(Song of the chapter: 'Let's Get Crazy' - Hannah Montana)

RHYS

"Anything?"

I could feel Reggie shaking his head on the other side of the line. "Nothing on my side, little dude."

I ground my teeth, trying to stifle my frustration. "Keep searching," I instructed. "Text me when any of you find something. And make sure not to alarm any of the guests."

I cut the call, slowly blowing out a breath. This could be a bad, really bad situation. I couldn't pause even for a moment, I had to keep searching.

My sister, for some reason, had decided to buy a mega-mansion out in the middle of fucking nowhere. I, of course, was not about to tell her what to do with her hard-earned money, but this place was filled with way too many rooms that didn't really seem to serve much of a purpose.

She probably derived some form of comfort in sticking with the kind of home she'd been raised in, but her nostalgic sentiments were actively working against me right now.

I kicked open another door that opened into a room which was nearly bare except for a Twister mat on the floor. Two people were in there, laughing raucously. They were also nude, and seemed, for all intents and purposes, really involved in the game. They didn't even look up when the door opened.

I shut the door in disgust. Riley was going to need to tip the cleaning service, or whatever she was planning on using to get her home back into some semblance of order, very generously after this party.

Now, if I was a psychotic and possibly sadistic mob member, where would I hide?

When I'd gotten the text, at first I couldn't believe it. Some sick son-of-a-bitch was actually planning to 'stop by' my sister's house tonight, either just to torment me or for some other nefarious reason.

Black had tipped me off about his plans, which was another thing I now owed the bastard for. My list of debts were really starting to pile up.

Finally, a few minutes later I found him. In hindsight, it was quite obvious that this was the first place I should have checked. His gang wanted money, so he'd go where the most valuables were collected.

I fired off a quick text then pushed against the door. It was already partly-open and widened softly at my touch, keeping him oblivious to my entrance. I leaned against the doorframe, effectively blocking the only exit.

"See something you like?"

He turned around, letting go of the priceless mink vase my sister had placed on a pedestal in the center of the vast room. A smirk crossed his face once he saw me.

"See it for yourself." He adopted a posture of fake nonchalance, leaning against the nearest display with his hands placed loosely at his sides. He shrugged his shoulders, the very picture of innocence.

"Here and there I see a new exquisite thing. All very expensive," he noted, his voice gravelly.

He was right. The room was filled with various different collectibles and precious objects. Aside from the vase, there were also paintings from artists that were worth a fortune, rows of necklaces littered with glittering gems lining the fake busts on the wall, and even a jade-green saber with golden engravings written in a foreign language. It was... quite pretty to look at, I guess.

Some of them were stuff she'd purchased from whichever city in the world she'd flown off to that week. The rest, however, had been gifts from famous friends or other connections. Everybody liked Riley.

And now this scumbag was eyeing her belongings like he couldn't decide which to make off with first. I made a mental note to get Riley to put more security up here.

He eyed the vase again.

"What happens if I take that?" He asked. "It's not like it will be missed. There are many more expensive vases in this house."

His eyes glinted maliciously. "It might even help to pay off some of your debt to us."

I stared coldly at him for a moment. Then I stuck out my foot and abruptly kicked the door shut behind me.

"You're not gonna do that." I crossed my arms, keeping my eyes locked on his. "You people are the ones who keep telling me that you have a protocol, a particular system of doing things. My business with you would have concluded a long time ago if your boss didn't keep postponing the date for the drop-off. And I can't do shit about that. But neither can you."

I interrupted before he could speak again. "You know, I get why you're here." I smiled humorlessly. "You want to prove to me that you know who I am, who my family is. That you can find where they live and break in, just like this."

My words came out cool and detached, like I was describing a situation belonging to someone else. Inside, however, I was boiling with rage. I wanted to reach over and grab him so hard by the neck that he would immediately cease to exist. I wanted to call Reggie up here and have him pump the guy full of bullets.

But I just calmly stood there, like I had talks about threats to my family every day, and let the guy before me keep breathing.

Yeah, this was good. This was how I normally handled my emotions. By handling them – reining them in and keeping them so tied down that no one ever saw them, especially if they were useless to me. The only instances where I seemed unable to control my reactions were around her – but no. NO. I cannot be thinking about her right now.

I ditched my train of thought and turned my attention back to the lackey sent by the mob.

"So you know my family name, and you know we have money. Congratulations." My voice was dry.

"That means that you and your boss both know that I can and will settle the debt I owe. And soon. However..."

I stood straighter, adding more than a few inches to my height.

"Another thing you should know is that the reason I'm standing here unarmed right now isn't because I'm stupid enough to give you the option of killing me. It's because a huge chunk of the family money you see goes toward security, and I've got the best that money can buy posted all around this house. Right now, there's a sniper lens pointed at the back of your head."

He turned, startled, towards the only window in the room. Indeed, a faint red light could be seen some distance away.

"You're gonna walk out of this room, peacefully," I instructed. "I am going to let you walk out of this room. If you try anything, even lift a pinky finger that looks funny towards me or anybody else in this house, they'll put a bullet through your eye before you realize what happened."

He was sweating now. Good.

I pushed off the door and stepped closer, letting him get a good look at the emotionless in my eyes and understand I would feel no hesitation about carrying out my threats.

"Carry this message back to your other halfwits: Your business is with me. Not my family, not anyone else. And my business with you people ends tomorrow. You'll get your money by then. And if I ever see you again, around me or anybody else I know..."

