School was irrational. Never for once did it justify the idea of progressive learning let alone the strains left from its wake. There was always homework, school projects, subsequent quizzes and the infamous dread often termed as recitations. One could not simply live off a peacefully structured life with these being loaded up consistently. Yet it became a universal practice. Something authorities would make a point out of and even they would shamefully say it's 'for the greater good'. But what was the greater good? Learning shouldn't be this complicated. It shouldn't force innocent youths to a false image of comprehension. It's all absurd. Absurd to the point where it would make sense. Life wasn't supposed to be easy and everyone should know that. Learning is all about suffering as suffering stood for the same.

Time was but a detriment to Spencer. He just couldn't take the concept of limiting things on certain point when It'd be for a better cause. Studying felt a good part on being a student and through it, understanding why it should be at limited time seemed nonsensical. The worst part of it all was folding out his surrender, knowing every fiber of his brain nor every spine of his bones could do nothing to let things start all over again. Time couldn't reverse itself, how much more if something lesser would place an attempt. Perhaps it's just the way it is and how he lived through it made him realize something. He knew he couldn't keep on raising his fists in protest, so he decided to embrace it.

Today wasn't an excuse though and despite being used to last minute studying, this would probably be the worst one yet.

Spencer leaned his chin on top of the book's cover, setting his eyes around the library, aimlessly putting his sights to whatever comes to view. Everything seemed to be drifting from what was real, as if his perception was bending to a universe far from his own. Something felt largely unsettling. Eerie, distorted images kept on sneaking through confined sections of tables. Small numbers of textbooks shook from their shelves with a few being plucked by an implausibly invisible force from where they rested then fell down to the floor. One was even rising through thin air, lazily reaching on the ceiling yet strangely enough, nobody took a single notice. People's physical appearances started to sail away from what was normal, etching into blobs of amorphous builds. Spencer grimaced to what took place within the moments followed.

Horns extended from people's skulls while slowly being engulfed by tendrils of shadowy dusts. Grotesque growls wheezed the air, most of them sounded as if something was expanding from their throats. Insect-like wings spread from the back of a few individuals belonging a particular group, fluttering as they flew toward the ceiling. Spencer held his book against his chest, eyes widely open as he tried the best he could to understand what was happening. Apparently he couldn't and what seemed to be as bizarre a while ago completely transcended into a sea of utter confusion.

It felt more of a battlefield than a magical forest. Much like a scene you'd extract from The Lord of the Rings and Spencer's role became that of a Hobbit but with a broken leg. He then gasped for air, nervously sliding his chair away from his desk. He dropped his sights from the whirling nightmare, figuring he could get away from it all. But as he returned a glance, it was still there, it was real and he felt it.

Then something grabbed his shoulder. Terror sent chilling vibrations directly to his spine as he tried to move his frozen body.

"Spencer." A soft guttural voice sailed through his ears, inflicting more terror. Then as Spencer managed to crane over, he saw a masked figure. Behind the mask revealed a shadowy, faceless being with crowns embedded with thorns.

A loud, terrified scream escaped from Spencer's lips, holding himself against his desk and rolled with his chair away from the shadowy entity.

"Spencer." It repeated itself again. How did it manage to know his name? Regardless, fear hindered his curiosity.

"Hey Spencer." The voice sounded like an echo now, as if shifting to a voice he was terribly familiar of. However, Spencer wasn't easily fooled. He knew the masked entity made an attempt to imitate a voice he knew of so he could get himself closer and let his soul be devoured.

No. I won't let it kill me. Not this time His mind raced yet he froze like a rat stuck on a trap. Then the figure inched closer and grabbed Spencer's shoulder.

"Get away from me you Nazgul! I won't let you have the ring and destroy middle earth!" He exclaimed.

At that moment, everything went back to normal. Trails of orcs and fairies died within a snap of a finger. Not a single one was seen flying on the ceiling. Books were properly placed on the shelves. And the sight of the librarian hopped like a kangaroo on synthetics. The librarian cleared her throat, giving an obvious sign as to what Spencer did, then went on her way back to her desk. Ann ―Spencer's friend from the debate club stood in front of him, puzzled by his uncanny response.

"Nazgul?" She asked, her eyes narrowed as to how confused she was.

"Yeah you looked like a Nazgul 5 minutes ago and you were trying to whisper me some weird gibberish on how you wanted the ring. Something is obviously wrong here."

Ann raised an eyebrow, carefully placing Spencer's words in contempt.

"Are you okay? Sounds like you're not having enough sleep."

"I'm telling you. Something's wrong. I was told earlier that I have a task to save middle earth and to do such, I need to go to a volcano place I don't know of and throw this ring there."

Ann mockingly closed her eyes, only to notice a groggy person daydreaming about a peculiar scene from a movie.

"Okay Spence. You should know watching a movie before cramming gives you nightmares while daydreaming," She suggested. "So either stop doing it or you're going to need mental help and please, let's just bury this Lord of the Rings thing deep in a cave so no one will find it."

"But Smeagol lives in a cave ... he might find it." Spencer noted innocently as if he's not aware of what he daydreamed.

A gruff sigh slipped from Ann's lips. Annoyingly grinding her teeth as she kept her mouth closed.

"The Hancocks are holding a party tonight and you were invited by them." Despite being vexed by Spencer's delusional daydreaming, Ann managed to feel convenient delivering the message. She lifted a smile, looking down for Spencer's response to it.

"Your point?" Apparently Spencer regained his composure. Sounding barely surprised, he went back to open his book, flipping a few pages to find where he last stopped.

"My point is you, as a kindhearted person with a compassionate spirit, will take me, Jal, Sherwin, Clarisse and Jess there."

For the next few moments, silence littered between them. Spencer continued reading his book with no intention of ever responding to what Ann requested. He fell silent, focused on every page he flipped.

"Well?" Ann was eager to get that response but Spencer paid no attention.

"Hey Spence. Are you even liste―"

"I won't bother coming. I have things to study tonight." He answered hastily.

"Aww c'mon. Don't be like Uncle Scrooge. Have a heart and give your junior members a chance to have fun."

"But I thought group studying and writing a Professor Williams and Paine fan fiction was your kind of fun?" Spencer replied obliviously.

"Look Spence I know you don't like parties but consider this one as a celebration for your past success as our prime minister. We promise we'll help you feel the fun."

