Girls Don't Know Jack

Party Crashers

♫ Don't Start Now - Dua Lipa

The four of us pile out of Jack's Toyota Corolla. Normally, I wouldn't say it's a sexy car—but it's Jack Moody's, so suddenly, an old Toyota Corolla is the sexiest car on the block.

Parked on the side street amongst a row of other vehicles, we follow the crowd, all heading towards the same place.

Emma McKinney's. Her monster of a house comes into view, illuminated by the street lights. Tall hedges, sleek brown brick, floor to ceiling windows and a giant oak door greet me.

It makes my two-story suburban home look like a shit-hole.

Joining a gaggle of teens I don't even recognize, my friends and I approach the front door with Jack.

It swings open, revealing Emma McKinney, her bleach blonde hair sleek and straightened. She flashes a smile, showing off her perfectly white teeth; it comes dropping to a halt once she sees me.

"Molly?" she says turning up her pointed nose. "What are you doing here?"

"I came with Jack," I tell her with a smug smile turning to the boy to my right. Emma narrows her eyes at me, but then Jack butts in.

"Hey, Emma," he mumbles brushing past her to enter the home. The girl whips her head to glare at me one last time and I half expect her to call the authorities right then and there—have me and my friends escorted off the premises.

But to my surprise, she turns around bouncing off into the house after Jack Moody.

Taking that as my cue, I link arms with Naila and Jade as we enter the unknown world of teenage house parties.

It's my first real house party—aside from a couple of birthday parties in Sarah Johnson's basement in junior high, but I'm not sure those really count. There weren't any boys there aside from her brothers, after all.

The inside of this place is even grander than the outside. Tall ceilings and an elegant chandelier center the large room. Sleek black and white tiled floor inside the foyer. Music thumps throughout the area, pairing with the hum of senseless chatter from the crowd of sweaty bodies.

There's more teenage boys here than I've ever seen in real life. How does Emma know this many people?

Is it possible she's just as popular outside the halls of Wilcrest too? Of course she is, I think to myself rolling my eyes with discontent.

"Oh my god, there's drinks!" Naila shouts, pulling me closer to her so I can hear over the loud music. Following her gaze towards the kitchen, I see bodies surrounding a large island scattered with red solo cups and liquor bottles.

"Let's go," I say pulling my friends towards the action. My eyes scan over half drank bottles, reading the labels like they're a foreign language.

I twist a cap off of one with a golden colored liquid inside and give it a sniff—nauseating. I put that one back and try another in a decorative glass bottle. Yuck. How does anyone stomach this stuff?

"Oh, what about this?" Naila sings plucking up a small glass bottle with foggy white liquid which reads: Smirnoff Ice.

With a shrug, I snatch it twisting off the cap. It smells sweet. I take a swig. The carbonated bubbles burn my throat as I swallow down the intoxicating liquid.

My eyes widen as I pass it to Naila. "Yum. Try!"

She smiles wide at me and takes a tiny sip. "That's so good. Here, Jade, you try!"

Jade wrinkles her nose at us with a grimace before shaking her head. "No, I'm good."

"Party pooper," I tease taking the glass bottle from Naila to down some more. Jade rolls her eyes and turns around, disappearing into the crowd. I shout over to her, "Well, whatever. We're going to get drunk!"