Wonderful Company

Wonderful Company

It’s 9 pm, and I’m ready to cry. My best friend, Christopher, has decided that the two of us should go to the fabulous party a few blocks away. Despite my protests, Chris says social interaction is healthy for me, even if it’s once in a while. Even my mother agrees, saying, ‘Go on, lass. Parties are fun if you behave correctly. No drinking and your curfew is quarter to twelve, alright?’ Which means I’m trapped into going.

Christopher jumps up and down with excitement, shaking my shoulders as we approach Lara Tian’s house.

“This is going to be fun, Lia,”

“What if it isn’t?”

“Don’t be a sourpuss, Ophelia,” He crosses his arms, frowning. “We know all the people who are here, and it’s a chance for you to find the love of your life,” 

“Oh, please. We’re seventeen, Chris. No one’s going to find their soulmate at a venue with strobe lights and terrible music. We’re not living in a movie,”

“You never know, Lia.” Christopher winks and drags me inside. I’m instantly overcome with cheering, laughing and the booming rhythm of the music.

“Hi, Opheliaaa,” A girl staggers over to me, grinning madly.

“Hello, Chloe. You’re not drunk, are you?”

“Me?” She asks, her voice rising a few octaves higher. “Of course not! Daddy wouldn’t want that, and I would never displease him. Anyway, toodles!” She wanders off, wobbling on her stilettos. 

“Bye?” I stutter as Chris pulls me into the mob of people surrounding a table full of plastic cups.

“Ophelia! You came,” My friend Julia cries, and the others cheer.

“Wait, Jules, I didn’t know you were coming,”

“Ophelia,” she gives me a disapproving look, “you should know me better by now. I always go to parties,”

“That’s true,” I nod. An arm slings over my shoulder, and I turn to see Annie, who’s wearing a bright shade of pink lipstick.

“Hi, girly! Did you ever notice that Ophelia is such a pretty name? I wish my name was Ophelia,” She says in a singsong voice.

“Isn’t Ophelia a song?” Nigel pipes up, and I notice he’s sitting on the table, the hostess of the party in his lap.

“Oh, Ophelia. You've been on my mind girl like a drug. Oh, Ophelia. Heaven help a fool who falls in love,” Lara sings out of tune, and I chuckle.

“You get it, Lara,” I joke, and Chris bumps his shoulder into mine.

“See?” he whispers into my ear, “parties can be fun.” I watch him take Julia’s hand, and they disappear onto the dance floor. I look back to the rest of my friends but find Nigel kissing Lara intently, and Annie chatting to another girl, so I decide to roam around the party. I make up my mind to socialise, and decide it’s time to come out of “Ophelia’s little bubble”.

As soon as I decide to open up a little more, I regret it straight away. A guy is throwing up into a rubbish bag, while a girl is singing the worst rendition of Celine Dion’s ‘My Heart Will Go On’, and no one is available to talk. I sigh, walking out to the balcony, where it’s quieter, and sit in one of the hanging chairs.

“Hello,” A deep voice calls out to me, and I move my gaze from the night sky to a broad-shouldered boy, sitting in the seat next to me.

“Oh, hi. I didn’t see you there,”

“That’s okay. Are you escaping the chaos in there?” He points his thumb in the direction of the music.

“Yep. My friends invited me, but they’re all preoccupied at the moment,” I fiddle with the hem of my skirt and the boy nods.

“I know what you mean. It’ll be fun, they said. Go make some friends, or get yourself a date, they said,” He rolls his eyes. 

“That last one got me,” I laugh.

“Dexter Rogers,” The boy says, holding out his hand for me to shake. I grip it firmly and shake it. “Nice grip you got there,” He comments, and I blush.

“My mum always says I’m too rough to be a girl,” I confess, and Dexter smirks.

“My dad says I’m too soft to be a boy. Stereotypes, am I right?”

“Yeah. I’m Ophelia, by the way. Ophelia Silvera,”

“Ophelia. That’s a nice name,”

“Thanks,” I smile.