Spencer rolled his eyes.

"Nah."

"How about I give you a month's worth of canned cola?" Ann grinned ambitiously, hoping that would do the trick.

"You already did that and correction, a month's worth will only last a week."

"How about a Siamese kitten?" It wasn't worth a shot but nonetheless, Ann managed to feel contented of her offer.

"You know I hate cats."

"Puppies?"

"I already have a dog. You don't even know that the school restricts students from having pets." Spencer sighed, knowing this could continuously go on and disturb him.

"A girlfriend? going to the party gives you an oppor―"

"I hate girlfriends."

"A boyfriend then?"

"What the hell Ann?" Their conversation ended abruptly as the librarian hopped out of nowhere and gave Spencer the obvious look. It was his second time doing it and a third one shouldn't be considered as an excuse anymore. He left a sullen smile in response, an obvious answer saying he won't be doing it again.

Ann raised an eyebrow again, seemingly was not in the favor of how her plan went.

"Please Spence. We need to go to that party. I promise I'll make it up to you. I'll even give you my sister."

"What?" Spencer hissed, eyes raising in question.

"Okay perhaps not but please Spence. Just this once. Pleeaaase ..."

Ann has only been friends with Spencer for the least 4 months since her enrollment to the school's debate club. Regardless of that, Spencer saw nothing odd nor repulsive about her. She had always invited him to a number of hangouts and social gatherings through the span of their friendship and Spencer couldn't see any potential conflicts rising between them in the future, or at least for now. Still, Spencer profiled her as the same with the people he'd usually meet inside or outside of the debate club. It would only be up to him if he wanted the friendship to be abrupt or not.

Spencer groaned silently in annoyance. He rolled his eyes and painfully forced his attention to Ann.

"Oh alright. Just go and don't disturb me. But this will be your last you ... glasses girl. I won't ever again accept any requests from you outside the debate team."

Ann nodded in joy.

"Yes. I love you Spence and Thank you. I hope you become the president of the United States when you grow up."

Spencer grimaced.

"But I'm Canadian. What are you even talking about?"

Ann chuckled as she moved herself away from Spencer's desk. She matched a smile when Spencer glared at her and made her way outside of the library.

"What is it with people and parties?" Spencer muttered as he continued jotting down notes from the book he was reading.





One uncertain subject that perhaps Spencer won't be aware of for the rest of his life was social gatherings. Sure, he did have his own share of parties before but his stay was never the most enjoyable ones. Music was always loud, people talk about things he'd never be remotely interested and then the existence of the inevitable beer pong ―not that he has never drank before. There was just this particular vibe that everyone happened to feel which Spencer failed to incorporate himself with. Perhaps being a cold-hearted bastard was the one to thank but even so, he won't be bothering himself with anyone other than to let the party end as soon as possible.

For once he haven't felt out of place, his debate friends were nearby so there's relief hanging around him. One thing he couldn't put on hold was the nature of his invitation by the Hancock twins. Although they weren't mortal enemies by any means, Spencer wasn't quite fond of them or at least wasn't in favor of their ridiculous popularity. Spencer often saw it as a tool to gain a shameless kind of acknowledgement for one's presence. And the Hancock twins were perfect examples to demonstrate how that tool works.

Spencer had his mask on already. Perhaps he'd consider not being an Uncle Scrooge tonight and just follow the common advice often spoken at parties. He smiled as a variety of colored lights flashed the marvelous mansion. Music was bearable but not quite as enjoyable as Spencer's own taste. Small crowds dispersed in large spaces of the place and some were already nabbing chunks of the delicious food prepared on the dining table.

"I tell you. We're going to have fun because fun is going to have us." Jal said fancily as she gently brushed her hair with her hands.

"Oh. my. jizzle. Did you see that? That hot guy named Lewis from the basketball club just winked at me. My heart feels like China's economic growth right now cuz baby it's falling apart!." Jess squealed in romantic excitement. "I swear that if I won't have sex with him tonight, I'm just going to virtually create a three dimensional version of himself and let my usb port open for his 500 gig RAM."

Spencer shook his head in disgust.

"What the hell Jess?!" He exclaimed. "You're not even sure about China's current economic stability and where on earth can you even find a 500 gigabyte RAM?"

"Who cares?" Jess excitedly headed where the juice dispenser was.

"You alright?" Ann asked for a last minute relief. She seemed to doubt how Spencer saw the party but seeing him smile earlier was a different sign.

"No," Spencer glanced where Jess trailed off. "I mean she's serious about it, isn't she? Think about teenage pregnancy and how perilous it will be to her future as a public speaker."

Ann chuckled, patting Spencer to the shoulder.

"Oh she's harmless and just relax. Don't let Smeagol find what we've buried in that cave. No more Lord of the Rings daydreaming for now."

Spencer sneered.

"Ha Ha. Very funny. I'll make sure to scream at someone and tell them they're the Nazgul."

Ann sighed with a bit of glee.

"This is a party, you should have fun. And as promised earlier that if you don't, I'll help you."

"Alright then." Spencer trusted her, at least for now. He let himself drift into the music. Perhaps enjoying the party wasn't half as bad. Besides, it's just the first day of school. There was nothing else he could lose.

Hal sorted through his only drawer, which was vaugely organized into piles. To any normal person, it would seem a mess, but Hal knew exactly where everything was. He considered the weather, and grabbed plain red T-Shirt and a pair of cargo shorts, which seemed to fit the occasion better than athletic shorts. Connor rummaged around with the alcohol behind him. Hal grinned to himself. Leave it to Connor to make things crazy

Hal wandered over to the bathroom to change, which he did rapidly. Then he actually went to the bathroom. He considered his day. The assembly had been boring, as expected. Prof. Williams had provided an excellent "lesson" in phys ed, but of course, Prof. Abbott was already trying to murder her entire class. It was too bad the devil's daughter taught history, or Hal might actually be doing well. Prof. Lucas had done his usual pirate bit, and Hal couldn't help laughing. The man was an acting genius, even if Hal had seen teh bit before.

When the tweet about the Hancock's party had gone out, a storm of texts had followed. Hal was not surprised. Aspen's announcement at practice hadn't come as a surprise either, though it made sense. He wondered who else was going, hopefully everybody, wouldn't be as much fun if only a few of them showed.

