Chapter 5- Icy, babe!

The blurred greens with specs of brown painted a beautiful endless and unpredictable pattern as the yellow cab drove by. Driving smoothly along the asphalt driveway, the calm could have lulled me to sleep.

It was funny how it was not the thought of being kidnapped or murdered that kept me distracted by the unfamiliar setting but instead it was the fact that my mother hadn't bothered to take me to this party. Of course, I didn't blame her for wanting to take care of her sister but...I was her daughter, her only child.

Suddenly the sound of a car horn's continuous cries broke the silence. The taxi driver swerved out of the way just in time to let a huge jeep pass by. As the car went by one of the passengers pushed his upper body through an open window to flick off the taxi driver.

"Idiot," I commented, just as a couple motorcyclists rounded the car following the jeep.

I sighed and considered going back home as a pit fell into my stomach.

"A word of advice, little lady," the taxi driver started as proper civilization came into view. "Don't hang out with this bunch. Bad things happen around these parts of town. It's best not to get involved in Privetel and Vicisski business," he said in a strange accent.

I furrowed my brows and glanced at him through the rearview mirror. He didn't meet my stare right away, he was busy parking the car but when he finally did, I could have sworn there was a change in his features. He turned his head towards me.

"My money please. I don't have all day," he said impatiently. I paid him and hurriedly exited the vehicle.

I stepped away from the taxi and watched it leave. There was definitely no going back now. I sighed and glanced around at my surroundings. There were a lot of unfamiliar faces and a few surprisingly familiar ones. From my observation there were Black Pond High students and White Lake High students, mingling and chatting with each other as if they were all old friends. I furrowed my brows at this strange sight.

"Hey baby, you wanna be my date for the night," a voice called.

I resisted the urge to fiddle with my dress and to feel some kind of discomfort over a comment some sexist puta, who's GPA is probably 0.5, made. I inhaled deeply and placed my body at ease. My dress did cling to my body but not as tightly as it would seem. The material was cosy and was crocheted by Jax. Of Course at the time he'd cussed me out for wanting it to be 'a dull grey' so he added a bunch of extra material and style and then continued to ridicule it. Nevertheless it was a masterpiece that stopped at my knees and fell slightly off my shoulders.

I glanced up at the house and felt intimidated but I didn't let that hinder me from walking up the steps and walking through the double doors of the manor. It was simply unacceptable for the richest man in town to have a normal front door like everyone else.

The house was possibly twice the size of my aunt's. I began to wonder why rich people spend so much money on a house that they rarely sleep in. One kid with 11 bedrooms, 5 bathrooms, a personal theatre and why not a game room. All this of course was coming from the rich privileged girl with her own personal studio.

I scrambled to get away from myself. I should at least try to converse with civilization rather than myself. I walked through the doorway directly in front of the front doors and was engulfed by a crowd. Over the chatty voices of everyone loud music echoed through the house, it was disturbing how it could not be heard from outside or even beyond the doorway but I didn't get a chance to check if my mind was playing tricks on my as I was being pushed further into the crowd by two girls who were entering the party.

Suddenly I was lost in the ocean of sweaty teens rubbing against each other and in common teen tongue, 'getting wild'. I managed to squeeze my way out of the crowd and into a well ventilated room with less crowd and refreshments. I was immediately drawn to the refrigerator that I knew for certain would help me survive an apocalypse or isolation from the world on my bad days. I opened the wooden handle prestigiously carved and was blown away.

Being a 'foodie' was illegal in my line of work but a girl could dream, right. My dream was to become a movie director but in reality, my long term plan was Veterinary Science. I love animals, preferably the furry ones but I'd learn to love them all.

I grabbed a water bottle from the fridge and closed it. I got hydrated and then decided to text Frost. She didn't reply immediately so I decided to look around for a bit. I didn't know many people at the party. My social life as Kelly McHale was nonexistent. I recognized a few people from my different classes and the hallway but I didn't know any of their names.

The kitchen door was basically an archway. Floor to ceiling, it gave me a view of the dancing bodies in the living room which was transformed into a dancefloor and the strange balcony area above the dance floor. I honestly didn't know if this place was real or a figment of my imagination. I mean who has this much empty space in their home. It could not possibly be furniture space because Henry Privetel was an only child. Rich people, I tell yah.

Between my wonder and judgement, I spotted a familiar face, who's name I did know. I don't know what compelled me or what I was even thinking but I soon realised my mistake, when I walked into the jocks side of the party.

My confidence faded as I walked closer to where Brice stood drinking with his friends. I bit my lip and shrugged off my anxiety on the rise. I needed to instead figure out how to approach him without embarrassing myself or looking like 'that' girl.

With every step I took I was running out of time, options and will.

"Brice," I called weakly, hoping no one heard that crack in my voice.

Surprisingly he heard my voice and hopefully not the crack but so did his football and cheerleading friends. I didn't know if I was misreading his expression but he looked displeased. He also took forever to reply which left me in headlights and a little pissed.

"Yeah," he answered, sitting on the edge of the beer pong table. There was a strange look in his eyes. Somewhere between recognition, intrigue and a challenge. I instinctively tilt my head.

Our brief stare off was interrupted by one of the girls watching the game, who asked another who I was. Brice broke it to stare down the girls.

"Where is Frost? I texted her but she hasn't replied," I asked checking my phone. Still no reply.

Brice shrugged and continued to sip his drink. I resisted the urge to roll my eyes. This was one of the many ways teenage popular kids would try and get the girl but not this girl.

"I'll ask Henry then," I replied loudly. Yes, Mr. Icicle, two can indeed play that game. I texted Henry instead, ignoring the gasp I heard from one of the girls.

I briefly heard one of the guys ask Brice if I was Henry's girlfriend but Henry replied to my text and I got distracted. He didn't know where Frost was but he directed me to where he was.

"Bye, Icy," I said to Brice, who was trying not to show his anger.