Bea's POV
"Can you for once, in your freaking life, not be such a baby?" Shannon asked me.
"I'm being a baby because I don't want to get into trouble with mom and dad?"
"We're not going to get into trouble because we're not going to get caught!" She argued.
It was a Friday and our parents had decided to go out of town this weekend to celebrate their 20th wedding anniversary. Which meant Shannon was in charge since she was the oldest and we were home alone.
But honestly, our parents should have known better and put me in charge. Because they had only been gone a total of 3 hours and she was already trying to convince me to go to some party with her.
Which our parents strictly forbid us from doing.
"Okay, so then go alone! I don't need to go with you, nor do I want to." I told her.
"I'm not leaving you here alone, because I know if mom and dad call and want to check in, you can't tell a lie to save your own life. I'll be grounded for the next month."
I shrugged, not feeling the least bit sorry for her. "Then we're not going. It's settled."
Shannon stepped closer to me and towered over me with her 5'7 height while I stood at a measly 5'1.
"You're going to this party, and you want to know why?"
"Why?"
"Because if you don't, I'll tell mom and dad that I caught you trying to stuff toilet paper into your bra the other morning before school!"
I gasped in embarrassment and anger. "You swore you would never bring that up again!"
"And I won't, as long as you go to this party with me and act like a normal high school girl." She wagers, like any of this is a win situation for me.
I stopped my feet and groaned in protest. "I can't stand you!"
Shannon clapped her hands in glee, knowing she had won me over. She grabbed my hands and yanked me up the stairs to her room. "C'mon, let's get you into some cuter clothes and do something with your face and hair."
So I sat stoically while she plucked and prodded at my face with God knows what. I knew there was no point in arguing about any of this, Shannon always won at whatever we were competing against, and I had long ago accepted that.
Even when it came to Harry.
I had seen him all week at school, and we talked everyday in our classes together. But at lunch he sat with his friends, and Shannon and a couple of her friends had now started to sit with them too. I saw him smile and laugh at something Shannon said to him the other day, and I knew then it was best to give up on my meaningless crush.
He would never look at me that way. No boy ever would, not when the world was full of girls who looked like Shannon.
"Okay, hair and make up is done." Shannon says, sitting down the make up brush she had just finished using on my face. "Let's see what we can find in your closet."
We walked to my room and she ripped open my closet doors, scanning my clothes faster then my eyes could keep up. She ended up pulling me out a pair of dark wash blue jeans, and a babydoll style top that was a blush pink color. She handed me my brown sandals that had a small heel at the back and ordered me to put it all on while she found me some jewelry.
After I was dressed to her approval, with all the accessories and perfume in the world, she turned me around and made me look in the mirror that hung on my wall that I hardly ever used.
I gasped at my reflection.
Shannon had put make up on me, but somehow she had only exaggerated the looks I already had, but made them look pretty. My honey brown eyes popped with the soft eyeshadow color she had chosen and the black mascara that was on my lashes. My cheeks were a rosy pink, and she had but soft beach waves in my hair. Silver hoops hung from my ears, and a pendant necklace my grandma had gotten me for Christmas last year.
I looked better than I ever had before. "Shannon, wow..you did amazing."
"I did, didn't I?" She asks rhetorically. "Give me 5 minutes to freshen up and I'll be ready to go."
I followed her into her room and sat on her bed while she got herself ready now. "Have you ever thought about doing hair and make up for a living? When you graduate from high school?"
She scoffs. "Like dad would ever be okay with me doing something like that and not going to college."
"Beauticians do have to go to school, just not for an ungodly amount of time." I say. Even with me being the academic nerd that I was, I didn't look forward to another 4-6 years of school.
She shakes her head sadly. "I know that, but he won't care."
"Make him care." I tell her fiercely. "You'd be amazing at a job doing that, and you would be happy too. That's all that matters."
She turns and offers me a soft look, something I only ever really see her do with me. "You really think so?"
"I know so."
She stands up and walks over to the bed before smothering my face in kisses affectionately.
"Shan, stop!" I say while giggling.
"I love you, Bea. You know that?"
"Yeah, I know Shan. I love you too." And I did love my sister. She was hard to deal with sometimes, but I wouldn't know how to live without her.
"Alright, now up off your ass and let's go have some fun!"
•••
Were pulling up outside the gates of the house where the party is being hosted not even 30 minutes later. This is one of the biggest houses on this side of the Towneys. Richard Gray lives here, and his family is loaded. One of the founding families or whatever.
"Now, when we get in here, act cool okay? Don't get anxious or nervous. This is just like being in school, except now there's alcohol involved and there's not teachers around." Shannon says while she applies red lip stick. She's wearing a black romper and black heels, with red bottoms.
"Yeah, okay. Just like school." I say, and climb out of the car.
The house outside is pretty quiet but I can see plenty of people on the inside through the windows.
Shannon walks in first and I trail behind her, doing my best not to chew my damn lips off.
"Shannon! Hey girl!" Someone yells across the room not even ten seconds after we crossed the threshold. "Oh my gawd, is that Bea?"
"Yes!" Shannon yells and smiles down at me. "Doesn't she look great?"
Her friends all join us then and they herd around us and all comment on my new look. I blush at all the compliments, never before hearing so many of them.
"There's some freshmen over there in the kitchen if you want to go see if you know any of them Bea." Stacy tells me.
"Lucy is in there." Braelynn tells me.
