I take a deep breath. This is it.
In and out was the main focus. Have some fun, make sure Carly wasn't entirely drunk enough not to get home on her own then rush home myself, sneak in through my window and pretend as if I had been asleep the entire time.
Instead, I was stuck being hauled around like a doll at the whim of a child despite the fact Carly was nowhere near the age of five though sometimes I found myself questioning whether or not she was.
"Where are you taking me?" I had asked at one point, growing tired of walking.
"Places," was all she said before she pulled me over to the other side of the party. I found myself glancing in every direction looking for him.
I had yet to discover the truth behind his tale and though part of my conscience, you know the idea of an angel standing on one side of your shoulder, tried to convince me that I'd be better off knowing nothing at all, the devil on the other side pressed the idea that I should be cautious enough to know something at least.
Snatching my hand from Carly's, I waited as she turned around. "I need to breathe Carly," I confessed. "I came here to have fun and if all we're going to do is run away from every group at this party then I'm going home."
Tucking a strand of hair behind her ear, Carly let out a nervous chuckle. "Sorry," her cheeks reddened. "I didn't notice I was being too pushy,"
"It's not that you were being pushy. . ." I began before cutting myself short, finding another way to restate that sentence. "It's just that ever since he spoke to me, you've been acting weird and it's annoying."
"I'm sorry," she apologized again. "I just know enough to know that he's bad news," she tried to sound convincing, and I appreciate her trying to protect me, but there wasn't much to save me from.
"Carly, not everyone tells the truth. People overexaggerate all the time. It's what the people around here live for. You can't believe everything you hear just because someone swears they're not lying. You, especially, should know that first hand."
She gave me a look, but she knew I was right.
Back in the ninth grade, a guy in our class, Danny Jergins, began a rumor that Carly slept with him just because she turned him down. From there it escalated and she was crushed.
It killed her inside because everyone believed it. Carly was known for enjoying herself, but she was always careful.
However, once people saw you a certain way, there's no changing their mind, and Carly had to deal with the consequences of someone else's spite.
"That's different," she reasoned.
"How?" I inquired rather sharply, disapproving of her ignorance. "Name one way on how it's different," I gestured openly towards her, "go ahead."
"Kelsey,"
"It doesn't matter who started it, Carly, the truth still remains the same; no one knows anything. The only person who does is him and when he admits it himself, then it's true. Until then, everything you hear is fake."
"Fine, but don't say I didn't warn you." She sighed with a defeated glance in my direction before linking our arms together and disappearing back into the crowd of people I didn't think I'd get the chance of seeing again.
Usually, I was never the one to bend the rules, but I was finally free and it was about time I started enjoying myself. Opening myself another can of beer, I began drinking it, laughing along with everybody.
