all the stars

~ three ~

I rifled through the dresses hanging in my closet, desperately trying to find something to wear. Why is this often a girls biggest problem? Just trying to find something cute to wear out. It's a huge pain in the a-

My phone started buzzing on my makeup table so I leaned over and grabbed it.

"Hey, this is Hayleigh. What's your address? I think I'll come get you around 7:45 so we can get to Tyrones at 8."

I looked at the time, just now realizing that it's 7 already. Ugh, and I still haven't picked anything out. I typed my address into my phone and sent it. I didnt think about it fast enough when she originally said she was going to pick me up. This means she'll see my house, she'll see the land, she'll see everything. I hope she can keep a secret.

As if sensing my thoughts, Hayleigh texted "You don't have to dress up a whole lot for parties out here. Besides, we are gonna be in the pool a lot, so a bikini and some cover up clothes will do just fine."

I sighed in relief and pulled out a box of swimsuits I hadn't unpacked yet. It's not like I expected to be invited to a party with a pool any time soon. I took out my favorite baby blue bikini that has a v-cutout in the top and is super soft. I dread the day it may not fit anymore.

Once I was changed into it, I put on a cute pair of jean shorts and a baggy white t-shirt over top of it. I applied some water proof mascara and wove my hair into dutch braids. I find it so much easier to manage wet hair when braided. I checked the clock again. 7:30. I decided I would meet Hayleigh at the bottom of our driveway so at least that way she won't see everything.

I put on my favorite pair of converse high tops and grabbed a light jacket from my closet. I slung my purse around my shoulder and tucked my phone inside of it as I headed out into the hallway to peek into Allegras room. She was skyping with one of her agents and my parents still weren't home from work. Which 'works' out for me if you know what I mean. Alright, I'll skip the dad jokes.

I made it downstairs and out the front door as I looked for any signs of Hayleigh. I jogged down the driveway and just as I was making it to the bottom, her silver Toyota came into sight.

"Hey! You look nice, get in!" She greeted me with a smile and I looked to the other girls occupying the back seats. Macey was there, as well as Delaney and Marlene. Now that I thought about it, Macey and Marlene looked strikingly similar. They've got to be sisters.

I jumped into the passenger seat next to Hayleigh and she sped off. We headed down several roads I haven't been on yet. I guess I have only been here two weeks. The fall sun has already set, leaving us in the darkness as we traveled twisted roads and the girls laughed and chatted about things going on in school. They talked about a lot of people whose names I didn't recognize, but apparently some girl got dumped for cheating with her ex and then another girl had gotten pregnant over the summer and her boyfriend moved to North carolina. Sucks.

You couldn't miss Tyrone's house. He had a long driveway like mine, but once you drove up to it there were bright lights and blaring music. All of us exited the car and I followed Hayleigh through the crowd of people in the backyard to the man of the night. Tyrone.

He sat with a group of guys who I recognized to be Jared and Xander, but the rest were unfamiliar. The guy sitting next to Tyrone caught my attention. His jaw was sternly set and his eyes cold. His body was wet with water and muscles rippled beneath his skin. Not to inflate his ego that I'm sure he had or anything, but he looked good. Really good.

"Asteria, this is Duke, the only one in the gang you haven't met yet. Duke, this is Asteria. Just arrived to us all the way from sunny California." Hayleigh said, as enthusiastic as ever. My question is, when is she not? Anyway, he barely gave me so much as a nod, which just told me he was completely uninterested. But the way his eyes glinted from the light of the pool water and the way his body seemed to just emanate this unexplainable energy into the air and he had this powerfulness about him and-