S.A.U.

“Nina!” dad gasped as I slammed the front door shut behind me and crossed the living room to hug him.

He gave me a big bear hug and a kiss on the forehead before he released me. “Where have you been? It’s almost nine thirty!”

“It’s that late already?” I asked and glanced down at dad’s plain white pajama bottoms. It could only mean one thing; mom and the triplets were asleep. I resisted the urge to do a victory dance right then and there. That left me with only a half an hour to figure out what I had to wear to the party and how I was going to get there. It wasn’t like I had any friends that could come and pick me up and the last person that offered me a ride got a bloody nose from a punch in the face.

“You went shopping?” he asked and jerked his chin in the direction of the plastic bags in my hands.

I nodded and gave him a lopsided smile. “Yeah, I did. I finished the juice and thought I’d go out and get some at the Walgreens a block away.”

“It took you over two hours to buy some juice?” he questioned and I sighed wearily.

“Yeah because I ran into stupid Bryan and he tried to give me a stupid ride. We got into a stupid fight and I gave him a good punch in the face for calling me a bitch.”

Dad scowled at me. “Man, if that kid wasn’t underage then so help me God I would—”

I laughed and patted his shoulder as I went into the kitchen to put away the juice.

“Don’t worry, Dad. Everything’s taken care of. Just go to bed.”

The sooner he went to bed, then the better chance I had of sneaking out of the house undetected. The last thing I needed or wanted was to get caught by anybody. That would be another two weeks of being grounded and I just couldn’t have that.

“Alright, kiddo. Goodnight.” And then he disappeared into his bedroom upstairs and I was alone downstairs.

I smiled gleefully to myself as I kicked the refrigerator door closed and half-skipped my way up the stairs. At least I knew where stupid Claire lived. I would just have to walk there and change into something when I got there. What other option did I have?

I crept quietly into my room and shut the door gently behind me. It was dark in here except for the thin beams of pale moonlight that peaked in through the curtains of my windows. I sighed and stripped myself of my clothing. Was there enough time for me to shower?

I’d decided against it and tiptoed around in the dark toward my closet. The sooner I got out, then the better chance I had of getting there to suck up to Claire and her stupid parents. Ugh. Why did life have to suck so bad sometimes? I managed to pull out a denim shorts and a tight black Aerosmith T-shirt that I got for Christmas from my dad. Yeah, I had the coolest dad in the whole damn world.

It didn’t take me long to get dressed and find the pair of the muddy combat boots I’d worn to school two days ago and shove an unopened packet of Chips Ahoy under my arm as I threw the lock on my bedroom door.

I was half-way down the stairs when I heard a trio of forced coughs from the top of the stairs. I froze mid-step and turned around slowly to face my three worst enemies. If there was one thing I hated more then Claire Romano and Bryan Warwick it had to have been dealing with my three obnoxious triplet sisters. I sighed and mentally kicked myself.

“Hey, Nina,” Ashleigh said casually, like two people making conversation. Brooklyn and Carly stood on each side of her wearing identical devilish smirks on their faces.

I sighed again in irritation. Would I go to jail if I got some duct tape, tied these three brats in chairs and stuffed them in my closet? It was beginning to look like a good idea, but where was I going to get the tape? I sure didn’t have any on me.

“You plan on sharing those with us?” Brooklyn asked and let out a dark giggle.

“We sure love Chop Ahoy, don’t we girls?” Carly and Ashleigh nodded in unison.

I sighed and handed over the package. At least I had some more in my room and these brats couldn’t get to them since I’d locked the door.

“Alright, but just don’t tell mom and dad, okay? I have something really important that I have to do so-”

“In the middle of the night?” Carly questioned like a detective interrogating a suspect.

I scowled at them. Why was I explaining myself to them? Who the hell was the older one here? Like hell I was going to sit here and waist my time arguing with a trio of snot-nosed little monsters.

I huffed and spun around on my heel and was out the door before either Ashleigh, Brooklyn, or Carly could say anything about it.

