My stomach drops at the dig, and I force my face not to crumple. Daphne must sense how I’m feeling because she places her hand on mine and gives it a squeeze for support. Her kind smile makes me feel even worse.
My eyes drift over Emmett, who’s fumbling with the navigation, trying to turn off the toll road option. Unless Kalani finds me someone exactly like him, I fear every date will be a disaster. But the odds of being set up with a clone of Emmett are slim to none. I don’t want to try again, but clearly this means a lot to Kalani, so I’ll do it. I’ll make an effort with whoever she sets me up with next and hope that we click in a way I haven’t with anyone yet.
Ten
The night is fresh, and a cool breeze brushes my hair off my bare shoulders as we cross through the quiet neighborhood. Ralph’s party must be huge, because there are so many cars we had to park almost three blocks away. The walk is good, though, especially since the car ride felt stifling, and the air helps to clear my head.
“Ralph invited practically the entire school, and a bunch of people from your school too,” Daphne says as kids converge and walk in the same direction as us.
“Sounds like a lot of people,” Emmett says as he takes Kalani’s hand in his. “I hope we don’t lose each other.”
“I have an idea,” Emi starts. “If you lose me, just yellthe alpacas are invadingand I’ll know to check the group chat.”
“What is with you and weird animal code phrases?” I ask with a laugh. “Besides, I don’t think it’ll be necessary.”
Out of all of us, Emi’s the easiest to spot in a crowd. Daphne’s in a white shirt and red pants, Kalani’s in a deep-blue designer dress, and Emmett’s looking drool-worthy in a white dress shirt and pants. Compared to us, Emi’s almost impossible to ignore, with her short purple hair and a dress made entirely of sequins, which she’s paired with combat boots. If we get separated, she’ll be the easiest to find. She’s a walking disco ball.
I have to stop myself from glancing at Emmett the entire time. He reallydoeslook drool-worthy tonight with his floppy curls styled away from his face. I’m in a tight white dress, so technically the two of us match, and I bite my lip to stop from imagining us as a cute couple who deliberately match outfits with each other.
“I’m sure we’ll be fine, don’t worry, babe,” Kalani says, twisting her long black hair over her shoulder. “It’s a miracle the babysitter was free to watch Maleah or I wouldn’t have even been able to come out. Let’s make the most of it, okay?”
“Of course,” Emmett says, dropping her hand to wrap his arm around her waist. I glance away.
Ralph’s house is smack-dab in the middle of a subdivision, and the grass only separates his house from his neighbors by about two feet on either side. I have no idea how no one is complaining about the noise, because we could hear it from a block away. Kids are piled on his driveway and lawn, all holding beer cans or red Solo cups. Compared to everyone in their jeans and T-shirts, we might have dressed up a bit too much. But in our defense, we’ve only been to Oakwoods parties, and everyone dresses up for those.
Once we’re in the house, the music blasts us from all directions. Bodies are packed in the small hallway, and you can tell who’s from Oakwoods because we’re the ones dressed like we’re going to a club instead of a house party. At least the five of us don’t stand out too much now.
Emi grabs Daphne’s hand and leads her through the crowd. Emmett does the same for Kalani, and I trail behind, feeling every bit the fifth wheel I am. Emi marches right into the kitchen, where the keg is, and pours beer some into four red Solo cups, passing three of them to me, Daphne, and Kalani. I clink glasses with the girls and take a drink of the warm beer before grimacing. No one else seems to mind, though, so I pretend warm beer doesn’t taste appalling and take another sip.
“Oh, hey!” Emi says as she claps a tall boy on the back.
When he turns around, I recognize his face instantly, though the hideous patterned shirt should’ve given it away.
“Hey, Ralph,” I greet, and his face lights up.
“Carina!” he exclaims, wrapping his arms around me and pulling me in for a hug. I guess we’re on hugging terms now? He’s soaked for some reason, and I force myself not to shove him away.
“How’ve ya been?” He doesn’t wait for my answer, instead moving on to hug Kalani, then Emmett and Daphne.
“Are you guys having fun?” he asks us as a group, then he turns to Daphne. “Daph, Jasmine’s been up my ass asking when you’re coming. She’s probably in the backyard.”
I don’t hear what Daphne says, because I’ve just clued in that this isRalph’sparty.Ralph is friends with Jay. Does that mean Jay is here too? I cast a hasty look around at the faces in the kitchen, but to my relief, I don’t see Jay. That doesn’t mean he isn’t somewhere around here, though, and I run a hand through my hair before I realize what I’m doing and stop it.
Ralph and Emi introduce us to some people in the kitchen, but it’s hard to hear their names over the music, never mind remember them. A few of them are people we met last time at the cliff, and Emmett points out Eric, who drove him and Kalani home after I freaked out.
Daphne leads everyone out through the screen door and into the backyard. The music is louder back here than it was inside. It makes sense when I spot DJ equipment and speakers set up against the house facing the yard, with a kid pressing buttons on a laptop. No wonder we could hear the music crystal clear from the front yard.
It’s a good-sized backyard, and now I realize why Ralph was all wet. There’s a large, glistening in-ground pool filled with floaties back here, but there aren’t a lot of people in it. No one must want to go in wearing their party clothes. I, for one, am going to stay far away from the pool. With my luck, I’ll accidentally fall in or be pushed in, and I didn’t spend all that time on my hair and makeup just to ruin it in two seconds flat. Plus, this dress isnota good substitute for a swimsuit.
There’s another keg set up out here, as well as a folding table with various bottles of liquor and stacks of Solo cups ready to be used. Another table sits beside it filled with various foods. As people come in, they place more platters on the table, which is quickly filling up, and I realize it must be some sort of potluck. Now I feel like a dick for not bringing anything, even though we were told not to.
Ralph, or someone, has strung white Christmas lights against all the fences that border us in, giving the backyard a party feel. Folding tables are set up on the grass where people are playing beer pong or watching or just standing around talking, and the concrete patio is being used exclusively for dancing.
Emi and Daphne help themselves to the bottles on the table, and Kalani drags Emmett over to the makeshift dance floor. I stand awkwardly by the screen door, feeling weird and self-conscious. It’s times like these I wish I really did have someone like Emi and Kalani do, but this wouldn’t be an issue if I just had another single friend.
“Hey! Carina, right?” a girl beside me asks. Her hair is long, dark, and shiny, her lips are painted a deep pink, and there are purposeful sparkles on her olive cheeks. She was introduced to me in the kitchen, but I don’t remember her name.
At my nod, she continues. “I’m Maddie!” She gestures to the girl who just joined us. “And this is Jasmine.”