11:00 PM

Loud.

That's the word I'd use to describe this party. Music blasted in the basement, shaking the floor underneath my feet. The door that led down there had been propped open and the melody of some pop song blared from the depths. There are a lot of people here, ranging from teenagers like myself, to some who looked to be in their late twenty's. Everyone mingled with their own cliques, while I stood off in the corner, trying not to be in the way. Akine had left me some time ago. Some girl he knew had pulled his attention away from me. I didn't mind, because I wasn't interested in Akine romantically. We were just friends, and he had no obligation to stay with me.

But being here all alone was overwhelming.

I chewed on my lip, scanning the sea of people for a familiar face. Mori made eye contact with me and his face lit up with happiness. Slipping away from the group he was with, he strode up to me. "Kari! I'm glad you made it. You look good," Mori said, his eyes roaming down my body. "If you need anything, let me know."

Akine had found this dress in my closet. A lacey, black dress with off-the-shoulder straps. I stopped him before he got away. "Actually… Akine left with some girl, and I don't know anyone else here." I felt pathetic, and I'm sure that he doesn't want some high school girl hanging around him all night.

"Say no more, my lady. Come with me," Mori replied, putting his arm around my shoulder to guide me through the crowd. We went straight for the table of beverages. Tapping his finger on his chin, he released me long enough to mix some of the things together. "Here, try this." He held the cup up to my lips, tilting it to let the liquid pour into my mouth.

It should have tasted bitter from what I know about alcohol, but it was sweet. My eyes must have shown my surprise because Mori laughed. My cheeks grew hot, but I licked the sweet drops off my lips. "It's not what I expected," I said, allowing myself to laugh as well. There's no need to be uptight. I should enjoy my time with new people.

Mori gave the cup to me and took my free hand. "I happen to be an expert cocktail mixer. From my experience, I've learned that girls tend to like the sweeter drinks." He led me down a long hallway and into the almost deserted kitchen. A group of five boys were leaning against various appliances, having an intense discussion about some sports team. All eyes turned to us. "This is Kari. Take good care of her for me okay? I've got to go check on the upstairs…situation."

Whatever he'd meant, they all showed an understanding. Without Mori's presence, I felt as though I'd just stepped into the lion's den. The room was quiet for a moment before the tallest boy with glasses and curly brown hair came over to push me forward, toward the center of the kitchen. "Come on in. We don't bite. I'm Hideki," he said with a laugh. "You're the girl who came in with Akine, right?"

I nodded my head, unable to come up with any words. They were a rag-tag bunch, all different ages and styles of dress. We were alone in the kitchen, with the heavy door pushed closed to block out all the noise from the rest of the house. Part of me was sure that no one would hear me if I screamed. My heart pounded in my chest and I took a long gulp of the drink Mori gave me. It made my head swim. All of my worries about Takeshi and Futo were nothing compared to what I felt in the moment.

All five of the boys were watching me with curious expressions, and even whispering to each other and laughing. "So, Kari," Hideki said, causing me to jump in fear. "What year are you?"

I blinked, a little confused at the normal question. "S-second year."

"Ahh youth," the boy leaning against the refrigerator said dramatically. "I'm a fourth-year student, on my way to graduation at the end of the year. What I wouldn't give to go back to my high school glory days." His black hair was slicked up with gel to make it spiky in the front, and a playful smirk grew on his lips.

Hideki rolled his eyes. "You mean the days of your suspensions? Because you got in trouble daily, Keishi." The chastising tone in his voice reminded me of a parent scolding a child.

"Dude, not cool," Keishi said, glaring at the other boys who were laughing at him.

My whole body began to relax out of it's tense state. They were just like boys at my school. Immature. Making fun of each other but always keeping it light and friendly. They were different than I imagined. I'd made judgments before knowing them. The more I drank, the more open I felt, and the more I learned about the boys in the room.

Hideki Koybayashi: A repeat third year college student. He knocked his girlfriend up two years ago, and she'd left last year to go overseas to study abroad, so he took off a year of school to take care of his now two-year-old daughter, Hinami. Now that his girlfriend had returned, he'd resumed his studies to become a teacher. It fit him well, as the others referred to him as the dad of the group, since he is always wearing cardigans.

The boy standing closest to me had dyed his hair a deep blue color and wore oversized glasses with black frames. Ichiro Sasaki: Also, a second year, but he was only 18, fresh out of high school. He'd passed a lot of prep classes and got to skip his first year of college. His friends called him a genius, but… "Just between us," Ichiro said, placing his arm around my shoulders to pull me close. He leaned down to whisper in my ear. "I'm only studying psychology, so I can self-diagnose why I have a fear of small animals. Turns out, I'm pretty crappy at helping other people."

Keishi grinned at me. "Want to see a magic trick?" He pulled a deck of playing cards from his pocket, and the others groaned in annoyance. "Oh shut up. Let me show the lady some real magic." He began to show me a trick. Keishi Kimura: The orchestrator of all the best campus parties, and resident prankster of the frat house. His girlfriend apparently doesn't mind his antics, so long as he isn't doing it to her. He says she scares easy and he hates to make her cry. He's also a magician on the side while he's studying to be a lawyer. His card trick impressed me, and he bowed dramatically as I clapped.