“You’ve gotta be kidding me,” I said in a flabbergasted whisper as I stared up at the house.

It didn’t take a genius to know that I was in the right place: overly loud techno music thumping so loud that the window panes rattled, the thick clouds of dry-ice smoke that billowed out the open front door and up into the night in an opaque fog, and the endless hoots and guffaws of my fellow peers as I crossed the large, nicely cut lawn toward the house.

I wiped my sweaty palms against the back of my shorts as I approached. I was hoping that tonight would go smoothly. No drama, no crude jokes, no nothing. In fact, if everybody decided to pretend that I wasn’t there, then it would be even better for me. I’d go in, find Claire and purposely engage in a pointless conversation about shoes or clothes with the fake bitch in front of her awful parents, stick around and enjoy the food and drinks, and then book it back home before mom or dad decided to check in on me while I ‘slept’.

I took a deep breath and entered the house. I must’ve looked like an idiot standing there in the doorway with my mouth hanging agape and my eyes so wide they would’ve popped out of my head at any given moment.

The party was inside the living room, which was a room so spacious and wide that I’d bet Claire could invite the whole town and everybody would’ve fit inside. It was dark except for the colored lights playing over the dance floor, turning it into a multicolored fairyland of acid blues and neon greens, hot pinks and bright reds.

A long table stood against the whole entire east wall offering a big assortment of party food and drinks to the guests and a large, silver disco ball spun around in lazy, elephantine motions as it showered everybody with glittery bits of confetti. A disco ball that shot out confetti? That was a first for me.

I scanned the dance floor for stupid Claire Romano’s face, trying hard to ignore the way the girls tossed their hair carelessly over their shoulders as they danced or the way the boys swung their hips from side to side imprecisely to the beat of the music. You could almost smell the liveliness coming off of them in giant waves of drunken dizziness.

It was just a stupid party where everyone was being irresponsible by drinking until they were passed out on the living room floor. So why did I feel so lonely here all of a sudden? Why did I feel like I wanted to be part of them and just enjoy life the way they could for once in my stupid life?

“Cool party, huh?” a voice said behind me and I jumped.

I turned around slowly with my fists up, half expecting to see Claire sneering at me. Instead, I saw Bryan with two red cups of what looked like Pepsi in them. He grinned sheepishly and handed me on. I took it gingerly in my hand and stared at him. His nose was red and it looked a little swollen. Maybe I was wrong to punch him the way I did.

Good or bad, whether I wanted to realize it or not, Bryan had helped me by telling me about this party. He gave me a chance to get back into school and as much as it killed me to even think about it, I owned him a thank you and a whole lot more.

“Nina?” His smile faltered a bit when I hadn’t replied.

I opened my mouth to say something, anything, but nothing came out. What exactly could I say when my eyes were fixed on his toned abs. I wasn’t into Bryan in that way, but I had to admit that Bryan’s body had improved drastically over the years. His saggy, flabby stomach had been replaced with a flat, toned six pack that even I couldn’t help but gawk at. His floppy arms were now hard and lean and his double chin had now transformed into a finely defined jaw line.

“Nina? Nina, what are you-”

“Oh, Tina!” Claire’s voice shouted from somewhere behind me.

I turned around again just as she stumbled and wove her way through the throng of partyers towards me. I couldn’t help notice that her cheeks were flushed a light pink and the front of her halter top was ripped halfway down, exposing one of her nipples. I automatically burst out laughing. She had to be drunk. What kind of girl walked around with her nipples out at her own party?

Bryan shot me a stern look, but I ignored him. It sure as hell wasn’t my fault that his girlfriend was walking around with her tits out like she was Sharon Stone or something. I was sure that he didn’t appreciate the attention most of the guys were giving her either.

“Tina!” she squealed and threw her chiseled arms around my neck. I gasped and stumbled a bit under her weight. How could such a slim girl weight so much? Or was I the one who was lacking some serious upper body strength? Claire purred and nuzzled the side of my neck with her nose. I shivered and shot Bryan a pleading look.

