Inside the mansion, Dylan and Lana were greeted by blasting music, and what seemed like a hundred drunken teenagers. A group of guys were in the middle of the room, chanting and doing keg stands, while another group of girls and guys were gathered around the big screen TV and looking on as two people Lana didn’t recognize were locked in an intense Guitar Hero battle.

Everywhere people were dancing and making out, and it was exactly like those stupid movie scenes that always made her skin crawl. Beer cans and red solo cups crunched under her boots, and then she ducked out of the way as a small group of laughing, shouting girls stumbled past them. 

“Wow,” Dylan said beside her, arm still linked in hers. “Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you, the future generation.”

She bumped into him pointedly. “Dude!”

“What?!” he cried, dark eyes wide. “I’ve never been more proud.” His devilish grin made her both want to smack him and hug him. 

“Right, because you are always Mr. Compliment. Come on, they’re all just having fun. It doesn’t mean they aren’t incredibly intelligent people.” She honestly didn’t know what she was trying to defend any of these people.

As they reached the bottom of an elegant, curving staircase, Lana shouted in surprise and they both jumped out of the way as two guys in nothing but their underwear came crashing down the steps on garbage can lids. They collided at the bottom and went sprawling into a small desk against the wall, scattering papers everywhere. 

Dylan shook his head. “Oh yeah, off the charts IQs, every one of them,” he said dryly. 

Lana was just opening her mouth to respond when someone came rushing toward them from the hallway. “Lana!” exclaimed a small, squeaky voice. “I’m so glad to see you here!” The voice belonged to Jeannie Fletcher, her chemistry partner. Jeannie was a tiny waif of a girl, with big hazel eyes  and shoulder length, blond hair. There was not a day yet that she hadn’t coordinated the color of her glasses with her outfit, and tonight was no exception. She was wearing a frilly witch costume, her bright purple rims finishing off the look, as if they were more of an accessory than a necessity. “But, uh, what are you supposed to be?”

“Oh, hey, Jeannie!” Lana replied, in what she hoped was an enthusiastic-sounding greeting. “Yeah, dressing up isn’t really my thing…”

“Oh, that’s okay, obviously,” Jeannie burst in. “To each their own, right? I mean, of course, it’s way more fun if you do, but, I guess I can understand that it isn’t for everyone. In fact, I have a cousin who simply detests Halloween, which I really have a hard time with because it is my absolute favorite!”

As always, Lana couldn’t quite understand how the girl could talk so much and so fast without passing out from lack of oxygen. Jeannie was actually the closest thing that she had to a friend besides Dylan, and the girl definitely always had her heart in the right place… she just could be a bit overwhelming energy-wise sometimes. A quick glance over revealed the smirk on Dylan’s face, and Lana just knew he was absolutely loving this. 

“Sure, yeah, I totally can see the appeal,” she said quickly, taking advantage of Jeannie’s brief need to replenish her lungs. “Anyway, nice seeing you! I’m just really thirsty, so maybe we’ll catch up a little later, huh?”

“Oh, yeah,” Dylan said in a macho-sounding voice, “we really need a beer.” 

Jeannie’s bright eyes went wide with surprise and then she giggled. “I wouldn’t have taken you for a drinker! That’s so cool though. I can’t or else my mom will kill me. This one time, my brother—”

“I totally hear that,” Lana interrupted, “but, yeah, I really do need a drink. Catch ya later!”

She grabbed Dylan’s arm and wheeled him away in the direction she hoped was the kitchen before Jeannie could continue.

“Wow, rude,” Dylan commented with a snarky smile. “I thought you came to be more social, or is this what you think constitutes ‘more approachable’?”

They were headed through the doorway to the dining room, when a masked teenage girl carrying an armful of precariously balanced red party cups nearly ran headlong into them.

“Oh, sorry! It’s so hard to see with this silly—” The girl fell silent and stared at Lana in horror.

The cups clattered to the floor, liquid spilling everywhere, as she pulled the unicorn mask back from her eyes to get a better look, and stumbled backwards.

Lana’s stomach dropped and she felt icy all over as she recognized Millie Robinson—one of her former foster sisters.

“Millie…” she began, but the girl shook her head, entire body trembling.

“No, no, please don’t ever talk to me again, you freak!” she cried. “Just… stay away from me!”

