Chapter Two

The fear in Anna's trembling voice about us growing apart instilled a similar emotion to take hold of my chest, burning deep and smouldering my heart. If someone who took honour and pride in meticulously planning her days down to the last second even had a doubt that we'd no longer be friends . . . Then it was worth listening to and taking action against. After high school, there would be no building that we'd attend every day or a home twenty feet apart that we slept in every night. That was scary.

The prom committee.

Of all the things that Anna and I could've had done together, that's what we ended up choosing. First, we had to go onto the school website and put our names down, and according to the member list, we were the only two people that had signed up – which was weird. You'd think that the seniors would've wanted their last hurrah to go out with a bang.

We scrolled through pictures of the last ten proms. The proms had the same themes, starry night, under the moonlight, golden stars, and it was a little repetitive. All the pictures online throughout the last decade looked like it came from one night and one night only. That wouldn't do. If me and Anna were to band together, that meant my creativity mixed with her perfectionist tendencies, and it couldn't result in some boring night with stars everywhere.

"First order of business, the theme," Anna said, tapping her pen against her lip, stretched out on her bed.

"Second Star to the Right," I said automatically, getting a pen thrown in my direction.

"No more stars! If I see another star, I'll vomit."

"No shit, you're green," I pointed out.

"We'll have to run our ideas by Mr. Byers."

"Run what ideas by Mr. Byers?" Sabrina asked from the doorway. How long had she been there?

"Essay topic," Anna lied, gripping onto my thigh to warn me not to speak. "You're looking nice."

"Same can't be said for you two," Sabrina said. She was right. We were still in our cleaning gear of sweatpants and baggy t-shirts and then there she was, dressed to the nines, the hottest girl on earth, in her red and summery dress that someone would wear to a tea party in a canapé. Her dark hair hung in waves and her intense eyes emboldened by her makeup. She was a supermodel, and we were super nerds. "If you want to be slobs . . . stay at Sam's tonight."

Anna waved her off. "We're getting dressed."

"We are?" I asked.

"Yeah. We're partying tonight, Sammy. Partying hard. I daresay we might . . . drink."

"Alcohol?"

"Alcohol," she confirmed.

"A rebel," Sabrina teased.

"I guess we're partying," I said as Sabrina slipped out of the bedroom. Leaning in close to Anna, I whispered, "Why did you not tell her about the prom committee idea?"

"Why do you think no one has signed up? She's running for prom queen."

"So?"

"So . . . She wants the perfect night. She's gotten everyone who's even thought about joining kicked off the committee because they weren't 'good enough'."

"Anna. You're her sister."

"See, that's the thing, she wouldn't mind me. You? Not so much."

"How do you plan on keeping this a secret?"

"I'm not. We have to figure out what we can do to convince her to let you on the committee. Think about it, it's a perfect idea, we'd have full control, set our hours, quality time together . . . It's perfect."

"Sounds like we're doomed to fail."

Anna stood up and threw open her closet. "That's what this party is for. We're going to gather intel."

"A recon mission?"

"Yep."

"And we need to drink to do that?"

"We have to blend in!"

"I think you just want to get drunk," I joked.

Anna tossed a dress over her shoulder. "What better place to get drunk for the first time than in your own house?"

The mission was set in stone when we drew clothes from her closet and got dressed. Not too soon after, people from school clambered through the front gate and hung around the back garden of the house and traipsed through the open front door with red cups and the blasting vibrations from speakers.

Anna diligently stood by the entrance, offering greetings and smiles as no host should for a high school party. With a promise of drinks, I'd had left her there to get her a drink from the kitchen.

The fridge had a post-it-note in Sabrina's curly handwriting that said: Alcohol here. How was the refrigerator full of alcohol? Simple. People came bearing gifts. Now if it were Anna that hosted the party, she would've gone out and somehow procured some and had it all set up before the party. Sabrina? She got others to do her dirty work. Was it lazy or genius? Who cared? It worked.

Everyone slugged back beers, making shitty Tik-Tok videos that had been done over time and time again and danced.

I grabbed a beer bottle and leveraged it over the countertop and with a hiss, it popped open.

"Hey, Sam."

I turned and saw Parker waving me over. "Hey, Parker."

"Heard you're setting up prom," she said.

"How did you hear?"

"People take notice when the girl who did the mural outside school wants to decorate the place for prom," she said. "It's going to be awesome."

"Oh, it's not just me, it's Anna too."

Parker sipped on her drink. "I also heard Sabrina's running for prom queen."

"Aren't you planning to too?" I asked.

"Maybe. It depends," Parker told me. "If Sabrina's willing to be my date. I'll be a shoo-in. She'll be a shoo-in."

For a brief moment, my brain went blank. Huh. Parker liked girls? Never would've guessed. "I'm hearing a 'but'. Well, did you ask her to be your date yet?"

"One does not simply ask a girl to be their date—especially Sabrina Jenkins."

"Okay . . .?"

