Lucy in the Sky (15 page)

I realized while I was getting ready that my tummy was all
jumpy, and every time I looked in the mirror, I realized I was thinking about what Blake would think when he looked at me. I kept remembering our kiss by the hot tub on homecoming night. He had pulled me in so tight, and kissed me so hard, like he was drowning and I was the only way he could get oxygen. He texted me yesterday and said, CAN'T WAIT 2 C U.

I was texting him back when Ross came out of the bathroom where Astrid and Lauren were doing his makeup. Ross had a fake fur mane and was covered in gold glittery powder dusted on his face and bare chest. He had skin-tight black jeans that had a tail sewn onto the back that Lauren linked to his wrist with a little bit of clear fishing line that Astrid got out of her dad's tackle box. (Astrid and Lauren are like crafting GENIUSES.)

Astrid had this AWESOME black Cleopatra wig that had straight bangs. Her long linen robe had a jeweled collar. She looked like some sort of Egyptian goddess. Lauren had found these gold snakes with wires in them that we wrapped around her arms and wrists.

When Cam came out in his Mark Antony Roman war-hero getup, Lauren and Astrid and Mom and I hooted and whistled. He was wearing sandals that had long leather straps that wrapped all the way up to his knees and a short tunic with armor that covered his chest. The breastplate was shiny plastic,
but it looked like metal and he had a shield and a helmet with red plumage at the top.

Mom and Dad took pictures like somebody was getting married; then they made everyone promise to drive the speed limit.

Cam and Astrid drove to Blake's together, and Lauren drove me and Ross. When we got to Blake's and parked, I still couldn't believe the view. My stomach was all jumpy because I hadn't seen Blake in a long time, but BOOM: There he was. He was dressed as a mummy … or I guess I should say UNdressed as a mummy because very little of him was actually covered. He had these strategically placed strips of cloth wrapped around his head, arms, and legs, but his chest was mainly bare. I just stared. I guess I had been pretty drunk and high the last time I was here and we were in his bathroom together. I hadn't really noticed what an AMAZING body he has.

Then, my stomach REALLY got jumpy because Cam walked right up to him and I realized I was holding my breath until they smiled at each other and shook hands. Then Blake winked at me and threw his arm around Cam's shoulders and showed him around. The tour was equally impressive the second time around, only this time there were WILD Halloween decorations everywhere. There were black lights making stuff glow purple and the pool lights had red gels in them so the
water looked like blood as it flowed off the false edge of the concrete deck. But even cooler than the pool was something that Blake had kept a surprise:

There was a giant bouncy castle inflated next to the pool. There were already 3 or 4 people in it jumping up and down and screaming like maniacs. Lauren and Astrid and I were like NO WAY. Cam just shook his head and gave Blake a high five. Ross didn't even wait. He'd seen that Ian was one of the guys in the castle and took off running in a cloud of gold body glitter.

Astrid and Cam were talking to Blake, and Lauren and I wandered down to the clear glass wall at the end of the pool. The moon was a tiny waning crescent (SEE? I DID learn something last year in physical science), and there was an eerie blanket of fog rolling in off the ocean. It was PERFECT for a Halloween party.

I leaned close to her, and our arms touched. I said, Remember? This is where we met. She threw her head back and laughed, and hugged me. She said, I can't even remember not knowing you. What did I do for fun before you?

Couldn't focus on the fog for very long because right about that moment, the DJ started spinning. YES. There was a DJ. One of Blake's friends (who also has a deal with Lauren's dad's record label) was spinning. Lauren and I stood there looking around as people in the CRAZIEST costumes poured out onto
the dance floor that was set up near the house. Lauren grabbed my hand and yelled cosmos!, then we took off running for the kitchen.

Cam and Astrid were already there with Blake. The guys had beers and looked like best friends. Astrid was drinking sparkling water, and when Lauren offered her a cosmo, she just shook her head and winked, then whispered, I'm going to try to get Mark Antony out of here a little early to have some ALONE time. Lauren said that she'd drink to that, and we clinked glasses, then pushed everybody out onto the dance floor and danced our asses off.

Ross and Ian joined us and Ian had gold body glitter all over his costume because he'd been jumping around in the bouncy castle with Ross. Ross pulled Cam aside and the two of them disappeared for a little while, and I KNEW that they were smoking out.

