Buzzzzzz

No.

Buzzzzzz

This was not happening.

Buzzzzzz

I groaned, rolling to my side and blinking at the radio's glowing red digits. It was 1:03am, way too early to be receiving a phone call. And way too late too.

I slapped my hand out to my bedside table and blindly snatched my phone, barely even glancing at the caller ID as I slid my finger over the green Accept option.

"This better be worth interrupting my precious sleep," I mumbled. I realized that I sounded like Morgan Freeman, so I cleared my throat, which was thick from barely two hours of sleep, and said, "Hello?" There we go.

I could hear chatter and music in the background of my caller's voice, and then a familiar voice whisper, "Mariam."

"Yaz?" I straightened up, wondering what was going on. It was Saturday night, (well, it was technically Sunday now) meaning she would be at Aidan's eighteenth birthday bash, the first party of the year, along with Theo and Denise.

"Mariam, I need you to come pick us up," Yaz said in a louder and more urgent tone. The music became muffled and suddenly her voice was echoing. Was she in a bathroom? "Like, now."

"What? I thought Alex was your ride." Alex had offered to drop them off at Aidan's house for the party, according to what Theo had told me yesterday.

"Well, he can't make it," Yaz replied in exasperation. "He's not answering his phone and Theo mentioned him going clubbing or something...Look, can you just come here? I really need you."

"Yaz, I can't just come, it's one a.m. and I can't drive," I hissed, aware that my sister was sleeping in the room next to me, and I didn't want her to wake up with my phone call.

"Just get Nasr to pick us up! Please?" Yaz pleaded.

"Why can't you just get your brother to drive you guys home?" I asked.

"I can't do that, he'll tell my parents!" Yaz cried.

"Wait, your parents don't know where you are?"

"Of course not! I told them I was sleeping over at yours!" Yaz sounded frantic.

"Wait, Yaz, why did you tell them that?" I hated lying more than anything.

"I had to, okay? They trust you, and I couldn't miss going to Aidan's birthday party. Just please come. Theo got into a fight with Aidan and Denise..." Yaz trailed off, and the music got louder, making my ears ring so I held my phone at a considerable distance, lowering the volume. It definitely sounded like a party over there. I heard Yaz shout, "Denise! Get off the table!"

Yep, Yaz definitely needed my help.

"Oh, God. Okay, I'm coming, alright? Text me the address." I hung up with a sigh, swinging my feet out of bed and tip-toeing down the hall. I didn't even bother putting on shoes because that would just make me even louder, and I wasn't ready to face my parents at this hour, questioning my actions, because I was still questioning them myself. Was I really about to sneak out of the house to help my friends? You bet I was.

"Nasr. Hey, Nasr, wake up. I need you," I shook my brother's shoulder, stifling a laugh at his half-open mouth, his pillow damp from all his drooling. If Fatima saw him now, she wouldn't think he was as desirable as she thought he was. Nasr finally stirred, moaning and groaning as he rubbed his face, realizing a little too late that he had drool down his chin.

Then he saw me, and this time I couldn't hold back – I laughed. Quietly, of course, because Nasr had a bad case of bedhead, but then again, so did I.

"What are you doing in my room, Mariam?"

I rolled my eyes. Of course that was all he cared about. My big brother didn't like having me, Zeinab or anyone in his room, unless it was Alex. "Nasr, I need you to do a favour for me."

Nasr groaned. "Do you realize what time it is? What could you possibly want right now?"

I told him about Yaz's situation, and after a lot of convincing, Nasr finally gave in. "Fine, but you so owe me after this."

"I know," I sighed, leaving his room to let him get dressed. I decided the best I could do at this time was shrug on a black jacket over my pyjama shirt and exchange my shorts for grey sweatpants, tugging on a white pull-on hijab over my dishevelled hair. It was times like these that I was grateful for wearing a hijab, since it saved the havoc of worrying about my hair in the mornings.

"Let's go," Nasr whispered, holding his car keys tightly in his palm so as not to jangle them. We both slipped out the front door quietly and into the surprisingly cold night. Summer was coming to an end, finally.

Aidan's house was fifteen minutes away, and as soon as we pulled up in front of it, a bad feeling settled in my stomach. His front lawn was strewn with beer cans and Styrofoam cups and even silly string, and there was someone passed out on the porch swing; that or they were just sleeping. I could hear the faint beat of music coming from inside, and for some reason I felt extremely nervous.