"You practically live in her house. Can you find out what her answer would be if I asked?"

"Oh, I'm friends with her sister. Trust me. There's a difference."

"Just ask," Parker pleaded. "Please, Sam? I'll help you keep your position on the prom committee if she says yes. You know how much of a control freak she is about it. Look, there she is. Just ask her, at least. If she says no . . . I'll still find a way to help you have full creative control. How about that?"

"Fine," I sighed, giving in because that was the point in the party, after all, finding a way to bypass Sabrina and stay on the prom committee.

Sabrina noticed as I walked toward her and turned on her heels, only staying still when I reached out and gripped her elbow.

"What do you want?" she asked, shaking me off.

"Hear me out before you say no."

"No."

"Sabrina," I laughed. "So . . . You're running for prom queen. Parker is also thinking of running."

"It's silly of her to have hope."

"Wow, you really are into this whole prom thing," I muttered and handed her the drink that I'd had gotten for Anna. "She wants to be your date. Thoughts?"

Sabrina straightened up, finally taking an interest. "My prom date?"

"Yes."

"That's an . . . interesting idea."

"Yup. Two popular girls . . . an unstoppable team. What do you think?"

"You can't find to spend time with my sister, but here you are helping me win a popularity vote? What's your angle here, Sam?"

Well shit. Should I tell the truth? Without consulting Anna? "The prom committee."

She gave a breath of mocking laughter. "That makes sense. It's exactly what I was going to propose before I realized . . . that meant helping you."

"Don't you want to help your sister? You're getting all the advantages here. I help you win the title; I design the prom, and you'll know it'll be awesome because you and I both know you adore my artwork. Anna is Anna, so it'll be a magical night," I bluffed and nudged my shoulder against hers. "And here I am setting you up with the perfect prom queen's date. Sounds like a bargain to me. What do you say?"

"The offer simply isn't enticing enough."

"Please, Sabrina," I begged, using the puppy-dog eyes.

"Nope."

I sighed. "Well, she can't say I didn't ask you, at least."

"Wait," she said. "That doesn't sound like you're that much invested. Did you only ask me to be her date – not to gain leverage for your own agenda but because she asked you to? As a favour?" she asked, chin pointing behind my shoulder to where I assumed Parker watched keenly.

"It was a convenient opportunity," I explained. "It didn't hurt to try."

She nodded. "She thinks she can't win the title without being attached to my side. Interesting. Thank you for the info, Sam. From her intentions to yours with the prom committee, you laid your hand on the table, and I'm afraid . . . You're bust. You really didn't think this through. Did you?"

"You know, you're not actually on the prom committee. It's a conflict of interest, right? With them being in charge of counting the polls and their stations?"

She ran her hand down my arm. "Yet everyone seeks my approval. Even you."

Ignoring the sudden shiver from her contact, I shook my head. "Whatever, Sabrina."

"You know I'm right!" she called after me.

I wandered back to the eager Parker, and before I made it over, she asked, "Did she agree?"

"Sorry, Parker, she's always been a bit of a lone wolf."

"Wolves do better in packs," Parker said. "Maybe she needs a better invitation." She handed me her drink and sought out Sabrina, who was talking to a couple of football players. Parker was dressed for the part, wearing a sparkly silver dress, taking hold of Sabrina's hand. At the same time, she spoke and batting her eyelashes seductively.

The football players paid a little too much attention to their interaction which left me uncomfortable.

As Sabrina dropped Parker's hand, Parker spun around and stormed back over to me, snatching her drink from my hand. "She's so damn . . . High and mighty. Why do I find that so fucking hot? It's hot right?"

I avoided eye contact. "I'm not blind."

"Thinking of shooting your shot?"

"One does not simply ask a girl to be their date—especially Sabrina Jenkins," I mocked her from earlier. "Besides, she's so out of my league, it's crazy. Double besides, her sister is my best friend. It would be super weird."

Parker rolled her eyes. "Please. You're a smart girl, Sam, don't be such a dumbass."

I flicked her drink at her. "I'm deciding to take that as a compliment."

"You should."

I laughed. "You literally asked her out, and now you want me to shoot my shot?"

"Lesbian dating pool problems," she said.

I excused myself and headed back to the entrance and dropped Anna off a drink and encouraged her to join me outside where people were stripping off and jumping into the pool. Everyone was getting a little bit crazy. So, maybe I hadn't gotten drunk before or had even a sip of a drink before but now that I had? I was pretty drunk. Lightweight Sam wasted after three or seven beers. Who kept count?

People clapped me on the back, 'mural this' and 'prom that' it seemed our secret was out. When confronted about if I had Sabrina's permission, I said totally, and they believed me. Why wouldn't they? I was best friends with her little sister. It was the perfect plan! Get everyone to think that Sabrina was cool with it and then she had to be, right? She wouldn't be so . . . So rude to go against the public's truth! Shots. Liquid courage definitely sounded like the perfect way to continue this plan.