"YEAH—I'M NOT giving my body up for drugs today, Tara. No fucking thanks," a nineteen-year-old Rosalyn Fairchild snarled, with her eyes glued to the laptop on her lap.

In present time, Rose was currently sitting on her bed editing a video of hers. This one being unique as it was the first of a new series she thought of recently. YouTube had been recommending her scary content for weeks now, so Rose thought watching those videos every Thursday—especially at the dead of night, was a marvelous idea.

Which yes, she was already regretting, as she was still freaked out about some of the more graphic ones she watched last night. Feeling random chills shoot down her spine at the reminder of them.

Meanwhile, at the foot of her bedroom door, stood Tara herself, who wasn't backing down from this conversation just yet. "You're going to a party—not a rave," Tara pressed.

"Same thing," Rose shrugged.

"It really isn't," Tara shook her head. "But please! Vivian is visiting from San Francisco and I know you miss her."

Vivian was one of Rose's YouTube friends she made when she first got popular. The girl actually was born in L.A but decided months ago to move to San Fran for reasons that neither Rose or her views knew about. However, she was back in the City of Angels for the weekend to visit family, when she caught wind of this party and texted Tara about it.

"Just come with me and her for once, you anti-social potato," Tara pleaded once more.

The Fairchild scoffed. "Okay, for the record, I'm a couch potato, not an anti-social one," driving Tara to shake her head again. "Plus, you've known me for like what? 10-11 years now. You know I'm not, and will never be, a party girl," Rose added, peering back to her laptop screen afterward.

That was the last straw for Tara, as she stomped towards Rose's bed, abruptly seizing away the laptop from her lap.

"Hey!" Rose yelped out, trying to snatch back her laptop from Tara. "What the heck is your problem?"

"Do you really wanna know what my problem is? Because my problem is that you spend so much of your time creating and editing videos that you practically look like Voldemort! And I'm not talking about hot and young Tom Riddle Voldemort. I'm thinking of no nose Voldy," Tara made clear.

Rose narrowed her eyes. "I have a nose, Tara."

"Not until you wither away into your laptop," she countered, securing a bothered look from Rose. "Okay, fine, I'm sorry, but even mom's been telling me to get you out of the apartment, Rose. She's worried you're gonna get worn out by the amount of time you put on your videos," referring to her actual mom, slash Rose's adoptive Mom.

After the abuse, and since Tara's parents didn't want her going into the Foster Care system, they took Rose in as their own with very open arms. Something the Fairchild was forever indebted for, knowing they also were the ones to save her from her horrid adoptive parents too.

"Yeah? Well, you can tell mom that she doesn't need to worry at all, okay? This is my passion in life, Tara. A-and even after being on YouTube for six years, I still love posting and making videos every week for my fans. You know that," Rose assured.

It was true. Rosalyn cherished her six-million fans to the moon and back. Sometimes she'd even wonder how that many people went to her YouTube page and thought it'd be a great idea to sub to her. But that was just another thing she was grateful for. The fact that she was impacting so many lives, and enlivening people's days, it meant the whole world to her.

"I do—know that, Rose. And that's why everyday I aspire to be like you!" Tara exclaimed. "But like what mom said, I don't want you getting all tired of it because of how much your overwork yourself."

Having been posting twice a week, almost every week on YouTube for the past six years, of course Tara was going to get worried. Not only about Rosalyn getting burn out of energy to keep going with her career, but in existing too. And Rose couldn't be angry at her because of it.

Tara sighed and sat down at the foot of Rose's bed, still holding her laptop in hand. "Come on. You don't even need to drink. All I'm asking is for you to just accompany me and Vivian," Tara says.

Staring at her, Rose's mind traveled at a million thoughts per hour. Pondering all the bad that could happen, while also screaming at herself to stop doing that, knowing it wasn't healthy or helping her at all.

It's only one night right? That's it. Rose thought briefly.

She also considered that if she just went to this party, then maybe this would finally shut Tara up for good about parties in general. And judging by Tara's tense face, it was clear to Rosalyn that she was immensely anticipating her response.

"If—this goes horribly wrong, I'm telling my viewers you were the cause of my death."

"What?! Do you think I'm letting my best girl die on me like that?" Tara blurted out in a question. "Besides, you know I would never hear the end of it from your viewers otherwise."

Rose wheezed as she wiped her face with her hands. "I know, I know," she repeated slowly. "But fine, I'll go," though before Tara could squeal in happiness, Rose made sure to add, "But, for one night and one fucking night only, Tara."

