Loud music, excited chattering, alcohol, and emboldened people.
That's what you expect when you go to a party, right?
People will be talking or singing along to the song playing too loudly, drowning out nearly everything else.
A few people will have... excused themselves and left to find a quieter and more secluded place for someone on one fun.
Some will be sticking to the corners and others will be the life of the party, playing games, singing as loud as their vocal cords allow, or dancing like it's sunday and an hour before the club closes, and someone will be filming the spectacle that is the party dumbass getting so drunk he won't remember the night.
Empty cups will be littered everywhere, food will be strewn around while the light will be flickering inbetween different colours to set the mood while the disco ball swinging above them lets the light dance all over the room and dance floor.
If the party got wilder than the host would have anticipated then there will be a few things broken on the floor, or already cleaned up and deposited in the overfilled trashcan in the kitchen.
There might even be that person that, while empowered through the alcohol, will get a bit pushy in their advances towards their crush, some might get rejected and laugh it off while others will get violent and drunkenly shout utter gibberish and half-empty threats.
And then there's that one person who got dragged there by their friends and is currently regretting getting out of bed while debating if jumping out of the window is a viable option.
This person, in this scenario, is a girl with dark auburn hair and a phone clamped in her hands.
She is idly tapping away at it, seemingly occupied, while in truth, she is only tapping away at a lit-up lock screen.
Her eyes are hidden by her wild hair, head tilted down to scan the room and its occupants for any threat or sudden uproar, her back protected by a beige painted wall while she is leaned against a marble kitchen counter, left to her, only a few feet away, is a window nearly hidden by an emerald green curtain.
She is that one person who is sighing in her head and taking guesses as to who will make the most trouble, or get so drunk that someone needs to call a doctor.
Among other things, she's that type of friend who will, at the end of a wild party, be the only one sober enough to drive while complaining that she will never listen to her friends again when they tell her "Come on, It´ll be fun!"
The one who'll have said that, would be the friend who has the power to convince everyone to do as they want, no matter how stupid it may be while the sober friend debates if that kind of persuasion should be counted as a superpower.
Every friend group has one of those, and many more, leading to diverse and sometimes very interesting friend groups.
The happy-go-lucky one that can and will always cheer you up.
The animal whisperer, who insists on petting every animal they come across and somehow always avoids injuries no matter if it's a scratch or a bite.
Then there's the introvert who keeps to themselves but is always a reassuring presence on your side and normally either the peacekeeper or the collected rationality of a friend group.
The gossip queen or king who always knows the best gossip and has the best blackmail on hand, that most friends either do not know where they got it from, or are too afraid to ask.
The criminal and liar who can get you out of every situation with little to no problem with street smarts, a silver tongue, or a well placed bribe.
The bookworm, who always seems to know everything and has a solution for nearly everything on hand or written down somewhere while also having a disturbing amount of knowledge on hiding a body.
The saint who loves helping people and will do whatever they can to help, no matter if the one whom they are helping deserves it or not.
The rat, someone who will say they're your friend but will give you up if the situation calls for it ,but will always know who is fighting with who, so to know on which side they´ll stand on.
There's the jester or clown who will always be making jokes or jabs and will always be happy to be with you while being far more forgiving than they should be.
The queen bee, the leader of the group, whom the group centers around, like a miniature sun that others can't help but want to be around.
In this example, the queen bee has conquered the dance floor and is dancing with her little bees, the happy-go-lucky one and the gossip queen, or in this case gossip princess, under the ever changing light of the large discoball hanging high on the ceiling.
The auburn haired girl is watching them from within the kitchen as she sips from a red plastic cup placed in her hand, the alcohol inside it deluded with water and a lemon slice hanging on the side with a few ice cubes remnants floating in the drink.
She may look interested, but her eyes narrow as she looks out the window after an uproar of noise has caught her attention and a heavy feeling begins to spread in her gut.
Friends can be a lot, and a lot more than the roles someone gives them, that should always be remembered as people aren't two-dimensional.
The queen bee can be a happy-go-lucky one as well, or maybe even the criminal, while the saint could be a criminal or the clown of the group.
She- for one, is the paranoid one, the one always prepared for the worst to happen-
the instinctive one, whose gut feeling is always right-
and most importantly, she´s the loyal one who will always have her friends back.
So, as she leans back against the counter top, the cold marble under her fingers sending a small chill up her back, she taps away on her phone and starts a recording while setting her cup aside, debating is she should take her to leave early.
