Party Girls

When Friday (the day of the party) inevitably rolls around, Jenny is not in the mood.

She wakes up with a splitting headache, courtesy of the previous night's study session. She stayed up into the wee hours of the night, cramming instead of getting her "beauty sleep." She's sure she'll never hear the end of it from Lexi.

Lexi is the type of girl who uses college as a prop. A backdrop in the story that is her life. Jenny wishes she could be so carefree, but unfortunately, she's paying a great deal out of pocket, so she has a stake in her grades. More so than Lexi, who is what most people would call "loaded to an unimaginable degree." So she doesn't suffer the same monetary pitfalls as the other plebeians on campus.

Jenny wishes she could feel jealous of Lexi, but she just doesn't. They balance each other out, and strangely, she's always been grateful for their friendship--however weird it might be.

Jenny texts Lexi and decides to compromise. She'll skip the game today but will be there for the afterparty as they planned. She gets some thumbs down from her friend over text, but she eventually capitulates, seeing as she's known to be reasonable occasionally.

Lexi eventually ended up picking out a ridiculous outfit for Jenny. It's colorful, making Jenny's pale skin stand out. When she puts it on and gives herself a once-over in her full-body mirror, she sighs deeply, feeling perturbed.

She puts on some makeup and feels like a clown, but she did it like Lexi suggested, so it'll have to do. Hopefully, she'll receive an A for effort.

Jenny gets butterflies in her stomach as the day turns to night, knowing she's minutes away from having to fraternize at a frat party. Lexi is slowly getting Jenny used to such things, like a frog being boiled, but she can still feel her heartbeat in her throat and swallows thickly to relieve some nerves. It hardly helps, and she's glad she's taking a ride share there. She's going to need some alcohol to loosen up.

She arrives and meets Lexi outside. The frat house is somewhat nicer looking than she was expecting. Not as dilapidated as she'd anticipate college boys to keep it. It looks up to code, at least.

They make their way in and encounter their first issue of the night. It wouldn't be an outing without some nonsense.

"Hey Lex," Jenny frowns at the nickname and overfamiliar tone the bleach blonde boy uses. He's smiling like a stupid dog at Lexi.

Lexi gets around and knows plenty of people, but some of the people she keeps company with are downright distasteful, and she's aware of this fact, shielding Jenny from the worst of it when she can. "Who's this?" He asks, cocking his head to the side, looking Jenny up and down in a way that can only be described as 'over exaggeratory.' Jenny knows she's plain, but just because she isn't bleach blonde and a size zero doesn't mean she's downright ugly. She might be modest, but the thought miffs her.

She gets plenty of dates, but her straightforward personality just happens to scare them off. If she allowed Lexi to work her magic, she's sure that she could be turned into an evil genius bimbo as well. Luckily, she forces Lexi to use her powers for good.

"She's with me and the girls." Lexi snarks back, clearly sensing the same bad vibes as Jenny. Lexi's other friends, a bunch of ravers and party fanatics, keep company with all sorts, and when Lexi gets put in the middle at times like these, Jenny feels no envy for the girl. She'd hate to suss out all the bad apples all the time, and despite her somewhat ditzy demeanor, she's got a good nose, akin to a guard dog when it counts.

Lexi peers around the guy's shoulder, clearly over whatever game he thinks he's playing. "Where are they? Did you already let them in?"

"They're in the back doing some lines." He shrugs, and Jenny blanches. It's nine in the evening, and they've already got cocaine out? What the hell?

The boy still won't move, and Lexi sighs deeply. She's fidgeting from one foot to the other, clearly willing to push past the guy if he continues to be dense, but also not wanting to cause a scene. So much comes with the territory of being a tall blonde built like a supermodel, so many airs to put on...

Lexi turns to Jenny, and Jenny winces, figuring they tried their best. She opens her mouth to suggest they find somewhere else to go, but is silenced by Lexi leaning down and kissing Jenny deeply.

They share a heated exchange. Jenny goes very still as she feels her blood run cold, and her entire nervous system feels like it has a bucket of ice water dumped on top of it. Lexi's lips are warm, though, and she leans into the kiss instantly, chasing the heat.

Lexi leans in further, caresses Jenny's neck, then moves her hand up and tugs at her hair. Jenny furrows her eyebrows, confused on why she's doing that there and not in private (Jenny has only recently been shown the wonderful world of hair pulling), but when her tightly wound bun comes undone and falls down her back, she realizes what Lexi's end goal was: to shock and confuse, and it seems to have worked well. When they part, a single strand of saliva lingers between them, and the boy appears mesmerized by it; his cheeks flushing pink as his lips quiver.

He tries to stammer out some words, but it comes out as muddled nonsense. Lexi holds up a perfectly manicured finger (hot pink nail polish, go figure)."Doesn't she look much better now?"

The boy hesitates, eyes flickering between the tall blonde and short brunette. They go wide after a second of deliberation, clearly seeing something that wasn't there before. "I know, I know," Lexi giggles, and Jenny glances between the two, unsure of what she's supposed to be doing. "She looks less Amish now."

"Uh- I guess." The blonde boy steps to the side, finally giving them entrance. Jenny gives him one final parting glance as they pass by, too stunned to say anything else.

She sees her reflection in the house's glass and is also a little taken aback, like the guy, but likely for different reasons. Her long hair frames her face nicely, having a tiny bit of a curl to it thanks to how she washed it last night. It's voluminous and shiny under the frat house's dim lighting.