“Um, hi Claire,” I stammered as Bryan pried her arms from around my neck and held her against him. He suddenly seemed uncharacteristically nervous. Like when I was over at his house. Why was that? What could possibly be the reason for his whacked out behavior?

“You came!” she squeaked and reached out for me again. “I knew you would come! I just knew it!”

“Yeah,” I replied sarcastically and rolled my eyes, “because that’s why I’m here. To make miracles happen.”

“Claire, baby, how much did you drink?” Bryan asked carefully and I burst out laughing again.

Claire joined in my laughter and patted Bryan’s cheek. Hard. “As much as I felt like drinking.”

Her speech was slurring a little bit and she stumbled a lot on her six inch pumps.

“And your parents approve of this?” I asked her and raised an eyebrow. Where were they anyway? If I saw my teenage daughter drunk the way Claire was, then I would’ve blown up like a volcano and sent everybody home. Weren’t they monitoring this party? What kind of parents were irresponsible enough to let their snobby kid have a house party with alcoholic beverages being served to her teenage guests? Who does that?

“No!” Claire yelped and dropped her head on Bryan’s shoulder as she let out a loud hyena’s laugh.

“They don’t know about the—”

“W-we s-s-should get you some coffee to b-bring you back to your senses,” Bryan stammered and tightened his grip on Claire’s waist.

“Ahhhhhw,” Claire whined as Bryan pulled her deeper into the growing crowd. “But I wanna talk to Tina!”

He cursed under his breath and disappeared into the crowd, leaving me to stare after them. He was nervous again but why? He was even stammering when he talked and had cut Claire off. Why was up with him? I shook my head and dove into the massive crush of teenagers toward the refreshments table on the other side.

Since I had no one to hang out with or talk to, then I must as well just stuff my face for a while before going home. Where the hell were Mr. and Mrs. Romano anyway? How were they supposed to convince the principal that we kissed and made up if they weren’t even around to see it? What the hell did I have to do to get Mr. Flynn to cancel my suspension and let me back into school?

I stopped short and quickly pushed the thought to the back corner of my mind. God, I sounded like a nerd or something. What kind of person wanted to get into school? Most people would see this as a grand opportunity to sleep around and get drunk somewhere. Most people would enjoy the time they had being suspended. So why couldn’t I? I was at a party- the first and probably the last party Claire would ever invite me to. So why waste the night away thinking about things that made me mad when I could kick back and just party for once in my miserable life? Why couldn’t I just--

“Dance with me!” he shouted and viciously tugged on my arm and dragged me onto the dance floor. I cried out as he pulled me closer to him and wrapped his arms around me in a vise-like grip. This was definitely not what I had in mind when I wanted to let loose and party. I looked up at the boy’s sweaty face and scowled.

It was Will Elliot and he looked even drunker then Claire did. He rested his forehead against mine as we swayed back and forth, me struggling to free myself from his hold and him saying something incoherent under his breath.

“Nina!” he screamed in my ear and I automatically winced and ducked away. “You look great today!”

“Let me go Will!” I shouted and managed to free one of my arms. What the hell was wrong with these people? Didn’t they know that what they were doing was illegal? How the hell did they plan on getting home if they couldn’t even stand on their own two feet? Will pulled me even closer and tightened his grip on my waist.

“Will!” I gasped as a wave of his fowl breath filled my nostrils. I coughed and leaned my head away from him.

“Let me go! Will, let me go!”

“I never thought you of all people would bend…over backwards to be Claire’s…Claire’s follower,” he said and rested his head on my shoulder. I stiffened and narrowed my eyes at him. Claire’s follower? Me? He was definitely drunk. I wouldn’t follow Claire if my life depended on it. I was just here to take care of some business was all. I wasn’t interested in having my name be added to the list of bimbo friends Claire had. I was just so much better then that.