She heaves a sigh instead, nearly giving into the sirens call that is the idea of her freshly made bed and a long hot bath, as she dismisses the idea and begins to trot over to the overflowing dance floor.
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"Sydney, my gal! You rocking the dance floor!" The approaching queen bee smiled, a bit red in the face from the alcohol, the dancing queen bee, Sydney, turned to the girl and smiled as she stopped in the middle of her dance, a bit flushed in the face and a bit of sweat glistening on her nose.
"Leyla, love, what's up?" She asked cheerfully while stepping down from the dance floor to talk, her two followers stopping and looking over to her with questions in their eyes, she waves them off as she grins at the new queen bee.
"Haha, I'm doing good, how `bout you?" Leyla smiles sweetly as she hands the blonde in front of her a new cup filled with beer a small straw with a blue umbrella on top.
Sydney´s smile widens as she takes it, "Girl, you've really outdid yourself this time, this party is fantastic." She beams as she takes a sip, her eyes sparkling as she looks around the busy house.
The party around them is in full swings and, as the DJ starts up another song, the crowd goes wild.
"Thank you, I think so too, so... anyone catch your fancy?" Leyla grins and scans down Sydney as she winks at her suggestively.
"Me? Hmm, well, I'd say Rosier is a catch, ain't he?" She returns, looking to a black haired male playing beer pong, his friends and a few onlookers cheering him and his opponent on from the side, the white ping pong ball bouncing from one side to the other in a streak of white.
"Ohoo~ Would you look at that, I myself think Tyler is one piece of eye-candy." The two laugh and eye the group of boys around the ping pong table up and down, Leyla licking her lips as her gaze lands on the other boy currently playing.
Tyler and Rosier are playing against each other in an intense game, black and blond hair clashing, both with wide, eager smiles on their faces, a friendly showdown between basketball player and football player, the ball goes flying to the side as Tyler misses the ball.
It lands in the cup of an onlooker who looks as scandalized as affronted as the people around her laugh.
The auburn haired girl reaches her friend and calls a soft greeting to the both of them, they wave but don't pay her much attention as they continue their conversation.
It's getting late and the alcohol is coursing through their veins, it's relatively peaceful, too peaceful for a graduation party of this scale, and with her gut squirming uncomfortably, she's only waiting for the other shoe to drop.
"Sydney, wanna come to the garden with me? Mike´s grilling is fantastic, you have to try it, and don't try the "I'm on a diet" shit with me, I've seen your post on Clicks." She teases as Sydney laughs away and nods.
The two queen bees leave, heading for the garden behind the house, the brown haired girl following behind them quietly while throwing back a nod at her two friends, the both of them nod to her and each other as they return to the dance floor.
She grabs Sydneys arm and her friend looks at her as she waits for her to speak, "Something is about to go down." She warns her, Sydney looks at her and then to her stomach.
"How bad? Like, from stalker to murderer, how bad?" She asks her, glancing around, no one is looking at them from what the girl can see although a few glances are thrown their way occasionally.
"Armed stalker." She whispers and the queen bee nods, "Tell me if it gets worse, I can't leave now, Leyla wants something." She tells her friend, looking unhappy, but as the other girl calls for them from the distance, Sydney regains her smile and jogs over to her friend.
Leaving her friend behind and feeling like something is going to happen soon that no one will like.
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It seems as if the party in the garden was even busier than the party indoors and it doesn't take them long to figure out why, the party guests are sitting or standing around in a circle and cheering for something around the empty pool of the Eylons, a paved stone path leading to the middle of the garden where a large white pavilion with black wooden support beams and decorative ribbons stands.
The pavilion is just off to the side of the crowd and is also packed with people, a bit of steam is wafting to the side, the grill placed in the middle crackles as a somewhat chubby raven haired boy accompanied by a stocky blond girl grill for the guests and themselves.
"Truth or dare, Jessy! Truth or dare?!" Someone shouts loudly from the group sitting around or in the empty pool, attracting attention from the small group headed outside.
"I ain't no sissy! Dare!" Another voice calls back arrogantly, this time they can make it out to be female, Jessy then, the girl thinks.
"Good! Then I dare you to slap Chriss!" The voice from before calls in return to the taunt and then they hear a loud slap and a "Sorry Chris, a dare's a dare."