My eyes hardened and I saw his face pale.

"You're gonna wish you died tonight."

AVALON

Everything looked so bright and shiny.

The room glittered, everyone around me was smiley, and there was a unicorn pooping diamonds in the corner. All was right with the world.

It doesn't get much better than this, I thought, knocking back my next drink.

"Hey Avalon, you doing alright?" Jasper was standing about a foot away, but the music was so loud now that we had to yell.

I bobbed my head, matching the beat of the song currently playing. "Yeah, I'm fine!"

If you know your pussy worth a Benz truck (Rich sex)
Don't let homie fuck unless his bands up (Rich sex), Nicki Minaj rapped. I related to that on a spiritual level.

"Aren't you guys having, like, the best time?"

Brandon and Jasper exchanged glances and grinned. "Yeah!"

"Woo-hoo!" I punched a fist in the air, then danced away from both them and my new friends to find Archer sitting perched on a corner of the table.

"Hey, are you even having fun?" I asked him.

He grinned and passed me another cup. "Are you kidding? Watching you get wasted is the most fun I've had in a while."

I frowned. "Why aren't you getting drunk with me?" I asked, punching his arm.

"You're not still hung up over Riley are you? Cause that's all the more reason to be drinking!"

I initiated the mind-link, trying to access his recent memories. He blocked me before I could get far.

"Stay out of my head." He took my cup and drained the remaining contents.

"I'm still drinking with you, but I'm more used to the alcohol. Besides, one of us needs a fully functioning brain between us," he said, eyeing me meaningfully.

Oh, right, my lack of inhibition might let Vixen slip out of a little, but I didn't want to worry about that. Besides, I didn't have to now that I knew Archer was actively looking out for me.

"Great idea!" I beamed at him. "You're so smart! Sometimes I forget that you're so smart."

His lip twitched. "You do realize that were currently at a Yale party? You know, the Ivy League school? That I go to?"

I stuck my tongue out at him. "Oh don't be so full of yourself."

I got tired of dancing in place and sat beside him on the table. He wrapped his arm around my shoulder and I leaned against him to catch my breath.

The music soon ground to a halt.

"People, people!" Some guy got up on a chair and waved down the crowd when they started to complain. "May I have your attention, please!"

All eyes turned towards him. He cleared his throat. "Alright, it's time to spice things up a little," he said, clasping his hands together.

He had a loud voice that carried over the large living space. Some people even started trailing down the stairs to see what was happening.

"The party's starting to drag, and it's getting a little boring. We can't have that! Riley would kill us."

Laughter broke out in the room. My brother's hands halted in stroking my hair as he let out a quiet chuckle himself.

"Okay, so here's what we're gonna do. We're gonna play a little game." My ears perked up at the word 'game'. Ooh, another fun little exercise for me to win! This was gonna be awesome.

"It's gonna be our very own version of 'Drop The Mic'. Now, it's not gonna some epic rap battle where you try to diss your opponent to death because a lot of you are drunk and your brains can't handle that. Think more along the lines of Pitch Perfect."

A blue screen came to life behind his profile. The words 'Friday Night with Riley 😘' appeared on the screen, then burst into a shower of confetti. They were replaced by three horizontal bars with a different label over each: Quiz, Artist and Hits.

"So what's gonna happen is the Quiz bar is gonna spin until it lands on a trivia question, and from your answer you'll be given a song to perform that matches both artist and answer. You have to do at least a full minute of the song, in order, without choking. This is also a test of memory, so only drunk candidates allowed. By the end, we're gonna find the person who can spit the best. Now who's in?"

A few hands went up around the room, but I didn't pay attention to any of them. Puh-lease. I already had this in the bag. They just didn't know it yet.

I insistently poked at my brother's arm.

"I can spit," I told him when he focused on me. I wasn't really sure what spitting had to do with the proposed song competition, but I was determined to show off my superiority.

I took a large gulp of spiked lemonade and puckered my lips, ready to projectile spew it across the room.

Archer put a hand on my mouth. "I'm sure they mean rap, Avalon, not actually spit," he told me, lip twitching.

I blinked owlishly at him from the part of my face that wasn't concealed, then swallowed noisily.

"I can defffiinitely spit then."

Was I slurring my words? No, that wouldn't do. I willed my body to burn my new calories quickly.

"Are you sure?" He asked with a tilt of his head. I bobbed my head up and down, proud when I didn't feel disoriented.

"I'm sure. Let me get up there."

"Okay. Whatever you say."

Some huge tables had been pushed together to make a stage. Archer raised his hand, signalling the dude in charge.

"We have another volunteer!"

The guy turned to us. "Come on over here."

I detached from my brother and quickly sped over. He crouched over the side of the stage to speak to me.

"What's your name, beautiful?" He winked. I giggled.

"I-I don't really remember. Like, at all." I found that pretty funny, which made me laugh harder.

His eyes twinkled with mirth. "Okay then, what name do you want me to use when I call for you? It could be anything. Even your phone number- if you want."

I giggled again. Silly boy – if I told him I'd have to kill him. Didn't he know that?

"Ooh, one of my friends calls me Sunshine," I suddenly remembered. "You could use that."

"Alright then. Sunshine it is." He winked. I grinned in return then hurried back to my friends.

"Guys, I'm gonna spit!" I said excitedly.

"Seriously?" Jasper's smile lit up his entire face.

