The next few days passed like a blur and every day in school felt just as exciting. Brooke and Emily had become her staple friends and Dakota had enjoyed sitting with them at lunch, laughing, throwing hot dog pieces to the birds, and them trying to teach her to skateboard and failing miserably. Even Noah had dropped in every now and then, with the occasional visit from Zach and Mike. It had been a hazy end of the week and before she knew, Dakota was curled up in bed on Friday night. Just before she turned off her YouTube video to got to sleep, she got a text.
Emily: hey queen
Dakota: wassup
Emily: what you doing tomorrow?
Dakota thought for a moment. True, she was doing nothing but what if Emily wanted to do something overtly social?
Dakota: not sure yet
Emily: well a few of us are going to
Lovers Lake tomorrow if you're keen?
Lovers Lake?
Dakota: whats that?
Emily: its this hidden spot where all us
cool kids go to hang out. It's gonna
be the last time we can swim tho since
its gonna get too cold soon so
pls pls come if you can. It'll be a laugh!
Dakota thought for a moment and decided to be brave.
Dakota: sure!
Emily: YES! Okay so please meet us here at 10am?
Dakota: sounds good!
Emily: I'll ask Noah if he wants to come too ;)
In came a pin for Google Maps pointing to some trail at the edge of the suburbs. Following it on the map, she could see the great lake Emily was talking bout only it was called 'Hackett's Reservoir'. Lovers Lake was maybe a nickname. Damn, hopefully Emily doesn't want to make out.
The next morning, her parents were confused as to where she was going so bright and early on a Saturday morning (usually she'd sleep until midday at least). When she explained she was going out with her friends, they were ecstatic and even slipped her $30 to have fun. Emily mentioned swimming, so Dakota decided to ditch her classic grey hoodie and make an effort. She threw a Lana del Rey oversized t-shirt over her black bathing suit and paired it with some grey shorts. Usually she'd save jewellery for special occasions but today was the day she wore a silver chain on top. How adventurous. Completing the look was a pair of sandals, some sunnies from Urban Outfitters and then a satchel which she put her purse and digital camera for good measure. Hitching a ride from her father, ten minutes later she'd arrived at the start of the trail in the car park where Emily waved them down. Behind her, Mike and Noah were lugging an ice box from the trunk of a car and Dakota quickly said her goodbyes before her dad could ask what was inside. Only once the red Volvo disappeared from view did she turn her attention to them.
"What's in the box?" She asked, using her hand to shield the sun from her eyes. It wasn't exactly too warm a day but the smell of freshly-mowed grass hing in the air that made her feel summery.
"Sorry! Didn't realise your dad would drop you off otherwise I woulda hid it better. It's just fresh water and vegetable smoothies, of course" Mike joked, finally heaving it onto the gravel path, The path behind him weaved around the hills with thick shrubbery and long grass littering the way. On the horizon, Dakota could just make out the glisten of water... or perhaps that was a mirage.
"I know a crate of beer when I see one," Dakota said with a laugh and turned to Noah who was wearing his usually geeky get-up except he replaced his jeans with denim shorts, "Hey!"
"Hey, good to see you!" He replied with a smile.
"Zach's already down there," Emily announced, swatting away a bug. Her outfit would be complete punk-rock style again, with a faded band vest and red shorts with plenty of chains and rings, if it wasn't for the comically large black brimmed hat that sat atop her head. One wrong step and she was sure she'd wobble over.
"Cool. Who's all coming?" Dakota asked Emily as they started to walk down the trail. The grass billowed in the strong winds, bugs were humming, birds were chirping. The smell of flowers lingered in the air. Noah and Mike trotted on ahead each carrying an end of the ice box.
"Not too sure. Zach for sure, I don't know if he's invited anyone. I asked Brooke and Asher but they said they were busy,"
"Back to the woods for mysterious reasons?" Dakota asked raising an eyebrow.
"Afraid not. They have band practise,"
Dakota pictured them playing a flute and tuba.
"Didn't realise they were in school band,"
"Not the school, silly! They have their own rock band, the Ciceros - you should have a listen, they're quite good!"
"What?!" Dakota exclaimed earnestly, "I had no idea they were in a band, thats's so cool!"
"Yeah! Asher's on bass and Brooke's lead singer. I don't really know the other members. You should ask to join, I think they need another backup singer,"
"I don't sing,"
"Well, neither does that their backup singer now clearly but that hasn't stopped him!"
Ten minutes later, they arrived at the shore of a vast lake. The shore was more like a beach with dark coloured sand and the occasional shoot of a plant trying its best to make it through the ground. They were alone out here, a few other groups of people sat at different points around the lake, all staying far away from each other. The occasional dog-walker would stroll back and Dakota made a mental note to hide the booze whenever that happened. Sure enough, Zach had already set up shop just ahead, laying out a large red picnic blanket under a tree a mere two meters from the soft waters. As they approached, Dakota realised he wasn't alone: two people sat with him, a round boy with a freckled face and ginger hair and a brunette girl with a round face and plump lips.
"You made it! Oh, and you brought Arizona!" He said motioning to Dakota.
"Hey, Zach! Long time no see," Dakota said playfully. This behaviour was so out of her comfort zone but she tried her best to act casual about it. Suddenly, he bent down on his knee and shouted 'my liege' but Emily pushed him over.
"Come off it, Zach. Is that Jeremiah?" She called out to the ginger boy, who rose to his feet and gave her a big bear hug, "Damn, is the whole lacrosse team coming today?"
"Nope, just the hot ones," Zach replied, turning to Mike "Oh my god, who is that stranger? Everyone! Don't look him in the eye or he'll follow you home!"
"Oh, is this what we're doing?"
"What do we do when we see a bear, guys, remember our Scout training. If it's brown, lay down. If it's black, fight back. If it's white, goodni- ooh, bear! There's a joke there..."
"That's homophobic!' Mike exclaimed and began to tackle Zach to the ground, spinning around and kicking sand everywhere. Everyone took a few steps back.
"Oh! Oh! Star-pupil Michael Miller takes the lead, but will he land a touchdown! Find out after a word from our sponsors" Zach called out as they wrestled. Emily rolled her eyes and plopped down on the picnic blanket, with Dakota copying soon after. Just then, a soft girly voice spoke beside her.
"Hey, why don't I know you?"
It was the girl, the stranger.
"I'm Dakota. I'm the new girl," Dakota wondered how long she would have to keep introducing herself.
"Oh, cool! You're the one everyone's been talking about,"
Emily shot the girl a quizzical look.
"I'm Melanie Woods! It's so nice to meet you," she said with a big smile.
"Likewise!" Dakota said cheerily. Melanie tuned back to talk to Jeremiah just as Emily leaned over.
"Big theatre kid," she whispered, "DO NOT let her join the Spotify queue!"
Dakota laughed as Emily whipped out a tiny speaker from her bag and began fiddling with it. The familiar 'the bluetooth device is ready to pair' erupted form it as Emily synced it to her phone, which was then followed with the dulcet tones of The Neighbourhood.
"Oh my god, Em! We're trying to have a party here! Get the emo tunes off' Zach called out, reemerging with Mike both covered head to foot in dirt.
"Oh, grow up!"
Noah, meanwhile, had clicked open the ice box and brought out a corona for himself and then passed one to Dakota.
"Want one?'
"Oh, uh... sure,"
Dakota if you get drunk and embarrass yourself, you're never going outside again.
Noah clicked open the beers and took a deep swig while Dakota took a tiny sip. The taste was weird; it just tasted like bubbles. Seeing that people had begun to party, Emily whipped out and lit a Marlboro much to the dismay of Melanie who scooted a few meters over out of the smoke.
Go ahead and cry, little girl.
Nobody does it like you do
I know how much it matters to you.
I know that you got daddy issues.