"What-fucking-ever! Oh my god!" the other short girl shouted as a big smile appeared on her face. "Rosalyn Fairchild is finally listening to me for once! Yay!" jumping off the bed in excitement.

A smirk wrote itself on Rose's face as she watched her best friend act like a child, later forcing her into an eager hug. "I hope you know I'm only agreeing to this so that you'll stop bothering me about parties, right?"

"I don't care. All I know is that you, are in need of a party outfit. And in being your amazing sexy best-friend, it's my duty to help you get a man tonight," clutching onto Rose's fragile hands in order to drag her to her closet.

"Woah, woah! Who the hell said anything about men? What?" Rose complained, leaving Tara giggling as they got ready for the only party Rose will probably allow herself to go to in her life.

Or—maybe not....

-ˋˏ ༻❁༺ ˎˊ-

     THERE WASN'T A single word in the English Dictionary that could've perfectly illustrated how Rose was feeling right now being in her own car, driving to the house the party was.

Apparently, from what Vivan advised, the people who own the place were also Youtubers like them. Also proclaiming the house itself as "The Traphouse" which was solely strange in Rose's eyes.

But besides that, lots of things were going on in her body. She couldn't hear the music that Tara was blasting, considering her loud thumping heart was distracting her from it. Her palms were sweating while maintaining a firm grip on the wheel. And Rose repelled the urge to bounce her leg up and down as she was driving.

"Rosey, are you ok?" Tara questioned, noticing her best friend besides her was practically white-knuckling the wheel.

Rose forced a nod. "I'm fine," she stated firmly, keeping her eyes on the road. "I-I'm just a little anxious. That's all."

In the backseat, Vivan slightly pouted. "Aww, it's ok, Rose. I know these boys and they're not bad people," she affirmed. "But I know stupid, fake people come to their parties. I'll protect you from them."

"Yeah, what she said," Tara said, pointing behind to Vivian. "Because if anything or anyone tries to come for you, they're going to get some short girl kicking their dick—or pussy, I guess," leaving the whole car to spew with laughter at her words, especially from Rosalyn herself.

When they eventually made it to their destination, Vivan roared, "We're here bitches!"

"Ahhhh!" Tara and Rose howled too, all amped up as Rose puts her car in park.

While strolling to the front door, Rose's arm wrapped around Tara's, sharing smiles at each other, with Vivian joining arms with Tara's too.

And when they were let in, the trio were greeted by a large house closely filled to the brim with what looked like more than 100 people in it.

Seeing this much people drove Rose's anxiety up to the roof. "Holy—fuck," she muttered.

Damn, how the hell did they know all these people? She thought.

Unexpectedly, someone's voice comes from their right, greeting them saying, "What up ladies."

Shifting her gaze then, it only took another second for Rose to realize it was her longtime YouTube friend, JC Caylen, with a red cup in hand.

See, JC was one of Rosalyn's closest friends when it came down to it. Like many popular YouTubers nowadays that were around since the early times of YouTube, he was like her brother. Not only because he was older than her, but because of their childish banter that was present in their videos together.

He even gave her the nickname, "Youtube's Beloved Child," considering when she first blew up on the platform, she was underage. And in events like Vidcon, she was frequently surrounded by people who were older than her. But it didn't matter anyway, as everyone grew protective of her like she was their child too. Hence, the child nickname.

JC was stunned seeing Rosalyn at a party for the first time in his life. He knew very well that the girl took every opportunity to not go to a party at all. Not even after-parties for award events. So seeing Rose before him, all dressed up for this party, it had him wondering what kind of alternate universe he was put into today.

"Wait? Holy shit, is that the Rosalyn Fairchild—at a fucking party?!" He says, all agog. "What the fuck? What are you doing here?! I didn't know you were a secret party girl," he boosted in a teasing tone.

Rose rolled her eyes and giggled at his comment. "I'm literally this close to slapping you, but I will not do that today. I'm supposed to have fun," almost giving JC a whack on his shoulder.

"That's my girl!" He asserted, giving Rose a high five, as her eyes rolled again at his stupidness but was still grinning at her anyway.

-ˋˏ ༻❁༺ ˎˊ-

LATER AFTER HER INTERACTION with JC, she met up with Kian too, along with Jenn (Jennxpen); aka two people she's known just as long as she's known JC. They too were also astounded seeing her at this party, but became more thrilled later knowing she was finally letting herself live for once.

They chatted for a bit before Rosalyn was yanked away from them by Tara and Vivian to go dance. To which Rosalyn spent cringing the entire time. Dancing wasn't her strong suit, and it notably proved so in the many videos Tara embarrassingly took off her trying to.