"You should text her, and tell her we're outside," Nasr directed me with his big brother wisdom. Maybe it was because I was still groggy from sleep, or because the nerves of being outside a house party, but my brain was struggling to compute logical thoughts.

"Oh, yeah, I should," I felt dumb as I pulled out my phone, typing in, we're outside.

Two seconds later, I got a reply. Help.

I sent a simple question mark, because I couldn't be bothered typing in an actual question.

Yaz texted back with, Come in plz need ur help. Theo is passed out and Denise b cray.

Ya Allah. Was this another one of your tests? Should I go in and risk it all or wait out here like a bad friend? Since my logic was closed at 1am, I turned to Nasr.

"Nasr, what should I do? She needs me to come in," I showed him the text, and Nasr read it, looking pensive.

"We should both go in," Nasr decided, opening his door and stepping out onto the road. I sighed, sending a plea to Allah to help me as I did the same, stepping out into the fresh chilly night. I hadn't been invited to Aidan's bash, which was an automatic since I didn't do parties, and I had no reason to go. At least with Yaz, she liked Aidan, and I had a feeling he liked her back. I just hoped he didn't try anything with her at the party, and that nothing too bad happened, but those were high hopes, for as soon as I stepped into the house, I could see that a lot went down. And I mean a lot.

I wondered where Aidan's parents were as I stepped over the mess of food, empty cans, toilet paper (for some bizarre reason) and even condoms.

"Whoa this party is wild," Nasr muttered under his breath as we carefully tread through the house, dodging bodies who were either swaying from the alcohol or dancing horribly. Probably both. I averted my eyes from the couples that were pressed up against the wall smooching each other's faces off. Aidan's house was pretty big; no doubt his parents were loaded.

The living room was where all the music and noise was coming from, and Nasr and I hovered at the doorway, wondering where the hell Yaz, Denise and Theo were.

"Where are they?" Nasr hissed to me. I shrugged, checking my phone. There were no new text messages. I quickly texted where r u to Yaz and waited for a reply, but there was none. Yaz was a fast texter, so the fact that she hadn't replied after a minute was concerning.

"Should we split up?" I asked tentatively.

Nasr shook his head, clenching his jaw. "No, I am not leaving you alone in a place like this." Talk about being a protective big brother.

"We should check the other rooms," I suggested, pointing down the hallway. Nasr stuck close to me as we weaved through the people, some who whispered things about us, me in particular.

"Who invited the Muslim chick?"

"Isn't that Nasr? He used to go to our school didn't he?"

"Check out her clothes. Is that sweatpants?"

I ignored them and entered the kitchen, where a bunch of people hung around, sipping drinks. I spotted a red-head, so I grabbed her shoulder and spun her around, only it wasn't Denise.

"Oh, crap, I'm sorry. I thought you were...never mind," The ginger girl just glared at me, storming away.

"I found Denise," Nasr called, gripping Denise's arm and dragging her over to me. She was giggling like a little girl, her hair messy and her cheeks flushed.

"Hey, Nasr! I haven't seen you in ages! I missed you so much," Denise slurred as Nasr brought her over to me. Nasr let her go and Denise stumbled into my arms, blue eyes widening at the sight of me.

"Oh, Mariam! What are you doing here? I didn't know you were coming!" Denise flung her arms around me, and I gagged at the stench of alcohol as she began rocking me with her from side to side in some sort of dance.

"Denise, where's Yaz?" I asked her, but Denise was busy singing along to the song that was playing in the other room.

"Where are you now that I need you," Denise's voice sung out of tune, and Nasr winced, as did I.

"Denise, how much alcohol did you drink?" I realized this was a stupid question, since alcohol couldn't be measured exactly, but Denise held up three fingers.

"This many!" she exclaimed proudly.

"Denise, where is Yaz and Theo?" I tried again.

Denise's brows furrowed in concentration. "I think they went to the bathroom...?"

"Nasr, can you take care of Denise while I go find Yaz?" I would've laughed at Nasr's horrified expression if I wasn't so worried about Yaz and Theo.

"Come on, let's get you in the car," Nasr said to Denise, who was leaning against his arm dependently. "Hurry up, Mariam!" he called after me as I sped out of the kitchen.