The music played loudly from Emily speakers, who had herself begun to bob her head along. Usually, Dakota loved this music but even she had to admit it put a damper on the mood. Thankfully, Mike's suggestion saved the day.
"Anyone wanna go for a swim?"
The water was cold but perfectly refreshing. Dakota, cautious in nature, had taken her time getting in sticking close to the shallow ends to build up her courage. Here, the lake floor was filled with reeds and green shoots which made for an interesting watch. Mike and Zach, of course, had charged full pelt and dived in, sending great waves in all direction. A few nearby swimmers shook their heads and had swum away but the pair had been laughing too loudly to notice. Noah, Melanie and Jeremiah had decided to sit this one out and were laughing loudly on the picnic blanket. Emily, meanwhile, was laying on her back in the shallow end of the lake only probably a foot off the ground. Dakota shuffled on over and stepped over Emily who's eyes were closed.
"Zach, if that's you about to splash me, I have a knife and I'm not afraid to use it," Emily said coldly.
"It's Dakota,"
Her eyes shot open.
"Sorry, old habits. Come lie down with me,"
Dakota faltered for a moment, feeling unsure and awkward. The shoots were everywhere which made lying down kinda hard, plus as well it didn't look too comfortable-
A hand grabbed Dakota's and tugged her down and she gave in. Rolling onto her back, she floated above the water and tired her best to enjoy it... although she didn't have to try very hard. With the sun hot overhead and the gentle whooshing of the wind, the whole thing felt serene and Dakota couldn't help but close her eyes.
"So, D... how're you doing?" Emily asked.
"I'm doing good!"
"I just know how it feels to be the 'new girl' and this is a lot of new people so I just wanna make sure you're doing okay. But to be fair, you're doing alright on your own- everyone loves you!'
Dakota smiled. That's really sweet.
"Thank you, that's so kind. I'm really glad I met you guys. Everyone here has been so kind,"
"Yeah, it's an interesting bunch today. Noah was practically giddy on the phone when I said you were coming,"
"Really?!"
"Yeah, he wants to be friends with you really bad; he was begging me to invite you - not that I wouldn't have invited you anyway - but it's a secret, so don't tell him I told you, 'kay?"
"'Kay!" Dakota repeated, secretly over the moon. People really wanted to be friends with her? So her social awkwardness hadn't scared anyone off, that was a good start.
A cloud must have covered the sun for they were suddenly drenched in shadow, sending a chill down Dakota's back. Shivering slightly, Dakota scrunched her already closed eyes together and realised the cloud was person-shaped. Her eyes shot open to see Mike standing over them. With his shirt off and skin glistening in the sun, his physique was impressive... or would have been, if he wasn't just about to splash them. Suddenly, Emily kicked her feet beside her, sending a great wave in his direction, before grabbing Dakota's hand and taking off running down the banks, laughing. Mike gave chase briefly but Emily's splash must have struck hard for he was spluttering water and fell to his knees.
"That's what you get!!' Emily called out, doing a victory-dance "Don't poke the bear or else you... wait, are you okay?!"
From down the banks of the water, Mike brushed her off holding up a thumbs up with his face bright red. Dakota poked Emily's back.
"Wait, where's Zach?" She said. Together, they spun around in a circle, each covering each others back, scanning across the lake for any sight of a certain brunette trouble-maker. Apart from Mike still spluttering and the group on the picnic watching intently, there was no sign of him.
"He didn't... he didn't drown, did he?" Dakota said, eyes wide.
SPLASH!!! A wall of water rose form the ground, sending Emily and Dakota on their asses. The water splashed down to reveal Zach with his arms raised, emerged from the water like a sea monster, or Godzilla. Their initial surprise was replaced with glee, having been perfectly beat, and they gave the sea monster a round of applause.
"Bravo! You win the splash game, I hope it makes you happy," Emily groaned.
"How long can you hold your breath for?" Dakota asked, in awe.
"Thank you, thank you very much! And very long, Arizona. I've lived a long and treacherous life but with every trauma, I learn something new about me,"
"How inspiring," muttered Emily, sourly.
"What he means by that-" Mike began as he appeared by Zach's side, face de-flushed, "-is that he was on the swim team before lacrosse,"
"Well, when you say it like that, it sounds less exciting. Sorry I try to make life interesting,"
"Apology accepted," said Emily, blowing water out her nose, "I'm gonna go dry off,"
Unanimously, everyone decided to join and trudged their way through the lake bed and in the direction of the waving picnic people. Noah tossed Dakota her towel and she began drying off her body. Still wet, Emily lay her towel down and went to lie down, when...
"Who's that coming over?" Emily asked peering down the beach. True enough, a number of shadows had emerged from the trail and were now coming towards them. Under the blaring sun, it was hard to see.
"Oh..." Zach began, hesitantly, "I had asked Matthew to come, and you know..."
"But that means-"
"HEY BOYS!" Her voice cut through the air like a knife. The girl bounded closer in her pink two piece, her curls bouncing, her Gucci sunglasses glinting in the sunlight: Samantha Young. Emily looked furious. Samantha bounded over and gave Zach a bit squeeze, before whipping off her sunglasses and looking around the crowd before her.
"Och, Zach. You're too funny, you'd just invite anyone," she said with a laugh. Her eyes fell on Emily, "Hey, girly!"
"Hey, bestie!" She replied in the same high-pitched, bubbly voice.
The venom in their voices was unmistakable. Jeremiah turned to Dakota and pulled an 'eek' face and Dakota tried not to laugh. The tension was so uncomfortable. Just then, a boy appeared by Samantha's side and draped his arm over her shoulder. She cuddled into him, pecking him on the cheek and kicking one of her feet into the air. The man was buff, his unbuttoned shirt was billowing in the wind revealing his defined abs underneath. With thick brows, good bone structure and piercing blue eyes, it was no wonder he'd be Samanthas boyfriend. His dark hair was swept to one side. He broke into a wide smile to everyone, before turning to Dakota.
"Oh, who are you? I don't think we've met," he said kindly.
"That's the girl I was telling you about, remember?" Samantha whispered purposefully loud into his ear like it was some inside joke but the boy hadn't seemed to notice.
"I'm Dakota. It's nice to meet you," She said rather confidently. Perhaps it was because she knew everyone here and didn't feel so much like a stranger anymore.
"Oh, awesome! I'm Matthew. Matthew Carter,"
Surprisingly, he reached out a hand which Dakota shook. Despite the fact she was smiling widely, Samantha's eyes held no happiness.
"Hey, big D! I love that you actually have a new outfit today," she sneered with that familiar bubblegum pop smile.
"Hey, Big S!" Emily interjected, "How about you get a new joke for a change? You're getting sloppy,"
Samantha turned to Emily and crossed her arms.
"Oh, cute! Don't you have a class to fail?"
"Don't you have a back to shave?'
Fire burned in each others eyes as they glared menacingly at each other. The entire time, Mike had been hitting Dakota's knee to say 'what the fuck. What the fuck. What the fuck'.
"Anyway, Michelle and Grace are nearly here. Maaaatt? Can you lotion my back?" She whined and before he could reply, she had already tugged down the beach. He glanced back to the group and smiled and they were gone.
"Great. Samantha, Michelle and Grace. Dream team," Emily muttered, scooping up another bottle of beer from the cooler. Dakota had to agree; the thought wasn't exactly exciting. Noah cleared his throat.
"Well, I don't know about you guys but I'm not gonna let them spoil our fun. It's been. Good day already, we got alcohol and good chats, let's just keep enjoying ourselves."
His words felt inspiring and everyone felt charged after. It was true, they were having fun already, why let some random girls ruin their fun? Mike nudged Noah and gave him a broad smile, while Noah blushed.
"To having a good time!' Emily called out, holding her beer bottle out in front of her.
"To having a good time!' Everyone eelse said.
CLINK!
