Lost In Purple

Chapter 5: Party Time (Part 2)

I sit in my dorm room staring at my phone, waiting for seven o'clock to come around. The clock currently sits at 6:45 PM which means it's almost time for me to finally learn how to fly. However, I feel like I'm about to vomit one minute and then the next it feels like nothing has happened, so clearly my anxiety is fluctuating. It makes me envy those who find it easy to go out of their way and be as crazy as they possibly can.

To take my mind off of what some might consider unnecessary and irrational anxiety, I think about what happened just a few hours ago. Rhonda and Sonia ended up leaving us in the clothing store to shop for themselves like they said before we went, and the PNK girls ended up taking me to a boutique they usually frequent for touchups on their perfect hair. I took Sonia's advice and ended up dying the ends of my hair a bright blue to fully accentuate my new look. I really love my black boots and the dark purple rose shirt they bought me. Speaking of them buying my clothes they literally just lent me all their money, with no expectation of me paying them back, and sent me back with two large bags full of shirts and pants that give off similar vibes. That's probably one of the kindest things any girl has done for me.

I look up to the clock to see it read 6:50 PM. I don't know why but it feels like time has slowed down entirely and is trying to make me feel as bad as physically possible. I stand up and saunter over to my bathroom to give myself a quick look in the mirror. I secretly hope that there's something I could fix or do to take my mind off of the party but everything is just... perfect. The boots, pants, shirts, everything is flawless. Even my cropped black cardigan is perfectly positioned and doesn't dare try to fall off of my shoulders. I take a look at the makeup that the PNK girls put on me. Two beautiful black eyeliner wings are placed flawlessly atop my eyelids and there's a thin line of black lipstick at the tip of my mouth that makes me look...really good. I peek out to my room and take another quick look at the clock. 6:51 PM.

I lunge over to my bed and keep myself from shoving my head into my pillow and screaming until my lungs collapse.

"It's alright Melanie. You'll be fine," I tell myself with short breaths.

I look up to see the clock again and it read 6:52 PM. Yeah I'm going insane. I make the decision to just grab my phone and keys, and make break for it. My door creaks open and reveals an empty hallway. Usually the halls are bustling, but then again everyday is different so maybe everyone's in class or everyone's tired. OR MAYBE EVERYONE'S AT THE ROR PARTY! I feel my heart sink for a second, clearly I'm making this harder than it needs to be. However, it's hard to not be paranoid and think of every possible thing that can go wrong within one night

I gently shut my door, lock it, and walk rapidly down to the ground floor exit. The great outdoors are then revealed to me like an entrancing play is revealed when the curtains are opened. The sun is setting and the summer breeze carefully moves the leaves in a relaxing manner. I slowly feel my breathing begin to turn to normal and my negative emotions are steadily suppressing. I wouldn't ever wish that kind of feeling on anybody for any reason because that anxiety might end up being classified as childhood trauma when I'm older.

I begin walking around the right side of the dormitory and head towards the amphitheater which seems nearly abandoned at this hour. There's a couple of monsters sitting around the place, but they're nothing worth noting. They're simply innocent college students living their college life. A week or two ago I probably would have said that I wish I had that kind of life, but after spending some time with Bruiser and Johnny I can probably say that I don't mind having a somewhat complex college life.

I finally make it to the archway where I first met Johnny and see that the cul-de-sac is dead silent. I would have figured the party would be going full force non-stop at this point but that blatantly incorrect. I suddenly don't feel too nervous anymore and feel confident that everything will go ok simply because I'm the first one there and won't draw too much attention. My anxiety might have also come from being excited or feeling self-conscious about how I look, but fortunately for me I'm starting to feel like how I felt back in high school. Carefree.

I put my hands in my pockets and steadily tread down the left side street. All the houses have their lights on and everything looks calm, almost like a normal suburban street which is very different from what I first saw a few days ago. I round the sidewalk and look over at the JOX house.

"Melody?"

I take a closer look and see Faust leaning against the left wooden pillar in front of the front door.

"Oh, hey Faust." I greet.

Faust looks baffled as he looks me up and down.. "W-what happened to you? It looks like you joined HSS or something."

