WARNING:
EMOTIONAL CONTENT
includes death, bereavement, intimate scenes and emotional distress.

With the drunk teenagers getting out of control, the group reassembled by the front door.

"What the h*ll happened?", asked Zee.

"More people just started coming in", said Elliott.
"The beer was running out so they found my parents' stash.
They're literally animals out there."

"How are any of them even allowed alcohol? The legal age to buy it is eighteen", said Irene.

"They probably got their older friends to buy it.
It's not against the law to drink it with adults present", said Spencer.

"But there are no adults here!", exclaimed Rowan.

"Uh, guys?
I think another fight broke out", said Atlas, pointing to two people rolling around on the ground.

Eloise could sort of make out who they were.

Alex—one half of the school's 'IT' couple, and Max, a guy who flirts with Alex's girlfriend Naomi every chance he gets.
Naomi never flirts back.
Her heart only beats for Alex.

Ok guys, it's cringey when I say it, but these schoolkids think it's the sweetest thing since the invention of chocolate, alright?

"Oh dàmn!", called out Eloise.

"Elliott, is there another room we can hide out in?", asked Atlas.
"One they won't go to?"

After a brief moment of thinking, Elliott nodded.

"Yeah, there is.
Come with me."

Elliott led the group to his father's room. They had to pass several couples who were making out, and a couple who were doing even more.
The group spent the rest of the journey in silence, trying to get the images out of their heads.
In a corner of his father's room, there was a large self-portrait of Vincent Van Gogh. Elliott removed the frame, revealing a door.

"Wow, it's like we're in a spy movie", said Atlas.

"Rich people, man", mumbled Eloise.

"Yeah, yeah, stop gawping and get inside", said Elliott.

Once everyone was safely inside, Elliott shut the door.
The realisation of what was actually going on finally dawned on him.
His parents were going to kïll him if anything had been broken.

"Right, whoever did this needs to own up", said Elliott.

"What are you talking about?", asked Rowan.

"Oh, come on!
One of you posted about there being a party here as a prank.
You could've at least told me you wanted to party here–"

"Oh yeah because you found it so hard to say no to them", sarcastically replied Zee.

Elliott rolled his eyes, before turning to Spencer.

"You've been on your phone all day.
You had the most opportunity to make the post", said Elliott.

"Hang on, that's not fair", said Eloise.

Spencer shook his head.
"No, it's ok.
I've got nothing to hide", he said.

Spencer pulled out his phone and showed the screen to Elliott.

"I've been monitoring the group email chain this whole time.
Mr. Patel's been messaging about popping into a shop near here for supplies", explained Spencer.

"Supplies for what?", asked Rowan.

"The football rally.
He hasn't asked Mr. McConaugh if he can take over, but he's hoping buying the supplies will at least help his case", replied Spencer.

"Ok, ok... so it isn't you", said Elliott.

"No sh*t, Sherlock", said Spencer.
"But I mean, if we're pointing fingers... Zee and Irene didn't really want to be here in the first place.
A party would be a pretty good excuse to cut the session short."

"Oh, so you want beef, O'Connor?", questioned Zee.

Spencer held his hands up.
"I'm just saying!"

"Well I'm just saying your theory's got more holes than Swiss cheese", said Irene.
"I actually enjoyed our study session.
Plus, I despise social interactions this intense."

"So point that finger somewhere else, Skater Boy", said Zee.

"I really, really hate to do this... but Atlas is quite popular", said Rowan.

"Bro, you serious?", questioned Atlas.
"I would never ruin your study session like that.
And I would've asked Elliott if it was ok to invite people."

Rowan frowned.
"You're right.
I'm sorry, Atlas."

Atlas placed a hand on Rowan's arm and gave him a small smile.
"No, it's ok man.
No hard feelings."

A beat later, the others started shouting at each other, pointing accusatory fingers everywhere.

"I mean it's obviously Rowan", said Elliott.

"Why would he ruin his own study session?", asked Irene.

"Because he didn't want the night to end.
He wanted to spend more time with y–"

"JUST THE F*CK UP!", yelled Eloise.

The group fell silent.
Irene clutched her chest, her heart thumping rapidly.
Spencer noticed the stressed expression on Eloise's face.
He turned to face her, willing her to look at him so he could help calm her.
Her eyes remained on the floor though.

"We're fighting like children and there's who-knows-what going on downstairs!
It doesn't matter how the party started. What matters, is how it ends.
I know you're not going to like this plan but... we need Mr. Patel."

"What?", questioned Elliott.

"You're not serious, are you?", asked Spencer.

"I am", said Eloise.
"They're not going to listen to us.
We need an authority figure.
The group message thing said that Mr. Patel was in a nearby shop anyway."

"Why would the students listen to him though?", asked Rowan.
"Teachers can't stop kids from doing things after school."

"There's alcohol here, and no adult", said Eloise.
"And loud music."

