Remember When #featured #AllStars

Chapter 23

THE INNER CIRCLE

The party was at Heather Ferrante's house. I think I can count on one hand the number of times she and I had ever been in the same room together, much less held a conversation. I felt like a complete intruder walking through the front door of her home.

Obviously, everyone else at the party felt so, too.

I'd been hanging with the "in-crowd" for so long, I'd forgotten what it felt like to be an outsider. Two steps inside the living room, I was reminded.

I couldn't help but notice the unwelcoming looks I was receiving from the Preppy Girls, who didn't even have the social grace to hide their disbelief at my presence. One of them (they all looked alike to me and I couldn't remember anyone's specific name) went so far as to singsong, "Hiii, Trip!" in a misguided, possessive sort of way, while completely bypassing even a polite hello to me. She was obviously the alpha female in her clan- her ballsy attitude instantly reminded me of Lisa- and I figured the rules of hierarchy held true for every clique; nerdy, cool, preppy or otherwise.

"Hey, Shelly. Hey, girls," he remarked in their direction. "You know Layla, right?"

Shelly just gave me the once over and turned back toward her group of lemmings.

I couldn't believe it. Was that loser nobody seriously snubbing me? Where did she get off? I didn't even know her name until a minute ago, and she was acting like I was the social disease?

It was times like these when I wished I were more like Lisa. She would have instantaneously come up with the perfect zinger to put that little Ally Sheedy right in her place. But because I'm me, I knew I wouldn't come up with something until thirty seconds after I'd walked away, then have to wait for the chance to use it in retaliation at a more opportune moment. Until then, I could just ignore her.

Kind of like I'd done for the past seventeen-and-a-half years, I guess.

I'd been about to write her off as just another jealous nobody with a self-imposed chip on her shoulder...

...when I realized that maybe her only problem was that she was just tired of being ignored for so long.

The rest of her little entourage stifled their giggles after my public snubbing, and I decided coming up with the perfect comeback was unnecessary. I was taken aback by why she would have even cared enough to bother trying to get one over on me- I mean, seriously, who the hell was I?- but it obviously meant a lot to her to have gotten the best of Layla Warren, so I let her have her triumphant moment. If she was going to live such a small life, it wasn't my problem to deal with.

Trip seemed oblivious to my Martian status and ushered me toward the back of the house to say hello to our hostess, who was busily setting out some paper plates and napkins along her kitchen counter. Heather practically blushed when Trip kissed her hello, which was pretty funny, considering she'd just wrapped up months of rehearsal as his costar in order to play his love interest onstage.

Thankfully, she was a bit more gracious than her friends in her greeting toward me. I took the opportunity to let her know that I thought she'd done a great job as Sergeant Sarah Brown. She smiled prettily and asked me if I'd like a drink, her kindness enabling me to loosen up a little and start being myself. I was expecting a dry party, something along the lines of soda and chips, so I was surprised when Heather directed my attentions over to a table set up with bottles of beer, homemade wine and champagne.

Who says we were the only ones who knew how to party?

Trip grabbed a bottle of Bud, while I opted for some red wine. He clinked his bottle against my glass (I was dumbfounded to be at a high school party where I could use actual glassware) and we headed out onto the deck.