Life of the Party (29 page)

“Right on
time.” She confirmed.

I couldn’t
believe it. The thought had never even occurred to me. I grabbed my
clutch and gave Charlie a kiss on the cheek, nearly squealing with
delight. She laughed.

“See you there,
Mac.” She called on my way out the door.

It seemed too
good to be true, but it wasn’t. There he was, astride his
motorcycle, flashing a grin at me as I stepped into the bright
afternoon sunshine. I smiled back at him, taking the stairs slowly,
one at a time, until I was safely on the ground and walking
confidently, ecstatically towards him.

Grey looked
amazing. He wore dark jeans and black motorcycle boots with a
crisp, white button-down shirt, tucked in and rolled up at the
sleeves. Overtop his shirt he had a black wool sweater vest with
distorted white graphics, edgy and cool. His dark hair, albeit
messy, was still styled carefully, spiky with gel. I could see
myself reflected back in his large, aviator sunglasses. My heart
skipped a beat as I approached.

“Wow.” I
smiled, touched by how much effort he had clearly gone to on my
behalf. The white motorcycle beneath him practically sparkled, it
was so clean.

He took off his
sunglasses and the startling blue of his eyes nearly took my breath
away. A smirk curved his lips as he looked me over—again and
again—until finally he shook his head at me, as if in disbelief. A
low whistle escaped his lips.

I giggled and
did a twirl. “You like?” I wondered.

Grey grasped my
hand and pulled me near. “I like.” He kissed me gently.

“You shaved.” I
cupped his smooth, tanned cheek in my hand. “How did you—” I shook
my head in happy amazement. “How did you know about this?”

He shrugged.
“Charlie.”

“Charlie.” That
explained everything.

Grey looked
doubtfully at my high heeled pumps. “Can you ride in those?” He
chuckled, smiling at me as he put his sunglasses back on.

“Oh yeah.” I
smiled confidently, though really, I had no idea. I grasped his
arms to get on the bike, but after a few stunted efforts to swing
my leg over the seat, I threw my head back in laughter.

“It’s not my
shoes, it’s my skirt. I can’t get on, it’s too tight!”

“I’d say it’s
just right.” He laughed with me.

“Okay, here.” I
sat down on the bike seat sidesaddle style, so that both my feet
were on the same side and my high heels rested precariously on the
one little peg. I grasped Grey tightly around the waist.

“Now, just go
slow, and we’ll be good.”

He chuckled at
my ingenuity. “Are you okay?”

I settled
myself behind him, my arms wound around his hard waist, the warm
sun shining on us in the clear blue summer sky. All I could feel
was excitement; it spread within me and filled the air around me.
Everything was changing. School was done and I was moving out,
moving on, about to start the new chapter of my life that I had
always looked so forward to. I was about to embark on the world—one
full of countless potential possibilities and new, wonderful
experiences that were just waiting for me to come and enjoy. I
would take full advantage, would take all they had to offer.

A shiver of
utter thrill rushed through me. I smiled wildly.

“I’ve never
been better.”

In the history
of grad reception entrances, it had to be the coolest one ever.
Grey drove up to the entrance of the Community Center where my
classmates and their families were gathered in little groups,
waiting for the reception to start. Everyone was dressed to the
nines—all the guys were in dark suits and ties, most of the girls
were in fluffy, frilly pastel coloured dresses.

We rumbled
slowly in, drawing the attention of the crowd as everyone stopped
to look up at us. If I hadn’t been so high on coke I probably would
have been blushing like mad, but as it was, I felt hot and
glamorous and just … special. Out of the ordinary. I was nearly
bursting with pride to be the one on Grey’s motorcycle, to be the
one with the gorgeously hot, mysterious older man that all the
girls were gawking at.

The engine
growled idly as he stopped the bike at the curb and I climbed
lightly off, smoothing my dress back into place. I could feel
everyone’s eyes on us.

“Everyone’s
staring at us.” I giggled.

Grey chuckled.
“No. Everyone’s staring at you. I can’t say I blame them.”

I smiled
bashfully. “Yeah?”

“Come on. You
know you’re the prettiest one here.”

“I am?”

