Friday rolled around, but Michael and I hardly talked. It wasn't that we didn't want to talk, but we didn't seem to know what to say.
I received several sneers and insults throughout the day. People apparently still thought I shouldn't be here. They thought I should go back to the States. Or better, kill myself. I just ignored them, walking past coldly.
The school day proceeded as usual and I drove home afterward. The weekend was far too short, and but the next few days went by without a hitch. I just seemed to float through that week, unaware of the happenings of school. My head was stuck in a haze of silence and smoke, and no matter how hard I tried to shake off the cloud it simply reformed a moment later.
Finally, at lunch on Friday Michael struck up a conversation.
"So, Kara. Um, I was wondering if you wanted to come over tonight. I'm having a party, and I think you'd have fun. Some of my older friends are coming and they're pretty cool people. It's kinda an open invite thing, so anyone can come. But I just figure I'd invite you anyway," he shrugged and looked at his food intently.
"Sure. What time is it at?" I asked and looked up at him.
"It starts at seven-ish, but won't actually get fun till probably eight. You can come over whenever though."
"Should I wear something dressy, or casual or in the middle?"
"Whatever you wanna wear. Doesn't really matter. There'll probably be a lot of people though, so you should wear something you feel cute in." He winked playfully, making me laugh.
"Okay, cool," I nodded. "I'll be there."
"Awesome," he smiled as the bell rang for the next period. "Wanna sit together in art?" He fell in stride next to me a we both made our way to art class. We hadn't been sitting together for the entire week, our friendship barely there.
"I'd like that," I smiled. The rest of the day went by slowly as I counted the minutes until the party.
When I got home, I trudged up the stairs and to my room, thinking of what I could wear. I rummaged through my closet, searching for something cute enough to impress Michael's older friends.
I tried on outfit after outfit, dress after dress, and collapsed on my bed in frustration. I glared at the clothes hanging on the rack, wishing I could make cuter clothes magically appear.
That's when I noticed a dress bag hanging in the farthest back corner of my closet. I hadn't seen it before, but I got up and went to see what it was. I took it out, unzipping the opaque black bag, then gasped.
It was a light grey dress with a delicate black lace overlay. The front was modest with a fairly high neckline, but as I took it out to look at the back, I saw that the grey fabric plunged down to form a low back, while the black lace continued over where my back would be. It was beautiful.
I hurried to try it on, checking how it looked in the mirror. The dress was snug, emphasizing what curves I had, and hit my mid-thigh. I turned to look at the back and smiled. The dress covered enough that it wasn't inappropriate, but small enough that it looked sexy. I was going to drop jaws tonight.
I looked at the time, which read 5:36 pm. I still had a few hours, so I decided to actually do my hair and makeup.
I padded over to the bathroom off of my bedroom, pulling one of the large pallets off of a shelf on the wall. I'd never even opened it, on account of the fact that I hardly ever wore much on my face. But now I had a use for it. I popped it open to reveal an artists' array of colors, ranging from deep, rich purples, to fair pinks and yellows, to bright, vibrant greens and oranges, to smooth aquas and grays.
I settled on a smoky eye, but instead of using black and brown, I used a dark grey on my lids and blended it into a beautiful turquoise color. It took me about half an hour to get it to my artist's standards, but it looked amazing after.
I then proceeded to do my eyeliner, trying to get the wings as even as humanly possible, then mascara and soft pink lip stain. Looking at the time, I grabbed the flat iron out of a cupboard. I still had about an hour and forty five minutes before the party, so I straightened my hair, pulling up the two front pieces and tying them back. The look frame my face wonderfully, and I marveled at how different I looked.
When I had about ten minutes before the party actually started, I went to my mom's closet and picked out a pair of black, strappy heels. I knew they would kill my feet, but beauty is painful, right?
I got in my car after grabbing my phone off the desk in my room and opened my messages before starting the vehicle. I tapped on the conversation I was having with mom and texted her:
From: me
Hey mama. Michael invite me over to a party. I'll call if it gets too bad, but I might be home late. Don't worry if I don't respond to texts. There will probably be loud music. Not really sure. Anyway, I love you and I'll be home tonight. Xoxo
With that, I put the key in the ignition and backed out of the driveway, then made my way to Michael's house, ready for the party.
