Earlier in the day, Stan had dropped Nora off at his sister's house before heading to his meeting. "Okay, honey, I love you.
"Okay, Dad, I love you too," Nora replied. She climbed out of the car with her belongings and waved as her father drove away. She waited until the car disappeared around the corner before she turned toward her aunt's house.
Her aunt lived in a nice suburban neighborhood where every front yard was meticulously manicured and every porch looked cozy. However, her aunt wasn't home yet; she had left at the last minute to run some important errands, leaving a spare key under the mat. This was perfect. It made Nora's escape plan much easier.
A few moments later, a low Vrooom echoed through the quiet street as a car pulled up next to her.
"So, you ready to get this crazy night started early?" the driver asked, grinning.
It was Nora's friend Ashley. In the car sat three girls: Ashley in the driver's seat, Kayla in the passenger seat, and Haily in the back.
"Ashley, really? You said you wouldn't come by until I told you to," Nora said, sounding confused.
"Oh, come on, hop in! We have to go get the booze for the party," Ashley said. "You said your aunt went to run errands; we have plenty of time."
"Yeah, but who knows when she'll be back? I can't afford to get in trouble again. You know that—especially after what happened last time. It's been hard recovering from that, and I just finally gained a little of my dad's trust back," Nora said, her expression hardening.
Ashley and the other girls shared a giggle. From the back seat, Haily spoke up. "Oh yeah, I remember that. When you threw that epic party at your dad's house... I mean, that had to be one of the best parties of all time. Everyone at school still talks about it. It's a shame those jerks absolutely trashed your dad's collecti—"
"HAILY, JUST SHUT IT!" Nora shouted, cutting her off mid-sentence. Just the thought of that night made her blood boil.
"So, are you coming or what?" Ashley asked.
Nora paused, her mind racing. She debated whether to risk the fragile trust she had regained. If she got caught tonight, she thought, she probably wouldn't see the light of day again.
"Finnne," Nora groaned. "But if you guys f— this up for me, I'm done with all of you. I need to get back before my aunt does".
Nora climbed into the back seat, and Ashley immediately pulled away from the curb.
"Sooo, how are we supposed to pull this off?" Kayla asked from the passenger seat. "It's not like any of us are legal drinking age yet."
"Well, Kayla, lucky us—we aren't the ones going in to get it," Ashley said with a sly smile. "Josh and his friends are meeting us in the parking lot of SaveMart to give us the drinks for the party."
"Jooosh?!" Haily cried, her face twisted in disbelief and disgust. "You mean that really nerdy creep and his friends who do nothing but stare at us all day long? Ewww."
"Well, we didn't have a lot of options. My Plan A failed, so I had to improvise," Ashley sighed.
A day ago, Ashley had attempted to buy the liquor herself using a fake ID. The store clerk wasn't fooled for a second; he had kicked her out and confiscated the ID on the spot, and threatened to call the authorities.
"So this was your Plan B? What did you offer them?" Nora asked.
Ashley paused for a second. "Well... I told them if they got the drinks, they could come with us to the party."
The car fell into a stunned silence.
"Oh my fucking gosh, Ashley," Haily said, face-palming. "You did not tell those weirdos they could come with us."
Ashley snapped back, "Look, we had no other options! It was the only thing I could think of at the moment. Plus, I don't intend to keep my end of the bargain. No way I'd ever let those creeps go anywhere with us."
"That's just messed up. I'm sure we could have thought of something else," Nora said, feeling a twinge of guilt.
"Well, it's a little too late for that," Ashley replied.
The girls pulled into the SaveMart parking lot and spotted a group of boys waiting by a beat-up car. Ashley rolled down her window as they approached. "So, did you guys get the drinks?" she asked with a serious look.
"Ummm, ye—yeah. We have them right here," Josh said, his voice hitching nervously.
"This is so dumb," Haily muttered, shaking her head.
"Okay, put them in the trunk," Ashley commanded.
Josh and his friends quickly loaded the car with the bottles they had managed to buy. Nora watched them through the window, wondering to herself, How were they able to pull it off without getting caught?
When the last bag was in, one of the boys helping Josh stepped back. "All done."
"Okay, see ya, losers!" Ashley said, her face twisting into an evil smile.
"But wait! What about the party?" Josh pleaded, his face falling.
Ashley laughed maniacally as she shifted the car into gear. "Did you idiots really think you were going to the party with us? Oh, please!"
She slammed on the gas, leaving the boys standing in a cloud of exhaust.