State of Grace (Complete)

Alcohol and Outs

Ch 24

Owen and I become a couple and we do all sorts of coupley things. I go to his championship soccer game and cheer when his team wins, we go out with friends of his and their girlfriends and we just hang out. I like being with him and he treats me really well. Chris and I still do homework together most nights after school, but I spend a lot of time texting Owen. Most weekends we do something together, wether it's going out or just watching a movie at his house. His parents are both really friendly and welcoming, and everything seems to be going fine until the Halloween party.

"Jessa Hale is having a monster party for Halloween. We should totally go." Owen tells me as we sit in his mom's car, waiting for a train to pass. We just finished watching a movie, but get stuck at the only train crossing in town on the way back to my house. Owen has yet to meet either one of my parents, but mostly because my parents don't really care to meet him. I'm not even sure if they know his name, which is pretty sad considering we've been going out for a month now.

"I don't know, who's going?" I'm not really huge into the party scene.

"Everyone, I don't know, a bunch of guys from my team," he tells me. "But I think it would be awesome if we could go, too. It's supposed to be dress-up."

I think back to Maggie dressing as a flapper when I was little and remember he saying how much fun she had. I am hit with a wave of nostalgia for the Princess Peach of that year, so without really thinking more about it, I agree. "Sure. Do you want to do some sort of theme costume?"

"What do you mean?" The train is passed and we're moving again.

"You know, like you go as Robin Hood and I go as Maid Marian."

"I wouldn't be caught dead in tights, Grace, that's so gay." I blanche at the use of his choice of words, but he seems completely oblivious. "How about I go as the devil and you can be an angel?"

"Sure, that sounds good, I guess."

"Great! All I need is a set of horns and a pitchfork and I'll be good to go. Are you going to be a good angel?"

"Aren't all angels good?"

We pull into my driveway and kiss until the lights flicker.

"Man, their mom is really persistent. Perhaps she should lay off, it's not like you're her daughter. Besides, I know Ian does way worse."

"I told you, she's like my mom, which means I won't cross her." I haven't told Owen everything about my childhood, and I don't think I could, but I have made it clear before that I will follow Andrea's rules, and not making out in the car for more than ten minutes is one of them.

"Bye Owen," I give him a quick kiss and run in my house.

It turns out that Jessa's party is huge. The cars are parked on her lawn and along the side of the road for ages. True to my word I am dressed as an angel, I curled my hair into ringlets and created a halo out of braided golden pipe cleaners. I got a long white polyester dress from the thrift store and altered it with a pair of scissors to shorten it a bit and make it look wispy and wrap a golden cord (from a set of curtains, I think) around my waist. To top it off I bought a pair of little kids dress up wings from the dollar store. When Owen picks me up, he agrees that I look good. He's just got the promised pitch fork and devil horns, and he is wearing a red shirt.

"I've got a surprise for you in the trunk," he says as we park behind an old pick up farther down the block.

"See!" Owen pulls out a bottle of vodka. "My brother's friend bought it for us."