"Password."

"Excuse me?"

"I said," the bouncer crosses his arms and stares down at me intimidatingly. "Password."

"What do you mean password? Do you know who I am?"

"You're holding up the line!" Someone behind me yells. "If you don't know the password then move aside!"

Oh you've gotta be kidding me. Vienna and I both turn around at the same time, shooting the accuser death glares. With a huff I spin around.

"Let me in. Right now," I command.

"Sorry, no can do. I'm under strict orders by Kennedy Davis not to let anyone inside without the password."

"I am Kennedy Davis!"

"Then you won't mind showing some ID."

This is ridiculous. I don't even remember hiring this guy. Annoyed, I reach into my clutch and pull out my wallet, shoving my ID in his face. "See? It's me."

He squints at it for a full minute before starting to unlock the door. "My apologies miss."

I give him a dirty look before stepping inside, Vienna close on my heels.

"Woah," she gasps.

I wasn't here when everything was finished being set up so even I'm taken aback. The floors are a rich polished cherry wood while the walls are cherry wood paneling. Two rounded dark wood pillars stand on each side of the room, curving inward toward the ceiling. In the center of the room stands a gold plated bar, with a crystal chandelier in the center. Glossy black tables and chairs are spread out around the room for guests to sit, eat, and drink. White Queen Anne loveseats with intricate gold detailing decorate the outside of the room, complete with gold trimmed red velvet pillows and a table at each with sparkly gold tablecloth. At the front of the room is the stage, where the jazz band is playing music. The words 'roaring 20s' hang off the top in Art Deco. There are four other chandeliers strategically placed around the room, giving it a soft glow.

Overall it looks spectacular.

Vienna doesn't waste any time scooting over to the bar while I make my rounds, hugging and greeting guests. The gambling area is in full swing, with students already yelling and fighting over stolen chips and missing cards. So far, everyone seems to be having a great time.

I know I shouldn't, but I can't stop myself from micromanaging. When the coolers need to be refilled, I'm running to get ice. I clear used plates and empty champagne flutes off tables. I check in with the caterers, bartender, and band to make sure everything is going accordingly. I even put on food handling gloves and help put together some of the appetizers going around such as the meat and cheese trays. In the middle of offering champagne to more guests Vienna snatches the tray from me and gives it to a passing waiter.

"What are you doing? You're supposed to be enjoying the event, not working it."

"I am enjoying the event."

She gives me a look. "Take the leader cap off and come have a drink with me."

My shoulders sag. "Fine, but-"

"You must be Kennedy," oozes a sweet voice.

Vienna's eyes widen and I whirl around. A stunningly beautiful girl stands behind me, her blonde hair falling in sleek waves down her back. She has a statuesque figure, accentuated by a silver fringe flapper dress, fluffy white boa, silver stilettos, multiple layers of beads, and a flapper headband. Her face is perfectly sculptured with high cheekbones and small but pouty round lips. She has sparkling brown eyes with long, full lashes, and dark brown eyebrows.

"She. Is. Gorgeous," Vienna whispers behind me. Apparently the girl has sharp hearing because she laughs, and even her laugh is twinkling and enchanting.

"Thank you sweets. I'm Cecilia."

I quickly pull myself together and smile. "I'm Kennedy. It's a pleasure to meet you."

"The pleasure is all mine darling," Cecilia starts circling around me, not unlike a vulture circling their prey. "You are simply breathtaking. I can see why my dear brother Winston is taken with you."

I'm not an insecure girl by any means, but to hear someone like Cecilia who looks like a supermodel say I'm breathtaking, feels good to hear and a major self esteem booster.

"Thank you," I find myself glancing around the room. "Where is Winston?"

"Oh, he's with a that friend of his. He wanted to come over with me but I told him to stay back. Figured we should have some one on one girl time," she winks at me, then turns around and wiggles her manicured fingers at someone. I look in the direction she's waving and see Winston standing with Danny, looking absolutely illegal in a fitted white tuxedo. Winston gives Cecilia a sharp look before smiling at me. My heart flutters and I smile back, giving him a tiny wave.

Meanwhile Danny isn't paying attention to any of us. He's staring at something behind me and when I look over my shoulder I remember Vienna is still here. I glance back at him and notice something off.

"Wait. Is Danny wearing a suit?"

"I said the exact same thing when I saw him," Cecilia giggles. "He's certainly a dish. Not my type but still, a dish all the same." She frowns then, her head swinging back and forth between Danny and Vienna. Not only does she have superhuman hearing, but she's also as perceptive as a hawk. "Is something going on between you two?" She points at Vienna and Danny.

"No!" Vienna exclaims. "I mean...I don't know. Yes. Maybe," she sighs. "It's complicated. I need to use the restroom," before I can say anything she rushes off.

"Huh," Cecilia stares after her before shrugging. "Anywho, shall we grab a drink and have a chat?"

"Sure," I agree and she links her arms with mine, dragging me over to the bar. Snapping her fingers she summons the bartender.

