Emma was tempted to stay home. She wasn’t stupid—the only reason they got the invite to begin with was because Amanda hadhoped they’d bring Chet. But this was important. If Emma could produce Chet, Amanda would see her in a different light. Then, she might actually give Emma a chance to get to know her. The next time she had a party, Emma might be invited because she was Emma. Not because she was Emma whose friend was the sister of Chet. “Just text him and remind him,” Emma told Alicia. “Every hour if you have to.”
When they got to the party, to her relief Amanda wasn’t even around. They walked around the back of the house, where music was blaring from the deck. Even in the growing darkness, Emma could see it was teeming with kids.
Almost immediately Emma spied Kyle and Sully, but when she waved, neither seemed to notice.
“What do we do?” Alicia asked. “Should we go find Amanda?”
“No!” Emma pulled her over to a corner of the deck. “Let’s just chill here a minute.”
Most of the kids held plastic cups and were standing around, talking in small groups. Across the deck Emma spied a keg set up by Mr. Hastings’s outdoor bar. A senior, Mike Atwood, was standing behind it like he owned it.
“Want a beer?” Emma asked.
Alicia shrugged. “I don’t know. Maybe later.” She glanced around the deck uncomfortably. “It’s so loud.”
Emma deflated. She’d been counting on Alicia to hang out and have some fun, but now she was beginning to wonder if bringing her along was a bad idea.
“You’re here.”
When Emma spun around, she found herself face-to-face with Sully. “I am. I mean, we are.” Emma nodded toward Alicia. She prayed Alicia wouldn’t say anything embarrassing.
“Want a beer?” Before either girl could answer, Sully headed for the bar.
Mike Atwood would never know who Emma or Alicia were, but he tipped his chin amiably at Sully. “What’s up, man?”
“Hey. Got any beers back there?”
Sully passed two cans of Pabst Blue Ribbon back to Emma and Alicia. Emma cracked hers open and took a deep sip. Alicia did the same and made a face.
“What?” Emma asked irritably. She really did not want Alicia to ruin this for them.
Alicia frowned. “It tastes like crap.”
Sully smirked. “Yeah. Drink more and it won’t.”
From across the deck someone waved to him, and before Emma could thank him Sully was gone. They stood at the edge of the crowd sipping their beers. When Emma’s was done, Alicia looked at her wide-eyed. “God, Em. Take it easy.”
Emma shrugged. She turned to Mike at the bar, who was busy talking to some sophomore girls. It took forever, but finally she got his attention. She held up her empty can. “Got another? Please?”
He looked at her, and for a second Emma feared he’d say no. Sully wasn’t with her this time. But he passed her another, and a thrill went down her spine.
“Now what?” Alicia asked.
“Now we have fun. Any word from Chet?” She watched as Alicia checked her phone.
“Not since the last time I looked, which was two minutes ago.” Alicia looked bored. “Now what?” she asked.
Emma glanced around the deck. People were clustered in tight groups, laughing and talking. The second beer was definitely making her feel bolder. “Let’s go inside,” she suggested.
Stationed at the kitchen island was Amanda and a group of friends. They’d set up a blender, and there were pitchers offrothy green liquid and red Solo cups all around. Emma took a deep breath and approached.
Someone took the lid off the blender too soon, and the frozen green mix spiraled up and onto the counter. Amanda shrieked and ducked, and that’s when she looked up and saw Emma.
“Oh, hi.” To Emma’s relief, she didn’t ask where Chet was. “Want some?” When she saw the blank stare, she laughed. “They’remargaritas.” Emma held up her half-full beer in reply, but to her shock Alicia piped up behind her.
“I’ll have one!”
And that’s when things started to go bad. Half an hour later, they were seated on the couch between two junior guys who were playing poker. Alicia was on her third margarita and laughing too loudly at anything the guys said. She tried to join in the game, and at first they let her, but when she kept dropping cards, they started to look annoyed.
