I was overly excited at the idea of being allowed out to a party for the first time ever. Amelia would be there so I knew I'd have company. Joey and Tammie would probably sort things out. He was being ultra cool with her but she let him have his space which was a good sign. I wasn't so sure that Tammie and I would ever be as close again. Amelia had a sore throat so she wasn't as chatty and Nathan didn't spend much time with us at lunch so things were relatively quiet the few days before the party.
On Friday he sat with us for a few minutes, accompanied by Aaron and Abbi.
"So are you going to go on Saturday?"Aaron asked me.
"I think so."
"Is your Dad letting you go?" said Abbi, her voice full of surprise.
"Yes." I was a little snappier than I should have been.
"Cool," said Aaron, beaming. "Everyone else?"
Tammie and Joey nodded.
"As long as my cold doesn't get worse," croaked Amelia.
Noah shook his head. He wasn't a fan of Aaron.
Aaron ignored Noah and grinned cheerily at the rest of us. "Don't forget to bring your own drinks," he said before sauntering back to his table. Abbi and Nathan stayed for a few minutes. She tried her best to be nice to us which was surprising. Nathan was very comfortable around her. I couldn't help trying to work out what that might mean.
Saturday brought a whole new set of problems. Important ones, such as, what to wear. I ended up deciding on a pair of dark jeans, a pair of pointy high heel boots and a pretty purple lace top that was a lot more daring than usual. At least for me. I wore a long coat over the outfit to escape Dad's comments. He was better than he used to be but still had a tendency to slip into overbearing father mode every now and then. I used a little purple eye shadow, lots of black mascara and a pale lip gloss. I pinned my hair up and let some wispy bits fall down so it didn't look too "done." I looked different and hoped I wouldn't look too casual compared to everyone else.
At eight on the dot, Joey and Tammie arrived. Dad sent me off, his grumpy expression convincing me he was already regretting his decision to let me go.
"Have a wonderful evening," said Gran, hugging me close to her. "You look just like your mother," she whispered in my ear.
It was a little awkward for a while with Joey and Tammie, they hadn't really talked yet so the atmosphere was somewhat tense. They walked on either side of me. Joey kept glancing at Tammie's legs so I figured that was a good sign. Passing by the woods, I saw a red haired man ahead of us. I wondered if he was the same man I seemed to spot everywhere but as we turned the corner he disappeared before I could get a better look at him.
Loud music blared from inside Aaron's house. The door was invitingly wide open. Aaron stood in the front garden with some of his friends. Seeing us arrive, he waved and told us to go on in and get comfortable. It was still early, not many people had shown up yet.
I saw Nathan in the living room and waved him over, looking for Amelia.
"Didn't she tell you? She didn't come with me because she's sick. Our grandmother is making her stay in bed all weekend."
"Aw, no." I didn't simply mean because Amelia was sick, I was also dreading the thoughts of being at the party without her. "Should I bring her something?"
He shook his head, smiling. "She'll be fine; she's being spoiled as we speak."
I must have looked upset because he tried to be nice to me.
