At half past eight on Saturday night, Tristan’s Lincoln Continental pulled in front of a modestly sized home with a dirt drive. Even with the windows rolled up, the sound of music could be heard loud and clear, as well as the shouting and loud chatter of teenage partygoers.
While Kimi had rode shotgun for the duration of the ride, Claudia was seated in the back. Her hair, which had been freshly washed earlier that morning and twisted in rows along her scalp, now hung loosely around her shoulders in tight spirals. Just fitted enough to draw attention to her curvy posterior, the high-waisted pants that she had on were perfectly complemented by a fitted crop top with a scoop neck.
Athough it hadn’t been purposely synchronized, Kimi, Tristan, and Claudia all got out of the car at the same time, and with Tristan sandwiched between the two girls, the threesome made their way towards the front door. As they were walking, Claudia noticed that a number of people were hanging out on a deck that was attached to the house.
Due to the fact that it was dark outside, she couldn’t tell if they were kids that she had seen around school, but the brash laughter and numerous giggles which drifted through the air told Claudia that they were people who definitely recognized *her*.
Rather than pay them any attention, Claudia, Kimi, and Tristan continued to walk along the path that would take them to the house, but they didn’t even get a chance to knock on the door before someone on the deck called out to Tristan in an obnoxiously loud voice.
“Hey, freak. You took a wrong turn,” jeered a guy who was holding a bottle of beer.
“Yeah, aren’t you supposed to be in the cemetery talking to dead people?”
Recognizing the last voice as belonging to a girl who was in her calculus class, Claudia shot her a dirty look, but it was Kimi who let loose an irritated reply.
“You guys are funnier when you’re drunk, right?”
“Who the hell invited you?” Asked a girl who was dressed in a pair of jeans and a pink spaghetti strap top.
“Matthew,” Kimi said. “The guy who’s *throwing* the party.”
Shifting her gaze to Claudia, the girl in pink looked her up and down before whispering something to her friend, who promptly erupted into a loud chuckle. Choosing to ignore them, Claudia kept her eyes focused straight ahead, and as they entered the door which was partially open, the music hit them full blast. They had barely crossed the threshold when Kimi spotted Matthew, who was the host of the party, and after waving him over, she exchanged pleasantries with him.
“Hey, Matthew. Thanks for inviting us.”
“No problem. It’s good to see you.” His gaze then shifted to Claudia, who gave him a smile, before focusing on Tristan, who offered a nod of acknowledgment. “Claudia and Tristan, right?”
They both nodded.
“Kimi told me she was bringing some friends. Glad you guys could make it.”
“Thanks for having us,” Claudia said.
“Hey, by the way, there’s this girl that’s been looking all over for you,” Matthew said to Kimi. “She said you loaned her this makeup kit weeks ago, and she wants to give it back.”
“Shauna…”
“Yeah, that’s her name. Anyways, she’s hanging out in the hallway if you want me to take you to her.”
“Most definitely,” Kimi said, and with a quick glance Tristan and Claudia’s way, she said, “Back in a bit, guys. Just gonna pick up my kit.”
Both Tristan and Claudia offered a nod in response, and as they were left to stand there alone, they fell into a companionable silence that could only be shared between two people who were perfectly comfortable with one another.
“So…” Tristan’s deep voice cut through the thumping techno beat that was blasting through the speakers. “It pretty much feels like I’m in hell right now.”
“If It’s any consolation, I feel pretty out of place, as well,” Claudia said.
Just like Tristan, Claudia was still standing next to the front door, feeling more like a statue than an actual human being as she took in everything that was happening around her.
Aside from a few couples who were making out on the couches, she noticed that most of the guests were standing around talking while sipping from bottles of beer or cans of soda.
Along with the haze of cigarettes, the musky smell of pot was thick in the air and the carpet was littered with everything from crushed chips and pretzels to spilled drinks. Her eyes trailed along the decorative lights that were strewn around the windows and doorways before coming to land on a plastic Christmas tree located in the corner of the living room, and that was when Claudia noticed that Lucas was parked beside it drinking a beer.
For a moment she thought of heading into the kitchen so that she wouldn’t be seen, but then it suddenly dawned on her that she had she absolutely no reason to try and hide herself. If anyone should be ashamed, it was Lucas. He was the one who had insulted her, not the other way around.
So lost in her thoughts, it took her awhile to realize that escort bayan Tristan was intently watching her, and on shifting her attention so that her eyes met his own, she realized that he was tapping into her emotions. Feeling as if she’d been stripped butt naked, Claudia shifted from one foot to the other before finally posing a question.