"Hal, bruh, I'm gonna grab Nate, meet you in the lobby," Connor called from outside. Hal said something along the lines of "okay" but wasn't really paying attention to himself. He judged his hair in the mirror, figuring it good enough, and then stepped out. He grabbed his everyday shoes, just a pair of bland brown unbranded shoes (he had no idea where he'd got them). He grabbed his phone off his desk and left the room, locking the door behind him. He bounded down the stairs, taking them two at a time just to get his blood flowing. He stumbled into the lobby and bumped into the other guys.

"Hey guys, ready to go?" he asked, raising an eyebrow. Connor nodded vigourously, and Nate grinned and spun his car keys "Yeah, as ready as I'll ever be!" Aspen bounded down the stairs at the last minute. The others took this as their cue to leave. The four piled into Nate's car, Hal and Aspen in the back, Connor riding shotgun. They chatted about nonsense as they drove, mostly swim stuff, interjections from Connor inserted appropraitley. They pulled up into the driveway and all clambered out. As they walked into the house, Connor boomed, "Was gud, kids? I bring you tidings of great booze, get drinking and GIT ON MA LEVEL!" Hal grinned. "This should be fun." he said quietly. Nobody heard, the music was already blasting.

Connor cracked open another Jam! Turbo, his third of the day. He swallowed half of it in two gulps, then filled it back up with vodka, courtesy of Kyle’s old driver’s license. Connor kept a stash of beer around for himself, but trying to bring useful amounts of beer to a party was too much trouble. Much easier to just bring liquor.

School had gone alright that day; the assembly wasn’t too painful, and it had been nice to catch up with his favorite teachers. He’d already tracked down his friends when they arrived back in res after the summer, and found anyone he’d missed at the swim team meeting that afternoon.

New of the party had come to him a dozen different ways; Acacia’s tweet, a flurry of texts about that tweet, and finally Aspronaut’s announcement at swim practice. Connor was, of course, always ready for a party. He put the final touches on his hair, carefully styled to look like it definitely hadn’t been styled. Satisfied, he threw on a plain black vneck, jeans, and his lacoste sneakers. He shoved a few bottles of vodka into a backpack, along with a towel so they didn’t clink too obviously.

“Hal, bruh, I’m gonna grab Nate, meet you in the lobby.”

He didn’t quite catch Hal’s response from the other bathroom, but he figured Hal got the message. Connor slipped out into the hall, heading down a few doors until he reached the suite that Nate and Brenden shared. He knocked loudly, vaguely hoping Brenden wasn’t in there.

After her first day of sophomore year, which was about as schoolish as you'd expect, Maie-Marie had sprinted back to her dorm and slammed herself down on her bed, throwing open her laptop and mash-clicking on her recent downloads. She'd queued several new shows for downloading, and surely they'd all be done. It was important that she get an episode on screen post-haste. If she could get one up right away, she could watch three episodes before she had to start getting ready to go back out to the party tonight instead of two. Trying to force a third in while there wasn't enough time could result in her being late by whole minutes, and that was an unacceptable outcome. The later it got, the more excuses her roomate might find not to go. At least, that's what Marie was thinking. Whether or not Amanda-san wanted to go was a case Marie couldn't crack, but it didn't matter. She was going to go because everybody was going to go. Even more importantly, Marie didn't know Amanda's walking speed. How fast could such a shy flower possibly run? She didn't seem as athletic as Marie, that was for sure. And she probably wasn't as enthusiastic either. Maybe... maybe if I can get her to run away from something instead of towards the party, she could run at unparalled speed? You always saw that in anime, even reclusive girls could achieve lightspeed travel if they were running away from a big insect or something.

"Okay, that is another episode of Azumanga, KinMoza and Hidamari done. For now, this will have to do." Since school was starting, she'd been craving slice of life shows about schoolgirls, especially feel-good comedies. These really got her in the mood to go back to school for some reason. With no actual outlet to pursue that itch, she resigned herself to getting ready for the party instead. Stepping into the bathroom, she splashed some water on her face and then ran back to her room to get changed. Tonight was special, so maybe a sloppy tracksuit was not called for? Instead she tossed on a pair of slim-fitting biking shorts and a form-fitting t-shirt (men's extra-small athletic fit.) After a brief moment of introspection, she threw a zip-up hoodie on over top and called it done. Making her way back to the bathroom, she yelled at her roommate, being too 'busy' to actually get her or anything.

"Senpaaaaaaaaai~ It is almost time for us to go, do you need more time to prepare?"

Amanda gave a sigh as the first day of school finished, she wasn't really used to the whole and hustle and bustle of the academy, even the teachers seemed to be in pretty good spirits, well except Professor Gertrude, the way she teached just made shivers run down the brunette's spine, and then there's the homework about the whole terms and agreement of Facebook for crying out loud! Amanda doesn't know a soul who would actually be diligent enough to sit through the entirety of that wall of text, if they do, Amanda applauds to that person. Although she was particularly fond of the other teachers, she swears she could still taste the lingering flavor of those pastries Professor Mary served them. All in all, the day was particularly interesting, exciting even, but what she wouldn't do to lay down in her bed right now, just staring into the ceiling and maybe, just MAYBE think about doing her homework, just to make sure she's safe.

As soon as she got back to her room, she immediately began to work on her assignment, making a mental note on the fly to make sure to do homework ASAP, lest she regret it. With that over, the girl finally had the free time to browse on her usual sites, listen to one her tunes and peek at her Twitter, she had been meaning to post a sketch of one of her drawings. But really, it was more of an excuse to hear the opinion of others on whether it was good or not. Logging on to the site, the first thing Amanda was greeted with was a tweet about a party that was requesting everyone in Ashbury to go. She looked at it with a stupefied expression on her face, was it necessarry to invite everyone? If anything, the girl would rather stay at her room and just waste the day away finishing her artwork and just doze off...Though her roomie definitely had other plans. She just knows that Marie will persuade her into attending the party, whether she likes it or not. Deciding that she couldn't exactly pass up on the offer (even if she wanted to), Amanda began to prepare for the party, gussying up to make sure she looks presentable at the very least.

The girl was stumped and had reached an impasse, she had gotten her makeup done but now was the hard part...Choosing an outfit. With the myriad of combinations available with her clothes Amanda didn't know what to wear! Whenever she tried a particular combo on, she just couldn't feel it...Plus her fear of mirrors just made it worse, so she really needed Marie's help on this one. As if on cue, her voice resounded through the room, to which she replied.

