Down Low

I’ve always really enjoyed getting ready for parties. It was probably one of the few girly things I still held dear. Luckily I shower pretty quickly and my hair cooperates with me for the most part. After blasting some music in my room, I got myself into the party mood. I decided after about five minutes that I would do a 50’s movie star hairstyle. My dark hair was in loose waves, which complimented the red lipstick and winged eyeliner nicely. My real dilemma –dramatic, I know –was finding something to wear. I debated it for a while, but decided that I wanted to somehow incorporate lace. After about half an hour of demolishing my closet and drawers, I ended up wearing a lace long-sleeved scoop neck, black ripped jeans, and black platform boots. Before I left the flat, I slipped some money into an inner pocket of my boot, grabbed my keys, and put on my leather jacket.

Outside, it was a bit cold. I silently cursed under my breath. If there were no wind, I wouldn’t even need a jacket. By the time I reached Harrods again, the group was already there looking more than slightly annoyed. I rolled my eyes at them, because well, I was five minutes late. I mean come on. Hasn’t anybody ever heard of being fashionably late, anyway?

“Where the hell is he, Nathan? You said he’d be here fifteen minutes ago!” Katie growled.

“I have no idea, alright? Quit bitching already. The party just started. I swear you give all women a bad name,” Nathan barked back. It wasn’t until I chuckled at his remark that they even acknowledged my presence. Nathan grinned at me and slung his right arm around my shoulder.

“Good to know the sane one has arrived,” he beamed down at me. Nathan shifted slightly, pressing himself up against me. Okay, I mused. Definitely hitting on me. At that moment I planned to spend the night with him. He seemed like a fun guy. Granted, he was pretty forward, but was well fit and tall, like Alex. Woah woah woah. Woah. Wait. No no hold on, Rewind. That thought never crossed my mind. I take it back. It never happened.

“Hey Alex,” Katie called. I closed my eyes and grunted before I whirled my head around and glared at him. Once he saw me, his jaw dropped a little. I take it he wasn't expecting to see me. His eyes quickly narrowed-an accusation. He gave me a once over, and angrily asked, “What the fuck are you doing here?”

Katie chuckled and looked between the both of us in amusement.

“Wait, wait. You guys know each other?” She looked at me expectantly.

“Yeah, he’s just an asshole that likes to hang around my house and steal food,” I clarified. For a second, I thought Alex looked slightly hurt. He looked up into my eyes and seemed like he was nearly ready to give up and walk away. His stare made me feel uncomfortable and oddly, exposed. Not to mention his ability to make me even remotely unsure of myself made me furious and slightly frightened. In all seriousness though, what the fuck did I do?

“Actually, we’re childhood friends. I’ve known her all my life… Unfortunately.” His intense gaze burned holes into my eyes as he said this. Well then... I felt like an idiot. Why I hadn't pieced together that the brown haired little boy in all of my baby pictures was him, I have no idea. Katie noticed my faint moment of shame and gave me a smug, condescending smile before turning her back on me.

As a group, we all walked towards the park I had been to the other day and began on the dirty path through the dense woods. I grinned as the surroundings flooded my memory and the familiar mansion loomed into view. Once on the property, we all groaned in frustation. There was a line to get into the house… an actual line. What in fucks name is this place? This is way too fucking organized. Caleb started whining about not wanting to stand behind the chavs or whatever, for about two minutes before Katie and Angie nodded towards each other. I raised my eyebrow and watched Angie as she waltzed up to the front of the line. The scrawny guy letting people in took one look at her and immediately shifted his eyes down towards her cleavage. She touched his arms and chest a lot, whispering something into his ear that made his eyes widen in surprise. Angie took the guy by the hand and led him off to somewhere in the mass line of trees. Just before she was out of sight, she took one look over her shoulder and made an okay sign with her thumb and index finger. Everyone then cheered and rushed into the mansion. I stayed behind and smiled, shaking my head in amazement. I definitely need to get to know her.

