It was finally time to close down. I went to the bathroom and got dressed. I touched up my make-up and felt fine. I went to the front to wait for everyone else. De, Carston, and Blake came around the same time. "Time to go." De squealed excitedly. “Fine. Whatever.” I took my keys out of my pocket. “You drive?” Both boys were staring at the keys in my hand. “Yeah. I can do a lot of things. Ask De’andra.” I shrugged.

“What can she do?” Blake was persistent. Why did he want to know? “She can shoot. She never misses. She can run. Fast. Her family is all about survival of the fittest.” De’andra had purposely used those words. Trying to scare them off of me. I smirked. “Pretty impressive. You would like my friends and family.” Blake said. I rolled my eyes. Nothing turned him off me.

“Let’s carpool. Carston can drive.” De'andra suggested, clinging to Carston's arm. I almost dropped out. I didn’t want anyone else driving. Men drove fast and recklessly. As if sensing my anxiety Blake grabbed my hand. My heart rate sped through the roof. “He drives me all the time and I’m not dead.” I nodded quietly. We walked out of the building, all of us holding hands. If a car came spreading down I wouldn’t be able to react fast enough. We hopped into Carston’s Audi. De in front passenger, Blake and I in the back. Blake sat right next to me, his thigh touching my somewhat bare one. I put on my seatbelt and gripped it tightly.

We zipped out of the parking lot. I took a deep breath and looked out the window. I wanted to be able to leave if anything happened, but my car would be here. Blake grabbed my arm. My heart skipped a beat. “Have you. . . Are you seeing anyone?” Was he trying to ask me out? I focused on the window. “No. I’m not seeing anyone right now. I don’t really want to.” Annoyance radiated off of Blake like waves. Did he really think I’d be that easy? “Why aren’t you taken?” I shrugged. “I don’t want to be. I have plans, but having sex and getting pregnant isn’t one of them.”

Blake huffed. “Give me a chance?” I sighed and tried to think about it. Did I want to give him a chance, like I had given Jonah? “Sure. Whatever.” Carston sped down the street. De squealed. What was going on? Did I even want to know? We pulled onto a grass stretch. “Where are we?” I asked. I was suddenly alert. Ready to run and defend myself.

"We're at the party." De said rolling her eyes. It was a house party. There were people everywhere. People were making their way to the house or the woods. Blake grabbed my arm. “Are you hungry? There is food?” I nodded. I wanted to eat and dance. We weaved through the throng of people until we were inside the house and at the table. I poured myself a cup of punch. It was obviously spiked with something. I didn't drink often, but I knew a couple cups to many and I would lose my senses. I switched to water. I ate some of the rice and chicken, but the cookies caught my eye. I ended up eating more than a few.

I made my way to the makeshift dance floor. A tasteful song started playing. It was spicy and fun. My hips started moving on their own accord. I knew I wouldn't have to worry about embarrassing myself. I had taken 3 dances classes from my 8th grade year until this year. I lost myself to the music. I felt hands on my hips. I braved the unknown and decided to keep dancing.

The hands slowly traveled up and down my body. They left flames in their wake. I shivered and turned around. Blake stared down at me grinning. “What the hell!? Let me go!” I tried to pull away from him. His lips crashed onto mine. His lips tasted like alcohol, but surprisingly they still held that minty undertone. He sucked on my bottom lip.

I pushed him away again. This time I was successful. I stormed off. I wanted to go home. Now. I looked for Carston or De. After 5 minutes of unsuccessful searching I spotted Conner. I guess I would take my chances with him.