The Party

***The Party*** is the ninth episode in *The Adventures of Evie and Mya* in Season 1 and the ninth episode overall.

## Synopsis

The end of winter party looms over Pineshadow Middle School, and Evie, Mya, and Winter are jovial at the prospect of new fun - but this is flipped upside down when Daniela, exempt for her violent record, blackmails her way in. With their friend at risk of being killed once again, Evie and Mya fight to save her while also realizing the deep connection they share has blossomed into something beyond friendship.

## Content Warning

*This episode contains a brief allusion to self-harm which could make viewers uncomfortable.*

## Transcript

*Late afternoon at Pineshadow Middle School. Students are beyond eager to bolt out of the school and into the comforting sight of home, but first, they have to be dragged to the school's pep rally unwillingly - in the hallways are cluttered, unamused, exhausted students in queue, including Evie, Mya, and Winter.*

Of course. Of course it had to be at the *earliest* day in the *week* for a pep rally.

Evie, Mya, and Winter were pressed together with their eighth period and a cluster of chattering students, slowly filing into the gym for the pep rally, and none of the three were all too thrilled at the event waiting to show off its feathers to them.

*I hate this school,* Mya thought to herself.

PMS' pep rallies were taken in high regard by faculty and Rex. They were colorful, *loud*, brimming with school pride, and always had the school's fight song blasting with the help of the seasoned, patient band willing to give their all.

To the staff, they were *everything* and an honor to hold every month.

To most students and the three girls, it was one of the most *pointless*, grueling, and *tiring* things to attend.

It was *always* the same information repeated, the same music scores played, the same dull announcements that did nothing to liven up the crowd.

Even the crowd chants were stale.

*It's as if they believe we can recreate the environment of a packed stadium!* Evie internally scoffed, rolling her eyes.

Five minutes passed, and the building crowds hadn't been able to get breathing room. Students chattered amongst themselves, expressing irritation with the wait and wishing to go back to class - a rarity considering how most felt about attending school in the first place.

Winter sighed. "What's the *point* of this if we can't even *move* ten inches ahead of each other? My legs are *screaming* at me for a break."

"I don't know. Schools don't make sense. They never do," Mya muttered.

Winter moved closer to her friend, tapping her shoulder up against hers. "At least I have you."

Evie batted an eye at her. "Oh, you too, Evie."

"Don't third wheel me, McCormick," she hissed in a joking manner, sticking her tongue out at her.

In the past few days since Daniela's botched attempt at kidnapping Winter, the latter had developed a stronger bond with Mya and had come out of her thick shell, going out in public more, engaging in fun activities, and cracking jokes.

As Evie predicted, Mya's influence was rubbing off on her. It was making her shine.

*Especially since Daniela is out of the way.*

After her plot was foiled, Daniela had gone under the radar and had been pulled from classes. Evie and Mya saw her in the office, isolated at a desk surrounded by mountains of paperwork, under careful surveillance by Rex so she didn't revolt and gain another attempt at her bloodthirsty want for revenge.

With her out of the picture, Winter had the ability to branch out, become more vocal, and share information with her friends, a smile etched onto her face.

Things were normal at last.

Suddenly, the excited clamor and heavy footsteps drew the girls out of their thoughts, and they found that the mob of students was beginning to proceed - finally! This is what they came for!

"It took them ten thousand years! Let's get seated!" exclaimed Winter, trotting ahead, and smiling at the amount of enthusiasm she had, her friends cheerfully followed.

The gym atmosphere was a *cacophany* of voices, excited, intrigued, hints of boredom sprinkled here and there, and the noise defined the volume of the whole space from floor to ceiling. Evie, Mya, and Winter navigated many hollering children and ascended up the bleachers hastily, looking for a good vantage point.

"There!" Evie pointed to an available patch of bench on row four. The girls immediately dashed to the seats and sat down.

Evie took a moment to survey the gym in its pep rally form. Posters had been plastered to the walls, motivational and teeming with school spirit, some falling off at the edges.

In front was a mini concessions stand with merchandise for the school, manned by student council leaders Cecilia Goldheimer and her boyfriend, Jamal Reddy; he admired her in the time before the pep rally officially began, staring at her with indigo eyes.

