A/N: The attached picture is each girls costume. The models are not to represent them, please remember Raelynn is a blonde, ashlynn is a blonde, and analise has brown hair and mallory has red hair. But these are there costumes. Happy new year! Enjoy!

Chapter 24 - Analise

    I smoothed out my dress in the mirror, suddenly feeling very insecure. I glanced at Mallory through the mirror, who had taken the liberty of helping me get ready. She'd offered, and pushing back how skeptical I was, I accepted. We had decided to use our newfound friendship to match for the Halloween party, instead of matching to any guys. I was still completely unsure of how I felt about Will, and she wanted to make me comfortable since I despised parties.

We decided together to be an angel and a devil, with a twist. She was the devil, and I was the angel; we thought the irony was laughable, and figured our peers would too. Mallory looked sexy as sin - adorned in a mid thigh black dress with red flames on it, black knee high high-heeled red boots, and long red gloves. She also had little devil horns in her red hair, which kind of just made it all the better. I was the complete opposite, in a completely white dress that came to my mid thigh, silver thin heels, and long white gloves, with wings on my back.

Mallory looked hot, and I looked like a try hard. I'd never been seen in front of the kids at school in anything more than jeans and a hoodie, besides for the Sadie Hawkins dance; but that dress hadn't held a candle to this one in the form of being revealing. This dress was sexy - too sexy for someone like me.

"You look hot," Mallory told me, admiring the both of us through the mirror. "We're going to rock that party."

"I'm nervous," I mumbled, looking down at my feet. "I never get nervous. What if Tommy and Raelynn and Colin are there? What if-"

"Girl, you've got us now. Unlike them, we won't ditch you," Mallory said, turning my around and putting her hands on my shoulders. She was looking me dead in the eye. "Justin's a big flirt, but he's a big jokester. He's loyal as hell, why do you think he's still my friend?"

I gave her a questioning look, and she sighed. "I know he has a thing for me. I don't know what it is - lust, like, or love - but I know about it, okay? I'm not dense. But I don't feel that way for him, so I didn't want to entertain it and lead him on. That wouldn't be fair."

I nodded, and she continued. "I won't ditch you. I'm always the one being ditched, and I've missed having a close girl friend to talk with and gossip with. I'm not going to turn on you; I didn't like you because of the rumors, but they're obviously not true. I mean, you live with your brother, so there's most of the rumors gone. He's hot by the way."

"Toby," I reminded her.

She waved her hand dismissively. "I'm just saying, he's really hot. He's too old for me anyway. And you're way cooler than I thought you were, and I'm sorry for misjudging you. Will, I just met when you did, but he doesn't seem like the type to hurt someone to me. Now, let's go get our party on and show them who the hottest girls in that place are."

I laughed along with her, following her to the car after a lecture from Drew about not getting pregnant because he didn't want to be an uncle yet. Once we were at the party, we got out and I rubbed my sweaty palms on my dress. It'd been a long time since I was around this many people looking like this, if ever. Mallory looped her arm through mine and together we walked to the front door. When we walked in, there was a collective gasp in the room.

I looked around, and though there were scantily clad girls, none were as exposed as the two of us. Girls were looking at Mallory and I jealously, and guys were looking lustfully. It was almost a comical sight. My eyes involuntarily scanned the crowd of onlookers, and I found Will, Toby and Justin at the same time Mallory did. They were staring at the two of us, mouths agape, and I held back a laugh. Apparently, the three of them had decided to go as the men in black, and they were all in black suits with black ties. They also had sunglasses on. They looked so good.

We walked over to them, and Toby was the first to speak. "You girls look..."

"Phenomenal," Justin cut in, smirking at me. "I'm still available, Ana."

I smirked back, winking. "I'm still not interested, Justin."

"Can't blame a guy for trying," Justin mumbled, taking a sip of the contents in his cup. "I'm going to find a sexy nurse without her doctor. Excuse me."

Mallory and I giggled, and Toby pulled her into a kiss. I looked at Will, who still had yet to say anything, and smiled. "You look nice."

"You look... wow," he responded, closing his mouth and shaking his head. "An angel, huh?"

I smiled. "We thought the irony would be funny."

He chuckled, nodding. "It is."

I pulled him in for a hug, a new habit of mine, before looking around. "Everyone's looking at me and it's making me uncomfortable."

"It's because you look so alluring, Annie. They're not used to it."

I bit my lip, looking down. "What about you?"

He put a finger under my chin, tilting my head up so I stared into his eyes. His sunglasses had been pushed to rest on top of his head, and his baby blue's were staring straight into my brown ones. "I knew you were beautiful the first day I saw you; hoodie, jeans and all."

I felt myself blush and internally berated myself for being so girly at a time like this. I'd never been so girly; blushing, lip biting, and giggling? What the fuck, Analise? 

"Thank you," I murmured shyly.

"You wanna go get a drink?" Will asked, motioning behind him. "You thirsty?"

I smiled. "I'm parched."

I followed him to the kitchen, and he walked to the drink table. He picked up the whiskey in one hand and a 2 liter in the other. "Soda or alcoholic?"

"Alcohol, please, I need some liquid courage," I admitted, scanning the room for any familiar faces. It was when I saw my former best friends that I knew I needed liquid courage, and I needed it fast. Raelynn, Colin and Tommy were on the other side of the kitchen, a red solo cup in each of their hands; but that wasn't what was causing bile to come up my throat. No, that could of course only be one person.

