Dear all the very nice people who tell me the DSL Daters are all blonde and have different names than I put,
Yes, I'm aware of this, but I decided I wanted my own characters with their own names and hair colors because I think all-blonde is boring and I hate some of the names Lisi Harrison gives them. ;)

Heart ya,
Joy

BLOCK ESTATE
OUTDOOR POOL
8:21 PM
OCTOBER 31, 2012

The rest of the Pretty Commitee and DSL Daters had gone off to drink, dance, and dine. Massie stood above the party, on the second-floor deck with Skye.

"You like?" She swept her arm in a wide arc, indicating the crowd.

"I do." Skye pulled out a compact and reapplied a coat of lipstick. Just as she tucked it into her lavender Hermes clutch, a swarm of people flooded toward them.

"Who let you in?" Massie snapped, knowing that the only way onto the deck was through the house or up the drainpipe.

"Your mom," chorused a number of voices.

Massie rolled her eyes. Kendra was too nice. Before she could say something, though, Skye handled the situation expertly.

"This area is Alphas-only." She gestured around her. "You guys have fun down there." She pointed toward the dance floor.

"We just wanted to congratulate you," said a tall , pale girl with hair even darker than Alicia's. "You throw great parties."

"Thanks." Both girls smiled tightly.

Then Massie walked over to the screen and slid it open. "Don't let the door hit you on the way out," she said with a smirk. Sullenly, the crowd filed out. "Sorry about that," she apoligized to Skye.

"It's fine. And speaking of, I'm really glad you dumped that Kuh-laire person. You weren't going anywhere with her."

Massie smiled sadly. "I know."

BLOCK ESTATE
OUTDOOR POOL
9:47 PM
OCTOBER 31, 2012

Alicia threw her head back and laughed. She'd been separated from the Pretty Commitee a long time ago, and she was hanging out with Chelsea, the DSL Beta. "I know, right?" she giggled, just barely holding on to the glass of punch in her hand. "What is in this?" All of a sudden, she was staring into the eyes of a gorgeous boy, possibly eighth or ninth grade. He stumbled against her, into her boobs.

"Sorry about that," he smiled softly. With tan skin, thick dark hair, and the faintest Spanish accent, he was easily the most gorgeous boy she'd ever met. "I'm kind of clumsy."

"I noticed." Then the world spun, and she almost fell into his arms. "I guess that makes two of us."

"You wanna dance?" He gestured toward the countless groups and couples getting their groove on.

"Sure." Alicia grabbed his outstretched hand, and they grinded shamelessly into the midst of the floor. After a few songs, two fast and one slow, the boy grabbed her arm and guided her into a dark corner. He rested one hand on the back of her neck and the other on her lush waist. Then he leaned in and kissed her. Just a light touch, no tongue, nothing serious.

Not only that, but she was worn out and absolutely wasted on the punch. Another cup would have probably killed her, or at the very least knocked her unconsious for hours. And she had a boyfriend.

But even though it was probably in the worst possible circumstances, Alicia Rivera had her first kiss.

BLOCK ESTATE
GUESTHOUSE
12:34 AM
NOVEMBER 1, 2012

"Thank Gawd your mom let us sleep over," Dylan moaned. She was uber-tired, but she couldn't sleep. Her head just would not stop pounding.

"I know." Alicia's voice was hoarse, and in the light Dylan could see her friend's eyes were bloodshot, and the pupils were too dilated.

"Are you drunk?" Dylan breathed, not aware that she was exhibiting the exact same symptoms.

"No," Alicia snapped.

"Ehmagawd." Kristen grabbed her stomach. "I'm going to throw up." She rushed for the bathroom.

"I can't believe this," Massie almost-shouted. "Someone spiked the fucking punch!"

Kristen leaned over and took the remants out of the fridge. She sniffed it, then dipped a finger in and lifted in gently to her mouth. The second it hit her taste buds, she spit it out. "With Everclear."

BLOCK ESTATE
GUESTHOUSE
1:02 AM
NOVEMBER 1, 2012

"We have to get some beauty sleep," Massie whispered to Kristen, not wanting to wake her sleeping friends.

"I don't feel good," Kristen murmured back. "I can never sleep when I'm sick."

"How much of that did you drink?" Massie asked.

"Only a cup-and-a-half. Then it started tasting weird, so I stopped."

Massie nodded. "Good thing I didn't have any of it." Then she laughed. "They would be the ones who get drunk." She gestured to Alicia and Dylan.

Kristen giggled. "Yup." Then she dropped off into a heavy sleep. A few seconds later, she was snoring.

BLOCK ESTATE
MASSIE'S ROOM
7:03 AM
NOVEMBER 1, 2012

Claire couldn't believe that there had been a party not 100 feet from her home and she hadn't been invited. Judi hadn't stuck up for her, and she'd been left to watch from a distance. Not only that, Kendra had let the Pretty Commitee sleep over without a second thought, which meant Claire and the rest of her family were forced to move into the real house for a night. Not that she was complaining.

She stretched, then walked over to Massie's closet. She was sure the Alpha wouldn't notice if two things were missing. She selected black Yves St. Laurent short shorts and strung a gold Marc Jacobs belt through the loops. Then she found a white Juicy Couture draped top, which she quickly threw on. Scooping up her pajamas, she jogged back to the guesthouse in the Bearclaw boots she'd put on yesterday and traded them for Keds that had once been gold but had faded to puke.

She posed for the foyer mirror. Then she grabbed a hairbrush, ran in through her flat, stick-straight hair, and entered the kitchen to make breakfast. "Good morning," she yawned when she saw that her father was already awake.

"Hi, sweetie." He gave her a big bear hug. "Sleep well?"

"Yeah," she replied, filling up a green plastic bowl with Cocoa Puffs. "You?"

"Actually got a decent night's rest for once." He grinned. "I'm energized!"

Claire faked a laugh, then backed away slowly, holding the cereal bowl in one hand and an open container of milk in the other. She smacked into the table, and in slow motion, Claire saw the carton tip toward her, and then a fine stream of cold white milk was running down the designer outfit. Jed laughed. Claire screamed. Then she raced up to her room, stripped, changed back into the outfit she'd worn to bed last night, and stared at the ruined clothing that was lying on the floor.

What in the world was she going to tell Massie?

BLOCK ESTATE
MASSIE'S ROOM
7:33 AM
NOVEMBER 1, 2012

Alicia and Dylan were lagging behind, dragging their feet and moaning about their hangovers. Massie and Kristen were up ahead. Out of the blue, Kristen fastened her fingers around Massie's slender wrist.

"Mass?" she hissed. "I just remembered... I told my mom I would be home at 10:30 last night."