this part of Maine, people never acted in such a carefree manner. My mother had always claimed that us Mainers were a stoic bunch, and I didn’t think she meant that in a good way. This free-spirited attitude opened my eyes to new possibilities as the boy walked over and retrieved another bottle of iced tea for me. I really didn’t need another bottle, but I took it, anyway. It felt good to be here, almost too good to be true, and at that point I had no personal knowledge of hangovers or “the agony of kneeling over the porcelain god,” as Drew had once described it. Everything felt warm and fuzzy, seemed tinted with glamour, and before long I found myself slow dancing with this boy in the middle of the room. Where had everyone gone? I hadn’t noticed when the party came to an end. When had the other kids drifted away? Had they all gone home?
He kissed me, and I turned away from his warm lips. His boozy breath made the skin on my neck tingle. My head spun happily, as cheating on Drew was far back in the sinful recesses of my mind. Maybe in the morning I’d feel bad about it, but certainly not tonight. For once, I decided to be a bad girl and enjoy myself with this boy. Revel in my naughtiness. Besides, I never thought Drew would find out about our kiss. Chance Academy, like Harper’s Point, seemed a million miles removed from our high school crowd. It secretly thrilled me that this boy was a much better kisser than Drew. And I rather enjoyed our dance and the way his body pressed up against mine. I took this as a sign that Drew and I weren’t meant to be.
The lights dimmed, and he kissed my cheek and breathed hot breaths into my ear. Drake rapped over the speakers.
“You like partying with us?” he whispered.
“I do,” I said.
“Everyone thought you were totally cool.”
“Really?”
“Would I lie?”
“How would I know? I barely know you.”
“I wouldn’t lie to you, Katie.”
“Okay.”
“I like being with you.”
“For real, you guys are way better to hang with than the boring kids at my high school.”
“Willow says you two are pretty tight.”
“Besties, if you really want to know the truth.”
“Besties, huh?” He laughed. “Willow’s good people.”
“She’s the best.”
“We get together like this every so often. You should party with us again. Everyone’s cool.”
“Totally.” I stumbled and nearly fell, but he caught me under my arms. It felt quite romantic.
“Easy, girl.”
“It’s all those iced teas you brought me.”
“Blaming me now, are we?” he said. “Besides, I know what’s better than iced tea.”
“What?”
“X.”
Were my ears playing tricks on me? “I really think you’re nice, but no way am I having sex with you.”
“Nice?” He held me at arm’s length and smiled. “Are you for real?”
“What?”
He laughed. “You’re so wasted.”
“Okay, but so are you.” I swooned between the intervals of his boozy breaths.
“I said X, Katie, not sex.”
“Oh, sorry. What’s X?”
“Seriously? You don’t know what X is?”
I smiled demurely and bit my fingernail. The house started to spin gently, as if I were standing on a merry-go-round.
“I like you a lot. So does everyone else at the party. But I’d like you a helluva lot more if you could ask around town and score us some X. It’d make Willow happy, too.”
“Really?”
“Definitely.” He squeezed my hand. “I heard there’s some of that floating around in this town. You must know people who deal it.”
“I might know a few peeps.” Why did I say peeps? To sound hip? It ended up sounding dorky, and I hated myself for saying it.
“It’s so uncool, living on the Point. Can’t get shit around here, especially when you don’t know anyone. Consider yourself lucky you don’t live among us.”
I laughed. “I would so love to live in this neighborhood.”
“Needs more Original Gs like you.”
“I’ll take that as a compliment.”
“You should, especially if you can score some for us.”
I did know people in town who dealt drugs. Not personally, but everyone knew someone who knew someone. That was because drugs were a major problem in these parts, owing to isolation, hopelessness, and the lack of jobs. I knew this because they constantly drilled “the Horrors of Drug Abuse” into us at school, forcing us to listen to one sober counselor after another lecture us about opioid addiction and the dangers of meth. And I did want to come back here. To hang with these beautiful kids in this beautiful