The Long Journey Ahead

It was almost the end of August, meaning Casey and Frank would have to go back to school soon. They're juniors this year! That's one more year away from graduating and whatnot. Have I mentioned how much I missed my education before? Well, I do. It's okay though, making money is important. Money keeps me alive here.

Since there were only a few days left of summer vacation until school began, Casey and Frank's friend invited them to an end-of-the-summer party. It was complete with music, booze, pool, a dance floor, and extra rooms for anyone who wanted to really have a good time.

I know those two. They're going to have hangovers the next morning, and I would be the one that has to take care of them. I'm happy to say I don't know what a hangover feels like. I've drank before but I don't like the taste so I never pushed myself to drink more than two sips. However, since I lived with Katrina, and since she just loved to go to clubs, I knew how to take care of people with monster headaches the next morning.

I distantly remember telling my two friends to have a good night and to drink sparingly. I really wasn't in the mood to deal with their whining in the morning, my only day off this entire summer.

The next thing I distantly remember is Casey yelling at Frank to carry me to the party, and I was going to cooperate or she'd replace all my sneakers with her heels. Damn her, I couldn't fight back or she'd make me wear the mini-stilts of death everyday of my life.

So, because of Casey's "phase 3", I'm stuck at this deafening party, sitting on a couch surrounded by people I don't know. A girl with flaming red hair, much brighter than mine, gave me a plastic cup with a light green liquid inside. I thought it was Mountain Dew until I tasted the drink and nearly gagged. She gave me an apple martini.

I wanted to throw the drink away but every time I got up, the girl came back and asked me if I liked the martini or not. I couldn't tell the truth and say it was horrible. She was so eager to hear me say yes, I lied and said it was the best drink I've had here. She'd jump with joy and run into the crowd of dancing people.

I sat there, sipped on the drink, and watched everyone. It was so crowded and stuffy in here. How can people stand it? I wasn't even doing anything and I already wanted to get out of here. However, I knew that I had to stay until the people who kidnapped me and brought me here decided to leave. I had a feeling they'd have a heart attack if they didn't find me anywhere in this house.

By now, I finished everything in the cup. I frowned wishing that girl came back to offer me some more. I was so bored; I was willing to get drunk just so I'd have something to do.

Have you ever been so bored and tired that you could fall asleep anywhere? Yeah, that was happening to me. No one else was on this lonely couch but I, so I laid down on it, stretching my arms and legs. I closed my eyes, covering my eyes with the back of my hands. I literally was a few seconds away from drifting off until a soft yet masculine voice woke me up.

"Are you okay?" he asked.

I opened one of my eyes to peek at him. The first thing I noticed; he looks like Casey. He had the same blond hair as her, but cut short, the same lip pout, and even the same I'm-going-to-get-to-the-bottom-of-this eyes.

I sat up, yawning, and scratching the back of my head. "I'm sleepy," I answered.

He dug his hands into his pockets. If he wasn't going to say anything else, he should go away so I can get some sleep in before I had to leave.

"Do you want to dance?" He asked, smiling slightly.

Hmm, do I go back to sleep because I was so bored or dance with a complete stranger so the time would pass? Am I tipsy or buzzed? No. Can I comprehend everything just in case he was going to try to pull a move on me? Yes. Do I dance with him?

"Yes."

He dragged me into the crowd of dancing people but kept pulling me until we reached the very front where there weren't that many people. That was surprising actually.

He and I began by moving back and forth. I wanted to know his name at least. We talked while dancing, getting to know each other. His name is Cameron, he's 15, he is Casey's cousin, and he's extremely shy. His shyness was cute though. I could tell he was trying to figure out how he should dance with me. He had such a determined look of confusion on his face.

I couldn't help to laugh, but I think that hurt his feelings. Oh joy; he's a sensitive one. I helped him and pitched him the idea of showing me how to salsa. I think if he could have, he would've given me his favorite shirt for saving him.

Learning how to salsa was fairly easy or maybe Cameron was showing me a different dance. Either way, we were dancing all across the floor, saying sorry to whomever we bumped into. I couldn't remember the last time I had so much fun to the point where I didn't care or notice anyone else in the room.

"You two met! Yay!" I heard Casey squeal.

That was when I tripped on Cameron's foot and fell face first into his chest. I whined, holding my nose. Why was his body so hard? It was like a freaking statue!

"Oh my god Jes, I'm sorry! Are you bleeding? Here let me see," Cameron said in a rush, pushing my hand away from my nose to inspect it. It was a dull pain but it still hurt. He held my cheeks softly in his large hand and turned my head from side to side, checking for any damage. Seriously, it wasn't broken! He didn't believe that though.

"Why are you kissing her?!" an angry voice bellowed.

I felt a strong hand pull me away from Cameron, making me almost trip for the second time. I regained my balance and eyesight. Frank was in Cameron's face, snarling at him. Frank may be a year older than Cameron and I but he was much shorter than Cameron was.

Casey and I rushed to the two and separated them.

Casey pointed a finger at Frank. "Don't you dare hurt my cousin! They weren't even kissing! He was checking if she had a bloody nose!"

"Lie," Frank stated, attempting to throw a punch at Cameron while trying not to hit me too. That really doesn't work out when my whole body is facing him.

"We really weren't doing anything," Cameron explained.

I sighed and shook my head. Frank didn’t believe them. I looked over my shoulder and gave the cousins an apologetic smile. Casey knew.

I tugged Frank out of the house and pushed him onto the sidewalk. He wouldn't move so I had to push him again, only much harder this time.

"Stop being so damn stubborn," I scolded.

Only then would he move and walk with me. What was I going to do with him? Maybe Casey should stop with her plan. It's bringing out the jealous Frank and I don't like it. He was always a few feet away from me, ready to tear anyone to shreds for talking to me.

"We didn't kiss, jeez," I sighed after the awkward silence didn't die.

He nodded, holding the door open for me like always. "Do you hate me?" he whispered.

I exhaled loudly, whipping my head to look at him. He looked so down, his head hung low. "No I don't hate you. I'm annoyed with you, but I don't hate you."

Right away, his head snapped up as a dog's would when he hears his owner's voice and he smiled, he smiled at me. I smiled back waving a good night to him so I could get some sleep.

Overall, tonight was fun. I made a new friend, learned how to dance, won't have to deal with hung over people tomorrow, and Frank smiled at me. Sure, he does that a lot, but it was the way that he smiled that made it in my fun list. Good night world.