I pushed through the mass of bodies who were either really drunk or horny, and headed up the stairs, which was a struggle in itself without being flanked with kissing couples. I was about to head down the hall when I felt a pair of hands grope my waist. I turned so fast that I practically whacked whoever it was with my elbow in the face.

"Jesus Christ, that hurt!"

I did a double take, stumbling backwards as I realized the guy clutching his face in agony was Damian. Of course, I had completely forgotten about Damian, who was also at this party. It was his best friend's birthday, after all.

"That's pretty ironic coming from an atheist, don't ya think?" I was surprised how sharp my tongue was this late in the night. For people like Damian it was probably equivalent to 9pm, whereas I was raised with a consistent 10pm bedtime.

Damian blinked at me in confusion, slowly removing his hands from his jaw, which was bright red from where I'd hit him. If I had known it was him in the first place, I would've caused much more damage than just a mere red mark, but then I remembered that I wasn't a fan of violence, even if it was well-deserved.

"You hit me," he slurred, pointing to me as he staggered forward. I took another step back. God protect me from this drunk man.

"Yeah, so? Next time keep your hands to yourself, perv," I snapped, spinning on my heel and scanning the hall of closed doors, where I could hear various noises coming from each room. How was I going to know which one was the bathroom?

"Wait, Mariam, don't leave me!" Damian chased after me, and to my horror he placed a hand on my shoulder, dragging me back towards him. I immediately ripped off his hand, glaring.

"Don't touch me!" I spat.

Damian's eyes widened. I could tell he was out of it, as he wasn't even properly focusing on any particular point, and he was swaying slightly. "I want to..." He leaned forward, and I just kept my distance, wondering what this guy's problem was, other than alcohol.

"Where's the bathroom?" I asked, hoping that he could at least be useful and help me find my friends, who were the whole reason I was here in the first place.

"I'll tell you where it is if you let me see whatcha hiding under that...thing," Damian said slyly, waggling his eyebrows in his petty attempt to charm me. But I was immune to the Demon's charms, or rather the lack of them.

"There's no way in hell I'd let you see what's under here, perv. Just tell me where the bathroom is. Or where Yaz and Theo are. I'm here to take them home," I said this in a calm voice, which was surprising since inside I was boiling with rage.

"Aw, you're no fun," Damian smirked. "But Yaz is. She and Aidan went off to do the dirty in his room."

I shook my head. "You've gotta be kidding me. Yaz wouldn't do something like that." I knew my friend better than this prick. She wouldn't do something like that. She might have sneaked out to parties and hung out with the wrong crowds, but she would never in a million years do what Damian had just described.

"I'm not kidding. Aidan said he could get Yaz in bed for his birthday, so he did." Damian said it so confidently, like he said everything. His words made me feel like throwing up, and not just because of his alcohol scent. "I bet I could get you in bed for my birthday, Virgin Mary," he winked, and I crinkled my nose in disgust.

"Ugh, you are the most repulsive person I have ever met!" I exclaimed indignantly. Damian laughed.

"I'm sure I'm also the hottest person you've ever met."

"I'm sorry, what did you say? I couldn't hear you over your gigantic ego," I said sardonically.

Damian cocked an eyebrow, saying, "That's not the only gigantic thing I have."

Could this boy get any worse? I didn't think so.

"Just tell me where the bathroom is," I demanded.

Damian pointed to a closed door on the left. "It's right there," he replied, sauntering away before I could even thank him for being useful for once.

I knocked on the door, and I heard a muffled, "Who's there?"

"Mariam."

"Mariam who?"

I rolled my eyes, twisting the knob and sure enough Yaz was inside, sitting on the floor with Theo beside her, looking dazed. I noticed he had a swollen cheek and a cut on his forehead, which Yaz was tending to by dabbing damp toilet paper to clean the blood. Theo winced.

"What the heck happened to you?" I asked, crouching in front of them.

Theo stared at me in confusion. "What are you doing here?"

"I'm your ride home," I replied.

"I thought you couldn't drive?" Theo sounded so baffled. How hard had Aidan hit him?

"Nasr's downstairs with Denise," I informed him. I inspected Yaz's face, noticing that her makeup was smudged and her eyes were moist. "Yaz, have you been crying?"

She sniffed, answering my question. "No." Liar.

