Status: Enjoy.
Tolden James: The Unusual Diaries
The Dreaded Grad-Party
--Satuday, June 6th, 7:31 PM
"One night away from home won't kill you, Tolden." My mother can be such an imbecile sometimes. She and my father hadn't discussed a single name for me until the very day I was born. To my knowledge, they hadn't discussed much of anything besides what there was to snack on until the day I came along. You've likely heard this story before. Hippies have child, name child "uniquely," child resents them for it. My name is Tolden Julie James. Apparently named after mom and dad's pot dealer...That's embarrassing enough. If people aren't calling me Tolly, then they're teasing me with lines like, "I know what you did last summer!" or sending me cards with Julie James on them in bold letters. I obviously didn't respond accordingly, seeing how I'd never actually heard of the movie in question. My peers obviously don't see the inconsistencies of their torment. I was born three years before that movie came out... Do your math.
"Mother, do you not find it the least bit strange that I was invited to a party by a boy that I don't even know? There's no question... There will be alcohol there..." I rant.
"Tolden, don't take this the wrong way... But, as your mother, I think you're a bit of a stick in the mud."
A stick in the mud? What kind of a sane mother says things like that to their children? "Mom! They'll play vulgar music! People might be having sex there," I whisper innocently.
"You're going, Tolden." How completely unfair? "As much as I love you, sweetie, your father and I need--"
"Stop right there," I interrupt. "I'll go."
Someone sent me a text message that read "POOL PARTY!" You know, I wish I could be unseen and dorky like the rest of the outcasts in books and movies. But for some reason, I'm receiving all of this unwanted attention from people I don't even know. I make excellent grades, I don't talk to anyone at my school besides the teachers, and I even joined the math club. What's strange is that no one in the math club speaks to me. Not even a second glance... Yet the cliched captain of the soccer team invited me to his party tonight. I didn't consider this as a prank... I'm simply not that important.
My mother appears in my room just as I'm about to leave. "You're not wearing that are you?"
"Of course not. I was just practicing dressing myself all on my own before I go off to college," I retort.
"Well, you're not doing a very good job," she jokes. "Why don't you wear that dress I bought you last Christmas?"
That hideous thing. "You mean the one with the bedazzled light bulbs on the back?" She nods. "Yeah, I think I spilled something on that. Either that, or I sent it to Salvation Army."
--Saturday, June 6th, 8:54 PM
The party was in full swing. Teens were dancing, boy-girl, girl-girl, but no boy-boy... That might be considered "gay". I could smell alcohol on almost everyone's breath who I passed and the couches wreaked of urine and sweat. People were already vomiting in plants and diving from rooftop to pool, splashing plenty of wanting-to-stay-dry teens like myself. And the music choice... Embarrassing. I'd have preferred their slow dance music be more along the lines of Sneaker Pimps and early Esthero, as apposed to R. Kelly and D'Angelo. With all of this combined awfulness, I couldn't understand why my generation ever sulked over not being inviting to one of these.
"Tolden! You made it!" As forementioned team captain, Byron Polanko, approached me from behind, hugging me tightly and smiling widely. "Everyone told me you wouldn't show! I'm so glad you came!"
I could only shrug in return and follow behind him as he walked through the crowd, my hand in his. I guess some would say Byron is handsome, or whatever. I see it, but I don't swoon over him like the rest of these tween-likes.
I can see them now, all around me, gawking as he leads me further into the crowd. The more I scan the area, the clearer it becomes. There are very few guys here, a rather shockingly abnormal lacking.
I wave it off as we finally arrive at a quieter spot. A quaint little home theater towards the back of the house. I figure his parents must be some high-demand interior designers, because this place is divine. The color scheme is so perfectly in order that I hadn't even noticed Byron kissing my neck.
"What on earth do you think you're doing?" I stifle away, probably a little less shocked than I should be. Annoyed would be a better word.
"You're a smart girl, Tolden. What do you think I'm doing?" He continues slobbing on my neck and I pull away again.
"I haven't spoken to you... Not tonight, not ever." I wipe his wet evidence off of my neck. "You must be clinically insane, Polanko."
I head towards the exit and hear him scoff at me. "Everyone's right about you, Tolden. You're a stuck up bitch."
And suddenly all of my questions were answered. It's obvious people have been talking about me. Positively or negatively? It doesn't matter... If you're being talked about in high school, then there must be a damn good reason for it. And the fact that Byron Polanko had to be the one to tell me really says something.
Upon exiting the theater, all eyes were on me. A pool of whispers broke out from the unfriendly crowd while a couple of the ditsier girls approached me playfully. Emilia Brigeborn and Katie Valdez.
Now that I think about it, Emilia and Katie talk to me a lot. We've previously exchanged phone numbers and hung out during lunch. Like I've just been blindly going through the motions...
Makes me wonder what else I've missed out on the last four years.
