I follow her, not forgetting to wave goodbye to the angel and Luke as new dancers immediately take my spot on the floor.
In the kitchen, Hannah fills the cup from the sink, going over to the freezer and plopping ice into it before returning it to me. The chilled condensation feels amazing on my hands. What’s even better is the cold water.
“Wow.” Hannah is still smiling, laughing a little too, so that’s good. It’s not a bad wow, but like an impressed wow—maybe?
“Thank you,” I say. Can’t forget good manners. Hopefully good manners will equal more water.
“I’m sorry for ditching you earlier. I just needed a minute,” Hannah says, shifting us away from the sink over to the wall of the kitchen, out of the way of a group ofShadow and Bonecharacters now ransacking the alcohol stash and the snacks on the table. “Are you okay?”
“I’m good,” I say, calming down a little. I drink more water, taking long swigs and focusing on the crisp, clear taste. “This definitely helps.”
“Good,” she says, though from the way she’s looking at me—like she’s worried or unconvinced—means there’s more.
“What?”
“So, Maurice is here.”
The last person I want to think about right now is Maurice. Tonight went from wonderful to awful in a matter of seconds. And it’s no one’s fault but my own.
“Earth to Clarity, stay with me,” Hannah says jokingly.
“I’m here, I’m here…”
“Come on.” She takes my wrist and leads me out of the kitchen and up the stairs.
She pulls on a door, but it doesn’t open. We move to the next one and Hannah drags me into a dark bedroom.
Kinky.
“Clarity?”
Did I say that out loud?
“What?”
Hannah stares at me, her confusion slowly slipping into a smile. I love her smile. I love her eyes. I loveher.
I step into her arms, reach my hand around the back of her neck until my fingers slip into her silky hair, and drown myself in her eyes.
“You’re tipsy, babe,” Hannah whispers back, brushing her nose against mine. “I just want to make sure you’re okay.”
I sigh. She’s so nice, this moment is so nice. Her arms find their way around my waist and she pulls me closer, and her warmth and her cologne are more intoxicating than the drinks downstairs.
Just as I realize we both have on fake mustaches, she leans in. I match her, our lips pressing firmly together. I’m hyperaware of her hands on my back, of our bodies pressed together, and how there’s a perfectly made bed just two feet away—
“Oh! Sorry, I—”
Light floods the room. I’m too shocked to even compute the fact that I’m in here with Hannah and should probably hide my face if I have any hope of the intruder not realizing it’s me. I look. Hannah looks.
Maurice stares back at us.
“What the…”
“Maurice—” Hannah starts to say, but she gets cut off when he slams the door shut.
I don’t know how many seconds pass, but for a brief moment, I don’t exist. I’m not real, none of this is real, because reality is way too overwhelming.
But reality continues, even when I don’t want it to. And Mauricesaw us.