Brandon beckoned me closer. "You can do this," he encouraged. "You'll blow everybody out of the water."

"Damn right." Jasper put his hands on my shoulders and massaged, trying to work me up.

"These fools ain't got nothing on you," he bragged. "You've got the eye of the tiger – remember that."

"Eye of the tiger." I whispered the mantra as the game began.

Some candidates couldn't even get up on the stage. Others were so drunk they couldn't stand up straight and ended up mumbling half of their words. The crowd booed them. One person threw up, causing everyone to hoot with laughter. I was feeling pretty confident about myself until I got a good look at my first real competition.

A tall, skinny brown-skinned lad hopped onto the stage without stumbling. More than a few people applauded, and there were loud chants of "Justin! Go Justin!"

He smirked at his admirers, brushing back one of his locs to tuck it behind his ear. Girls audibly swooned beside me. Okay, so this guy had a fan club. I had one too– not a big deal if he can't get though his minute.

His Quiz was 'Multiple Billboard 100 hits at No 1.'

"That's easy," he answered pompously, "CardiB."

The Hits row rolled until it came to a stop on 'Bodak Yellow'.

"Ayy." He cleared his throat into the mic. "Cardi!" He squawked in an impersonation of the rapper. The crowd burst out into laughter.

The music began.

Said little bitch, you can't fuck with me
If you wanted to
These expensive, these is red bottoms
These is bloody shoes

His delivery was perfect. He was on par with the beat, and his flow was effortless, not that any of that was very hard to do with the song given.

"He got an easy one," Brandon voiced what I was thinking.

"Yeah," Jasper agreed over the cheering crowd. "You'll kill yours for sure, and you'll look better doing it."

I nodded, squaring my shoulders. "Yeah, I will." I was tough, and I was fierce. I was the eye of the tiger.

Archer slunk up beside me. "It's almost your turn," he said, sounding amused.

I looked at him with panic. "I have to pee!"

The next few seconds involved me running around the huge museum of a mansion trying to find an empty bathroom. Luckily for me, Archer helped me to clear one that two people were using to snort coke off of their iPhones. My generation was filled with imbeciles.

Archer was standing guard when I finished. "Are you nervous? Wanna back out?"

"No!" I shook my head vigorously. "Not winning is not an option."

"O-kay, then. Let's go."

We made it back just in time to hear my stage name being announced.

"Sunshine to the stage!" The game coordinator called.

Jasper and Brandon started whopping, and soon the frat boys and everybody else in my corner joined in. I hopped onto the stage and blew kisses at them.

"You know the rules, right?" The game coordinator brought me up to speed.

"After you get a Quiz, you have 10 seconds to name an artist that fits the bill. If you can't do that, you choke. If you don't know the lyrics of the song you get, you choke. If you stumble on the lyrics, you choke. If you don't make it to the minute mark, you choke. Your goal is not to choke."

"No choking. Got it." Some people in the crowd snickered. Juveniles.

"Okay then, you're all set." I looked at the screen as the Quiz bar started spinning. I bit my lip, crossing my fingers hopefully.

Slowly, it came to a stop. 'Rap Icon who inspired a whole generation' it read.

I beamed brightly. That one was a no-brainer.

"Nicki Minaj!" I answered before the countdown even reached 9.

Nicki's name now occupied the Artist bar. I inwardly whooped. Then it was the Hits bar's turn to spin. The crowd edged forward and watched breathlessly to see which of the Queen's songs I was gonna get.

It landed on 'Roman's Revenge'.

"Ooh!" The crowd collectively grimaced. Obviously they felt there was no way I could pull this off. Little did they know that Roman could have been my alter ego.

I was born for this moment. So I grinned like a devil once I heard the song start.

Let's just say I had no problem meeting the one-minute mark. Once I was done I found everybody gaping at me with their mouths hung open. Had none of them ever felt like a dungeon dragon?

Pathetic sons.

"O-kay." The game organizer came back on stage. Lip twitching, he took my mic then raised my free hand into the air.

"Sunshine has made it to the next round!"

The crowd screamed my name, going absolutely bonkers. I played it off, casually brushing at my shoulder.

The dude called Justin back on the stage. We were apparently the only two finalists.

"Okay, so here's what's gonna happen now. You two are competing to be the winner, so we're gonna make this a little more difficult. Instead of answering your own Quiz, your opponent is gonna provide your answer," he explained.

"Same rules apply: only ten seconds to answer the question, but since your opponent is picking it for you, it may not go in your favor. If they can't provide an answer, though, they will lose. Good luck."

He nodded at my competitor. "It's your turn now."

I gave Justin my hard stare, trying to throw him off his game. He just looked amused and wiggled his eyebrows at me.

We looked at the screen as the Quiz bar started rolling. I held my breath, hoping I could give an answer that would hopefully put Justin at a disadvantage.

Eye of the tiger, eye of the tiger...

The bar stopped on 'Featuring Kanye West'. My face scrunched up. The last song Kanye put out that I'd paid any attention to was something I wanted to banish from my brain forever.

I stared at the screen as the seconds ticked down. What was it? what could I say?

Wait...

"Katy Perry!" I remembered. The countdown stopped at two seconds, and then Katy Perry's name filled the Artist bar. I punched my fist in the air in victory. Justin smacked his forehead.

Only one song fit the bill, so 'E.T. (Remix)' appeared in the Hits category. The coordinator smirked at Justin unsympathetically.

