“I get it. I saw you sitting here all alone, and that’s how I felt all year. I’ve been studying like crazy the past five months. That’s all I’ve done,” she confessed.

“It’s okay,” William said.

“It’s not. My friends keep telling me to loosen up, meet someone. Have fun. Honestly, I’d rather be at home watching Jurassic Park or something. But I’m here against my will. Neither of us is having fun, so let’s not have fun together.”

She kissed him again.

“How old are you?” she asked between kisses.

“Eighteen.”

“You’re not still in high school?” She pulled back.

“No. I graduated in June.”

“Oh, you’re a baby!” she said, laughing.

“I’m not a baby,” William protested.

“Oh, sweetie. I feel like I’m robbing the cradle.”

“How old are you?”

“Twenty.”

She took another drink. William followed her lead.

“That’s only two years older,” he said.

“I celebrate my birthday every day, so I could be at most seven hundred and thirty days older than you,” she said. “Seven hundred and thirty-one with the leap year.”

“You celebrate your birthday every day?”

She smirked and slapped his arm.

“Of course not. No one’s willing to give me a present every day.”

“I can get you another beer,” William offered.

“That would be lovely.” She handed him her empty cup.

They chugged their next two beers. The red, white, and blue lights hanging from the rafters spun faster. Much of the night blurred together.

He ran into David in the bathroom.

“Are you okay?” David asked.

“Imma great!” William declared. “I met this girl, Mel, A, NIE!”

“Oh, you met a girl,” David replied.

“I did,” William burped. “I'm gonna have her babies.”

David sighed. “Are you sure about that?”

William leaned against the sink, swaying as he stared into the mirror.

“Oh, I’m sure.”

The music seemed louder. The lights spun faster. He approached the woman he knew as Melanie, gazed into her brown eyes, and kissed her.

William found himself on the dance floor. Dancing. The lights above spun wildly, red, white, and blue dots circling the hall like a carnival ride. He couldn’t believe it. Emily danced with him, and for once, he didn’t have a care in the world. He didn’t know who sang the song, but he felt it in his whole body. He was truly living la vida loca.

William sat back at the table with Emily. He recalled them making out more. His hair was damp with sweat, and he could feel himself swaying slightly, though he didn’t feel as drunk as he had before.

“You’re losing your smile,” Emily said, putting on a mock frown.

“I don’t know where it went,” William replied with a hint of regret. “Can you find it?”

“Don’t worry,” she reassured him. “I can do something that will make it so you never lose that smile again.”

“William!” David yelled.

William blinked. He was in the bathroom stall with Emily.

“David!” William replied.

The stall door opened. It hadn’t been locked.

“William…” David said, peering inside.

William sat on the toilet with Emily on his lap. She added the finishing touches of blush to his cheeks. William laughed as the brush swept across his face.

“She’s giving me a smile that will never go away…” he said.

David sighed. “I can see that. You look really good with lipstick on. And that eye shadow really brings out your eyes.”

“Thank you,” Emily said. “Imma trying my bessssst.”

“I feel pretty,” William said. “Do I look pretty?”

“You look very pretty,” Emily told him, then continued kissing him.

“Okay, the party’s over, guys. The keg is tapped and the Smiths are kicking everyone out,” David said. “It’s time to go.”

The Plot Of Your Life