Chapter 6

                “So do you remember when we were talking about the homecoming dance that’s coming up?” Cassandra asked as we spoke through the phone a few days later.

                I laid on my bed, staring at my fuzzy pink socks that had little green dinosaurs on them. “Yeah.” I muttered, plucking off a loose strand of thread that was on my socks. “What about it?”

                “Well, all the girls are all getting dressed and ready at my place. I was wondering if you would maybe want to come with us.” Cassandra said, her voice kind of shaky on the other line.

                I knew exactly why Cassandra was nervous about asking me, because if she was worried, it meant that Katie and the other girls who were harassing me the other day were going to be there. I let out an exaggerated breath, as I ran a hand through my hair that I just washed a few hours ago. I lightly touched the tips of my hair, which were silky smooth. “I don’t know, Cass.” I mumbled.

                “I promise you that I’ll make all of the girls be nice to you.” Cassandra pleaded.

                “Dances aren’t really my thing, anyways.” I tried to make up every excuse possible to avoid going to that damn homecoming dance. I knew that Max was going to go, since he was the wide receiver on the football team. He was probably going to make me come, as well.

                “Just think about it, okay?” Cassandra said.

                “Alright,” I said, as I heard my mother’s voice calling me from the kitchen, “I’ll talk to you later, okay?”

                As I hung up the phone, I heard my mother shouting at me again. Groaning, I sprinted out of my room, skipping down the stairs to where she was. I noticed she was setting up the dinner table, but it wasn’t for just the two of us. I frowned when I saw that she had four plates set out, and she wasn’t using our regular plates, either. She was using our fine China plates, the ones she only ever used when someone was coming over to visit.

                “Mom, who’s coming over?” I asked.

                My mother went back into the kitchen to stir the pasta she was making. “The Rosenfeld’s are coming over for dinner in half an hour.”

                My eyes widened in horror, as my jaw dropped. “What?” I stuttered. “The Rosenfeld’s?”

               My mother nodded, as she turned around to give me a glance. She frowned once she eyed my attire, up and down. “Riley, is that what you’re wearing?” she asked. “Go put on something nice!”

                I stared down at my grey sweatpants and my fuzzy dinosaur socks. “What’s wrong with what I’m wearing?” I muttered.

                My mother rolled her eyes, ignoring my comment. She continued to stir the pasta, as she grilled some chicken on the side. “Just go put on something more appealing.” She paused, staring at the time on the clock. “You have fifteen minutes, hon.”

                I shot her a glare, but she wasn’t looking, because she was too busy making the dinner. I groaned, as I headed up the stairs to go change. I stood in front of my dresser, staring at a bunch of clothes, but having absolutely no idea what to wear. My heart began to pulse quickly when I heard the doorbell ring, yet I was still in my sweatpants, deciding on what to wear.

                “Riley! Mr. Rosenfeld and Everett are here!” my mother yelled.

                “Crap, crap, crap.” I muttered under my breath.

                I ended up pulling out a pair of light washed skinny jeans and fitted white v-neck top. I added a white scarf around my neck just to cover up a little bit. I scurried down the stairs once I was dressed, only to find that everyone was at the dinner table, waiting for me. My eyes literally bugged out of my head once I realized that the only seat available was right next to Everett.

                “Riley! It’s nice to see you again.” Mr. Rosenfeld smiled at me, as I gave him an uneasily smile.

                “Same goes for you, Mr. Rosenfeld.” I said.

                I noticed that my mother was shooting my glares, as I gave her a look of confusion. My eyes finally wandered over to Everett, who was staring down at my feet. My cheeks turned crimson red once I realized that I hadn’t taken off my fuzzy pink socks yet. Cursing under my breath, I felt everyone’s eyes on me, as I took off my socks, tossing them to the side.

                “Sorry.” I mumbled, before taking the empty seat beside Everett.

                Once I settled down, my mother smiled. She got up from her seat to get the plates of pasta from the kitchen. She set each plate in front of us, and some chicken in the middle. “I wasn’t as good of a cook as Colette,” she paused briefly, as I shot Everett a nervous glance, “but I tried my best.”

                Everyone was quiet for a moment, before Mr. Rosenfeld help up a glass of red wine that my mother had poured for him. “To Colette.”  My mother also had a glass of wine, as she clinked her glass against Mr. Rosenfeld’s. Everett and I got iced water, but we still held our glasses up, for the sake of Colette.

                Everyone was quiet, as we slowly ate the pasta that my mother made. But, Mr. Rosenfeld and my mother wandered off into a conversation about politics shortly after, leaving Everett and I out. So many times I wanted to start a conversation with him, but I just couldn’t bring myself to do so. Every time I would try to say something, my voice got all clogged up.

                “Are you okay, Riley?” my mother asked, letting out a weak laugh. “You haven’t even touched your dinner. Is it really that bad?”

                I snapped out of my thoughts, as I looked up. All eyes were on me, including Everett’s. I blushed, as I shook my head. “It’s not bad.” I smiled. Proving to her that I was fine with my food, I took a big bite of my spaghetti. “See?” I muffled with the forkful of pasta stuffed in my mouth.

