Now is a Scary Word

Chapter 2

The gate was in sight. Luckily, it had not been locked yet, despite the fact that Jodie's wandering thoughts had significantly slowed her walking pace. She stepped though the rusted iron gate and began her travel back home. It was most likely going to take about 45 minutes, so, continuing walking, Jodie reached behind her and unzipped the front pouch of her backpack. She retrieved her earbuds and promptly plugged them into her phone. It was only once Jodie's favourite podcast had begun to play that she heard someone familiar shout her name; "Hey Jodie!" Her head darted up, and there stood Katherine Wylcom, one of only true friends. Two strong feelings immediately surged through Jodie's body and mind. One was excited and joyful to have ran into her good friend, but the other was the feeling of dread. Jodie knew that all Katherine would talk about on the walk were the graduation parties. You see, Jodie is very conservative, an old soul so to speak. She much prefers to stay in the comfort and safety of her own home and do things she personally enjoyed, such as sewing or writing. Parties had always... intimidated her in a way. They seemed to be a tornado of drugs, alcohol and sex, things that were way out of Jodie's comfort zone. It was these specific parties, the parties held after the year 12's graduation that Jodie had feared most since she had first heard talk of them in early year 10. It was a staple at these parties to get as drunk or high as possible, and then go out and "have fun" as some would call it. However, this fun consisted of vandalising, fighting and overall making a fool of yourself. Jodie took a deep breath and approached Katherine.

"How are you?" Jodie asked her, trying to stay as calm and collected as possible. She fumbled with her earbuds and put them back inside her bag.

"I'm fine. Would you mind if I walked home with you? I assume you are going home." Jodie nodded. "Awesome! I have some crazy news for you!"

They began to walk. Jodie's heart started to pound with anticipation. Although she loved her friend, she absolutely despised going to parties. Unfortunately, this was Katherine's favourite activity. She would always push for Jodie to tag along and "live a little" as she put it. Katherine had always been like this. She meant well, but had a hard time understanding boundaries.

"So... guess what happened today!" Katherine blurted out, giving Jodie a minor heart attack.

"Jesus Christ.." Jodie said in response to the fright, "must have been pretty fantastic."

"It was! Oh god, where do I begin?" Jodie sighed and chuckled to herself. Katherine is very much an excitable person. Combined with Jodie's subtle pessimism, the two made quite the peculiar, yet good team.

"Ok so.. I was at lunch and Seth Unger asked if I wanted to go with him to the graduation party!" Katherine was practically squealing by the end of her sentence. Overrun with glee, she skipped and bounced around, her curly blonde locks happily obliging. It made Jodie happy to see her friend all giddy over a guy, however that quickly turned to anxiety when Katherine spoke er next words.

"And you will be coming to this party, whether I have to drag you all the way there or not!"

"Woah, woah Kat, calm down. You know I don't like parties-"

"Come onnnnnnnn Jodie! How do you know you hate parties if you have never been to one?" She grabbed Jodie wrists and together they spun in a circle.

"Katherine, really," Jodie said in a more serious tone, "I have been dreading these parties ever since I first found out they EXISTED. It is filled with horny guys and girls who don't give a crap about their image, and I don't know if you've realised but that is NOT me." Jodie sighed. She was truely afraid of these parties. She'd always had this overwhelming fear of being taken advantage of. Whether that be physically, mentally, sexually or emotionally, the thought made her frigid with fear and anxiety. Jodie was a relatively shy person. She despised conflict, and just wanted to see everyone happy no matter the cost, even if it meant constricting her own happiness and well being. Because of this, it was quite hard for her to stand up to her friend like this.

"Ok ok, can I make a deal with you?" Katherine asked with a grin, "How about.. if you go to this one party, I will NEVER again bug you about going to a party again?" Her grin in no time transformed into a bright smile. Jodie felt bad. She had always, every single time, turned down going to parties with Katherine, ever since they first became friends in late year 8. She knew that she would be staying in touch with Katherine after high school, as she was overall a really lovely person and great friend, and the thought of being party free in later life did sound great. 'What the hell,' she thought, 'one celebratory party can't hurt.'

"You know what?" Jodie replied smirking, "Why not?" Katherine squealed with glee, giving her friend a tight hug.

"Thank you Jodie! This is going to be so fun!!"

The majority of the rest of the walk was jam packed with chatter about the party. Surprisingly, Jodie almost felt.. excited, whether that be from the party itself, or the subconscious relief of not being begged anymore. It was confusing for Jodie; she seemed to have happy anxiety. The constant whirr of Katherine humming about dresses, make-up, boys, seemed to conjure simultaneous waves of excitement and slight nervousness in her soul. However, she tried her best to finally push those pessimistic feelings aside, and focus on the fact that she was going to fun at the graduation party.