Where Things Changed

I considered blowing him off. Just not answering the door and hiding underneath my covers. I really didn’t want to go to a random party with a stranger I had just met. Especially since I was still feeling home sick.

“I don’t know Eli, what do you think I should do?” I consulted a good friend from Los Angeles, hoping she’d be able to guide me.

“I think you should totally go! He sounds like a stud!” She sounded more excited than I did. “What’re you gonna wear?”

I pondered on the question. I didn’t even know what kind of party it was. Sporty? Formal? Casual? “I have no clue. And I don’t even have the guy’s number!” I could feel the anxiety begin to build up as 8 o’clock crept closer. I felt like all this worrying wasn’t even worth the occasion. I wanted to cancel so damn bad, but a strange feeling denied me that option. It was like I couldn’t say no even if I wanted to.

After an hour of going back and forth with Eli I finally decided to just get in the shower and get ready. I curled the tips of my hair and put a red flower clip on the side to keep it all in place. I decided on black skin-tight jeans, a white sheer shirt, and four-inch red peep toe heels. I kept my make-up simple with only cat-eye eyeliner and a bit of mascara.

Soon enough, my mom walked in on me putting on the finishing touches. “Wow! Where are you going looking so beautiful?”

I blushed and rolled my eyes. “Just a party Aiden invited me to. I forgot to ask you if I could go.”

Her face lit up. “The boy that came this morning? Of course you can! When did he ask you to go out? Oh my god, this is so exciting!” She exclaimed all around the room, looking more enthused than I was.

Just as she was jumping around the room, the doorbell rang. My head swung over to the clock on my nightstand. “Shit it’s 8 already!”

“Oh, I’ll get it!” My mom hurried to the door as I rushed to spray the last drops of perfume on my neck.

*

“So you don’t know anyone here yet, huh?” We sat in his black Hyundai Genesis, the awkwardness building quickly. His car was beyond elegant and sexy - I had to admit. It had a red leather interior and the windows were so tinted I could barely see outside. A guy with a hot car was always bad news, so why couldn’t I stay away?

“Mhm,” I mumbled, looking down at my twirling fingers. “Do you mind if I change the song?” I looked over to him for the first time since we had gotten in the car. He was playing “New Day” by Jay-Z and Kanye West, and not that I didn’t love the song, but I was just itching to go through his IPod and find out more about the mystery guy.

“Of course not!” He replied, sounding sincere. He darted to his MP3 and quickly handed it to me, our fingers grazing as he passed it over.

I put on “Human Qualities” by Explosions in the Sky, surprised he even liked instrumental music. I sank deeper into the seat and began feeling some comfort from the familiar song. “I love this band,” he mentioned, his voice fading into the sound of the music.

After what seemed like hours of silence he finally parked the car on the side of the road. I got out and glanced at the grand house before me. There were about two-dozen cars parked outside along with people scattered across the front yard. I looked at the mansion in awe.

“Yeah, it can be a little over whelming at first,” he chuckled, coming around the car and grabbing me by the waist. My body stiffened the moment I felt his touch; the gut feeling returned and everything felt off again. “Relax, I won’t leave your side all night,” he looked down at me and gave me a comforting smile.

As we made our way through the door an attentive hostess immediately met us. “Aiden! I haven’t seen you in forever!” A girl in heels too tall for her age came over and greeted him with a tight hug. “How’s your sister?”

“Good to see you, and she’s fine,” he answered coldly, his body stiffening next to mine. She let him go and looked me over. “This is my girlfriend, Annette.” My heart stopped as I processed his words. Her jaw almost dropped from shock.

“Uh, hey.” I looked up at Aiden looking for answers but was only met with a seductive smile.

“Hi. Enjoy the party, I guess,” she said flatly before leaving.

Aiden grabbed me by the waist again as he led me deeper through the house. It was just as stunning on the inside as it was on the outside; dark wooden floors and abstract art led us through every hallway, my eyes quickly studying each painting. “Sorry for that, she’s just a friend’s annoying little sister. I needed a way to get her off my back,” he winked.