When Grace and Michelle had arrived, Samantha and them made their own spot to sit a little ways downtime lakebed, too far to speak to the main group but not too far away to jog over and steal a beer before disappearing again. Weirdly enough, everyone was satisfied with that arrangement. The only sign that they were there was the occasional shouts of laughter than everyone pretended to ignore. Matthew sat with his girlfriend, occasionally drifting over to the main group to chat before being called back for whatever reason Samantha could come up with - to take photos of her, to film her and her friends dancing, or to to use his stomach as a pillow. Zach out of politeness had travelled to and from, trying to bridge the gap, but no one else made any effort to speak to the girls. As the day pressed on and the sun slid down the horizon, everyone tried their best to make the most of their day. From more swimming to going for a walk around the lake, to playing a dismal game of baseball (to no one's surprise, Mike had won), the day was going amazingly and Dakota was just happy she had had the perfect memory not even a week into living here. The sun skimmed down to the top of the horizon, sending a great orange glow over everything signifying the start of the golden hour. With the nighttime on its way and not wanting the good times to end, Zach had the bright idea to start a campfire and the group worked together collecting sticks and logs from all around the lake, culminating in a big pile on the dark sand. Surprisingly, Melanie had been the most helpful having ruminated that pulling patches of grass and scrunching up paper from an old book in her bag helped get the fire started. Curious (and likely cold), Samantha and her posse had shuffled on over to join them so that the group sat in a big circle around the now-roaring campfire. Despite not having spoken to any of them thus far, Samantha somehow positioned herself as the group leader and stood up.
"So, Michelle and Grace and I were talking..." a round of giggles from the trio, "... and we've decided we're all going to play a game!"
No 'shall we play a game?' or 'would you like to play a game?', of course.
"It's 'Never Have I Ever' so everyone get a drink - no, Matt, I don't want a Corona, get me a Peroni,"
They all reached over to the ice box and plucked a drink from its watery depths. Noah shot Dakota a worrisome look and she pulled a face in agreement. Something in the way the light from the fire danced across Samantha's smiling face unnerved them and together they wondered what tricks she had up her sleeve. Dakota turned to Emily to see if she shared her thoughts but was extra surprised she looked to be enjoying herself. Slouching back into her spot, Dakota waited for it to start with bated breath.
"So," Michelle began on Samatha's right. Something in the way they spoke made it seem like it was rehearsed. "We'll go in a circle and each person will ask a 'never have I ever question', starting with Grace and ending with Samantha"
Was Dakota imagining it or was Samantha smirking at her?
Grace, a curvy girl with a short mousey brown bob and too much mascara shuffled forward.
"Never have I ever... had sex,"
Samantha, Matt, Grace, Zach, Jeremiah and Emily all took a swig of their drinks while the rest of them sat sheepishly, even embarrassed. Samantha remained smirking and Dakota imagined she was taking mental notes. Melanie's turn was next, the girl sat up slightly.
"Um... never have I ever... drank alcohol,"
Everyone took a swig.
"Too easy, Melody," Samantha exclaimed, shaking her head and not listening when Melanie corrected her on what her name was.
"Never have I ever..." Zach began, before shrugging, "Kissed someone of the opposite sex,"
Everyone took a swig apart from Noah. His face flushed red. The posse of girls laughs loudly as Emily shook her head at them.
"Never have I ever kissed someone of the same sex," Mike chimed in after, taking a swig. The only other people to take sips were Emily and... Samantha?
"That's cheating, I'm not gay!" Michelle moaned, pouting like a baby.
"You've kissed a girl?" Matthew asked Samantha who flicked her hair and pretended to be shy, "That's kinda hot,"
They kissed and Emily retched loudly.
There was only one other person before her turn and Dakota was furiously racking her brain for something cool to ask. It had to be interesting, not boring, but not too out there that it would freak everyone and solidify her stance as a loser. What to say? What to say?
Jeremiah sat up beside her.
"Never have I ever... gotten in a fight,"
All eyes turned to Emily who pulled a face at them before downing the rest of the drink and throwing the can in the fire. Out the corner of her eye, Dakota spied Zach, Matthew and Mike taking sips themselves. After Emily picked another bottle from the icebox - this time a Peroni - all eyes turned to Dakota. Please god, don't let me voice croak, she thought.
"Never have I ever taken a drug,"
Michelle snorted and nudged Samantha who beamed at her. In response, Emily gave a loud 'ooooh' as if it were the most interesting thing in the world, before taking a sip. The only others to drink were Samantha, Michelle, Grace, Zach and... Melanie?
"When have you ever taken drugs?! Don't lie," Samantha asked her loudly, laughing. Melanie looked embarrassed.
"My brother gave me pot once," she said softly.
"Well, your brother is much cooler than you... Dakota from Arizona, you sure you haven't taken 'a drug'?" She asked, using air quotes.
"Nope,"
"You sure?" Samantha probed, raising an eyebrow, "You can tell me, we're all best friends here, right? Besides, you seem like the type. You seem a bit..."
She pulled an ugly face and shook her hands side to side, mimicking a seizure or something. Not sure what it meant, can't be any good, but it must have been the funniest thing in the world for Michelle and Grace rolled onto the floor in feats of laughter. Everyone else stared down at their drinks while Emily shook her head.
"She hasn't taken a drug, let's just move on," Emily snapped. Noah's turn.
"Never have I ever been in love," he said, his face still red. Everyone took a swig, even Noah.
"Aww..." Mike chimed in, "That's so heartwarming,"
"My turn!' Emily announced, turning around and sitting so she was directly staring at Samantha and her posse, "Never have I ever had a crush on my best friends boyfriend,"
Immediate silence. You could cut the tension with a knife. Samantha furrowed her brow and her face fell into a scowl all while Michelle beside her suddenly became very interested in a green shoot of grass poking out from the sand at her feet. No one moved, no one spoke and no one took a swig. Emily laughed to herself like she knew something no one else did.
"Mi-aow!" Zach called out, breaking the awkwardness, "Emily takes no prisoners,"
Samantha muttered something that no one else could hear but it made Grace smile. Michelle's turn was next. She shot a menacing look at Emily before turning to Noah.
"Never have I ever watched hentai,"
The three girls cackled loudly, tears streaming down their faces. A metal crinkling sound erupted and Dakota realised that Noah had squeezed the can in his hand. Emily stared at him cautiously, as if to say 'just ignore it'. No one took a swig.
"Be honest, Noah!" Grace exclaimed, before laughing again this time slapping Samantha's knee who herself sat forward.
"Okay well if you won't be honest, let's try again then, shall we? Never have I ever got off to Princess Leia in the bikini,"
More laughter, more shouts, but no one else moved and no one took a swig. Noah fists clenched on his knees while Emily tapped his shoulder reassuringly.
"Jeez, it was just a joke! So huffy... " Samantha sneered, "Matt's turn!"
"Never have I ever been a baddie called Samantha!" He said smirking at her. She giggled ferociously and took a swig of her drink, slapping him on his chest in playful annoyance. It was cute but... how lame.
"My turn!" Samantha called out.
A somber note fell upon the group as the sun finally disappeared over the horizon so that everything was bathed in a dark blue shade, with the orange light from the fire flickering on everyones faces. Looking around, Dakota realised that everyone else had left the lake and they were on their lonesome. She should probably text her mum and let her know she's still alive.
"Never have I ever had a deep, dark secret,"
Was Dakota imagining it or was Samantha staring right at her when she asked it? Maybe the darkness was playing tricks on her. Either way, Samantha took a deep swig of her drink and Dakota for some reason didn't want to be outmatched so she took a swig too. So did Emily, Mike, Noah and Zach. Michelle didn't, although the tension from earlier suggested she maybe should.
"Ooooh, how juicy! What's your secret, Sam?" Grace cooed but the blonde shook her head.