The next one was sitting at the table, his phone lit up with a basketball game playing. Noboru Fujita: a first year, and newly accepted into the fraternity. He got accepted to this school on a sports scholarship for basketball. He's a great player, but mediocre at school. Hideki has been tutoring him. His shaved head and stocky build gave him an intimidating demeanor, but his friends called him a romantic.

Lastly, the boy sitting up on the counter had black hair with bangs that covered one of his eyes. Tomio Chiba: He didn't talk much, only really speaking to throw in a sarcastic comment or two. He's a second year but hasn't picked his field of study. When the conversation died down, his steel blue eyes fell on me. "Why did you come to a college party? You seem like a nice girl and all, but you look sad. Is it a boy?"

I stared down at my empty cup, all the pent-up emotions coming up. All of them were quiet, waiting for me to speak. Swallowing down the lump in my throat, I nodded my head. "Yeah, kind of."

Keishi refilled my cup with whatever alcohol he found in the refrigerator. "We're good problem solvers. If you want to talk about, that is."

Swishing the liquid around the cup, I chewed on my lip. "What about Mori? You all seem to know him well."

A sly smirk grew on Keishi's face. "Oh ho, someone is interested in the mysterious charmer. He's a first-year college student, and his field of study is a secret known only to those close to him. He doesn't like to be talked about when he isn't here. But, didn't you come with Akine?"

"Yeah, but he ditched me for another girl. Just like…" I sighed, trailing off. Taking a huge drink from the cup, it scorched my throat. This wasn't a mixed drink. This was straight alcohol. The more of it I drank, the more open I became. They all seemed to be waiting for me to speak again.

For whatever reason, I wanted to tell them. It could be that this beverage that burned my throat as it went down was going to my head, or it could be that telling strangers about my sad love life would somehow make the pain go away. I told them all about Nana, without mentioning his name. He isn't a bad guy. He just doesn't know my feelings for him, though I've tried to make it obvious with my actions. "And now he's on a date with another girl."

A collective gasp from the boys around me.

"He did not!" Hideki said, his eyes wide with surprise.

Keishi had a similar expression but his eyebrows pulled together in anger. "He ditched you for another chick? That's just wrong. You could do so much better than him."

Tears sprang to my eyes. "I've been in love with him for so long that I have no idea what to do." Dropping my head to stare at the floor, I couldn't stop the tears. Covering my eyes with my arm to shield my face from view, I started to mutter an apology. They shouldn't have to deal with my problem.

"Awe, hey, don't cry," Ichiro said, moving forward to engulf me in a hug. The others followed suit.

Being at a college party was much different than I imagined, especially being squished in the middle of five boys. Ichiro was petting my head and they were all speaking at the same time. Saying that it'll get better. They don't want me to be sad. Noboru offered to beat him up for me. That made me laugh and they all released their tight grip, but still stayed circled around me. "It hasn't gotten that bad. He doesn't know that I like him."

"What? You've got to tell him. He won't know because guys don't pick up on girl's hints. We're all idiots!" Keishi said, patting my head. He titled his head to the side. "Your mascara is running." Before I could reach my hands up to attempt to wipe it away, Keishi dug in his pocket, pulling out a stick of mascara. "Tomio throw me a damp towel," Keishi ordered. "Look up, sweetheart. I got this." He wiped away the black smudges around my eyes and expertly applied the black mascara to my eyelashes. "There. Done. My girlfriend cries at all the sad movies, so I learned to carry this, and I can even apply it in the dark."

"Now that's a magic trick," Hideki said, causing all of us to laugh.

Tomio had a small ghost of a smile on his lips. "Call him and tell him how you feel."

"R-right now?" It made sense, for once. Of course, I should call him right now. He's out with some girl that he barely spoke to before she lost all her weight. That's stupid. He should know that all I've ever wanted was for him to notice me as more than a friend with benefits. "Is there somewhere quiet I can go?"

"Mori's room is on the top floor at the end of the hall. It's usually locked, but I swiped his spare key earlier," Keishi grinned. Another magic trick, probably. He placed the key in my hand. "Lock it behind you so that no one will bother you. We'll be here when you come back, and you can tell us what happened."

I thanked them for listening to me before going up to the top floor of the house. Various noises could be heard from the bedrooms, some video games, others moaning. The last room was locked, and I assumed it to be Mori's. The key worked, and I slipped inside. The room was much more organized than I thought a boy's room would be. Minimally decorated, but he had a good collection of books on his shelf. The bed was neatly made, and nothing looked out of place. Sitting on the edge of the bed, I stared at the phone screen with Nana's name and number on it. What do I have to lose? If he rejects me, at least I can try to move on.

Just do it, Kari.

So, my finger slipped the first time, but I hit the call button and let the phone ring.