"Cops!" Collin called out. "Cut the music!"
When no one responded, he crawled on top of the dining room table and stood. The stereo system was along the far wall near the television. Someone had burned a CD with songs from the show and right now, Pour Some Sugar on Me by Def Leppard was blasting through the speakers.
"Hey!" Collin tried again, waving his arms. "Cut the music!"
He caught Diana's eye, and he pointed at the swirling siren lights on the ceiling. She was in the middle of the living room and got over to the CD player and turned it off.
The crowd barely reacted; the buzz of conversation was still loud. Sam, however, noticed, and stepped out of the kitchen area. When she saw what was going on, she walked over to the panel of light switches and turned the dimmer up. The sudden shock of bright light was more effective than the lack of music.
"Everyone, shut the fuck up! The cops are here!" she scolded, and then headed down the stairs.
Diana made her way through the crowd to follow Sam. Kris and Jody also appeared and headed downstairs towards the front door.
Collin found Heather's eyes from across the way. She pointed to an invisible watch on her wrist and shrugged her shoulders. Her prediction had come true. He nodded, conceding that she had been correct, and then trailed down the stairs after his roommates.
Two cops in full uniform stood on the front stoop, their cruiser was parked parallel in front of the driveway, lights flashing.
"Need us to turn it down, officers?" Sam asked, taking on the role of spokesperson and using the voice that probably got her out of being grounded when she was in high school.
"Are you serving alcohol at this party?" asked the first cop, a tall and sturdily built middle-aged man with tanned features and a blonde goatee. His eyes scanned the cigarette butts and discarded red solo cups that were scattered on the walkway.
"No, sir," Sam responded with a flutter of her eyelashes. "We've only provided soft-drinks and snacks."
The second officer, a tall younger woman with a dark braid down her back, looked at her partner. "Do you believe that, Jones?"
"I don't know, Garcia. I bet if I picked up one of those cups and smelled it, we'd have probable cause to search the premises."
"We can't control if people spike their own drinks, officers." Sam was really trying to turn up the charm.
As they all stood there, streams of people poured out from around the side of the house, having exited through the back door into the yard.
"Quite the turnout," Garcia remarked.
"Doubt the fire marshall would be happy," Jones quipped.
Collin did his best not to roll his eyes at this ridiculous blustering, but he kept his mouth shut.
Sam tried a new approach. "We tried to shut it down earlier, officers, but people just kept showing up. Got beyond our expectations."
The cops exchanged a smug smile. "Do you need help clearing the place?" Jones asked.
"Because if we have to come back here," Garcia added, "you'll be getting more than just a citation."
"Citation?" Sam asked. "Can't this just be a warning?"
The cops laughed. Literally laughed. "You can expect a citation in the mail," Jones said matter-of-factly.
After the cops walked back to their cruiser, Collin made his way back inside. "Party's over!" he announced. But it was unnecessary. The great exodus was well under way and the only people left in the common areas were people who he recognized.
He looked around for Heather, praying she wasn't one of the people who had snuck out the back. When he turned into the living room, he was relieved to see her sitting on the couch.
But his relief soon turned to agitation when he realized Avery was sitting next to her.
Why would Avery be talking to Heather? Was Avery aware that Heather was the girl he mentioned seeing, or, by some awful coincidence, did they actually somehow know each other?
The paradox of two worlds meeting made his equilibrium off-center. One measly cup of jungle juice was not enough to insulate him from the pit that formed in his stomach as he carefully approached them on the couch.
"Hello," he said to get their attention.
"So?" Heather looked up and asked. Avery's eyes didn't shift towards him.
"Party's over, as you can see." He spread out his arms, keeping his attention on Heather. "And a citation is coming in the mail, but, on the plus side, there's no longer a line for beer."
"I should go find Gina," Avery said abruptly and stood. "I think a group of people were walking to the club."
Collin hadn't seen Gina, but it also wasn't his problem. Was it? He looked between Avery and Heather. "There were a bunch of people walking down the block, but I didn't see Gina." He took a deep breath and muttered, "You can stay here if you can't find her."
Avery looked at him and shook her head slowly. "No, I can't. But, don't worry. I'll just call her." Then she walked down the stairs.
Collin flopped down next to Heather. "What was that about?" he asked.
"Don't worry about it," she answered.
Of course, that only stoked the fire of his anxiety, but he decided not to push it. "Ready for that refill that I offered you before the cops came and busted up the party?"
"Definitely." She patted his thigh.
He stood back up, grabbed two fresh red solo cups from the stack in the kitchen, and then went to the keg. When he pumped the tap, he realized it was practically full. They'd have beer for days!
A few of his roommates were upstairs by now, along with a handful of their friends. But the vibe was subdued. Someone–he wasn't sure who–had plugged an iPod into the auxiliary cord and Ani DiFranco was quietly playing in the background.
After pumping the tap up, he pressed down the nozzle, allowing a stream of golden liquid to pour out. "It's a bit foamy," he informed Heather as a thick white head covered the beer.
"Oh well." She shrugged.
The foam was so bad that he only got the cups about half full of liquid before the head reached the cup's rim. Then he carried them over to the couch, careful not to slosh. "Well, this is Miller High Life, the champagne of beers, so a bit of fizz should be expected," he said with a chuckle as he handed one to Heather.
They both took drinks, tilting the cups back. When they lowered them, Heather had a thick white mustache. "You've got a little something right there." Collin reached out with his thumb, dabbing at the corner of her mouth.
"You do too." She reached out her own hand.
For a second they were frozen, hands near lips, eyes locked.
"Well, that sucked." Sam plopped down on the green couch that was perpendicular to them.
Heather broke away first and then they both wiped at their upper lips with the backs of their hands.
"Got a full keg," Collin said, "in case you're thirsty."
"You know it." She didn't move. "But, arg! That is so annoying. I wonder which neighbor called the po-po on us!"
"I wonder what neighbor didn't call the cops." Collin laughed and took another foamy sip of beer.
"Oh, come on. We weren't that loud!"
Collin met Heather's eyes and started laughing. "Yes. Yes, we were!"
"Fine. I just..." she trailed off.
"Where's Emily?" Collin asked.
"Who?"
"Isn't that the name of the girl you're seeing?"
Sam squinted. "Oh, that Emily. No, not really." Then she stood. "I really don't want fucking beer. I can't believe all the liquor is gone. And," she let out a long and dramatic sigh. "This can't be how the night ends!"
"I heard some people were going out to the clubs," Heather offered. "That's what–what was her name? Avery?–said."
That got Sam's attention. "You were talking with Avery?"
"Just for a minute."
Collin and Sam both waited quietly, expecting her to say more, but she didn't elaborate.
"Maybe I will go out. You guys want to come with me?" Sam asked.
"No thanks," Heather answered. "Actually, I should probably get home."
"I'll walk you." Collin stood.
"It's too far for you to do a round trip at this time of night."
Collin thought back to the first time he walked her home. There was no way he would let her go back by herself. "I'll bring my bike. The ride home will be quick."
"Okay," she relented.
They all stood and made their way down the stairs. Heather and Sam waited in the driveway as Collin ran into the backyard to grab his bike. Then they all started walking down the first block together.
Sam split off once they reached Pacific Avenue, but Heather and Collin continued on to Ocean Street. They were quiet for most of the walk. The only sound was the chain of the bike.
He still didn't know what Avery had said, and as they walked, he hoped the bike was the only thing that stood between him and Heather.