Jessy´s call is loud and clear and not apologetic whatsoever, there's a loud and long wave of laughter directly afterwards.
The group of girls approach the circle, Leyla breaking off to get some BBQ as the laughter slowly dies down.
They hear them start to chant "Turn it, turn it, turn it!" once they are just a few feet away, fresh, green grass crunching under Sydneys heels and her black convers.
And then another wave of cheering and a short yell of "It landed on Chriss!" as the announcer calls enthusiastically.
"Chriss, you next! Truth or dare?" A voice they can make out to be male calls, voice filled with anticipation and the girl can make out the boy sitting on the spring board throwing his hands up with a cheer, he starts floundering afterwards as he loses his balance and laughs sheepishly afterwards as he clings to the board while a tall male pushes him onto it again with a sigh.
"Dare, bitch, try me." Chriss says in a joking manner, amusement in his voice accompanied by the tattle-tale blush from alcohol giving his face a rosy colour, after recovering from a small laughing fit at the announcers ungraceful near-fall.
"Well, I dare you to pour your cup over someone." Another voice, female in tone, calls from above and the boy on the board grins at her brightly before nodding rapidly, too rapidly, as he gets a dry look from his likely friend as he stops him from falling again, he gets a bright, wide grin in return.
A boy in the middle of the empty pool, surrounded by others, looks up, red hair standing out sharply, as he grins wickedly before nodding slowly, the red handprint on his cheek standing out even with his alcohol blush under the dim moonlight and scattered lanterns on the lawn.
"Got it" He says darkly, eyes sparkling with mischief as he chooses his victim with a slow sweeping glance around the surrounding participants.
Then, there's a splash and a loud, shrieking gasp as he strikes as fast as lightning to avoid his victim catching on to his plan and choosing to back out.
The girl, packing her phone away into one of the front pockets of her shorts, gives a wry smile to herself, thinking that she knows who's now wet.
"Sorry, Jessy, a dare's a dare." Chriss taunts, mimicking the girls earlier tone of voice and throwing the words back at her feet, there´s a wave of "Ooooos" and voices calling "Burrrnnn" and "Karma!" as the crowd explodes in cheers and boisterous laughter.
"You Bastard!" The girl shrieks loudly, incoherent screams following as she's too angry to come up with insults on the fly.
The brunette rolls her eyes as she walks next to the remaining queen bee, she'd guessed right then.
Then there's yet another wave of laughter as a girl with dirty blonde hair storms away, cheeks tinted with a heavy flush and dripping wet.
She steps to the side as the flushed girl storms past her, shoulder angled to push her, were she still in her way, but so- she instead stumbles, flushes even brighter, and curses under her breath, quite badly as she still hears the- "Stupid bitch."
She huffs as she calls back over her shoulder, like only an annoyed teen with alcohol in their system could.
"It's called Karma, ever heard of it?" She asks rhetorically and dryly with a raised eyebrow, her voice, not one ounce louder than it needs to be.
Sydney, her friend since preschool, guffaws loudly as she watches the drenched girl storm away even redder after hearing her friends words.
"Well, well, well, looks like someone can't deal with consequences." She smiles as she shakes her head in mock disappointment, eyeing her friend silently, she gets a soft nod in return.
"And you should stay away from the alcohol Hayleen, we need a driver." She grins cheekily as she turns to her friend, said friend looks dryly at her and raises an eyebrow as she blinks slowly, there are no words needed as Sydney gets the message and laughs it off with a chuckle and a deliberate, long sip from her now lukewarm beverage.
"Pfff" A stifled laughter reaches their ears as the pair turns around, the other queen bee is seen approaching with two plates of BBQ in her hands as she looks back at the fleeing girl and then the two of them.
"You two are comedy gold, you know that?" She says, balancing both plates as she frees her right hand to put on her hip and leans to the side, ending in a somewhat sassy posture that is only accented further by the plates in her other hand.
She chuckles as she corrects her posture, takes her plate, and reaches them soon after, she doesn't stop once she does but continues on, offering the plate to Sydney in passing as she gestures to the drained pool with a nod of her head.
Still laughing, the other queen bee takes the offered tribute and they set off to find themselves a seat at the pool.
They find themselves an empty corner after asking the former occupants if they would be so kind as to move, they part with a nod and a smile, the boy and girl each snapping up a bit off of Leylas offered plate filled with BBQ as the small group of three sit down, legs dangling in the air.