My Brother From Another Universe

5: Party Invite

As soon as Travis and I enter the school building, it seems as if a celebrity walked in. Everyone turns to stare at us and some even start whispering to one another. I have never felt so self-conscious my entire life. Is this what it feels like to have the spotlight on you?

Some girls passing by giggle and wink at Travis and I'm certain he was the one that caught everyone's attention earlier. It's easy to become popular in this school when you're that hot, though I'm pretty sure Travis' personality makes up for his sudden popularity as well. I'm not saying I'm not good looking or that I'm boring, it's just that the super hot, chiseled appearance is more favored than plain good looks and the people prefer someone that is extra to someone that is ordinary, so...

Travis stays closely by my side as we make our way to our lockers- his is just two lockers away from mine. I spot Chris walking towards us sporting what I believe is a smile. How nice of him to stop by. Note the sarcasm.

"Avan, Travis; just the guys I was looking for."

"Why were you looking for us?"

"I wanted to invite you both to my party on Friday night, it's invites only cause I wouldn't want the whole school showing up at my house like last time." Chris laughs but my expression remains blasé. He knows I'm not a frequent party-goer, I like to be selective about the kind of parties I attend. He hasn't invited me to a party since the first one he invited me to which I didn't attend, so why invite me now? I'm sure it's Travis he wants to invite but thought that it'd be weird to invite only him so he decided to invite both of us. I don't have a good feeling about this party and it's not just because I don't like Chris.

"I love parties, I'll definitely be there," I hear Travis say as I snap out of my thoughts. Chris turns to me expectantly, I bet he knows I won't come.

"I'd love to come too but I have a lot on my plate right now, I have tons of homework, tests to prepare for, and most importantly, I have to fix my faulty invention ahead of the contest. So you see, I am very busy."

"Everyone has homework and tests too, a few hours of fun won't hurt, and as for your contest, it's a couple of months away so you have plenty of time. Come on, Avan," Chris insists.

Why can't this guy just get it and leave me alone?

"Yeah, it'll be more fun if we go together," Travis says.

Shut up, Travis.

"See, even your friend gets it. So, what do you say, you coming?"

I am not comfortable with the fact that he is trying so hard to convince me to attend this party. What's so special about it anyway?

"Like I said, I really have a lot to do and partying is just going to make me-"

"Come on, most of your friends will be there, even Wyndy is coming," Chris interrupts me with a smirk which means he knows exactly what he did. Travis looks at me like he knows I'm going to say yes immediately.

Good one, Chris. Well played.

"I guess since everyone's coming, I shouldn't be the only one left out," I say and Chris' smile broadens.

"Great. So the party's at my house by ten," he informs us.

"Isn't that a bit late?" I ask, to which he chuckles.

"We're not getting any younger, dude. See you guys at the party." With that, Chris walks away.

"My first party in an alternate universe, I'm going to have a lot of tales to tell my friends and children," Travis muses.

"How are parties like in your world?" I ask him.

"You need a party license before you can throw one otherwise you'll get penalized by the government. I'm surprised teenagers are allowed to throw parties here on their own. In my world, you need to be at least twenty before you can be authorized to throw a party or any large celebrations," Travis explains as we head to class.