A sound like a beating heart came through the speakers before it was replaced by EDM and some drums. Justin cleared his throat and took the mic.

I got a dirty mind, I got filthy ways
I'm tryna bathe my ape (Ape) in your Milky Way (Way)

He delivered the verse easily, which got the whole crowd vibing. Even I couldn't resist rhythmically bobbing. He finished Kanye's verse and was met with applause from the crowd.

"Thank you," he said, bowing. I looked over at the timer with a frown.

"You still have thirty seconds left," I noted, uncrossing my arms. "Are you gonna continue or..."

I peered closely at him when all he did was scratch his neck. "Did you forget the lyrics or something? Does that mean I win?" I spun to direct my last question at the dude in charge.

"No, I didn't forget the lyrics!" I turned back to Justin and saw him scratching at his chin this time.

He licked his lips nervously. "Just give me a sec."

Several secs passed. I raised my eyebrows at him.

"I don't wanna sing no Katy Perry!" He suddenly burst out, with much frustration. I tried not to laugh.

"You don't have to be good at it bro, just do it."

We were having the conversation on stage, with the audience for the most part just looking on. Then a girl from the crowd cupped her hands around her mouth.

"Justin has a great voice! He's just shy about singing."

"Marcie," Justin growled warningly.

"Come on, Justin! Just sing, man!" The voice came from another direction this time.

"We wanna hear more!"

"More! More!"

The whole crowd was now clamoring for Justin to continue, but he remained frozen. His lips moved slightly but no sound came out. As I watched, a drop of sweat rolled down his face. So this was what choking looked like, I noticed. It did not look pretty.

Without thinking about it too much, I went over and grabbed his arm then guided the mic towards me.

"How does the song go again?"

Justin's panicked eyes met mine. I held them, trying to convey encouragement.

"You're so hypnotizing, could you be the devil, could you be an angel," I sang softly. The crowd quieted.

Your touch magnetizing
Feels like I am floating, leave my body glowing

I cleared my throat pointedly. The music, which had stilled, started to pick up again. As I continued singing, I squeezed Justin's arm, trying to tell him he wasn't alone and it was okay to join in the song. The idiot just continued to stare at me with a stunned expression on his face.

I stepped on his foot.

"Ow!" He yipped in a high pitched note. At least that was a start.

"You're from a whole other world," I sang while glaring at him.

"A different dimension," he sang shakily.

Not bad, I thought approvingly. He had a great vocal tone, and with some work, he could've sounded as smooth as Sam Smith. I always thought my voice sounded like Rosé and Ariana Grande's baby, which was nice and all I guess, but I always envied the badassery of Rihanna's.

"You open my eyes," he continued. It wasn't too hard to harmonize with him.

And I'm ready to go, lead me into the light

The crowd screamed themselves hoarse as we both took on the chorus, sounding like we'd rehearsed it. Justin had gotten his courage back, and now he threw an arm around my shoulder and led us around the stage, acting like we were real superstars.

We grabbed outstretched hands and pointed to people at random. I waved at my brother, but his eyes were closed in what looked suspiciously like laughter so I wasn't sure he saw it.

Justin threw himself enthusiastically into Kanye's next verse, which got the crowd turnt. We'd covered damn near the entire song, but nobody cared at this point since they were too busy hooting and hollering.

"Woo!" Screams filled the room once the song came to an end. Justin and I both took a bow, then gave each other a high-five.

"That was amazing!" The game coordinator yelled, taking back the microphone. The crowd started cheering again.

"Okay listen, listen." He got them to quiet down. "The game's not over yet. Sunshine chose to assist our man Justin over here, but technically, that doesn't count as her turn. Justin needs to answer her question now, and if she wants, he can assist."

The Quiz bar stopped on 'I've collabed with Rihanna'. I turned to Justin, who smirked at me.

"You cool, Sunshine, but... I'm still not gonna go easy on you. Eminem!" He answered.

The crowd 'oohed'. I grinned flippantly.

"Bring it. I can take the heat, unlike some people."

"Ohhhh!" They flipped out at my sick burn. Together, we watched the Hits bar land on 'Rap God'.

My lip twitched.

"Need help, Sunshine?" Justin raised a brow. I just giggled in reply.

RHYS

After taking care of my little problem, I descended the stairs to find my sister standing alone in the kitchen. She was leaning against the island, staring off into space with a distinctly distressed look on her face like some middle-aged man worrying over their taxes. I was immediately concerned.

"Riley?" I took a step towards her. She straightened abruptly at the sight of me.

"Oh, hey little bro." She plastered on a fake grin, but I wasn't buying it.

"Are you okay?"

At my probing glance, she deflated. "No." She took a large swig out of a bottle closest to her on the table.

"I'm so confused," she said despondently. "Why does everything have to be so confusing?"

The expression on her face reminded me of a kicked puppy. "Want a hug?" I asked.

Please say no, please say no...

She bobbed her head. "Yeah, I think so."

Her lip twitched at the expression I must have had on my face. "At least try to contain your excitement."

She spread out her arms, wiggling her fingers at me.

"C'mere. Hug me brother," she said cheekily.

I smirked sardonically. "No need. You seem to be feeling better already."

"Oh, come on." She pushed out her lower lip and looked at me with woe-filled eyes. "My best friend isn't here, so you're the next best thing. Don't leave me hanging, please?"