I chuckle at his question while looking at myself quickly. "No, I actually asked Britney for some fashion tips. What's funny though is, yes, HSS helped me out. They thought I would feel good exhibiting a more punkier style, which I do."

Faust's eyes keep darting all around my body which makes me feel a little uncomfortable, but I understand that it's sudden change and Faust is probably just trying to get used to my new look.

"W-wait, so who," Faust asks looking in my eyes while taking two fingers and crossing them," helped...you?"

"Both PNK and HSS... Britney and her sorority sisters did my hair, and Rhonda and Sonia picked out my clothes," I answer. This is becoming very odd. I haven't ever made Faust speechless before.

"I never thought you'd... actually talk to them though," Faust mentions with a murmur.

I scoff. "Ok Faust seriously, I'm not incompetant. I can socialize." I then sigh, cross my arms, and look down at the ground the see the many remnant alcohol spills this house has refused to clean up over the past few weeks. "I just hate people. They make me mad, and I'm not like them."

Faust gulps. "Ok, yeah. Sorry. Point taken," he responds by putting his hand behind his head. "So, um... may I ask what you're, you know... doing over here?"

Yep, this is officially weird. "I'm taking a walk. I'm bored of staying inside, and I didn't really get a good look at this place during Rush Week so I figured I'd find out," I explain out of annoyance.

Faust looks surprised at my outburst. "This isn't... like you."

You know, I couldn't disagree more. I ended up doing exactly what he said and now it's a problem. I literally made some friends and have been spending more time outside of bed, and now I'm not like myself. "Faust I'm literally no different. But I'll be honest with you, it didn't help when you said that I couldn't be myself anymore during Rush Week. So deal with it," I bark.

Faust looks like he feels bad. I decide to keep walking. "Sorry Faust. I shouldn't of gotten angry. I'll just see you later."

I loop around the cul-de-sac to make it seem like I really was just walking. I remember he told me to stay away from the RORs so I have to make it seem like I'm not associating myself with them. It would be even more of a disaster if he knew I was going over to the ROR house, but I can't just flake out on Johnny after saying I'd come to the party. Whether or not I'm antisocial, I always keep my promises. It's the one thing I've abided by since I was a kid.

I leave the cul-de-sac and take cover behind the stone wall that separates Frat Row and the amphitheater. I wait a few seconds and peek around the wall to see Faust talking to Red. Unfortunately I'm too far away to hear anything they say, so I just wait until they leave. Once I see their front door close, I make a break for it. I crouch down and lightly run in order to maintain a decent amount of stealth. I keep my eyes on the windows of the JOX house for the entirety of my journey until I reach the grand staircase of the ROR house. It seems like nobody is paying attention to the windows so that's good.

I straighten myself out and try to pump myself up. "Ok Mel, just ring the doorbell. Woo! Ok."

I touch the doorbell and hear a very symphonic arrangement play from the inside of the house. After a few seconds the door opens and reveals one tall monster. He's purple, has four eyes sticking out of his head, four arms, and resembles a beetle.

"May I help you señorita?" He asks elegantly showing off his accent. Wow that's attractive.

"Is, um, Johnny here? He asked me to be here at 7:00. But I might be a little late," I say putting my left hand on my arm but keeping my head held high.

"Hmm... Wait here dama de la luna." He instructs with no emotion.

The bug closes the door and I can hear him stomp his way further into the grand abode. I look back at the JOX house, to make sure nobody has seen me and the coast still seems to be clear. After what seems like 30 seconds, the door then opens again to unveil the tall bug, but this time he takes and step back and bows respectfully. "Please, come in señorita."

I don't know what to say or do to this so I just utter, "Thank you," with relief.

I step into the house and see the floor made luxuriously out of white marble tiles. There are two wooden staircases that lead to the second floor and wrap in on each other, which are graciously brightened by several thick, cubical chandeliers that glow a light yellow. There are four more cylindrical chandeliers that are symmetrically placed at the center of the room that shine down on my scales. Finally, there is a doorway to my immediate left which leads into a living room, and my immediate right which leads into a dining room.

"Follow me dama de la luna," The bug speaks with some spice.

