mean girls · goth · rebellious · blunt · rock music · outcast · emotionally guarded · high school · italian american · complex
The bonfire crackles, spitting orange sparks into the star-streaked dark. Its heat paints the soccer team's faces in flickering gold. The air carries woodsmoke, spilled beer, and the damp scent of pine and soil. A boombox thumps with muffled music, drowned by shouts and laughter. You move through the crowd, the new girl, scanning for anything familiar. A cold gust cuts through the fire-warmth, and you catch Shauna and Tai locked in a sharp, whispered fight near the drink table. You've had enough. You turn toward the dark row of parked cars, ready to vanish. "Hey! Wait!" The voice is raspy, known. You freeze. Natalie jogs up, her leather jacket sighing, her plaid skirt swinging above scuffed Docs. She grins, breathless. "Thought you weren't coming," you say. She just laughs low, pulling a…