                My mother and Mr. Rosenfeld let out a chuckle, and I had to admit that I was the slightest bit satisfied when I saw that the corner of Everett’s lips had twitched up.

                “So, how’s school for you lately, Everett?” my mother asked, giving Everett a small smile.

                Everett cleared his throat, giving my mother a weak smile. “School’s alright.”

                My mother nodded, taking a bite out of her chicken. “That’s great. I don’t get to see you as much as I used to, and Riley here never likes to talk about you.”

                My eyes widened, as I silently cursed at my mother in my mind. I saw Everett sparing me a slight glance, before he turned back to my mother. “I’ve just been busy, you know?”

                My mother laughed, as she nodded understandingly. “Of course, hon. A smart boy like you should be busy with school and all.”

                I glared at my mother, clenching my fists around my fork. Jeez mom, could you make things any more awkward than they already are between us?

                “I heard the homecoming dance is coming up soon, am I right?” my mother asked Everett, who nodded. “Are you planning to go with anyone special?”

                I choked on my pasta, as I quickly grabbed my glass of water. Everett’s face looked pale, as my mother grinned at him like she said nothing wrong.

                I sulked in my seat, wishing that this dinner would be over already. I stared up at the clock, cursing under my breath when I realized that only fifteen minutes had gone by. I knew immediately that tonight would be a long night.

                “Uh,” Everett scratched the back of his neck, “not yet, actually.”

                My mother grinned, clapping her hands together. “That’s great! Riley here isn’t going with anyone either!”

                My eyes widened, as I shot her a murderous glare. “Mom!” I hissed, wanting to chuck my glass of water down her shirt.

                “Well it’s true, isn’t it?” my mother asked, raising an eyebrow at me. “Don’t be ashamed that no boy likes you, Riley!”

                Groaning, I smacked my palm against my forehead.

                Kill me, now.

                By the end of dinner, my mother had definitely had more than enough glasses of wine. She was acting completely insane, and it was driving me nuts. She kept blabbing on about pointless things, and I was thanking God that Mr. Rosenfeld hadn’t noticed yet. As of now, she was chattering on about some stupid steak recipe she learned from this cooking channel on TV.

                “The secret to making the best steak is only turn it once after four minutes.” My mother stared at Mr. Rosenfeld seriously, taking yet another sip from her glass.

                “Really?” Mr. Rosenfeld’s eyes went wide. “No wonder my steaks are always overcooked!”

                “Dad?” Everett suddenly interrupted their conversation. “Can we leave now? I told you that I have to be at a party tonight.”

                “A party?” my mother gushed. “Riley should go with you!”

                My eyes went wide, as I shook my head. “No, no!” I quickly said. “Mom, be quiet!”

                Mr. Rosenfeld nodded, as he turned to Everett. “Son, that’s a great idea! You and Riley haven’t spent any time with each other lately. It’s a good idea if you bring her to a party with you.”

                I rolled my eyes, preparing myself to say something. But, before I could utter out a word, Everett cut me off by speaking first. “If I take her with me, can I leave right now?” Everett asked, looking impatient. I stared at him with shock, as I blinked. “I’m already an hour late.”

                “Go, Riley!” my mother urged. “Don’t keep Everett waiting!”

                Before I could even say another word, I was already being dragged out of my seat by Everett. His hand had been latched around my wrist, as he pulled me towards the door. I quickly shoved my feet into my boots, following Everett outside. “Listen, I really don’t want to-“

                “Get in.” Everett growled, not looking me in the eye. “I only agreed to come to this dinner because my dad said if I did, I could go to this party. I’m already late, so don’t keep me waiting any longer.”

                I stared at Everett for a long while, before sighing, and taking the passenger seat beside him. Everett started up the car, and immediately drove out of my driveway. He sped the car down the street in full speed, not even giving me time to put on my seatbelt. “Would you slow down?” I muttered. I thought that he would at least be a decent driver, since it was a drunk driver who crashed into his mother.

                Everett gave me a glare, before slowing down. “Are you happy?” he muttered harshly.

                I licked my lips, crossing my arms. I stared out the misty window, before mumbling under my breath, “Ecstatic.”

                We pulled up to a house that had cars packed all over the driveway, so we had to park in the street. When I stepped outside, I could already hear the sound of Lady Gaga blasting through the speakers from inside. I followed Everett up the driveway. I was about to step inside, but before I could, Everett shot his arm out, stopping me. I frowned, staring up into his eyes.

                “Here’s the rules.” Everett said, pressing me against the railing of the porch. “One, no drinking anything that has alcohol or that wasn’t poured by you. And two, if a guy touches you, get away, immediately.”

                My eyes locked into his daringly, as Everett slowly began to turn away to go in the house. Before he opened the door, however, I stopped him. “Why can’t I let a guy touch me?” I asked boldly, feeling my heart beat against my chest.

                Everett turned back to me with smirk, a cold look in his eyes. “Cause then you’ll come crying to me, and I really don’t want to deal with you tonight.”