"Oh, I'm taking mine to the grave," she announced, downing her drink and tossing it into the fire.
That night, Dakota had gotten home around 7pm which for some reason made her parents thrilled than alarmed. Perhaps it was the promise that staying out all day on a Saturday meant she did indeed have friends. After wolfing the Thai food which they had gotten delivered, Dakota was happy to be back in her room 'rotting in bed' as she called it which consisted of scrolling Tumblr and Pinterest while some philosophy podcast played in the background. She said 'bed' but it was still just a sleeping bag on the ground; the furniture still hadn't been delivered. According to her father, the movers somehow got the wrong address and had taken their furniture to Brookings, Oregon, which had resulted in a lot of shouting down the phone. It was due to arrive Monday though - allegedly.
Her laptop plugged into the far wall on the floor dinged just after nine and curious, she crawled over to see what it was. Loading up the screen, Dakota couldn't help but smile. Zach had tagged her in a photo of everyone around the campfire on his instagram. Everyone looked cheery and happy, with Samantha's posse looking uncomfortable much to Dakota's satisfaction. It reminded her of those family photos your mum would force you to take with your sibling. The caption read 'good times with good friends' which made Dakota's heart flutter. She liked and commented a flame emoji. So they were friends!
Monday morning rolled around quickly and fairly soon Dakota had bid her mother farewell after dropping her off and was trudging across the plaza to the main doors. Emily was right to hit Lovers Lake when they did for a considerable chill had settled in the October air. After marching up the steps, Dakota was stopped in her tracks for at either side of the main doors, two girls were handing out fliers: Michelle and another girl that was part of Samantha's posse. She had a short orange afro and was wearing a fluffy pink two piece with matching earmuffs. The girl handed her a flier which Dakota took cautiously and only managed to notice the paper was orange before it was abruptly snatched out her hand.
"No, not her, Bianca!" Michelle said casting Dakota a snide smile.
"But Samantha said everyone!' Bianca exclaimed nervously, her eyes wide with fear. Was she scared of messing this up? Michelle bit her lip before thrusting the flier, now crumpled, into Dakota's hand.
"She sure does love doing charity work," Michelle hissed and Dakota pushed past her, making sure to hit her with her shoulder as hard as she could. Once inside the warm foyer, Dakota stared down at the flier as she headed to her first class of the day: English.
'Samantha Young Presents... Halloween Party! October 31st, Young residence. A night to die for!!!'
Even Dakota couldn't deny Samantha was good at making a flier. She took one long look admiring the handiwork before crumping it up and throwing it in the bin. As if she was going to go. Dakota struggled with parties at the best of times, let alone ones in a school where she barely knew anyone and certainly not ones hosted by one of the bitchiest girls she had ever met. Even though the first bell hadn't rung, the foyer was bustling with students but Dakota had become a master at making her way through these crowds and darted forward, weaving in and out of everyone, down a hall, up a flight of stairs, until she found herself in the familiar musky smell of Miss Davis's English class. The drapes were always drawn in this room no matter the weather, casting a dark, mysterious ambience over everything. Miss Davis too - a mad-looking older woman with circular glasses that magnified her eyes and always wearing what looked to be an entire Claire's sales rack around her neck - was writing on the blackboard when she had come in and hadn't seemed to notice her presence. A few other students were already sat, one giving Dakota a polite wave. She sat at her assigned seat at the back and turned to stare out the window, forgetting the drapes were shut, and being forced to instead read whatever Miss Davis was writing on the board:
THE RELIABILITY OF THE NARRATOR: CAN WE TRUST NICK'S PROSE?
So it was gonna be the kind of lesson. Although she loved The Great Gatsby, they were beating a dead horse with these lessons: she already knew everything! A flash of black hair, then thin pale hands with black nails covered her eyes.
"Guess who?"
"I could already tell from the smell of cigarettes," Dakota joked and the hands immediately fell. Emily look panicked.
"Wait, really?" She asked, sniffing her the shoulder of her checked shirt, "Does it smell that bad?"
"I was joking! OMG!"
"So..." Emily called out, plopping down in a nearby seat, "You going to Samantha's halloween bash?"
Dakota scoffed.
"No, of course not," she replied then saw Emily's disappointed expression, "Are you?"
"I don't know, maybe..."
"But you hate each other!'
"So?" She answered, like it was obvious, "Every year, someone holds a halloween bash - it's a Greenwood Bay staple - whether or not its hosted by a friend or foe. It's just part of the bullshit, high school social hierarchy, everyone invited even if they aren't invited, do you catch my drift?"
"Kinda..."
"Besides, she knows I'll just crash if I wanted to and she's too uptight to throw a scene about it,"
The first bell rang.
"So you're gonna come, right?" Emily asked again.
"No! I mean, I don't know... A big party is not my scene," she admitted as students began to file into the class.
"Oh, come on! Please, for me? You don't even have to socialise, we can just stay awkward in the corner,"
Dakota wondered if it was even possible for Emily to not be sociable - she was so confident!
"Let's just boogie the night away and get drunk. What do you say?"
Emily's big brown eyes stared at her like a puppy. It was impossible to say no.
"Fine then," she said grumpily but with a smirk.
"Yay!"
At lunchtime, Emily and Brooke was nowhere to be seen so Dakota decided to find Noah. After collecting a tray of mashed potatoes and pasta complete with an apple, she spied Noah's classic glasses on the far side of the cafeteria by the big bay window. Waving at him, she hurried on over and sat down across from him. Despite a full tray of food in front of him, his attention was instead focussed on the various wired and circuit boards that littered the desk.
"Whatcha doin'?" She called out, plopping down and taking a bite of the pasta. For a school lunch, it was surprisingly tasty.
"I'm trying to wire this so the light comes on when you flick the button. It's for a school project," he said without looking up, sweat on his brow, "It should be super easy but I can't work out why it won't turn on!"
Dakota looked down at the mess of electrical and knew there was absolutely nothing she could suggest to help.
"I'm sorry, I know nothing about electrical or programming or whatever the term is for this. Who could you ask....? Oh, what about Violet?"
"Absolutely not." He said sternly, "She's in my class and I can't give her the satisfaction of seeing me not knowing something. I'll never live it down,"
Dakota didn't know what to say and felt extremely awkward in doing so. She wanted to talk, she had to say something but then again she didn't want to distract Noah - ugh!
"You going to the Halloween bash?" She asked him suddenly, purposefully omitting saying 'Samantha's Halloween bash' in case that put him off.
"Actually, yeah I think so..." he said airily, flipping over the circuit board and examining the underside. Dakota was surprised.
"Wait, really?" She asked, thinking back to how mean she had been to him at Lover's Lake. My, was this school confusing!
"Yeah, it's kinda weird. She asked me directly. I thought she was making fun of me, or setting me up for a prank or something, but I don't know - it seemed kinda genuine. She was alone and seemed... normal for a change,"
That was weird. A part of Dakota wondered why Samantha hadn't asked her directly but then again she hadn't even been here for a week. What was this all about?
"She's less bitchy when she's away from her friends. I'm not excusing her behaviour, don't get me wrong! But it's just interesting, I guess... I don't know,"
Just then, Mr Scott had strolled over. Today, he was wearing a white shirt, blue tie and grey vest. It would look formal if it wasn't for the rolled-up sleeves, sweatpants and white Jordans he wore too. With his hands in his pockets, he examined the table and furrowed his brow.
"Noah, I'm all for creative pursuits but I don't think Principal Roberts would be happy if you started an electrical fire. Should you be doing this in the cafeteria?" he joked with a smile.
"It's for a school project," Noah explained, fiddling with a screwdriver, "Mr Banks' class, so if I set a fire, it's his fault,"
"Oh, my bad! Go right ahead that, at least we have someone to blame," he said with a laugh and rounded to Dakota, his brown eyes shimmering, "Miss Crawford! How's your first week been?"
