Jake and I were halfway through our seventh mountain dew by three o’clock. The party had gone on two hours already and another painstaking sixty minutes had yet to pass. Jake and I had promised to stay at each other’s parties the entire time, which I appreciated now more than I had anticipated. Of course, I was whisked away frequently to make small talk with people I’d never met but who supposedly remembered when I was ‘this tall,’ but it was nice to have someone to fall back to whenever there was a lull.
It was during each of these lapses that we downed yet another mountain dew. I was becoming exceptionally jittery , and the fact that Mrs. Ingerson, with or without Arvid, had not yet shown up was not helping. I had related the whole scenario to Jake early on, attempting to explain her philosophy with much less grace than she had, but luckily Jake wasn’t bothered. He was more interested in boasting about how trashed he’d gotten at the party.
I’d had half a beer, but the fact that the host’s parents were inside the house supposedly supervising made me hesitant to drink much more. I was among the minority.
Actually, Arvid may have been the only other one who was concerned. As far as I was aware, she hadn’t had anything to drink. We’d been standing along the edge of the party separately; observing our classmates when she’d approached, and with hardly any small talk, asked to go on a walk.
To be completely honest, it made absolutely no sense.
“Dude,” Jake was saying in between sips of unnecessary caffeine. “You’ve got to calm down.”
Admittedly, I was alternately bouncing on my heels or drumming my fingers against a can, but quite rightly, I thought, I said, “You’re one to talk.” He’d been sat in one of the folding chairs, his knee jiggling so fast it blurred.
“Yeah,” he sighed. “Good point.”
“We’re gonna be up all night.”
Jake nodded, eyes wide and awake, but not alert. He kept darting his head in the direction of any new noise. I guess I was probably just as bad, but it was harder to recognize it on myself. “Do you think it’s possible to get buzzed off pop?”
“I think the side effects are probably similar,” I said.
Jake crushed his empty can against the side of his head, leaving a red ring next to his ear. “Ouch,” he said, about two minutes two late. I laughed, also belated. “Never knew I could do that…”
“Got a feeling it’s a one-time deal.” I tossed my own can into the trash can nearby, and against my better judgment, opened another.
“You know, I think I’ll be making sure of that whether it’s true or not,” he said, rubbing the spot on his head.
I grimaced as I took another sip. “It’s starting to taste like dirty socks.”
“That’s how I felt on number four.”
I had just raised the can to my lips yet again, when over the rim I saw a flash of black hair, a brilliant smile, then a glance in my direction. I slammed the can down on the table and fizzy liquid slopped over the edges, puddling on the tablecloth. “That’s her.”
Jake’s face jerked up in the direction I was gawking. Apparently the caffeine had seeped into the part of my brain that dealt with proper social functions too.
“Dang,” Jake commented approvingly.
I started over to them, acutely aware of how unprepared I was for this meeting, despite having waited for it all day.
“Cole,” my mom hissed, grabbing my elbow halfway there. “You look awful. What on earth are you and Jake doing?”
“Thanks Mom,” I grunted, ducking out of her reach. She stalked after me as though I was sure to embarrass her in front of her coworker if I wasn’t closely monitored. I felt annoyed until I realized she had successfully distracted Arvid’s mom, leaving me and Arvid herself, alone.
