It was like having a to-do list, but much more exciting.
"Dude," Richard said suddenly, his voice sharp.
Arlo was still lost in thought and didn't respond.
"Dude," Richard repeated, this time jabbing Arlo lightly in the shoulder.
The jab brought Arlo back to the present, snapping him out of his daydreams.
"Yeah?" he replied, a bit startled.
"Were you even listening to anything I was saying?" Richard asked, his eyebrows raised in a mix of amusement and annoyance.
"Sorry, I was distracted," Arlo replied, shrugging it off.
"What were you thinking about so hard anyway?" Richard frowned, leaning closer.
"It's… nothing," Arlo said quickly, brushing it off. "Just a random thought."
Richard looked at him with a skeptical expression. "Hmmm." He didn't look convinced but decided to let it slide.
"So, what were you telling me about anyway?" Arlo asked, eager to change the subject.
Richard's face lit up. "I was telling you I just found out there's a party this weekend."
"Yeah?" Arlo replied, trying to sound interested but barely managing.
"Yeah, Becky's throwing it," Richard continued. "You know how people say she throws the wildest parties."
Arlo's face knit into a slight frown. "What's the point of thinking about a party we won't be going to?" he asked, a bit annoyed.
"But imagine if we could," Richard said, undeterred. "Imagine finally going to one of those popular parties and doing… party stuff."
"Party stuff?" Arlo repeated, smirking.
"Well, you know what I mean," Richard said, rolling his eyes. "Drinking, dancing, meeting people, you know… party stuff."
"Yes, I know," Arlo said with a slight chuckle. "But I also know we won't be invited, so there's no point in thinking about it."
Richard let out a heavy sigh, slumping back in his chair. "I guess you're right," he said, sounding genuinely disappointed. His shoulders drooped as he stared at the floor, probably imagining himself somewhere cooler.
Arlo watched his friend's dejected form, a pang of sympathy stirring within him.
He knew how much Richard wanted to be part of the "cool" crowd, to be invited to parties where the music was loud and people didn't care about tomorrow.
To be fair, Arlo wanted the same thing.
They'd never been invited to any of those parties. Popular parties were for popular people—not for guys like them, who people barely even noticed.
But Arlo wasn't the same guy he used to be. He'd always been kind of invisible, but recently things had changed.
For one, he had his charisma attribute now.
"Who's in charge of the invites?" he asked suddenly, turning to Richard.
Richard gave him a weird look. "I thought you weren't interested," he replied, sounding confused.
"Just tell me," Arlo snapped, a bit more sharply than he'd intended.
Richard frowned but answered. "Fine. It's Mandy."
"You're acting kinda weird, dude," Richard added, still giving him a funny look.
But Arlo wasn't listening again.
His mind was already spinning, putting together a plan.
If he could just get close enough to Mandy, he could charm her into handing over the invites.