The party

"Tis the season to be jolly," they said, but all I got for the rest of the twelve days of Christmas was heartbreak. The only thing that makes my heartbreak worse is having to accompany my best friend Dora to her stupid party.

Dora and I are polar opposites; unlike me, she didn't believe in true love, so she just had her heart broken once. She always warned me, but I always messed up, and I always came crawling back to her. I guess this was the final straw, and I needed it.

I was fed up, and I had spent the previous three days sulking in bed, contemplating the best way to get back on my feet. I have to give it to her; either I'm done with men or I'm going to the streets. But who am I kidding? The streets aren't for me; I'm a lover girl who will most likely be crushed by love or something she believes to be love.

"Isa, hurry up; he'll be here shortly!" I hear Dora's voice in the hallway as she walks down to the room where I was staying.

She agreed to let me live with her for the new year and, most likely, the rest of the year. I had to leave Creekville because I couldn't bear the sight of my boyfriend's face plastered all over the town's posters and billboards. How could I possibly live there when his father literally owned the entire town?

"I'm giving it my all!" I roll my eyes and yell back.

She was attempting to squeeze me into her style of dress, which she had purchased specifically for me. As I previously stated, we were polar opposites; I dislike social gatherings, and I wasn't used to putting on airtight clothes just to show off my figure.

"I swear I'm not breathing in this outfit," I say as Dora opens the door.

She is dressed in a flowing red gown with a dangerous slit and black platform slip-ons. Her hair was styled in French braids, and she finished with matte red lipstick.

"What! You look great; here, put some lipstick on," she says as she grabs my arm and pulls me to the dresser.

She quickly applies the lipstick, and then she receives a phone call.

"Isa! He is here," she says in a muffled tone.

"Perhaps you should.."

"No! You're going to shut the fuck up for me and turn around nicely," Dora mutters.

I obey, and she gently grabs my hair and unpacks the messy bun I was wearing. Then she ran a brush through it roughly. .

"No jewelry... Where are your goddamn jewels? Didn't you pipe that motherfucker for something good?" She asks, running her hands around my neck and then on the dresser table.

"They are on…"

I was about to finish when she pulled from the drawer the 24 karat gold jewelry that Rowland, my ex-boyfriend, had purchased for me from Langstons.

Dora paused before saying, "You have jewelry from Langston."

"Rowland did get them."

"Fuck him.... I don't care, you're putting them on tonight," she says, before assisting me in putting them on.

She despised Rowland so much that whenever he came up in conversation, she brushed it aside.

"Shoes! Shoes! Isa! And let's go!" She yelled the moment her phone rang again.

I dash to my closet and pull out the first shoe, which was a platform slip-on like Dora's.

"Isa!" I hear Dora yell on her way down the hallway.

"I'm on my way! I'm coming!" I yell as I chase her down, one slip-on on my right foot and the other on my hand.

I run as fast as I can and as fast as the dress will allow, and I almost trip on the way down the stairs.

"........and this is my best friend," Dora says as I reach the bottom of the stairs.

I hop on my right foot while attempting to put on the slip-on on my left before she steps aside to reveal the face of her new catch.

"Hello," I say, standing up straight and smiling as if I wasn't trying to catch my breath.

"My name is Hudson, and I'm delighted to meet you." He says this while waving at me with a chiseled jaw.

I return the wave, then turn around briefly to catch my breath as I hear Dora and him kiss briefly.

"So…"

When I turn around, I see Hudson's hand around her waist as they pull away from kissing.

"We should get going," Dora says, and I notice her face flushing slightly.

She quickly turns around and pulls the door open. Then she grabs Hudson's hand and drags him along with her, while I trail behind.

We all pile into Hudson's car and drive to the party.

*******

We came to a halt in front of a tall glass building in no time. It was difficult not to notice this because it glistened in the cold winter sky, especially when combined with the massive letters at the peak that were illuminated.

As soon as we got out of the car, I looked up at the letters to see what they said.

"Langston," I read aloud, my jaw dropping as I turned to face Dora.

Her eyes gleamed with pride, and she had a dainty smirk on her face.

"How come you didn't tell me you were taking me to a big ass party? Oh my God, my gown!" In panic, I say this, and she cackles a little before walking up the small flight of stairs with Hudson.

As soon as we are close enough, the doors slide open. Then we take the elevator to the top floor.

The elevator door opens to reveal a large hall full of people dressed up. Everyone appears to be pleased to be here, except for me, who appears to have been coerced and insecure about my attire.

"Dora," someone calls out to my best friend as soon as we walk into the room.

She and Hudson vanish into the crowd before I can even snap my fingers, leaving me to navigate the maze of people in front of me on my own.

This was the last thing I needed for the night, I tell myself.

I stand for a moment, unsure what to do with the crowd of people surrounding me, when a lady passes by with a glass of wine, and my eyes trail to the direction she must have come from. Then  I see a tall wine tower.

At least there's something good about this party, I think to myself as I make my way through the crowd.

After a few moments of bumping into strangers, I arrive at the tower only to find another stranger standing there before me.

The night just gets worse and worse, I thought.

Isadora despises my drinking habits. I wasn't an alcoholic; I just had a low tolerance for alcohol and would pass out after two shots of tequila. In terms of wine, I'd have to raise the bar a little higher, which was exactly what I planned to do. But, thanks to the chestnut-brown-haired man with a perfectly ironed suit standing before me, I'd have to pretend to be sane and not about to overdose on alcohol in order to pass out.

I have no idea how close I am to this stranger until he turns around and his glass collides with my body, spilling the contents on me……