“Oh yeah.” He
scoured the crowd for a moment and then nodded certainly at me. “Oh
yeah. Without a doubt.” He tilted my chin up with his finger and
then we kissed. I hoped that everyone was still watching us, hoped
the gawking girls would see that he was kissing me. I felt so
amazing at that moment. It was surreal, like I was caught in a
dream or something. A dream come true. I felt I might burst from
happiness.

“Seven o’clock,
right?” He smirked at me. “I’ll see you then.”

“Bye.” I
nodded, smiling as I stepped back from the bike. I gave Grey a
little wave as he revved the engine once and then started smoothly
off into the street.

With a happy
sigh, I turned once he had gone, heading down the sidewalk towards
the Community Center. My heels clipped upon the cement; I liked the
noise. I scanned the crowds of people gathered as I strolled,
looking idly for my family, suddenly wondering if they had seen my
little entrance. Wickedly I hoped they had.

It was a
perfect day, the sun was sailing warmly in the clear blue sky, a
soft and gentle breeze stirred the branches of the large old poplar
trees that lined the streets. The grass was deep green and fresh
cut, filling the air with the delicious scent of summer. A buzz of
nervous, excited energy came from the gathered groups of graduates
and their families staggered among the wide lawn, waiting for the
reception to begin. A smile curved my lips as I passed them
all.

I walked by
Brad and his friends without really looking his way, just enough to
notice that he still wore the remnants of the absolute beat down
he’d received—courtesy of Grey and Zack—upon his face. His eyes
were still puffy and yellowy-blue with bruises. I smirked to myself
and wondered how much trouble his mom had given him for fighting
right before graduation. Served him right.

Ben and Toby
and Jacob were off by themselves, so obviously stoned that I
wondered how their parents didn’t know. I giggled and waved at them
as I passed. Toby gave me appraising thumbs up and Jacob whistled
loudly. I awarded them with a smile and a quick twirl on the
sidewalk, which was met by a smattering of applause from their
little circle. With a laugh, I curtsied low at them—well, as low as
I could in that tight of a skirt.

“Nice moves.”
Riley commented. Startled by the sudden voice behind me, I gave a
little jump, and then my breath came out in a relieved gasp when I
realized who it was.

“Riley, you
scared me.” I pressed a hand to my chest. Jacob and Toby and Ben
laughed at me, they had seen the whole thing. I gave them a mock
glare.

“Sorry.” He
apologized, but he didn’t look sorry. He didn’t look overly
impressed at all—his eyebrows furrowed slightly and he was
frowning. But other than the tense expression, Riley looked good.
Like, really good in his tux. He had gone with the traditional
black and white three piece, a silver tie and shiny dress shoes.
His dark hair had been cut quite short— almost a buzz, really. His
dark eyes glowered out at me. He looked older, distinguished,
almost … sexy. I barely recognized him.

“Wow. You clean
up nice.” I admitted.

“So do you.”
His dark eyes trailed over me, up and down, as if paying special
attention to detail. “That’s the dress you found that one time in
the city, right?”

“Right.” I
shouldn’t be surprised that he remembered; at one time we did mean
something to each other. Still, I was touched by his
thoughtfulness, and a little saddened. I shook my head and pushed
any negative thoughts away, determined not to ruin my graduation
with the same old Riley song and dance that didn’t solve anything
or get us anywhere.

“Well, you look
amazing. Like a grown up or something.”

“Yeah, you
too.”

We stood
awkwardly for a moment. I scanned the crowd for my family
again.

“Oh, they’re
over by the doors.” Riley noticed my search and pointed towards the
Center. “I saw them on the benches over there.”

“Great, thanks.
Where’s your mom? I should say hello.”

“She’s there,
with Emily and her mother.” He pointed again, in the opposite
direction. I tried to keep the frown from my face as I looked over
and found Mrs. McIntyre in happy conversation with the Christian
and her mother. The Christian was wearing a silver dress with long
sleeves and a full-length skirt, I couldn’t decide if I liked it.
But obviously Riley did, since he had dressed to match her.

At least she
was still chubby.

“Why don’t you
come over, say hello?” Riley invited.

“Oh, um …
that’s okay.” I shook my head. “Maybe later, I should really get
over to … uh … my family.”

Riley saw right
through me. “Yeah, right, okay.” He chuckled. “Tell your mom
hello.”

