The Realm Next Door

Chapter 7-"Break The Barrier, Pt2"

At 7pm, me and Kayla got a cab to the house. The moment I saw groups of people hanging out on the pavement, excitement thumped my heart, but I saw Kayla next to me, turning all different colors. She seriously didn't look well, the anxiety may have gotten to her, so I held her shoulder, smiling to ease her. The moment the cab stopped outside the house, it was time, so I thanked the driver and we got out. The moment we got out, we were approached by an excited group of girls. I knew them. Mia, Julie, Freida, Vivianna, Casey. All popular figures. They were well dressed and pretty. 

How could I compete with them?

Internally, I was panicking, but outwardly, I was grinning, just like Karla was. Naturally, they moved towards her, hugging her. But then they looked at me, looking me up and down, looking slightly confused. 

"Wow, I never thought I'd see the day Kayla would party," Julie said. She stepped forward, holding my shoulder, grinning. "I'm glad you're coming out of your shell, welcome to the party."

I trembled, scratching my head. 

"Uh…y-yeah, thanks," I said.

"Let's have some fun," Freida said, holding out her hand. "Come on, let's go."

The moment I took her hand, I was ripped from Karla's side, directed into the house, where she let go of my hand, letting me absorb the chaotic atmosphere.

The upbeat music made me feel dizzy, the indistinct chatter made my stomach churn, and the crowds of people made me shudder.

What the hell? I thought.

So many people, I couldn't believe it. I had no idea how I would survive there for the rest of the night. I looked to my right, and Freida was gone. How dare she leave me in such a place. Whilst I stood there, dazed, staring into space, a hand held my shoulder, snapping me out of my daze. I looked up, meeting the dark brown eyes of a guy named Jason. Jason was never seen without a grin on his face, and at that moment, his grin eased my worry. To be honest, Jason was a cool guy. In high school, he was always nice to me, despite his friends who were jerks to everyone. The reason I respected Jason so highly was because he was himself.

He even had a gap in his tooth which was his most distinctive feature. He had lost a tooth in a fight and was proud, I would be embarrassed to walk around like that.

"Hey," he said. "It's been a long time, right?"

"Yeah," I said. "Um…how have you been?"

Jason looked around, then looked at me again.

"Kayla, let's go somewhere else and speak, it's far too loud here."

"Sure."

I followed him into the garden, which was surprisingly massive for just a two storey house. I didn't think Nicholas had so much money. The garden was well-lit, with small lights hanging over the hedge. Me and Jason headed to the back of the garden, sitting near the tree, on a table that had a bottle of red wine on it. Next to it were plastic cups stacked into each other. How tempting.

I averted my eyes away from that and focused on Jason.

"I didn't expect to see you here," Jason said. "You a party animal now?"

I giggled, shaking my head. 

"No, no, not at all, I'm still the boring book girl you knew me as."

"Boring? You're not boring at all." He looked me up and down, wide eyed and unblinking. "Wow, you say that you're the same girl I knew you as but look at you, you're not wearing hoodies for once, you're wearing a whole dress and cardigan."