1 Hayden
I’m an introvert, which means partying is usually the last thing on my mind. I prefer to stay indoors, studying obscure things that bore most of the people that I talk to. I love to study the sky and the weather, and want to be a meteorologist. There’s a report out about a tornado warning so I went outside to watch the sky.
That’s how I met Scott, a guy my age who lives in the same neighborhood as my parents. He’s old money, and my parents just moved in a few months ago after dad’s big promotion. I drive into town for the local college, and he goes to the privately funded college a few miles east of here.
I know that because Scott kept mentioning it before I agreed to come to the party. I’m not sure I really belong here, but it felt nice to be invited to hang out with the rich kids who never pay much mind to me. I decided it couldn’t hurt to go to a party close to home. I can make my escape if the tornado becomes an issue.
I just need to get better at fitting in. I thought I left most of my social awkwardness behind in high school, but it looks like it’s still following me well into college.
The crowd around me laughs at a joke I’ve missed, and I fake a smile and try to join into their chuckles. None of the people here really know me, but a few are my neighbors. The night is young, barely pushing nine with the sky dark and cloudy above us. It’sstorm season, and through my alcoholic haze I’ve been eyeing the sky.
I mentioned it to Scott on the way over here, and occasionally a few times in this group of friends, but no one’s really paying that much attention to what I have to say. The alcohol is making me loose, not dumb, and I don’t really want to start testing mother nature.
“Should we storm chase?” Scott asks, looking around the little group. Some of us migrated outside after the alcohol kicked in, and the girl I was sort of talking to came out so I followed. I didn’t want to end up alone inside trying to talk to a guy I don’t really know how to flirt with.
That could be any guy.
The girl beside me snorts at the idea, giggling too hard to continue sitting up as she bats her lashes at Scott. She slumps beside me against the side of the car, and I match her grin. I probably look like a fool, knowing my smile is silly because of all the alcohol in my system, and her smile is goofy too.
Storm chasing sounds like fun, but the sky makes me wary. I’ve never done this before, not as a student still in school. I’m not into a real world application yet, I’m still studying and doubt any of my professors right now want to take me out into a tornado, but I definitely have an interest in it. It would be cool to be that close to a force of nature like a tornado and be surrounded by people who know how to avoid dying.
This… may not really be the right crowd.
The streetlight nearby barely illuminates the area, making it difficult for us to see each other. The wind is warm and powerful as it speeds by, whipping my already messy hair around myface. I stare up at the sky: no green-tinted clouds, no undulating noise, no rain. I don’t think a tornado is arriving quite yet, but I’d be surprised if we don’t seesomething.
The nagging voice in my head tells me maybe we shouldn't be chilling on the street and should be closer to a storm shelter. I’ve never been through a tornado before, but it could definitely happen tonight.
Scott says something else that I don’t catch, his mouth moving but the words not registering. Scott is different for a rich college kid, at least in my head he is. He has this labret piercing that I always stare at, and it highlights his smile when he grins.
I’m not infatuated with this rich boy. Not at all. He just has a really pretty smile…
Letting out a loud hiccup, Scott pushes the other guy away from the driver’s side door. Istillcan’t remember what his name is. “You know, this baby can hit a pretty hundo when I slam on the gas. If we go into this storm we could try and race a tornado.”
The girl with a goofy grin from before claps her hands. There are six of us out here separated from the rest of the party, and we’re staring at a five-seater car. We could squish into the backseat, but as my bleary eyes take in the group I have my doubts that's a smart option. Scott and the nameless guy are jocks, then there’s the four of us girls. Two of them are in cheer, wearing their tight uniforms here of all places, and one of the cheerleaders keeps removing fake lint from her clothes. The third girl is Lisa, who seems to be the leader of the other two. If anyone is about to be screwed here with seating, I think it’s gonna be me.
Licking my dry lips, I can hear the echo of my father’s voice as the five start talking about how awesome it would be to speedinto a storm. A dangerous, deadly storm.“Don’t drive drunk. Stupid shit happens behind the wheel when you’re intoxicated.”
There’s a shift in the wind, and our little group gasps and curses as sprinkling rain hits all of us. Wearing a cute tank and jeans with holes suddenly feels like a mistake when the cold drops splash against my bare skin, but I’m still wearing more than the three other girls who all shriek into the night.
It’s still too damn early for this. My drunken mind can process that this is a bad decision, but I don’t lean away from the car. I’ve had more fun tonight than I normally do, and I want to keep the high going.
Scott wouldn’t drivethatbadly, right?
“Hayden,” Lisa says to me suddenly. “You’ll come with us girl, won’t you? Don’t you want to go for a ride? Don’t you?”
She’s tall, pretty, and pretty much the definition of the classic blonde popular girl stereotype. She seems to be in charge of the group of girls I’ve attached myself to, and she’s the only one who makes me uncomfortable. The guys are fine, if not a little dumb tonight, but Lisa seems to make it a mission to be mean. I don’t see why since she’s already surrounded by people who want her attention anyway.
I blink, my eyes bouncing between the rain, the five-seater, and the group of six. Even my alcohol-infused brain sees the errors here. “Uh—”
“We have room for five and can toss someone in the trunk,” Scott’s friend jokes. Josh? John? Something bland with a J. “Who wants to take a nap?”
“That’d be fun,” Lisa coaxes me, bouncing her hip off of my midsection, coaxing a grunt from my lips. We’re nowhere close to the same height, and her tall skinny heels put her hip closer to my belly button.
Horizontal might not be a good idea.
Lisa shoots me a look, and I glare right back, ready to forgo socialization to keep the alcohol in my stomach and not on the floor of a freaking trunk. At least I think I glare. It’s hard to tell if it comes across as a glare or not when I’m fighting the renewed urge to giggle.
“Don’t be a buzzkill,” Lisa hisses before shoving me. I stumble in my sneakers, gripping the strap of my bag across my chest like it’s somehow in danger of falling off of me. Lisa smirks before I manage to right myself, and the rain starts to fall a little harder. She’s swaying her hips as she walks around to the other side, popping open the front seat passenger door like she owns it. Her glare feels as cold as the rain.