"Oh my God, Tolden! You're such a whore!" Katie announces playfully.
"Yeah, we just heard what happened!" Emilia adds. "You're the only girl I know that would reject Byron Polanko! You're so bad!"
"It's strange. I've never said a word to the guy and yet he someone thought I was interested in him," I confess as they both laugh.
"You've had, like, four classes with him this year, Tol." Katie counts on her fingers the classes Byron and I currently share and I count along with her. She's actually right.
"Yeah," I admit. "But I've never spoken to him."
"Well, duh!" Emilia coos. "Actions speak louder than words, Tolly! You've been screwing him with your eyes for months, and we know it." Katie agrees with her through head nodding.
"Is everyone here out of their mind?" I question as Katie and Emilia dance away. "I'm not into Byron."
--Sunday, June 7th, 2:11 AM
I was talked into drinking about an hour after the Byron incident and ended up semi-skinny dipping with the girls. I would never get completely naked in public, no matter how drunk I was. Katie and Emilia, however, could care less who sees their perfect boobs. They used the excuse that this was our one last hooray before graduation and pressured me into stripping. I compromised and took my top off, leaving my bra on, of course. And I borrowed a pair of Tracy Gartner's shorts so I wouldn't have to soak my jeans. We drank more, dried off, and then left to egg Tracy's ex-boyfriend's car. Katie and another girl got sick and so we proceeded to take them to Tracy's where we were all to stay the night. This left me, Tracy, Emilia, and another girl named Stefani with only three eggs. I recommended we egg Byron's BMW, so we did. Only the jackass left his passenger window unrolled, so I skillfully threw the eggs on the driver's seat and left him a nasty note on the windshield. When we returned back to Tracy's house, we were all surprised to find out she had a little more in store for the night. Three male strippers arrived dressed as plumbers. Odd choice, I thought, but they were still unbelievably handsome. Much more so than stupid Byron. Once the strippers left, reluctantly, we decided to start up a game of truth or dare. I'll have to go into detail about that one another time, but in my benefit, I found out by a truth from Emilia that I was the supposed prettiest girl in the group. No one was surprised except for me. The night came to an end after Tracy's ex-boyfriend called her furiously, asking about what had happened to his car. We all laughed and carried on, having a great time.
I would definitely have called it a good night, until now. A thrashing headache and a room full of nauseous girls around me, moaning about how their stomach's felt icky. I could have gone without that part.
I'm letting my life unfold around me and finding out new things about myself everyday. It's not always pleasant, but it sure as hell is worth it.
"One night away from home won't kill you, Tolden." My mother can be such an imbecile sometimes. She and my father hadn't discussed a single name for me until the very day I was born. To my knowledge, they hadn't discussed much of anything besides what there was to snack on until the day I came along. You've likely heard this story before. Hippies have child, name child "uniquely," child resents them for it. My name is Tolden Julie James. Apparently named after mom and dad's pot dealer...That's embarrassing enough. If people aren't calling me Tolly, then they're teasing me with lines like, "I know what you did last summer!" or sending me cards with Julie James on them in bold letters. I obviously didn't respond accordingly, seeing how I'd never actually heard of the movie in question. My peers obviously don't see the inconsistencies of their torment. I was born three years before that movie came out... Do your math.
"Mother, do you not find it the least bit strange that I was invited to a party by a boy that I don't even know? There's no question... There will be alcohol there..." I rant.
"Tolden, don't take this the wrong way... But, as your mother, I think you're a bit of a stick in the mud."
A stick in the mud? What kind of a sane mother says things like that to their children? "Mom! They'll play vulgar music! People might be having sex there," I whisper innocently.
"You're going, Tolden." How completely unfair? "As much as I love you, sweetie, your father and I need--"
"Stop right there," I interrupt. "I'll go."
Someone sent me a text message that read "POOL PARTY!" You know, I wish I could be unseen and dorky like the rest of the outcasts in books and movies. But for some reason, I'm receiving all of this unwanted attention from people I don't even know. I make excellent grades, I don't talk to anyone at my school besides the teachers, and I even joined the math club. What's strange is that no one in the math club speaks to me. Not even a second glance... Yet the cliched captain of the soccer team invited me to his party tonight. I didn't consider this as a prank... I'm simply not that important.
My mother appears in my room just as I'm about to leave. "You're not wearing that are you?"
"Of course not. I was just practicing dressing myself all on my own before I go off to college," I retort.
"Well, you're not doing a very good job," she jokes. "Why don't you wear that dress I bought you last Christmas?"
That hideous thing. "You mean the one with the bedazzled light bulbs on the back?" She nods. "Yeah, I think I spilled something on that. Either that, or I sent it to Salvation Army."