“What? What is it?”
“Lucas Goodblanket…”
“Yeah, what about him?” Allowing her eyes to drift back in his direction, Claudia saw that Lucas was chatting with a boy who was wearing a jacket with the school’s wresting team logo on it.
“What did he do to make you so upset?” Tristan asked.
“It’s not so much what *he* did…” she started.
A question mark came into Tristan’s eyes as he waited for her to elaborate.
“…It’s what he wants *me* to do that’s the problem.”
Just briefly, Tristan’s brows knitted together, but as it suddenly clicked in his mind, the crease in his forehead smoothed out. “Oh, right.”
A few beats of silence passed before he offered some more words.
“Well, It’s his loss.”
Touched by the statement, Claudia gave him a soft smile. “Thank you, Tristan. That’s sweet of you to say.”
“Just being honest.” With his attention still focused on Lucas, he said, “You’re not in alignment with each other. You know that, right?”
“What do you mean by alignment?”
“Your energies aren’t melding.”
Not having expected this insight, Claudia slowly replied, “Okay…” But the truth of it was, it really wasn’t okay at all, because she didn’t have the faintest clue of what he was trying to get across to her. “When you say energies, you mean…”
“Who you are as a human being. Your thoughts, your dreams, your fears, your desires…those all create an energy that other people pick up on.”
A thoughtful look crossed her face as she continued to take in Tristan’s words.
“He has a wall up,” Tristan said as he continued to gaze at Lucas. “But you do, as well.”
“He may have a wall up, but I don’t,” Claudia said. “I’m completely open and ready for a relationship.”
“I know you are,” Tristan responded. “But right now you’re pushing against him and he’s pushing against you, so how are you ever supposed to come together?”
“I told you, he’s only after one thing. So if anyone’s doing the pushing, It’s him.”
“You’re both pushing,” Tristan said. “Each of you are continually trying to gain leverage over the other, and that’s why you’re moving further apart.”
Having been given a considerable amount of food for thought, Claudia was doing her best to digest it.
“I’m not trying to gain leverage over Lucas,” she said. “I just want to be in a relationship where I’m not expected to immediately have sex.”
“And you deserve that,” Tristan said. “But he’s not in a place right now where he can give you the commitment that you’re after.”
Deep down in her heart, Claudia had already known that. But hearing the words spoken out loud by someone else really hammered the point home for her.
“I guess It’s just as well that we’re not talking anymore,” Claudia said. “He never did care about me, anyways.”
“Oh, he cares,” Tristan said. “It’s just that he’s not used to thinking beyond the physical. You’re challenging what he’s used to, and he doesn’t really know how to respond to that.”
“Well, apparently calling me a cocktease and skank is the way that he’s chosen to deal with it.”
Tristan swiveled his head to look at her. “He called you *names*?”
“Yep.”
“You’re neither,” he said in a tone that was firm. “And don’t you ever let him convince you otherwise.”
“Trust me, I won’t.”
No longer talking to the boy in the wrestling jacket, Lucas was now standing next to a guy who was dressed in a sweatshirt, track pants, and a pair of Nike trainers. From what Claudia could tell, the two boys were checking out something on the display screen of Lucas’s phone, and every so often, they would share a chuckle.
“You know when guys call women names like that, It’s usually because their ego’s have been crushed,” Tristan said. “It’s a defense mechanism, a way of pretending that they aren’t hurt.”
“I hadn’t thought of it that way,” Claudia replied. “But now that you bring it up, it does make a lot of sense.”
All around them, the sounds of laughing and shouting could be heard, as well the heart thumping bass of a rap tune. The front door opened and closed behind them as people steadily poured into the house, yet Claudia and Tristan remained firmly rooted in their spots. Also rooted in place was Lucas, who had spotted Tristan and Claudia from across the room and was giving them a cold, flinty gaze.
“I never thought I would say this,” Tristan said as he stared back at Lucas, “but it looks like Lucas and I finally have something in common.”
“What?”
“We both want something that we can’t have.”
The note of sadness in Tristan’s voice tugged at Claudia’s heart, and instinctively, she reached out to lightly stroke his bayan escort arm.
“I really don’t think you should give up on Kimi, Tristan.”
“But she has a boyfriend now,” he said. “So there’s really nothing I can do except respect her relationship.”
