and the legendary knifed glove on her right hand.
“Slutty Freddy, huh?”
“Yep,” she replies, putting one of the bladed fingers up to her mouth. She busts out laughing. “Like you can talk, Naughty Red.”
“Fair enough,” I joke, looking down at my scant outfit.
I notice Phoebe study Janice up and down. “Oh my God—Janice?” she asks.
“Surprise,” Janice says timidly.
“Wow. You dress up nice, girl. I’m surprised to see you here. Come to think of it, I don’t really see you around much…well, ever, actually,” Phoebe comments.
“Yeah, I guess it has been a while, hasn’t it?” Janice replies.
“Hey, how about you two catch up for a bit while I fetch us some drinks?” I ask Janice. “What can I get ya?”
“Get me one of whatever you’re having.”
“All right, two pumpkin ales coming right up.”
“The kegs are down that path and to the left. I don’t know why Gunnar put them all the way back there, but it’s kind of dark. Did you get your complimentary raver accessories?” Phoebe asks showing off the neon glow stick bands around her wrists and neck.
“I’ve got my phone’s light. I’ll manage,” I reply, making my way over to the opening of the trail.
Chapter Six
As I flip on the flashlight app on my phone, the path becomes illuminated. The rough terrain, full of leaves and branches, crackles underneath my feet as I make my way through, causing me to feel uneasy. The noise from the party fades as I venture deeper into the woods.
The darkness is pitch black and the only lit area is wherever my phone’s flashlight hits. The path takes a sharp turn to the left and I keep following it. I find it ironic that I’m dressed as Little Red and wandering through the forest alone. I laugh to myself, and then hear a loud cracking noise off to my left. Quickly panning to the side, I hope my light will catch whatever just made that sound. There’s nothing there.
I continue on until the trail ends at two long, white tables with five large silver kegs perched on top of them. They’re each labeled with what’s inside and I immediately go for the pumpkin ale. I place my phone back in my pocket and set the picnic basket on the table before grabbing two red Solo cups. Ah, I love the sound of beer dispensing from a tapped keg.
I take a sip of the one I fill for myself before filling the next one for Janice. The beer is so good that I keep it in my mouth and let it swirl around to savor the flavor.
“Damn, I love pumpkin beer,” I say after swallowing it.
I hear rustling behind me and spin around, dropping my beer in the process. “Shit. Way to go, spaz.”
After my surprise subsides, I groan, looking down at the little river of deliciousness flowing out of the cup into the dirt. Taking another cup, I fill it and then attempt to grab the other one while picking up my basket at the same time. I reach for my phone to use its light again, but it’s difficult to balance everything.
“Well, this wasn’t thought out very well, now was it, self?”
There’s rustling behind me again, only this time it sounds louder, as if it’s right there, but I don’t see anything. Actually, I can’t see much at all in front of me at the moment because the little camping lantern, which provides the only source of light in the area, barely even shines on the beer kegs.
I panic and place the cups and the basket back on the table so I can pull out my cell phone. I fumble with the phone and it falls to the ground.
“Dammit,” I mutter when I hear the rustling start up again.
While feeling around for the phone on the ground I hear footsteps in the distance. I feel the cold plastic of the phone under my hand and pull it to me. Unlocking the screen as quickly as my fingers will allow, I turn on the flashlight app and shine it up the path. I scream when I catch a glimpse of someone standing there.
“Are you quite finished? Some of us would like to get drunk during this century,” Portia sneers, standing there with a couple of other girls.
I moan to myself. Great, just great. This is the last person I wanted to have a freak-out moment in front of.
“Yeah, I was just finishing up, actually,” I reply with a squinty-eyed glare. I rarely use the