Inevitable and Only(70)

Elizabeth spun around to face me, her eyes wide. “A party? Without Ross and Melissa here? They were okay with that?”

I squirmed. “It kind of happened without—I didn’t mean to invite—well, Mom and Dad don’t know.”

She studied my face for a minute. Then she shrugged. “Fine. Whatever. I’ll probably just stay up here and clean.”

I let out my breath. “Sure, that’s fine. If you want. I mean, or feel free to hang out downstairs if you want to.”

She nodded, then started folding and sorting the clothes in the heap on her bed.

I sat there for another moment or two, but she didn’t look at me or say anything else. So I got up and stuffed a few things into my overnight bag, then changed into a pair of leggings and my unicorn hoodie dress. It made my curves look good—not too wide, not too jiggly—plus it was good luck. And I was going to need all the luck I could get tonight.

Then I went downstairs to cast-party-proof the house.

Micayla and Heron pulled up in Micayla’s car, with Raven and Max in the back seat. “We’re here early to help you set up!” said Raven, jumping out of the car and hefting two enormous shopping bags of what looked like chips, salsa, and soda bottles out of the trunk. Max followed her and grabbed two more bags. Heron and Micayla had also brought bags of food plus paper plates and red plastic Solo cups.

Great. I was having a Solo-cup party.

And then Sam Shotwell arrived, with Rina, Tori, Kieri, Priya, and an armload of six-packs. Yes, the kind with beer in them. Troy and Davis followed, bearing a bottle of vodka each, and before I knew it there was a full-scale party under way. People were draped over the couches, perched on the kitchen counter, leaning against all the walls. Someone, probably Troy or Davis, had set up a portable speaker in the living room and music was blasting. I heard voices from the basement, so I knew the party had spilled downstairs, too. Where had all these kids come from? Someone must have invited non–cast members. It seemed like every time I turned around, I saw someone new.

Sam Shotwell had set up a beer pong game on the coffee table, and a couple guys I didn’t recognize were playing. How had I ever thought Sam was cute? He was such an oaf.

I jumped at the sound of something going crash and hurried toward the kitchen.

“Relax, a cooler got knocked over,” said Micayla, coming up behind me. “It was empty. No one’s broken anything yet.” She held out a plate of chips and salsa. “Hungry?”

I took a chip. “Not really.”

“Aww, come on,” she said. “Have a little fun. It’s your party, after all.”

“I just want everyone to leave before something horrible happens …”

“Here.” She shoved a Solo cup under my nose.

I took it, suspiciously. “What’s in this?”

She tsked at me. “Hey, have a little faith. It’s a root beer float. I brought three quarts of vanilla, chocolate, and mocha swirl from the Charmery.”

“I love you,” I said, glugging it.

“Okay, I’m going to hang out with Troy for a bit, see if he’s as boring as the last time I actually talked to him.”

“Ha,” I said.

Micayla sighed. “Go try and have some fun. For real. I’ve got a plan—I’m hiding the beer can by can, when no one’s looking, stashing it all under the kitchen sink. Bet I can dry this crowd out of here in an hour. Ninety minutes tops.”

“Godspeed,” I said, and drifted out onto the back porch.

Someone was already there. He turned at the sound of the door shutting behind me, and I was surprised to see that it was Zephyr.

“Hey,” I said. “Fancy finding you out here.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” It was almost dark, but I could see him smiling in the light spilling from the kitchen window.

“Just—you don’t seem like the social type.”

He shrugged. “Depends who the company is, I guess.”

“Oh, so you’re a snob? Is that what you’re saying?”

He laughed. “It’s okay to drop the whole Beatrice thing now, you know.”

Somehow I didn’t feel like laughing. “Yeah. I wish …” I trailed off, not sure how to finish the sentence.

“Hmm?” he prompted. “Wish what?”

I sighed. “That it wasn’t over.”

He didn’t say anything, so I went on. “It all went by so quick, you know? Feels like the auditions were just yesterday.”

“I know,” he said.

I went to the porch railing and leaned my elbows on it, looked up at the sky. A phrase came into my head. “Inevitable and only.”

“What?” Zephyr leaned closer to me.

“That thing Robin’s always telling us—oh my god, I mean, your dad—Robin, your dad.” I laughed a little. “That’s still so weird. It’s amazing. And it seems, I don’t know, right. But also very, very weird.” I almost felt like I was drunk, too, even though all I’d had was Micayla’s root beer float. It was a mixture of the chilly woodsmoke-scented air and the warmth of Zephyr standing so close to me I could feel his body heat. And it was all the feelings tumbling around inside me—feelings about Dad’s note, about the play being over, about Elizabeth. Words were tumbling out, and I was too tired to try to stop them.