Brandy
Hellen and I arrive at the Columbia party at around ten o'clock, where we find a load of privileged young adults. I feel so out of place because every single person has such a similar sense of style and attitude and then here I am, just not blending.
I assume Hellen feels even more left out. She doesn't even go to college and her sense of style is just so unique compared to every other girl.
I expected to feel weird about Hellen after she told me how she feels, but to my surprise, I feel exactly the same. I think I'm just grateful that we're friends again and I don't care about anything else.
On the way over here, our hands accidentally touched on the subway and my heart raced so quickly when I imagined what she was thinking. We aren't at the point where we can joke about it quite yet, but we both know we know how she feels.
"Where's your friend?" Hellen asks me over the loud, pounding pop music playing in the background.
I search the environment but see no sight of Miles. "Let me try calling him," I say. I pull out my phone and call Miles.
"Hello?" He says, and I can hear the same music playing in the background.
"Miles, I'm here in the front. Where are you?" I shout as I cover one ear with my hand.
"Come find me. I'm upstairs," he tells me.
He hangs up and I look awfully confused at my phone as I shut it off. "Let's go," I tell Hellen as I guide her through the house as if I know where I'm going.
I didn't expect Columbia students to be so rowdy. Then again, I haven't heard much about Columbia in general. As we walk up the stairs, we get a good look at the whole party, like an aerial shot that captures each scene.
There are plenty of people making out, taking shots, playing beer bong and smoking dope. And then there are just the regular people who are standing on the side with their red plastic cups, doing nothing.
"Miles?" I shout as I reach the second floor.
I turn to Hellen and she shrugs. "So who is Miles again?" She asks.
"This guy I met at an NYU party—a very special night. God, we haven't talked in so long I haven't even caught you up." I laugh. "I punched someone that night."
She laughs. "Is it really loud in here or did you say you punched somebody?"
"No, I did," I confirm. "She was this girl who was obsessed with Benji. Oh, wait, you know her. Her name is Natalie."
"I hate that bitch." She chuckles. "Damn, look at you go, B," she roots for me. "College has changed you. Just imagine how much prison would change you."
"I'm very easily influenced," I joke.
"Yeah? And who's influencing you to punch people?"
"Well, nobody," I say.
"Not Benji, I hope," she says.
"Benji would never punch anybody. He has too much class for that."
"I thought you had class," she tells me. "What the hell happened?" She sounds worried.
"College," I state. I laugh as I lean against the wall. "Damn it, Miles, where are you?" I mutter.
A couple of minutes later, Miles appears out of thin air. I was talking to Hellen that I didn't even notice him corner us. "Brandy!" He smiles.
"Miles, where have you been?" I jokingly complain. "Where can a girl get a drink around here?"
He laughs. "I'll take you. Come with me."
"Oh, wait. This is Hellen. Hellen, Miles. Miles, Hellen." I introduce them. They briefly nod their heads at each other.
"Nice to meet you, Hellen. I'll get you some beer. Come with me," he says.
We follow Miles, who seems to be very popular at this campus. Every single we pass says hi to him and I wonder how he has so many connections. I thought that Miles was a pretty shy guy, but he seems to be quite friendly with everyone.
"I like him," Hellen says to me. "Nice dude."
"Want me to set you up?" I joke, hoping we are officially at that point now.
She laughs. "Yeah, totally. He's like, super hot. Sexy, even."
We laugh until we reach the bar—which really isn't a bar, but what the hell else do you call it? The table with cheap beer and booze?
"What's your drink?" Miles asks us.
"Rum and coke," I answer for the both of us. It's the safest drink you can order. I know what to expect and it doesn't get me drunk.
"Extra rum?" He smirks.
I shake my head and smile. "I shouldn't."
"Where's the boyfriend?" He asks. "Benji."
"He had, uh, a family thing," I say as I reach for the cup he passes to me.
"Sucks. I was hoping we could start over, him and I. We didn't exactly get a good introduction last time," he says.
"What happened last time?" Hellen asks, her head in her drink. "Please say it was dramatic." She smirks.
I playfully roll my eyes. "Benji was just kind of being a jerk. It's okay though, it's over and done with. There's nothing else we can do but move on and do better, right?"
"Exactly right," Miles agrees. "Let's go upstairs. There's something I want to show you guys."