I trail behind him as he takes me through the middle of the two wooden staircases to reveal a spacious empty floor that's overseen by the open upper hallways. Many doors line the upstairs along with bright red banisters. I unknowingly slow down and spin around looking above in awe to see four hanging chandeliers, that resemble antlers, which are placed in each corner of the room. I then look at the back wall to see ROR spelt onto a large plaque that's placed over an expensive looking fireplace which burns intensely.

I see the large purple beetle standing to the right of the empty room which looks to be where to kitchen is located and stares at what's inside. I stay in the empty room and give my attention to the bug.

"Here's your friend Señor," he says.

I hear a couple of stomps before Johnny's voice echoes through the house. "Thanks Jav."

The bug looks in my direction and bows respectfully once again. He excuses himself to go back towards the front of the house and speaks. "He'll be with you in a moment."

I give him a smile as he walks by me and I continue admiring the mansion. There's a room to the left of the fireplace that looks like a library and somehow looks more impressive than the campus library. Not to mention more cozy too.

I eventually look back over to the kitchen and see Johnny staring at me in astonishment. I look over my shoulder to make sure there's not a human or something behind me. "Is there something wrong Johnny?"

He leans against the doorframe and crosses his arms. "Am I talking to the same Melanie I met a few weeks ago?"

"Hmm," I say looking down at myself and giving myself a couple pats, "I don't know. What do you think?"

Johnny leans back up and begins walking towards me with a smirk. "I think I like this Melanie better."

It's been a long time since someone said something like that to me so hearing that from him makes me feel good. I smile uncontrollably while Johnny wraps his arm around my shoulder and pushes me through the kitchen to the back door. The backyard is definitely fit for a house full of the biggest monsters as there's a large deck with white lounging chairs, a grill, and a bonfire pit built into the deck. The yard looks professionally cut and lined with luscious green bushes. There are several trees that surround the backyard, and a large pool with a small waterfall near the back and an island in the middle. This frat house is incredible.

"So why am I the first one here?" I ask as I take a seat on one of the lounging chairs.

"You said that you have troubles talking to people so I figured I'd give you an easy start. Plus, I get to spend time with you this way," Johnny answers with some charm.

"Spend time with me? Was I not going to see you regardless?" I question.

Johnny shrugs while maintaining his cocky smile. "There's a lot that happens at these parties and my attention is always elsewhere. Hosting these parties is harder than you think freshman."

Great. He's the only monster I trust and he's gonna leave me to the sharks.

"But who knows, maybe you'll get some alone time with me," he winks.

I roll my eyes. "Anyways, who was the one who answered the door. I don't think I've seen him before."

"Oh that's Javier. He's an old friend of mine. He might seem intimidating but he's actually really loyal and reliable so don't worry about him," Johnny explains.

"Is he your best friend or something?" I ask.

"I would say so. We knew each other since elementary school so I've know him for pretty much my whole life," Johnny says scratching the top of his head.

"Aww, that's cute," I add.

"Mmmmm, I wouldn't go that far freshman. I would also be careful saying that around Javier, you might make him mad," Johnny whispers while standing up and walking to the end of the deck to look at the river. "Regardless of what you might think of him, we both made it through school with the dream of becoming scarers one day and we both joined ROR with ease. We just have to finish this year and we'll have achieved our dream."

I think about how there must have been a low supply of amazing scarers for there to be two openings in this fraternity. "What would have happened if only one of you joined, or even if neither of you joined?"

"I... would guess that we would have drifted apart somewhere along the way." Johnny then shakes his head. "Either way, I'm glad that didn't happen."

Johnny starts stretching which gives me an opportunity to look at all the well defined muscles that show themselves through the red and yellow cashmere sweater. I tell myself to look away but I can't help myself. I now understand what he meant when he told me that he and the rest of the RORs have routine workout sessions.

"Hey Worthington!"

Both Johnny and I turn towards the backdoor to see a large blue monster with pink polka dots and two small horns on top of his head. That could only be Sullivan. Bruiser and I are in the same scaring class as him, and nobody can forget about the first day of class when barged into the class roaring as loud as he could only to perfectly answer Professor Knights question perfectly.

"You ready to beat the JOX at beer pong tonight?" Sullivan blathers.

"You know it big blue. Growlihan doesn't know what's gonna hit him," Johnny replies while winding up for a signature handshake. They both laugh and go in for a shoulder bump. Johnny then pats his back as they retreat from their small embrace.