There was something so charming about Mr Scott that made Dakota's heart flutter. Perhaps Samantha was right, maybe she did have a crush.
"It's been good! I really love it here, the classes are so interesting - yours the most!"
Shut up, D! That's so cringe, stop sucking up.
"Oh, well I'm flattered! I won't tell the other teachers. Mr Scott, be kind with her and please don't blow up the school,"
With that, he spun on his heel and continued his stroll around the cafeteria. As she watched, Dakota spotted most of the girls eyes following Mr Scott around the room, before whispering to themselves. Even a couple of the boys too. She pictured heart eyes on every one of them. Turning back to Noah, he was smiling madly for in his hand, the circuit board had lit up. Jackpot!
With Samantha's party that Friday and only four days notice since the fliers had been handed out, the entire school had been in a mad rush to secure costumes. Every costume store in a 40 mile radius had been entirely ransacked as each person hurried to find some original but classic, funny yet scary, clever but irreverent costume for the big bash. A delicious buzz hung in the air at Greenwood Academy as the excitement mounted throughout the week and everyone was in good spirits, being particularly extra friendly and extra nice with everyone. Noah even spied Emily and Michelle talking at length about what they were going to wear, although Emily would deny it if you asked her. When Friday rolled around, the school day dragged on comically slow for everyone as they counted down the minutes until the last bell, so much so that many teachers asked what was going on with everyone that day. At long last, the final bell of the day rag and at once everyone stood up and charged out the front door leaving nothing but a flurry of flying papers in the halls and confused looks from the teachers. You'd think it was the last day of term or something.
Although Emily had begged for them to start getting ready in her dorm straight after school, Dakota had insisted on going home first, partly to show her parents her costume before heading out and partly because she was, as usual, nervous. The way the school dorms had been described - as a busy building with students wearing in and out of each others rooms all the time - made Dakota feel like she needed to have a cup of confidence before arriving - which was code for taking a swig of her dad's liquor beforehand. As soon as her mum's red Volvo pulled into their blue suburban, Dakota hopped inside and upstairs, locking her bedroom door, before getting herself ready as quickly as possible. Surprisingly, it was Mike who had helped her pick out a costume the previous Tuesday when a few of them had hit the local shops. Unexpectedly, as a quintessential jock he had a keen eye for taste and had insisted she go as the bride of Frankenstein. Dakota wasn't sure if that was a read as she already felt like a freak on most days, but after applying the heavy white make-up, patchwork skin, teased black-and-white wig and tattered white dress, even she couldn't deny it all looked cool. Yes, she felt uncomfortable in any sort of costume but there was something about being so out her comfort zone that seemed to charge her. She was exhilarated!
"Oh, Dakota! Quick, David - get the camera!"
Dakota rolled her eyes as she descended the stairs in her hallway although secretly she was loving the attention. Her mother with teary-eyes snatched the camera out her husbands hand and began snapping as many shots she could. Dakota, awkward as ever, remained on the same pose as her mother moved around the hall. Megan poked her head out from the living room, took one at Dakota and snorted, before disappearing back into the room and Dakota made a mental note to throw something at her later.
20 minutes later, Dakota's mum dropped her off at the school dorms. Strangely enough, she seemed more excited than Dakota for the halloween party and spent the drive over reminiscing about stories from her youth.
"And then Graham Roberts - he was the star football player, so handsome. He went on to join NFL actually, I think the Seattle Seahawks. Anyway, he asked I wanted to dance and I should have no, I had a boyfriend, but he was so kind and I had been crushing on him for ages that I couldn't say no! But he matched my costume, it was meant to be!"
Dakota rolled her eyes as the car sped up and up the coastal road towards the school. Her head felt a little fuzzy after swigging liquor right before hopping in the car and the swerving of the the ride up here didn't do wonders for her stomach. Still, she felt more relaxed now than if she had been sober. To her right, the vast ocean shifted and glistened in orange hues under the fading sun. It was hard to believe it was Halloween. Was Megan too old for trick-or-treating, Dakota wondered. Soon enough, the grandiose art deco building of Greenwood Academy rushed past the window, with its grassy plaza with a fountain in the middle to the tall spire in the background. Peering her head, Dakota tried to see if anyone she knew was hanging round the entrance but there was a flight of steps leading up to the plaza from the road so she couldn't see. This was Dakota's first time to the dorms and Emily had said you just follow the road round and the building is at the end and after winding down the road for a minute, there it was. It was considerably more squat than the main building of Greenwood Academy and lacked all its finer details: no stone embellishments, no chevron patterns, no intricate spandrels, no miscellaneous statues and plaques of random dead people. Just a square block that was 90% windows with a flurry of students by the entrance. Greenwood Academy hosted maybe 1000 students but the dorms couldn't host more than a hundred. Back when it was a university, the building had been used as student housing and it seemed they had tried to continue the tradition, using it now for international students and those rich enough to send their child to a good school. If Greenwood Academy was the star then the dorms was the understudy. Maybe the audience. Whatever, Dakota wasn't good at metaphors.
"See you, honey! Now please text me whenever if you need me to pick you up. And please please be careful. Don't take drinks from anybody, always pour them yourself. Actually don't drink at all and don't do drugs either!"
"I won't, I promise," Dakota replied slightly embarrassed. Hopefully, Emily wasn't watching her from one of the windows and laughing at how embarrassing her mum was being right now. Not that Emily would do that.
"Oh, okay! Well, have fun! And don't be out too late. If you're not home by curfew then there'll be trouble,"
"Since when have I had a curfew?!"
"Er, well... you do now. Goodbye!"
With that, the car sped off and Dakota laughed at the fact her mother hadn't even told her a time for her new curfew. Once the red Volvo had disappeared behind the trees again, Dakota rounded on the dorms before her and suddenly became very self-conscious - she was dressed as the bride of Frankenstein, for crying out loud! In broad daylight. Under god's watchful eye. Quickly, she whipped out her phone.
Dakota: I'm here what floor are you???
No reply. Dakota felt her heart starting to beat ferociously as she pretended not to notice the group of students hanging outside the main entrance. Suddenly, a burst of laughter. Were they laughing at her? For having the audacity to wear a costume on Halloween? What's their problem? But of course, they weren't laughing at her; one of them had just spilt a can of coke down themselves. God, Dakota, get a grip!
"Is that... Dakota?"
Emily! Thank god. Dakota spun around and... it wasn't Emily. Deep brown eyes stared back at her.
"Brooke!!" She gave the girl a hug, "How are you?"
"I'm good, are you?" She replied, staring up at the droopy wig on Dakota's head, "Are you.. okay? Trying out a new style?"
"It's bride of Frankenstein," she replied, then felt embarrassed, "Mike picked it out,"
"Oh, no, I love it! It looks dope, what's the occasion?"
"It's Halloween!" Dakota replied cheerily, "The big Greenwood bay Halloween bash?"
"Samantha's?" Brooke asked, her eyes narrowing. Dakota nodded cheerily and Brooke went on, "Wait, you're actually going to that?"
"I mean, yeah..." Dakota replied disheartened, "I thought the whole year was going..."
She hadn't meant to sound as sad as she did.
"I'm not going. Neither is Asher. Samantha is a bully, why would you go to her party?"
Perhaps Brooke was right. Why was she going? The excitement from earlier was now melting away and standing here, in a costume in broad daylight, Dakota help but feel ridiculous.
"I'm sorry. Emily just said everyone was going so that's why I thought that," Dakota explained softly, staring at her feet.
"No... No, I'm sorry. You look great, I hope you have a good time," she said with a weak smile. Perhaps she could tell how much her words had stung. Dakota went to speak, when-
"You better shape up! 'Cause I need a man! And my heart is set on youuuu!"
