Dreaming Is for the Free

Six

You know how it is in the movies, right?

I've seen this a million times but never in real life. It's the same reused storyline of when the awkward girl goes to a party for the first time, and there's all of these crazy activities going on. People skinny dipping in pools, drinks flying everywhere, people making out all over the place. Well yeah, that's what really happens. I used to think that the movies were just trying to be as theatrical as possible. Basically over exaggerating certain moments that happen at college parties, but no. No exaggerating at all. It's just as crazy in real life.

I'm glad I took the time to initiate a much needed conversation on the drive over. By the time we arrive, the girls and I were able to talk KJ into not going overboard with his supervision duties. We told him we would check in and if we needed him, we would just call him. Him and Kiara, of course, are going to be together the entire time. Maya and I had already decided that we wanted to wander around for a bit so we could catch a vibe of things.

There's an empty grass field across from where the party's at. That's where everyone parks their cars so we didn't have to walk far. As we're walking up, the craziness is already apparent. There's a group of guys on the front lawn trying to see who can do the most back tucks, but after each flip, they have to take a shot. This can't end well. Kiara, Maya, and myself all look away. Kiara pulls KJ away from the scene even though he seems to be enjoying it.

I assume the foam pit is at the back of the house. I've been informed that's also where the pool is. That's where most of the students are. But to get to all of that, we have to walk through the house and that's where we see all of the fraternity guys being as oblivious and wild as they can be. Maya and I are now by ourselves trying to navigate our way around drunk girls and even drunker guys. Someone bumps into me. I have to shove some big guy away from me. Then I have to shove another guy who decides he wants me to be his dance partner. But finally we make it outside.

We walk through an assortment of discarded clothes thrown all over the place. It's a little overwhelming at first but not for long. Maya makes sure that we're continuously moving. There's some girl positioned towards the side of the yard making drinks. We go up and tell her to just give us something. We don't actually know what to drink. We just know we want something.

"Surprise us!" Maya yells over the loud music.

First she gives us a shot of some brown liquor with a lime on the side. Then she hands us our other drinks, and I'm happy it's not straight alcohol because I almost died taking that shot. It's mixed with something fruity and sweet so it doesn't taste strong at all. Halfway through the drink though, I realize the sweetness was a cover up. It was a trick. I start to feel just a tad bit tipsy but not enough for me to want to put my drink down. It tastes so good. Maya urges me to finish my drink so that we can get into the foam pit and start dancing with everyone.

I have my phone in my hands but I don't want to get in the foam pit with it. It could drop and someone could step on it. That wouldn't be any good. So instead of doing that, we quickly find KJ. We make him hold our phones before disappearing again.

We hop into the foam pit, and it almost feels life changing. It feels like I'm in a movie. The music is so loud that I can feel the vibrations. I can't hear anything but the lyrics and the melody. Everyone's voices are miles away from here. Maya is standing right beside me, and I can't hear a word she's saying. The bubbles are so high. They're everywhere. If I breathe in too deeply, it's like I'm inhaling all the chemicals of the detergent but I don't care. Then there's the lights. They're everywhere too. Everyone's having fun. You can see it on their faces.

But I soon spot one face I'm not particularly fond of. Frizzy.

She's directly in the middle. Everyone surrounds her as she dances seductively with a group of her friends. I notice the other senior from Kiara's dorm is with her but that's not all I notice.