"Who's this Worthington?" Sullivan asks turning Johnny's attention to me.

"This is Melanie. I'm surprised you don't know her considering you're in the same scaring class with her and Bruiser," Johnny remarks.

"Well I guess I'll have to start paying more attention to who's around me in class," Sullivan states while turning both of his hands into finger guns and making a clicking sound.

I just decide to ignore that and exhale my disgust away. I notice Johnny didn't take that very well either and puts his fingers up in between his eyes. He shakes in head for a hot second before putting on a fake smile. "We'll talk more later big blue. Go make sure Jav is setting up the light correctly for me."

Sullivan gives Johnny a salute before turning to me and saying, "See you around Melanie."

I give him a big toothy smile and wave goodbye to him as he enters the house. Once I hear the door close shut I ask, "Is he always like that?"

Johnny sighs as he leans his head back and brings his fingers up to in between his eyes once again. "Yep. We scouted him since he's already quite the potent scarer. His father is Bill Sullivan so he already has what it takes to become one of the greatest scarers ever, but he's more interested in partying and girls."

I raise an eyebrow and ask, "And that's a bad thing because...?"

"It's a bad thing because in order to be a ROR, and a great scarer in general, you have to be scary and have impeccable grades. Scaring isn't all about pulling an unsettling face and letting loose a powerful roar," Johnny explains.

I wish more people had this concept drilled into their heads. Scaring is an accumulation of things, but everyone's stuck up on being the biggest and baddest monster possible. While it is correct that you need to have some sort of initial scare factor, a dangerous amount of intellect and perception is needed to be able to scare effectively. Unfortunately it seems like our Dean would disagree with that philosophy though.

"Maybe he just wants to have a little fun before his career kicks off," I hypothesize.

"Think what you may, if he doesn't start taking this seriously then he won't be a ROR at all next semester," Johnny alludes.

My hearts sinks a little bit for Sullivan. While I don't necessarily care about him a whole lot, I feel some sympathy for him. "I could only imagine what it would be like if he joined around the time both Jav and I did. Our old members would be furious with him," Johnny mentions.

"Oh, and who were they?" I ask with genuine curiosity.

Johnny looks over to me and give me a smile. "If you stick around with me a little longer you might meet them someday."

"Hmm... fair enough," I reply.

Johnny chuckles and turns back towards the house. "If you'll excuse me freshman, I have a party to run. The guests should be here any minute and I should be there to greet them. Oh by the way, didn't I tell you to bring Bruiser?"

"He was going to come anyways so I didn't worry about it," I reply.

"Hehe, true... very true. I'll be sure to tell him hello for you then," Johnny smirks.

The door then clicks closed after I see his tail disappear. I am now alone with no idea what to do next. I think about going up to the front of the house with Johnny, but I feel like I would bother him so I throw that thought away. I just grab my phone and start browsing social media to pass the time.

Over the next half an hour, the house fills up and people make their way into the backyard. There's already students who are drunk and I wonder what's going on in their heads. Do they realize their making questionable decisions or are they just living their lives like everyday is their last? Regardless, I try to ignore all of it because I know that I have something to offer people.

I unlock my phone once more to notice a text message from Faust. Oh boy.

"Hey Mel. I just want to apologize to you for acting the way I did. It was very childish to assume that you were incapable of changing and I hope you don't take that to heart. If I may, I'd like to invite you down to the JOX house. There's a party going on right now but I'd like to talk to you anyways. And don't worry, I won't force you to do anything."

This literally could not have gone worse. I'm supposed to be at this party, and now I'm expected to go to another. What's even weirder is reading that both the ROR and JOX are having separate parties. Why? Do they hate each other so much that they face off to see which fraternity throws the better party? Whether or not that's true, I now have to party hop. I stand up and sneak through the crowds who are all zooted out of their minds due to the amount of alcohol they've consumed in a matter of a half an hour.

I make it through the kitchen only to find that empty room from before filled to the brim with monsters dancing the night away. I see the Omega Howl boys, the HSS girls, and the PNK girls all grouped up together bouncing up and down to the beat of the music. The dance music being played sends sonic waves through the crowd and sends a couple monsters into some sort of playful drunken fury. I might be more confident these days but this is still a little too much for me. I try to catch some monsters who are about to fall over, save some objects about to be knocked over or thrown, and I even save one of the party lights from being taken from above the fireplace and possibly thrown out of one of the many windows.

