As much as I didn't want to be at Grey's house, Mindy somehow managed to rope me back in.
"It's going to be fun," she said as she parked a few feet away. "Trust me. And, everybody is going to be here this time!"
Whoopie... I rolled my eyes.
We walked into the house, immediately filled with the stench of liquor and sweat. I don't know why I allowed her to bring me here again. Coming here wasn't a good idea; I could feel it.
There were never mobs of kids around the front entrance. The party always seemed to occur in that room with the makeshift stage. It was huge as well, so it could fit a sizable amount of the crowd.
"Andy said they're in the big party room. Let's go!" I followed Mindy, and we entered the loud, hectic space filled with drunk teenagers. The group was already pressed against a wall, yelling over the music.
"Hey, guys!" Mindy shouted, pulling me over to them. "Did we miss anything?"
"Besides people dancing and drinking, no, not much," Andy joked.
"Facts," Blake said. "But we have some things to be nervous about, according to Arnold."
"I'm serious! Last time he chose random people in the crowd to dance! I was terrified!" Arnold's wide eyes and horrified expression made me chuckle. He was the dorkiest out of all of us.
"Well, it seems like there's no dancing going on on stage tonight," Ana concluded. "Why don't we enjoy this party?"
"I'm not putting my guard down," Arnold said. "I won't be caught lackin'."
I was with Arnold on this. Grey hosting another party for every clique seemed a little sketchy. Especially after what I did to him and what he promised me in his dream. I was sure he was up to no good. And I stupidly walked into the lion's den.
"'You enjoying the party so far?" Andy asked me. I shrugged, not feeling any particular way about it yet.
"She would if she'd drink," Mindy said. "But she never wants to."
"And you're not going to pressure her to do so," Andy stated firmly.
"Of course not!" Mindy snapped. I could tell there was some underlying tension between them, so I pulled Mindy into the crowd of dancing people. We began dancing with each other, and I enjoyed myself, even with the mobs of drunk kids around. It made me feel less self-conscious about how I looked if I was being honest.
The song ended, and the music stopped playing. Everybody looked around, confused.
"Hello, everybody!" Sasha said, standing up on the stage. "Thank you all for coming. We have quite a show to put on tonight." There was even more confusion within the crowd. A show?
"As you may know, we have a mute girl in our school," she said, "and she decided to show her true colors and be super rude. She's written awful stuff about Grey and me on her social media pages, and honestly, enough's enough."
Mute girl? I was the only girl who didn't speak in our school. And I had written nothing about them on social media pages. I hardly even used social media! And the fact that she even said Mute Girl... hurt and anger shot through my body.
"I'll be posting the receipts on Instagram later tonight," Sasha said. "But for now, how about we read an excerpt from a poem of hers on Wattpad?"
My stomach sank in dread and blistering anger. I pushed through the crowd towards the door, only to be stopped by Grey. His face was impassive as he spun me around to face the stage. He had a vice-like grip on my shoulders, making it impossible to get away from him no matter how hard I struggled.
"Let go of her," Andy said as Sasha began reading my poem. It was the one about my father. I closed my eyes, my body starting to shake.
"Stand back before I beat the hell out of you," Grey warned. I opened my eyes and shook my head. Andy backed off.
"Daddy, I miss your voice," Sasha said dramatically. "You gave me life/ brought me up from my worst moments/ and now you're gone, and we're alone/ it's no longer the same without you at home." Then, she began laughing, stabbing me right in my chest. "Somebody's really kinky, isn't she?"
Anger flashed through me, and I tried to dash towards her right then and break her stupid straight little teeth. But, Grey's grip was relentless and unmovable.
"Daddy, I'm all grown up now./ You missed me blossom into a young woman/ My mind-expanding alongside my body/ writing, like you/ which is now my favorite hobby." Laughter erupted around the room. Tears of shame washed over my face and down my cheeks. I wiped them away quickly, even though they kept flowing out. "Was this poem written by a five-year-old? It's honestly trash, guys. Guess she needs a better hobby—"
"You think this is okay?!" Blake shouted, causing everybody to turn around and look at him. "Her father was murdered right in front of her. So you think it's 'cool' to make fun of her poem coping with her grief?!"
The room went quiet until Sasha said, "Hah! Well, maybe next time she shouldn't mess with us. She deserves it." She shrugged with an ugly smile on her face. "But since people are so sensitive, I think I proved my point. The party can resume. Remember to check my Instagram page later today, loves!" Then, she turned the music back on, and everybody slowly started dancing again.
Grey sighed as he let me go, and I shoved past him, running through his house until I got lost in one of his various rooms.
I collapsed onto the floor, my sobs shaking me and my chest aching. I was completely and utterly humiliated.
My phone began blowing up in my back pocket, but I ignored everything sent to me. These emotions cluttered my mind and body, and I just wanted to cry it all out. Then, theoretically, I'd be able to act rationally. Right? I didn't know. I was so fed up.
I missed my dad more than ever. I felt like he'd have something encouraging to say, more than the bland things I offered myself in my mind. But he was dead, and nearly a thousand students from two grades combined knew my poem and believed that I was bullying Sasha and Grey.
A knock on the door startled me, and I silenced my sobs, listening. Nobody on the other side of the door made a sound. Then, when I thought the coast was clear, I silently started crying again, burying my face in my arms.