*Lovebirds.*

Evie's eyes shifted to the right of the concessions to PMS' band, headed by the band and orchestra teachers, Mr. Mallow and Mrs. Lavinia, respectively, who guided the band as they blared the school's fight song.

"How many times are we going to hear this?? It's gonna be lodged in my brain *forever*!" Mya groaned in protest of the anthem, covering her ears and quietly sulking.

Evie giggled. *Boy, you look adorable.* Winter patted her on the back.

"Trust me when I say I'm *tired* too," she muttered. "I have a lot more on my platter, though."

Mya grinned, appreciating the comment, and she wiggled a tad closer. So did Evie.

Evie returned to glancing about, facing the elevated, higher rows of the bleachers, and her green eyes caught an uncomfortable detail.

In the far, *far* corner was Daniela, glaring ahead at everything, an irritated, unsatisfied scowl on her face. Next to her was *Rex*, one of the principal's strong hands gripping her sweater, fingernails dug in. The principal didn't lie when she said there were to be *costly* repurcussions to what she had done to Winter and the girls.

If it meant getting into her *business*, Rex was going to be sure of it.

Daniela's scowl turned into an angry hiss, and Evie could imagine every part of her standing on end like a rabid wildcat who had been crossed too many times.

She shook her free, other hand, and for a second, Evie saw *another* pink scar above her healing second that Winter had inflicted on her in self-defense.

*Another scar???*

She resisted the urge to gag, worrying that *Rex* had cut her as a punishment.

Then she scolded herself. No, of course not! Rex was a *strict* and *short-tempered* mother, but she wouldn't make her *daughter* bleed even if she hated her for every misgiving born in her evil body.

*Daniela must have done it herself. She did admit to being a masochist...*

Daniela, dropping her insulted look, hid some of her face in her left hand, glum, bored, and wanting to escape the dreaded hellhole called school she attended.

Evie raked her gaze off her bully, unsettled by the behavior change, and she stared ahead, hoping she hadn't noticed and provoked her.

The last of the students skipped inside and found their seating. At last, the pep rally was free to start.

*Thank god.*

"It's starting!" Winter shouted.

The lights dimmed, and the symphonies of noise from the band died down. A door opened, and in came the school's events announcer and larger-than-life pep rally host, Mr. Ackers. He was a big, plus-sized guy with two, bulky legs and a thick beard that screamed of rugged wilderness.

"**HELLLLOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO PINES**!" he shouted through the microphone, making Mya flinch at how loud his voice was.

The students chorused a greeting back. "*Hi, Mr. Ackers*!"

"This is so *old*," complained a male student not too far from Winter. She felt him wholeheartedly.

Almost as if he had heard the boy's outcry, Ackers tossed his microphone in the air and caught it, and the girls stood straight. They *knew* what was coming.

"Before we get to the *meat* of the rally, you know that I must *rally* my *crowd* so that we are **ENERGIZED**!"

The crowd nodded.

"I can't hear you, Pines!"

"**YES SIR**!"

"Alright! Band, *hit it*!"

The band, alongside the unnamed orchestra, picked up their instruments and performed a small tune.

"*Who are we*? *Who are we*?"

"**Pines**, **Pines**, **Pineshadow Pines**!"

"With our spirit, we fight with-"

"**COURAGE**!"

"Through the trees and within the-"

"**LINES**!"

"Strong and smart and swift and bold-"

"***WE ARE PINES AND WE NEVER ACT COLD***!"

"**YEAH**!" Mr. Ackers howled. "I feel your **energy**, my **Pines**! This gym is ***ABSOLUTELY ELECTRIC***!"

The students clapped with his praise, also giving some for the band and orchestra's efforts.

"Now that we're **rolling**, let's get into the *juicy parts*!"

Minutes swung by. Mr. Ackers discussed school news, events students could participate in, played a game with the STUCO leaders and selected students in the crowd.

*As usual,* Winter thought. She'd been forced to go to the pep rallies to keep up the belt of lies she had been holding together with glue and sticks. She often ducked behind the bleachers and stayed invisible until it was over.