The singing echoed down from the entrance and looking up, Sandy from Grease was standing with her hands above her head against the sides of the doorway. Her blonde hair was teased and curled and she was donning a cool black jacket and... Emily! Sure enough, the girl had ditched the rocker aesthetic and heavy makeup in favour of the stylishness of a 50's baby girl. She was unrecognisable but also so quintessentially Emily. She couldn't have gone as anything else. Sandy, or Emily, was chewing on imaginary gum and fluttering her long eyelashes before hurrying forward.
"Oh my god, you look insane!" Dakota called out smiling.
"What? This ol' thing?" She replied giving a twirl, before grabbing Dakota's hands and looking her up and down, "Says you! You look so cool, Dakota. Seriously!"
Dakota pretended to blush and Emily rounded on Brooke who seemed to have edged further and further away during this exchange.
"Brooke! My love! Can you please snap a picture of us before the sun sets?"
Brooke nodded but didn't seem happy about it. Still, Emily's excitement was magnetic and Dakota's mood was already being lifted back up. Peace and pout, Charlie's Angels, monster roar - Brooke snapped away as they posed. At one point, even a strange skater boy from the group at the entrance hopped in to pose with them, his friends clapping them all on. Once they were finished, Brooke handed the phone back to Emily.
"Nice shootin', Tex!" Emily drawled. Brooke smiled and waved goodbye, before darting up the street without a word.
"What's her problem?" Emily asked quizzically as they headed inside the small entrance to the dorm and pressed the button for the elevator. Should I tell her? Only once they were safely inside the elevator alone and the doors had shut did Dakota explain.
"Please don't repeat this," she began as Emily eyes lit up, "But Brooke seemed annoyed with me that I was going to Samantha's,"
It felt good to say it aloud. A weight off her shoulders. She had only been at the school for a short while but the thought that people were already annoyed at her made Dakota feel very anxious indeed. Out of nowhere, Emily burst into laughter.
"Oh, don't pay her no mind, D. I love Brooke, she's one of my closest friends, but sometimes she's so... determined to be anti-social and alternative that it becomes exhausting. She wants everyone to be as above-it-all as she is so when you do decide to, you know, be a normal teenager she sees it like you've failed and conformed. It's just a halloween party and it'll be fun. It's not fair for her to shoot you down like that!"
Emily always knew what to say for Dakota felt a lot better. Yeah! It was just a party, it didn't mean anything. The elevator dinged; they were on the 3rd floor. Emily led them out and began to walk down the hall which seemed quite grey and dingy for Greenwood Academy.
"Please don't tell her I said anything, I don't want to stir the pot," Dakota added.
"Nah, not at all! I won't say but I totally understand. I've been friends with her for years and it means nothing, sometimes she just needs to say her piece and that's that. She won't be in a mood or anything. Besides, I'm going to this party and, correct me if I'm wrong but I think I'm usually more anti-social and alternative than you so I think you'll be fine,"
Dakota didn't agree with the anti-social part but alternative... yeah, she couldn't deny. Emily stopped in front of a door labelled '3-7' and tried the door handle and was confused that it didn't work. Fumbling in her pockets, she whipped out a small key and unlocked the door, holding a hand out to signal Dakota go first. Heading inside, Dakota was amazed. Colour! Vibrancy! Where the hall had grey walls and knotty dark pine floors, here the walls were a deep orange. On one side of the room, the floor was covered in plush rugs and the walls littered with hand-drawn art, music posters (The Smiths, Artic Monkeys, Marina and the Diamonds) and fairy-lights and skulls and stickers. It screamed Emily through and through. The room itself was divided, with a bed on each far wall with a chest-of-drawers beside it with enormous windows overlooking the forest behind the school. There was a abrupt divide though with the right hand side of Emily's colourful personality suddenly turning into... nothing. Nothing apart from a meagre periodic table above a made bed, where on top sat a pair of judging eyes behind black circular glasses.
"Why did you lock the door?" Emily asked Violet without looking at her, instead motioning for Dakota to sit on the bed. Dakota had a feeling that this conversation had been had many times before.
"Because you're not allowed to leave it unlocked!" Violet hissed, booting up her laptop, "It's forbidden. What if someone had broke in and taken something?"
"Oh no..." Emily mocked, holding her hands in the air, "Not your periodic table and debate textbooks..."
Dakota wanted to laugh but felt bad.
"It's not funny. What if they came in here looking for money?"
"If someone came in here to look for money, man, I'd help them look!"
Dakota let out a snigger while Violet crossed her arms, defeated. Emily still hadn't looked in her direction instead plopped herself down in front of the mirror on her bedside table and was applying lip gloss over her already plump red lips.
"You're not allowed to invite people over," Violet scolded, shooting Dakota a deathly glare.
"Why don't you go get Ms Grant again and see how much she enjoys coming here on a Friday night for that?" Emily retorted and the matter was closed. Violet's need to be right was always outweighed by her need to impress teachers and she instead pouted as hard as possible, as the pair continued to get ready.
* * *
Across on the northern side of town, the most affluent street of the most affluent area was Astoria Crescent. A stunning place with best views overlooking the whole town, the pristine street was lined with white cherry blossom trees between the winding road and the sidewalk so that when autumn hit it became the prettiest place in town. Most children flocked here to trick-or-treat, likely due to getting the best candy, so the place was a lively autumn scene. One house however did not encourage children to visit this year and that was the Young residence, a shining greek-revival style home with great white pillars out front and a quarter mile driveway leading up to it. Already, a few partygoers had begun strolling up the street to it. Next door, however, sat the Miller residence.
Now, in the late 90's and early 2000's, Mike dad, Mitchell Miller (or 'Mitchy' as he had been nicknamed) had been a highly successful basketball player for the Seattle SuperSonics helping them reach the final of the 1996 NBA playoffs, narrowing missing out on the top spot by the Chicago Bulls. ("It was rigged!" he had argued). After a series of mishaps and brushes with success, Mitchy had retired from basketball and instead turned his attention to becoming the face of daytime commercials for various sports' drinks and athletic-wear sponsorships, before creating his own sneaker brand called 'Feis Footwear'. It had become a sleeper hit and although he had moved back to his hometown to raise his family, Mitchy still managed to run the business from home with frequent trips to Seattle. The Miller residence was by far the most luxurious and expensive home in town at the top of Astoria Crescent, a mid-century mansion surrounded by trees on one side and a cliff overlooking the entire town on the other. The estate was complete with an eleven-bedroom main building complete with a gym, spa, and separate 8-car garage. Also on the estate was an entire building dedicated as Mitchy's personal office, a guest house, a hot tub, tennis court, basketball court (that was somehow themed as Seattle SuperSonics), expansive garden and lake with flora from all over the world and an olympic-size swimming pool that had barely been used. Here lived Mitchy, his pride-and-joy son, Mike who was captain of the Lacrosse team and a star pupil of Greenwood Academy, and his reclusive older brother, Myles. It was no secret that there had been a long-standing rivalry between the pair of brothers, each vying for their father's sympathy, with Mike eventually gaining the upper-hand after Myles had failed to get into Harvard and instead had to be hired at Feis Footwear. This rivalry was not exactly squashed by their father either who instead seemed to enjoy himself by dangling his favouritism in front of them, it swapping with every failure and success of the brothers. The boys mother had divorced and moved out a year prior, still living in town and remaining in their lives as much as possible. The reason for the divorce was very murky and multifaceted but there had been a lot less tension in the house since she had moved out.
In the office building outside the main house, a very nervous Mike Miller rang the doorbell which echoed loudly inside the newly-renovated place. Despite living there, his father had insisted he ring the doorbell and wait to see if he was let in as a courtesy and a sign of manners. Mike knew better than to object, as he did with a lot of things. Such as the fact he had to personally tell his father whenever he left the house and whenever he came home, which car he was taking, if he ever strayed from his diet and so on so forth. The door buzzed loudly, unlocked and Mike slipped inside and down the short hallway to the door at the end. He chapped it softly.