                I stared into his eyes much longer, as my hands trembled by my sides. I found it hard to breath, as I felt a sharp pain in my chest. For a split second, I saw Everett’s eyes softened up with regret. But, he quickly masked his feelings, giving me a blank stare. I gulped down the ball that was threatening to make tears spill out of my eyes, as my glossy eyes stared into his.

                “I hate you.” I whispered.

                Everett blinked, all emotion washing away from his face. He clenched his jaw, as he let out a ragged laugh. He rolled his eyes, before giving me a smirk. “No you don’t.” He finally said, before turning his back on me to walk inside.

                My lip quivered, as a tear finally slipped from my eyes. It rolled down my cheek, but it didn’t matter, because Everett was already gone. I didn’t know what hurt most, the fact that he knew I was lying, or what he said was true.

                I decided not to go into the party after Everett left. I decided to just wait for Everett until the party was over at the backyard of whoever’s house we were at. The backyard was completely deserted of any humankind, leaving me to peace. There was a huge aqua blue pool in the backyard that lit up, so I decided to take a seat on the grass and dip my feet in the icy cold water.

                The pain of my feet getting frostbitten made me forget about the pain that Everett had caused in my heart earlier. I tried to calm myself down and clear my mind, but the loud music coming from inside of the house was too loud. I was surprised the neighbor’s hadn’t bothered to come complain about the noise already. It was so loud, and the fact that the music was some bubblegum pop tune wasn’t any better.

                “Riley?” a voice suddenly spoke, making my turn around.

                Max was standing just a couple feet from where I was, with a red cup in his hands. I frowned when I saw him, because I never knew that he was into the party scene. “Max,” I gave him a small smile, “what are you doing here?”

                Max gave me a weak smile, taking a seat beside me, except, he didn’t dip his feet into the pool like I did. “The guys on the team dragged me here.” Max turned to me, raising a curious eyebrow. “What about you?”

                “Everett.” I grumbled under my breath.

                Max’s ears perked up, as he blinked. “What? Everett?”

               I nodded, but I gave Max a reassuring smile. “Don’t worry, though. My mom invited him and his dad over for dinner, and my mother ended up making him drag me along. I didn’t really have a choice, hence the reason why I’m sitting out here by myself.”

                Max chuckled, as his features softened up. I could tell that he was glad that I didn’t come to a party by choice, since it was never really my thing. “Where’s Everett, though?”

                I looked back, shrugging. “I’m not sure. The last time I saw him was when we we’re on the front steps of the house.”

                “So he left you?” Max asked with a slight edge in his tone.

                I turned to him, as I gave him a light shove on the shoulder. “Don’t blame him.” I sucked in a deep breath of air. “I’m pretty sure he didn’t want to be stuck babysitting me tonight.”

                Max laughed quietly, before handing me his cup that was still half full. “Do you want a drink?” I held it up to my nose, before shaking my head. It smelt of beer, and I knew that Everett wouldn’t be happy if even had a teeny sip of that stuff. Besides, I didn’t want any, either. Not after the horror story that happened to Colette.

                “I’m fine.” I assured him.

                “Why not?” Max asked. I knew Max wasn’t questioning me to pressurize me, but he was only doing out of mere curiosity.

                “It’s one of Everett’s rules.” I let out a weak laugh. “Rule number one, no drinking whatsoever. He’s a jerk, isn’t he?”

                Max was quiet for a long moment, until I turned my head around to face him. Max’s eyes were studying the water in the pool, before the corners of his lips twitched up into a small smile. “He’s really protective of you.”

                “You are too, Max.” I pointed out.

                “Yeah, but I’m protective in a brotherly way.” Max paused, giving me a small smile. “Everett might be a low class jerk that’s blaming you for no reason, but he loves-“

                Suddenly, the sound of sirens cut Max off. Blue and red flashing lights came into our view, as the music from inside the house died down. Max and I jolted up onto our feet, as we heard cops yelling at everyone to step outside.

                My heart began to hammer against my chest, as I stared up at Max with panicked eyes. Max seemed a bit out of it, before he pulled my hand. We began to sprint to the neighbor’s backyard, as Max shushed me. “My car is parked further down the street.” He whispered. “If we’re quiet enough, we can escape the cops.”

                Max sounded calm and collected, but I, however, was stressing out. I’ve never came close to being in trouble with the cops before, and I wasn’t about to start. Max and I sprinted through the woods, dodging fallen tree branches on the way.

                “Shit!” I hissed, once I had fallen onto my knee. The wood cut straight through the fabric of my jeans, creating a gash just below my kneecap. It began to sting, as Max stopped running to help me up.

                “Come on, Riley.” He muttered, throwing my arm around his shoulder. Suddenly, we saw a flashlight pointing towards our direction, as Max cursed under his breath. “Just try to keep up for now, okay?”

                I bit on my lower lip, as we continued to run through the woods. My knee was growing more impatient by the minute, as the pain increased. We finally got onto the street, and I spotted Max’s black car parked along the street.

                Max quickly huddled me in, as he started the car, driving off in full speed.

                During the entire ride home, I wasn’t thinking about how close we were to getting caught by the cops, or the fact that my knee was bleeding.

All that was on my mind was whether if not Everett escaped safely or not.