. "I'm sorry, Mikey."
Mikey looked surprise at the statement. "Really?"
"Yeah, I think I overreacted. I just… Really didn't expect to see you there."
Mikey nodded. "I could tell," he replied, matter-of-factly.
"Anyway, I guess I thought of you as still being a kid. I mean, you're my little brother! You can't be old enough to go to high school parties!"
Mikey laughed, and the air lightened. "I'm in high school now, Carlos! I'm not a kid!"
"You'll always be a kid to me," Carlos confessed. "But I suppose I can't stop you from growing up. Just promise me you won't do anything stupid, okay?"
"I promise."
"Good."
August 26, 2014
Evans' House, Second Floor
10:22 A.M.
The next morning, Ralphie awoke with a blinding pain in his head. Groaning, he sat up and winced at the sunlight shining through the large window. To his surprise, Ralphie found himself in an unfamiliar bedroom. Even more to his surprise, a visitor sat on the windowsill, clearly unbothered by the bright light.
"How do you feel?" Keesha asked, noticing Ralphie's movement.
Ralphie moaned. "Not great."
"Not a surprise. You got pretty wasted last night."
"Right…" Ralphie recalled the events of the previous night, to a point. He certainly remembered his outburst towards Keesha. "What are you doing here, exactly?"
"Interfering with your life." Ralphie grimaced at his own words being used against him, but he figured he deserved it. "After you freaked out last night, I figured I should keep an eye on you. Eventually, you passed out, so Evans and I brought you up here. I just stayed to make sure you were okay. Which… You clearly are, so…" Keesha stood up from her perch. "I should really go."
Keesha started towards the door, but Ralphie called out. "Wait, Keesh! I have to tell you something!" Keesha raised a brow. Ralphie took a deep breath. "Somethings been bothering me lately."
"No shit."
"Uh, yeah… Well, you remember Jake, right?"
Keesha thought for a second. "Your mom's boyfriend?"
"Right, well… Turns out, now he's my mom's fiancé…"
"And that's why you've been acting like a massive ass?" Ralphie nodded. "Ralphie, why didn't you just talk to us about it? Or your mom? Or anyone?"
Ralphie shrugged weakly. "I should have, I know. But now…"
Keesha waited for Ralphie to finish his thought. "What?"
"Going out, getting drunk… That's what my dad would've done…"
Finally seeing what was bothering her friend, Keesha walked over to the bed and patted Ralphie on the shoulder. "You're not your dad, I promise. Just stop getting drunk at random parties and you'll be fine."
"Fair enough." The conversation lulled. Lazily, Ralphie's eyes glanced over at the clock on the bedside table, and he lurched to an upright position. "Shit, we're late for school! Why didn't you go on without me?"
Keesha gave a small but sincere smile. "Because we're friends, Ralphie. I couldn't just leave you here."
"Well… Thanks. And sorry I was such an ass last night."
"Don't worry about it. Just don't do it again, or I will kick your butt."
Ralphie frowned at the comment. "Fair enough…"
August 26, 2014
Walkerville High Cafeteria
11:34 A.M.
As soon as Wanda walked into the cafeteria, she was grabbed and pulled to the side. "Ow! What?"
"Sorry," Dorothy Ann apologized, watching as Wanda nursed her sore arm. "I just needed to talk to you."
"So just talk—no need to get physical."
Dorothy Ann composed herself for a second. "I want to apologize for last night. I… Reacted badly, I suppose."
Wanda thought back to the previous night. "You mean about the whole kissing thing?"
"Right."
Wanda considered the apology for a while. "Well, I forgive you. But what were you so worked up about? Kissing is just kissing."
"I know. I've just… Never known anyone who wasn't completely straight, I guess."
Wanda laughed, and DA raised a brow. "No one's completely straight!" Wanda explained, a goofy grin on her face. "Remember Harry Arm? He's got a boyfriend now!"
"Seriously?" Wanda nodded. DA pinched the bridge of her nose, confusion etched on her face.
"Come on, let's get to the table." Wanda grabbed DA forcefully by the arm and dragged her to the groups usual spot. For the rest of lunch, the gang continued to compare schedules, with no mention of the previous night. All was as it should be.
So… That was one long summer vacation, huh?
In all seriousness, I apologize for my extended absence from this story. However, I've always said that I was going to finish, and I aim to stay true to that promise. I have the entirety of junior year written now, and hopefully with regular writing, senior year won't be such a long wait. For now, I plan to update once-twice a week until this year wraps up. I hope everyone is on board for the journey!