The party isalive. Everywhere I look, there’s something to take in—glittering wings, painted faces, costumes that look like they belong on Broadway, and ones that look like they were put together in five minutes. Music pounds through the floor, rattling in my chest, while the cacophony of voices, laughter, and off-key singing layers over the beat. Valerie makes her rounds, dazzling in a sequined space cowgirl outfit.
I can’t believe she throws parties like this all the time.
I can’t believeI’mat one of them.
I take another sip of my drink, a small sip since I’m not used to the taste. The combination of juice, seltzer, and rum is sweeter than I expected, with just enough burn to remind me it’s spiked. Kristen raises her cup toward me in a silentcheersbefore knocking back the rest of hers.How does she do that with a straight face?
Hannah brushes against me—the benefit of being in such a crowded space is that we can stand close together without it meaning anything. So her shoulder can bump mine, I can drop my hand and my fingers can “accidentally” graze the back of herhand, and when we turn to each other, her elaborate pirate hat towering over us, our faces can be so close that I can smell her shampoo and lose myself in the hazel of her eyes, all in plain sight.
This has to be my best birthday ever.
Kristen holds her phone up for me to see; it’s easier to show me Vincent’sI’m heretext than try to shout over the noise. She points toward the front door, and I nod, taking her hand and Hannah’s to form a chain so we don’t get split up as we cut through the crowd. Before we can step outside, the door swings open, and Vincent steps in, a smile immediately taking over his face when he lays his eyes on Kristen.
“The whole gang’s here!” he says, his gaze shifting from Kristen to… me. He steps aside—
Maurice.
I freeze. So does Kristen. Hannah’s gaze bounces from me to Maurice, her brows furrowing.
“Hey, Clarity,” Maurice says, stepping around Vincent. “Almost thought I wouldn’t get to see you tonight. Happy birthday.” He pulls me into a hug. His smile, the warmth in his words, the way he doesn’t sound… surprised to see me, all put me on edge.
“Thanks,” I say when we pull apart. I take a small step back.
“What’s going on?” Kristen asks, the first to recover from our collective shock. Her eyes dart between Vincent and Maurice.
“I invited him,” Vincent explains. “He knows Valerie anyway, and I figured you’d want him here,” he says to me.
Right.
“Nice surprise,” I say, keeping my voice neutral. I’m just glad it doesn’t crack given how dry my throat is all of a sudden.
“We’ll be… back,” Kristen says, touching my shoulder. When I look at her, she tilts her head toward me, her brows pinched together:You’re okay, this is okay.
“Sounds good,” I tell her, nodding slightly.I hate this, but I’ve got this.
As I watch them leave, I realize Hannah’s disappeared too.
“You look good,” Maurice says, leaning in. “I like the costume.”
I swallow, fighting the urge to take another step back.I’m supposed to like him. I’m supposed to make itlooklike I like him.“Thanks. I, uh, like your… old man costume?”
He chuckles, tugging on the collar of his blazer. He has on a fake gray Afro and a bushy mustache to match. “I’m Neil deGrasse Tyson,” he states proudly.
Before I can think of what to say next, someone calls Maurice’s name from across the room. His face lights up when he looks past me, recognizing whoever it is.
“Cool if I catch up with you in a bit?”
“Absolutely,” I say, my smile only half fake this time.
The second Maurice is gone, I beeline to the kitchen. Now I understand why people wantstrongerdrinks.
I pluck a few colorful and clear bottles, scanning labels with a sharp focus that keeps my mind from spiraling. Maurice being here is fine. It’s fine. Vincent was simply trying to do something nice.
I find grape-flavored vodka. Remembering seeing a bottle of sprite, I scour the counter and then turn around, seeing my prize across the room on the kitchen table.
Tonight wasn’t supposed to be about Maurice. I don’t want to slide intothatrole. I’m already pretending to be Hannah’s friend. I don’t want to spendmy birthdaypretending I like Maurice, especially not where she has to watch.
Nor do I want to pick up where he and I left off. If what Vincent said about Maurice acting how he did when he got with his ex is true, who’s to say what tonight means to him? What if he tries to kiss me or… what if he asks me to be his girlfriend?