Before I'm able to make a mad dash to the front door, I hear a voice come from behind me. "Gracias dama de la luna."

I turn to see Javier standing with all four of his arms behind his back.

"Oh, sure, no problem," I blush not quite understanding what he's talking about.

"No seriously Miss Everett. I've been watching you for the past few minutes. You've probably saved me from having to deal with several problems in a matter of minutes," Javier insists, "You have a very pure heart, and might I say, that's very rare nowadays."

I blush even more. I can feel my ears lower and my tail go between my legs. "I-uh, um..."

"My apologies for embarrassing you Miss Everett, but if I may change the subject, Johnny would like to see you on the dance floor in about 20 minutes. He did have something to attend to first, so feel free to mingle a bit longer till he shows up."

"O-ok. Thank you Javier." I reply.

Javier bows respectfully before speaking once more. "Excuse me señorita, but I must continue delegating," Javier elucidated.

I watch as he weaves his way through the crowd effortlessly all the way to the front door and turn left into the living room. Something is clearly happening in there that needs to be stopped. Why does it seem like only he's looking after the place though?

After I stand in the back corner of the dance floor for a about a minute, I finally gain enough courage to find my way through the maze of students and come face to face with the front door. I open it partially and stick my head out and around to see if Faust is anywhere near the JOX house. Luckily he is not which makes me feel a wave of relief and gives me a rush of energy. I sprint out the door and jump to my left towards the EKO house to make it seem like I'm coming from the opposite end of the street.

With perfect timing, Faust bursts out of the JOX house followed with the JOX president himself, Red. I slowly make my way to them but not without a little eavesdropping.

"I know you really want to beat them Growlihan, but seriously this is going too far," I hear Faust say.

"Faust I swear to GOD if we lose because you're not there...!" Red growls.

Faust puts his hand on his head clearly stressed out. "Growlihan please. This is important to me, and I'd rather fix things with her before she comes to hate me entirely. Just because she won't talk to me doesn't mean I won't."

Red throws his hands up in the air in frustration. He starts walking away in a huff which gives me the perfect opportunity to get his attention. However, I can't say I'm thrilled to talk to him right now so I speak with an uncontrollable worried look. "Hey Faust."

He looks over and gives me a clear view of his large antlers and rugged teeth. "Oh... hey Mel. I was just about to visit your dorm since I didn't get a response."

"Yeah sorry about that," I say looking down to the ground.

"Look, Mel, I'm just... worried about you. It pains me to think about seeing you live your life feeling lonely, and..." Faust pauses, "It scares me to hear that your hanging out with all these people just because I said something... stupid."

Faust take a moment to breathe. One big inhale and one fast exhale, but before he can speak again, I cut him off. "I know. I just hate it when you tell me what to do. I thought you knew better than anyone that I can't control how I feel when talking to people," I argue.

Faust nods his head. "I'll try to do better for ya Mel. Just please don't be angry with me. I don't know if I can deal with being separated from my best friend any longer... last year was long enough."

It's touching to know that Faust was struggling without me, his antisocial partner in crime. I think about it a little more and his freshman year must have been unbearably difficult to get through. All the stress that comes along with conforming in the scaring program, the frustrations of setting up dorm arrangements, and spending all that time studying alone. He's clearly been traumatized.

"I promise I'm not. I could never be mad at you for any reason," I say feeling a bit emotional.

Faust instantly walks forward and embraces me. I return the gesture and feel him rub my back while leaning left and right which causes us to turn a little bit with each step.

"Thanks Mel," Faust says consoling me.

We then hear a lot of cheering come from the JOX house followed by little bits of clapping.

"Ugh, someone clearly won beer pong. Do you want to go in or would you like to go back to your dorm?" Faust asks.

"I'll just go back to my dorm. It's been a long day," I say not technically lying.

"Alright... I'll talk to you soon," Faust says giving me another quick hug.

I nod and wave goodbye. He turns around and jogs over to the steps that cause him to ascend into the cramped house. Well that sucked. I didn't want to get all emotional but it happened anyways because I'm weird.