“Just wait it out,” Claudia said. “Not that I’m hoping it doesn’t work out or anything, but I’ve met Justin, and he’s not really anything special.”
“When you say not anything special, what you mean, exactly?” Tristan asked.
“Well, he’s a decent guy and all, but… he’s not you.”
“Oh…” A hint of a blush went to his cheeks as he saw the way that Claudia’s eyes had softened, but as Kimi returned with her makeup kit in hand, Tristan’s gaze immediately shifted.
“You guys are still standing here?” Kimi lifted her brows in amazement. “I’ve been gone for like ten minutes.”
“We just figured it might be easier for you to find us if we stayed in the same place,” Claudia said.
To this Kimi only offered a smile, and after shrugging out of her jacket and throwing it onto a growing pile next to the door, she helped Claudia out of hers.
“What about you, Tristan?” Kimi asked while turning to face him.
“Uh, no, that’s okay,” he said while clutching at the lapels of his Army jacket. “Think I’ll keep my mine’s on.”
“Oh, all righty, then.”
Leading the way into the kitchen, Kimi guided them toward the beverage table, which was stocked with soda, beer, and a huge bowl of eggnog that smelled strongly of alcohol.
“I hear the eggnog’s really good,” Kimi said while using the ladle to pour it into a cup. “You guys wanna try it?”
“No thanks. I don’t really like the taste of alcohol,” Tristan said.
“And I promised my mom that I would only drink soda,” Claudia replied.
“A couple of straight edges, huh?” A crooked smile tilted Kimi’s pink lips. “That’s cool, they’ve got plenty of soda here.”
While Claudia grabbed a can of Coke, Tristan grabbed a Pepsi, and with Kimi in tow, they headed into the living room. Brimming with people who were swaying to the beat of the music, the air was thick with the smell of tightly packed bodies, but beneath the pervading odor of sweat was another scent that was unmistakable. Claudia guessed that Tristan must have smelled it too, because he wrinkled his nose in disgust.
“It stinks in here,” Tristan said. “Did a skunk get loose, or something?”
“That’s not a skunk, Tristan,” Kimi said while leading them through the throng of dancing partygoers. “That’s the smell of people smoking pot.”
Unable to resist from smiling, Claudia saw that Tristan’s ears had begun to turn bright red, but she didn’t have long to smile at his adorableness, because somebody behind her copped a feel of her ass.
Turning her head to see who it was, Claudia noticed that there were several guys who could have been the culprit, but not one was casting a gaze in her direction, so she was left at a loss as to who to confront.
Spotting a couch that was free, Kimi led Claudia and Tristan toward it, where they all plopped down to enjoy their drinks. They had only been sitting there for a few minutes when a box of pizza began to circulate around the living room, and after each taking a slice, they passed it on to a group of girls who were standing nearby.
“Not a bad party, huh?” Kimi asked as while munching on the pizza.
“Yeah, It’s pretty alright,” Claudia said.
“Having a good time, Tristan?”
“Uh, yeah. I’m doing okay.”
Kimi nodded, then took another sip of her eggnog.
As they were sitting there on the couch, Claudia noticed that the majority of people who were dancing were paired up with members of the opposite sex. This in turn made her think of Kimi and Tristan, and sneaking a glance out of the corner of her eye, Claudia saw that Kimi had a somewhat wistful look on her face.
While it may have only been four months since she and Kimi had struck up a friendship, Claudia knew her well enough to tell that Kimi was growing restless. She was, after all, a free-spirited, outgoing type of person, so it wasn’t hard for Claudia to deduce that Kimi was eager to be dancing with the other partygoers.
As the seconds ticked on, Claudia found herself hoping that Tristan would ask Kimi to dance, but everytime she took a sideways glance at him, she noticed that he was only staring straight ahead. Every so often she would notice his shoulders move up and down, as if he was taking deep breaths and then slowly letting them out, but for the most part, he seemed to be drawing himself against the back of the couch, as if trying to make himself smaller.
Clearly out of his element, Claudia knew that he was unwilling soaking up every bit of energy that was in the room, and her heart immediately went out to him. Yet at the same time, she wanted to see him enjoy himself at least a little bit, and in hopes that she could be the catalyst, Claudia leaned in so that her lips were directly next to Tristan’s ear.
“Ask Kimi to dance.”
“Uh, escort I don’t really know how,” he responded. “And besides, she has a boyfriend.”
“It’s just dancing,” Claudia said. “And all you have to do is move your body to the beat. It doesn’t have to be perfect or anything.”