"A-Almost! It's just...I can't pick an outfit! Can you help me?"

There was a sense of urgency in her voice, almost like a child calling out to her mother. If push comes to shove, she'll just throw in what she thinks looks good and just wing it...Hopefully.

Twisting her mouth into a pretzel shape, Marie sighed lightly.

"Oui, I will give it a shot. But I think you probably just look good in anything."

Satisfied that she was finished getting herself prepared, Marie elbowed her way into Amanda's room. If she wasn't at least a bit forceful here, they could be here for hours, so the plan was simple. If Amanda offered up an outfit that looked even remotely good, call it done and shuffle out the door.

"Let me see what you are thinking."

The sudden intrusion of her roommate took Amanda back a little, did she really have to do it so forcefully? Murmuring to herself, she was at least grateful that she was kind enough to help her with her current predicament.

"Umm...Let me just think for a moment."

She put a hand on her chin as she surveyed her options, a dress might work for a party, but she didn't want to stand out when everyone else will probably be donning something akin to their usualcasual wear...So she'll save the dress for more formal ocassions. The girl began to think again, pacing around the room as she did, it felt like she'd be here for a long, even with Marie's help. She glanced back to her, giving a reassuring smile, as if to say "Please wait." A small smile forming on her lips as she stopped midway of her pacing, the girl knew what she was going to wear. She instantly began to dig through her closet to find the garments she was looking for and began to present it to Marie. She took out a pink wool sweater with a heart in the center and a pair of white skinny jeans to compliment the outfit, she'll probably get a pair of Converse sneakers to complete her ensemble, with a wry smile, she said,

"So, what do you think? Is this good enough?"

"It is quite good, I like it." Marie's words were rushed but she wasn't lying. "This outfit is very you, I think. Now, c'est beau, this is good. We have to get going! We do not want to be late."

As quickly as she burst in, Maria burst out of the room, out of the dorm, and outside to the front of the building. Jogging in place, she waited for Amanda to get dressed and make her way outside. Once everything was prepared, they made their way to the Hancocks' mansion, Marie bouncing around excitedly like a small dog on a leash the whole way. She wasn't necessarily a 'party girl' so to speak, but the adrenaline potential of having so many people in one place was unquestionable, so it was hard not to get excited. Everything else was secondary.

Amanda was relieved that her ensemble was pleasing enough, she hurriedly began to get dressed. She was feeling a mix of anxiety and excitement all at once, and her roommate was certainly more than prepared for the event, after adding the finishing touches she went outside of their dorm.

One the way to the destination she couldn't help but think of the party...What was it going to be like? How many people? Will everyone really come? That just seemed like an excessive amount of people crammed all into one mansion, can a mansion even fit an entire school of students? How is that even possible? Shrugging to herself and looking over Marie, she decided that she might as well enjoy it, her energy was rubbing off of her. Then as they were in front of the mansion doors she remembered something...

"Wait, were we supposed to be bring food?!"

She was looking around the area, other students did bring their own snacks, and the tweet did mention something about that as well. How embarrassing! Were they the only ones who didn't bring anything? They haven't even entered the mansion proper and they're already making a fool of themselves. Amanda looked at Marie with a worried expression on her face.

"S-Should we go back and get some?"

She asked her friend, waiting for a response.

Marie hadn't thought about that. Somehow it seems it'd slipped her mind. But while it seemed as though it was causing Amanda some anxiety, Marie wasn't worried at all. "The solution is simple, is it not? If we did not bring anything to eat, we will not eat!"

Cracking a broad grin, she really did seriously consider simply not touching any food for the whole night as punishment for forgetting. The only thing that kept her away from that thought was the fact that she wasn't just here on her own. And Marie wouldn't make Amanda starve because of her own mistake. "I will grab something. You keep going, I will catch up."

After sprinting off down a side street, Marie returned shortly with a giant bag full of energy drinks and assorted candy. "It is not technically food I suppose, but perhaps this will have to do?" She scratched her head awkwardly. She'd found a convenience store and just bought what she might want to see at the party without thinking about things again. It was a very Marie-like thing to do. Even so, it was better than being empty-handed.

---

As expected, things were rowdy, loud, and the mood was clear: These are the people you're going to spend at least the next year with. Might as well let loose and get close. It was clear they had the right place so Marie didn't bother to knock or anything. Instead she simply shoved herself inside (pushing Amanda in front of her) and dropped her goodies off in the kitchen, snapping up a can of Jam from the pack before putting the rest away. She'd need all the energy she could spare tonight it looked like.

"Come on, Senpai, we must greet everyone! You can stop being nervous now, since you are already here! It is too late to go home and change, so now you can ask everyone if your outfit looks good, instead of just me. Go, vite vite!"

Korrie's first day of school was. . . interesting, too say the least. He didn't know what he'd been expecting of the teachers staunch an elite school, but what he got wasn't actually half bad. Of course, that old bitch from Negotiations was Satan incarnate, cause not only did she give homework on the first day, but it was the most cruel and unusual assignment he'd ever gotten. Who the hell makes a bunch of teens read the teens and conditions to goddamn Facebook, it's insane. Other than that, the day was good, though he had a feeling that he'd be failing Etiqutte classes major already, as his table manners were just a step or to above that of a cave man.

Anyway, after actually doing the homework from Hell, which had made him want to try his hand at self-lobotomy more than once, he had decided to drown himself in an hour or two of Fallout 4, scouring the wastes for anything that could be of use(mainly anything with fucking adhesive), while also wondering whether or not he should even bother going to this party. He'd gotten a flyer from some random girl, may have been the host herself, may have just been someone handing out invites. Either way, he had been invited and didn't know what to do with this knowledge, as this was the first time he'd really been invited to anything in . . . ever, really, and he didn't want to just brush it off. But he didn't really know the tow that well, and it seemed like a lot of people would be going too. He'd talk to some guys he'd met on a forum a few years ago, and they all said he should go for it, meet some babes, have a good time, get drunk, and enjoy his youth before it was gone(did he mention that they were all a good bit older than him, like late 20's or so from what he had heard).

