Debbie had been my girlfriend since we were both sixteen. She had long brown hair and cute little dimples in her cheeks. Her legs were long and toned from years on the cross-country team. That's where we met. I'd just moved to the area from out of state and always loved running. Cross-country was my favorite activity because of the solitude that it offered.
Having moved a few times during my childhood left me a loner, but I always loved running. My first day of tryouts for the cross-country team was also the day I met Debbie. We were like two magnets pulled together from the beginning. After that day, all our free time was spent together, whether at school or at home.
But this story isn't about Debbie as she moved away to go to college. It wasn't because she was taking some particular major that only that school had. It was to get away from the small town. Apparently, our relationship meant very little to her, after all.
This story is about her younger sister Sarah.
Debbie and Sarah were close, so she tagged along with us a lot. It was annoying for a teenage boy such as myself, but at that time, I would do anything that Debbie asked. Little did I know that Sarah was as enamored with me as I was with Debbie.
Debbie withheld her school plans from me until the day after high school graduation. Up until then, she had several supposed options but hadn't made a decision. I think she waited so that she'd have me through the end of our senior year. When she did break the news, it felt like a punch in the nuts. I sat there on her bed with her for a few minutes while she tried to justify her choice. When she finally stopped talking, I just walked out and never spoke to her again.
Those first few weeks after Debbie gave me the news, I felt utterly alone. I had a summer job working for a local landscaping company but did little else but sulk in my room. I'd already signed up for classes at the community college, so at least that was done. But my feeling of abandonment continued to rule my time. Finally, some of my friends demanded that I go to a senior party that was a rite of passage in our small community.
I was hesitant because I didn't want to run into Debbie. When I told them as much, they assured me that she wouldn't be there. The news of her leaving me cold like she did spread across town, and she quickly became a pariah. With that news, I grudgingly decided to attend, not that I really had a choice. My friends had threatened to kidnap me if I didn't come willingly.
The party was always held at a farm on the outskirts of town. The farm usually changed depending on who had a graduating child. This year it was at the Reed's family farm. I'd never been there before but got there early to help with the setup. They had an extensive collection of logs which we used to build a monster bonfire. The larger ones were moved into a circle around the fire for seating.
The farm also had a nice pond with a dock and a couple of paddle boats. Several of the other kids brought their own assorted watercraft to add to the flotilla. For the purpose of attendance, everyone was considered an adult and had to sign a release. An ambulance was parked at the main home just in case of emergency, but there was no other supervision.
It may sound like an odd situation for today's culture, but this had been done for several generations. The one other caveat was that everyone had to surrender their car keys. When they were ready to leave, they had to pass the blow-n-go that the EMTs administered.
Several of my friends and I had worked for a couple of hours on the setup. As the clock ticked past six, the crowd began to appear. Since the small group of us had done the bulk of the work, we were given first dibs on the food. The family also purchased a half keg for us to share. By the time we were done eating, the party was in full swing.
One of the seniors did deejay work on the side and brought his system to get everyone dancing. There were only two hundred or so in our graduating class, but I think a few extra managed to sneak into the party.
I'd managed to down about three beers while eating. As I stood to join the rest of the partiers, I felt a pleasant buzz taking over. We all pushed our way into the make-shift dance area and started bouncing around like fools.
At that moment, I'd forgotten all about Debbie and was having a great time. Someone had handed me another beer as we all moved amongst each other. It was a sea of bodies like you'd see in one of those big-city clubs. Feeling no pain, I enjoyed the contact of several females as we all danced like fools.