Ch. 14
Evan’s second week went by in a flash as he began to fall into a routine. He would go to classes, eat with his lunch friends, and then spend the evening studying and lounging. He also joined his lunch friends for dinner at the cafeteria. On his second weekend, he returned to the base to help them with their research.
Dr. Campbell brought out many different artifacts for Evan to attempt to activate. However, all the artifacts showed no effect since he was incapable of using his magic. It was a bit of a letdown, but it wasn’t unexpected. Still, Dr. Campbell said they were making progress in their project to harness latent magic, so he was looking forward to future visits.
On Wednesday of the following week, Evan was surprised to be invited to a house party. His lunch friends informed him that the party was being held at a senior’s house in the residential part of town, and all academy students were welcome to come. The senior wasn’t someone Evan had met yet. When he asked about her, Barry informed him that she was a mermaid from a rich family with a big house. It sounded interesting, but Evan did not have a good history with parties.
“Come on, dude,” Barry said. “You have to come. We can play beer pong, it’ll be fun.”
“I don’t know. I’m not much of a drinker,” Evan said.
“They’ll be plenty of fine young ladies looking to dance with you,” Zayla said. “They’ll be so sad if you don’t show up.”
Evan almost said no as memories of the last party he attended started forcing their way to the front of his mind. It had been over two years ago, but he could still see everything that happened that night clearly: the fun times early on, his insistence that the night not end as it got late, and the horrible mess it all led to. He hadn’t had the slightest inclination to party with his old friends again after that night, but things were different now. These were new friends at a new school, and nobody knew anything about his shameful past. If he couldn’t move on and let loose now, when could he?
“Alright,” Evan said finally. “I’ll show up for a little while at least.”
They made arrangements to meet up and head to the party together after that. Barry had access to his family’s car, so he offered to drive them all there. Evan was nervous about his first party in Tourmaline, but he felt good knowing he had friends he could rely on even if the party wasn’t great.
When the time came, they all gathered and took the short trip to the northern part of town where the home was located. The house was bigger than the average suburban home, but it didn’t quite reach mansion status. There were several cars parked along the street, but it wasn’t super obvious that there was a party going on. He figured they must be doing their best not to draw attention. It was only as they were approaching the door that Evan started to hear music from inside.
They found the inside to be packed with people once they entered, the living room being the main hangout area. It was also acting as a dance floor for a few energetic ladies. Evan was pleased to find that the music wasn’t so loud that you couldn’t hear people speak. Many people were occupying the couches and chairs around the room, opting for conversations over dancing.
Evan, Zayla, and Barry meandered their way through the crowd and into the dining room. There they found a group gathered around the dining room table playing beer pong. Barry pointed at the table while raising his eyebrows excitedly to Evan. He just laughed at Barry’s apparent love for the game. They finally reached the kitchen where they found Clara and the twins getting themselves some drinks.
“Hey girl!” Zayla screamed as she met Clara.
“Yay, you’re here!” Clara said, giving Zayla a quick hug. “Hey, Evan! I’m glad you came!”
“I didn’t feel like these two would have let me say no, so here I am.”
“Oh, whatever,” Zayla said rolling her eyes.
Evan noticed the two twins standing with Clara were staring at him. They were short, looking to be a little under five feet tall. They were wearing revealing shirts that showed a surprising amount of cleavage. One had shoulder length brown wavy hair, and the other had similar hair only it was about six inches longer.
“Hey,” Evan said with a small wave. “I’m Evan.”
“We know,” the short haired one said. “I’m Lia.”
“I’m Laia,” the one with longer hair added.
“Nice to meet you,” Evan said. “I remember seeing you with Clara that first weekend, but I don’t think I’ve seen you around since.”
“We’re seniors,” Laia said. “So, I guess our schedules just don’t have any overlap.”
“Such a shame,” Lia said. “I bet it would be fun to overlap with you sometime.”
“Girls, behave,” Zayla said.
“Don’t mind them,” Clara said. “They’re just messing around. I’m pretty sure they’ve been working on that joke since you first saw them.”
“Clara!” Laia said.
“Don’t ruin it, we looked cool!” Lia said.
Evan just laughed to himself watching the goofball twins complain about their efforts going to waste. It was clear watching them with Clara that the three of them had a close bond. It made sense considering they were seniors that had probably been going to school together their whole lives.
“Shots!” Barry said, bringing over a tray of shot glasses.
He sat them on a nearby counter, and each person in their group grabbed a glass. Evan threw back a shot with everyone else without protest. He’d much rather take a shot or two than have a few beers. The girls screamed in triumph as they downed theirs, and the group started to settle into the party after that.
Everyone but Evan got a cup of beer and gathered in the dining room. They talked amongst themselves as they watched the groups occupying the beer pong table play. One team consisted of the host of the party, Ami, playing with Derek, the rude boy Evan had met at the welcome party. They were playing two girls Evan recognized. It was Billie and the dark-skinned girl that she had been playing pool with on Evan’s first day.
“Who is that with Billie?” Evan said.
“That’s Brandi Akata,” Barry said. “She’s in her second year with Zayla and me. She’s cool.”
The game of beer pong was back and forth with both sides making good shots and the occasional drunken mistake. It was fun to watch. As they were getting close to the end, Derek made an announcement.
“If we win, you’ve gotta show us them titties!”