“Isn’t that the name of a song?” Dexter asks, and I chuckle.

“Yes, it is. If you want, you can find my friend Lara, and she’ll sing it to you perfectly,”

“Why do I doubt that?” Dexter laughs, and I give him a coy smile.

“Your eardrums will be blessed afterwards,” 

“I look forward to it,” he pauses for a moment. “Not to sound sketchy or anything, but do you want to go on a walk around the block with me?” He asks, and I pull out my phone, checking the time.

“We’ll come back in half an hour. I need to make sure my friends don’t get themselves killed,”

“Fair enough. Shall we?” He holds out his arm, and I take it, and he guides me through the crowd of dancers and singers.

~

“So, are you in Mr Cartville’s class?” Dexter asks me as we stroll down the quiet street, leaving the party behind.

“Nope, I’m in Ms Wright’s,”

“Ah, that would explain why I haven’t seen you very often. It would be hard not to notice a pretty girl like you,” He says, and I feel my lack of social interaction coming back to bite me. Is he flirting with me?

“Aw, you think so?” I grin, and he nods. “Which class are you in?” I ask in return.

“Mrs Brambleton’s class. It’s always chaotic,”

“Come join my class,” I offer jokingly, “11P4 is a very chill class, except for Christopher,”

“I know Christopher,” Dexter realises, and I beam.

“He’s great, isn’t he?”

“I’ve never met a guy more loyal to his friends,”

“Couldn’t have said it better,” I come to a stop, looking at the deserted playground. “What are your thoughts on monkey bars, Dexter?”

“Neutral. If they’re too low, there’s no point in me trying, my feet will touch the ground. If they’re really high, I might break my noodle arms,” He admits, and I stare at his arms, which are anything but noodles.

“Alright then. Climb on,” I hoist myself through the gaps between the bars and sit comfortably on the top of the monkey bars. “Your turn,”

“How did you even get up there that quickly?” Dexter gasps, and I smile.

“Years of practice, thanks to gymnastics,”

“That’s exciting. I might not be able to get up,”

“Come on, I believe in you,” I tease, and he pulls himself up, wrapping his legs around the bars successfully.

“Oh, that actually wasn’t too hard,” He adds as we both look at each other, then at the stars. For a little while, we sit and talk. Expressing our thoughts on school, the future, and dating lives.

“My friends are out there, getting girlfriends like it’s easy, and I’m still single,” Dexter reveals, and I can’t help but relate.

“Jules and Chris are most definitely a thing, no matter how hard they try to hide it. The same goes for Nigel and Lara. They were literally hooking up when I arrived. Annie is a special case, she doesn’t date, but everyone loves her all the same,”

“So you don’t have a special someone? If I’m allowed to ask,” He inquires softly.

“Of course you can ask, but goodness no. Who would want to date me when I don’t bring anything to the table?”

“I’m sure you do,” Dexter reassures me, but I laugh humourlessly.

“Not compared to my friends,” I confess, and Dexter shuffles a little bit closer to me, placing his hand on top of mine.

“Well, maybe you don’t need to compare yourself to your friends. You’re fine just the way you are,” He tells me, and I don’t say anything. Maybe he’s right.

“We should probably head back now,” I say, changing the subject. Dexter’s face looks the tiniest bit crestfallen, but he jumps off the monkey bars swiftly.

“Better go take care of our crazy friends, huh?” He chuckles, and I smile.

“Yeah, I suppose so. It’s nice talking to you, though,”

“You’re wonderful company, Ophelia Silvera,” Dexter compliments, and I blush.

“As are you, Dexter Rogers.” I reply, and we both head back to the party.

~

“Opheliaaaa,” Annie greets me loudly when I re-enter the house. “Where have you been, sweetheart? You missed Christopher confessing to Jules about his undying love to her,”

“I’m sure he did. Those two have been keeping their feelings in the dark for a long time,”

“What about you? Did you find anyone?” Annie asks while reapplying her lipstick. I look over to Dexter, whose hair is being ruffled by his friends as they all laugh together. I realise how hard my heart is beating when I see him smile.