"We're missing one important thing though. Why the h*ll would he help us?
Shutting down a party would make him very unpopular", asked Spencer.

"He could say he's warning them because someone else said they're calling the police. They'll respect him for saving their asses", replied Eloise.

"I see no flaw in this plan", said Elliott. "Aside from the whole relying in Mr. Patel thing."

"I guess I'll message him then", said Spencer.

¤¤¤

One by one, the group emerged from their hiding place.
Broken beer bottles littered the floor.
The kitchen was covered in food and empty crisp packets.
Some people were still dancing, and others were chatting.
Whilst trying to weave past a small group of people, Irene glanced into the kitchen.
Her eyes widened when she two people laying against the kitchen counter.
She quickly turned away, desperate to see anything else but that.

What kind of party was this?

After receiving Mr. Patel's message, Elliott opened the door.
Aahan's jaw hit the floor when he saw what was going on.
He lowered his voice and turned to Elliott.

"What on Earth is going on?", he questioned.

"Sir, we did tell you it was crazy", said Eloise.

"I didn't think you meant this crazy", he said.

"Hey, Patel's here!", called out one of the guys.

The crowd turned to him, and Aahan felt like the contents of his stomach were going to come back out.
So many teenage faces staring at him.
So many drunk teenage faces staring at him.

"Alright!
Party's over!", he yelled.

"Aw, Sir, what?
You can't tell us what to do."

"Why are you even in Elliott's house?"

"That's well creepy."

"I was passing by when I heard the incredibly loud music.
I recognised a lot of your faces through the window too—way to be inconspicuous.
I'm not here to tell you off, but you need to get going.
A lot of people have been complaining about the noise.
If they call the police, you'll all get busted. So I came here to warn you all", explained Aahan.

"Oh.
That's uh, that's actually really cool of you, Sir", said Cass.

"Yeah.
Cheers", said one of the boys.

"No worries guys.
I'm just looking out for you", said Aahan. "Now come on, get going."

After the last group of people left, Aahan closed the door.
He whirled around, a vein bulging from his forehead.

"What are you lot playing at?
I mean, I don't even know why I'm surprised at this point.
I should've expected this from the kids that start fights–"

"Sir, that's not fair", said Eloise.

"What's not fair is your need to disobey the very clear orders I gave.
All I wanted was for you to help me get that award and for you to stay out of trouble.
It'll only be a matter of time before the staff start blaming your behaviour on me.
Why is everyone in my life hellbent on letting me down?"

The students didn't know what to say.
It was clear Aahan was stressed, but he wasn't even interested in their side of the story.
They were used to Mr. More blaming all his problems on them, and labelling them as troublemakers, but it was a lot for these sixteen year olds to deal with.

When it became clear he'd only be met with silence, Aahan rolled his eyes and let out a long sigh.
He threw his arms up in frustration.
Still nothing.
He turned around and headed out of the house, without saying another word.

"He's not wrong, you know", said Elliott.
"We let him down.
I let my parents down.
Whoever did this let me down."

"Why are you so sure it's one of us?", asked Atlas.

"You know what?
I'm tired.
I'm tired of this sh*t.
No one is leaving until the person who started this mess owns up."

Silence fell upon them once more.
The music was long gone, and the only thing that could be heard was the ticking of the clock above the door.
Two minutes went by.
Then five.
Then seven.
Then ten.
Then–

"Ok, I'm sorry, eff this", said Zee.
"I kept quiet because I'm not a snitch, but I have better things to do than wait around here.
I know who it is, so just come clean before–"

"Alright, fine!", exclaimed Eloise.
"It was me."

The teens turned to Eloise, stunned.
Spencer opened his mouth to speak, but all that came out was a strangled and high-pitched 'huh?'
Atlas' eyebrows furrowed so deeply it would've been comical if the situation had been different.
Eloise turned to Zee.

"H-How did you know it was me?"

"The post originally came from Angie Stevens.
If you look at all of the people who posted about the party, they all took a screenshot from Angie's original post.
Angie is one of Eloise's close friends, and out of the seven of us, she only follows Eloise", explained Zee.

"Wow.
Now I get why people say you aren't to be messed with", said Spencer.

"You could've told on me at any point today and the others wouldn't have been mad at you", said Eloise.
"Why didn't you?"

Zee shrugged.
"Figured there must've been a reason."

"I don't think Zee is the one that needs to be answering questions", said Elliott.
"Why did you do it, Eloise?"

"I-I'm so sorry.
I just... panicked."

"Panicked?", questioned Spencer.

"With the science tutoring.
You guys were doing so well!
I... I didn't want to be the stupid one."

"El...", said Spencer.

"I thought, if I just told you guys I needed help, I'd be ok.
Turns out actually accepting help and being, I don't know... vulnerable?
That's just as hard."

Eloise wrapped her arms around herself. She always did that when she needed comforting.
When her mother died, Eloise would fall asleep with her arms wrapped around her body.
The first night in care.
The first overnight stay at Kerry and Colin's.
The first time Ivan asked her if their mother felt any pain as she died.