Shifting his gaze to Kimi, Tristan saw that she was sitting on the edge of the couch, chin held in the palm of her hand as she watched the other partygoers sway to the beat of the music. He placed his cup down on the nicked-up coffee table, and after clearing his throat, he slipped his fingers through the hair that flopped over his forehead.
Perhaps noticing that he was looking at her, Kimi turned her head to give him a smile. He never got the chance to ask her to dance, however, because a boy dressed in an oversized T-shirt and a pair of baggy jeans came sauntering towards her.
“You know you can’t leave this party without dancing with me at least once, right, Kimi?” The boy asked while giving her a smile.
“Oh hey, Keith.” Kimi smiled, then rose to her feet before glancing at Claudia and Tristan. “You guys don’t mind if I dance for a bit, do you?”
While Claudia remained silent, Tristan slowly shook his head no, but even Claudia could see that his eyes were screaming yes.
“Okay. See you guys in a bit.”
And with that, Kimi flitted away, disappearing into the throng of teens who were now dancing to a nu-metal song that featured heavy guitar riffs and rap vocals.
“Sorry, Tristan,” Claudia said. “I was rooting for you.”
Tristan drew a breath in, released it, and then raked his fingers through his hair before finally speaking. “God, what is wrong with me? Why can’t I ever do anything normally?”
“This is no such thing as normal,” Claudia said. “And at least you’re trying.”
“No,” he said while shaking his head. “I’m not really trying, and that’s the whole problem.”
“You came to the party, didn’t you?”
“Yeah.”
“And when is the last time you went to a party?”
“Never.”
“See?”
“I don’t even know why I’m here anyways,” Tristan said. “She has a boyfriend. This is wrong of me.”
“She invited you along because she wants you to be her friend,” Claudia said. “And just so you know, I wanted you along, too,” Claudia said.
“Yeah, but that’s only because your mom wouldn’t let you come unless you had a chaperone.”
“No, that’s not true,” Claudia objected. “I mean yes, maybe she did only agree to let me come because she knew that you would be with us, but you’re my friend, Tristan. I would have wanted you along, regardless.”
There was something in Tristan’s expression that seemed to doubt what she was saying, but after studying her face for a few long moments, he lowered his eyes and gazed down at his hands.
“Don’t beat yourself up, okay?” Claudia affectionately ran a palm along his back. “I’m sure Kimi is just glad to have you here.”
“Yeah, right. I’m a total bore.”
“No, you’re not. You’re the most interesting guy I know.”
“What’s interesting about me?” He asked.
“Well for one, you’ve got all of these amazing abilities. You can see and do things that no one else on this reservation can, and that makes you really special.”
Tristan’s posture became slightly less tense, but there was still dejection on his face.
“And then there’s your drawing skills, which are *amazing*, and you just have this way about you that is completely unique.”
“I do?”
“Yes.”
“Well if I’m so unique, then why doesn’t Kimi want me?” He asked in a voice that slightly shook.
Feeling as if she’d just taken a knife in her heart, Claudia eased out a faint sigh. Never before had she felt anyone’s pain so acutely, and for the first time since she’d met Tristan, she truly understood what feeling another’s pain was all about.
“I don’t think It’s necessarily that she doesn’t want you,” Claudia said. “I just feel like maybe she doesn’t realize how amazing you are yet.”
Still staring down at his hands, Tristan was repeatedly sinking his nails into his palms so that they left behind half moon shapes. His head was titled forward and his hair hung into his eyes, so Claudia was unable to clearly make out his expression. But she could tell by the way he had grown unnaturally quiet that he was currently doing some very heavy thinking.
She was just contemplating whether or not to try and talk him into a better mood or just simply leave him in silence, when she saw Kimi heading back towards them. Before Kimi even reach the couch, Claudia was on her feet, and clasping Kimi’s palm in her own, she pulled her off towards the kitchen.
“What’s up?” Kimi’s eyes had become wide with uncertainty.
“You know Tristan’s really hurting, don’t you?”
“What do you mean he’s really hurting?”
“His heart is completely *smashed*. He’s sitting there thinking that you don’t like him at all.”
“I don’t understand. What exactly did I do?”
“You went off and danced with another guy, Kimi. Right in front of Tristan’s face.”
“Keith is just a friend. There’s absolutely no romantic connection between us at all,” Kimi said. “And besides, Tristan knows that I have a boyfriend, so It’s not like I invited him along for us to be a couple, or anything.”
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