“No, I don’t think so,”

“You don’t think so? Hun, you can’t lie to me. Who is it?” She smiles, linking her arm with mine.

“I- He… His name is Dexter,”

“Ooh, Dexter Rogers? Now that is a fine choice, Lia. He’s a real hottie, isn’t he? Silent and always brooding. How charming,”

“Well, I don’t like him because of his looks. He’s really nice to me, Annie,”

“Since when have you two been so cosy with each other?”

“Uh, just tonight. I’ve seen him around in school, but that’s all,”

“Aww, and to think you were almost too nervous to come tonight. Aren’t you glad you did?” 

At that moment, Dexter’s eyes glance over to me, and he smiles widely before he gets pulled away by his group of friends.

“Yeah, I am. Thanks, Annie,”

“Any time, my girl. Go after him, you might not get another chance,”

“I will. Love you, Annie.”

“There’s the Ophelia I know, coming out of her shell. Oh, and Lia?”

“Yes?”

“Christopher is looking for you,”

“Okay, thanks.”

“Ophelia!” Christopher cries, when I spot him, which isn’t too hard. He’s the life of the party. “You weren’t there, but I told Jules how I feel about her,”

“I heard. You announced your undying love, is that right?”

“It was beautiful, Lia. She said she’ll be my girlfriend,”

“Aww, Chris. That’s so sweet!”

“Now, before you avoid the subject. Where have you been all night, missy?”

“I was hanging out with someone,” 

“Someone?” Christopher gives me a look, and I playfully shove his arm.

“It’s not like that,”

“Are you sure, Lia?” My best friend asks, and I see Dexter looking my way again. When our eyes meet, he sticks out his tongue, grinning. I turn back to Christopher.

“No, I’m not sure. Can you like someone after one night of talking?”

“Depends what they’re like,”

“You know who he is, Chris,” I smile, and he puts his thinking face on.

“Hmm, okay. Is it Will?”

“Nope,”

“The other Christopher?”

“No, guess again."

“Johnny?”

“Wrong again."

“Dexter?”

“I- yeah,” I blush furiously, and Chris shakes my shoulders.

“Dexter Rogers? Woah, go Lia!” He cheers, spinning me around. “Dexter is a great guy. Man, he’s so cool. Very loyal to the people he’s close with,”

“Funny,” I laugh, “he said the same thing about you,”

“He did? Wow, that’s nice of him,” Chris grins. “Are you going to ask him out?”

“Isn’t it a bit too soon?”

“It’s never too soon when it’s the love of your life,”

“Chris!” I whine, “he’s not the love of my life!”

“But you have to admit, you like him,”

“Yes, I do. Happy?”

“Very.” A voice interrupts, and I whirl around, facing Dexter.

“Oh, hi,” I squeak, turning back to glare at Chris, but he’s already gone.

“So, Ophelia likes me, huh?”

“So what if I do?” I ask, daringly, and Dexter shrugs.

“Oh, I don’t know. Maybe she should consider telling the man in question. Just a thought,”

“You’re very smooth, Mr Rogers,”

“Am I? I thought you were the one smooth one, scaling up the monkey bars like that,”

“Oh, shush,” I laugh, and Dexter smiles.

“What do you say, Ophelia? Would you like to give me a shot?”

“Does it mean I get to race you on the monkey bars, later?”

“Perhaps,”

“Does it mean I get to see you during school?”

“It might,”

“Does it mean I get to kiss you right now?”

“It could-”

 Before he can say anything else, I press my lips onto Dexter’s, despite being surrounded by people. 

“You’re wonderful company, Ophelia Silvera,” Dexter reminds me, tucking a strand of hair behind my ear.

“As are you, Dexter Rogers.” I wink, before kissing him again.