I got SO JEALOUS at that second. I mean, how can CAM be telling ME not to do drugs and smoke out and hang with these guys if he's going to do it? I tapped Lauren on the shoulder and said, Did you see Cam and Ross just leave to go smoke out? She smiled a wicked Ring Mistress smile, then adjusted her top hat with one hand as she pressed a little chunk of Xanax into my palm with the other hand and said, One step ahead of you, sister.

I looked down at the tiny pill in my hand. I said, What about our PACT? She said, We've been really good! We've proven that we can handle it. Besides, it's not like we're doing coke or something.

I felt weird about it, like I wasn't sure what would happen if I took this little pill, but the music was so loud, and we looked so good, and Lauren was laughing and dancing and telling me to C'MON!

I grinned at her and we danced over to Astrid who was refilling her sparkling water in the kitchen. Lauren scooted around a man dressed as a rapping rhinoceros and grabbed the martini shaker. She mixed us an extra-strong round of cosmos and we washed down our Xanax. Ross came around the corner with Cam. I raised an eyebrow and asked, How is the smoke this evening?

Cam was totally caught and he knew it. He looked at Ross, then back at me and said, Okay, but just a couple tokes. I don't want you throwing up again.

I raised my cosmo glass and said, No, no. It's fine. I don't need to smoke pot to be cool.

Lauren and Astrid cracked up. Cam just rolled his eyes and shook his head, then Astrid led him back out to the dance floor.

Ross asked if I wanted to get stoned, but I didn't. I realized that I was just jealous that Ross had asked Cam first, and I was
pissed that Cam was trying to act like my dad or something by telling me that I should stay totally clean while he went and had fun. I told Ross that maybe I'd want to later. I remembered how NOT fun it was to throw up on the way home. My clown outfit was way too cute for that. Ross pulled me into the living room where we started dancing with two girls who were dressed as sexy cats.

Blake, Ian, and Lauren came over, then Cam and Astrid joined us. We all danced our way out by the pool, and slowly everyone in our party became covered in Ross the Lion's gold body glitter. At some point I had put down my parasol in the kitchen, and Lauren's top hat wound up on Blake's head. Blake kept dancing back and forth to the kitchen with a shaker of cosmos, and Lauren kept making sure our glasses were full. Cam must've been on his 4th beer when Astrid checked her phone and whispered in Cam's ear.

I don't know what she said, but it worked. He came dancing over to talk to me. Actually, he walked like an Egyptian over to me, following Astrid, who held his hand over her shoulder. His breath was hot on my cheek and smelled like beer, but his smile was so wide, I couldn't resist smiling back. Astrid was going to drive him back to Egypt, he said, giggling. Then he tried to get as stern as he could after 4 beers and made sure that Ian knew how important it was that I got home by 1 a.m. because that
was curfew and he'd promised Mom and Dad that he'd look out for me. He turned to leave with Astrid and then pulled Ian in close and yelled over the music: Don't make me regret this.

Lauren ran up and hugged Astrid, then kissed Cam on the nose and said she'd take good care of me. Cam rolled his eyes and said that's what he was afraid of. Then Lauren dragged me down to the bouncy castle, and before I knew it, we'd kicked off our high heels and we were jumping around, shrieking and laughing like idiots. It made me think of when I was a little girl at the carnival down by the pier at the beach. Cam had eaten too many hot dogs and got a stomachache from jumping around too fast, but Dad had to come in and drag me out when it was time to go home. I never wanted to leave.

Lauren double-bounced me at one point, and I crashed into her, then we both collapsed and lay on our backs laughing and listening to the music. She propped up on her elbow and asked me if I thought Astrid and Cam were going to go all the way tonight. I was like, AAAUGH. He's my BROTHER! And she giggled and tickled me between my corset and my skirt until I yelled that I was going to wet my pants if she didn't stop. She grabbed my hand and said, Why didn't you TELL me you had to go to the bathroom. C'MON!

We went running into the house. Blake called to us, but Lauren was on a mission. We ran up the stairs to Blake's
bedroom and closed the door. I was peeing while Lauren reapplied her lipstick, and when I stepped over to the sink, she opened the cabinet under the vanity and pulled out a mirror that had a giant pile of white powder on it. She shot me a mischievous smile and asked if I wanted a bump.