We follow Miles into his mysterious plan and hope for the best. I'm still no party animal but I think I'm doing better in terms of my anxiety. I used to get super freaked out by the fact that I was surrounded by a ton of drunk strangers.
Miles opens this back door that leads to, what looks like nothing. It's pitch black for a moment and it takes a second for my eyes to adjust to the light.
"Is he kidnapping us?" Hellen whispers to me and laughs.
Most of the room has a red light to it, kind of like a photography red room. I see a couple of people sitting around a circular table, smoking cigars and drinking booze. It appears that they are playing a game of poker, but I don't know cards very well.
"Sit," Miles instructs us. We do so and he introduces us to some of his friends, who are so into the game that they barely acknowledge us.
"What are they playing?" I ask him.
"It's a Columbia thing," he says vaguely. "No one else in the world knows how to play."
"What's it called?" Hellen asks.
"Dark Card," he answers. "It's no ordinary game, either. It's kind of messed up if you ask me."
"So why did you bring us here?" I laugh.
"To play." He smiles at me. "You're smart, you'll get the hang of it."
"Count me out," Hellen says. "I'm actually in the mood for some fresh air and maybe some weed," she says. "Will you be okay, B, or do you want to come with me?"
This is one of those moments in every movie where the main character has a little devil and angel on their shoulders. Staying here alone with Miles and these strangers in a dark room seems kind of like a red flag, but for some reason, I don't want to leave.
"I'll be okay. You go ahead, Hel, I'll catch up to you," I tell her.
"Okay, call me if you need me," she says, placing her hand on my shoulder, making that imaginary little devil disappear off of me.
"So how do you play?" I ask, fully eager to start playing whatever this is.
Miles begins to explain the rules of this rather complicated game, that comes with bargaining, gambling and risks. He even explained what happened a few nights ago when someone lost thousands of dollars because they wouldn't complete a dare.
"So this is truth or dare? What do you need the cards for?" I wonder.
"It's not truth or dare, exactly. Whoever wins the first game of poker gets to set the rules for the next round. The loser has to complete a list of dares or give up the amount of money that they lost in the game."
"Who makes the dares?"
"Everyone at the table gets to pick one dare for the loser to complete," he answers. "Are you in or are you out? I know it's messed up so you don't have to play if you don't want to."
I shake my head, determined, for some reason, to play this insidious game. "Count me in."
"You aren't scared of losing?" He laughs.
"Beginners luck," I say. "I can't lose."
We all start playing a round of poker, which luckily, I know how to play. I hide my cards from everyone else like my life depends on it, and who knows, maybe it does. I don't know what kind of dares these people will make me do if I lose.
"Hey, what's the craziest dare the loser has had to do?" I lean in and ask Miles.
"You don't want to know, Brandy." He laughs. "Just don't lose," he warns me.
I do really well for a while. In fact, I'm at the top of my game here. Stupid me starts taking one too many sips of the drinks plastered out on the table and I start to lose my focus. Frankly, I don't even know what I'm drinking. I will never make this mistake again. It's really a dangerous thing to do.
My brain goes a bit fuzzy as I lay out my cards on the table.
Suddenly, all I hear is "loser" and they all start to laugh and clear up the cards and stack them.
"What the hell happened?" I ask Miles.
"You lost, Brandy." He sighs. "You can complete the dares or you can pay what you lost in the game."
"How much did I lose?" I freak out.
He sighs again. "Ten grand."
"I don't have ten grand!" I shout.
"It's okay, just complete the dares," he says. "I'll make sure they go easy on you because it's your first time, okay? I won't let them make you do anything stupid or dangerous. Don't you worry."
My mind blanks out and I can hardly think. God, why did I agree to play this game?
"Can I hear the dares before I choose?" I ask the table.
"Nope, those are the rules. You have to choose beforehand," a guy answers me. "So which is it?"
"Dare, I guess," I tell them.
They all smirk at each other and I know this can't be any good. Miles does what he promised and tells everyone to play nice and be gentle because I've never played before—and they all agree.
"I'll go first," the same guy says. "I dare you to strip out of your clothes."
"Fuck you, Mark," Miles spits. "Come on, don't be like that."
"I'm not forcing anyone to do anything. And you can keep on the underwear and bra, I'm not a bastard," he says.
"Sure you aren't," Miles says.
"It's fine," I say. "I lost fair and square." I start to take off my shirt and for a moment, I almost forget who I am. Why the hell am I stripping in front of these strangers? God, I wish I was with Benji at home instead of here.