“Yeah, you too
….” I began to walk away, just in case he tried to pull me over or
something. I loved Riley’s mom, she had always been so cool to me,
so accepting. I could talk to her more than I could my own parents.
But it would be too painful to see her sharing that same kindness
with this new girl, I just didn’t want to witness that. I couldn’t
watch the entire McIntyre family move on without me so easily.

I turned my
back and kept walking. I waved to a few of the people I was
friendlier with—there weren’t many though, mostly just from
partying together. I found my family right where Riley said I
would, congregated on some benches next to the Center entrance.

“So who’s the
guy on the motorcycle?” Dad demanded as soon as I was in earshot.
“Is that your friend from the other night?”

“Yes.
Boy-friend, actually.” I admitted proudly. Dad raised his
eyebrows.

“Will we get to
meet this boyfriend?”

“Maybe.” I
shrugged.

Aunt Linda
smiled at me, intervening. “Wow. You weren’t kidding, Mac. He’s
gorgeous. But so are you, just look at you. You’re an image. All
grown up.” She squealed.

“Thank you.” I
smiled sincerely at my favourite aunt.

“What are you,
depressed or something?” Greg the dick asked, giving one of his
snooty laughs. “What’s with the black? You’re not at a
funeral.”

I could feel
the ire he inspired building up in me. I choked it down and smiled
sweetly. “I’ll wear it to your funeral.” I promised.

“Come on Greg.
Black is classy.” Marcy stood up and smiled. She looked gorgeous,
as usual, and I wondered if she were trying to upstage me. She wore
a satin pink halter-top dress and white strappy sandals; her
shining dark hair was perfectly curled. “You look great, Mac.” She
complimented. Just not as great as me, I imagined her thinking.

I muttered
something in response. Mom got up then too, and gave me a kiss on
the cheek. “I can’t believe you’re graduating. You look nice,
honey, all grown up. I can just imagine how you would’ve looked in
that pretty gown I liked so much.”

I looked down
at the ground, indignant. “Thanks mom.”

Grandma smiled
at me a moment, but instead of saying something, she began to
complain about the heat of the sun. My uncles helped her up and
escorted her into the cool shade of the building, giving me an
acknowledging nod. Then, sudden yelling sent Aunt Linda scurrying
to deal with my little cousins, who were running pell-mell around
the wide green lawn before the center, screaming.

For an instant,
I felt like joining in.

“Well, I guess
….” Dad got up and began ushering everyone into the Community
Center. “This’ll start fairly soon. Let’s go find our seats. Come
on Mackenzie.”

“Yeah, I’ll be
right in.” I mumbled. He nodded and took my mother’s elbow, heading
up the stairs into the building with Marcy and Greg right behind
them. I watched them go, deflated. It wasn’t like I had expected
them to gush and go on about how great I looked or to shower me
with accolades or anything, but still—really? Was that all the
attention I would get at my own graduation? Was that all I was
worth?

The cocaine was
wearing off. That was it. Suddenly I wasn’t numb anymore. The
disappointment was registering in my mind and the sweet, buzzing
hum had faded from my vibrating nerves. I bit my lip. Luckily, I
knew how to fix this. And I had to fix it.

In mere moments
I was alone in the bathroom. Charlie, my saviour, had fixed me up
with a little emergency coke for such a moment as this. I had
apologized for wasting her entire vial over the week, but she let
it go this time, making it my graduation present. I had paid for
what I had now, just a little by comparison in the same silver
vial.

Quickly I did
some, my heart hammering eagerly, my tension melting away by the
third inhale. Sighing happily, I braced my hand against the
bathroom door and let the deliciousness flow through me. That was
better. Now I felt good again, like I would make it, no matter what
they said or did or didn’t say or didn’t do. I forced myself to
screw the lid back on and put the vial back in my purse, to save
the rest for later. What I had done would hopefully get me through
the reception.

I flushed the
toilet to make it seem like I had actually used it, then came out
and washed my hands at the sink. I stared at my reflection for a
minute, scrutinizing myself and my features. My dark eyes were wide
and clear, a pleasant shimmer of color stained my cheeks and my
lips were full and soft. They curved into a smile as I stared in
the mirror. Maybe I wasn’t as gorgeous and wonderful as Marcy
always was, but Grey seemed to like what he saw. And that was all
that mattered to me.