Life of the Party (28 page)

“No ma’am.”

“That’s right.
Now sit yourself down and eat these before they get cold.”

“Okay. Thank
you.” I grabbed the plate piled high with steaming pancakes, loaded
them up with whipped cream and syrup and then sat down at the table
to dig in. Dad came in as I was eating; he nodded at me and smiled
at my Aunt as he got himself a coffee. We were still at an impasse,
him and me, but since my Aunt and Uncle had arrived we’d all been
acting like nothing had happened. Like he hadn’t kicked me out and
I wasn’t leaving as soon as possible.

It was fairly
amusing to me that we instinctively put on a show of being a happy,
functional family around other people. At least we could agree on
that.

We may have
been acting civilly, but the tension was still there, right under
the surface. I don’t think my mom had forgiven my dad for kicking
me out without consulting her first. Dad was clearly still pissed
at me, as I was frustrated with him, but for the moment it simmered
just below the surface, safe and out of sight. He had—to my horror
of horrors—driven me straight to school the day before so I could
write my last test. He picked me up afterwards as well. When I
walked out the front doors his car had been there, idling, as if he
expected me to make a run for it and was fully prepared to chase me
down. We spent the drive, both there and back, in total heated
silence.

Luckily we
hadn’t had to spend much time together since. He was preoccupied
with my Aunt and Uncle and I was able to hole up in my room,
painting my nails and making other important preparations for my
big day. My dress was pressed and hung up in my room, my little
clutch purse held all the necessities—cigarettes and a lighter,
some clear nail polish and shiny lip-gloss.

“I’m so excited
to see your dress.” Aunt Linda exclaimed. She joined me at the
table and took a sip of coffee. “Your mother was telling me about
it, it sounds … neat.”

I laughed. “I
doubt my mom thought it was neat. But I think it’s awesome. Just
wait till you see it on.”

“I can’t wait!
So, where are you getting your hair done?”

“Oh,” I
finished chewing and swallowed. “At my friend’s house. She’s
really, really good, I’m trying to convince her to go to school for
it.”

“Fun! I can
just imagine the giggling and the boy talk.”

“Yeah, there’s
definitely some of that.” I nodded. And hard drug use.

“So, tell me
about it.” She leaned in conspiratorially, checking to make sure
that neither of my parents were around. Dad had gone into the den
to watch TV with Uncle Paul. “Tell me about the boy.”

“What boy?”

“The boy.” She
rolled her eyes at me. “Come on, Mackenzie. There’s always a
boy.”

“Is there?” I
giggled. “Yeah. There is.” I smiled at the very thought of him.

“So, what’s he
like? Are you two serious?”

“Not, like
super serious. But
I
really like him. Like, love him, like
him.”

“Really? Tell
me more! Is he handsome?”

“Oh, yes, so
handsome.” I pictured Grey’s dreamy face. “He’s perfect. He sings
in a rock band, and drives a motorcycle and he’s just ….” I sighed
happily. “He’s great.”

“Will I get to
meet him?”

“Oh … I don’t
know.” I frowned thoughtfully. I hadn’t actually told Grey about my
grad or invited him or anything. I’m sure he had a trillion better
things to do than come to a high school graduation. “Maybe, I’m not
sure.” I shrugged.

“Well, if he’s
there, you be sure to introduce me.”

“You’ll know
him when you see him. He’ll be the hottest guy around.”

“I bet.” She
winked at me. “Oh, to be young. There’s nothing like it, you know.
You treasure these days, Mackenzie.”

“I will.” I
smiled. “I’m going to.”

My mom dropped
me off at Charlie’s house early that afternoon. I could tell she
didn’t like the look of the place—her nose did that flare thing it
does when she’s not impressed with something. But at least she
didn’t say anything about it. I could tell she was trying extra
hard to get along with me.

“Do you need me
to pick you up later?” Mom wondered as I got out of the car.

“No. Charlie
can give me a ride.”

“Are you
sure?”

“Yes.”

“Okay. Four
o’clock, then, right?”

“Right. See you
then.” I shut the door and grabbed my stuff from the backseat,
draping the dress over my arm as I started up the old, wobbly
stairs. Charlie opened the front door when I was halfway there and
gave my mom a little wave before her car sped away.

