“My dad stayed calm and pointed to a tree about twenty yards away. He said to my uncle ‘Are you sure it isn’t loaded?’ and shot a hole in one of the leaves on that tree. My uncle stared for a second and then stared down at himself. He had shit his pants.” Jay delivered that last part with such a straight face it takes me a second to register what he said.
“What is it with you guys and stories about excrement? Yuck!” I shake my head at the thought of it.
“It’s your turn, Noah. No bathroom stories,” I warn him.
“I’ll try.” He smirks.
I’m going to end up with another bathroom story. I just know it.
“So, I got bored a lot when I couldn’t walk. You already know I spent most of my time on my computer. I started back to school. They let me keep my laptop with me even though no one else had one.
“One rainy day, the lights at school flickered because of a storm. The storm finally passed, and the lights went back to normal. I decided to mess with them, though. I hacked into the school’s electric panel, as well as the intercom system. At first, I just made the lights go off and on, or I made the intercom buzz for no reason. I did this quite a few times during the day.”
I eagerly scoot to the edge of the table. Oh, what did he have planned for his school?
“That amused me for a while, but I wanted to try something else. I started making the lights go off in patterns. People started whispering that the place was haunted. I did this for about another hour. Right before the end of the day, I made the lights go crazy, and I played the theme song to Close Encounters of the Third Kind over the intercom. I finally matched the light pattern to the music.” He hums the tune. “They never did find out it was me. For days, everyone was sure there were ghosts or aliens walking among us.”
“That was great!” Impressed, I make a mental note to check with him when weird things happen to make sure he’s not behind it. “It’s a good thing we made up stories. If someone stole our essays, they would know a lot about us. At least, they would know a lot about you guys,” I add, realizing I didn’t tell them much about my capabilities.
“We’ll all know soon enough, monkey.” Parker hops off the table. As we trek back up the mountain, he reminds us, “We need to get back and get ready for the party tonight. Remember to wear white or light clothes.”
CHAPTER TWELVE
Excitement about the party charges the cabin’s atmosphere. We plan to eat dinner down by the lake. Everything we do now will be in preparation for this evening. Most of the girls dig through their clothes, searching for the best outfit. If we’re going to be down by the lake, I don’t want to look too nice. Parker also told me I should wear white, so I’m guessing there will be black lights there. I only have one or two options to go with to meet the color criteria.
Lily, like always, bounces around as she inspects everyone. “What are you going to wear? You have to look hot for your date.”
Date? What date? “Um, I don’t have a date for this. We have to have a date?”
She stops, hands going to her hips as her eyebrows pinch together in confusion. “Every girl needs a date to a dance. Who would you dance with otherwise?”
I shrug at her. I’ve never been to a dance before. “I figured I’d just dance with you girls. I don’t like formal dances. I know a few, like the salsa and the waltz, but I’m more of a free stylist. I just get out on the floor and let the music direct my body.” I’ve actually taken lots of dance classes, and my least favorite are the ones where I have to be paired up with someone else.
“I’m with Cassie. I just want to do my own thing.” Lara comes to my rescue. I fist bump her so she knows we’ll stick together tonight. “I don’t really dance, though.”
“I’ve got you. We’ll work through the music together. You just have to forget about the people around you and have fun. It’s about enjoying it yourself. That is, unless you enjoy making others look bad. Then you’re on your own.” I didn’t mean to lecture, but I’ve been around too many people like Mindy that want to make people look bad to make themselves look good. I also wasn’t really directing that at Lara since our discussion pulled others in the cabin in.
“Totally! I just want to have fun,” Lara agrees with me.
“Well, there’s a last dance, which is a slow one. You better mark your territory early in the evening so no one tries to poach your man,” Lily adds.
“Which man are you marking, Lily?” Lara’s eyes widen at Lily. “Will you be peeing on them?”
“Very funny! No, I actually need to check with Cassie, or maybe Fallon.” Lily’s eyes dart between us. “I think I’m going to see if Parker will dance with me.”
I try not to groan as she says it. Hopefully, Fallon can field that one.
Fallon, having heard her name, walks over. “I don’t mess with my brother’s dating life, and he doesn’t mess with mine. Well, unless he’s friends with someone I want, and then we may have a talk. He isn’t allowed to date my friends, though. Well, unless Cassie wants to date him. I don’t think she needs my help with him.”
She totally threw me under the bus with that speech. But I’m not planning to date anyone here, and I’m not getting mixed up with someone else’s dating dilemmas. “Lily, you can ask him yourself, but he heard me ask both Noah and Jay for you. I’m not sure he wants to be the next check box on your list. You may want to try someone else, but it’s up to you.”
Lily huffs out a breath and nods. “You know, I’m not the only one that will be going after your guys tonight.”
“They aren’t mine. We’re just good friends and on the same team. I think it would be awkward to try to date one of them. They’re free to do what they want.” If one or more of them is with someone else, it will make some of our activities uncomfortable.
“Yeah, okay, whatever you say.” Lily waves her hand at me as she walks into the bathroom.
I finish getting ready without talking to anyone else. I’m going simple with a light-grey cami layered beneath a white one and paired with black shorts. I don’t think my entire outfit needs to glow.
Once everyone’s ready, we head down to the lake. Watching the people as we walk, the boys aren’t in any of the groups. We almost reach the rendezvous point when Parker and Lucca join us.
“Hey, after you eat, you guys need to come with me,” Parker whispers to us.
Lara, as suspicious about people as I am, if not more, demands, “Why? What do you have planned? Do you have alcohol? I don’t drink.”
I’m glad Jay isn’t around. We didn’t talk about his mom’s accident, but I’m not sure about his feelings on alcohol.
Lucca’s coy smile adds to the twinkle in his eyes. “No, no alcohol. It’s a surprise.”
Lily grabs Lucca’s arm and tries to get him to tell her right then. I guess secrets aren’t Lily’s thing. I shake my head at her. Lucca glances around for help, but I just wink at him. He’s on his own with her.
The dance won’t start until it’s a little darker out. Someone strung thousands of tiny lights all around the place. There’s another buffet table similar to the last party, crowded with people trying to eat before we move on to better things.
As the sun sets, the boys find Lara and me.