False Alarm

0.2

(Disclaimer: I changed Andi's name to Ren because I remembered that Luke's father is in fact named Andy.)

"Sit still Ren!" Tara groans, stabbing my eye with the mascara brush.

Flinching backwards, I push her away. "That hurt Tara," I snap, walking over to look at myself in the mirror. Only one of my eyes is completely made up, and I have to admit, it looks pretty good.

"Well you need to stop wiggling! Now come back here so I can finish before the party is over." She gestures for me to sit back down on the toilet. The two of us had decided not to go to the party right on time, because we figured it'd be less awkward for us if other people were there.

"What if I rub my eye?" I ask, trying not to move anymore.

"You won't."

"But I'm not used to-"

"You won't rub your damn eye, because I'll kill you if you do," Tara says in an ironically pleasant voice. "Now go put on the outfit I picked out for you so that we can go."

Tara's never really helped me much on my appearance; we've been best friends for six years, and she still hates shopping with me. But, I think she knows how much I want this, so she's making an effort tonight. Walking to my room, I'm careful not to mess up my softly curled hair as I change clothes. When we're ready to leave, I'm totally out of my comfort zone. I wear shorts that just barely my butt, and a white crop top with a neon pink bra underneath. "It'll be dark, no one will be able to tell," Tara insisted when laying it all out for me.

We walk the short distance next-door, already able to hear music through the thin walls. Tara knocks loudly, wanting to make sure that she's heard above all of the other noise. The door swings open, revealing a boy with wild blue hair and an eyebrow piercing. "Hey Michael," Tara says, and I see her smile out of the corner of my eye.

"Tara!" Michael replies, stepping out of the doorway to let us in. "And you must be the famous Ren," he adds once I walk past him. The lighting is dim, but I can still see that for two teenage guys, the apartment is tastefully decorated. It's the grandfather clock on the back wall that really catches my eye, because my mom used to have one exactly like it, before someone robbed our house.

"Famous?" I laugh nervously, turning back to face him. His skin is so pale that he nearly glows in the dark room. He's still attractive, despite his pasty complexion.

"Well, I say that because Tara has mentioned you multiple times. I have to say, though, you're much more attractive than she let on," Michael winks at me, and I feel a blush creeping up my neck and onto my cheeks.

Tara laughs loudly, patting me hard on the back. "Let's go mingle," she says, dragging me over to the throng of people gathered around the couches. We plop down in the middle of them, already starting to sweat due to all of the body heat.

I'm only able to sit there awkwardly as Tara strikes up conversation with everyone around us. She makes everyone laugh, and is even able to get the phone numbers of at least three girls. Somehow, a wine cooler ends up in her hand. Neither she nor I drink much - in fact I don't drink at all. I'm not always home, so it's possible that Tara drinks when I'm gone. It's easy for me to tell that she's already buzzed, though. "I'm going to find the bathroom," I call over the music, gesturing towards the other half of the apartment.

She barely acknowledges what I said. Pulling myself off of the couch, I venture down the dark hallway; as far as I can see, all of the doors are closed, but no one is around for me to ask which on is the bathroom. I have no choice but to try each one. Starting with the first, I'm disappointed to find it's just a bedroom. The next one, however, is the bathroom, but it's not empty. Luke stands there, pants down, and he's, well, peeing. "Oh my God!" I gasp, jumping back. His head snaps toward me and his blue eyes widen before he turns to face the other direction.