Dare to be Different

3-Playing it Safe

Above is a picture of Hunter.

~~~~~~

~~Ashley POV~~

It was 7:30 pm and Emily, Rachel, and I were getting ready for the party. Emily had just gotten out of the shower and Rachel was getting dressed into her outfit. I quickly hopped in the shower to freshen up. 

I got dressed in some jean shorts, a white crop top that said "Vans", and wrapped a red, plaid, pull-over around my waist, and threw my hair into a high ponytail and sat down on Rachel's bed and waited for the others. 

In the end, Emily wore a pair of jean shorts and a white, cropped tank top, and Rachel wore a black skirt and an off-the-shoulder white top with her hair slightly curled. 

I quickly pulled on my black converse and the three of us walked out the door to my car. 

~~~~~~

By the time we got to the party we were at least forty-five minutes late, but I didn't care. We walked in the front door and the smell of alcohol and the loud beat of music instantly hit us hard. "There's Dean!" Rachel yelled and she dashed off to go talk to him. I rolled my eyes and smiled. 

"Are you smiling because I'm here, sweetheart?" a familiar voice behind me said and I physically cringed.  

I grit my teeth and spin on my heel only to find myself staring right at Hunter Novell. "No, if anything it's the opposite." 

He smirked, "Sure, sweetheart. Wanna dance?" 

I raised an eyebrow and shook my head. "No thanks." 

"Too bad. You're missing out," he winked. 

"I'll dance with you," Emily says beside me. I glance at her with a shocked expression. Why would anyone want to be within two feet of Hunter?  

He shrugs and then heads off to the dance floor with Emily in tow. "He sure is something, isn't he?" someone says behind me. I whirl around to find Patrick and Alec standing behind me. 

"'Something' doesn't begin to explain what a knucklehead he is," I say rolling my eyes. 

Alec chuckles. "I like you, you're funny." 

"Thanks," I say with a tiny smile. 

"How come we've never seen you around the school before?" Patrick asks. 

"You guys are so wrapped up in popularity you don't take the time to notice unpopular people like me," I answer truthfully. 

"Fair answer," he says. "But we honestly don't care about popularity. I'm not even sure how it happened." 

I roll my eyes at his cluelessness. It was obviously because he and his friends were the best-looking people on this planet, but I wouldn't tell him that. "I think I'm going to get a drink," I say. 

The boys nod. "See you at school tomorrow?" Alec asks and I nod with a smile and walk towards the kitchen. 

When I walk in I realize that everything in there probably had alcohol in it. So, being the safe person I am, I grab a cup and walk over to the fridge and get water out of the machine on the side. 

I turn around and make I contact with a guy named Brax, who was in my science class, and smiled. He was a pretty nice guy from what I've seen so far. But it's only been one day. 

He walks over and looks at the cup in my hands. "Playing it safe, huh?" 

I nod. "Yep." 

"Why don't I go get you a drink? You can trust me," he says. 

I weigh over my options in my head before finally deciding to trust him. "Sure, what the heck." 

He grins and disappears for a few minutes before reappearing. "It's just a soda, don't worry." 

I smile in thanks and take a sip. Whatever this drink was it was really good and I kept drinking and before I knew it I had drained the entire thing. 

After a few seconds, I started to feel a bit dizzy. "Whoa," I say as I clutch onto Brax's arm. "My head is starting to hurt." 

"Oh, that sucks. Here, let's find you a room upstairs where you can lie own and rest for a bit," he suggests and I nod.  

I struggle to climb up the stairs but eventually we make it up and I stumble into the first empty room I can find. 

I climb onto the bed and start dozing off. Suddenly, I feel a rough pair of hands grab me. "Hey, what's goin' on?" I ask no one in particular. 

"Well, baby, you're in for the ride of your life," a voice sneers. I frown when the voice sounds a bit distant and foggy. 

 Then, a pair of lips crashes onto mine and my mind clicks and I realize what's happening. I start to squirm and I try to lift my hands to push them off but they feel too heavy and I can barely lift them an inch. 

"Hey!" a voice calls out. "Get off of her you asshole!" 

The hands are yanked away off of me and I hear groaning noises and punches being thrown. The last thing I see is the back of someone's head before crash into darkness. 

~~~~~~ 

A few hours later I wake up in an unfamiliar room on an unfamiliar bed with five pairs of concerned and tired eyes staring down at me. I immediately recognize Rachel and Emily. I sit up a little and realize I'm in a teenage boy's room judging by the mess. I look around and see Patrick and Alec and unexpectedly see Hunter sitting there looking the most concerned. "Where...Where am I?" I ask confused. 

"My room," Hunter grunts. 

"Oh thank god you're okay!" Rachel gasps as she throws her arms around me. 

I nod and accept her embrace. "What happened?" I question. 

"Uh..." Alec starts while nervously scratching the back of his head. "I think you had a little too much to drink and you passed out." 

I nod but frown. I knew he was lying. I distinctly remember saying that I wasn't going to drink tonight because I was the designated driver. I don't call him out on his lie but i do wonder, why did he lie? What could have happened that was so bad that he couldn't tell me?