"Come in," a gravelly voice called out in the room beyond. Inside the room, sat Mitchy's main office. You'd think a millionaire basketball star would have a flashy room but Mitchy wasn't like that, instead choosing to flash his cash and fame in other ways. The room was expansive, with floor-to ceiling windows on the far side that overlooked the lake beyond but apart from a glass desk with various computer screen and the odd plant throughout, the room was practically empty. Mitchy was a sucker for minimalism. The man himself stood by the window facing out with his back to Mike, who himself had moved in and sat in the plush red chair across the desk - a routine he had done a million times before. Mitchy slowly turned around and beamed.
"Mikey! My boy, how's it going?' He exclaimed in surprise, despite the fact he had clearly known who it was from the intercom. This was standard practice for Mitchy though. The man himself dressed quite contradictory: a Dior suit with matching pants, but with a hoodie underneath the suit jacket and Feis sneakers on his shoes. He was undeniably handsome: a square-set jaw, sunken cheeks with striking brown eyes, and perfect teeth that cost thousands of dollars. Where Mike always stood out in school, this was one of the few places where he wasn't the star.
"I'm doing good, dad. How are you?" This was the dance they did. Casual conversation before the reason for visiting. You had to be careful, one wrong step and the conversation would turn into a lecture.
"I'm great! The New York base is coming along nicely, I think we'll be able to have it active by Christmas,"
As usual, he left a pause for Mike to react.
"That's great, dad! I'm so happy for you!"
"Thank you, son. It'll be good for the family, but it'll be hard so I'll need your full support,"
"Of course,"
"And I'm thinking of appointing Myles a position out there. Nothing important, of course, but something to keep him busy. I don't like him hanging around here, he always seems so... sad,"
"That's a great idea,"
"Yes, it is. So, to what do I owe the pleasure?"
This was it. The dance worked, it's time for main event.
"There's a party tonight..."
"Oh?" His father said, leaning against the glass.
"It's a Halloween event. Everyone in the school is going so I think it's important to be there,"
"Yes, they can't have a party without their star student..." he surmised, "But?"
Drat! Mitchy had caught on.
"It's next door, the Young's,"
His father took a deep inhale, pushing himself off the glass and slowly, very slowly, strolling on over and sitting in the spinning chair. The whole thing took way longer than it should have with Mitchy dragging out every movement. He sat for a while in a curious position, like he was halfway between deep in thought and snide all-knowing. Please...
"If you go..." Mitchy began.
"Thank you, dad, thank you!"
" I said if you go, you must promise me to be on your best behaviour. No messing around, no hazing, no... Zach and his nonsense. You would be representing this family so you must not let me down,"
"I won't, I promise!"
"And..." Mitchy looked in the distance at nothing in particular, "And if any of the Youngs are there, do not speak to them,"
The Youngs had always been a sore spot for Mike's dad.
"I won't," Mike insisted, "Also..."
"Also?" His dad repeated.
"Can I borrow the Lamborghini?" Mike asked quickly.
"To drive next door?"
"No, I said I'd pick my friends up,"
"Hmm... I guess, if you can go,"
His dad paused for a moment, his stare boring down into his sons soul, before breaking out into a laugh.
"Well, you enjoy yourself son! You may take one bottle from the cellar, only one. I don't want to see you shit-faced, and if you are taking any boys home, take them to the guest house... and wear a condom!"
When Mike eventually pulled up at the dorms, Emily had insisted on posing for photos with it. It was indeed a flashy car, a iridescent red colour with rims on the wheels, that more expensive that most people's houses.
"Looking good, Arizona!" He had called to Dakota when she sat in the backseat, giving her a wink. Emily had called shotgun.
"Thanks! You have good taste! Where's your costume?" She asked, looking him and up down. Perhaps he was going a serial killer- they look just like everyone else.
"Zach's got it. We're doing a joint thing. I think you already know" he said glancing at Emily's costume before putting on hand on her headrest to reverse back. The car growled like an animal and soon they were roaring away down the road back to town.
"A couple's costume?" Emily teased.
"He wishes."
Noah was picked up on the way to Astoria Crescent, he had swapped his glasses for contacts tonight and was dressed in some tan robes, his hair slicked back.
"Who are you supposed to be?" Emily asked, turning fully around and leaning over the headrest.
"Luke Skywalker, duh?" Mike called out with a laugh. Noah smiled at him in thanks.
When they arrived at the Youngs residence just after 10, the party was in full swing. Sure, the house was probably a nice house on a normal day but the pillars out front had already been covered in toilet paper and the lawn littered with red solo cups and cans that Dakota was sure it's property value had decreased significantly. A loud drumming baseline pumped from every corner of the estate. All over the grounds, people in every costume imaginable talked or laughed or vomited or danced. Mike had left them to drop the car back next door and so Dakota and Noah hung to Emily's sides like two lost little children. Dakota's heart beat fast and hard in her throat... or was that the liquor making a resurface? Emily marched them up to the front door which was open to reveal the scene inside: wall to wall, people! Talking, jiving! The grand staircase had people on ever step and the place stunk of sweat and booze.
"Damn, you guys see Zach anywhere?" Emily called out to them over the loud music (which right now was 'Work Bitch' by Britney Spears). They both shook their heads.
"Is tonight the night?" Dakota whispered in her ear. It was kind of obvious that Emily had a crush on him which was confirmed by the knowing look Emily shot back.
"No freaking way!!"
The trio spun around to what was once a living room to see Danny Zuko in all his glory, his black jacket glistening under the strobe lights, his dark hair piled high in a pompadour. Only Danny spoke with Zach's voice.
"Oh my god! What are the chances?!" Emily shirked in that familiar high-pitched voice that wasn't hers. Sure enough, she was the Sandy to his Danny and Dakota was sure this "happy coincidence" was meticulously planned by Emily. Noah met Dakota's gaze and they both jokingly rolled their eyes. Just then, Mike appeared by their side and Zach tossed him a black bag.
"It's all there. Get suited and booted, my boy!" Zach shouted and Mike disappeared to get changed, "So, Sandy and friends: can I get you some drinks?"
Zach pushed his way through the crowd of people, through some bay doors and into the dining room which had just become a sea of miscellaneous bottles and cans. White claws, Peroni, Stella Artois, Jack Daniels, Bacardi, Patron - you name it!
"Welcome to my bar! Ladies first. Sandy, m'dear, what would you like to drink?"
"Well, I'll be damned!," she said in a somewhat southern drawl, "I'll take a Bacardi and coke, the finest in the land,"
Dakota wasn't sure what accent she was trying to do but knew for sure Emily had never seen Grease. Quick as a flash and with as much bravado as he could muster, Zach made her drink and handed it over which she accepted with a curtsey.
"Arizona! What can I get you?"
"Uhh... I'll have the same,"
"How adventurous!"
He made her drink as theatrically as ever.
"Luke Skywalker!"
"I'll take a peroni," Noah said.
"Here's my contribution," Mike announced, reappearing dressed in a similar 50's get up as Zach, and placed a bottle of Grey Goose in amongst the bottles. Zach and Emily exchanged glances.
"Mans bringing grey goose to the house party," Emily stated.
"Mans bringing grey goose to the house party," Zach repeated. Mike shook his head.
"Mans only had grey goose in the house!" He explained and everyone laughed
At that moment, the music cut (many groans erupted from the crowd) before a familiar bubbly voice boomed around the house.
"Attention! Attention! Everyone come to the hall,"
Everyone stared at each before following Samantha's instructions, shuffling into the hall so that it was a wall of people looking up the curved staircase. At the top, Matt (as what looked to be a knight) stood with Michelle (who was dressed as Serena Van Der Woodsen, which Dakota only knew from her sister) and seemed to waiting for someone. All of a sudden, the lights dimmed and 'Black Widow' by Iggy Azalea and Rita Ora began blasting out the speakers.