"We'll have two martinis. Dry, with exactly three drops of freshly squeezed lemon peel oil and an olive garnish."

"Right away miss," the bartender starts preparing our drinks. While he does so Cecilia smooths a hand over her dress and crosses one leg over the other.

"So Kennedy, tell me a little about yourself. You're student body president correct?"

I nod.

"You also quite the aspirations, as I read from my brothers texts," she laughs airily. "Sorry about that by the way."

"Don't worry about it. And yeah, I have a lot of goals and plans for my life."

"That's good. Sometimes I worry about the females that go after my brother. They're usually gold diggers or clout chasers," she rolls her eyes. "But something tells me I won't have to worry about that with you."

I shake my head. "I couldn't be a girl like that because I hate girls like that. I think women shouldn't depend on men for anything, let alone money, wealth, or fame. We're strong enough to get those things on our own. You just have to work for it."

Cecilia's eyes sparkle. "You know, I think society is afraid of people like us."

"People like us?"

She leans in closer. "Women who don't ask, but take. Girls who don't request, but demand," she reclines back casually. "They don't know how to handle us, so they try to box us up into stupid little categories. But you and me, we're not like that. We defy the odds and expectations set against us."

I stare at her, my jaw slightly hanging slack as our drinks our brought over. Cecilia slides the bartender a hundred dollar bill.

"Thank you darling," she carefully plucks out the olive garnish and slides it into her mouth. "Mhmm. I absolutely love olives."

I take a sip of my own martini. Wow. It actually tastes good. Cecilia knows her liquor.

"Are you an only child?" She asks.

"No. I have two brothers, Austin and Tristan. My brother Tristan is engaged and goes to Stanford, while my brother is studying at Harvard. Both are in the process of becoming a doctor and lawyer."

"How ambitious," she quotes, sounding exactly like Winston. They really are alike in many ways.

Suddenly Cecilia pauses. "Are you a natural redhead?"

I'm taken aback by her question and pause. "Are you a natural blonde?" I shoot back.

Cecilia's eyes widen before the corner of her mouth tilts up. "Touché. Did I mention that I like you?"

I raise my glass to her. "Cheers."

After our drinks Cecilia calls over some of her friends to meet me. It feels like a huge weight has been lifted from my chest. I passed the test. A short time later I feel a hand on my shoulder.

"Mind if I steal her away now?" Winston asks Cecilia with a raised brow. She sighs dramatically.

"If you must," she rolls her eye then flashes me a genuine smile. "Kennedy, we'll need to catch up soon. I'm thinking that one spa you mentioned, what was it called again?"

"Juvenex Spa."

"Yes, that one. I'm in desperate need of a massage. Anyway, I'll text you the details," she gives me an air kiss on each cheek. "Have fun you two!"

I take Winston's hand and he leads me away. As much fun as I had with Cecilia, I'm glad I finally get to spend some time with her brother now.

"Wow, she's actually asking you to hang out," Winston chuckles. "You definitely won her over. What'd you say?"

"I was just my usual charming self," I grin cheekily. "People can't help but naturally like me. What can I say? You either have it or you don't."

He shakes his head. "By the way, you look absolutely stunning," his  eyes trail down my figure, then back up to my face. I can't explain it, but I love when he looks at me that way. Like he wants to eat me up.

"Thank you," I straighten his bow tie and look up at him. "You look pretty handsome yourself."

"Is that so?" Winston smirks.

I smile coyly. "Mhm."

"Would the beautiful lady save me a dance then?"

Inside I'm doing the Pennywise dance and internally cheering but on the outside I maintain my composure. "She certainly would. She just has to check in real fast and make an announcement."

"The gentleman shall wait then," he lifts my hand and kisses the top of it.

Heart doing cartwheels inside my chest I give him one last smile before turning away to see how things are going. I've barely taken five steps when Luka rushes up to me, talking so fast I can barely understand him.

"Woah, slow down," I hold up my hands. "Now calm down and tell me what's the matter."

"Kennedy you won't believe it!" He explains. "I just checked how much we've raised so far, and we exceeded our goal!"

My eyes widen. "What do you mean?"

"I mean we managed to raise over four hundred thousand dollars! The gambling was a huge hit! Students got so competitive they started wagering thousands of dollars!" He lowers his voice. "Not to mention the bar. Sneaking in alcohol was a great idea."

I open my mouth when suddenly there's a loud shout from the poker tables.

"Wooh!" Tony, one of Gabriel's lacrosse buddies yells. "Bring it in baby, bring it in!" He gathers a bunch of chips in his arms and tosses them up in the air to the sound of cheering. "Drinks on me!"

Luka turns back to me. "See what I mean?"

I can't stop myself from laughing. "Wow. Do we have the special gift sets?"

"Yep. Svetlana has them wrapped up and ready to go."

"Good." I make my way towards the front of the room with Luka on my heels. As I take the stage I signal for the band to stop playing. Everyone turns to me as I take the microphone from it's stand and clear my throat.

"Ahem. Are we all having a good time?" There's exuberant cheering, whistling, and applause. I smile.