Here, with Evie and Mya, she felt safer despite some students glancing at her and name-dropping her as the kid called Snowblind.

But as the minutes ticked by, she yawned, her eyelids bogged down with exhaustion. Nothing interesting as happened, as always, and she could just pass out and get some extra sleep.

She placed her chin on Mya's shoulder and nestled in it. *So soft...*

She closed her eyes.

Hands shoved her off and sat her upright, and blinking, Winter saw that *Mya* was waggling her finger at her with a humerous *no*.

"Winter, I get you're getting sleepy," she murmured. "But Rex is up there with Hellraiser Child and I don't think she'd like it if you fell asleep."

"But Rex lik-"

"Ssh! Winter, you're around other students. They *can't* know just how close you and Rex are!"

Shamefully, Winter realized that Mya was right and straightened her posture, staring with narrowed eyes at the crowds and those contributing to the pep rally.

Things dragged on for what seemed like days. The girls *wanted* it to be over. They had lives they had to return to and school work to catch up on.

*I bet being in history is more intriguing than this!* Mya thought.

Suddenly, a spark of something *exciting* and *auspicious* was lit in Mr. Ackers' expansive eyes.

"**BEFORE WE GOOOOOOOO**, there is something else I have the pleasure of **ANNOUNCING**!" he yelled, and the students turned more than a hundred eyes onto him, prying into him, demanding such key information.

"What possibly could this be? Better than sliced bread?" Evie huffed, wishing she could just be back in class to finish up her assignment.

His step peppy, Ackers approached the bleachers of students. "The end of *winter* is fast upon us, my darlings. School's been a drag, we get it. You're *bored*. You want *adventure*. And you will be getting ***JUST THAT***!"

Hyped murmurs spread throughout the children; most turned to each other, expressing joy or longing for freedom from the gym.

Cecilia and Jamal left their places at the STUCO concession table, joining Mr. Ackers by his side and waving to the students assembled before them.

"I, alongside the leaders of STUCO, have talked with Principal Rex and the higher-ups at the school. To celebrate **YOUR SUCCESSES** - yes, **SUCCESSES** - we will host a **grand end of winter party** ***THIS FRIDAY***!"

At once, the kids broke out into excited cheers, some leaping out of their seats with abundant amounts of happiness and pride, and the clamor was so loud that the girls thought they could hear the ceiling rattling.

The only student that didn't seem delighted about the news was Daniela. She hid her face in her knees, Rex still gripping her arm.

"A party?" Evie questioned, surprised. "We barely *have* parties at PMS! When we do, they're tiny... and in our classes."

"Those aren't *real* parties!" Mya responded.

Mr. Ackers continued as she finished her sentence. "In order to attend **this party**, you **must** have been present on the A-B honor roll for **this semester**. **Only** those students will be allowed to have the honor of staying after-hours, dancing the **night** away to **spiffing** music, holding a glass of punch and balancing it out with a slice of *pizza*! You children probably haven't had *that* experience much at school, yes?"

"***YES***!" the crowd replied.

Mya smacked her lips together, standing up, her chest broadened. "*Hell* to the yeah! Real food, *good* food at that, *drinks*, *music*, a *dope atmosphere*? Oh I'm *definitely* going!"

"You think, Sherlock?" Evie teased. "*We* made the honor roll weeks ago. We've *earned* this party before it was even *announced*!"

"I'm on the honor roll too," said Winter, who's ice-blue eyes were *glimmering* in anticipation of the event. She turned to Evie and Mya.

"*Really*?"

"I made the A-B, but didn't go to my presentation ceremony... guys, this is *insanity*! You don't *know* how long it's been since I've done something as large-scale as *this*!"

"A long time?" Mya breathed, sensing the forlorn energy drifting off her friend.

Winter nodded solemnly. "The last real party I had was for my eleventh birthday party. Or maybe Dani's twelfth birthday. That was one of the last few times I had *fun*... when my life was *normal*, when I was innocent and young and *free*... my twelfth and thirteenth birthday parties were *eerily depressing*."