"Do I really look Amish?" Jenny pinches her cheeks, prodding and feeling them for something that could give her some answers. People often react similarly to her when she is next to Lexi. Comparatively, they're day and night, even if they're both beautiful, conventionally speaking.

"Only when your hair is up." Lexi snorts, guiding them through the busy house. Despite the early hour of the night, plenty of people are already socializing. Jenny heard through the grapevine that the game was a spectacular failure, ending sooner than anyone anticipated. Hence, the earlier hour of the party.

"I just don't get any of this." Jenny huffs, sticking her lip out in a pout. "I wish I could be more feminine, I really do."

Lexi pats her head, both mocking and reassuring her at the same time. It's odd how they tease each other, yet always have each other's backs. Even if it means they have to pretend to be lesbians to get into parties. "Just stop going after your degree and join me!"

"How in the world could I switch from archeology to fashion..." Jenny mumbles, tripping over a couple of beer cans and barely dodging some large men meandering about the living room. "How would going to your school even help me? Aren't I a lost cause?"

"It's never too late to study fashion!" She chirps, sounding just like a real life Elle Woods. Jenny's always admired her for that. Even when they were younger, she was hyper feminine and Jenny was an annoying counter culture kid, cutting her hair short and pretending to be a tomboy for the fun of it all. She took some masculine habits into her adulthood, but gave up on pretending femininity is beneath her, a win for feminists everywhere, surely. As well as a tale as old as time.

Lexi was never afraid to be herself, though. She was always unabashedly feminine, a true girl's girl through and through.

They've grown over the years, becoming the women they were always meant to be. However, Jenny suspects she has a long way to go until she feels confident about her gender. She's not sure why it's always made her feel so ill at ease, but it could be because she had three brothers growing up. That couldn't have helped, at the very least.

Lexi is, of course, an only child, and it shows.

She bounds up to a group in the back, colorfully decorated and hardly clothed, Jenny recognizes them from some of their recent outings. She always tries to make room for Lexi's interests, which usually involve partying and shopping more than anything, so she's somewhat integrated into the friend group.

Everyone cheers and waves back, exchanging quick hugs with Lexi and somewhat bowing in Jenny's direction. Most of them know she's not too touchy-feely, and most of them respect that except when they all get too drunk.

One of the girls closest to Jenny jumps up and clings to her arm, slurring her speech as she excitedly shrieks in her ear over the party's music. "You actually came! I'm sooo glad."

"Yeah, I wouldn't miss it."

"You'd miss the game, though." A guy calls out from the back of the small circle, and everyone snickers.

"I wish I had missed it." Another guy groans, and conversation picks up easily despite more than half of the participants actively being on drugs. It's just as well though, everyones too fucked up to notice Jenny's awkwardness, or care.

One of the guys gets them all drinks, and the night begins to blur from there.

Jenny doesn't have the best alcohol tolerance, considering she only drinks when out at parties or on dates. But her dates are more wine and beer events, not tequila and moonshine.

As the night continues, the group's antics become more juvenile, devolving to playing party games and inviting whoever they can into their small corner. Jenny smiles placidly, glad she decided to get a ride and drink. She does genuinely have fun when she isn't sober. She's too rigid otherwise, far too off-putting. At least, she feels that way.

They're playing Spin the Bottle now. It reminds Jenny of her middle school days, except there are much higher stakes now. Seeing as some group members sneak off for short periods and then rejoin. The party has gotten people loose in more ways than one.

The bottle lands on Jenny and another girl. Jenny giggles and hiccups, leaning in to the girl she doesn't recognize, and plants a kiss on the corner of her mouth. They laugh loudly when the group boo's and makes them have a do-over. It was accidental, as they're both tipsy, but they remain good-natured about it.

Jenny tilts her head and smiles, innocent but still alluring; she knows how she must look to outsiders. A few people next to her shift awkwardly in their seats, leaning in to eagerly watch the two strangers kiss for real.

When their lips meet again for real, the crowd cheers. Jenny had only meant for it to be a chaste kiss, but the girl deepens the kiss quickly, slipping her tongue into Jennys mouth and poking around. The crowd oohs at the sight, some becoming very obviously turned on. Jenny's head spins as her heart flutters. She can't make heads or tails of what's going on logically, but her instincts tell her to lean into the kiss.

She wants to pounce on the girl, but with so many witnesses nearby, she settles for breaking it off and simply winking at her. The girl giggles and flushes, the heat from alcohol mixing with her shyness.

Jenny grins as she feels like she's flying. She hardly gets to hit on someone or take charge in any real way, so being on the opposite end of things is incredible. Is this how Lexi feels all the time? It's sexual liberation, sure. But it's also something else entirely, a feeling she can't quite put her finger on.

She wants to keep this high going strong, but the group quickly moves on, allowing the next person to spin the bottle. The moment was nearly life-changing to her, but as the giddy girl she just made out with turns to excitedly watch the next couple, Jenny realizes that nobody else feels the same. For them, it's just another Friday night.

Her eyebrows draw together as her chest constricts, and she takes in a slow, deep breath, trying to ground herself. But she can't. She feels like she's suffocating. She finally understands what Lexi was always trying to explain and is unsure what to do with this newfound feeling. She doesn't have any way to put it into words, to explain to the rest of the group that she just had a coming-to-God moment of sorts.

Her cheeks flush as she feels embarrassed. What is she even going on about? Who amongst them would care?

She looks at Lexi, who glances at Jenny at the same moment, checking in to make sure she's okay. Lexi always tries to get Jenny to open up and embrace some side of her that Jenny figured didn't exist. But when their eyes meet, Lexi's expression brightens, and Jenny knows she knows.