I stopped short and asked, Where'd that come from? She said Blake told her he always has a stash under the sink at parties.

I could hear the music down by the pool, but it sounded so far away, like the DJ was on the moon. I watched as Lauren used the razor blade Blake had left behind to cut lines, bigger than the ones we had done the night of homecoming. Then she picked up a little glass tube that was lying on the mirror and snorted one of the lines—half of it up each nostril. She did a little head shake that made her ringlets bounce, then turned and motioned me over.

I felt my throat get tight. It was CRAZY. I wanted to snort that line SO BADLY, but I stood there frozen. I told her I couldn't. She laughed, and said, Of COURSE you can. Cam's gone. Nobody will know. And it'll make you feel DELICIOUS.

The thing was that I knew she was right. I remembered after homecoming how I'd felt like a rock star when I had my first line. I felt like I was a giant magnet and I could pull anybody to me that I wanted. Every word I said sounded hilarious, and smart, and made people love me.

And then I remembered the hot tub: Andrew's hands on my butt, the hard edge of the hot tub digging into my back as Ryan tried to force my legs apart, and I felt like I was going to throw up. Lauren saw the look on my face and put the coke back under the sink, then ran over and hugged me. She whispered into my ear, said that it was okay. That she was so sorry that happened. That I didn't have to do anything I didn't want to.

As we stood there, I felt her arms around me and I felt better. I started to breathe a little slower, and the memory of the terrible drip from the coke in my throat on homecoming night finally subsided.

There was a knock on the bathroom door, and we heard Blake's voice asking if everybody was okay. Lauren pulled back and asked if I was okay. I nodded and smiled. She opened the door, and Ross and Ian and Blake pushed into the bathroom and closed the door again. Ross had his pipe and a Baggie of weed out before I could say hello, and I realized that was exactly what I wanted. Ross packed a bowl, and I took a long deep hit, and then another. Instantly I felt more calm.

Blake had brought up the martini shaker and a couple of glasses. The vodka was so cold against my lips after the smoke, and it tasted like SweeTarts. I had a big gulp, and felt the icy splash on my tongue. Lauren's eyes were wide, and darting around. I knew she was feeling the buzz from the coke. My eyes
felt a little droopy, but I wasn't sleepy, I was relaxed. I sat down on the edge of the bathtub as Ian and Ross repacked the bowl of weed, and I felt warm strong hands on my bare shoulders. It was Blake.

His hands felt so good massaging my neck and shoulders. I closed my eyes and leaned back against him. He was standing in the tub and I felt his lips on my neck, then his breath against my ear: You look so beautiful.

When I opened my eyes, Ross was smoking the pipe, and Ian was offering Lauren a mint from a little red tin he'd opened up. She popped one in her mouth and sucked on it, then her eyes got wide and she swigged the last of her cosmo. One gulp and the mint was gone.

Ian was laughing, and Lauren playfully smacked his arm. I asked what was wrong with the mint. She said, Nothing, it just wasn't a mint. Genius here just gave me a tab of E.

Maybe it was the pot, or Blake's hands working the tension out of my neck, but I guess I didn't understand right away what she meant. Then it hit me: Ecstasy.

I sat up on the edge of the tub and looked around. Ian was still laughing, and Ross was sitting down with his back against the cabinets in the bathroom, holding the pot pipe in one hand and watching his other hand as it ran back and forth across Blake's plush silver bath mat.

I looked at Lauren and said, They're all on Ecstasy, aren't they?

Lauren followed my gaze to Ross, then Ian, and then she looked at Blake and sighed, nodding. She said that it looked like everybody was rolling but me.

I knew right away that I was not going to just sit there while everybody else did Ecstasy—no matter what I had promised Cam. I stood up from the side of the tub and held out my hand to Ian, who looked at me, then down at my hand, and then smiled when he understood.

Without a word, he pulled the red tin out of his pocket and opened it.

The pills really did look a lot like mints. It was a smart way to carry them around. He plucked one out of the pile. It had a little heart stamped into it. He smiled as he dropped it into my hand and said, Enjoy the ride.

Lauren grabbed my arm as I lifted the pill toward my lips. She asked if I was sure. In response, I put the tablet on my tongue and took a long drink of my cosmo. She jumped up and squealed, THIS is why I LOVE you.