"I just want to take this moment to thank you for coming out and supporting our school. As you know, proceeds will be going directly to the top thirty underfunded programs on campus-"

Before I can finish someone starts chanting. "Kennedy, Kennedy, Kennedy!" Soon everyone is repeating it, mixed in with shouts of 'we love you Kennedy!' and 'please don't graduate Kennedy, we need you!"

I laugh, feeling both amazed and proud of myself. "Thank you. The rest of the money raised will be distributed accordingly. I also want to thank my very capable student body, as I wouldn't have been able to achieve this without them. Isiah, Svetlana, and Luka, please come up to the stage."

There's more applause as the three join me on stage. I whisper to Isiah and he takes the microphone, along with Svetlana.

"We want to take this moment to really appreciate those who donated. Specifically, those who partook in the poker tournament." He gives the microphone to Svetlana.

"We've had many winners tonight, but the top three winning donators will receive special gift sets. These are Tony Braxton, Michael Parker, and Bianca Ravenswood! Please give it up for them!"

Bianca is the first to run up on stage and accept her prize, giving all of us a hug. She holds it up proudly, like she just won a trophy. Tony and Michael follow, hyping the crowd up. When it finally settles down I take the microphone again.

"Lastly, I want to thank a special someone who's here tonight. I won't say their name, but they know who they are. Without them, I'm pretty sure this night would have never happened. So," I pause. "Thank you. With that being said, please enjoy the rest of your night."

Feeling happy and content, I descend the stage along with everyone else. The band starts back up and the party continues. I'm about to go find Winston when I'm intercepted.

"Finally," Gabriel rolls his eyes. "Trying to get a minute alone with you tonight was like trying to get an audience with the queen."

I give him a saccharine smile. "That's because the queen doesn't entertain peasants. What do you want?"

He ignores my statement. "You look good."

"Thanks. You also look...nice. Is that all? As you can see, I'm a very busy woman."

He smiles, something about it unsettling me. "Come on Ken, don't be that way. I just want to talk."

"And you have. But if you have nothing important to say, then I think I'll leave," I try to move past him but he grabs my arms.

"Let go!" I snap and shake him off. "I don't want to make a scene, but I will if you don't back off."

"Alright, I'm sorry," he huffs. "I wanted to ask if you'd dance with me."

I scoff. "You're kidding right? No."

He rolls his eyes. "You know, this whole playing hard to get act is getting old."

I blink, unsure if I heard him correctly. "Excuse me? I'm not playing hard to get. You cheated on me, and now I want nothing to do with you. And if we're gonna talk about acts, the desperate one doesn't suit you."

"Come on, you're still mad about that? That was like forever ago, and she meant nothing to me."

I shake my head. "You know what, I'm done with this conversation." I turn to go again when he grabs me. I whirl around to slap him and my palm connects with his cheek at the same time I'm yanked back.

"Let go of me!" I shrug whoever off. Thankfully it's Vienna and she doesn't take my aggression to heart. Winston and Danny are right next to her.

"You okay?" Vienna asks, concern lacing her tone. She gently places her hands on my cheeks.

My heart is racing and I'm shaking a little but I nod. "Yeah, I'm fine."

"Is there a problem here?" Winston asks, his voice eerily calm as he accesses Gabriel. He doesn't glare at him, or even yell, but the carefully controlled blank expression on his face is much more scarier. I notice his jaw tick.

Gabriel has the audacity to laugh. "I was just messing around. Right Ken?"

I glare at him.

He tries a different approach. "Look, I didn't mean to offend you. I'm sorry, okay? I'll back off," he holds his hands up and takes a step back. Before he goes he gives Winston a dirty look.

"Ugh. I hate that jerk," Vienna shoots a venomous stare after his retreating figure.

"Want me to beat him up for you?" Danny asks. "I know some guys."

Finally, I crack a small smile. "No, that's okay. He's not worth it. But I will take a drink."

Winston silently takes my hand and leads me over to the bar. I order a French 75 and ask Winston what he wants. When I get no answer I turn to him. His jaw is clenched and he frowns ahead.

"Winston," I touch his shoulder. "You okay?"

"No," he turns to me. "Does he always bother you like that?"

I wave my hand. "He's harmless."

"That wasn't the question."

I sigh. "Sometimes. Look, it doesn't matter. I can handle him."

When Winston doesn't budge I switch tactics. "Why waste the rest of the night thinking or worrying about him when we could focus on other things," I tilt my head. "For example, I believe a certain gentleman owes me a dance."

The corner of his mouth tugs up and I silently pat myself on the back. Victory.

We make our way to the dance floor as a slower song plays. I laugh as he twirls me around before swooping me up dramatically and finishing with a dip. By the end we just sway silently to the beat, his arms wrapped around me and my head resting against his chest.

"Hey," he murmurs.

"Hm?"

"That special someone you gave thanks to earlier wouldn't happen to be me, would it?"

I smile into his chest but don't reply, and he knows my answer.

It's the perfect end to a perfect night.

...