Ashlynn Collins.

And she was currently pressed up against Tommy, in a heated make-out session. Her hands were in his hair, and his hands were groping her ass. They were pressed together so tightly I couldn't even tell what their costumes were, and it was hard to see where he ended and she began.

Will handed me a cup, bringing me out of my stare off with a smug looking Raelynn, and I shot it back faster than I ever had. Ignoring the familiar burning sensation in my throat, I said, "Another, please."

Will looked over at me worriedly, before his eyes followed my line of sight. His widened and his mouth opened for the second time in five minutes, but it was for a completely different reason. "Whoa."

While he was pouring my second drink, I took the time to study their costumes since Ashlynn had taken a break from eating Tommy to breathe. The two girls were both dressed as 'naughty school girls' but they wore it differently. Raelynn was wearing a white strapless bralette paired with a high waisted grey skirt. Her accessories included a fake pair of glasses - since Raelynn had perfect vision - fishnet stockings, knee high black heeled boots, red suspenders and a red and gold tie. Her hair was down in waves. She wore it well, and even I could admit she looked hot.

Ashlynn took it a step further, and though she similarly had the fake black rimmed glasses on her face, the rest was different. She had what looked to be a white button up shirt, mostly unbuttoned and rolled and tucked so it came just under her boobs. Ashlynn also had a red and blue plaid skirt that barely covered her ass, a pair of white knee high socks and black heels. Her blonde hair - which was lighter than Raelynn's dirty blond locks - was parted down the middle and tied with black bows in pigtails.

They both looked hot, and I couldn't help the surge of jealousy I was feeling. I'd often wished for blonde hair while growing up, because I felt like you were cuter if you had blonde hair, and seeing these two blondes dressed so seductively, I felt the familiar pang. I knew it wasn't because she had Tommy - I had no romantic feelings for him at all, but part of me missed my best friends.

Tommy and Colin were dressed as teachers, I'm sure to match the two girls, but it was the classic Khakis, button up shirt, bow tie and fake glasses - nothing fancy.

I took the drink Will offered with a 'thank you' and a smile, before it dropped as soon as the four approached us. I downed the drink fast, needing the extra push to deal with my enemy and ex best friends chumming it up in front of me.

"Look what the cat dragged in," Ashlynn sneered, eyeing my costume distastefully.

I eyed her similarly. "Talking about yourself, Collins?"

"I see you're with hick boy again," Raelynn commented, twirling a piece of hair around her finger. "How is it, hanging with the less fortunate?"

I felt Will stiffen, and it only pissed me off more that they were talking badly about him and my new friends. "You should know, since you've adopted Ashlynn."

Will coughed on the sip of his drink he was drinking, obviously trying to stifle his laughter. It only fueled an anger in Tommy. "Something funny? I would love to know the joke."

Will shrugged. "Your life."

I looked at Will, impressed. He had never been so bold before and it made me smile proudly. It wasn't the greatest I'd ever heard, but for Will, it was a lot. Of course it was short lived, because Ashlynn shoved me back into the drink table, effectively making several open cups spill. I narrowed my eyes at her. "Do you ever fucking learn your lessons?"

"Guess not," Ashlynn shrugged, not looking even a little affected.

By this point we'd gathered a crowd, and Mallory, Toby, Justin and a random girl pushed their way out of it, coming to stand next to us. True to his word, Justin had found a girl in a sexy nurse costume, and it took everything in me not to laugh.

"What the hell is going on?" Mallory asked, narrowing her eyes at the quad in front of us.

"Just having a discussion with Analise," Ashlynn told her nonchalantly.

"Stay out of it Pippi Longstocking," Raelynn snapped at Mallory.

"Stop with the red hair jokes, you fucking-"

Toby ran a hand down her arm soothingly, whispering loud enough for only us to hear. "She wants the reaction, babe. Don't feed her fire."

"Look at you, Tobes. Shacking it up with the island of misfit toys," Tommy raged, his eyes dangerous. "And here I thought you were my family."

"Leave me the hell out of your spat," Toby told him, his voice dangerously even. "You're my cousin, that doesn't take away from the fact that you're a dickhead."

Ashlynn started her blabber again, and it was starting to give me a headache. "Why would anyone want to be friends with the orphan?"

Fury shot through me in an instant and I clenched my fists to keep myself from lashing out. My nails were digging painfully into my palm, but I had to diffuse the situation. I decided to stop this before we started an all out brawl, so I got ballsy. I had had enough of being talked to like this from the likes of them. I swiftly turned, filling my cup up from the tap. "You're getting a drink right now? In the middle of-"

Ashlynn cut herself off with an ear piercing shriek as I poured my drink over her head. The beer stained her blonde hair leaving streaks of matted brown, and her white shirt and socks were covered in the brown liquid. I squished my cup in my hand, diminishing it's size greatly before stuffing it down her shirt. "Yeah, I was."

Justin, Will, Mallory and Toby were trying to hide their smiles, and I gave them a big one in return. Taking advantage of the fact that Colin, Tommy, Raelynn and Ashlynn were still shell shocked, I got myself a new cup and filled it with a new drink. I took my cup, tapping it to the top of my old cup that was sticking out of her shirt and gave her a smirk. "Cheers."

Check mate, bitch.