"Are you ready for the party?" Mom questioned, tapping her chin in thought.

I gulped anxiously, glancing in the mirror. "I'm ready as I'll ever be."

Today is the day of Millicent's party. Instead of feeling one-hundred percent excited about it, I feel doubtful and nervous. Over there, there will mostly be popular students at school. They'll see us as a piece of ten-day-old gum stuck to the bottom of their shoes. However, I'm still attending the party. I can't ditch it, especially since it'll be considered rude. I already made it official that I was going to come.

I'm definitely not ready for this party. 

"I can tell that you're nervous." Mom set an arm over my shoulder.

"I'm f-fine." I stuttered apprehensively, "Don't worry."

"Roselynn Mariana Jiminez-Cruz..." she stated my full name sternly, "I can tell that you aren't okay, mi amor!"

When she says my full name, that either means that I'm in trouble or that she spotted a lie I told. In this case, I slightly lied about being fine. Deep down, I'm not. I feel like I'm going to melt into a puddle of slime if this keeps happening.

"You're right, mamá." I glanced at the spotless floor.

She beamed, trying to lift my spirit. "You'll be fine!"

"I hope." I took a deep breath, trying to remain calm.

Right then, my phone starting buzzing, distracting me from what was going on. I powered it on and immediately viewed a text message from my brother.

Rafael: Where are you? The party will start soon. I've been waiting in the car for about fifteen minutes. 

Me: Don't worry! I'm coming outside now. 

Rafael: Okay! I'll see you there!

I frantically shoved my phone into my small purse, opening the front door. There's no time to waste.

"Well, it's time to go now. I'll see you later, Mom!" I hesitantly walked out the door, glancing back at Mom, who was grinning.

She beamed, closing the door behind me. "Bye, mija! Have fun!" 

The sun was high, the air felt warm, the birds were chirping, and the trees of the neighborhood stood firmly in their place. My hair looked perfect and my smile was bright. It's supposed to be boosting my confidence, but instead, it's lowering it.

My sweaty, shaking hand pulled the car door. I instantly slouched down in the back seat, glancing towards the front. Rafael was in the driver's seat. In the passenger seat, there was an unfamiliar girl who looked the same age as my brother.

Her long, black box braids went down to her lower back. She wore a pale yellow dress, highlighting her shiny, genuine smile.

"Who's your friend?" I glanced at Rafael, raising an eyebrow.

I'm curious to know who this girl is. She might be one of his friends. I doubt that he would bring anyone less than a friend to a random party. 

"This is Josephine!" he informed, winking at her, "She's coming to the party with us!"

She waved, peering back at me. "Hi! It's a pleasure to meet you!"

"It's nice to meet you, too!" I simpered, fastening my seat belt.

I was right about this girl. She is genuine.

Rafael announced, glimpsing back at me. "We'll get to the party in just a few minutes!"

I mustered a smile, grasping my hands together. "That's good to hear!"

We pulled out of the driveway, heading onto the bumpy road. Someone seriously needs to repair the potholes in them. They're not helping my nervous jitters or my sanity. Making matters worse, my stomach started to rumble quietly. Today, I decided to skip lunch, mainly because I was too focused on party preparations.

Hoping to get distracted from my anxiety, I pulled out my phone to text my friends. I'm sure they have something to tell me.

Me: Hey! I'm almost at the party! Where are you guys?

Tracey: We're already here! We're waiting outside for you.

Lizzie: Yeah. We thought you'd at least come early because you've been talking about this party so much for the past week.

Me: I know. I just had some last-minute things to do, but don't worry. I'll be there soon. Just wait for me.

Tracey: That sounds good! Are you excited?

Me: I am! It'll be fun!

Lizzie: I hope it'll be. See you there!

Right then, I put away my phone. While doing so, I noticed Millicent's large house in view. People were coming in and out of the house, socializing loudly. Rafael parked the car at the curb of the sidewalk. Feeling weak, I shuffled out of the car. My nervousness grew bigger as I approached my friends, who stood at the door.

The two of them exclaimed. "Rose! You're here!"

"Hi, guys!" I uttered, almost dropping my purse.

"Hi!" Tracey smiled, winking, "Remember the dare you have to do!"

From there, I started to remember when we were playing truth or dare at lunchtime the other day. I knew that it would be a bad idea to play from the start. I got dared to talk to Tyler at this party, which is the last thing I expected to get dared for.

"Do I have to do it?" I complained, overwhelmed.

Lizzie smirked. "A dare is a dare!"

Both of my friends have been like this since elementary school. We started giving each other crazy challenges and dares. At first, it was fun. Until Lizzie challenged me to pick up some worms and take them home for a day.

I absolutely hate worms, but that didn't concern me at the time. My concern was about Mom, who always wanted her house spotless. If she figured out there were worms in the house, she'd get irritated. 

Fortunately, she didn't figure it out. That day, she was out of town for work. I guess I was lucky that day.

Another time, Tracey dared me to play four square with some boys. Possibly, this could've been worse than what Lizzie dared me to do. I'm bad at playing sports, no matter what it is. I'll never change. To make matters worse, I had to play them with boys. It took Tracey a lot of convincing for me to do the dare, but I gave in after a while of convincing.

I ended up embarrassing myself in front of those boys.

But now, I don't have to worry about that anymore. I'm in the tenth grade now. It's time to start focusing on other things. Like my current dare situation.

How will I do this?

Letting out a huge sigh, I entered the spacious house. We approached the basement door, where the party is taking place. Carefully, we shuffled down the steps. The sound of music blasting and people chatting greeted us. The room was dark with colorful lights all around the place. This seemed epic.

I spotted Millicent socializing with her friend, Lin Jeong. They seem to be having fun.

"Hey, Millicent! Happy birthday!" I tapped her shoulder, plastering a smile across my face.

"Thanks!" she pointed to a nearby table, swarmed with people, "And hi, Rafael!"

She fluttered her eyelashes as she gazed at him. I expected this to happen ever since last week, which is when she met him for the first time. Ever since then, she acted strange around him only. But then again, she's probably just being extra friendly to him.

"Happy birthday!" he held up a gift, "I'm going to set this gift I got you on the table."

She gushed. "You got me a gift? That's so sweet! Go set them at the table over there."

While grinning, she pointed to a table stacked with presents on top of each other. Taking a deep breath, I quickly set my gift onto the table, stacked with other gifts on top of each other.

"What do we do now?" Tracey mused, looking at her surroundings.

"I don't know." Lizzie shrugged, waiting for an answer from me.

I answered, gripping my hands together. "Maybe I could start doing the dare you two gave me. The sooner I do it, the sooner I won't have to worry about it."

"Great idea!" Tracey winked, "Tyler is getting food. He isn't with anybody, so this is your chance!"

"I guess..." I sighed, "Wish me luck!"

Hesitantly, I trudged my feet across the room, where he was located. Tyler was someone I never spent time with, so this is my first. I hope that this won't be as bad as I think it will turn out..