"Okay. Thanks," i say and start to walk off.
Shannon grabs my shirt and brings me to a stop. "If you need me, for anything, just come find me okay?"
"Okay, I will." I tell her, smile and then walk towards the kitchen where Lucy supposedly is.
I spot Lucy by the counter when I make my way into the kitchen, and I'm surprised to see Garrison, Grady and Brady here as well.
"Hey guys," I say, walking up to the four them.
All of their mouths drop open in sync when they realize it's me.
"Holy shit, B." Lucy says
"You look..." Garrison trails off
"Fucking"
"Hot!" The twins say.
"God, not you guys too. Thank you, but let's talk about something else, please." I've had enough with all the compliments, I just want everyone to treat me like normal ole Bea.
"Okay, let's talk about the fact that you're actually at a party!" Lucy yells excitedly.
"So? You guys are too."
"Uh, yeah. And I had to beg my sister to bring me. I'm not sure how the three musketeers managed to get an invite."
"I did summer work outs with Richard for football. We're close." Garrison says.
"You drinking Bea?" Brady asks, while filling up his solo cup with some kind of red punch.
"Sure, I'll have something to drink." No telling how long I'll actually be here, might as well stay hydrated.
"Who are you and what have you done with Beatrice Marks?" Lucy asks.
I have no idea what she means by that question, but I figure out it's not a bad thing when they all laugh and agree. They seem happy that I'm here with them, and that's all I care about.
Maybe this wasn't such a bad idea after all.
•••
The party is flying by. I've already been here for 3 hours and I've drank like 5 cups of the punch. It's so good.
Maybe I've had six, I don't know.
I'm on the makeshift dance floor in the basement with Lucy, and we're saying to the beat of some rap songs together while other bodies are rubbing up against us.
"I feel so dizzy all of a sudden!" I yell to Lucy over the music.
"Uhh, yeah. You've been downing those drinks pretty fast girl."
"It's just punch. And it's sooooo good."
"Yeah Bea, it's punch with Malibu Rum mixed in it."
"Rum?" I ask. "Like the liquor?"
"Yeah girl! You're drunk as shit." Lucy says and tossing her head back in laughter.
"Ohh nooo. This is s'not good." I say.
"Why's it not good? Aren't you having fun?" She asks.
"Yeah I guess so."
"And do you feel anxious or nervous right now?"
"No.." I hadn't felt like that in a while, actually.
"Did you notice you also haven't been chewing on your lips?"
"I haven't been?" I bite my lips but feel nothing, almost like they're numb. "I can't feel my lips Lucy."
Lucy is still swaying to the beat of the music. "You can't feel anything when you're drunk, that's why it's so addicting."
Addicting.
That word made me think of Harry's brother and what happened to him. Made me feel dirty for what I was doing here right now. Like I knew better than to make the decisions I made here tonight.
"I'm going to go to the bathroom." I tell Lucy, and stumble my way out of the crowd before waiting to hear her response.
I go up the stairs and through the crowd of people now there, all the while in search of a bathroom. I haven't seen my sister since we got here, I just realize. And tell myself I'm finding her as soon as I get done with the bathroom and calming myself down.
I'm walking down a hallway and finally spot a door that looks like a bathroom. When I open it though I see two people on a bed, definitely not using the bathroom and slam it shut with a squeal.
I lean back against the wall and close my eyes, trying to steady my heart and calm myself down before I get sick. Which feels like it would be very easy to do right now.
"Hey, you okay?" A male voice asks, startling my eyes open.
"Oh. Hi, yes. I'm okay. Just looking for a bathroom." I tell him, noticing how cute he is.
Blue eyes and blonde hair, he could almost be the male version of my sister.
"Are you new here?" The guy asks while clearly checking me out.
"No, I'm Bea Marks."
He squints his eyes in confusion. "Shannon Marks little sister?"
I roll my eyes at the reference. "The one and only."
"Wow.." he says. "I don't remember you ever looking like this. Shannon told us guys tonight that you were off limits."
"Yeah," I agree, starting to feel a little uneasy being stranded in a hallway with a guy I don't know. "I'm a little too young for you."
"How old are you?" He asks.
"Fourteen." I answer, and I'm happy for the first time at how young that number must sound to most people.
"Well, I'm 17, so not illegal or anything yet." He says, walking closer to where I'm backed up against the wall. "Wanna go into one of these bedrooms with me and I can show you what it's like to be with an older guy."
"I.." I start to say, but can't get all the words out. Anxiety and fright start to take over and my mouth shuts down. And instead, I projectile vomit all over this guy.
He stands there and looks shocked as my red throw up plasters the whole front of his body. "Did you just fucking puke on me?"
I put my hand to my mouth and wipe away the excess throw up. "Sorry about that. Gotta go." I say, and run down the hallway, far away from this guy.
I scan the crowd and don't see Shannon anywhere, and I know she wasn't downstairs in the basement either. Not feeling like looking for her, I make my way outside and find a spot to sit isolated in the grass.
Laying back, I stare up at the stars and let my breathing slow down.
I don't want to be here anymore. I don't want to be drunk, and I don't want to be so worried about everything.
I just want to be at home, in my bed and with a book. Where I'm safe, and don't have to impress anyone.
Pulling my phone out, I dial the one person who I think may be able to help me in a situation like this.
The phone rings 3 times before the person picks up on the other end.
"Harry.."