Chapter 1 - The Party

Part I












Sunday. You wake up to the sound of your little sister yelling that she hates church. You roll your eyes as you get dressed. Sure, you hate church too, but only one more year and you’re free to go. As you and your sister pile into your mom’s red Mini Cooper, you begin to count the days until you turn seventeen—a month and five days. You sit down on a pew and pretend to focus, but really begin to plan a wild birthday party. Someone can sneak beer in, you have a huge stereo system, and your mom will be out of town on a business trip. Perfect. Mom slaps you on the arm and you snap back to reality.











“Ehren, you have to pay attention. We’re in CHURCH,” she whispers harshly to you. Luckily it wasn’t soon enough, and church is over.











Back at home you change into some shorts and a red tank top. Your mom hates being disturbed while she’s working, so you write a quick note: ‘Went to hang out w/ Cypress and then I’m going to Lisa’s party. ♥, Ehren.’ You grab your longboard and ride down to Center Square. It’s a big park surrounded by the coolest shops, so inevitably you hang out there. Cypress is sitting in front of the Bidwell Perk Coffee Shop with a cigarette in hand.











“Hey, you really shouldn’t smoke. Guys completely hate it, not to mention you’ll die.”











“Well they can get used to it, can’t they? I doubt I’ll die too soon, so I’ll just be sure to have fun with what I’ve got!” she replies as she throws it on the ground. You walk around to different stores trying on clothes and messing around. The only thing you buy is a pair of plaid board shorts for your boyfriend. When it’s finally time to get ready for Lisa’s party, you jump into Cypress’ light blue Corvette and blast Rooney all the way to her house. You fix your hair and do your makeup so everyone doesn’t give you weird looks, then leave again.











Once you get to Lisa’s house, you say hi to everyone and grab a beer. As you make your way over to the dance floor, Lisa comes up to you and starts talking a mile a minute, stumbling and loosing balance every once in awhile.











“Hey Ehren! LasttimeihadapartythisHUGEfightbrokeoutandthecopscameandmanigotinsomuchtroubleforthatone, butthispartyissomuchcooler.”











“Yeah, I was there Lisa. I remember that,” you say.











“Oh right! Hey, I want you to meet someone!” she pulls you into the kitchen, where you see a tall, skinny guy with brown hair and light grey eyes.











“Ehren, this is Henri [pronounced on-REE]. He just moved from…. Uh, where?” she asks drunkly











“France.” He said it so fast and irritated, you could tell it wasn’t the first time he had to tell her.











“Oh yeah! Well, he’ll be like, going to school with us, so—“she was cut off by a crashing noise in the other room. As she darts out into the living room to make sure everything was okay, you continue to drink and talk to Henri for a little while. Then it suddenly occurs to you that you haven’t seen your boyfriend this entire time. You search for him for a while, but with no luck. You see Cypress, walk up to her, and grab her arm.











“Hey Durki, have you seen Josh?! I can’t find him anywhere,” you practically have to scream because of the noise and the music.











“No, but you should try calling his cell phone. Doesn’t he always carry that with him?” You pull out your cell from your back pocket and are about to start dialing, but its too loud downstairs. You go upstairs to look for an empty bedroom so you can call him. You open the door and---

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