“Hey!” Charlie
greeted me excitedly, a wide smile spread over her face. She looked
gorgeous as usual—her blonde hair was straight and shiny, she wore
black Capri’s and a white button-up blouse. I didn’t understand how
she could wear white so much and never spill on it.

“Or should I
say, hey, roomy!” She held out her hands to me.

“Hey … what?” I
stopped on the top stair.

“I said hey,
roomy.” Charlie repeated with a giggle. “Welcome home.”

“What …?” I was
speechless with surprise. A smile broke over my face. “You want me
to live with you? But what about Katrina?”

“What about
Katrina?” She made a face. “I’ve been thinking of kicking her out
for ages. She’s never around anyway; it’ll give her the perfect
excuse to move in with that loser boyfriend she spends so much time
with.”

“Really? Are
you sure?”

“Of course I’m
sure! It makes perfect sense. Do you want to?”

“Are you
kidding me?” I laughed excitedly. “That’s the most … wow … it’s
just, so perfect.”

“Then welcome
to your new abode.” She opened up the door for me with a flourish.
“Katrina is such a pain in the ass; I can’t wait until she’s
gone.”

“Me either,
now.” I admitted. I looked around the small, tidy space of
Charlie’s home, appreciating it even more since it would soon be
mine to share. I couldn’t have imagined a better scenario. Living
with Charlie was sure to be nothing but a good time. “I’m so
excited.” I gushed. “When do you think Katrina will move out?”

“Um, I’ll
probably give her until the end of the month. So a week or so, is
that cool?”

“Absolutely,
it’ll give me time to pack. How much is the rent?”

Charlie flipped
on her stereo.
Hanging by a Moment
by Lifehouse was playing.
“It’s six-hundred a month, so you’d pay three-hundred, and then
half the power and utilities and stuff, and then groceries or
whatever. But if you’re working full time you shouldn’t have any
problem affording it.”

“Awesome.” I
lit a smoke and smiled. “I should be able to get more hours at
work, hey?”

“Oh, yeah. That
shouldn’t be a problem either. I’m really excited about this Mac,
you have no idea.” Charlie moved about her kitchen, plugging in a
set of hot rollers and setting her make-up case on the counter. She
pulled a baggie full of white powder out of a drawer and poured
some onto a small square mirror, then took her credit card and
started breaking up the chunks and crushing it fine. I giggled
excitedly, watching her work with eager impatience.

“To celebrate
your happy graduation and your new home,” she passed me the straw,
“and the beginning of the awesomest summer ever!”

“I’ll snort to
that.” I joked. Long gone was any kind of pause or hesitation, I
took the straw immediately and inhaled the blow expertly; an old
pro by now, sniffing it back deep.

“Wooh.” I could
already feel it working, the happy numbing trembles that satisfied
the things in me I hadn’t known were lacking. It felt like I was
complete again, like everything was right and good the moment the
burn hit my sinuses. We did some lines for a while, laughing and
giggling and snorting until we reached a near fever pitch of
happiness and excitement. I was crazily, totally high. My teeth
ground together with pent-up energy.

I sat on a
chair in the kitchen as Charlie got to work. The room was wreathed
in smoke and the music pumped loudly around us. She put my hair up
in the rollers and started on my face. I found it hard to sit
still; I had to concentrate to keep from fidgeting. We talked about
her high school graduation and how lame it had been, about typical
cheesy grad themes like, “the future looks bright,” and “don’t stop
believing.” I could vaguely remember Charlie in high school now
that I thought about it; she had been a few grades ahead of me,
pretty and popular.

“How come you
didn’t go to college?” I wondered. “Or school or something.”

“College.”
Charlie made a face. “No thanks. I couldn’t pick just one thing to
do for the rest of my life, I’ve never been like, career driven.
Obviously, I mean, look where I work. I don’t know. I just, I want
to learn it all. I want to see it all. I couldn’t do the whole
cookie cutter get a job and work at it for the next thirty years
thing, you know.”

“Yeah, I know.”
I agreed. We had a lot in common. “There’s more to life than a good
job to make money and have stuff.”

“Exactly.”

When she was
satisfied with my make-up, she started on my hair. There was no
mirror before me so I couldn’t see what she was doing. I could feel
her piling the dark tresses on top of my head, and though there was
no way to tell what it looked like, I trusted her completely. She
was truly a genius when it came to beauty.

