A long week dragged by and finally the gang was released from in-school suspension. During that long week, hardly anyone talked to each other. It was no different now. As Ms. Gould motioned for the kids to leave, each did so and they went their separate ways, as if they weren't friends in the first place. One week did a lot of damage, and lots of changes had been made.
Due to constant bickering and quarreling over girls, Dustin and Lucas had a falling out. Lucas had gotten a new girlfriend, Gia, the daughter of Mrs. Gould. She was a lovely girl, with dark brown hair typically in two buns and wide green eyes. But no one liked her. She ran with the popular kids in school. That meant Troy.
Lucas started spending all his time with Gia after their in-school suspension and eventually fell in with that crowd too. Him and Gia could be seen making out in front of the school after hours, totally enamored with each other. Lucas even became buds with Troy and his goons.
Dustin and Suzie, although more private with their affairs, were also very much enamored with each other, and the two were constantly at Dustin's house.
It seemed that girls had finally broken the party.
And one girl had been totally isolated. Max.
She didn't know what she'd done. But all in one night, her life became a living disaster and she lost what little she had left. Lucas had left her for a more typically popular girl, Mike had abandoned her with no reason, and the party had succumbed to each member's personal life. She'd give anything to have it all back.
She thought these things as she sat on her bed, throwing her walkie talkie in the air and catching it repeatedly. Her parents weren't home and she had nothing better to do, so doing this became a coping mechanism for both her boredom and loneliness. More often than not, she tried to radio Mike, but he wouldn't respond.
The sun was setting over Hawkins as Max put her walkie talkie down, and she cried. For the first time in a long time. Since Billy. Then, something very unexpected happened.
Static rang through Max's walkie talkie. At first she thought it was Dustin, accidentally pressing on the call button in the midst of making out with Suzie. It had happened just a couple days ago. But it was Lucas.
"Hey losers, Troy is having a party tonight and Gia wanted me to invite you guys. It's gonna be really fun." Max shot up from laying on her bed and grabbed her receiver to respond.
"If you're gonna call us losers why should we show up? Besides, this is Troy we're talking about. No thanks."
"C'mon what happened to Mad Max? Who'd take a risk just for the heck of it?"
"It's out of the question Lucas. It's not even like you're our friend anymore."
"Okay, fair point. But I'm trying to give you people some sort of social life. In the week we were stuck in that crusty old room things changed. I know that. But that doesn't change the fact that I know all of you and that I think this will be good for us. It's our first high school party, and I'm in good with the cool kids. Just do this, for me."
Max sighed, and held onto the sound of Lucas's voice. She missed him. So much.
"Fine. I'm in."
"Yes! I already talked to Mike and Dustin separately. They're in too. 8 o'clock. Harrington's. Be sure to look nice doll face."
And with that, he was gone.
Max looked at the clock. 7:00. Ugh. She lugged herself off her bed and walked over to her closet, glancing in the mirror on the door before sliding it open. She noted that despite all this happening and changing, she still looked good. She pulled out a black overall skirt from her closet, along with her Duran Duran Rio album shirt.
She changed and put her hair in a top knot, finishing off the look with black slip-on vans and a black scrunchie.
She arrived at Troy's house at 7:55 and the place was already hopping. Pulling up on her skateboard, she noticed the party's bikes seemingly just passed out on the front lawn.
They came here together.
She sauntered up to the front door and threw it open to a house full of all her peers, some which she knew and some strangers. Boys greeted her with comments like "DAAAANG" and the girls greeted her with comments like "Lucas is gonna regret leaving you when you get another boyfriend tonight."
One girl, who Max remembered as Sarah, was in the middle of saying something along those lines when Max saw him. Lucas. With Gia on his arm. "Excuse me," Max said. "I have to go talk to Lucas."
Max walked away from Sarah and toward Lucas's prominent place in the Harrington living room. "Hey Lucas."
Lucas beamed. "Look who's here!! Nice to see you again." Max nodded and smiled slightly. It was awkward.
"Where are the others?" she asked abruptly, almost in a panic.
"The backyard," Lucas replied. "The PDA train is back in town though."
Max walked outside and sure enough, Dustin and Suzie were getting it on in one of the Harrington lawn chairs. Other kids shouted things like "Get a room!" and averted their eyes. Max did the same, but couldn't help smiling at seeing her friends, no matter how gross they were. She rolled her eyes and went to continue finding her other friends, but was interrupted by a high pitch, girly voice.
"ITS TIME FOR KISSING RUGBY PEOPLE!" shouted Gia, standing on a coffee table in the middle of the living room.
What in the world has the stalker gotten me into now, Max thought. She meandered back into the living room and followed the example of the innumerable other people in the room, sitting on the floor.
"The rules are simple," Gia stated. "A boy or girl will be chosen out of a hat of names. That person will stand where I am now. The rest of you will be given cards, stating if you're in or out of the round. The people that are IN will race to kiss the person standing on the table. This can get intense so be careful. Those of you who are OUT are just simply that. Out. Let's begin!" She said this last part with a giggle.
"Oh yeah and one more thing, the person standing on the table won't know who it is until the kiss is over," she added.
Groans escaped from some people, but excited whispers filled the room.
Gia piped up again. "Remember, this is a GAME OF SPEED."
