knocked me down

chapter three

myra POV

Last night was so much worse than I had expected. Well, it wasn't all that bad. It was the end part that sucked.

Astrid and I had gotten there around 8:30pm even though it wasn't set to actually start 9. There was still a good amount of people so I introduced Astrid to some of my classmates. We finally sat down with a couple of girls from my psychology class and some girls from Astrid's visual arts class. We talked for a while as we quickly got surrounded by people piling into Shivton House. Astrid and her friends sort of split off into a conversation about their class and I started talking to Jenna about our assignment.

"So, who are you going to interview for it?" I had asked her once the topic came up. She took a sip from her drink and said, "I was thinking of doing a group of people in my literature class since they y'know always think super deeply. How about you?" I had spent all afternoon thinking of who to pick but I couldn't think of anything unique. "I haven't decided yet. I want to find people that wouldn't think of stuff like that. People with huge egos that think that everyone loves them." I heard Jenna snort in response, "Pick any of the sport teams. Egos so big you can barely breathe around them." We formed back into a group conversation when we heard the intro to Mirrors by Justin Timberlake. start playing. We all jumped up, except for Astrid. I looked down at her, not wanting to leave her alone at a party. She gave me a reassuring look and said, "Don't worry about me, I'll come join you guys in a second." I gave her one final look before walking off with our friends. I felt bad leaving her there but she said she'll join us.

We all started dancing and singing along with each other as the song continued to play. The outro to the song was dawning and Astrid still hadn't joined us. I looked around but with all the people I couldn't see a single thing past our little group. Promise by Ciara began to play and I was starting to get worried. I pushed back through the crowd to where we were previously sitting, maybe she changed her mind and she's still sitting there? But she wasn't. I looked around quickly but I still couldn't see her. Once again, I pushed through everyone and made it back to our friends. "Hold on.." They stopped dancing and looked at me, "...you okay Myra?" I wasn't really paying attention but eventually flicked my eyes back to them and shook my head. "I can't find Astrid. She said she was gonna come over here and she isn't and she's not back where we were sitting." We all stayed calm because we know that Astrid is probably freaking out.

Jenna grabbed me by the arm and pulled me through the crowd, everyone following us. "Where are we going?!" I yelled over the blasting music. She slightly turned her head to acknowledge me and said, "We're gonna get a better view of the floor!" Finally, we made it out of the crowds and stepped into an open lounge which was only slightly quieter. I looked at Jenna in confusion, thinking how this was going to help us find her. She began jumping up and down, trying to spot her in the massive crowd of party goers — which failed, miserably. Although I wasn't paying attention, I remember a couple of the girls saying that they'd go look outside and upstairs. I began scanning the room that we were currently standing in, spotting a group of guys and girls sprawled over two leather couches. I pulled my phone out of my pocket, quickly found a picture of Astrid and walked over to them.

"Excuse me?" I spoke loudly, gaining the attention of the guys in the group. I don't think any of the girls even noticed me the whole time I stood there last night. They looked at me, waiting for me to say something else. "I'm looking for my friend. Seen her?" I said as I turned my phone to them. Most of them seemed too drunk to even piece together what I had said. Except, one guy. He was tall, with hair on the border of blonde and brown. He walked up to me and grabbed my phone out of my hand, taking a closer look at the picture. "No, haven't seen her come 'round here. When you find her, tell her to text me." I stared at him in disbelief as he handed me his phone number on a slip of paper. He turned around again and began to walk back to his group when he stopped and asked, "What's her name?" I stood with my arms crossed. This is unbelievable. He laughed softly and shook his head, "Y'know so I can call out to her if I see her." I tilted my head slightly, "So she can go home with you?" I guess my tone sort of gained the attention of his friends. I had never seen these people in my life. I felt awkward for a moment, when I shifted my eyes back to whatever this guys name was. "Her names Astrid." He looked smug and extremely satisfied with himself. Then I heard another voice come from the opposite couch, "And you are?" I pursed my lips and rolled my eyes but before I could speak, somebody cut me off with my own name.