“If you ever
did go to school for something, it should be for this.” I motioned
to myself. “Seriously. I think you’d do amazing. And that’d be fun,
right?”

Charlie
shrugged. “Maybe. I mean, I’ve always liked doing it.”

“You totally
should. I’d come to you, every time.”

“Thanks,
Mac.”

The afternoon
sped away, accelerated by the drugs as we sat in the warm kitchen
of Charlie’s—soon to be our—house. It wasn’t long until she was
finished doing my hair. Then she helped me out of my clothes and
into my dress. Excitement churned in my stomach as she zipped me
up. I couldn’t believe I was going to be graduating.

Charlie stepped
in front and looked me over, head to toe.

“Oh, Mackenzie.
You look …,” she shook her head, “amazing.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah.” She
nodded. “Come on; let’s look in the mirror in my room.”

We giggled our
way into the bedroom and I stood before the full-length mirror.
Charlie had done it again. I did look amazing. My make-up was quite
natural, nothing too bold or daring, but totally tasteful. I had
cheekbones again; I had to find out how she did that. My dark eyes
were large and wide, lined just right to make them seem bigger and
softer. My wide lips were coloured a nice, deep red—they shone with
just the right amount of gloss.

All of my hair
was up, sleek and smooth in a voluminous glossy French twist, and
my bangs were side-swept over my face. I looked at my hair in awe;
I couldn’t believe that Charlie had done it. It was amazing, an
elegant style that perfectly suited my dress.

My dress. I was
in love with my dress. I had found it at a vintage shop in the
city, and the moment I saw it I had to have it. It was soft and
black and strapless, with a snug fitting pencil skirt that came
down just to my knees and a high, thick black belt that cinched
tightly at the curve of my waist. It was very vintage sixties, very
Audrey Hepburn. I looked totally different in it, totally grown up
and mature.

I shook my head
at the reflection in the mirror. “Thank you, Charlie. It’s just …
you’re amazing.” I gave my friend a hug.

“Wait, we’re
not done yet, just hold on a sec.” She left the room; I could hear
her rummaging around in the bathroom as I admired myself
incredulously.

“Here.” She
came back triumphantly, holding up a necklace that she placed at
the base of my throat. It was heavy; one necklace that looked like
many, a silver rope of baubles—some delicate and shiny, some matte
silver mixed with plain, silver chains. It went perfectly with the
look, worked well with the neckline of my dress and added just a
flash of sparkle.

I felt amazing,
like a runway model or something. Since it was nearly time to go, I
spent the few remaining minutes practicing to walk on the cracked
linoleum in my black velvet peep-toe pumps. I wondered what my mom
would say, for she had vetoed this dress from the very beginning,
but maybe she’d change her mind when she saw me in it. She’d
preferred a frosted pink crinoline princess gown that made me
shudder the moment I saw it.

It was about
quarter to four, but Charlie didn’t seem in any rush. She cut a few
more lines for us and I did mine fervently, careful not to get any
blow on the soft black fabric of my dress. It gave me the extra
boost of confidence I needed. I lit a smoke and exhaled
shakily.

“Shouldn’t we
go now?” I wondered. I couldn’t sit still, pent-up with the
combination of cocaine and nervous expectation. I didn’t even think
to wonder or worry if my parents would know I was high. For the few
minutes we saw each other, if they did notice anything, they’d
probably think it was just nerves.

“Oh, yeah.
We’ll go soon.” Charlie was putting lipstick on as I asked. She had
dressed up as well and looked amazing, of course, in a frilly white
dress and strappy little sandals that were perfect on her. She kept
glancing at the clock like she was stalling or something.

“You don’t have
to come if you don’t want. I imagine it’ll be fairly boring.”

“No, it’ll be
fun. Besides, nothing’s boring when you’re high enough.”

I laughed.
“True.”

And then I
heard it. It started as a deep rumbling somewhere off in the
distance, and the noise grew gradually louder as it came nearer.
Eventually, the rumbling stopped right outside Charlie’s apartment,
just sitting there, idling. My heart did a little flip as I
recognized the sound. I looked over at Charlie in surprise.