After all the presents were unwrapped, we cracked open beers to toast her birthday.
"To Ashley!" Julie raised her bottle high, and we all followed suit, clinking our drinks together.
I drained my beer...
The music was turned up louder, and we headed to the dance floor. Everyone was dancing separately but close to each other.
As the music increased in frequency, as the music rushed faster and faster more and more people gathered in the center.
The DJ was good, balancing the pulsating music with great laser lighting.
Bodies moved erratically but in sync.
Heads bobbed, hands waved in the air, feet tapped the floor.
Just like everyone else, when the climax in the music exploded, I jumped with my hands up.
Then the music slowed down just for a moment, and I noticed Ashley scooting closer to me across the dance floor.
She was having fun dancing around.
We danced next to each other for a couple of fast-paced songs.
She was screaming her heart out, throwing her hands in the air, and jumping to the beat.
I must say, it has been a long time since I danced this hard. But I was enjoying myself.
The music eventually quieted down, and people started moving back to the tables to catch their breath. I made my way over to the table where Jacob and Lucy were sitting and grabbed some roasted chicken that had been brought out.
But it wasn't long before a ping pong table was brought out.
"Who's up for some beer pong?" Ashley called out.
Pretty much everyone got up immediately, "Hell yeah!" "Let's go!" "Me, me, me!"
Lucy ran up first. "How do we make the teams, though?" she asked excitedly.
Ashley looked around. "There are 24 of us, so let's make teams of four."
"I don't drink!" Mark Johnson called out from the back.
Ashley smirked. "Well then, whoever is in the team with Mark will need to share the drinks between three. You're not getting out of this, Mark."
Mark shook his head, smiling.
Ashley continued, "It's my birthday, so I choose first. Julie, Jack, and Sara."
Sara was another cheerleader, tall with dark hair and an athletic figure.
Because there were four players on each team instead of the usual two, 15 instead of 10 cups of beer were set up on each side of the table in a pyramid structure.
The rules were simple enough: bounce a ping-pong ball into the cup, and the other team has to drink the contents.
Four throws from one team, then four from the other.
Jacob's team was up first. He was teamed up with Lucy and two football players.
The game moved quickly.
Bounce, splash.
Jacob took a drink.
Bounce, splash.
Jacob drank again.
His teammates weren't drinking because Lucy told them, "Jacob has to catch up."
Jacob wasn't a strong drinker, but the other two guys on his team already looked like they were well over the limit, so they were glad to let him drink.
After a few rounds, I could tell that Jacob was already goodly buzzed.
However, the football players were good at throwing pong balls, so all 15 cups of the opposing team quickly emptied out, and Jacob's team won.
My team was up next.
On the other team were Mark, Ashley's cousin Veronica, a tall guy from our class called Liam and one girl that I didn't know.
We filled the cups and got right into it.
The girls on my team sucked at the game.
And when I got the ping-pong ball in my hands, Veronica on the opposite team was trying to distract me.
Veronica had short blonde hair and was wearing tiny jeans shorts and a thin white shirt barely hanging on spaghetti straps.
She'd shoot me a sly look, pressing a finger to her lips while tugging playfully at the top of her t-shirt, trying to throw me off.
Pong!
Splash.
It did not matter.
However, me getting a cup or two didn't change the fact that we were getting demolished.
My head was wobbly, and I could tell that I was definitely drunk.
Ping, splash.
Another one landed in our cup.
There was only one last full cup left on our side.
"Looks like you could use a bit more practice!" Veronica shouted as she leaned back with a confident smirk.
I grabbed the cup and turned to the girls.
Sara who had slightly flushed cheeks and a playful twinkle in her eye, and Julie, whose easy grin hinted that she'd already had enough, exchanged amused glances.
"Ashley?" I asked, turning to look at her.
Ashley flashed a knowing smile. "Are you trying to get me drunk?" she said.
She took the beer from me slowly, brusing her fingers against mine, and lifted the cup to her lips.
She finished the drink in one smooth gulp and with a subtle sway of her hips and a coy smile, she placed the cup back on the table.
"Come on, girls, this could be the last round," Julie urged as she steadied herself to take her shot.
She bent forward, sticking out her butt, ready to throw.
She lost her balance just as she let go of the ball. This made her fall forward and knock over a few empty cups on the table.
She missed...
And Ashley missed as well.
Now it was Sara's turn.
Bounce, splash.
Sara sank one ball.
Liam on the opposite team picked up the cup.
I was a bit groggy, but I focused intensely, watching his every move as he raised the cup to his lips for a small sip.
In that split second, with precision born from both concentration and perhaps a hint of drunken bravado, I threw the ball.
Ping!
Splash!
The ball landed squarely in the cup that Liam was bringing down from his lips.
"BITCH CUP!" Julie yelled out triumphantly. "We win!"
"Holy shit! That was awesome!" Ashley was so impressed that her eyes shone.
"What do you mean, 'we win'?" Veronica asked, looking confused.
I was about to explain, but Julie was quicker, as she said with a tipsy grin, "Once a cup is made, and before the beer is consumed, the cup in a player's hand is referred to as a bitch cup. Hik! I'm sorry... That being said, what did I say? Right! if the bitch cup gets sunk, that's game over; we win!"
"Hey! I didn't know this rule..." Veronica pouted her lips.
"Sucks to be you," Julie added and she couldn't help but laugh. "Well played, guys. Well played."
There was another game after we finished, and by the time that one ended, almost everyone was drunk.
That's when the crazy tunes started blasting, and everyone was dancing the alcohol away.
In that moment, I let go of the self-imposed restrictions in my mind that said I should act more grown-up or serious.
I was just having fun, letting loose, dancing with abandon.