"Hold still!" Ash urged, grabbing Violet's head to stabilize it. "I'm almost done."

It was the night of Larry's Halloween party and the girls decided to get ready together at Ash's house. After much consideration, Violet settled on being a fairy. The concept wasn't terribly creative, but with Ash's help, her costume certainly was. She even got her hands on some ear pieces that made her ears look pointy at the tips, just like in the fairytales. Her dress went to her mid-thigh and was layered with pink, blue, and purple fabric. A beautiful set of wings protruded from her back. One thing was for sure, Violet would be covered in glitter for months.

"Are we almost done?" She asked her friend. Having her makeup done was a lot more unbearable than she thought it would be.

"Almost. I'm finishing up your eyeshadow."

Ash was dressed as a vampire. The fake teeth gave her a bit of a lisp, which Violet found to be rather humerous. Otherwise, her costume looked amazing. That girl sure knew how to use fake blood.

"Ash, can I ask you something?"

"Of course!"

"How do you know if you have a crush on someone?"

"Well," the brown-haired girl began, "if you really love spending time with that person and even crave it at times, that can be a sign. Also, wanting physical contact with them like hugging or holding hands is a sign. Why do you ask?"

Violet hesitated. Was she really about to talk to one of Sal's best friends about her possible crush on him? She trusted that Ash wouldn't tell him, but questioned if this was moral. Then again, it wasn't like she had any other girlfriends to talk to about these things. "I think I might have a crush on Sal."

"Oh yeah? What makes—keep your eyes closed—what makes you think that?"

"Well, I really like when we hang out together. And I really like it when we hug or whatever. He held my hand one night and I liked it so much that I fell asleep on him."

A wide smile came across Ash's face. "Aww, that's so sweet! I knew Sal liked you a lot as a friend, but I didn't know that you two were getting so close. Good for you guys!"

"Do you think he has a crush on me?"

"Considering that he holds your hand, I'd say there are definitely some feelings there."

"So what do I do now?"

Ash chuckled. "Keep doing what you guys are doing. Things will fall into place as you go along."

"Hmm."

"And...done! Do you like it?"

Violet grabbed the hand-held mirror sitting on the table beside her and observed her appearance. She looked a lot different than she did without makeup. Nonetheless, Ash did a wonderful job. Her eyelids were pastel pink and purple now and her eyelashes were somehow much longer than before. "It's so pretty! Thank you, Ash!"

"Of course! Now, let's head to the party. I'm sure the boys are waiting on us."

> > >

The party was being held in an abandoned house that Larry found out in the woods. Surprisingly, the windows hadn't been busted out and the ceiling wasn't collapsing. However, it did smell incredibly musty and a thick layer of dust hung in the air. Sal and Larry hung some lights on the walls and from the ceilings, giving it a slightly more lively appearance.

Once the girls stepped through the door, their ears were flooded with booming music, shouting, and laughter. Ash smiled and grabbed Violet's wrist, dragging her into the crowd.

"Where are we going?" She asked.

"WHAT?"

"WHERE ARE WE GOING?"

"TO FIND LARRY!"

"OH!"

Violet was already feeling a bit claustrophobic. No matter how she twisted her body, she seemed to bump shoulders with just about everyone she passed. She didn't like not being able to hear herself speak or even think.

"Woaahhh you guys look sick!" Larry exclaimed as the girls approached him. Much to their surprise, he was also dressed as a vampire. Ash definitely pulled the look off much better than he did.

"Larry, I thought you said you were dressing up as a zombie!" She complained.

"I changed my mind. May the best vampire win!"

"Hmph!"

"Hey, Larry," Violet interjected. "Where's Sally and Todd?"

"Uh, Todd was playing beer pong last I saw him. Haven't seen Sal in a minute though. Check the bathroom."

"Thank you!"

Just as she turned to walk away, Larry grabbed her arm. "Ah, ah, ah. You gotta take one shot before I let you go."

"But I just got here."

"So did everyone else." He looked out at the sea of people holding red solo cups, presumably filled with one alcoholic drink or another.

Violet rolled her eyes. "Fine. But I'm only doing one. I don't drink."

Ash let out a cheer as Larry poured grabbed a bottle of vodka and filled a shot glass with it. The teen felt herself growing anxious. She had no intention of drinking, not even a little bit. But, this was Larry's party and he certainly didn't have to invite her. It would be rude to refuse to do a single shot for him.

"Bottoms up!" He shouted, taking down his own shot.

With a sharp inhale, Violet downed her own as quickly as she could, wanting to get it over with. The vodka burned her esophagus so badly that she could feel it make its way all the way to her stomach. Ash took the shot glass out of her hand as she began coughing and wiping her watery eyes.

"It gets easier over time, little dude," Larry told her with a laugh.

She glared at him. "I'm not doing that again."

He laughed once again. "Your orange juice is in the red cooler."

"Bye, Larry."

"See ya, little dude."

With a small nod to Ash, Violet ventured off into the crowd on her own. She didn't even bother saying "excuse me" to the tens of people she bumped into as she went. It wasn't like they could hear her anyway. Besides, she was getting her fair share of elbows to the ribcage and shoulder checks as well. It was overstimulating to say the least. The smell of over 80 perfume and cologne scents clashed horribly with the odor of liquor and weed. The bass of whatever music was playing was pounding so hard that it made her chest vibrate. She couldn't even make out the song that was playing over all of the other noise.

Finally, a vibrant tuft of blue hair caught Violet's eye. "SAL! HEY SALLY!" She nearly screamed, pushing and shoving her way in his direction. He must not have heard her. "SALLY! IT'S VIOLET!" Nothing.

Once she reached him, she tapped his shoulder, eager to see his costume. However, when the person turned around, Violet was met with a boy wearing a blue wig. No prosthetic, no scarring.

"'Sup, gorgeous? You wanna dance?" He asked, advancing toward her.

"I'm looking for my friend. Do you know Sal Fisher?"

"I know that I wanna see you move that body, girl."

"Ugh..." Violet shoved past him and made her way further into the crowd. At this rate, she'd never find him.