--Saturday, June 6th, 8:54 PM
The party was in full swing. Teens were dancing, boy-girl, girl-girl, but no boy-boy... That might be considered "gay". I could smell alcohol on almost everyone's breath who I passed and the couches wreaked of urine and sweat. People were already vomiting in plants and diving from rooftop to pool, splashing plenty of wanting-to-stay-dry teens like myself. And the music choice... Embarrassing. I'd have preferred their slow dance music be more along the lines of Sneaker Pimps and early Esthero, as apposed to R. Kelly and D'Angelo. With all of this combined awfulness, I couldn't understand why my generation ever sulked over not being inviting to one of these.
"Tolden! You made it!" As forementioned team captain, Byron Polanko, approached me from behind, hugging me tightly and smiling widely. "Everyone told me you wouldn't show! I'm so glad you came!"
I could only shrug in return and follow behind him as he walked through the crowd, my hand in his. I guess some would say Byron is handsome, or whatever. I see it, but I don't swoon over him like the rest of these tween-likes.
I can see them now, all around me, gawking as he leads me further into the crowd. The more I scan the area, the clearer it becomes. There are very few guys here, a rather shockingly abnormal lacking.
I wave it off as we finally arrive at a quieter spot. A quaint little home theater towards the back of the house. I figure his parents must be some high-demand interior designers, because this place is divine. The color scheme is so perfectly in order that I hadn't even noticed Byron kissing my neck.
"What on earth do you think you're doing?" I stifle away, probably a little less shocked than I should be. Annoyed would be a better word.
"You're a smart girl, Tolden. What do you think I'm doing?" He continues slobbing on my neck and I pull away again.
"I haven't spoken to you... Not tonight, not ever." I wipe his wet evidence off of my neck. "You must be clinically insane, Polanko."
I head towards the exit and hear him scoff at me. "Everyone's right about you, Tolden. You're a stuck up bitch."
And suddenly all of my questions were answered. It's obvious people have been talking about me. Positively or negatively? It doesn't matter... If you're being talked about in high school, then there must be a damn good reason for it. And the fact that Byron Polanko had to be the one to tell me really says something.
Upon exiting the theater, all eyes were on me. A pool of whispers broke out from the unfriendly crowd while a couple of the ditsier girls approached me playfully. Emilia Brigeborn and Katie Valdez.
Now that I think about it, Emilia and Katie talk to me a lot. We've previously exchanged phone numbers and hung out during lunch. Like I've just been blindly going through the motions...
Makes me wonder what else I've missed out on the last four years.
"Oh my God, Tolden! You're such a whore!" Katie announces playfully.
"Yeah, we just heard what happened!" Emilia adds. "You're the only girl I know that would reject Byron Polanko! You're so bad!"
"It's strange. I've never said a word to the guy and yet he someone thought I was interested in him," I confess as they both laugh.
"You've had, like, four classes with him this year, Tol." Katie counts on her fingers the classes Byron and I currently share and I count along with her. She's actually right.
"Yeah," I admit. "But I've never spoken to him."
"Well, duh!" Emilia coos. "Actions speak louder than words, Tolly! You've been screwing him with your eyes for months, and we know it." Katie agrees with her through head nodding.
"Is everyone here out of their mind?" I question as Katie and Emilia dance away. "I'm not into Byron."
--Sunday, June 7th, 2:11 AM
I was talked into drinking about an hour after the Byron incident and ended up semi-skinny dipping with the girls. I would never get completely naked in public, no matter how drunk I was. Katie and Emilia, however, could care less who sees their perfect boobs. They used the excuse that this was our one last hooray before graduation and pressured me into stripping. I compromised and took my top off, leaving my bra on, of course. And I borrowed a pair of Tracy Gartner's shorts so I wouldn't have to soak my jeans. We drank more, dried off, and then left to egg Tracy's ex-boyfriend's car. Katie and another girl got sick and so we proceeded to take them to Tracy's where we were all to stay the night. This left me, Tracy, Emilia, and another girl named Stefani with only three eggs. I recommended we egg Byron's BMW, so we did. Only the jackass left his passenger window unrolled, so I skillfully threw the eggs on the driver's seat and left him a nasty note on the windshield. When we returned back to Tracy's house, we were all surprised to find out she had a little more in store for the night. Three male strippers arrived dressed as plumbers. Odd choice, I thought, but they were still unbelievably handsome. Much more so than stupid Byron. Once the strippers left, reluctantly, we decided to start up a game of truth or dare. I'll have to go into detail about that one another time, but in my benefit, I found out by a truth from Emilia that I was the supposed prettiest girl in the group. No one was surprised except for me. The night came to an end after Tracy's ex-boyfriend called her furiously, asking about what had happened to his car. We all laughed and carried on, having a great time.
I would definitely have called it a good night, until now. A thrashing headache and a room full of nauseous girls around me, moaning about how their stomach's felt icky. I could have gone without that part.
I'm letting my life unfold around me and finding out new things about myself everyday. It's not always pleasant, but it sure as hell is worth it.