The crowd just laughed and oohed as if the gauntlet had been thrown down. Billie seemed to think it was hilarious and she laughed loudly.
“Alright, you’re on,” Billie said. “Right?”
“Whatever,” Brandi said like it was no big deal.
“And if we win, you’ve got to get down on all fours and bark like a good doggie,” Billie said.
“Fine,” Derek said.
Evan could tell by the way Derek clenched his jaw after he spoke that he wasn’t happy about the dog comment. The game continued, and it wasn’t long before Derek had a shot to win. He concentrated and tossed his ball, but it bounced off the rim.
“Fuck!”
With that miss, Brandi now had the chance to close it out for her team. She smiled confidently as she took her position and casually tossed the ball directly into the cup, securing the victory. The small crowd watching erupted in cheers. Billie jumped up and down and hugged Brandi who just smiled and took a drink of her beer.
“A deal’s a deal,” Billie said. “Pay up!”
“Fuck that,” Derek said leaving the dining room in a huff. “I’m out of here.”
Not long after that, Evan and his group took control of the table for a few games. He teamed up with Barry against Zayla and Clara. The game after that he played with Clara against the twins. He ended up losing both games and drinking more beer than he wanted to as a result. He could feel a little buzz, but he stopped short of getting drunk. The others in his group weren’t so shy about their drinking, however.
Clara and the twins did several more rounds of shots as they played their games. It was obvious by their demeaner that they had gone past just being a little buzzed. It was just after he finished his last game that the twins came over and grabbed both his arms.
“Come on, you’re coming with us,” Lia said.
They pulled him towards the living room where the number of people dancing had increased.
“I don’t know, I’ve never been good at dancing,” he said trying to resist.
Unfortunately for Evan, the twins were stronger than they looked, and they weren’t taking no for an answer. He soon found himself in the middle of the floor with two hot girls dancing around him.
Evan did his best to dance to the beat as he watched the talented twins move. They were full of energy as they shook their hips around, causing their exposed cleavage to also bounce wildly. He tried not to stare, but it was especially hard when there were two of them. Both girls made sure to stick close to his sides, always pressing intimately against him.
Soon they took positions at his front and back, trapping him firmly between them. The one behind him pressed her chest against his back and snaked her hands along the sides of his thighs. The one in front put her arms in the air and pushed her butt back against his crotch as she danced.
Evan struggled trying to figure out what to do with his hands. His alcohol infused instincts were telling him to grab something soft and hold on tight, but his rational mind knew that wouldn’t be right. He danced awkwardly in place as the two girls sandwiched him with their sexy bodies. There was no way they didn’t feel his erection as they took turns pressing into him. But when he looked into their eyes, he realized two things. One, they were drunk and probably didn’t realize what they were doing. And two, they were having the time of their lives, so they wouldn’t have cared even if they did.
Just as he was starting to wonder how far the drunken twins would push things, Clara joined them on the floor. The twins cheered when they saw her and waved her over to join them. Clara took the spot in front of Evan while the twins moved to his sides. Evan was transfixed by the sight of Clara as she let loose on the dance floor. She seemed to have lost all inhibition. She smiled and laughed like he had never seen her do before. It was infectious, and he soon found he was enjoying the dance despite his initial resistance.
When the next song came on, Clara turned around and shook her ass in front of him, causing the twins to whoop and holler in support. Loving the reaction, Clara bent over and started to twerk to the beat. Evan was sure his eyes bugged out of their socket as he watched the mild-mannered Clara twerk in front of him. The twins stepped forward and slapped Clara’s ass causing all three of them to burst into laughter. Clara turned around and leaned on Evan as she tried to stop laughing.
Then, for the first time since he started dancing, a slow song came on. Having calmed down a bit, Clara smiled and hummed as she put her arms around Evan and rested her head on his shoulder. The twins waved at him as they stumbled off the dance floor and away to the kitchen. Evan wrapped his hands around Clara and settled into a nice smooth rhythm. This dance was much more to Evan’s liking, and Clara’s body felt great pressed against him. It made it difficult to concentrate and avoid stepping on her toes.
“You’re so fun,” Clara said. “Matt never dances with me.”
“Oh, yeah?” Evan said, feeling awkward at the mention of her boyfriend.
“Yeah, it’s dumb,” she said.
There was a noticeable slurring in her speech.
“Why didn’t he come tonight?”
“He said he had a lot of work to do tomorrow,” Clara said. “Said he couldn’t be out late.”
“I see.”
“But that’s ok, cause I got you instead,” she said giggling.
They continued to sway together comfortably until the song ended. Once it did, they separated slightly and smiled at each other.
“Thanks for dancing with me, Evan,” Clara said.
“No problem, it was fun.”
Clara stumbled a bit and Evan moved quickly to steady her. She just laughed as she regained her footing.
“I gotta go to the bathroom,” she said awkwardly before walking off to find a place to do her business.
Evan took that opportunity to escape the living room before he got pulled into another dance. He didn’t know what the rest of the night would bring, but it had been better than expected so far, and he was actually looking forward to more. He was surprised to find that all his earlier anxiety had disappeared. He wasn’t sure if that was due to the alcohol, his friends, or both, but it was a blessing. He made a mental note to thank his friends for making him come. However, things had gotten pretty hot on the dance floor, in more ways than one, so he felt like he needed a breather before he could do anything else. Traversing the crowd, Evan made his way out to the front porch where hopefully some refreshing cool air waited for him.