“I’m not Claire’s follower,” I replied through gritted teeth.

“Then…why are…are you here?” Will shot back and lowered his mouth to my neck. I ducked away again and glared at him.

“Because I have something to take care of with her- something that has nothing to do with you!” I managed to free myself then and shoved him back as hard as I could, sending him stumbling into the crowd.

One girl looked up and glared at me. Why couldn’t I get catch a break around here? All I wanted to do was make sure that the Romanos saw Claire and me make up so I could leave. So why did this have to be so much for difficult then it had to be?

“Don’t be like that,” Will whined and wrapped his hand around my wrist.

“Don’t Will!” I roared and wrenched myself out of his grip.

The guy couldn’t take a hint or what? Will stumbled back again and bumped into some more drunk party guests, who in return shoved him back towards me. I groaned and pushed his back with all the strength I could summon. Will cried out and crashed into the crowd, sending himself along with a dozen other people tumbling to the floor.

The music abruptly stopped and everyone turned to glare at me. Oh shit. This was my first time at a party and I ended up crashing it. How stupid was that?

“Hey!” someone shouted. “It’s the freak from school! Who invited her here?”

“Someone call NASA- we’ve just spotted an alien!”

“Get lost, you loser! Can’t you see that you’re not wanted here?”

“Eeeew! Look at what she’s wearing! My grandmother dresses better then she does!”

“Good god! You must really hate your mother if you decided to come out without a paper bag over your head!” someone shouted and everyone burst out into a long jag of laughter.

I ducked my head and quickly wove my way through the crowd before someone could say something else. It was pretty apparent that I wasn’t wanted anywhere but did they really have to say stuff like that to my face? I could take a damn hint and I didn’t need these people throwing it in my face all the time when I had that going on at home.

I sighed and threw myself into the first room I stumbled upon on the second floor. I slammed the door shut and threw myself on the bed. I was stupid to come here in the first place and think that someone wouldn’t try to mess with me. If they constantly picked on me at school, even though there were teachers present, then I thought that they wouldn’t do it at a party where their behavior was unsupervised?

I dropped my head in my hands and closed my eyes. I’d been here at least a half an hour and I hadn’t so much as heard a peep about Claire’s parents. What if they weren’t here? What the hell was I supposed to do now? Claire was nowhere to be found since she disappeared with Bryan somewhere so who did I have left to chat with?

“You’re an idiot for coming here Nina,” I muttered and buried my face in my hands. “You’re such a dumb idiot.”

What the hell was I thinking? I would never be accepted by these losers anyway. I was always going to be the freak to them, the disappointment to my family, and just pretty much worthless and unwanted in the eyes of everyone that I’d ever run into. So why did I let myself think that being invited to Miss Popular’s party was going to be an exception?

At the end of the day I was still surrounded by people who loathed me and wanted me to just crawl into a hole and die somewhere. Why did I even bother trying if I knew how things would end for me? Ugh. Why did I always have to get the short end of the stick? I sighed again and opened my eyes to find that I was sitting by myself in the dark. Where the hell was I? Whose room was this?

Tap.Tap.Tap.Tap. I jumped at the sound.

I hoped it wasn’t someone coming in for round two because I wouldn’t be able to control how I’d react to one more person messing with me.

I sat up straight and waited for it. I waited for the door to open and somebody’s face to poke in, see the freak sitting in the dark, and start messing with her again. So what would I do then? I would jump off the bed, grab him or her by the collar of their shirt, and give them the biggest, hardest punch in the face the human race has ever seen.

I smiled at the thought. Sitting here feeling sorry for myself wasn’t doing me any good. The door opened again and a tall, lean figure stepped inside and shut the door behind him. I squinted in the dark in his direction.

“Bryan?” I said and leaned forward to get a better look.

“Bryan? Turn on the lights- I can’t see you.” The figure chuckled darkly and flipped the lights on.

I blinked hard and let my eyes adjust to the sudden illumination before taking a good look at the intruder