Lisa walked towards a black iron gate with Sara at her side.

Beyond the six-foot-high concrete wall was a small modern-victorian mansion with large arched windows with colorful stained glass in contrast to the grey walls and blue shingles barely visible in the twilight. The driveway stretched to the top of a flattened hill and seemed to envelop the estate on all sides. The road’s surface was bricked with dull reds and blues and seemed reminiscent of a well-cobbled street.

The picturesque scene was ruined by the screeching of screaming youngsters and the rhythmic thumping of a speaker’s bass.

“I didn’t realize your friend was so rich!” Sara exclaimed, “He must have some rich parents to let his party in a place like this. I feel sorry for the house. It’s so pretty.”

“Yea he’s pretty lucky,” Lisa agreed, “It isn’t really his though. From what I’ve been told it actually belongs to the parents of one of his friends and Chad took ‘mi casa es tu casa’ a bit too literally”

“How do you think his friends’ parents will react when they find out the house got destroyed in a party?” Lisa asked with a snicker.

“From what I understand, they probably don’t care. The kid’s name is Jacob. He was the new kid in a local school and an introvert ta-boot. The jocks did their usual thing of picking on him, and Chad was among them, but after a little teasing he decided to take Jay under his wing.”

“So Jay’s parents are fine with it just because he didn’t get bullied at school?”

“Well, it was more than that. After hanging around Chad, Jay started being a lot more social. Going to hang out with friends and all that. His parents wanted to encourage this behavior so they let him have this place to throw parties. They used to have parental supervision, but now that he’s in college they let him loose.”

“Sounds like they have too much money if you ask me,” Sara admitted with crossed arms.

Lisa shrugged, “What good is cash when you don’t use it? I know you like idler games but watching numbers go big doesn’t make everyone get their rocks off!” she teased.

As they neared the building, Lisa’s eyes seemed to dart towards everything that moved. She didn’t honestly want to come here, and usually avoided parties. The noise doesn’t bother her much, but they made her feel alone in a sea of strangers. She preferred to be alone in the comfort of her own home.

As they walked into the room Lisa caught Chad’s eye and he called out, “Yo, Lee. Glad ya could make it dog.” Chad chuckled, “Sucks your succubus didn’t pan out, I was hopin to wake up with one in my bed.”

A drunk redhead managed to fall and catch herself on Chad’s arm. “I’d suck you,” she admitted candidly.

Ignoring her, Lisa replied, “Thanks for the invite, I brought a bottle of the good stuff,” and tossed a bottle of vodka she brought with her.

Chad caught the bottle deftly and placed it on the table next to a punch bowl. As he did this, his left arm snaked around the redhead’s waist. Liquor secured, he wrapped his right arm around Lisa’s neck as he yelled, “Ya hear that ladies? My boy here just saved the fuckin party!” He proceeded to push Lisa onto the couch between two drunk girls before continuing, “Make sure give him a good thanks for me! I got a succubus to take care of,” and dragged the redhead towards a room under the cheers of the crowd.

Lisa sat between two beautiful drunks, face flushed in embarrassment and a bit of jealousy towards the redhead. She wouldn’t throw herself around so casually, but a night with Chad would be a night to remember.

The ladies on either side were quick to wrap their arms around Lisa, no doubt too drunk to realize she was a woman after Chad’s announcement.

“How do you know Chad?”

“He called you brother just like Jay, are you related?”

Lisa felt her blood pressure increase. She finally got a bit of attention, but it was from women. Worse, they were more interested in who she knew. She thought about getting up to leave but she was exhausted from the long walk and there’s never an empty seat at a party.

“Yea, Jay’s my cousin,” Lisa lied.

Jacob must have heard because he raised his thumb from across the room and called out, “Glad you could make it cuz! Thank your pops for me, the new Audi he got me is awesome!”

Such a good friend, Lisa thought and rolled her eyes. “Will do Jay,” she called back, “Can someone pass me some punch?”

When the plastic cup arrived she smiled in thanks and took a sip. It was berry flavored and she didn’t taste much alcohol in it so she took a few more gulps.

A few minutes later, she was relaxed. Her cup had been emptied and replaced a few times. Her face was still flushed, but now it was the alcohol causing her blood to flow. Her vision was blurred and her temples throbbed with each heartbeat. and still had the beauties clinging on each side.

She looked up from her daze and noticed Sara was gone. Likely chatting up the most sober-looking boys. The two beauties were still wrapped around her but had long since ignored her presence and were chatting with each other instead.

“Chad is so hot, I can’t believe that redheaded skank beat us to him.”

“I know, he’s the hottest guy here. Jay isn’t too bad though and he’s super-rich.”

“Yea,” Lisa sighed, “Chad is hot.”

Heads snapped to face Lisa as they redoubled their gossip.

“Oh my god, you like Chad? Are you gay?”

“If you’re gay you don’t need to hide it. You should tell him, it’s not healthy to keep that bottled in.”

Anger flashed through Lisa’s mind. I’m a fucking woman, she yelled in her mind, as her vision became spotted in red.

As she was about to explode in rage, the door creaked open and Chad waltzed out with his chin puffed out and an easy smile on his face.

Lisa marched over and grabbed the top of his shirt. She jerked him down and planted a kiss flat on his face.

“I lov–Oomph,” Lisa was interrupted when a fist met her face and fell onto the floor.

“Wooah bro, sorry dude," I just reacted. You had waaay too much to drink. You alright Lee?”

“I’m fine,” she mumbled.

“Did you go gay bro? It’s cool if ya switched teams but I don’t swing that way dude. No hommo, bro,” he said while waving his arms.

Lisa closed her eyes–took a deep breath–and then screamed, “I’m a fucking woman!”

Chad's eyes widened, “You mean I decked a chick? Fuck dude, no gurl. My bad. Should I call an ambulance or somethin?” He asked while rubbing the back of his neck.

Climbing to her feet she shook her head and stumbled towards the door. She nearly fell again, but Sara must have heard the commotion and rushed to help her leave.

It’s a good thing Sarra doesn’t drink, Lisa thought, as she limped home supported by her friend.

They made their way back in silence. Lisa’s mind was fading in and out. Before she realized how she managed to get home, she was already in the bathtub.

“Guess it’s my turn to bathe you,” Sara teased with a chuckle.

“It’s only fair,” Lisa mumbled.

Sara helped Lisa strip and climb into the tub before turning on the water.

“A nice cold bath will help sober you up,” She said.

As the water met her skin, Lisa began to shiver. “N–no, S-Sara. Alcohol l–lowers body temperature. Hypoth–ermia,” she chittered.

“Oh ok, then I’ll give you a nice hot bath,” Sara corrected, not doubting her friend even if drunk.

“N–no, will sweat to mu–much. De–hydration, migraine.”

“Okay then. Somewhere in between?” Sara questioned?

Lisa nodded.