"Theo, why did you get into a fight with Aidan?" I asked him. I had a bad feeling that something happened, and Damian might've been speaking the truth for once.

Yaz stiffened. "It doesn't matter," she muttered.

"Wait, didn't you say that Theo was passed out?" I asked her. So many questions. And I needed answers, now.

"He was when I texted you, but I splashed some water on his face and he came to," Yaz explained. "Plus, my phone died after I sent you that text."

How convenient. "Yaz, what the hell happened? And don't lie to me, I can smell lies," I said sternly.

Yaz sighed. Theo still looked out of it, and he had his eyes closed, leaning against the shower glass. He had really taken a beating, even his lip was split open, which Yaz was cleaning up now.

"Theo saved me," Yaz began. As soon as she said that, the corners of Theo's lips lifted into a smile.

"Aidan was planning on..." Yaz swallowed. "He wanted to do it with me, but I refused. He didn't listen, though. We were alone in his room, and then he suddenly came onto me and I screamed for help and Theo came and punched Aidan."

"Right in the nose!" Theo grinned, clenching his fist and miming a right hook, which was sloppy and uncoordinated. "That bastard didn't know what hit him!"

"Don't forget you got hit too, Theo," Yaz smirked at him.

"And pretty badly, too," I added.

Theo frowned, closing his eyes again. "At least he got what he deserved," he murmured.

Yaz finished cleaning Theo's cuts and threw the tissues in the bin in the corner, standing up and wiping her hands on her black and silver dress. "Let's go now. I'm exhausted."

"Did you drink alcohol?" I asked in concern.

Yaz shook her head. "No way, Mariam. I don't drink, remember? It's haram."

"So are a lot of other things you do," I reminded her gently.

Yaz rolled her eyes. "Let's just get out of here."

"What about him?" I gestured to Theo, who had somehow fallen asleep again against the shower cubicle, snoring softly.

"Oh, yeah. This is why I called you," Yaz stepped over to him and grabbed his arm, beckoning me over to come assist her, so I did, grabbing Theo's other arm, and together we hauled him up, supporting him with our bodies. This wasn't easy, since Theo was huge, and we weren't, but we managed to get him out the bathroom door until we all collapsed onto the hallway carpet, falling on our faces.

"Need a little help?" I looked up to see Nasr towering over us, eyebrows raised in amusement. I was trapped under Theo's heavy arm, and so was Yaz on the other side.

"Yes, please," I groaned, finally managing to remove Theo's arm off me, sending a plea to Allah to forgive me for tonight.

Nasr was strong so he had no problem slinging Theo's arm around his shoulders and lifting him to his feet, with the minor help of Yaz and I, supporting his other side.

We got him down the stairs somehow, and were about to leave through the front door when the birthday boy himself barricaded the way, looking even more beaten up than Theo, with a shining bruise on his eye, his jaw sporting a darkening bruise.

"Yaz, can I talk to you for a second?" Aidan's voice had no trace of anger in it, he just sounded extremely vulnerable, like a little boy, which was ironic since now he was technically a man at eighteen.

Yaz shook her head. "I don't want to talk to you," she said quietly, attempting to push past him, but he blocked her.

"No, I'm not letting you go until you talk to me!" Aidan cried, his bubble of calm popping. He grabbed Yaz's wrist.

"Let go of me!" Yaz shrieked, but he didn't comply with her demand until Nasr stepped up, fists clenched and eyes boring holes into Aidan's face. Unfortunately, I was left supporting Theo, who had begun to wake up, blinking slowly.

"She said to let go," Nasr growled, forcing Aidan to let go of Yaz's wrist. As soon as he did so she hurried to my side, helping me maintain Theo, who was now fully awake again.

"What's going on?" he slurred. His eyes stopped on Aidan, and immediately his features darkened.

"Would you kindly move out of the way?" Nasr sneered at Aidan.

"You shouldn't even be here," Aidan muttered. "You weren't even invited."

"Well, thanks to you, we had no choice but to come," I retorted, gesturing to Yaz and Theo.

Aidan glared at Theo. "I thought you were my friend, man. Why did you have to interfere?"

Theo broke free from me and Yaz, pushing past Nasr and glowering at Aidan. "I thought you were my friend, but you betrayed that by going after Yaz like that. Can't you take a hint, dude?" Theo sounded so furious. Beside me Yaz gripped my arm tightly, shaking.