text: Heavy bodies dance to the booming bass, reeking of alcohol and pushing against me. I navigate the crowd, rubbing against more skin than clothes, and reach the kitchen. It's unrecognizable as our house now. The white-marbled counter is littered with plastic cups and dirty plates, and I start grabbing stuff and shoving it into an overflowing trash bin, with which the party guests must've made a game of to see how tall it could go without falling. I see my sister Cecil dancing a couple feet away, blonde locks and white smile bouncing above a sea of heads. Her arms wrap around a pretty stranger. I shake my head. I can't understand her for the life of me. I toss the bag to the floor and don't bother to replace the trash bin. "Her party, her mess," I tell myself, already knowing I'll be cleaning this tomorrow. Still, in a mix of rebellion and procrastination, I leave the trash and march upstairs (holding my breath as I pass some guys smoking on the steps). There's a couple e-books on my phone I have queued up, and I find it pleasant to think I'll be spending New Year's Eve reading while her friends are throwing up beer. I walk to my room when I see the lights on under the bathroom door. My gut burns. I told Cecil a billion times that upstairs was off-limits. I glare at the door and my back tingles at the thought of puke clogging up the toilet I'll have to use tomorrow. And the bathroom was just one thing--drunk couples tumbling into my bedroom, into Mom's bedroom? Jaw clenched, I slam my hand on the doorknob and yank the door open. I scream. A skinny brown-haired boy, sitting fully-clothed on my toilet, stares at me with a book in his hands. "What-" I start. His long hair brushes against his black glasses and reveal his eyes, green and glinting. "I'm.." "What are you doing here?" I blurt. It comes out all hard and cold and I don't mean it. Thankfully, he laughs softly and scratches his head. "I... I've been asking myself the same thing." I blink at him. I don't know what to do. "Upstairs are off-limits." He looks at me and there's a shift in his eyes. He grabs his book. "Sorry- yes, I'm leaving." He stands and glances about the bathroom apologetically. I watch, hating myself for feeling like the rude one. I feel guilty nonetheless--I would've done the same as him, at a party I didn't belong in. "Are you a friend of Cecil's?" I ask. He shakes his head. "Nah, my brother's a friend of hers. He dragged me along." I nod, but he's looking at the book in his hands. "He fancies her, I think. I honestly don't know why. No offense! You're her older sister, right?" "Yeah." We stand in the bathroom for a fat minute. My hands are itching to pull out that e-book and my bedroom is just behind me. The boy purses his lips and I catch a glimpse of his eyes. There's anxiety there--dread. I remember the crowds and the stench of alcohol downstairs and almost physically shudder. Which is terrifying, because I kind of have to pee now. "I'm gonna just be in my room," I say. He looks at me, eyes big. "So you can hang here, I guess.. if you want." He beams at me and I can tell he's trying to hide it. He must think I'm like Cecil, think I'm judging him. "Oh, wait, I have to use the bathroom!" I say. He nods vigorously and comes towards me and I step aside for him to pass before entering and closing the door. I relieve myself, shaking my head. After flushing and washing my hands, I call out, "It's all yours!" With a laugh, I open the door. The hallway is empty. I hear cheers from downstairs and glance at a clock on the wall: 11:59pm. Hah, of course. I consider going down to join the countdown, but instead smile and go into my room, slipping into the cool covers. I pull out my phone and search through my e-book list. I had caught a glimpse of the book he was reading, and I type it into the search bar. I settle in with a grin, and read.