The things I did for family. With a long-suffering sigh, I inched forward like I was on my death march and wrapped my arms around her. She laid her head on my chest, clinging tightly. I patted her gently on the back.

"Wanna talk about it?"

She shook her head. "No." The word came out muffled.

"It could help. Besides, I know that look." I pulled away an inch to look at her face.

"So who is she?"

Riley froze. "Uh..."

The sound trailed off. I studied her with new intrigue. Riley often couldn't keep things to herself. This must have been more serious than I thought.

"Hey, it's just me. You usually tell me everything." 

And I did mean everything. Some things I was still desperately trying to forget.

Riley sighed loudly. "There's no she!" She ranted. "And even if there was, I can't do anything about it. I made a vow; I'm celibate now."

I couldn't help my snort. She crossed her arms and pinned me with a glare.

"You mean you're still doing that?" I moved away, finding an empty cup and filling it with water from the tap.

"Yes, still," she hissed. "That's what happens when you take a vow."

I took a gulp. "That's bullshit." I set the cup in the sink. "And it's so not you."

I looked at her seriously. "You know you can't keep punishing yourself, right? You're not even at fault."

She raked a hand through her hair. "I'm just trying to get some perspective," she sighed.

"Okay," I said softly. "Take your time. I'm just worried about you."

She looked at me for a moment. "Speaking of 'she's..." She propped her chin on her hand and looked at me eagerly.

"What's going on between you and that cute friend you brought?"

Aaand now I felt instantaneous regret about even saying anything.

"Nothing," I snapped.

"Are you sure?" She squinted. "Not even a little something? You two seem kinda into each other."

"No. You do not get to do this because your love life is frustrating you. Stop projecting onto mine."

Her eyes danced. "So you admit that there is a love life," she said smugly.

"Butt out, Riley."

She giggled and looped her arm through mine. "Fine, fine. I'll just step back and let the magic happen. Not very hard to do when you two are in the same room."

She started leading me back into the main room.

"What is going on out there?" I wondered. It sounded as if every single person in Connecticut was in the foyer.

"I don't know." Riley shrugged, sounding unbothered. I raised an eyebrow. This must be a somewhat regular occurrence.

We stepped into the living room and then froze. For a moment, we could only just stand and stare.

I was the first to speak. "Riley?" I called, my eyes still staring ahead.

"Yeah?" she replied, not looking at me either.

"Did you by any chance slip me something when I was not looking?"

"Of course not. I wouldn't drug you, not even if you needed it."

"So... we're both seeing the same thing?"

She squinted. "Seems so."

We held eyes for a moment, then slowly turned to looked back at the stage. Because there was a stage – right in front of the large tide of people. And the usually snappish, unsociable girl I had brought to the party was standing on top of it. 

And she was rapping.

Neither my eyes nor my ears could make sense of anything that was happening. The crowd was hollering for her while she rapped confidently, her lips moving so fast I didn't think she was breathing. Behind her the words 'Eminem – Rap God' shone in huge letters on the wall, and a timer beside it kept climbing.

Once it reached a minute, Avalon paused abruptly to take in a loud gasp, inhaling deeply.

I tilted my head. What on earth was going to happen now?

She burped.

The sound vibrated through the speakers, a loud, guttural noise that sent the crowd cheering crazily for no reason I could understand.

My jaw clattered to the ground. Riley burst into peals of laughter.

"'xcuse me," Avalon said sweetly, not looking sorry at all.

Tears glittered at the corners of Riley's eyes. "Oh my God, I love her," she said in between hoots.

I rounded on her. "Did you get her drunk?"

"Not unless she's more lightweight than I thought."

At my glare, she raised her hands in the air. "Lighten up, I gave her one drink. It was chocolate-flavored and it wasn't even enough to light her on fire."

I pinched the bridge of my nose. "I need to find Jasper and Brandon."

I pushed through the crowd, Riley following after me, and I elbowed people out of the way until I found my best friends.

"Rhyland!" Jasper smiled dopily once he saw me. "Where've you been, buddy?"

I held in a breath and slowly let it out. "So you're drunk too?"

"Carpe diem, frater," he trilled. He raised a cup. "Want some spiked lemonade?"

I turned away and addressed Brandon. "Dude, what happened?"

Brandon looked up from a paper that he'd been folding. "We were all dancing, and then Avalon wanted to join that game." He pointed at the stage.

"She already won all the games we played here. She's pretty dope." He nodded approvingly, then handed me the paper crane he'd just made.

"But how did she get drunk?" I asked, trying not to snap. "Was it you guys?"

Jasper shrugged. "She was already pret-ty drunk when we found her," he said, slurring his words.

So who the fuck got her drunk then? Neither of them seemed to find that at all alarming. Of course not– between them they must've had only two brain cells still working.

"Oh Brandon, this is so pretty," Riley gushed, peering at the crane.

"Thanks. You can keep it," Brandon said with a hiccup.

Why was this my life?

My attention was turned back to the stage when some guy took the microphone from Avalon.

"Okay guys, now it's up for you to decide! Who is your winner? Will it be Justin?" He swept a hand towards the other male on the stage, causing the some of the crowd to whistle and cheer.

"Or Sunshine?"

The roar of the crowd was considerably louder this time. I winced and plugged my ears with my fingers.

Brandon just cheerfully whistled, clearly gone into his happy place.

"WE HAVE A WINNER!" The announcer raised Avalon's hand into the air, causing the crowd to cheer again.

