Chasing Butterflies Chapter 42: The Afterparty (Patreon)

Dominic's house sat nestled in a sleepy suburban neighborhood of white picket fences and precisely trimmed green lawns. As was usually the case in such places, the home looked practically identical to its neighbors, save for a stone statue of a turtle by the door and an autumn-themed flag hanging above the garage. And the thin ribbons of light streaming through its shuttered windows. And the dull, barely perceptible thrum of bass emanating from within, of course.

What confluence of circumstances and parental oversight led to the boy's parents allowing this—or being completely oblivious to it, more likely—Olivia didn't know. But considering what she'd heard, parties like this were a pretty regular occurrence.

When they walked through the front door, Olivia was met with a solid wall of people and sound that put the dance to shame. A frankly preposterous number of high schoolers crammed together in the entryway and most of the way up the stairs, mingling beneath framed family photos and earth tone walls. The bass vibrated in her bones with such intensity that she worried it would give her a headache.

...I really am an old woman.

The volume wasn't the only thing different, though. The playlist itself boasted a collection of raunchier, far more explicit music than the school-approved one from the dance. She'd been wondering where all of the mid-2000's era rap had been hiding. Apparently, Dominic had found it.

"Oh my gosh! Trish! There you are, girl!"

They barely made it two steps inside before they were accosted by a new face—one that Olivia didn't recall from the dance. Another blonde, one with the height of a supermodel and a figure that certainly didn't belong on a high schooler. Something her hot pink slip of a dress took full advantage of.

Trisha's eyes widened as she gasped, stretching out her arms to receive the girl. "Daphne! Oh my gosh, you're here!"

"Of course I am! You think I'd miss one of Dom's parties?"

The two separated, and Trisha turned back to Olivia with a broad grin. "Olivia, this is Daph! She's the varsity cheer captain and newly crowned homecoming queen!"

Olivia smiled politely and took a moment to examine the newcomer. She was a senior, based on her eligibility for homecoming queen, with perfect skin only slightly flushed under the house's lights. Her blonde hair puffed out in cascading waves of gold made possible by copious amounts of hairspray and work. Her own dress didn’t have the same compunctions about modesty that Trisha’s had. Although...

Olivia's eyes flicked toward her friend ...Where did all of the gold bits of fabric in Trish’s dress go? Did she seriously make them removable?

She momentarily wondered at her friend's "artistic" decision as she saw Daphne size her up in return. The girl's bright smile seemed genuine enough, though it didn't quite reach her calculating eyes.

"Olivia? Nice to meet you! You must be another freshman like my Trish." Without waiting for an answer, she turned back to the younger cheerleader. "Speaking of... We need to get you a drink, pronto! What kind of senior would I be if I let you walk around empty-handed?"

With that, Daphne motioned for them to follow and strode away. Trisha didn't hesitate. She grabbed Olivia's hand as they both headed toward what was presumably the direction of the drinks. Internally, Olivia couldn't help but grimace.

Oh, boy. Here we go.

The look on Trisha's face made it all too clear. There wasn’t even a shred of concern to be found there. To her, this was an opportunity, an exciting new thing to try. Something she'd throw herself into if Olivia let her. And considering the attitude of the closest thing to an authority figure the blonde had here, that would not end well. Peer pressure was one hell of a drug, especially for a teenager trying to fit in.

It’s ok. A little bit of rebellion is ok. Even I dabbled in a bit of rebellion before coming of age, though most of it was Jason’s doing. So I can’t completely fault them for doing the same.

That didn’t mean she would just stand idly by, though. No, Olivia would make it her mission to ensure that every kid here stayed safe—especially Trisha. She was an undercover agent infiltrating a party that no adult would ever be able to oversee. Which meant that the responsibility fell upon her.

They emerged from the dense press of the crowd and into a small, slightly less crowded kitchen filled with pizza boxes and liters of soda. A modest collection of liquor bottles and beer cans cluttered the center counter alongside stacks of red cups. A steady line of kids streamed in and out of the area, most of them aiming for the party’s centerpiece.

A quick scan of the labels had Olivia chuckling to herself. These high schoolers somehow managed to be even cheaper than college students. This was absolute bottom shelf stuff.

Olympus beer? Really? She shuddered. It’s cheap, sure, but they went out of business for good reason. That's the closest thing to dirty sock water I've ever had the displeasure of trying.

"So! What should we get you?" Daphne lifted a bottle of nail polish remover masquerading as vodka. "You've got some catching up to do, so we gotta make it strong."

Olivia jumped in before Trisha could open her mouth. "If you want, I can mix you something."

Both blondes turned to look at her with raised eyebrows. Trisha was the first to speak. "You know how to mix drinks?"

Olivia shrugged. "A bit. I see some sodas over there that we could use." She nodded to the other counter. "Old York is... not my favorite, to be honest, even if you try to take shots of it. But if you mix it with a bit of that 8-Down or orange soda you can get something practically drinkable."

She was no bartender, but she remembered a few simple recipes from back in the day. Besides, she'd be damned if she let anyone else pour her or her friend a drink tonight. That was an open invitation to get roofied or wasted, possibly both.