I lower my jeans and toss everything on the ground. "Happy?" I laugh.
The boys laugh and cheer and the girls just sit there, judging me.
"I dare you to go outside," one of the girls says. "Do a lap around the house."
I don't even bother arguing because these dares aren't really so bad. I was expecting something like, jump out of the window or hold my breath underwater for a certain amount of time.
Then again, that sounds like a lawsuit.
I do as I'm told and do a lap around the party. The girl who dared me follows me to make sure I'm doing the dare. Every single person I pass starts cheering me on and every single boy looks me up and down—which makes me feel so degraded.
Hellen spots me and she gasps. "B, are you okay?"
"I'll tell you later," I answer as I keep on walking.
After that, I'm dared a few other things that aren't actually that bad. I chug a small bottle of Hennessy, which doesn't taste too bad.
When I have one dare left, my brain is completely dead and even though I promised I wouldn't get drunk, I do feel pretty out of it.
"Alright, my turn," the last guy says. "I won't be mean about it either, okay? It's really easy," he promises, and I thank God. "I dare you to make out with somebody in this room."
"Dude, she has a boyfriend," Miles says. "No."
"She completes the dare or she pays up," he says. "It can be anybody in this room. My mind is made up."
"You're such an ass, Tim," Miles shouts at him. "She's drunk, okay? And she has a boyfriend."
"And look, only two minutes until midnight," Tim says after he looks at his watch. "I guess you have your New Year's kiss," he jokes.
"Tim, change the dare," Miles demands.
Everyone argues at the table because of this dare and I start to freak out. "Everyone shut up!" I suddenly shout and they all stop talking. "Just... let me think." I place my arms on the table and lean against my hands. "I can't do this..." I think out loud.
"Then pay up," Tim says.
What an asshole.
I look to Miles, and I know he knows what I'm thinking. "I... I guess," I stammer.
I hear everyone outside chanting and counting down for the new year.
"Ten, nine..."
I start to feel physically ill just thinking about kissing anyone but my boyfriend.
The door swings open and I am quite literally dead-shocked to see Benji in front of my eyes. Am I really drunk or am I seeing this correctly?
"Benji..." I squint my eyes.
"Brandy?" He looks me up and down.
"Five, four, three..."
I run up to him and kiss him as soon as I hear the crowd reach one. It sounds like everyone is cheering just for us but I know it's not true. So here I am, kissing Benji in a room full of strangers in my underwear.
I let go of the kiss and look him in his eyes. I start to say something but I can't finish—or start it. I just let him hold me and leave him wondering what the hell is going on.
"Well played," Tim sighs. "Damn you perfect timing."
"Can—can we g-get out of here?" I slur my words.
"Absolutely," he agrees. Miles hands him my clothes awkwardly. "Thank you," Benji says sincerely.
He helps me get dressed before helping me out the door. We meet Hellen outside, who looks absolutely terrified for me. I stand in between the two of them who help me walk in a straight line.
After a ton of waiting, we finally get a cab and Benji and I sit in the back while Hellen sits in the front.
I lean on his shoulder and he holds me tightly. "Are you okay?" He asks, with sincerity in his calming voice.
I attempt a nod. "Ask me again tomorrow?"
He chuckles and wraps his arm around me even tighter. "Let's get you home, baby." He kisses my head and rubs my shoulder.
Benji helps me to bed when we finally get back to the apartment. He tucks me in properly and switches off the light.
"Benji?" I manage to say before he shuts the door.
"Yeah?"
"I'm sorry," I apologize.
He chuckles and comes back to sit on my bed, right beside me. "You're drunk, babe. We can talk about it tomorrow." He runs his hands through my hair.
"I almost cheated on you," I drunkenly admit. "Not because I wanted to. You came in... literally just in time."
"You almost cheated on me?" He repeats. "With?"
"With..." I start to fall asleep. "With..."
He laughs. "I'll see you in the morning."
Why is he not more upset? I just confessed that I almost cheated on him and he doesn't know the context. If I were him I would be angry and freaking out.
Is this a good thing or something I should be concerned about? Why the hell wouldn't he be mad?
--
Hello! This was probably one of my favourite chapters to write, I love it so much. What did you think?
I have the next chapter written so I will post it tomorrow instead of Sunday :) I'll see you all soon