Into the Light

89 Anna's POV

"Like Spongebob," Tara said loudly, raising her bottle in the air. "Who or what is a Spongebob?" I asked. Why would anyone's name start with Sponge? "YOU DON'T KNOW WHO SPONGEBOB IS?" she practically screamed. "Oh boy, here we go," Cassie said, under her breath. "It's only the most amazing cartoon ever made!" Tara exclaimed. "How can you not know what who Spongebob is? I know you've been sheltered but actually? That should be considered abuse." "Okay, wow," I said, laughing at her overreaction. "Oh, I'm a goofy goober, yeah! You're a goofy goober, yeah! We're all goofy goobers, yeah!" she sang out, raising her bottle to the ceiling. The other girls joined in, then stood to dance to their silly words. Devyn reached over and pulled me to my feet. She held onto my hands and started pushing and pulling so that we were doing some weird dance together. I couldn't stop laughing. It reminded me of the silly times that I used to have with Holley. When we stopped, everyone was laughing. I plopped back down onto the bed, and tried to catch my breath. "SO, I guess we really need to update your pop culture knowledge," Tara said, before taking a long swallow from her drink. "And teach you how to do your makeup, if you want," Devyn replied. "Maybe try a different fashion style," Xepher said, smirking at me. I laughed and shook my head. "I don't think I can pull off your style Xepher." She shrugged. "You'll never know, if you don't try. Hasn't your boyfriend taught his slogan yet? Take Chances baby!" "His slogan?" I asked. I took another swallow from my drink, then noticed it was empty. "Yeah, it's like his brand. He has clothes marketed with that slogan on it," she replied. "Like this," Tara said, holding out her shirt so that I could read it. "It says Yummy on it. That's part of my brand." "You guys have your own clothing lines?" I breathed out, amazed. She shrugged. Cassie held out another bottle to me, so I took it and opened it. I liked hearing the air escape from the fizzy drink. "Yeah, I guess so. I mean, it's through a company called FanJoy but yeah." "That's so dope," I replied. Tara giggled. "Yeah, it's pretty dope." Cassie passed Devyn a little tray with what looked like cigars on it, along with a little tin container. "Roll us up one," she said. "I'll be right back. Gonna grab a few more drinks. We're running low." "That's because these things don't do anythiiiing," Tara groaned. "We're not trying to get fucked up, Tara," Cassie laughed out. "Just get a buzz." "Speak for yourself," she muttered. Everyone was quiet for a minute, in their own little world. My mind drifted to Colby, like it usually does. I wondered if I could aske them about sex. I definitely wasn't skilled in anything remotely close to it, but I didn't know if I was comfortable enough to talk about it either. That was another thing that I had missed out on, before I turned into a ghost. I was still very strong in my faith and beliefs, but I still thought about it. Maybe there were other things that I could do, without letting go of that completely. Holley and I had talked about a few things but, at the time, neither of us were very skilled in it. She had sex with Kris one time, and told me that it was awkward but very sweet. It was just that. Sex. Not really any foreplay except kissing and stuff. Jesus, I really was innocent and unlearned. I wanted to move forward with Colby, in our physical relationship, but I wasn't ready to go all the way. I wasn't sure if things would change, but for now, I still wanted to wait until marriage. I loved Colby with my entire being, but what if something changed? What if we drifted apart or he just didn't feel as strongly for me, as I did him? What if we didn't last? I didn't want to give myself to someone, if it wasn't going to be forever. "So, Anna," Xepher said, looking up from her phone. "Yeah?" I replied. This drink really was good. How was this bottle empty already? Cassie came back in then, with an entire case of the fruity drinks. There were like 4 different flavors and I wanted to try them all. She saw me eying them and smiled. "Help yourself," she replied and set the box on the floor. Tara jumped up and went straight for it. "Oh, they're cold. Thank God," she moaned, pulling out a couple of bottles. "Here," she said, holding a bright pink one out to me. "Jamaican Me Happy," I read aloud. "Ooo, that one is so good," Xepher said. I twisted the cap off and took a swallow. Strawberry and lemon, mixed with something else exploded on my tongue. "This might be my favorite," I said, then turned the bottle up again. I didn't really feel much, except maybe a little more energetic. "You guys," Tara said, sitting forwards in her chair. "I was with Jake last night, and he did something new. It was mind blowing!" "Ooo, do tell," Devyn said, before she licked the end of the brown cigar paper that was rolled up in her  hands. Tara then went into details that had me blushing, just thinking about it. I didn't know that she was going to be talking about sex, so it shocked me when she really went in about what she and Jake had done. I kept my head down, but my ears were fully open, eager to hear every detail. "What's up, Anna?" Cassie asked. "You okay?" I looked up and met her gaze, knowing that my face was on fire. "Oh...sorry, Anna," Tara said. She knew that I was a virgin but the other girls didn't. "It's okay," I replied. "I don't mind hearing about it. It's...interesting." I felt my face grow even hotter. How had it not just burst into flames yet? "Hearing about what?" Xepher asked. "Sex?" Tara opened her mouth, but then looked at me and shut it. It was my information to tell, if  I chose to do so. I took another deep swallow from my bottle and cleared my throat. "Yeah, sex," I sighed. "I'm a virgin. By choice. I just want to wait until I'm married and going to stay with my soulmate forever." "Oh my God, that is the cutest thing," Cassie gushed, making my face flame up again.