Hello. I'm back! Sometimes I feel like I'm talking to no one when writing the author's note, but oh well. Anyways, enjoy the flashback-less chapter that may or may not be edited.

"A party? He didn't ask you to be his date, did he?" Trish asked me. It was around noon and we were in her room, watching TV and talking.

"No... but what if he did? What would be so bad about it?"

"Nothing, you're just not compatible."

I scoff, but in agreement. "You're not wrong."

It was silent for a while until she spoke up. "Just because you're not compatible doesn't mean you don't look cute together."

I laugh. "You can't be serious. He's... him and I'm... me."

"You still like him."

"Even if I did, it would never work out."

"Exactly, which is why you're not compatible."

I shrug. "As long as we're talking about who I'm not compatible with, would it be wrong to say Elliot?"

It takes a while for her to answer, before she says, "If it's true, it's okay to say."

"Elliot and I are not, and will never be, compatible."

She laughs. "This might go without saying, but I think you should go to the party."

I look up at her. "Music. People. Drinks. That doesn't sound very safe for me, don't you think?"

"No. Sounds fun. Just go. What's the worst that could happen?"

"Trish, the worst has already happened at the past parties I've went to. Maybe it's just a little too soon."

"When is the next time you'll get to be a teen and have fun?"

Shrugging, I say, "College or something. If I even live that long."

"It all depends on your decisions, I guess."

Parties were supposed to be exciting and fun, but they had always been just the opposite for me. Even the playground wasn't where I had belonged in elementary school. Places with people with my age, having fun, and fitting in was never my thing and even if I wanted it to be, it would never happen.

I don't think I've ever made bad decisions, but I've never made good decisions, you could say. Aside from those good or bad decisions, those decisions weren't always fun. So maybe this time, I could have some fun. My decision was clear, if not, a little smudged. I would stop at the party—for only a little, see who was there, and leave, no questions asked. That was the plan, but I wasn't sure if I would stick by it.

"I'll go to the party. Just for a little."

"I knew you'd come to your senses. Just make sure you don't drink too much."

"What's that supposed to mean?" I ask.

"Nothing. People get drunk at parties. The last thing that you need to do is get drunk."

It was clear that I wasn't going to get drunk. By clear, I mean it was the obvious thing that I was trying to avoid.

My key to the party was not looking like a complete hippy, which I looked like now. I didn't stress much on what to wear, but my outfit ended up not looking terrible. Trish insisted on make up, which I guessed wasn't a bad idea. This was all being orchestrated at five in the afternoon, even though the party didn't start until midnight. The step by step instructions on how to walk in heels and curling iron dilemma eventually ended.

It wasn't until I actually arrived at the door that I became nervous. Hearing the music blasting and seeing everyone dancing and having fun from the window reminded me that parties weren't my thing. The people who are lame or nerdy meet up at chess club and the people who are cool meet up to get high or go to parties or something. I didn't belong in either group. Just another reason why I never fit in.

I knocked on the door, soon realizing that they wouldn't be able to hear me over the music and that parties didn't work that way, so I opened the door and walked inside, not even bothering to shut the door.

A girl who looked like she had a very low IQ score and piercings stuck inside every part of her face shoved a drink in my face. "It's supposed to make you, like, super drunk, but it's worth it. Life sucks."

We both stared at each other for a while. Her expression remained the same, but unreadable. She never seemed to grow annoyed holding the drink. Her face began to disgust me with the crazy amount of piercings she had, which forced me to take the drink and walk away. I walked around for what seemed like a long time. When I reached the bedrooms, I realized how tired I was. I was going to open the first door I saw, but I didn't want to know what was on the other side of the door, so to avoid falling asleep, I drank the entire cup in almost one gulp. It was disgusting but I wasn't as sleepy after I drank it.

After that, I had a few drinks that were all offered. It seemed like it was everyone's job to give people drinks. Did they ever enjoy the party or were they handing out drinks the entire party? They did it like they were paid to do it. I couldn't count how many drinks I had after that. I was drunk, whether I wanted to confirm it or deny it.

"Ally? You came?" a voice says, seeming to be surprised. Due to all the alcohol in my system, I actually couldn't analyze who it was. My best bet was that it was Austin.

"Yep. I told you that I liked parties."

He smiles. "Actually, you told me the exact opposite."

I shrug and stared into his eyes. "You have awesome hair, you know. I love it." I say, running my hands through his hair. He takes a step back.

"I think you've had too much to drink." Thank you, captain obvious.

"I'll drink as much as I want. This is a party, after all. If you plan on being a party pooper, the bathroom is... actually, where is the bathroom? I might puke at any second."

He slowly takes my current drink out of my hand. "Maybe you should go. I'll drive you home."

"I don't want to go. I came here to have fun, didn't I?"

"No, Ally. I actually have no idea why you came here."

I laugh a little. "I want to have fun. I can come to parties if I want."

"Why because the last party you went to ended so well? You almost died."

"It was my decision!"

"The party before. Didn't you get-"

"Don't... say... it," Once I said that, I realized that I was crying. "Wow. The theory's proven. You can make me cry just as much as you can make me smile."

"You're drunk. You don't really have any feelings right now."

In the corner of my eye, I could see Cassidy. She was talking, presumably about nothing. "Oh, really?" I ask him. "Hey, Cassidy!" I always knew that when people were drunk, they said something to the person they liked least in the room and that's exactly what I was planning to do. Nothing was stopping me.

Cassidy walked over to me with her lips pursed and a slightly pissed off look on her face. She set her drink down on the coffee table. "Yes, Dawson?"

Words, thoughts, and feelings that I have been feeling for three years spilled out of me and even sober, I didn't regret a thing that I had said. "My name's Ally. Not Dawson."

"You're lame."

"That's a low blow. You know what? You have been after me for the longest. You're fixated on ruining my life and I've never known why. And now I do. It's because you're jealous of me. It's because you're a bitch and everyone knows it. You're not the mean girl that there is in every school. You're the bitch that everyone hates. I hope this sheds some light on your fantasy."

I ignored the eyes that were on Cassidy and me, but I didn't ignore her reaching for her drink. My first instinct was that she was going to throw it on me, so I waited for beer to be splashed in my face. Slowly, she brought the cup to her lips. She may or may not have intended to pour it on me. Surprisingly, after she gulped down some of her beer, she let out a belch and walked away.

Between being drunk and walking in heels, I could barely walk to the bathroom. Austin wasn't where he was, which didn't surprise me much.

I reached the bathroom and waited for whatever would come out of me to come out. When I blankly stared into the toilet, I realized how disastrous my life was. The train was about to stop at Puke City.

As the puke rushed out of me, I felt my head spinning. I knew that eventually I would pass out or something. The amount of alcohol in me was unhealthy and idiotic and I proved myself right when I told myself that parties were stupid. I rested my head on the tile floor and started thinking, before all my thoughts disappeared. I wasn't conscious or unconscious, but every thing was black and dark and I was dizzy.

Suddenly, a strong pair of hands lifted me off of the floor and carried me to their car. I felt too sick to open my eyes and when I did, I saw a blurry, faded image of a blonde. I didn't need a genius with perfect eyesight to tell me who it was. The car moving made me feel even more sick and when it stopped, I felt like my prayers were being answered. He picked me up and carried me inside. I was carefully placed on a bed and a blanket covered my entire body. My eyes darted to the clock. It was five in the morning. I needed all the rest I could get.

He left the room and slowly shut the door, flicking the lights off. "Sweet dreams." he said softly.

Voila! Another one of my favorite chapters. Sure it's not lovey-dovey but it's undeniably sweet in the end. Sort of. Review and tell me what you think. :)