The presents were a variety of different bath soaps, scented lotions, candles, and clothing. Most of the gifts, bought last minute, of course, were from the girls.

Trevor and his soccer buddies had brought a ton of extra food as their gifts.

The group chilled outside for another hour, chatting about school and the upcoming trip to Miami.

By four in the afternoon, the remaining party goers were Charles, Erin, Trevor, Ella, and Bentley.

Dan and Chad, the soccer captains, had left earlier with Dalia and Kimber.

Trish had gotten too drunk.

Pam, seeing the mess Trish had become, insisted she and Patrick could drive her home.

"I'll see you at school tomorrow," Pam told Sara. She gave her a quick hug.

Sara watched as Patrick helped Trish into the back of his car, where she promptly flopped down on the seat and fell asleep.

Pam giggled. "That poor girl just doesn't know when to quit," she said.

"Happy birthday, Sara. Catch you later," Patrick said waving.

Sara waved back as their car drove off.

She'd just returned to her lounge chair, beside Erin, when Charles suddenly leaped to his feet.

"Guys, where's Trash?" He scanned the yard, but the dog was nowhere in sight.

Ella got up from her chair. "What's wrong?" she asked. She'd had a bit of alcohol, but not as much as Trish.

"Dumb dog ran off," Charles said, rubbing his chin. "He should've been here. Especially with all these people. He'd never skip out on a backyard party."

Sara walked over to the stereo. "Let me turn this off," she said. She punched the button. The music immediately stopped.

From a distance, there was the sound of loud barking.

"Think this case is closed," Sara said, laughing at Charles's relieved expression.

"Come on, let's go get the brute," Charles said. He tugged on a sweatshirt, as the air had grown colder.

Erin stretched, leaning into Trevor. "Move it. We're going on a mini adventure," she said, poking Trevor in the side.

He grabbed her hands and kissed them. "I'm always down for an adventure," he said.

Bentley pulled at his shirt collar, straightening his jacket. "I'm in, too," he said.

Ella took Bentley's hand. "Walk with me, handsome."

Sara followed closely behind Charles as he stomped through the green grass towards the woods.

The closer they got, the louder Trash's barking became.

"Dude, what's gotten into him? He sounds frantic," Charles said. He broke into a run.

"Charles, wait!" Sara called. Her brother was incredibly fast. As a natural athlete, he ran sprints for fun in his downtime.

"Ugh," Sara grumbled. She really didn't want to run in her dress.

Bentley tore past her, nearly catching up to Charles who had been way ahead of him at the start of his run.

"Holy crap. I had no idea Bentley was that fast, did you?" Ella exclaimed. The girls stared as Bentley disappeared into the woods.

Trevor and Erin caught up to them.

"Why are those guys in such a hurry?" Trevor asked. He had his arm around Erin's shoulders.

An ear-splitting howl broke the silence.

"Whoa, that sounds bad," Trevor said worriedly.

"Trash!" Sara whispered. She felt her legs start to tremble. What could have happened to him?