"Woo-hoo!" Avalon jumped up and nearly cleared three feet, pumping her fists in the air.

The dude who'd lost came over and gave her a sportsman-like fist-bump before waving and leaving the stage.

Avalon turned to the announcer and started tugging on his shirt.

"So do I get a prize? Huh, do I?"

"You get," he pulled out a bill from his pocket, "a hundred bucks. Also, the stage is yours," he told her. "Feel free to take it away. Perform whatever you like."

Her eyes widened into moons. "Anything?"

He nodded. She tapped her chin, deliberating for a long moment. Then she brightened and snapped her fingers.

"Ooh, I know!"

This cannot be good, I thought as I watched her skip over to the DJ.

The dude had just been taking a water break, and whatever she said caused him to spew out the contents of his mouth. 

She patiently waited till he finished choking and nodded.

"What's she's gonna sing?" Jasper wondered. I had no idea. Some people had their phones out, preparing to record the scene. I wished I could stop time right then and haul her out of here.

Or even better, I wished I was home. Home, so I didn't have to deal with this insanity.

Avalon hopped back onto the stage and took the mic. The first tunes of 'Y.M.C.A' filtered through the speakers.

Riley cracked up again, laughing so hard she let out a snort that sounded like a pig.

I glowered crossly. I didn't even feel like teasing her about it.

"I am never coming to one of your parties again."

Everyone else seemed to be having great fun – the crowd of people singing along, Jasper and Brandon screeching like banshees beside me, my sister, the host of the stupid party, who kept yelling 'Yas Queen!', supposedly hyping Avalon up. Of them all, Avalon seemed to be enjoying herself the most.

She did a few mic flips as she sang, turning it towards the crowd at times to get them to sing louder and beaming when they did. She had a really great voice, and it was quite plainly the prettiest rendition of the song I'd ever heard.

But why this song? I was convinced she was personally out to torture me.

It's fun to stay at the...

"Y.M.C.A!" The crowd was hollering and forming the letters in the air with their arms. Jasper started to join in. 

I whacked the back of his head without mercy.

A conga line was formed, which seemed pretty enticing to Avalon because she stopped singing and tried to jump off the stage. Before my brain even finished processing the danger she was in, a set of arms gently plucked her out of the air.

I couldn't see who they belonged to while the crowd flowed this way and that, oblivious to the fact that the song was playing without lyrics. I only got a good view of Avalon because she was splaying her limbs in the air like Baby from Dirty Dancing and screaming "WHEEEE!"

We stepped closer until we were in the eye of the hurricane, the crowd streaming around us. That was when I got a good look at the guy who was holding her.

He looked like kind of fuckboy who labelled themselves 'bad boy' as a personality choice. The kind of guy that girls shouldn't be around but found themselves drawn to anyways. And the dude seemed to know it too since he currently wasn't wearing a shirt. 

Normally, I ignored guys like this since I was pretty good at tuning out humanity. But seeing Avalon hugging him and smiling with so much affection in her inebriated condition sent me boiling.

"Who the fuck is that guy?" I ground out, ready to go and rip her out of his arms.

"Dude," Jasper paused to hiccup, "that's her cousin."

The cousin turned our way like he could hear us.

Alright, I might have misjudged him a little. He stared at me as if he was trying to assess what part of my body would have the least resistance if he stabbed me. That was a look I knew since I could give it quite well myself.

I didn't budge an inch as he walked over, still carrying Avalon in his arms, and plopped her down right in front of us.

"I believe she came with you guys." He raised an eyebrow at me. I narrowed mine at him.

Avalon interrupted our short staring contest with a hiccup.

"That... was... so fun!" She was as starry-eyed as a kid who'd just gone to Disneyland.

"Best night ever!"

"I agree." His gaze landed on my sister. It made me want to step in front of her, but all he said was, "You were right about throwing awesome parties."

She knew this guy? Riley's cheeks seemed to color faintly. It was probably just a trick of the light.

"Well, it wasn't all my doing. You were amazing out there," she told Avalon.

"I know!" Avalon yelled, though we were right in front of her. She seemed to notice me for the first time.

"You," she poked at my nose, "where've you been? You missed out on all the fun."

I reached out and grabbed her finger, dismissing the prickles I felt at our contact.

"How much did you drink?" I really wanted to know.

She shrugged. "Lots," she hiccupped again. "Lost count."

This time she let out a cute little yawn. I checked my watch. It was half-past one already, which meant we could take her home.

"Okay Avalon, you should leave now," her cousin said. "You need to go to bed."

"Leave?" Her face crumpled. "But I still wanna party! I don't wanna go."

Riley's face beamed with pride. "And my work here is done."

She waved goodbye to us and took her leave. Avalon's cousin watched her go with an expression that made his eyes seem softer.

So far, I really did not like this guy. Not one bit.

"You should, though," he said, turning back to Avalon. "Get some sleep. You know you're tired."

Avalon's eyes narrowed in a way I had come to know well. It meant that whatever she did next wasn't necessarily going to be in her best interest, but out of a desire to be contrary.

She feinted left, then ran past him, sprinting quickly.

"YOLO!" She yelled as she made her grand escape, her pinky and pointer fingers raised in the air.

Her cousin calmly watched her go, not making a move to stop her. Then he turned to face us, looking very amused.

"Good luck." He turned and walked out of the house.

He just... left.