A pair of arms wrapped themselves around Eloise's body.
When she snapped out of her thoughts, she saw Spencer in front of her.
She looked into his eyes, waiting for the look of anger or disgust to appear.
But his warm and gentle eyes just stared back at her.
He pulled her closer to him, and Eloise rested her face against his shoulder.

"El, you're stupid for so many reasons.
For trying to go literal rock climbing without a harness.
For trying the most disgusting combination of cheese slices wrapped around whole oranges.
But not for this, ok?", he said.

"Spencer's right", said Atlas.
"You know how many different tutors I had to go through just to keep me at a pass level for maths?
This stuff is hard, Eloise!
And you're allowed to struggle."

"I know it seems like school comes naturally to me, and it does, but... that doesn't mean it's all plain-sailing for me.
I have to review the same topic over and over again just so that I don't forget it", said Irene.

"It's just... it's too hard.
There's so much to remember, and none of it makes sense!", admitted Eloise.

"Maybe... maybe we're just teaching you wrong?", suggested Rowan.

"What do you mean?", asked Eloise.

"If you struggle to remember things, why don't we put it into a different format?
Like... calcium turns the flame orange. Carrots are also orange.
The 'CA' for calcium could link to the 'CA' for carrots.
Now when it asks you what colour the flame will turn for calcium, you'll remember orange for carrots", explained Rowan.

"Wait, that's such a good way to remember it!", exclaimed Atlas.
"I can't believe I never thought about it like that."

"It's that easy?", questioned Eloise.
"I don't know how you managed to make it make so much sense with like a simple trick. You're a wizard."

Rowan chuckled.
"I have to make up little tricks to help me sometimes.
Some people just don't learn well by reading and retaining the information.
They need to actively do something with that information."

"I never really saw it like that.
If... if I haven't completely ruined everything between all of us, I'd really like it if you gave me another chance?"

"Of course!
I'll help you out as much as you want", said Rowan.

"Me too.
As long as there are no more parties", said Irene.

"It's going to take way more than a crazy party to get rid of me, don't worry", said Atlas.

Zee shrugged.
"I guess so."

"Dude, you know I'm supporting you all the way", said Spencer.

Elliott exhaled sharply, before placing a hand on his forehead and closing his eyes.

Eloise frowned.
"Elliott, I am so, so sorry about all of this.
I promise I'll help you clean all of this up, and I'll pay you back for any damage."

"Eloise, they broke a three thousand pound vase!"

"F*ck.
Ok, I'll work triple shifts at my job.
And you can totally trust my future kids to pay off any remaining debt."

"Who buys a three hundred pound vase?", questions Zee.

"That's what I'm saying!
Just stick the flowers in a glass of water and be done with it", said Irene.

"Well, some people have taste", said Elliott.

Zee clenched her fists and stepped closer to Elliott.
"What's that supposed to mean?"

Elliott held his hands up.
"Nothing, nothing!
Uh, Eloise, that's fine.
Just help me clean all of this up.
No slacking."

"Ok, no slacking.
I promise."

__________

Hi.

This chapter helped to show some of the existing friendships. They've been at the same school for almost five years, so it makes sense for them to have some level of friendship between characters like Irene and Atlas, even though Atlas would spend most of his time around Eloise, Zee or other students. I wanted to expand on this school environment and help add to the history ( hehe, no pun intended ) these students shared. I didn't just want to portray the same friendship duos, and even though we will be seeing more of that, the bigger group dynamics are also important.

I'm just going to take this opportunity to hype up my new book Village Idiots. It's been out for a short while, and you can read chapters 1 and 2 now. Chapter 3 is still being written, and it probably won't be published for a couple weeks because I'm focusing on my applyfics right now.
Also, side note-how do you say 'applyfic'? Apply-fic makes the most logical sense, right? Please tell me why I've been saying it as 'app-lee-fic'?😂😭😭

Just as a reminder, if you have Spotify, and want to see the playlist for this story, message me your username so I can add you to it. I think I can share it via a link but just in case I need your usernames for it send it to me if you haven't already. I'll still include the songs and their scenes at the end of their corresponding chapter though.

The little remembering trick is actually something I used in real life for the flame test. I was in a chemistry studying session, and it was the first after school session I had been to. I was SO scared, because I was terrible at chemistry and just felt so embarrassed. We spent the whole session coming up with really funny ways of remembering the different flame test colours, and it was the first time that I actually thought 'yeah, everything is going to be ok.'

Everyone learns differently. Some people learn better through visuals, others by listening to information. Some have to do practical tasks. I think it's important for teaching to encapsulate all of these different learning styles, as much as possible. A student is never stupid. They just have a different way of learning.

starryeyedturtle

DoodleYeet

LeMystical-Puffle

ejsandfarkleslovebot

Tornado-Jockey