Tale Teller (West Hampton U Series #1)

Chapter 1 ● Invitation

-- Muskaan --

My feet were already moving to the rhythm of the music before we even reached the last step of the stairs. The basement seemed to be swaying side to side just like the bodies moving down here to the deep bass playing from invisible speakers. The upstairs of the house was full of chatter and laughter, people enjoying the different party games and reunions after months of summer holiday. The basement in comparison rivalled some of the best nightclubs in the country with its strobe lights and skilled DJ-ing. People were packed into every inch of space. Between the humans and the red strobe lights, it was torridly hot, and there was almost a smoky haze covering the room, casting the room in a red glow.

A girl standing in the entryway is handing out masquerade masks to those who don't have one yet, but Suhana and I already got ours upstairs. Suhana points to someone and says something in my ear but the music is so loud, I am barely able to make anything out. I let her lead us towards our other friends already dancing in a group. Sofia throws her arm over my shoulder, bumping her hip into mine as a greeting. I grin over at her as Suhana passes me an unopened bottle of water.

"You wore this?" Sofia nearly yells into my ear for me to be able to hear her, surveying my outfit. I was in sweatpants and a cropped Adidas track jacket. It was understated to say the least for a sorority party.

"I'm undercover," I snicker, wrapping an arm around her shoulder too. My friends knew I would never willingly come to a party like this on campus and really let loose, not unless I could blend into the shadows somehow where I could have fun how I pleased.

I let myself flow with the music, smiling to myself when Jamie Foxx's voice fills the room. My body does what it always does, like it has a mind of its own if you play the right music, hips spinning and swinging. The masquerade theme was a stroke of luck, and I had the right idea dressing down and inconspicuously. I was uninhibited and my body only needed to be filled with water to help me let loose after a summer of work and stress.

The University of West Hampton, settled into a cozy corner of the Midwest, was very strict with alcohol on campus anyways, and so it wasn't like I came here for the access to unhealthy indulgences. The last Duke of West Hampton was a drunkard, and his legacy lived on when his grandchildren established this university in the United States in his name.

After years of alcohol induced scandals on campus in the early 1900s, the administration banned all fraternities and sororities on campus, except the oldest, most established houses that have been around as long as the Duke of West Hampton's ghost. Now, any student who wanted to get so drunk that they ended up passed out naked inside the cafeteria sink has to weasel their way in to the most exclusive parties at the frat or sorority houses.

But it's not like students came to this school for the parties. No; we came for the prestige, the status, the access that comes with attending one of the top universities in the country and in the world. We came to rise above, stand shoulder to shoulder with the existing legacy admits. If your dad and mom weren't students here, you fought tooth and nail to get in and you gave up whatever you had to to succeed here.

Regardless, a night of good music and ice-cold water was all I needed to make the most of my time. I was so distracted laughing at Sofia and her nearly slipping on some spilled water that I didn't realize when someone beside Sofia did slip and came barreling towards me. I didn't have enough time to move and instead ended up in the line of fire, being pushed by the poor, flailing girl. I could see Sof try to steady me but with the tight crowd around us, she wasn't able to reach me in time. Instead, I closed my eyes and braced for impact, already preparing for the probable concussion from my head hitting the floor.