But in a sudden chain of events, both of Rose's friends got snatched from her by two boys after seeking to get drinks for each other. Supposedly, from Vivian, the boy that drew Tara's attention was Jake; one owner of the house. And for Vivian, Rosalyn couldn't get a single word about who in the hell her man was. All she knew and saw, was that he was taller, and had muscles for days.

This left Rose to roam around the house, looking at who else she knew at the party. To her demise, everybody else seemed occupied too. Some fans did recognize her, but they only wanted a photo with her. And once they took it, they left.

At that point, she wasn't furious. She just understood now why she hated being at parties.

Rosalyn always felt out of place in public. Although she loved events like Vidcon, Playlist Live, and Youtube events she was invited to, the girl often thought of herself as the odd one out. And especially at this party, Rose knew that she looked strange being here.

But unbeknownst to her, a boy named Colby Brock had just caught sight of her from afar, driving his eyes to narrow. He didn't know what about her had seized his attention, but Colby felt piqued staring at her now.

"Hey, who's that girl over there?" he asked Sam, gesturing to the corner she was standing by.

Looking at where Colby gestured him to, Sam's lips parted. "Oh! I think her name is Rose, actually. She came here with Vivian. Why?" he queried.

Colby's eyes studied her closely, trying to decipher if she was ok or not. "I don't know...She looks kind of lonely," the boy frowned.

Sam turned to his best-friend then. "Why don't you try talking to her, then?" he suggested.

A weird look flashed on Colby's face. "Are you serious?" he asked, not knowing if Sam was joking with his question or not.

"I mean, you are the one who asked about her, so maybe you should go up to her yourself," Sam pointed out.

The blonde boy was right in a sense. He was the one that brought her up. And a part of Colby didn't know why he felt so obligated—or so fixed about this girl, but he just was.

Soon, they watch as she took off elsewhere, not having a clue on where she was going.

Eventually, Colby made his mind up. "Fine. I'll talk to you later then," fist-bumping Sam before walking to where she went, only to realize he lost her in the crowd of people in the house.

"Shit," he whispered, now a little crushed.

-ˋˏ ༻❁༺ ˎˊ-

THE ONLY NON-OCCUPIED place in this entire house was this neglected long table that was leaned against a wall and had four chairs around it. Rose found herself sitting on one of them, as everybody else was still inside, or not around where she was.

She was more at ease here, even if it was purely because nobody was really around her to begin with. Still, she felt unhappy. This was her first actual party, and she wasn't socializing, nor chatting to her friends here. And the last time she saw Tara and Vivian, they were still talking up storms with their partner for the evening, and Rose wasn't trying to third-wheel tonight either.

So instead, she decided to skim through Snapchat, watching stories of all the fun people recorded at the party she was at, and not experiencing to its fullest.

A few minutes pass before she suddenly hears someone's faint laugh from behind her. "That one looked fun," they commented too.

"Ah! Jesus," Rose shrieked, her phone almost slipping from her grasp. As the Fairchild turned around, she saw a stranger standing there, their face unfamiliar to her. "What in the fuck are you doing?" she asked, a bit crudely.

His eyes widened hearing her foul attitude. "Well, excuse your language," Colby commented, sitting himself down on a chair next to her. "I'm—just wondering what a lonely girl like her is doing here, not enjoying the party."

She shook her head at his assumption. "Oh, dude, I am actually," Rose countered. "If I'm being honest, I'm just not that much of a party person, frankly."

"Why?" he frowned slightly.

"I'm not a big fan of really loud environments."

Colby raised a brow while withholding a smile. "Why are you here then?" he asked. His house parties were the loudest in the neighborhood, so for her to admit such a thing, it perplexed him.

Her lips formed a line. The boy had a point—that Rose could admit. But she declared soon after, "Because I know I deserved to do something out of my comfort zone for once," straightening her posture on the seat.

"And how that's going for you?"

"Not very well....to be honest," Rose admitted, her face faltering with her words.

He stammered out a laugh. "Don't worry then. I'll make sure you leave here tonight feeling better."

Rose fired a challenged look his way. "But you don't even know me—at all, actually," she pointed out.

Colby grinned. "What's your name?" he pursued to know.

She returned the grin back; hers being a little brighter than his. "It's Rosalyn. But I like to go by Rose," she said swiftly.

"See, now I know your name, pretty girl."

Again, her head shook, struggling not to blush at his little nickname for her. Peering back at him, Rose inquired, "What's yours?"

