Party Barn

“Come on, turn it up!” The bass of the newest dance song was already hurting my ears so I just ignored Amanda. In retrospect this wasn't a good idea, but it was raining and I was paying attention to the slick roads. In Seattle it is normal to drive in the rain but i am from Caldwell Idaho where we get rain but not as often as Washington. Amanda has been my best friend since Junior year of highschool. We did everything together, good and bad. In the front seat was my boyfriend Connor and behind him was Amanda's boyfriend Tyson. I could tell Connor knew I was getting annoyed at Amanda. He just looked at me then turned to Amanda. 

“Amanda, I have a headache already, If you really want me at this rave we gotta keep it from getting worse till we get there.” I watched Amanda ponder this in the rearview mirror. Dramatic sigh “Fine, I guess.” 

I'm not complaining. Soon Amanda and Tyson were cuddling in my back seat. Tyson already looked tired, though the night was still young. Amanda looked as excited to party as ever. While they were distracted me and Connor started talking. 

“Do you even know whose house it is we are going to?” I asked. Connor was pretty popular and usually knew all the hot party houses.

“Yeah Mason Cornwicks place, we went there last year right before we got together, remember the party where you got shit faced drunk and twerked on the barbeque screaming the lyrics to Grenade.”

I laughed, “No i do not remember because as you recall I was drunk, But i saw all the videos so yeah i know what you are talking about, and more importantly how to get there. In fact I think I remember a short cut.” I peered through the ever thickening rain at a sign quickly approaching. “In fact I think it's down this road” I yanked on the steering wheel, which made Amanda and Tyson smack heads.

“Ruby! What the fuck!” Amanda whined. Her voice was starting to piss me off. I love her but she is so annoying sometimes.

“Chill ‘Manda. Shortcut” I drove for a while and listened to the music enjoying the feel of Connors hand in mine. While the hand that was still on the steering wheel was drumming the beat of the song, my brain started to wander. It was the sound of my tires crunching on gravel that snapped me out of my head. Wait, gravel, where are we? While I tried to figure out where we were, Amanda being who she was started complaining about how late we were going to be at the party. I ignored her and drove slowly down the gravel road, the rain making it slick and muddy. As I was looking for a place to turn around, the tire of my 2020 white honda accord burst. I swerved and crashed into a fence post. There was the sound of the air bags deploying and very creative cursing from Connor and Tyson. I passed out for a second. When I came to, I pried my face off of the airbag and sat up. Tyson was yelling at me, Connor was yelling at Tyson, Amanda was yelling at everyone. A cold calm swept over me.

“Would you please, SHUT UP!” Surprisingly everyone stopped talking “let's get out of the car and go to that barn. I need to call a tow truck, my insurance company and a ride home for you guys. So just chill.” Finally we all got out of the car, and other than ringing heads and Tysons bloody nose, nothing really happened. We all trudged through the cold wet grass into the barn. 

“Babe” Connor tapped my shoulder when we shut the barn door behind us. “Isn't this trespassing” I hadn't thought of that. Before I could answer a voice sounded from the hay loft above. 

“Yes quite indeed, you are trespassing” the voice was obviously male. The man climbed down from his roost in the hayloft. “But I saw you youngsters crash and you can dry off here and call who you need.” He was quiet for a second. “But I expect you to be gone by morning.” The man didn't give us his name. He just climbed down and left the barn. I heard the roar of a tractor being started up. That was a huge relief. Connor and i went to the nearest hay bale and sat down

“So much for a party with free drinks,” Connor laughed. “It's fine because I could have fun with you even in a barn in the middle of nowhere” That gave me an idea. 

“Hang on guys, I'm gonna go call the tow and insurance company. I already texted my mom, she will be here in an hour.” I went back to my wrecked car for a speaker under the driver seat. The rain seemed to be slowing down but it was still cold. Luckily my speaker isn't broken or damaged. I tucked it in my jacket and headed back to the barn. On the way back I called my insurance company and they said they will send out a tow truck within 1-3 hours for my car. Now that the stressful part was done, I was going to act on my previous idea. I connected the bluetooth on my phone before I went back inside the barn. I turned on my party dance mix and went inside. 

“Sorry guys, I know you wanted to go to that party. But we can still dance here!” I pushed the volume up button and grabbed Connor by the hand and pulled him up “Come on, babe lets dance.” Amanda and Tyson started dancing as well, before we knew it we were all dancing and laughing and at some point our clothes dried off. We were having so much fun that we almost didn't hear my mother pull up and honk. We rushed out of the barn and got in my moms SUV.Connor and I snuggled up in the back seat, shared a romantic kiss. Then fell asleep in eachothers arms, enjoying the ride and the peaceful hum of the rain.