~~~~~~~~~~
Music pounded from two tall speakers on either side of Michael's lounge room. It was good music too, like blink 182, Panic! at the Disco, Fall Out Boy, and Nirvana. So I really didn't mind at all.
But what I did mind was the amount of grinding that was going on. When Mikey said a few people, he was totally lying. There were at least a hundred people there, all crowded together in a huge moshpit, bodies drenched in sweat and hair flying in all directions.
I had to admit, some of Michael's college friends were cute. Really cute. They all seemed like really nice people, if not a little too eager for a girlfriend. I was currently talking to one of them named Matt. He had long black hair, snake bites, and light blue eyes, as well as one of the sharpest jawlines I'd ever seen.
"So how old are you?" he said loudly over the pounding beat and clamor of the crowd.
"18. You?" I almost had to yell back. We were leaned near to each other, yet it was still difficult to hear.
"20. I'm not going to college though. I'm pursuing a career in the music industry." Matt looked down at the ground, his hands in his pockets.
"That sounds awesome! I'm probably going to be an artist." Even though I knew he was probably the nicest guy in the world, I still felt awkward talking I people other than Michael. And Luke, I guess.
Matt pulled his phone from his pocket and I saw the screen was lit up as someone tried to call him. "Oh man, I'm sorry. I've gotta take this. Catch you later?" he said, moving toward the door.
"Yeah! See ya!" I nodded and moved toward the kitchen where the food was. There were drinks on the counter, as well as snacks. I grabbed a few chips and ate them, looking around. People were mulling around, laughing and talking loudly. Most had drinks in their hands, and I figured that most were drunk.
"Hey! Kara!" came Michael's voice as he emerged from around the corner. "I'm glad you made it." He smiled and hugged me.
"Of course," I laughed. He smelled slightly of alcohol, but I just ignored it. "This is some party Mikey."
"Yeah. I had a better turnout than I'd expected," he nodded. "Oh, did you see that Calum came?"
"Oh?" I said. Calum, the boy from the hallway. I wasn't sure if that was a good thing or not.
"Michael!!" came a shrill cry from the next room.
"I'll be right back okay? Gotta make sure nothing's going on," he smiled and hurried away.
I just stood there next to the counter and nibbled on chips while looking at my phone. Mom hadn't texted yet, but I wasn't worried about that.
I had just locked my phone and was about to go back to the dance floor when a pair of muscular, tattooed arms circled around my shoulders, pulling me against a warm body. I panicked, looking down at the person's arms in fright.
Then I saw a skull tattoo on one of them and relaxed slightly.
"Hi," Luke's voice purred in my ear. "I didn't expect to see you here, Kar."
"What do you need Luke?" I asked quietly.
"Just saying hi," he chuckled. His breath was clear of the taint of the alcohol everyone else was gulping down, and I wondered why he was acting like this.
I was about to try to get out of his grasp when he brushed the hair at the base of my neck back and placed his lips ever so lightly on the skin there. I froze, every muscle tensing as he kissed me gently.
"Luke..." I whispered, closing my eyes.
"Yes?" His breath was hot on my skin, making it prickle slightly.
I stayed silent, unsure of what I was going to say in the first place.
"Would you like me to stop?" he asked before kissing my neck again, a bit higher up this time.
I thought for a moment, weighing the pros and cons of the moment. I secretly craved this. Ever since the moment I saw him, this was exactly what I wanted with him. This kind of small, tender moment. However, I wasn't sure if that was in my best interests. Would he just take me home for a night then dump me out on the street the next morning?
But he had come to visit me in the hospital. That had to mean something, right?
Making up my mind, I shook my head slightly. "No, I don't."
"Then loosen up will you?" he kissed up higher. "I'm afraid you might snap from the tension."
I tried to relax, leaning into him more than before. He chuckled quietly and turned my face toward his so he could place kisses along my jawline.
I shivered under his feather light touches, even though his body was hot against my semi-exposed back.
"Should we take this elsewhere?" His lips paused millimeters away from mine, turning up in a smirk.
I wasn't sure what that would entail, but I nodded anyway. How bad could it be?
[Edited]