“Oh yeah, no problem,” I answered indifferently, although I felt foolish and disappointed.

I could feel my make up melting off my face as everyone’s eyes stared us down. It’s like he was famous; everyone stopped what they were doing just to acknowledge his existence. However he greeted no one and nobody dared approach him. He seemed comfortable moving within the house but awkward around the people.

We made our way to the kitchen to find some drinks. I awkwardly waited by the counter while Aiden went to get me a beer. “Well hello beautiful, who invited you?” I looked up from my phone to find a man who looked like he was in his mid 20’s standing in front of me.

“Oh uhm, I came with Aiden. I don’t know if you know him.” I murmured, feeling suddenly very insecure and unwanted.

“Hm, of course. He would find a pretty girl like you to be on his arm,” he said jealously. He looked me up and down and shook his head in disapproval.

“Uh, what’s that supposed to mean?” I asked, straightening up and feeling defensive.

He chuckled, seeming amused. “Don’t get all worked up, I didn’t mean to offend you.”

“Well, I’m offended,” I snapped back, quickly realizing I was being rude.

“I’m Ron, by the way,” he responded, ignoring my last outburst.

I sighed, relaxing at his introduction. “Annette,” I extended my hand to shake with his.

He smiled, making him look older now. He took my phone from my other hand and gave me a reassuring wink. He promptly handed it back with his number in it. “Text me, I’d love to take you out sometime.” I looked down and blushed at his forwardness. I watched him walk away, admiring his confidence yet wondering about his earlier comment.

“What did he want?” I turned to find Aiden standing behind me with a red cup. He stared at the guy menacingly, his eyes never meeting with mine.

“Oh uh, nothing. Just trying to flirt with me, I guess.” I hid my face into the cup and pondered on his words. I wasn’t sure if I was more intrigued by his comment about Aiden or about him giving me his number. The gut feeling just kept building up.

*

By the end of the night most of the awkwardness and tension I had originally felt faded. I met a few nice people but mostly encountered girls gawking over Aiden. I could tell he was struggling on ignoring them, some of them were much more beautiful and charismatic than I was. Aside from his occasional wandering off however, he stayed by my side and behaved as much as a gentleman as I think he could manage. Nevertheless, it had been pretty memorable to be on the arm of the most wanted guy.

He drove me back home at around one in the morning, a bit of alcohol lingering on his breath. “Hey, I had a great time tonight,” he mentioned once again as he walked me to my door.

“Yeah, me too,” I smirked, looking up at his hypnotizing eyes. My words were slurred and I could tell but he seemed to ignore it.

He grabbed my phone from my hand and typed what I assumed was his number. “Text me tomorrow, let me know if you need me to bring you some soup for the hang over,” he chuckled, handing me back my phone, his hand lingering on mine.

I giggled shyly, “Oh I definitely will.” I stood there, noticing we had made it to my doorstep. “Well, goodnight.”

I went to open the door when I felt his hand grab mine. “Goodnight Annette.” He leaned down to my face and just as I thought he was going to kiss my lips, he changed directions and laid one on my cheek.
He gave me one last smile and then turned to leave. Again, the second he let go of me I felt the floor spin around me. I grabbed on to the door handle in order not to fall over. The dizziness consumed me for another 30 seconds until I finally regained my composure. It was worse than last time, but I assumed it was because of the alcohol.

I walked into my mom’s room and gave her a silent good night kiss before making it to bed. At last I was able to get under the sheets, face clean and PJ’s on. Although I was exhausted from the party, I couldn’t help but stay up an extra hour thinking about Aiden. I found myself smiling as I thought back to all the soft touches and gentle gestures we shared throughout the night. Just as I began drifting into a peaceful sleep, the memory of that guy, Ron, calling me just a pretty girl on Aiden’s arm crept its way into my head. The thought of what it all could mean distressed me the rest of the night.