We gaped at each other.

"Should we–" Brandon began.

"I think–" Jasper trailed off.

"Yes," I snapped.

Together, we turned and chased in the direction Avalon had gone.

She didn't make it at all easy for us to catch her. Whenever we felt we were getting close, we'd hear her giggling like a maniac, and turn and find her racing in the opposite direction. She wove smokescreens around us, making us see her in places she wasn't, dissolving right before our eyes when we tried to grab her. It was like chasing a ghost.

It wasn't something I'd ever particularly wanted to experience.

We managed to track her into a hallway filled with what I could only describe as demonic doors. These lined both sides of the corridor, and Avalon ran into one, but we couldn't see which because of the dim lighting. So we split up to cover more ground.

We each stepped into a different door, Jasper and Brandon heading left while I took one on the right.

Somehow, we came out of different doors than we'd entered. Still no Avalon in sight. 

The next time we opened our doors, we found ourselves on the same side of the hallway and Avalon's head poking out from one of the doors in front of us. We immediately ran towards her. She retreated back into the room.

Still in hot pursuit, we all filed out of a room to find Avalon now at the rear – chasing us. Jasper immediately spun around and went after her.

I gripped Brandon's hand and led him aside, content to let Jasper take over.

I, for one, had no interest in taking part in this circus. Jasper would be fine, he was a natural.

We calmly watched as Jasper emerged from the doors again with Avalon on his back this time, a fact he seemed oblivious to. He glanced right and she looked left, and when he looked left she turned right, both of them mirroring each other. Ridiculously enough, they both seemed to be searching for the other.

Jasper's single brain cell finally kicked in and he swiveled his head around and looked straight at Avalon. For a few beats they just stared at each other. Then Avalon hopped off him and tore off down the hallway. 

Again, we ran after her.

We couldn't find her anywhere in the next corridor. Though we could hear her snickering with evil, there were simply too many places to hide and not enough light.

Jasper suddenly cocked back his head like he was catching a scent.

"Marco!" He yelled.

"Polo!" A voice responded, before cutting off with a hiccup. We traced it and found Avalon crouched behind a large vase, her arms folded around her legs to make herself smaller.

"Hey, I found you." Jasper knelt down to face her, speaking softly.

"That means you win."

She blinked, confusion swimming in her eyes. "I do?"

"Yeah," he nodded. "Pick your prize– how would you like to be carried out?"

She reached out with two fingers and tapped Jasper's forehead.

"Jasper?" Some clarity returned to her eyes.

"Yeah, Sunshine?"

She held out her arms like a small child. "I want a piggyback ride."

Jasper turned around and let her climb onto his back, and she immediately leaned against him like trusting people was second nature to her.

I watched her as we headed for the front door. She was officially the most confusing person I had ever met.

Once outside, the cool wind of the night woke her up again.

"Reggie!" She waved, sighting the guard.

Reggie looked like he'd drank purple milk once he saw her. "You again," he said, his voice a growl. "Why do you just keep popping up everywhere?"

She looked downright cheerful to have annoyed him. "If you wanna keep me out, you're gonna have to do way better than that," she taunted, blowing a raspberry at him.

Reggie looked so stricken, I felt sorry for him. Jasper just burst out laughing.

"Why is it that every time I carry you, you make me almost drop you?"

"You won't," Avalon replied simply.

"We appreciate your service," she yelled, saluting Reggie as we got further away from him.

I got out my keys while Brandon helped Avalon off Jasper and got her safely buckled into the passenger seat. The poor guy was mostly unresponsive now; his social battery must've been completely depleted.

I could totally relate. "We're going home now," I assured him, ruffling his hair. He gave me a sleepy thumbs up and got inside.

I started the car and peered over at Avalon. This night was almost over. Nothing she did could surprise me anymore.

Just when I'd finished that thought, Avalon turned to the passenger seat window and looked at it like it had just performed a miracle.

"Oh my God, its Zendaya!"

AVALON

Zendaya appeared beside me, sitting elegantly on the window ledge. I waved enthusiastically at her.

She gave me an amused grin. "Girl, you wildin'," she remarked, crossing one long, perfect leg over the other.

I couldn't contain my awe.

"Oh my God, I love you!" I squealed with excitement. "You're doing such a good job in Euphoria! High five!"

I raised a palm and she obliged, raising hers as well. Just as our hands connected she turned into Sebastian the crab. The naughty thing tried to pinch my finger with its pincers.

I retracted my hand just in time, holding it tightly to my chest.

"Bad crab!" I admonished, glaring at it profusely. I shook my finger a safe distance away from its face.

"I'm telling Ariel," I threatened. He hung his head in shame, but I felt no sympathy for the creature. Instead, I started kicking my feet in the pool of water that had suddenly formed beneath me.

"Under the sea," I hummed happily.

Beside me, Rhys started to laugh.

"God, I wish I was recording this so I could play it back for you tomorrow," he said. He looked at me, dislodging a piece of seaweed from his hair.

"You sound completely crazy."

It was like I was seeing him for the first time. He'd never looked as eye-catching as he did right then.

"Woah, you look like a Disney prince," I said, awed.

"Oh really?" His eyebrows rose, eyes shining with amusement.

"Which one, Charming?"

I shook my head vigorously. "Not that fellow with the foot fetish. I meant Prince Eric. He's absolutely the best. I mean, he literally fell for a half-fish princess, getting the best of both words. Like, respect bro." I nodded, deeply impressed.

