"You know what we should do?" Bonnie murmurs.
"What?" I ask, leaning towards her to hear her better.
Her eyes glitter. "Go drinking. We've been here for a week and haven't gone out once. Isn't that sad?"
I widen my eyes. "God, you're right. I can't believe we haven't."
"Right? We're eighteen so we should go somewhere and get a couple of drinks together."
"We'll have so much fun." I could use getting drunk. It'd get rid of the weirdness I'm feeling.
Bonnie scoops up the pieces of pineapple she's cut and places them into the bowls. "Erin must have rubbed off on us, for us to forget that alcohol exists."
"Shit, will Erin go for it, though? Kennedy mentioned she's kind of strict…" I say.
Bonnie tips her head, chest heaving with a big sigh. "Usually, she's more chill, but I think she's stressed since our parents will murder her if something goes wrong on this holiday."
"Should we just ask her and hope she's lenient?"
"No, don't. If you do, she'll say no, and then she'll be more vigilant."
I add grapes to the bowls. "Then what should we do?"
"We could…" she tips her head from side to side. "You know."
"Are you suggesting we sneak out?"
"I've done it before. If you think Erin is strict, you should meet my parents. I mean, we don't have to," she clarifies, "but I think it's the only way."
"No, of course, I want to!" I say and look down at the bowls overflowing with fruit. It takes a moment for me to gather my thoughts. "Damn, Bonnie, I'm impressed."
"Why?"
"You're way cooler than me," I say. "I've never snuck out."
Bonnie giggles as we pick up our bowls and take them over to the kitchen table. Once we've sat down, Bonnie pulls her phone out. "I'll do some research on the bars and clubs, see where's the best place to go."
I take my phone out to help her research.
A minute later, Kennedy walks into the kitchen, spots Bonnie and me, and takes a seat next to me, helping herself to a grape.
"That's mine," I say.
Kennedy looks at me with big eyes, a tactic she used as a child to get what she wanted from unsuspecting adults. Now eighteen, it shouldn't work, but with a sigh, I pass Kennedy my bowl and fork and tell her to help herself.
"What are you two up to?" she asks.
"Researching bars," I answer in a low voice. "Remember when we were talking about that a couple of days ago?"
"Oh yeah, I forgot about that. We should! Does Curtis know yet?"
"No," I say. "Would he be coming too?"
"Yeah. Why, is that a problem?"
"No," I say. I don't want Kennedy to think I'm not getting along with Curtis anymore. But being near him makes my stomach twist. "It's just that I don't know if he'd approve of sneaking out."
Kennedy relaxes. "Nah, he'll be happy to go."
