Starting Off Wrong [𝐠𝐱𝐠]

𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝟔: 𝐁𝐨𝐲𝐬

I step out of the car; immediately glad I have long sleeves on. The night air is chilly, causing me to shiver. Though those could just be nerves.

The building in front of us is huge, almost identical to the dorms at our school. The architecture still speaks with its high, antique, rich voice, beckoning us all inside. I mean, it makes sense since they were both designed by the same architect.

"Come on, Odette," Magnolia motions to me as she skips ahead. "We're not heading inside?" I ask, as we walk around the side of the building instead.

"We need to get to the tennis courts," Aurelia explains. "They always hold the parties there."

"In the cold?" I ask, disappointed. I was hoping to get out of the cold and into the building. I cross my arms, rubbing my shoulders to try and create some warmth in my body.

Aurelia and I follow slowly behind Magnolia, Karina and Suri. "No, in the tennis house." I look at her confused. What on earth is a tennis house? I ask her just that.

"It's not a real name, but that's what we call it. There's a small house, sort of like a pool house, at the end of the courts," she grins.

"Oh," I just say, understanding.

"There's no way anyone could see us out there which makes it for a great place for a party."

"Well, that makes sense."

"Almost there," Karina breathes out as we stop. I look at the empty courtyard, wondering what we're waiting for.

"We're going to run," Aurelia is barely able to warn me before everyone starts sprinting across the courtyard. I quickly follow behind them, not wanting to get left behind. It's silly, running across the quad, but I feel something inside me. Something wonderfully happy. I turn to a smiling Aurelia who manages to giggle in the midst of our jog. I smile back at her.

"Finally," Suri says, as we stop. She grips onto the fence of the tennis courts, catching her breath.

"There it is," I quietly say, a soft whisper slipping my lips. I look through the fence and across all the tennis courts to see a small building all the way at the end. Its bright lights make it a strong attraction. I look back to see if anyone can see us but the distance is so great there's no way anyone could see anything. Of course, it's mostly due to the fact that the trees create a blind spot.

We all walk outside of the fence, towards the back. I can image the tennis courts, full of the boys playing the game with shouts and laughter, but right now it's eerie. There's just countless courts, empty and quiet.

I start to hear the music. Traditional teen party music.

"We're going to have so much fun," Karina exclaims, as we grow closer to our destination.

"We definitely needed this," Aurelia agrees. "You did too," she says, turning to me. "You had a long week."

"I really did," I say with a light sigh. So much has happened during this week that I still can't wrap my head around it. So many new people and places. It was a bit hard at first, but I think I have made my place here. At least I think I did.