He had plenty of food to bring, party food being his main source of calories and nutrients when his mom was nagging him about his diet. But he couldn't help but obsess over worse case scenarios, like what if he said something stupid, or what if he trip and bump into someone, or he accidentally insulted the Alpha bitch of the school, and a million and one other scenarios. The one he was most scared of, however, was that something in the party caused him to have another freaking freak out, which would probably cause in someone getting hurt.Ever since . . . 'the incident', he'd found himself having severe bouts of unstable emotions whenever anything really reminded him of it. He could end up a snivelling ball on the ground, or deck the person next to him in the face. The intensities of the emotions scared him, especially because the main one he turned to was anger, and it had led to a lot of bad times. He wasn't new to such flashes, however, it had been happening to him ever since he got attacked by that dog way back when, but at least that time it'd been contained to whenever saw a dog of any real size. Now, he wasn't quite sure what could set him off. This entire thing could, and most likely would end in disaster . . .

And yet, despite this feeling in the pit of his stomach, he now found himself stuck outside the mansion(man, never before had he felt the wealth gap so strongly than at this moment. Who just gives their children a mansion!?!) of the Hancock twin's, wearing a black jacket over a red Game of Thrones T-shirt(House Targaryen all the way) with baggy black pants, his one good pair of sneakers and a bag full of Barbecue lays and Sprite, unsure as to what he should be doing with it all. Actually, he did know what he should be doing, but it was the matter of getting his body to actually listen to him that was the problem. He was a fun guy, he talked to people, played pranks, and good pal around with the best of them . . . but big parties like this weren't really his thing. They were too crowded, too loud, and over all just killed any charisma he had and turned him into a bumbling pile of awkward. Yet this was something he knew he had to do, so he could break the ice with his new peers.

But how do I do that without tripping over myself? Come on Korrie, this is your chance to make friends in the real world, to forget everything and start the next chapter of your life. All you have to do is just walk through the door.

Unfortunately, simple as it was, his body simply refused to listen to his reasoning, and he began to pace back and forth in front of the door, sometimes looking like like he was about to walk inside, and other times looking as if he was about to make a break for his car, a slightly rickety looking Toyota that he'd gotten hand-me-down from his sister.

--------

Emilie's first day at school was...something interesting. The assembly was boring like all assemblies were, but that was quickly overshadowed by the cafeteria serving burgers and fries for lunch! They then had some classes and such. After school was done, she headed back to the her room in the dorm. She had seen the tweet that went out earlier about the party hosted by the Hancocks. On the way back to dorm, a flier was handed to her by a random boy whose job seemed to be running around distributing fliers to anyone in the vicinity. Taking a look at the flier, it mentioned once again about the party hosted by the Hancocks at their hideaway mansion a short distance away from school. Ahh, the Hancocks, one of the-if not the richest students in the whole of Ashbury.

Judging by the scale of things, and the fact of the siblings extensive reach, it was more than likely that the vast majority of the entire school would be there at the party. Missing it was not an option. Once she arrived at her room, she began her preparations for the party at seven. She had a few short hours to prepare, and she was going to waste them away doing nothing productive. A nice and refreshing shower later, Emilie decided on her outfit selection before applying on a basic layer of make-up. Nothing too much, just a light dash of eye shadow, darkening her eyelashes and putting on a peach-coloured lip balm.

Driving her white Volkswagen beetle into the car park of the Hancock's mansion, the blonde found a suitable parking space and parked her car. She wasn't late or anything, but she noticed that the car park were already gradually beginning to fill up. Emilie didn't exactly arrive empty-handed! She had brought food for the party as that was surely expected of their party guests. She'd brought popcorn, in two different flavours (salted & caramel), suited for those who preferred their popcorn savoury our sweet.

Dressed in a lovely white sleeveless flora dress accompanied with a peach jacket, completing the outfit with a pair of flat peach pumps. She deftly locked her car with a tap of the button and started to make her way to the party's entrance. As Emilie got closer to the door, she saw a guy pacing back and forth in front of it. He looked as though he was trying to decide if should enter or head back towards the car park. She couldn't exactly see who he was yet, until maybe he turned around.

Although she did thought he looked familiar, like someone she knew. Korrie. He was carrying a bag of barbecue Lays potato chips and a bottle of Sprite. She wasn't a big fan of the soft drink, but the particular flavour of chips was one that she liked. Yum. Walking up to him, she called out to him, in that French accent that people loved to make fun of her in. "Ello pacing guy! Is there something wrong? Not going in for the party?"

---------

Korrie jumped slightly, so busy in his thoughts that he had noticed Emilie's arrival. Once he saw who had addressed him, he gave a slightly embarrassed chuckle, scratching at his temple as he usual does when nervous.

"Ah, heh, Bonjour Mademoiselle Delacour," the red-eyed youth responded, overcoming his anxiety the best way h knew how, theatrics. He gave a short bow to the Parisian, having met her a little earlier today in the demon's classroom. "I'm just suffering a little internal crisis is all, to go or not to go. I'm not really one for parties, but I thought I'd give this one a shot . . . and then find myself unable to actually step through the door."

Korrie deflated a little as he lamented his cowardice, but quickly dispelled the thought as he turned his attention back to Emilie. "Ah, but enough about me and my problems, how are you doing today? Have you finished reading the terms and conditions like the gray witch told us to do, cause I did, and I only tried to give myself a concussion twice . . . okay, maybe three times."

Emilie giggled in glee as as the red-eyed boy greeted her in her native tongue. It was funny that way he said it with his accent, but then again she thought that it was probably as funny when she spoke english with hers. Greeting him with a curtsie, she said "Bonjour Monsieur Jackson" Her mouth then curled up in amusement. "I don't see why you should not go. Come with me! It will be fun!" Rolling her eyes to the left as she thought about their homework, she said "I have not completed it yet, only halfway!"

Their brief exchange was then interrupted as Nathan come up to the pair. The suave young man greeted her and placed an arm around her and squeezed her shoulder. The fond action gave her butterflies in her stomach accompanied by an inner warmth. Her crush for Nathan was not letting up it seemed. Emilie greeted him back in return, her words as sweet as honey and her eyes twinkled. "Hi Nathan! I am so glad you are here too!" He then bid them farewell as he made his way into the mansion with the rest of the swim team, also affectionately known as the 'bro squad'. Placing her hand onto Korrie's arm, she tried to drag him into the mansion. "Come on Korrie, let's go!"