"It's Colby."

"Ohhh—as in Colby Brock?"

"Yeah?" he spoke in a suspicious tone. "You know me or something?"

Spotting his quick shift in attitude, Rose chuckled. "From my friend, Vivian, actually. She's told me all about you, pretty boy."

"Pretty boy?" Colby repeated, as a minor smirk developed in place of his grin.

"What? It's only fair I give you a nickname back," she fought jokingly.

The smirk he had continued to burn merrily on his cheeks. "Was it all good things from Viv?" he interrogated.

Tilting her head, she assured, "For the most part," leaving the two to chuckle together.

Moments flew by as their laughter gently died down.

"We should get to know each other," Colby suggested, out of the bloom.

Rose froze in her seat. "Why?" the question straying off her lips with such complexity. His suggestion seemed strange on her part. Probably because no one in her life had ever been this straight-up about wanting to know her. Still, this was very—very peculiar to her personally.

Colby took a moment before answering. "I don't know...You just seem like someone worth knowing."

Her eyes narrowed at his. "Oh, so you're calling me interesting?" she said jokingly.

"Would it be a bad thing if I said yes?" he asked, sounding concerned as he didn't hear the glint of sarcasm in her voice.

And because of that, Rose fought the urge in herself to fuck with him and say yes. But she didn't. Instead, she shook her head and assured, "No, of course not."

He sighed out a breath. "Oh—okay," Colby smiled, as she later reciprocated his to a tee.

Rose drew a sip of her punch before saying, "Alright, pretty boy," placing her cup down on the table again. "What do you want to know about me? Hmh?"

"I don't know," Colby replied, still smiling as he sat up. "What is there to know about you, Rose?"

And that was the start of Rosalyn and Colby's friendship.

As the stars gleamed the night sky above them, they chatted about their lives, awkward moments, and memories of their childhood. Getting lost in their conversation, neglecting the party that was still alive in the house. And by the end of the night, they parted ways with their numbers now saved on their phones. Well—and on a friendly note, too.

By the time Rose and Tara got home, it was only fifteen minutes after midnight, and Tara wasn't buzzed. Much to Rose's surprise.

But right as Rose went to her room down the hall, she hears Tara say, "Hey wait."

Knowing she was calling out for her, Rose turned around and frowned. "What?" she asked.

A smile crept up on Tara's cheeks. "Wanna tell me about what you and that Colby boy talked about?"

Rose rolled her eyes as she grabbed her bedroom door handle. "That—is none of your business. Unless you're willing to admit what you and that Jake dude talked about all night too."

Tara pursed her lips together. "Yeah, I'm not talking about that either."

"That's what I thought," Rose chuckled, opening her door once more. But when she was about to close it, she noticed Tara still looking at her with this look that Rose couldn't decipher. "What is it?"

Tara's head shook, looking like she'd just brought herself out of a random haze. "Oh...it's nothing...it's nothing," she grinned. "Goodnight, Rosey."

Rose shot her a brief grin back, though still puzzled about what Tara was on about. "Goodnight, Tara," she said before shutting her door.

After getting into her pajamas, Rose turned her big ceiling light off before turning on the lamp on her nightstand. And as she acquainted herself in bed, her phone's text notification goes off.

Grabbing her phone then, she finds that it was Colby who texted her.

pretty boy colby
hope you got home safe :)

Seeing his text, an unconscious smile worked itself on her face.

pretty girl rosey
i was the driver.
ofc im going to be fine.

pretty boy colby
okay, just wanted to make sure.
it was nice getting to know you
i'll be definitely inviting you and tara more to our parties

pretty girl rosey
yeah, pray that i'll actually attend them pretty boy

pretty boy colby
🙏🙏

pretty girl rosey
🙄
anyways, i should get some sleep
I'll talk to you some other time
goodnight :)

pretty boy colby
alright
goodnight to you too 🌙

And as Rosalyn went to bed that night, she oddly felt something change in her, something she didn't know what it was, but oddly she also kind of liked it.

Maybe, parties—aren't that bad after all.

devil's talking!

this is from the first chapter of the original version of this story AND I DIDNT EVEN REALIZE THAT WHILE I WAS WRITING IT LIKE 😭😭

lol but hiii how are y'all liking this rewrite? I wanna know :)

i literally stayed up til 1am last night to make some of the social media graphics for this story so be ready to see that bc I'm lowkey proud of them! y'all already saw the text convo one, which is lowkey ehh but oh wells.

anyways, thank u all sm for reading, ily all byeee <33