Steve and I had not been dating for very long when we went to Tim's party. His house was enormous and I was nervous at the prospect of having to meet so many people at once. However, another part of me glowed with pride at the thought that, after only three weeks, Steve wanted to show me off.
I dressed carefully on the night because of this, convinced that any hair out of place, a poorly chosen pair of shoes, would put me to shame. I had only just opted for a simple black dress with spaghetti straps when I heard the doorbell ring.
Steve smiled at me from the other side, looking me up and down, 'You look fantastic', he said.
'Thank you,', I smiled, 'So do you.'
It was true, he only wore a button down shirt and jeans, but everything about him tended to make me weak at the knees. With his dark hair and intense blue eyes, he was easily the most attractive man I had ever dated.
On the way to the party, in his car, I began to get increasingly nervous. My foot was tapping impatiently, encased in black strappy suede, while my hands twisted nervously in my lap.
Steve spotted this, 'Geez, Anna, will you calm down?' he laughed, 'You'd think you were facing a firing squad, not going to a party.'
I laughed, but my stomach carried on doing strange lurches all the way there. I've always been incredibly shy in front of strangers and the thought of embarrassing myself in front of my new boyfriend's friends was abhorrent to me.
When we arrived, Steve led me up the path and through the front door as calmly as if it were his own home. In the hallway, people greeted him with back slaps and smiles, but I kept my eyes firmly locked on the floor until I found myself in the kitchen. Steve's arm encircled my shoulders, 'Anna, this is Tim and this is Mark. They're two of my oldest friends.'
'Hi...' I barely managed to whisper, glancing up at the two of them. They reciprocated the greeting warmly enough, but I caught them taking in my appearance from head to toe. It made me incredibly uncomfortable.
The four of us moved into the lounge, where Steve and I managed to find a free sofa. Mark and Tim lounged lazily on the floor and we exchanged small talk for a while. That is to say, the three of them talked while I sat with shaking hands, wishing I could get a drink to calm my nerves.
Mark's voice became louder, rousing me from my train of thought. 'This party is dead! Shall we liven it up a little? How about a game of truth or dare?'
I readily agreed. Despite being cripplingly shy, I was also a lot of fun and I wanted Steve's friends to see that, as I was hardly making a good first impression at this point.
Steve volunteered to go first and turned to me, a mischievous glint in his eye, 'Truth or dare, Anna?'
I beamed back at him, broadly proclaiming 'Dare.' I had naively assumed that, what with Steve being my boyfriend, he would pick something light-hearted and fun for me to do. I was about to find out how wrong I was.
'Okay then,' he said, smiling wickedly at Tim and Mark, 'Anna, I dare you to strip to your underwear. For everyone to see.'
My heart instantly dropped to the pit of my stomach and I was sure that I was staring back at Steve, open-mouthed. Surely he had to be joking?
