Breaking Her Rules

Chapter 21

School is out for the winter break, and one of the Prisley girls is having a party to celebrate. Her parents have gone skiing in New Zealand, leaving her huge house empty, and she's invited all grade eleven and twelve Hilverton students along to trash the place.

I'm sitting in the Langley's kitchen, trying to convince Violet to come with us. Unlike her brother, who is a party animal at heart, Violet is quiet and shy and doesn't want to come to the party. While I'm wearing a bandage-tight red dress, a black jacket and heels, Violet is wearing sweat pants and an oversized Two Soap Dolls band shirt.

She's not budging on her argument. 'I'm perfectly happy being alone on a Saturday night,' she says. 'I'm going to do a Gilmore Girls marathon.'

I sigh. 'You're beyond help, Vi. This party is going to be amazing, and you're missing out.'

Watson walks into the kitchen, wearing dark jeans and a Two Soap Dolls band shirt. He gives Violet a look and she stares back at him.

'We're wearing the same shirt,' Watson says dumbly.

I look between the siblings and laugh.

'I'll change,' Watson says. 'When did you even get that shirt?' he calls out as he walks back into his bedroom.

'I bought it online!' Violet yells back.

'Copy cat!' Watson yells.

'By the way, I'm glad you and Watson are on speaking terms again,' Violet says quietly. 'I missed having you around the house.'

'Yeah, I'm glad too,' I say.

Watson returns to the kitchen wearing a plain white t-shirt. He raises his eyebrows at the two of us, and gestures to his shirt. Violet and I nod our approval.

'Right,' Watson says. 'Grab your crap out of my room, Emmy, and let's go.'

'Later, guys,' Violet says. The kettle boils and Violet pours water into a teacup.

As we're walking to the party we meet up with Julian and Harrison outside Julian's house. Julian is leaning limply against his front gate, taking lazy draws from a rolled cigarette.

When we get to the party, a couple of streets over, we follow the noise down the driveway and into the backyard where we find a mass of Hilverton students. There's a gazebo in the centre of the yard, where the speaker system is set up. Fire torches line the fences and the whole yard is decorated with blue and grey balloons with snarling wolf faces drawn onto them.

I notice Julian is staring at a group of year elevens. I can see Julian's little brother Findlay sitting with his friends, with his arm around his girlfriend Lexington.

Julian notices me staring at him and he rolls his eyes. 'Can I talk to you for a bit?' He finishes his drink off and drops the cup back onto the table.

I stand up and follow him away from the group. The two of us go inside and sit down in an empty hallway. The bass of the music is thudding through the house. Julian puts his feet out in front of him and leans against the wall. I sit cross-legged across from him, trying not to flash him in my short dress.

'What's up, Jules?' I ask. He's wearing a torn and crumbled cargo jacket, which holds the smell of smoke and mixes with the smell of rum on his breath.

Julian groans and leans back.

I raise my eyebrows, waiting for him to explain, and he shrugs.

'It's just stupid family shit. I'm jealous of my little brother. He's fifteen and he's got it fucking sorted. He's super popular, he's got the hottest girlfriend and he still manages to do well in school. Meanwhile there's me, flunking everything except art and doomed to work minimum wage for the rest of my life, and I've never even gone further than making out with a girl at a party. And meanwhile Mum is acting weird because now we know that she was dating George in the eighties. And she doesn't like the idea of Findlay dating Lex, but I think she's just taking out the George thing on him. I shouldn't be letting it bother me. But I just get this feeling Mum never really forgot about George. What if she wishes she never got with my dad? What if she wishes she'd stayed with George? Do you reckon she regrets having me and Findlay, and Ana?'