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"Has either of you ever planned a party before?" I asked as we stared at each other.

"How hard could it be?" Callie grinned. "Don't you worry Lizzy pooh, it's going to be great."

I crinkled my nose at the nickname.

"My cousin Sophie's a party planner," Melissa mentioned after a while. "She could help."

"Yeah, but she's gonna want to talk to my parents," Callie groaned. "And I'm not trying to let them know that I'm having a party. They won't agree to it."

"Is it okay to use your house then?" I asked. "I don't want you to get in trouble or anything."

Callie waved off my concerns with a flick of her wrist. "They're barely at home anyways. I'm just inviting a few friends over," she smiled innocently.

"I feel like an accomplice," I giggled. "Is this what being rebellious feels like?"

"You wouldn't know rebellious if it hit you between the eyes," Melissa laughed. "You're still a baby."

I pouted at that.

"I'll ask Sophie what we need to get for the party," Melissa decided, sending her cousin a text. "Then we can buy the stuff and invite some people."

Callie nodded in agreement. "Alright."

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Sophie was a bigger help in planning the party than we'd thought. She came over to Callie's place and her eyes immediately lit up with all the possibilities.

She fawned over how amazing Callie's house was. She was so impressed, she didn't even remember that Callie had parents. I didn't blame her. Callie lived in a mansion after all.

She was pretty awesome. She made a list of all the stuff we'd need and then we went out and bought them.

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I set out the last of the snacks and Melissa turned the music on. Callie looked on with glee, making sure everything was perfect.

Her parents wouldn't be home until next week and since it was the weekend, her brothers were with their grandparents. Our master plan was ready.

"Let's go get changed," she squealed.

We went upstairs to her room to get ready for the party. We had bought matching swimsuits. They were all different colors. Mine was lavender, Melissa's was red and Callie's was white. I wrapped my cover-up around me.

Downstairs, the sound of chatter drifted up to us. We were worried that no-one would come, but it looked like curiosity got the best of them.

They probably thought that since we were friends with Kevin then he'd be there. We weren't known for throwing parties. We weren't known at all as a matter of fact. Well, I wasn't at least.

Melissa was the president of the student council and Callie just became president of the theatre club.

I ended up becoming the president of the science club because no-one else really wanted the responsibility and the teachers had recommended me because of my grades.

As a prefect I'd been labelled as a teacher's pet and I was quiet. If Kevin wasn't my best friend then no one would even give me a second thought. I didn't have a problem with that though, I didn't like crowds.

I did my hair in a French braid and skipped downstairs behind Callie.

"This is your house?!" a brunette asked as her friends gaped at Callie's place.

"Yeah. I hope you enjoy the party," Callie gushed.

The girl nodded, still awestruck.

Things were going pretty great. People were vibing, dancing and swimming. If it wasn't for all the social interactions I had to do, the night would have been perfect.

I had to at least try to be a good host. Callie had made me promise on my gummy bears that I wouldn't lock myself upstairs as soon as people arrived. I never break a gummy bear promise.

So I had to endure this. It wasn't as bad as I thought. Maybe I could do this. If she could weave through a crowd like this and she was claustrophobic, then I could too.

I frowned. Too bad Kevin wasn't here. But then again, maybe it'd be awkward if he did come. He still refused to explain why he had acted the way he did.

I strolled around the pool area for a bit, lost in my thoughts. I suddenly spotted a familiar face. Kevin. I had no chance to hide as he spotted me at the same time.

He signalled to his friends that he was leaving their conversation and jogged over to me. Please don't let this be awkward!

"Hey, Liz. Awesome party."

He gave me a bright smile and my own smile came naturally. I really couldn't stay mad at him.

"Thanks. It was fun arranging everything with the girls."

"You guys did all this?" he asked, looking around in awe.

I nodded. "With help from a party planner."

He grinned. "It's great."

His eyes travelled down my body. "And you look great."

"Kev!" I blushed, slapping his arm. He chuckled at my reaction.

That's when Melissa and Callie appeared at my side.

"Kevin, I don't remember inviting you," Callie sniffed.

"Well, you invited the school," he pointed out. "And I just so happen to go to the school."

"Well, excuse me for not making it clearer. I didn't think I'd need to tell you not to come. I'm not talking to you."

He raised an eyebrow at her. "Still?"

Melissa and I glanced between them.

"Umm guys..." I whispered.

"I know Liz, you don't feel comfortable with him here," Callie nodded, cutting me off.

"No, I-"

"Kevin, Liz doesn't like you, so why don't you go find some other girl who's okay with your cowardice!" she yelled.

Kevin's eyes narrowed and I looked at Melissa to do something, but she folded her arms with a resigned sigh. She was not going to let him off so easily without an explanation. I knew I had to do something before this got ugly.

"Cals-"

"I know, Liz. I'm dealing with it."

Unbelievable.

"Stop!" I yelled.

They turned to me, surprise written all over their faces. I rarely yelled, but this had gone on long enough. I usually stayed quiet and went with the flow, but I was upset now. I would have defended anyone of them like that if they were in his position.

I really didn't want to lose my best friend over a misunderstanding.

"Just stop it, okay? You don't understand. He's my friend and I want to talk to him. Stop cutting me off and stop acting like you're an FBI agent. It doesn't matter if you want me to talk to him or not so stop trying to decide for me."

"Liz..." Callie whispered. She looked hurt. I knew she was just trying to help and I immediately felt bad for shouting at her.

"Fine," she said, still in shock and then walked away.

"You two, sort this out," Melissa said, pointing to me and Kevin. She walked off too.

Kevin watched them leave in surprise and then turned to me with a smile.

"Did you just go off? Or am I tripping?"

"I think I just hurt her feelings," I sighed.

"She'll forgive you," he said with a soft, reassuring smile.

"Thanks for deciding to listen to me," he continued. "And I'm sorry I hurt your feelings before at Ashton's party. I can't explain everything now, but I will, eventually... I guess."

I looked up at him and his blue-grey orbs were warm and sincere. They reassured me as well.

"I may suck as your date, but I'll always be here for you as your best friend."

I smiled at him, feeling happy. He always knew what to say to make me feel better.

Suddenly, his eyes flickered with irritation and he lowered his gaze to the floor, muttering something to himself.

I whirled around and came face to chest with Ashton, who, of course, was glaring down at me. His eyes flickered to my wrist and I instinctively covered my bracelet with my palm.

"Isn't this nice. Kevin and Elizabeth. Alone together. Again."

His glare was hot, yet cold at the same time. His jaw was clenched and he looked furious. He redirected his gaze to Kevin, who rolled his eyes.

"I think you've kept her company long enough. You should go."

"Look, Ashton. She's my-"

"Just go! You know just how much you're irritating me right now."

Kevin thought about that and then frowned. He looked over at me and then sighed.

"I'll talk to you later, Liz."

A feeling of déjà vu passed through me as Kevin turned and walked away, just as he did at the party that night. He didn't even look back.

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