Seth opened the door of his car for Claire, holding out a hand. She took it and stepped out, more than enough of her leg exposed by the action. Andrew busted out of the back door, gold-rimmed aviators on despite it being night, and about five shots deeper than he had been thirty minutes ago. He grinned at the two of them.

“You guys are cute as hell.”

“You’re drunk,” laughed Claire, looping her arm through Seth’s as he closed the door and locked his car. “You gonna be able to get in?”

“Psh. Psh.” Andrew blew air past his lips a few more times. “Our school is gonna be way more worried about dresses meeting guidelines than little old me. Guess that’s what happens when your perfectly reasonable principal declines to be involved in the school dances and all the old white dudes are the ones doing that.” He pulled a flask out of his pants and took a drink. “And I can hold my liquor.”

“Alright,” said Seth. “Just don’t terrorize the freshmen.”

“Seth. I said that because I thought you were backing me into a corner. I’m gonna get those fifty dollars.”

“Okay, dude.”

“Seth! Andrew! Claire!”

Jessica ran out from the main doors of the school, wearing an electric blue spaghetti-strapped dress that definitely belonged at a night club rather than a school dance. It also just so happened to be the same shade as Andrew’s dress shirt. Seth bet she had already gotten into one spat with a teacher about it. She came up to them and hugged Andrew, moving off to the side of them and keeping an arm wrapped around his hips. Seth looked Andrew in the eyes and raised an eyebrow. Andrew adjusted his aviators.

“Jessica,” Andrew said. “Wow, we match.”

“I know!” She looked Seth and Claire up and down. “You guys. Look. Great. Glad you didn’t go with black-on-black, Seth?”

Seth rolled his eyes. “Yeah, yeah.”

“It was a bit edgelordy.”

Claire covered her mouth and laughed. Seth bit down his tongue. There was no comeback now. “I keep getting told that.”

“Huh,” said Jessica. “It’s almost like I texted that to Andrew…” She looked up at him through her eyelashes.

Andrew stopped himself from swallowing. “Nope. Totally original thought.”

“Hm, strange,” she said. “Come on guys, let’s go inside and not try and be the cool kids avoiding the dance until later.”

The four of them moved across the parking lot, the sound of loud and surprisingly well-DJ’d music filtering out of the building as another group moved in ahead of them. Andrew and Jessica moved in first, immediately crossing the main lobby towards the gymnasium, where the doors stood open and teenagers milled about. Seth paused and looked Claire in the eyes. “Thank you,” he said. “Seriously. I’m glad you asked me.”

“I’m glad I asked you, too,” she said, her eyes twinkling. “Let’s go dance, okay?”

“Let’s.” They followed the path of Andrew and Jessica into the gymnasium. The floor was packed. Seth saw it might have something to do with the fact that the DJ this year was the same one David and Anthony hired for all their parties. Further to his surprise, Principal Dean stood in a corner, making a pretty big show of only being interested in his Kindle rather than any shenanigans. That explained why Jess had not been kicked out of the dance for her dress.

Claire took Seth by the hand and led him into the dance, but as she did so, the hairs on the back of his neck stood up and Seth snapped his head around to scan the room. No mysterious figures in black garb. He pushed the thought away and followed Claire in, only now thinking of the fact he didn’t really dance all that well. Claire did though, and she pulled him into her. Following her lead was easy, instinctive. The years of knowing each other and somehow not knowing this chemistry was there kept them in sync to the music and together, losing all thought of the surroundings and simply focusing on each other.

After a few songs had passed, Seth glanced around, spotting Andrew and Jessica dancing with each other just as sensuously as they had at David and Anthony’s party. Looked like fifty bucks was all Seth’s. Especially as the music transitioned to a faster one—High and Low by Palisades—and Jessica began doing all that Seth regretted knowing she was capable of to capture Andrew’s full attention.

“They dating?” Laughed Claire.

“Hell no,” said Seth. “That’s just… That’s just them.”

Claire grinded in closer to him, biting her lip. “Yeah, and what about us?”

Seth pulled her in even tighter by the hips. “Nothing about us. Just us.”

***

Seth sniffed the punch. One hundred percent spiked. Principal Dean still sat in the corner, paying no mind to anyone there, his large frame a hulking gargoyle in a cathedral to chase other teachers away from interfering with all but the most serious problems. Seth took a drink. Vodka, and not good vodka. Not even Skyy, this tasted like it had come in a plastic bottle. Second bad drink of the night. He stood there as he waited for Claire to return from the girls’ room.

“Good to see you’ve moved on.”

Seth looked right to see Emma standing there in a yellow homecoming dress, a cup of the spiked drink in her hand, and that silver necklace dangling above her neckline. “Emma-”

“Don’t. I’m glad that you could find someone, I’m just sorry you had to toss me aside to do it.”

“I didn’t toss you aside!”

“I thought we were dating, Seth. I guess we just weren’t clear.”

“Dating, we were just-”

“Just what? Having fun?” Her eyes were hostile. “I didn’t think of you like that.”

“Then you should have said something,” said Seth, trying to keep the same hostility out of his voice.

“You’re just like Madeline, you just have better excuses.” She turned and walked off.

Seth drained his cup and crumpled it in his hand. The void had been silent all night until now. It swirled out of his chest, filling his head with negative emotion and making him strongly consider just leaving before it got worse. With Claire, right? No, Seth felt a burgeoning desire to be alone, to avoid anything else that might make the void worse. He didn’t want to lose it like he had on Jayson, he didn’t want to be out of control. He wanted to be at peace, but it seemed like the world was bound to not let him.

Claire tapped him on the shoulder. “Hey, Seth. Jessica and I are going out back to…” She made the motion of smoking a blunt.

Seth nodded. “Okay, just be safe. It hasn’t gotten too wild yet, but, you know.”

“Don’t worry. I’ll protect Jessica.” She kissed him on the cheek and walked off. Andrew came up to Seth shortly after.

“Emma still on you?”

“One way to put it.”

“Here.” Andrew passed him a fifty. “You were right.”

“Told you.”

The two moved to the wall and chilled there, watching the dance. Seth shook his head. “Suddenly, I just feel like I’m ready for the school year to be over.”

“It’s October, dude.”

“Yeah, I know. I don’t want to deal with anymore fallout from Madeline. Even if it is indirect.”

Andrew put a hand on Seth’s shoulder. “You just gotta make the most of it, bro. Things will blow over soon.”

“I hope so.”

A shrill scream from outside the gymnasium pierced through the music, freezing everyone where they stood. The DJ stopped the music just in time to hear someone shout: “That’s a fucking bear!”