"Here we fucking go," Noah muttered in Dakota's ear, then the lights turned back on and there she was, the woman the myth the legend, Samantha Young. The entire audience burst into applause and hoots and hollering like an A-List celebrity had just arrived. Samantha was wearing white wings and... she was dressed as Juliet from the 1996 film Romeo + Juliet. Suddenly, Matt's costume made a whole lot of sense.
"Thank you! Ahhhhh! Stop it!" She called out, taking a bow and waving off the crowd, "No, seriously, stop it now..."
A hush fell over the crowd.
"I just want to say thank you to everyone for coming. I always love hosting these bashes as you know but that doesn't make them any less special to me, so it means a lot that each and every one of you made an effort for a change, you all look fabulous!"
Everyone burs into more applause.
"Who does she think she is - Mother Theresa?" said Emily.
"Now," Samantha called out, waving her arms to hush the crowd again, "I know I'm still only a sophomore but everyone at Greenwood Academy has made my time so far extra special. So I just want to cheers! Cheers to being young, cheers to being wild. Cheers to good friends and good times,"
Emily was whispering to anyone she could find while everyone else was fixated on Samantha who had stalled mid-speech. She swayed around, looked at her boyfriend and back again at the crowd, for she seemed to be... crying?!
"I'm sorry, it's just I love you all so much! I'm really going to miss all this one day! To us!'
"To us!" The audience replied and broke out into applause. Samantha turned around, downed her drink, before picking up her phone to answer a call and disappeared. The party resumed, the thumping music came back on, and suddenly everyone was dancing again, the speech soon forgotten.
As the night progress, it was undeniably a good party and even Dakota, usually stricken with social-anxiety, sound found that after a couple of drinks it all just melts away. By 10:30, she was dancing with Noah and drunkenly getting to know him. By 11, Zach and Mike had tried to make her do a keg stand and dropped her resulting in her chasing them throughout the house. By 11:30, she found herself outside in the smoking (BUT NOT SMOKING HERSELF!!) with Michelle of all people and some random girl called Maya, where they were gossiping and dishing secrets that she quickly forgot ("I knooow he's got a girlfriend but I can't help it!" Michelle had said). Meanwhile, Emily and Zach had started the night by dancing and swinging the blues, to chatting on the staircase, to chatting outside having cigarettes, to making out, to heading inside and making out in a bathroom, to disappearing in an upstairs bedroom. Every chance she got whenever Zach's back was turned, Noah and Dakota made it a game to pull as many funny faces as they could to Emily who eventually had to scare them off by dipping her finger in her drink and spritzing them with booze. As the night progressed, their costumes became more and more blurry, with makeup smudging and wigs being taken off so that it became mis-match pantomime between characters and real people. By midnight, Samantha had appeared by their side with a mid-party costume change looking for Matt. Dirt covered her body and she had dripped fake blood on her brow, likely trying to recreate the classic end to Romeo to Juliet but Dakota was too tipsy to correct her that Juliet dies of poison.
The night surely became phantasmagoric. A single blur of strobe lights, shitty dancing and loose lips. By 1 or 1:30am (she couldn't remember), Dakota knew it was time to go home and her and Noah, living near to each other, had the bright/stupid idea to just walk it; it was only three miles! After bidding goodbye to anyone they could find, they disappeared into the night traversing down Astoria Crescent and back into town. Thankfully, it was mostly downhill and Dakota was convinced she could see her blue home from there, although there was no way. The town below was a sea of glittering orange lights that slowly morphed into the blue sea beyond that. Normally, she'd have killed to take a picture but the fact she was seeing it double made her feel overwhelmed. The walk was surprisingly tame, the closest adventure they had was nearly getting hit by a speeding RV but then again they were two teenagers walking down a main road in the dark with nothing but their wits about them. Although they passed Noah's house first, he had insisted on making sure she got in the door and three streets later, there she was. Her home, so dark blue that she couldn't tell where the house ended and the sky started. Looking at the windows, there didn't seem to be any lights on. Thank god. She hugged Noah, told him to text her when he got home and watched him slip into the night. As she fumbled with her house key and crept in the door, the house mocked her and was being very dramatic with her footfalls, making loud creaks and groans that of course had never happened before. As she crept upstairs and passed her parents bedroom, she could swear she heard them giggling and then 'shh'ing each other when she passed. Perverts. Once in the safety of her bedroom, Dakota reached up to take her wig before realising it wasn't there anymore (how long have I been bald?) before collapsing on top of her bed, fully clothed.
Saturday passed comically slow. The morning and afternoon passed with her rotting in bed on her phone and wondering if she had ever had full health in her life. Her mother, kind as ever, had brought her up a tray of food - eggs, bacon, grits, water and coffee - which had given her to strength to at least sit up in bed. Her day had been spent messaging her friends and debriefing the night. Yes, Emily and Zach had sex. Yes, Mike had hosted afters in his guest house. Yes, Samantha's house was trashed. By dinnertime, she could just about come downstairs and had recounted the night over a plate of spaghetti with her parents, albeit toning down all the gory details and constantly repeating how "bored" she had been all night. Done with the day, Dakota had an early night again and must have fallen asleep around 8 or 9pm.
The next Morning, Dakota's dreamless sleep was awoken by her mum shaking her awake.
"Woah, woah, woah! What's going on?" Dakota exclaimed, squinting in the dark room and still adjusting to being alive. Behind the blinds, it was still dark out but even Dakota could recognise the grave expression on her mother' face. It was the same serious expression she had when she broke the news that they were moving house.
"I'm sorry, Dakota. I'm sorry, you need to come downstairs," her mother said, before patting her head and leaving the room. Dakota sat up in bed. It's probably because of Halloween, she figured. They know that I had been drinking or maybe me and Noah had been put in the local paper and that was my popularity ruined. Checking her phone, it was 4:55am. Slipping out of bed, Dakota donned her housecoat, sighed, and plucked the courage to head downstairs. In the living room, the TV was blaring and her dad stood up when she walked in, his hands nervously clasped over his mouth. He walked over and hugged her, saying 'I'm so, so sorry!'.
"Can someone tell me what's going on? You're freaking me out!" Dakota demanded after she pushed him off again. Her parents looked each other cautiously before standing out the way of the TV. Dakota's mouth fell open. It was Greenwood Academy. On the news. A blonde newswoman was talking into a microphone in front of the school with three words words on the screen below her: 'Teen commits suicide'.
Somehow, Dakota had ended up on the ground. She crawled over to the TV and stared intently, her eyes wide, her mouth trembling, her hands fidgeting. Snatching the nearby remote, she turned up up the volume as loud as it could go.
"... was found by a janitor this morning doing his Sunday rounds before school starts on Monday. It's still unclear how the teen managed to gain access to the roof where access is strictly forbidden, but what's clear is this is a terrible tragedy for the school and the town,"
A hand clasped Dakota's shoulder and soft crying was heard beside her but she pushed her mother off her. She couldn't be smothered, not now. She had to focus. Behind the news lady, a commotion was occurring as many people were flurrying to one spot. A van had been driven up onto the plaza, the words 'GB Coroner' emblazoned on the side. So there was no doubt about it. The sound cut on the broadcast as a police officer hurried on over ("That's Kurt, he's the chief of police" her dad had said). The man took off his hat and said some speech to the gathering reporters, who all looked equally alarmed. The broadcast cut back to to studio, to where the two anchorpeople were chatting about useless nonsense, their own thoughts of teenage suicide in the country. A few minutes later, they were back on the scene with the blonde woman.
"I do have confirmation on the body," the woman said gravely, her eyes swimming.
"I can confirm that the suicide victim has been identified as student Samantha Young,".