The door twisted open slightly until Grey's face peeked in from behind it. My eyes hardened as I looked up at him, hatred—an unnatural emotion for me to harbor—building up in my chest. I stood to leave, but he blocked the doorway and closed it behind him.
"I'm sorry," he muttered. I narrowed my eyes at him. The audacity! He was sorry? After this, that's all he could say? Sorry?!
I stood there, unmoving. Grey looked like he expected me to say something, but I refused to move my hands from their fists at my sides. More tears dripped down my face, only making me angrier. I didn't want to cry in front of him.
He continued, "I... I didn't know. I didn't know she'd read that. But you messed with us. I warned you you'd regret it." His eyes held guilt, but that wasn't enough to cool me off. The hate I had built up for him boiled into a rage.
"Hazel, I understand you're upset, but you are who threw juice—"
"Because you insulted me!" I took an angry step toward him. "All I said was, 'I'm sorry!' What Evan did was crappy! But what do you do? Take what I said as me pitying you. And then you had to call me such a nasty name!"
"I didn't see it as an insult!" he shouted, causing me to take a step back. "I was being playful!"
"You insensitive bastard! Do you think I like being unable to talk? You think I want anyone to call me 'mute,' let alone—" There was no word for "Mutey" in sign language, which further frustrated me. I angrily clenched my fist together and quaked.
He ran his hands through his hair frustratedly. "I thought you were like... mute and proud or something."
"Proud?!" My eyes widened, and I snapped—an angry scream escaped my chest, making his eyes widen, and his mouth open slightly. My hand met his face with a satisfying slap, the sound filling the room. He grabbed my wrist before I could do it again, pulling me against his chest. A flood of shivers swarmed my body as anger tore through my bones.
"Take a deep breath," he begged. "Please."
Tears escaped my eyes, soaking his shirt. Momentarily, I found comfort in his arms being around me. I wanted to lean in, press my face against his chest and let the emotions wash out of me.
But he was the one causing me pain. And I was stupid for letting him even try to make me feel better. I pushed away from him. His eyes left my face, unable to face the tears.
"I watched my dad get shot before me," I signed slowly. "His blood covered my face. His killer took away him and my voice with one tiny bullet. I couldn't say anything and still can't. And you made a joke of it in front of everybody."
He said nothing and swallowed hard.
"I hate you," I signed. "Let me out." He hesitated, his eyes lost. "Now!"
I managed to find my way back to the central part of the house. My friends sat outside on the lawn, waiting for me. All their phones were in hand, and my phone continuously vibrated in my back pocket.
I tapped Mindy, and she spun around, relief in her eyes. "I'm so sorry." She hugged me tightly as the rest of them got up and did the same. I graciously accepted their love and cried some more as they held me tightly.
"Go away," Andy said, pulling away from us. Ana and Mindy held onto me as all three of the guys stood before us. Grey looked at me through them and then back at them.
He looked like he wanted to apologize some more, but his eyes hardened. "You need to leave my party. All of you. You're not welcome anymore."
"As if we ever were," Andy snapped.
"Shut up, and get your girlfriend out of here." Grey's eyes were dangerously dark. Andy's fist clenched, but he knew it was a fight he couldn't win.
"Let's just go," Blake said. He pulled Andy back. Arnold was already behind us and pulling my shirt to lead us away.
"At least I'd have a girlfriend who wasn't a garbage human!" Andy snapped.
"What did you say?" Grey advanced toward Andy, who had a death wish. "Say something about her again; I dare you."
"About who? I didn't name anybody. It seems like you already know the trash you're with."
Grey's fist collided with Andy's jaw, and he stumbled backward. Mindy's surprised yelp and Grey's enraged body language caused people to come swarming around us.
"Fight, fight, fight!" a guy in the crowd shouted. Then, more taunting cheers started cheering for Grey, and Sasha appeared behind him wearing a smirk.
Andy knew he was in over his head. However, he still went for it, managing to punch Grey in his nose. That was all he could get in, though, before Grey kicked him hard in his stomach. He doubled over, groaning in pain, and fell in front of us. I pulled out of their grip and acted as a barrier between him and Grey.
"Oohhh, player three has entered the ring," Sasha commented in a sassy manner. "'You going to beat him up with your words?"
"He's done," I signed, staring at Grey. "He defended me and got his butt kicked. You've taught him a lesson. We're leaving."
"What did she say?" Sasha demanded.
"She said they're leaving," Grey said. "As they should."
"I think you should teach her a lesson for messing with us," she said. "Bruise that pretty face."
Anger flared in my stomach, and I hoped she'd take up that offer and come into the circle herself.
"We've done enough," Grey snapped, pushing through the crowd away from her. She raised her hand in mock surrender while letting out a piercing, sarcastic laugh.
People around us mumbled uncomfortably or booed and began to disperse. Some laughed and drunkenly swayed away. Sasha stood rooted in place as the crowd dissipated until it was just my friend group and herself. Everybody in our group bent down to help Andy as I kept my eyes on her.
"This isn't a game you want to play, Hazel," she said as she got closer to me. "I will make you regret ever coming to this school." She took the final step into my space, and I tried not to flinch.
She spat on my face.