"And she could sing," I added. "That was a definite plus."

Rhys chuckled. "I can see why you'd think that."

I squinted at him, trying to see past the giant pig that was currently doing a little jig across his head. A thought suddenly occurred to me.

"Think you could do it?" I asked him. "Be with someone if they were part-something else that wasn't part of your world?"

He mulled for a second. "Depends on how much I like them, I guess," he replied, giving me a sideways glance. "But being able to sing," he whistled, "now that would really up the bargain."

I giggled at the tone he used. He sounded so funny.

"So you wouldn't have tried to cook Ariel?" I asked, just to be clear.

The dancing pig was now rolling around in circles like it was in pain, which made it kinda hard to focus. I wondered whether Piggy was pregnant.

"You mean, like, to eat?" Rhys's shoulders shook in silent laughter.

"Absolutely not," he said, now trying to keep a straight face. "She's a princess, you know. I would treat her with utmost respect." He shrugged. "If not, she'd, like, have me impaled on a trident, or something."

Hmm. I pondered that for a moment. "I suddenly dislike you less," I told him happily.

"Why, thank you," he drawled. "That warms my heart, truly."

RHYS

Jasper and Brandon were passed out drunk in the back, snoring away. I really wouldn't have minded if Avalon was passed out as well. But nooooo, she was still up, and the usually nightmarish human was talking my ear off about princesses and mermaids and how two piggies were apparently using my head to play hopscotch. How did I find myself in this position?

"Oh, really? Tell me more," I droned, though I actually was quite interested in listening to her talk. She was so animated, though I knew it was only the effects of the alcohol. Her eyes were sparkling in a way I'd never seen them do before, which made it pretty hard for me to concentrate on the road.

Plus, she was talking instead of puking all over my car. I wasn't going to bitch about my luck holding.

She hiccupped again. It was so funny when she did that. I always half-expected to see little bubbles floating out of her mouth and filling up the car.

"I'm drunk, aren't I?" She drew out.

"Really?" I made my voice polite. "I hadn't noticed."

She giggled – giggled – then slumped backwards in her seat.

"I shouldn't be. My bad." She turned to me with eyes filled with remorse.

"What if something bad had happened? Like, someone attacked, or something. I wouldn't have been able to protect you guys 'cuz I'm," hiccup, "so drunk."

I could only stare at her in surprise. She gazed back at me, her eyes started to fill with actual tears.

Jesus.

"Hey," I said softly, taking one hand off the steering wheel and holding hers. "You're pretty badass, you know? I'm sure you still would've managed to get a few licks in even in your condition."

She blinked at me, some moisture tracing onto her lashes.

"You think so?" She sniffled.

"Damn straight."

"You believe in me." She sounded so happy. "Aww, that's so sweet."

I couldn't contain my laughter. "Oh, you're definitely drunk," I said with a snort. "You'd never have called me 'sweet' in your right mind."

Her smile was like the clouds parting. "You have a really nice laugh," she told me, her smile as bright as sunlight. "You should do it more often."

For a few seconds I couldn't move my eyes away. It's like I blinked and all of a sudden the world had different colors, and she was filled in to the max.

I suddenly noticed just how pretty she was, how her eyes made the most dazzling kaleidoscope, how her lips that were curved around the most beautiful smile that sent a stab right through my chest...

I abruptly turned back to face the road.

"You're almost home." I ignored the way my voice sounded gruff, and the way my heart was thumping in my chest.

"Oh." She sounded drowsy. "Do you think my mom's still home? She's not usually home."

"Only one way to find out."

The gates opened as I drove up, indicating that someone in the house was still up. The time was now 2:30am.

"Woah." Avalon stumbled as she tried to get out of the car once I'd stopped.

"Here, I've got you." I offered her my arm to keep her steady, then helped her up to her front door.

She immediately started pounding on it as if picking up where she'd left off that afternoon.

"Mother!" She yelled. "Open the door! Or I'll huff," she hiccupped, undermining her threat, "and I'll puff," another hiccup, "and I'll..."

The door swung open. Avalon beamed brightly at the figure standing in the doorway.

"Mom!" She threw her arms around the woman who just barely caught her.

"You should've seen me! I was awesome! I won everything," Avalon babbled into her mother's sleeve.

The corner of her mom's lip quirked up. "I'm sure you did, sweetheart," she said, stroking Avalon's hair.

Avalon pulled back and squinted at her. "Were you asleep? Is that why you're wearing pajamas?"

Her mother looked down at herself. "No, these are scrubs."

Avalon blinked, the movement deliberate. "Mom, scrubs are pajamas." She sounded like she was imparting important advice.

"Okay, I'll keep that in mind." Her mother seemed amused. Then in one fluid movement she picked up Avalon's legs and carried her up like a baby.

I watched from the door, greatly entertained by this turn of events.

"Alright, let's get you into bed."

"Bye." Avalon waved at me as her mom began to lead her away. I waved my fingers at her.

Her mom smiled gratefully at me. "Thanks for all your help, Rhys," she said.

"No problem," I responded. The door clicked shut.

I was halfway to the car when realization hit me. I stopped and turned back to stare at the door.

I don't think I'd ever told her my name.

************************************************************************

Clearly I had a lot of fun writing this, lol. Enjoy it while you can- Avalon may not have this much fun again in a while 😘.

Love,

Lulu.