I'm left to my thoughts once again and I can't help but think I'm forgetting about something. I can feel my brain cells churning and causing my neurons to get all the way up to the synapses, but they're not transmitting anything. What was it? The suspense keeps building and I feel my heartbeat rise with each second. I give myself a couple knocks on the ol' noggin to jumpstart my brain but its obvious that I'm too tired to function at one hundred percent.

That's when it hits me. I'm supposed to be at the ROR party because Johnny 'asked for me' according to Javier. I hear a large group exit the JOX house, and low and behold, it's all of the ROR members including Bruiser! I react fast and race towards a couple of bushes within the PNKs front lawn about 30 feet away. I peek around the bush to see Johnny giving Sullivan lots of high fives and pats on the back. I try to eavesdrop on them as best I can.

"That was so smart using that library book to stabilize the table Sully!" A dark pink crab like monster blabbers.

"Hehe, no wonder everyone lost against them, they were the only ones that knew that that table wasn't regulation," Sully laughs.

I have no idea what they're talking about so I decide to let go of that information. The thing that I don't understand is the fact that all the RORs ditched their own party. Even Javier is with them! Wasn't he 'delegating?' Whatever the reason is, it probably doesn't matter now. I see the all the RORs happily hop up the staircase and back into their humble abode which is most likely ripped to absolute shreds. I find it safe to arise from my hiding spot and dash back over to the ROR house and swiftly enter.

The party is still going full force, but it seems like a bunch of energy was released within that first half and hour as things feel a tad more serene. I mean it's still a college party so it's still deranged, but things aren't being thrown around like they're baseballs, and people are dropping like flies anymore so that's good. I walk through the entrance and onto the dance floor to see the PNK and HSS girls still dancing like there's no tomorrow. The Omega Howl boys seem to have found their way into the kitchen for some late night snacks, and the RORs are nowhere to be found. I feel like it's a good idea to just stay put for now so I head to the library to find many groups of monsters talking, dancing, and stepping around many books that lay on the ground. Hopefully they weren't expensive.

The library is probably one of the coziest rooms in the house. I'm kind of biased towards the library since I've always been an avid reader growing up. My family never really had enough money for any kinds of electronics, so I never owned any video game consoles or phones as a kid. It wasn't until I was 13 that my parents were able to afford a TV without the possibility of losing our house, so I always found myself reading a bunch of fairytales. All the books, except for the ones on the ground, were placed on top of a beautifully polished light wood with intricate etchings on the ends. The shelves are surrounded by beams painted dark red, and lit up by one large crystal chandelier in the middle that's about 10 feet in the air. The carpet is fuzzy and colored red and yellow in various patterns. There are also three couches made out of velvet that are red and seem routinely cleaned. They encircle a dark brown coffee table with a lovely rose placed in the center.

I take a seat on one of the couches and relax for one second. Like always, I hate being overwhelmed and I've gone beyond overwhelmed in just an hour. I tell myself to take a couple deep breaths which works for the most part. The monsters around me shift every so often as the music seamlessly transitions from one song to the next.

"Ah there you are. I've been looking for you."

I turn around to see Johnny leaning down on the backrest of the couch. "You alright there freshman?"

"Yeah, I just don't think I'm cut out for parties," I whine.

"Well everyone's first party is never the smoothest. May I ask what happened while I was away?" Johnny asks clearly lying about what he was doing. Or well, technically he wasn't but he wasn't at his party.

"Just a bunch of drama," I laugh.

Johnny lightly laughs with me. "Yeah, that's pretty normal. But how about we do something without all the drama?" He says in a whisper.

"What do you mean?" I question.

"Dancing with yours truly," Johnny answers by offering his hand and with a smirk, "Oh and also the guys, I was able to wrangle them all up."

I laugh cause he clearly ruined that moment by saying that. "Ok sure."

For some reason this is the first time I'm looking forward to doing something at this party. Dancing, that could be fun. I take his hand and watch as he guides me around the couch and takes me to the dance floor where we meet up with all of the other RORs who are already letting loose. For the rest of the night, Johnny and I dance until our feet hurt.

And I can definitely say that I have no regrets.