“Hey, Isa.” An orange girl named Luanne, her natural black hair dyed a pasty blonde, saddled up to Ken’s side and put an arm around his waist. “Get any work done yet? You could use some Botox between your eyes. Wrinkles are starting to show, sweetthing.”
Luanne was Ken’s literal Barbie. Some girls were considered high maintenance, but Luanne was more expensive to keep than a pet leopard. Isa had always thought Luanne looked fake. She always tried to make herself look like someone else instead ofherself.
If Isa was brutally honest, Luanne had spent all of high school trying to looklikeher.
At one time, Isa had considered Luanne to be one of her best friends. She didn’t knowwhynow.
Isa was about to bite back that she was twenty and had no wrinkles, but she swallowed the comeback down and said, “It’s nice to see you,Luanne.”
“You too, girl. You have a new man?” Luanne smacked her gum. “Well, it’s not like he’ll last long. We all know how you gothroughguys.”
Luanne threw her head back and laughed, and the crowd laughedwithher.
Isa’s cheeks burned. “I think it’s differentthistime.”
“Don’t get your hopes up, sweetie. I’m looking forward to getting your sloppy seconds. You always nail the hottest guys.” Luanne giggled, and Isa choked. The thought of her kissing Adrian made Isa want to reach out and strangle her, but she kept hercomposure.
“I’m gonna get a beer,” Isa said to excuse herself, and she turned back around, waiting to feel a knife in her back at anymoment.
“She goes through men like money,” she heard someonewhisper.
“Daddy issues,” the other person responded, likesheknew.
There it was. Isa had to struggle to keep her fists at her sides as she headed up the steps. She had to find Harbor andShelly.
Isa had drastically miscalculated. Being alone was less lonely than hanging around people you didn’t like and had to be fake around. She’d been in college long enough she’d forgotten what wearing the mask was like, but her old high school friends were here, so she had to put it backonnow.
Isa knew now. It was better to be alone and be yourself than to be surrounded by people and have to becomealie.
Inside, there were more people she knew from college than from high school, thank God. Harbor and Shelly were around the kitchen counter, taking Jell-Oshots.
“Hey girl.” Harbor was swaying. She was already drunk. She put an arm around Isa and bowed. “You’relate.”
Shelly hadn’t started drinking. Already, as the mother of the group, she was taking care of Harbor. “You okay? I know you didn’t want to come,” Shelly said in a lowvoice.
“It’s fine,” Isa said. “I wanted to see you guysanyway.”
“Shots, shots!” Harbor cried, shoving a few drinks toward Isa in a very pushymanner.
Isa had a few, but it didn’t affect her. She had too high of a tolerance— lots of bingers in high school, times when she blacked out in order to forget who she was. She grabbed a beer, but merely sipped it… she was actually justhungry.
For most of the night Isa followed Harbor and Shelly around, mostly taking care of Harbor. People were smoking and throwing up everywhere, and the house was a total mess. Isa didn’t think Brently had cleaned up from the last party. There was beer pong, which Isa was a champ at, but she was uninterested. The bathroom was gross, so she couldn’t even pee. Isa really wanted to watch a movie or something, just relax, but she knew people would think her lame, so she keptquiet.
She felt like she was too old for this. Like she’d outgrown it, and the party was just a childish game people liked to play, to pretend like this was the best time of theirlives.
This wasn’t the best. The best was riding a killer wave, or feeling the sun on your face after a morning swim, or listening to a song you hadn’t in a long time, or saving an animal at the aquarium her co-workers had insisted was agoner…
...And eating fresh crab on the beach withAdrian.
No. This party wasn’t even close to that feeling. Isa closed her eyes and imagined it, tried to picture it in her head and pretended it was happening all overagain.
She felt a thick arm wrap around her middle and her entire body cringed. Her eyes snapped open to find Brently, King of Douches, with his arms wrappedaroundher.
“Haven’t seen you around in a while, but I’d know that tight ass from anywhere,” Brently slurred, and he gave her rear a squeeze. “How you been,honey?”
Brently was the one guy in high school she’d never given a shot, and she didn’t regret it one bit. However, Brently was bitter that he hadn’t been given a ride. Even after all these years, he still wantedhisturn.
He was the type of man who didn’t understand no meantno. Which is why Isa made sure to never be alonearoundhim.