"Try reading it while listening to music, that's how I get through reading boring shit for school." Korrie offered before some guy who introduced himself as Nathan came over that seemed to know Emilie. Korrie wasn't quite sure who this guy was, though he thought he might've seen him in one of his classes. He returned the wave with a nod of his own, still looking a little hesitant about going in, only to find himself getting dragged in by Emilie.

"All right, I'm coming, I'm coming, heh," Korrie said, allowing himself to get dragged inside, and while the amount of people inside were a little intimidating, he felt that he could handle it as long as he stayed near people he knew. Unfortunately, that was only one and a half people at the moment, so it was something better said than done. As he listened to the music play and watched people chatter it up with old friends, he couldn't help but ponder about something he had noticed earlier, a smile making it's way on to his face.

"So, Mademoiselle, would the young man that walked in happen to be your paramour? Or perhaps you wish him to be?" Korrie had noticed a slight change in her behavior when Nathan had arrived, but he was really just messing around and trying to start conversation then anything else. Still, a key factor in any prank is to gain information on your target, and since everyone can be a target, you need to collect information on everyone. He doubted he'd ever use something like a crush to prank someone, that'd just be cruel in his eyes, but it could still be a useful bit of info to keep on hand. As he waited for her to answer, he put the food he had brought on the snack table before busting open the lays and taking a good amount for himself on a plate, as well as pouring himself a good-sized cup of Sprite in a cup.

"Oh, and you better get some chips while you can, before everyone else does. It's an Extra-large bag, but I don't think that matters in a mansion full of partying teenagers." Emilie replied, her face instantly turning red at the thought of what Korrie had just said. She sputtered "Paramour? Non, non.. it's just a crush! a crush! I don't think he knows anyway!" She was too embarrassed right about now to care about the damn chips running out.

As soon as Connor had barged into the party, Hal had known this was going to be a good night. After the general rush of seeing people he hadn't seen at school already, the "Hi how're you's" and the "How was your breaks" things had gotten going. Acacia had made multiple announcements to keep the party running, and when drinks started going around, things started to slip a bit.

Connor had of course started the beer pong game almost immediately, he liked to argue that it should be a pro sport and that he should be the first world champion. Some drunk guy had slurred it into bear pong, and for some reason the Hancock's had bear costumes. Hal had tried to make a joke about it, but Aspen was walking by and he worried his friend might somehow take offense. So they had played bear pong for a while. Hal had lost, but he made a point of spilling one of the cups on his opponent, just for fun, which meant one of the suits now smelled like beer.

A game of "Sardines" had started up, and Hal had followed the crowd. At one point, he had been pushed into a coat in the closet, and by the end had been buried 10 people deep. Apparently something had happened, not that Hal could actually see anything. When Aspen found them, he had tried to ask Hal, but Hal had shrugged it off, his buzz making it seem irrelevant. Hey, let the kids have their fun, nobody was dead...right?

After that he had wandered the party for a bit, bumped into his friend Eric, who had set up a contest between the two of them to see who could fit more pigs-in-a-blanket in their mouth. A crowd and formed and the two guys had both reached 9, with Eric beating Hal out in the end. The winner got a fresh drink and bragging rights, and Hal had made a comment about "pig-headedness", which Eric had found so funny that he had started to choke and Hal had need to perform the Heimlich.

The group had eventually settled into a largish circle on the Hancock's living room step, Hal sat between Aspen and Emilie. Acacia had suggested Never have I ever, a game Hal was excellent at because he was one of the few people who grew up not rich. "...If you've done it, you have to clap--so you can't hide!--and put down a finger. You lose if you put all 10 down! Who wants to start?" Acacia asked the group. She was clearly a bit drunk, and Hal couldn't help but smirk. When she glared at him, jokingly, he threw his hands up defensively, grinning widely.

"Alright alright, I'll start," he said. He stood, prepared to make a bit of a show out of it. "Never," he paused, glancing around, "have I ever" he said, spinning to look at the whole room. A few people giggled at him, others seemed impatient for him to move on. He looked sideways at Connor, an evil grin spreading "been, lets just say assaulted, for calling a girl a "fine ass biddie"" Hal sat back down. Connor leaned out from his seat a few over and glared daggers at him. Hal laughed silently. Oh how he'd pay for this.

As soon as they got there, Connor began liberally distributing vodka like some kind of alcoholic Santa Claus. He briefly lamented not bringing any beer for himself, but he was quickly able to arrange a trade with Nick Dawson, and almost immediately got into beer pong. There were a few people gathered around a regulation sized folding beer pong table (Connor’s own birthday present to Aspen the previous year), tossing balls around with minimal success. One of the players, a freshman Connor vaguely recognized, threw an underhand shot that went wide. Connor deftly snatched it out of the air. “Tisk tisk scrublords, that is not how you pray game!”

“Hey! I was winning!” the frosh complained. “By one cup, we aint got all night son,” Connor replied. The frosh was about to say something more but Connor cut him off “Bud, your game is pasghetti weaksauce. Fear not, I will teach you the ways of the pong, young skyfrosh.”

Connor put more cups down, bringing each side back up to an even six, then raised his voice and adopted a solemn tone. “Listen up, swaglets. These are the rules of the pongmasters, passed down from generation to generation, all the way from Ghengis Pong. Teams of 2; this is a party, drunkness must be maximized top speed. No underhand shots; your days of scrub are over. No blocking; if it touches your body before it reaches a cup, you drink. Both players score, drink em up then give the balls back. 2 balls in 1 cup, drink that cup and all the cups it touches. You get 1 rearrange, do not waste it. Bounce shots are allowed to be blocked, but if they get in, drink 2 cups. If it’s circling, you may blow it out, no fingers. Lastly, redemption is for pussys, take your loss with some dignity. So say I, Conan the Barbari-pong. Skyfrosh, you’re with me. Step up or step away chumps!”

Connor knew there was a balance to beer pong; a plateau of optimum drunkenness where you played your best. Getting up to the plateau was easy, staying there was hard. A cup too many, and you tipped over the edge onto the slippery slope ranging from ‘too drunk for beer pong’ to ‘yakking your guts out’. Connor and Skyfrosh (mostly Connor) won their first game easily against Nick and a random sophomore. They lost their second game though, to a pair of freshman girls who were a lot more skilled than they looked. By their third game, Connor hit the plateau and won, and their fourth, he sank each of his shots with brutal efficiency.