When I entered the party, I laughed loudly at what I saw. Any normal, sheltered person would have probably cringed in disgust, but given my track record, I wasn't fazed. As you're well aware by now, I’m no saint. People were drinking shots of tequila, popping pills, snorting...whatever the hell that was and doing so half naked. Some guy in the far corner of the 'ballroom' was doing a handstand on a keg while drinking from the tap. He was surrounded by a circle of people cheering him on and counting his time. Others were just plain chugging out of liquor bottles. There was a huge cloud of smoke in the room, but everything and everyone was plainly visible. Even the poor fools who thought the pillars hid them enough so that they could have sex right there. In. Plain. Sight. I shrugged off the awkward image with a laugh. C’est la vie. I walked through the crowd, occasionally taking shots with Caleb, seeing as he was the only person of the group that I could find. We had a really nice chat about our lives and when his words became exceedingly slurred he politely, and hilariously, excused himself.

“Excuse me, beautiful. I’m gonna go find someone drunk enough to have sex with me,” he stated before throwing me a lopsided smile and wink, disappearing into the crowd. When I was alone, it hit me that I actually felt slightly ashamed of myself. I had judged them all too quickly and harshly and based on Katie’s behavior. I should know first hand that the one hardly ever represents the whole.

After about five minutes of people watching, I grabbed an unopened bottle of vodka that was on the bar and headed for the roof. Star gazing would be the perfect ending to a great night. I made my way up the spiral staircase, occasionally pausing to see if I could spot any of the people I came here with. Once I reached the final floor, I happily skipped down the hallway, giggling freely at the various noises I heard as I passed the rooms. I’d have to say my favorite sound of all was the wolf howl some guy made in the last room.

I managed to get to the roof just fine. I was surprisingly not very drunk at all. I stumbled every now and again but for the most part I was good to go. Once I opened the door to the roof, I craned my head back and let the calmed night breeze wash over me. I went over to sit by the edge that overlooked the pool and smiled contently at the crazy naked people splashing one another. As I leaned back, I shrugged off my jacket. I then cracked the bottle open and was about to take my first chug of vodka when I heard a girl begin to yell. Her words were muffled, but close enough that I could tell she was somewhere on the roof with me. I looked over my left shoulder and saw that there was a small ladder nailed to a wall that led to the upper level of the roof. I watched precariously behind a chimney to see what was going on. Alcohol makes me nosy. I heard more yelling and stared intently while sipping the bottle. I nearly dropped it when I saw that the couple fighting was Alex and Katie. I smiled and stood up, walking around the chimney so that I was in their sights. I leaned against the chimney and drank, my left arm tucked beneath my right. Alex was about to speak when he noticed me watching with an amused expression. Katie whipped around to check where he was looking and seemed startled when she saw me. She quickly averted her eyes to the floor and stalked back into the house.

When I turned my attention back to Alex, I found that he had yet to tear his eyes away from me. My stomach felt a bit uneasy, and for a moment I could’ve sworn I was nervous. But then again, it could be the alcohol making its way back up. I silently hoped for the latter.

Alex looked to the floor for a moment and then bore his eyes into mine, making me shiver. The moonlight shone on him in such a way that he looked like he was glowing. I was transfixed by him and I couldn't move. He began walking toward me, and took his sweet time in doing so. I don’t think he intended to make it look as sultry as it did, but at the state I was in, I just could not handle it. He reached me, brows furrowed and looking distressed. He was just so close to me now. I could feel his breath on my face, and was surprised to find that it smelled like warm cinnamon, untainted by alcohol. I watched in awe as Alex sighed and came even closer to me, placing a hand over my shoulder on the chimney I was leaning against. I bit my lip, not knowing exactly where this was going. He wasn’t saying anything and did not look like he was planning to. With his other hand, Alex reached down and brushed his fingers over mine, gently taking the bottle to his pink, soft lips and taking a big swig.

He winced at the bitterness of the alcohol and swallowed before placing his forehead on mine and whispering, “Thank God you showed up.”