All But One

Chapter 10

I arrive at Ruby's house after a short drive. I park in her driveway and walk up to the front door. Before I can call her to open the door, the door swings open.

"About time you showed up." She says.

"You know I need time and preparation to get my parents to let me out of the house." I laugh, walking in.

She laughs as she begins to walk up to her room. I follow her up, running my fingers along the familiar dark wooden railing.

Upon walking into her room, I notice that the decor hasn't changed from the last time I was over. Her walls display her artwork and various awards from writing contests. Everything is arranged in a way that makes the room itself look like art. Her bed is covered in deep crimson bed sheets and pillows. The wall behind the headboard is painted a crimson to match the sheets; on top of the red are roses painted in gold by Ruby herself. I remember the day she moved here. She invited me over and I helped her hang up her first few awards. Her collection has grown greatly since then.

"Roxanne!" Ruby yells, pulling me out of my thoughts.

I realize that she has laid out two outfits. One is a simple little black dress with a v-neck and no sleeves. The other is a black, long sleeve, lace-up body suit and a red leather mini skirt.

"Which one should I wear?" She asks.

"I like them both. But, I'm leaning towards the bodysuit and red skirt because I can make a ton of corny jokes about it." I admit. "You should try them on."

"You're a clown." She rolls her eyes.

She tries on the black dress while I unpack my duffel. I lay out the royal purple skater skirt and black long sleeve shirt I brought. I wanted to keep it casual since it's just a house party. I turn to Ruby, who has the black dress on.

"It's cute." I say.

"Next." She responds simply. She begins to change into the second outfit. I follow suit and start putting on my outfit.

Once we're both dressed we evaluate each other.

"Damn mami. You look good." I announce. "I love this outfit. The lace up! The leather! The red! Yes!"

Ruby grins widely and spins in front of the mirror.

"You look bomb as fuck in that. How did you manage to make a simple shirt and skirt look that good?" Ruby comments.

"Magic." I wink playfully.

"What should I do for makeup?" Ruby asks, already looking through her makeup bag.

"Keep it simple so your skirt stands out."

After we both finish applying make up, I slide on some black knee high boots and Ruby slides on hers. We finish up and head out to my car.

Ruby turns on the radio as I start heading towards Damien's house. An upbeat pop song starts blasting through the speakers. Ruby and I both start singing the lyrics. I'm belting out the chorus when Ruby abruptly stops.

"Thanks for supporting me, pal." I tease.

"Rox... look!" She blurts out, pointing to the scene outside her window.

I slow down at the yellow light and look out her window. I see an argument taking place outside of an apartment building. A middle aged man appears to be yelling at a younger man.

"Ruby, I don't care. People argue all the time." I say, turning my attention back to the road. The light turns green and I start driving away.

"I'm pretty sure that was Hakeem, though." Ruby says, craning her neck to look at the scene behind us.

"So what if it was?" I shrug. "I'm here to have fun, not talk about that a**hole."

Ruby sighs heavily, but doesn't comment. I try to push him to the back of my mind as I pull up to Damien's house. I park the car in the first available spot. Ruby calls Damien to let him know we are outside.

As we walk up to the door, I hear the beat of the music. The house appears harmless from outside; but, the subtle pulsing from the noise inside raises suspicion.

Before we even reach the door, it flies open. Damien greets us.

"You came!" He exclaims, giving me a hug.

"Yup." I laugh.

I look around. There are quite a few familiar faces. A couple say hi to me while Damien takes our coats.

"I'm going to put these in my room so they're safe." Damien says.

I agree.

"Let's go get some drinks." Ruby grins, pulling me towards the kitchen.

My eyes widen at the variety of alcohol that's laid out on the counter. My parents don't ever have more than a bottle of wine at home.

"Do you want a drink or a drink?" Ruby asks with a mischievous smirk.

"I probably should start with a drink but, whatever, give me a drink." I respond.

She grins in response. I watch her add various liquids into two cups. She pours some soda into her concoction before handing me a cup. I raise it to my lips and am immediately put off by the strong smell.

"C'mon, try it." Ruby says, but I notice she hasn't tasted hers yet.

"I'll try it if you try it." I say.

"Okay." She shrugs, taking a sip. "Yum. Your turn."

I slowly raise it to my mouth. "If I die, it'll be all your fault." I say before taking a tiny sip.

"Ooo, it tastes like strawberries!" I exclaim, tipping it back once more. Unfortunately, I was overzealous and took a huge gulp. It burned all the way down my throat. A grimace forms on my face as Ruby laughs at me.

"Don't hurt yourself." She says between breaths.

I recover while she continues to laugh her a** off.

"Let's go dance." I decide, feeling a light buzz. I take another, more reasonable, sip as Ruby and I walk out to the living room.

All the furniture has been rearranged to create a space for dancing. There are already many people dancing to the music with their signature red cups in hand. Ruby and I join the moving bodies and begin to sway to the beat.

Ruby and I are dancing when a pair of arms wrap around my waist. I find myself leaning into the unknown guy. The sweet buzz of Ruby's drink moving my hips in sync with his. He leans into my ear and invites me to go upstairs with him. I giggle in response, trying to pull away. He laughs and loosens, allowing me to turn to face him.

Reality hits me like a bucket of cold water as I realize who I was just grinding against.