"Oh my gosh, yes!" Trisha's eyes were practically sparkling, and not just because of her eyeliner. "How can I pass up an offer like that?"

Olivia glanced over to see Daphne studying her with renewed interest. The calculating look returned as the varsity cheer captain reevaluated her. "And here I thought you were a freshman like my Trish."

"I am," she confirmed. "I just... have a bit more experience than most."

The cheer captain smirked. "Apparently. Are you, like, a transfer student from Europe or something?”

Olivia shook her head. “No. I have visited a few times, though.”

That seemed to only pique Daphne’s interest more. “Well, count me in too. I definitely want a taste of whatever she's having!"

Olivia shrugged and grabbed a trio of red cups. "Sure. I don't mind. So long as I'm not making drinks for half the party. But like I said, I'm not that good."

She quickly got to work preparing the drinks. She would've had a lot more options if they had some orange juice or bitters on hand, maybe some fruit as well. However, there wasn't any on the counter, and the last thing Olivia wanted to do was dig through Dominic's family's fridge without permission.

When she began adding the vodka, she saw a touch of amusement flash across Daphne's lips. "Come onnnn, don't be so stingy! There's plenty to go around!"

"It's not about being stingy," Olivia pushed back. "It's about making it taste good."

The senior waved her off. "Pssssh. This is a party. Taste is like, wayyy down on the list of priorities. Right Trish?"

She turned her attention toward the younger blonde, who nodded enthusiastically. "True!"

Olivia sighed inwardly. Good ol' peer pressure.

"I’ll save the stronger stuff for later, when you don’t notice it as much." She lied and handed the girls their cups. "This one will focus on taste, though. I'm not going to have you thinking I'm all talk because the Old York shines through too much."

The two blondes accepted the red cups gratefully and drank. Trisha's eyes widened in surprise, her nose scrunching up slightly at the taste.

Olivia winced. Shoot. Was Old York the first alcohol she's ever had? I should've watered it down even more.

Trisha got her expression under control.. "Wow! That's..."

"...Actually pretty good," Daphne finished, eyeing the drink strangely. "Like, seriously. I never thought I'd say I liked Old York, but this is bringing me pretty close!"

So you knew exactly what you were offering her from the start? Her eyes narrowed. Of course you did.

If Daphne noticed the slight glare, she didn't show it. Instead, she turned to Trisha, who was going back for another sip. "Wow. Trish, where did you find this girl?"

Trisha's furrowed brow smoothed out in an instant. "In my English class. Honestly. She keeps to herself, but we’re gonna change that. She’s gonna take the school by storm!”

"Absolutely not," Olivia chuckled. "I appreciate the vote of confidence, though."

Daphne looked as though she was about to say more until her eyes flicked past them toward the entryway. Her eyes widened. "Oh my gosh! Another one of my freshmen just got here! Trish, it was so good to see you. We'll have to catch up later. I've gotta go say hi to Kelly. Toodles!"

The tall blonde spun and strode away through the crowd, Olivia's drink still in hand. Her hips swayed back and forth with practiced grace as she moved to terrorize another young freshman.

...Maybe I'm being a bit too harsh. Still, she didn't exactly leave the best first impression. I need to be careful of her. I don't know if she actually has Trish's best interests in mind.

Her musings were interrupted as Trisha nudged her in the side. "Oh my gosh, Livi. You didn't tell me you were this cool!"

She let out a resigned breath. "Drinking while underage does not make someone cool, Trish."

Not that she had a leg to stand on, considering where they were. But still. 

The blonde rolled her eyes. "Uh-huh. Sure, miss 'Old York is not my favorite.' I mean, seriously!”

“It’s simply the truth. And I can tell it’s not your favorite, either.”

Olivia gave her a knowing look and gestured for Trisha to hand over her cup. The blonde rolled her eyes again, handing it over as Olivia watered it down a bit more.

“I can handle it, you know. It just surprised me.”

“Just because you can doesn’t mean you should. It’s even more reason to pace yourself. Thank goodness we didn’t let you start with shots. You may well have puked.”

“As if.” She crossed her arms. “Anyway, I thought you weren't drinking?”

"I'm not." Olivia lifted her own cup. "This is just soda. I left out the alcohol. Otherwise, I'll have people trying to put a drink in my hands all night long.”

It would be easier to get away with than trying to tote around a cup of water. Though unfortunately, high schoolers were not geriatric old women who drank diet sodas. This was loaded full of sugar.

It just couldn’t be helped. Hopefully she could make this cup last and reduce the negative side effects from putting so much of the stuff straight into her veins.

Trisha's eyes widened. A sly smile crept across her lips. "Livi. You are absolutely devious."

She smiled. "I told you. Not my first rodeo. I’m not looking to get roofied tonight, either.”

The cheerleader tilted her head. “Roofied?”

“Drugged? Like when someone puts something in your drink?”

Trisha’s eyebrows rose. “Seriously? That’s a thing?”

Olivia sighed. Suddenly, she was even more glad she’d come along. “Yup. But we’re not letting it happen to either of us. Now, come on. Let's explore a bit. And put some more soda in that cup. Don’t think I didn’t notice your reaction."