Millie spun around and tore from the room, leaving Lana with that old, familiar feeling of burning shame and rejection, even though she didn’t understand why. 

Dylan’s eyebrows shot up and he glanced from the girl’s retreating back to Lana. “Whoa. That was… weird. Friend of yours?”

There was a table and chairs not currently being occupied, and Lana hurried over to take a seat. The sudden weight of her past felt like it might crush her. Dylan sat down next to her and his eyebrows drew together with concern, all traces of humor gone from his expression.

“Hey, you okay? he asked, putting a hand on her arm.

She realized she was gripping the seat of the chair so tightly, it hurt her fingers. “Uh, yeah,” she responded quickly, trying to recover and not make the biggest scene in the world. She pushed the hair back from her face with her free arm and tried to shoot him a smile. “It’s nothing, really. I’m fine.”

“Suuuuure, yeah, you seem totally fine. And that was just a completely normal, not bizarre in any way, super friendly interaction.” He squeezed her arm gently. “You can tell me anything, you know.”

I wish, she thought, fighting back the urge to cry. No way was she having a breakdown in the middle of this stupid party. A party that suddenly seemed to not matter all that much anymore.

She took a deep breath. Time to be a big girl. “I know I can. But, really, it’s okay. Maybe some other time.” 

Dylan sighed and stood, still looking at her with some concern. “Got it. Why don’t I find you something to drink. You can get some air?”

Getting out of this house sounded like a wonderful idea and at this moment in time, the entire thing seemed like the worst idea she’d had in a long time. Lana smiled gratefully. “That sounds amazing. And, you know, anything but beer.”

He headed towards the kitchen and waved her off. “Yup, got it. Giant beer. See you outside!”

Lana shook her head, but was instantly relieved that he had come with her. There was no way she could have navigated any of this on her own, and she couldn’t believe she had thought any of this would be worth it. 

Just then, a group of guys came clambering through, and she was glad they had missed Millie’s aggressive altercation. One of them noticed her and stopped. “Hey, gorgeous,” he slurred, “wanna come dance?”

Also, thank God Dylan hadn’t been here to witness this.  Everything up until this moment had been embarrasing enough. 

“Uh, not right now, but maybe later,” she answered quickly, jumping to her feet. It was pretty likely Mr. Smooth-Talker was seeing two of her at the moment, and he immediately lost interest, shrugging and continuing on into the kitchen. 

Now moving quickly, hoping to avoid any other awful interactions, Lana was almost to the living room, when Jeannie popped up suddenly in front of her.

“Hi again!” she said cheerfully, and Lana wasn’t sure she could make it through one more conversation right now. “I was wondering where you’d run off to! So, I have to tell you what happened; I ran into Cody Barns, and he actually said that, it—and I quote—was nice to see me! Cody said that!”

Suddenly, the room tilted dramatically and an all-too familiar pain throbbed angrily in Lana’s temples. 

Oh, God, no! she thought frantically. Not now. Not here. Anywhere but here!

It was the final straw, and panic rolled over her. 

“Earth to Lana. Did you hear what I said?” Jeannie’s mousey voice grabbed her attention back. The girl was blinking up at her brightly from behind her purple glasses. “I really think he might be into me!”

Nausea bubbled up from Lana’s gut and she involuntarily put a hand to her mouth. “Yeah, sorry,” she answered quickly, “it’s just really loud in here…”

“Hey, are you okay? You look really pale. I mean, you’re always kind of pale, but, like, you seem overly pale…”

There was a ringing in her ears and her vision began to swim, red seeping over the girl’s face in front of her, like the slow fadeout of a movie. “I think…I just drank too much. I gotta go…”

To her left was the staircase, and it seemed the best option. Who knew how much time she had to get somewhere, anywhere before… whatever terrible thing was about to happen. She grasped the handrail and began sprinting up the stairs as fast as she could, praying she wouldn’t go tumbling right back down them. The dizziness reached a crescendo as she neared the top, and she was just rejoicing in the small victory that she had made it, when she ran headlong into something warm and solid. 

She blinked and tried to focus on the person in front of her. “Sorry,” she mumbled, ready to stumble her way around them.

“Hey, Lana! So glad you made it!” said Austin Davis.