The thing was, he quickly depleted his traded beer, so Connor started putting vodka and Jam! Nitro in his cups. On top of that, he kept a separate drinking drink on the go, first beer, then his personal concoction. The beer pong table grew louder and more excited as the games went by, friends and strangers alike watching each shot with baited breath, exchanging jibes and jokes.

By the time Acacia started up a game of Never Have I Ever, he was pretty sauced, and as the game went on he kept on having to drink. Nate’s question caused him to drink again; he was down to four fingers, and then it was his turn. “Bruh. Why have I done so many thaaangs. Ok. Alright. Gucci. Ice. Never have I ever…” he paused, “had a sister!” he announced triumphantly, clapping his hand on Nate’s shoulder.

Fun? help me have fun? Do you even have an idea how much difficulty mankind have encountered when they tried to decipher my personal definition of fun?

Behind a sullen, disgruntled figure inched an eagerness to disconnect from an unruly mob. The presence of a direction remained particularly absent among redundant actions seen from occasions similar to this. Needless to say, Spencer found no worth to spawn his self-proclaimed 'precious' time towards a gathering he had little-to-no intentions of being a part of. Yet even through an assortment of his own uncertainties and dissatisfaction, he managed to remain still and watch people unleash the untamed shades of their persona.

A cheerless grunt escaped from Spencer's lips once Ann left him and dissipated in the midst of a huddled cluster. A large gathering if he may suppose? Perhaps something he wasn't notably aware of. Then again, the notion of minding his own business was bound to suppress his own curiosity. Best for him to let it loop over something else, like why there wasn't any cola dispenser when there was an excess of liquor. There were possibilities though, but the fear of wandering around and accidentally hauling into an unwanted interaction chained him from doing so. However, it wasn't a major problem he could raise. Besides, a week's supply of canned cola was promised to him as an exchange to be a part of this whirling mess.

Oh yeah. Hardly there was anything to look forward to yet that promise Ann had proposed injected a provoking anticipation he could not put into hold. It was so provoking, Spencer may just put the fun he falsely claimed into careful consideration.

But where will I start?

As Spencer's mind curled up into an unwinding proposal, he still felt utterly lost; not the common example of being lost but a different one. He felt as if his body was being simulated over a misleading projection of his perceptions and his soul being segregated from the course of his own acts. He dared not to ponder of his anticipation towards a guaranteed claim. The box of canned cola was already his as promised yet why should he still pay an ounce of involvement at the party? Perhaps he forgot he was masquerading as someone. He lifted a sigh once more, confused as to how his uncanny logic worked.

Funneling for ideas to spring about was harder than contemporary speeches about infidelity. Later on, Spencer realized he was leaning against the mansion's draperies for too long, perhaps too long that one confused girl tapped his shoulder only to be responded by a startled grumble.

"Sorry, I think my head hurts." He excused as they both exchanged glances.

The girl, however, wasn't too mindful of Spencer's recent peculiar behavior as she raised a smile riddled with enjoyment.

"Beer?" She lifted the cup resting from her delicate hand.

Something whispered out of nowhere and told him it wasn't the greatest of ideas to take suggestion from half-drunk dames. He had his experiences and near-accidental encounters. Never again would he bring them up, as lessons were learned under the subtle perils of temptation ―not that he'd consider it as such.

The girl inched a glance closer, awaiting for an expected response and instead, was given a simple gesture of refusal as Spencer craned over and trailed off. He moved in-between people who stood like statues, conjuring the most ear-splitting of chuckles. The urge to resist their annoying sounds was futile but Spencer sauntered along and continued to seek an uncrowded refuge.

Finally there was one, spotting almost no one but a familiar face loitering around. She chummed over a bowl of chips while clumsily grabbing a bottle of booze. He didn't mind Brooke and her silly little game of 'find the person whom I'll hate the most today'. He then pulled a chair next to her, freeing a heavy gasp of breath as if being recently submerged underwater. As he sat, he felt a heavy slump on his shoulder. Eyes gazed continuously at the rowdy group as bloated cheers roused the recently unruffled guests.

"Fun party, eh?" Spencer said to Brooke. "How boring it'd be if they all have the same idea of fun as me."

There was a subtle tone found from his set of words, sounding nearly asleep, as might be, despite delivering it loudly from how the music was unnecessarily amplified. He lifted a leg to lean over the other. Hands were held together, putting atop of his knees.

"Say, what do you think if half the people here are at the same place as you? Sitting on their own chair, eating chips, doing nothing. The Hancock twins will be so pleased yet puzzled, wouldn't you agree?" There it was, the sarcastic air he longed to breathe out.

The party turned out to be cranking upwards into a violent cacophony of sound and heat as what must have been every student in the school were packed into this huge place - luckily in the middle of nowhere. What made it more stifling was that as the night went on, everybody was getting more and more drunk. Marie didn't drink, typically, and she didn't like the taste of beer, but somebody (she forgot who) had told her about a mythical drink called a "Jager Bomb," and without much thought, she had done two of them. Nobody told her that Jager Bombs were strong poison for a tiny girl who is usually in the teetotaler camp, and without even realizing what had happened, the poor girl had become completely hammered. By the time she realized what she'd done, it was far too late, the alcohol and caffeine had already hit her bloodstream. The rest of the party was covered in a bit of a haze, all lights, music and white noise, but Marie was amped for all of it. Truthfully, she wanted to get out into the open air and do some laps, but somebody had pulled her into a circle for a game called "Never Have I Ever," which seemed like a blast.

As the circle announced various things they hadn't done, people were putting down fingers left and right. Comparatively, Marie felt like she'd somehow missed a lot of life experiences. Although it seemed like a lot of people were targeting their announcements at certain others, Connor specifically seemed to get the short straw more often than not. Seemed about right, he was outspoken and fun, he'd probably done a lot of crazy stuff before. Nathan talked about drugs and Marie found herself short an unfortunate finger and plus one bad flashback to a year or two ago, but her spirits were lifted again when Connor's announcement was that he never had a sister. Marie always wanted a sister, but never had she ever had one... did Amanda-san count...? Maybe that'd be cheating, she chuckled. Her fingers lived another day on an unfortunate technicality.

