i. our story

one

Chapter One: Party
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September 9th 2016

I sit on my balcony, watching the sunset while I finish writing my report for my English class. I'm only a few weeks into my first year of college.

Most people say I should party and go out every night, others tell me I should stay inside and do work all day and night since this really counts towards my adult life. And right now, I rather stay inside and do my work.

My roommate always talks about how I should go out and party with her some nights, but college isn't cheap, and it also wasn't easy to get in considering their low acceptance rate. I rather not throw this away, but it really is tempting seeing how much fun they all have.

"Jess!" says my roommate, Louri, while she drags on the last bit. I turn my head around to see her through the glass door as she runs over to me.

"Please come with me tonight, I'm begging
you this time." Lauri says while opening the balcony door.

"I'm sorry, I want to finish this last part to my essay." I say with a slight frown on my face.

"If you come just this one time, I promise I will NEVER ask you to come again!" Lauri says with a convincing voice.

I thought about it for a second. I would really like to go, but I rather put my work first, and finish successful.
She gives me her puppy eyes, frowning while looking at me.

"Okay! I'll go." I say while Lauri looks at me with a happy expression. "But you have to promise that you'll never ask me again, and be serious about it!" I say while saving my work and closing my computer.
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I stop walking , staring at the house from across the street, with the music blaring. It looked crowded. Lauri grabs my hand and ask me, "What are you waiting for?" before pulling me towards the house.

We get up to the front door after waiting in line to be let in. A buff guy is standing there, blocking the door.

"Look who it is! It's Lauri!" the guy at the door smile drops a little. "I didn't know you were a...lesbian?" the guys says while scratching his head and tilting it to the left.

Me and Lauri looks at each other and back at the guy door.

"There's a lot of things that you don't know about me, Josh." Lauri says before she pushes our way through him, and the door.

I walk through the crowded house with my arm in Lauri's. The bright colored strobe lights flashing left and right, and the bass banging through my chest, and the sweaty bodies that lightly touch me. I keep my head down while walking through.

"Jess, sit here and don't go anywhere, okay?" says Lauri as she sits me down on a couch with a few other people.
Lauri then walks away, leaving me with no chance to even respond.

About five minutes go by, and Lauri still isn't back. I was about to stand up until I felt a pair of hands on my shoulders.

"Lauri!" My face dropped. It wasn't Lauri. It was a boy...that I oddly found attractive. I felt myself starring, I didn't want to, but I couldn't help it.

"Hello?" the boy says while staring me dead in my face. He seemed really confused. "Do you want to join us for spin the bottle."

"Spin the bottle?" I ask with gaps in between each word.

He doesn't say anything else and pulls with him to sit on the floor.

The boy who invited me to play holds up a beer bottle and waves it in the air.
"I need someone to empty this so we can play." he says with a smirk on his face.

Everyone in the circle slowly turns and looks at me. The boy crawls over to me and passes me the bottle. "I didn't get your name, sweetie."

"J-Jess...Jessica." I say with a stutter, keeping my face low to the ground

I stare at the bottle. Kind of unsure what to do with it. I look up to the boy who handed it to me, "How do I open it?" I ask really confused.

The girl next to me takes the bottle from out my hands, and takes the cap off with her teeth. She winks at me and drinks down the whole bottle without stopping.

Everyone in the circle claps and cheers at her.
The girl places the bottle in the middle of our little circle, and spins it.

We all have our eyes on the bottle, watching it closely. The bottle starts to spin slower and slower. My heart starts to bang through my chest. The bottle stops on me.

"Jessica!" Yells a familiar voice.
"Lauri?" I turn around and call out the name, and it was her.

"Jess, come on let's go," Lauri says while slurring her words.

"Are you drunk?" I ask her.

"Never!" Lauri yells at me while pulling me up from the floor. "I wanna go...HOME!" her eyelids can barely stay up, she plops down on the floor, laying down with her knees to her chest.

I felt embarrassed...for her and myself. I don't want her to cause a scene, and I also don't want to be apart of it.