Anne bent down to fix the strap of her sandal. “You guys ready?”
“Yeah. Where’s Tiffany?” I asked.
Anne gestured inside and smiled. “I think she’s coming.”
“Awesome.” I peered into the room. Tiffany was staring at her reflection in the floor length mirror affixed to the wall next to her bed.
She turned from the mirror. “Are you guys sure I look okay in this?”
Tiffany was dressed like the rest of us in a short jean skirt and a tank top. “You look great.”
We took the stairs, all giddy about the night. Even though I’d been to plenty of parties in my life, it felt different going to one as an actual college student.
We headed outside towards the noise of Broadway, the street that was home to all of the fraternity and sorority houses. I’d opted for my usual choice of flip flops, relieved when Hailey assured me party attire was casual at Tulane.
Floods of students moved all around us. The night was filled with laughter and shouting as groups of friends reunited and new students got ready for their first night out. I was unable to prevent a smile from plastering itself on my face—there was just this incredible feeling in the air.
“So where’s this party again?” Tiffany asked.
“Don’t worry, we won’t be able to miss it,” Hailey assured her.
She was right. Disorientation was at a frat house about four blocks down from where we exited campus. An old fire truck was parked on the front lawn, but Hailey led our group right up to the front steps. I wasn’t sure what the truck was doing there, but since Hailey didn’t bat an eye, I figured it was normal.
“Welcome, ladies.” An attractive guy greeted us when we reached the front door.
“Hey.” Anne grinned.
“Welcome to Alpha Omega.”
“Thanks.” I pushed past him inside.
The house was packed. I couldn’t see anything through the sea of bodies. Loud music pulsated. I glanced behind me to make sure my friends were with me. Tiffany looked like she was ready to pass out, Anne was grinning, and Hailey just looked like Hailey.
We maneuvered our way through the crowd to the back bar area. “Hello, girls,” a guy said as we finally pushed up to the bar. “Need a drink?”
“Definitely.” Anne reached out her hand to take a plastic cup. Hailey intercepted it.
“No, we want the other stuff.”
“This is the good stuff,” the guy said quickly.
“Nope. Hold on a sec.” Hailey turned around and grabbed a random guy by the arm and looked in his cup.
“We want the blue punch, not the red.”
The guy smiled. “Someone taught you well.”
“Yeah, myself. Can we have four cups of the blue, please?”
“Sure.”
We accepted the cups and walked away.
“What was that about?” I was impressed Anne had stayed quiet while Hailey negotiated. “Is there something in the red stuff?”
“Whenever they have two different vats of a drink you need to be careful. If nothing else, it’s double the alcohol.”
“And that is bad because…?” Anne put a hand on her hip.
“You can get drunk at these parties, but not trashed. Trust me, okay?”
“Thanks.” Tiffany smiled before taking a tiny sip of her drink.
“No problem. This isn’t my first frat party.”
I loved being friends with Hailey.
With cups in hand, we moved outside. As hot as it was, the temperature dropped once we got out of the house.
“Hi there.” I turned as a blond haired guy called out to me.
“Hi.”
“Having fun?” He moved closer.
“Sure, but we just got here.” I took a sip of the drink. It was too sweet, but otherwise okay.
“Nice.” A few other guys joined him, likely noticing he’d struck up a conversation with our group.
“So, are you freshmen?”
“Yeah. What year are you?” Anne asked.
“Sophomores,” his friend answered.
“Cool. So are you an Alpha Omega then?” I asked.
“Yeah. I’m glad you girls decided to come by.”
“We wouldn’t have missed it.” Anne put a hand in the pocket of her dark, jean skirt.
“So what are your names?” the first guy started to ask.
“Allie? What are you doing here?” A brown haired boy wearing a collared shirt interrupted.
“Brandon? Wow, I forgot you went to Tulane.”
“You two know each other?” the second guy asked, looking between us.
“We went to the same high school,” Brandon explained. He looked completely different from the last time I’d seen him. He’d always been a little on the nerdy side—people had been surprised when he decided to go to school in New Orleans. “I didn’t know anyone from your class was coming here.”
“Yeah, this was last minute.”
“Cool, cool. We’ll definitely have to catch up.”
I nodded. It was fun to see a familiar face. “Sure, that sounds good.”
“Oh Brandon, this is Hailey, Anne, and Tiffany.”
“Hi there.” He didn’t bother to introduce the guys who had been hitting on us.
I noticed Brandon checking out Anne. She didn’t seem to mind it.
“It’s a small world, isn’t it?” One of the mystery guys asked.
“Definitely.”
“I’m David, by the way.” He held out his hand, and I accepted the handshake. “Do you need more to drink?” He looked into my nearly empty cup.
“Yeah, but make sure it’s the same stuff.”
He laughed. “There’s nothing in the other punch. I promise.”
Before I could respond, the guy from out front was whispering in his ear.
David paled. “Uh, sorry. I had no idea who you were.” He backed away.
“Who I am?” I looked at Hailey for an explanation.
Hailey shook her head, and I knew this all had something to do with Levi.
I turned back to tell David not to worry but he was gone, as were his friends. Only Brandon remained.
“That was weird…” Tiffany trailed off.
“Weird isn’t the right word,” Hailey said bitterly. “Allie, I think we need to have a chat with my brother and his friends.”
“I was thinking the same thing.” Levi had no right to interfere with my life like that.
“Can we come?” Anne asked.
Hailey and I looked at each other. She shrugged. “Sure, why not.”