"I shall go next!" She announced out of the blue. She was next in the circle anyway, there was no reason to proclaim herself, but there wasn't much reasoning with a Marie that was half in the bucket already. She thought really hard on something she'd never done that wasn't targeted at somebody specifically, and her internal search turned up too many things. Without much time, she blurted out whatever came to mind. Unfortunately, her wires ended up getting a little crossed in the process, since she wasn't used to having to parse things through a fog of both alcohol and energy drinks. "Never have I ever have never ever had stolen anything. Never not even once." She knew it sounded stupid, and cursed herself internally, but soon the circle would move on and forget her word salad. She'd run some laps around the dorm when she got back to clear her head, but for now she was more focused on keeping her fingers alive, if possible. That, and never touching the legendary "Jager Bomb" again in her life. Youch.

After splitting up from Korrie, Emilie had gone on to involve herself in the party as a whole. Snacks were had among other varieties of food. She had stuffed herself with potato chips, corn ships, hot dogs and other assorted finger food. As a fond lover of food, she was incredibly lucky to eat as much as she wanted without worrying about putting on weight. The wonders of a fast metabolism rate. The drinks came next. Non-alcoholic followed by the alcoholics. When the games started, Emilie got herself involved into Beer Pong or Bear Pong as it would come to be known. Aspen had even got out several bear suits for the participants to wear!

Getting into one of those bear suits and playing Bear Pong was not what she would call an enriching experience but it was certainly fun, as the rest of them cheered her on, the girl in a bear suit throwing balls into cups. When that game was over, she got herself involved in the next game, one called Sardines. That only lasted a while and she was left in the closet with a bunch of strangers.

In such close proximity, there was alot of giggling and laughing to be had, among sniggers and snorts. For a moment there, Emilie thought she heard the sound of people making out, but she couldn't exactly make out anything in the darkness, it was all just sounds, which made it all the more exciting. When that was over, Acacia started the next game, Never Have I Ever. She sat down beside Aspen and Hal had taken up the other seat next to her. He had been the one to kick the game off, making a dig at Connor in the process. Something about biddie. Oh this was gonna be good, she thought to herself, watching the two guys have a go at each other.

Next up was Nathan, and his was about drugs. Claps and fingers had fallen, but hers still stayed intact, not having done any that was mentioned yet. Connor went next, and as the only child in her family, she retained her spotless score in the game. Then it was time for Marie. Hers was about stealing. Drats! There went her spotless score. A quick clap later, a finger of hers was down. She had stolen a couple of stationery once when she was young. It was more of a mischievous act than anything else. Emilie was next up, and she had plans to down more fingers. She said proudly, knowing that this would down many more fingers in the group. "Never have I ever kissed anyone outside my family!"

---

Amanda looked on as she and her friend had parted ways, she felt vulnerable again...She's not dumb, she knows what kind of happenings go on in parties like these, and she knows it doesn't end with everyone bidding each other farewell and curtsying like well-groomed, proper and posh ladies and gentlemen. She shifted uncomfortably, feeling the gaze of the others surround her, she really didn't want to attract any unwanted attention or be the center of attention itself so she mustered it up and simply decided to lay it low for a while, acting (or trying to) natural as she wandered the halls of the mansion.

Soon enough, a girl introducing herself as Acacia began to say this and that, the usual thanks and whatnot. The brunette just looked on with an unfazed expression in her face, she really didn't want to be a part of this little party, but she didn't exactly have much of a say in it, that and it was a total waste of a good outfit combination. She turned her head to see that the party had truly come to full swing, it was an amusing sight, but not exactly the best place for her to be in right now. It was loud, almost abruptly so, the large crowds made her uneasy to say the least and she didn't really see any enjoyment or fun arising in any of the current activities, preferring to keep to herself as the night continued.

Amanda sat down at one of the tables and quickly prepped herself a cup of cola, not the most healthy thing to drink, she knows, but it seemed like a good idea at the time. She took a couple of sips and sighed, watching as her peers had fun and enjoying life to the fullest, the girl forced a little smile, the sights were pretty funny to witness, like Bear Pong of all things. Whose great idea was it to play regular beer pong and do it with bear suits of all things? If you showed a picture of it to someone without giving them context they'd be pretty dumbfounded.

After splitting off from Emilie with a chuckle, Korrie felt a little better about himself and decide to just have fun and not let the anxiety get to him. That's why, when the subject of Beer Pong cane up, he decided to be one the first ones up, not really caring that what was going in was Illegal as all hell. He broke the law in a semi-regular basis with his hacking, so imhe doubted getting a little tipsy would do any harm. Unfortunately, Korrie found out two things that day: He was a lightweight(which was to be expected from someone who never so much as looked at Alcohol before), and he was the type to get a little crazy when drunk.

He was basically hammered mid-way through his first game . . . and he played five games, four of which he took ful advantage if the bear suit and refused to take it off after the game was done. This led to his swift defeat in the game of Sardibes that followed, but at that point he couldn't really be bothered. Now the group was engaged in a game of Never have I ever and Korrie was trying to think of a good one. He had to put a few fingers down due to him having a sister, having kisses someone outside his family, and having been on a sports team, and while he might've tried to lie his way out of it, in his current state, lying about anything was just not possible. When Aspen said his, Korrie couldn't help but break into manic laughter, putting a furred arm around the guy as he lurched over to him.

"Can't say I have, but wait, I got an even better one. Listen, listen, okay, . . . Just listen . . . you listening . . . Good, okay, Nwver have I ever. . . Hey, why aren't you to joining the party." Korrie suddenly bolted straight up and half walked, half-tripped over to Spencer and Brooke, attempting them ins big bear hug and pulling them over to the circle. . . only to fall backwards with a clearly incoherent chuckle as he pointed at them. "Commie on guys, don't be . . . don't poop on the party. You, the dark one, use this as a chance to really get under people's skin. Ask the deep questions like. . . like . . . Oh, like mine. It was, it was. . . Fuck. . ."

Korrie raised himself off the ground, shakily standing up and confused about what to say, when it suddenly hit him. "Oh, I got it, Never have I ever been Arrested? Huh, huh, good right?" Korrie chuckled to himself as if he'd told the best joke in the world before taking another few steps, only to fall on his face. He raised his hands up to show his seven fingers, a sign that he was still in the game.