HIGH SCHOOL SWEETHEARTS

Chapter 7 : Star of the party

The music was already blasting by the time I showed up at Miles and Sophie's house, the bass shaking the windows. It was Friday night, and everyone was in the mood to let loose after the first week back at Ridgeview. The house was packed—people from school scattered everywhere, drinks in hand, the usual chaos you'd expect from one of our parties.

I walked in with Alex and Olivia, immediately greeted by Miles, who was already a few drinks in, grinning like he was on top of the world.

"Jax, my man!" Miles called, throwing his arm around my shoulder as we made our way through the crowd. "You're late! Missed out on the fun so far."

I smirked, scanning the room. "Yeah, well, I'm here now. What's the plan?"

Miles laughed. "Same as always. Get wasted and have a good time."

We wandered further into the house, Alex and Olivia already drifting off to find drinks and mingle. The place was buzzing with energy—people dancing, talking too loud, flirting with the same intensity you'd see at any high school party. But my mind wasn't really on the crowd or the noise.

It was on her.

I'd caught a glimpse of Emma earlier, standing in the corner of the room with a drink in her hand, looking out of place. As usual. She wasn't really the partying type. It was the same way she looked at school—always watching, never part of the action. It intrigued me more than I wanted to admit. I could tell she was trying to blend in, but it wasn't working. She was too quiet, too withdrawn, her eyes scanning the room like she didn't know where she fit in.

My eyes scanned her up and down , she looked different. Her dark ginger hair down , a long sleeves maxi dark green dress . She looked beautiful and it was hard to tear my eyes off her .

"Dude, you good?" Miles asked, noticing I'd zoned out.

"Yeah, yeah," I said, shaking my head to clear it. "Just taking it all in."

"You better," he laughed, handing me a drink. "It's gonna be a hell of a night."

I clinked my cup against his and took a long drink, the alcohol burning down my throat. Parties like this were usually my thing—loud, reckless, no consequences. But tonight felt different. I couldn't shake the feeling that I was more focused on one person than anything else. And that wasn't like me.

We made our way to the kitchen, where Sophie was mixing drinks with a group of girls, laughing and tossing her hair over her shoulder like she owned the room. She always had that confidence, that energy that drew people to her. And Emma—well, Emma didn't have that. She wasn't drawing anyone in, not with her quiet demeanor and her introverted vibe. But for some reason, I couldn't take my eyes off her.

I finally spotted her again, still hovering near the edge of the room, her stepsister Alia talking to her. I watched as Emma gave a polite nod, but she seemed distant, her gaze drifting toward the door like she was planning an escape route. I wasn't sure why, but I felt a strange pull to go over there, to talk to her. Something about her made me want to get closer, to break through that wall she kept up.

Before I could talk myself out of it, I set my drink down and made my way over to where she was standing.

"Hey," I said, leaning against the wall next to her. "You look like you're having a blast."

Emma glanced up at me, surprised that I'd even noticed her. "Not really my scene," she admitted, her voice soft.

I nodded, taking in her awkward stance, the way she kept shifting from one foot to the other like she couldn't get comfortable. "Yeah, I can tell. So what are you doing here?"

She shrugged, looking down at her drink. "Sophie and Miles thought it'd be good for me to come. Meet people. Be 'social.'"

I chuckled. "And how's that going?"

Her lips curved into a small smile. "Not great."

I found myself watching her more closely, noticing the way her blue eyes reflected the lights from the party, the hint of frustration in her voice. She was trying, that much was obvious. But she didn't belong here, and we both knew it.

"Why'd you come, then?" I asked, genuinely curious.

Emma paused, her gaze drifting over the crowd before landing back on me. "I guess I didn't want to be the odd one out. It's hard enough being the new girl."

"Yeah, I get that," I said, leaning in a little closer. "But trust me, you're not missing much. Same people, same party, every time."

She gave a soft laugh, and for a second, I saw her relax. Like maybe she didn't feel so out of place with me standing there.

Before I could say anything else, Miles appeared, throwing his arm around me and practically dragging me away. "Jax, come on, man! We've got shots lined up. You in?"

I glanced back at Emma, feeling a weird pang of guilt for leaving her there alone. "I'll be back," I said to her before following Miles to the kitchen, where Alex and the others were already pouring shots.

The rest of the party blurred into the usual chaos—drinking games, loud music, people getting way too drunk. But my mind kept drifting back to Emma. No matter how many drinks I had, no matter how many jokes were thrown around, I couldn't shake the thought of her standing there, looking so out of place.

I found myself wondering what she was thinking, what it was like to be the new girl, navigating all this without the safety net of familiarity. And for some reason, I wanted to know more.