"I'm sorry," murmured Evie. "You'll have a chance-"

"You *bet* I will." Winter cut her off before she finished her sentence. "I'm **stoked**! You're going to be there, I'm going to be there, and we're gonna get hung over on punch until our brains *explode*!"

"Winter, schools don't get you drunk," Evie corrected, amused by her friend's ambitious musings. She got up, seeing that others were doing so, and put a hand on her shoulder. "But we're going to go *together*, and we'll make the night *extra special* for you. It's what you deserve after all the trauma you've faced and fought."

"I'll fight for the *best slice* of pizza from the pile!" Mya declared, drawing an imaginary sword from her pocket.

Winter stamped her feet on the floor, pumped up. "Thanks, guys."

A unique shine was in her ice-blue eyes, and with the thrilling, invigorating news handed down, that shine was bound to stay for a *while*.

Eventually, Ackers finished his speech about the party, allowing the pep rally students to dismiss, and Evie, Mya, and Winter, skipping happily, exited the bleachers.

"So, what do you guys plan on wearing?" Winter asked. "I'm going casual."

"Something *fancy*!" Mya purred.

"*Not* something fancy," Evie added.

"But you should, Evie!"

"No. I like *fast fashion*, but I'm not gonna even wear that to a party. You know I like being simple."

"Not even Forever 21??"

"Mom hasn't even gotten me stuff from them yet. The location's still new, anyhow."

*Pfft, those two.* Winter refused to hide her prideful smile as she walked back to class, picturing the *perfect*, *knocking* party in her mind.

She was unaware that *someone else* had listened to Ackers' words intently, secretly.

Daniela *heard* every word that came out of his mouth, hidden within her hands. Students had eyed her curiously, their eyes excavating her, and all they had gotten in return was silence and a seething, empty bully.

Boy, they were *wrong*. So *wrong* her signature smirk crept onto her face. Trickeration did indeed have its *perks*, and thanks to her neatly-crafted facade, she had obtained *information* that gave her a path to vengeance once more.

There was going to be a *party* for *all students*, seventh grade among them - and they could attend *if*, *if* they had *made* the A-B honor roll.

Daniela *was* on the A-B honor roll - she had even been told she was the top candidate for it, beating out Evie in a rare display of her craft and coming in first overall, the cunning, strong-willed Ly second.

Ackers had said *completely nothing* about attendance being based on behavior. Behavior wasn't mentioned at all, or clarified, and Ackers had poured out the information necessary to hear.

He would have mentioned behavior if it was part of the party verification system.

*Putting two and two in place, I'm going to be going to this party REGARDLESS of what I've done. I'm at the top of the food chain. I dominate everybody. I've earned this party fairly, and not even my prior plans have impeded my efforts. Splendid.*

Getting an entry ticket was easier *said* than *done*.

From her place, she had seen the jovial reactions of her enemies and Winter, peering through the gap between her hands and her right eye, and judging by those irritating, positive expressions, they had earned their spots at the party.

*My sworn enemies will be there... and so will my ex.*

One single swipe of flame parted the clouds in her head, and she sat up, not even wincing as Rex yanked her to her feet and began hauling her back to the mountains of classwork awaiting her in the office.

Daniela had an *idea*. It was quickly becoming a *plan*.

*So Winter's going to this party, hmm? She appeared to have been stricken with euphoria, talking to Evie and Mya so giddily. I didn't see her at the honor roll presentation ceremony, but she must have qualified anyway.*

*Too caught up in her euphoria to know that I'm going to this party too.*

*Well, that's where she's WRONG. She'll be partying in the open, and if I just manage to capture her by herself... oooh, the itch in my heart will be permamently quelled. Snowblind, melted, erased, burnt to ashes. I'd be standing tall, having vanquished the traitor and person who used that knife of hers to cut my life into jagged pieces.*

Daniela *knew* what she was going to do. Her dumb mother couldn't see the *triumph* flashing in every part of her face. The tenacity, *craft*, *prowess*, unimaginable amounts of intelligence.

Who *said* she *wasn't* welcome? She was free to roam as she *pleased*.

*I can get from point A to B with no one standing in front of me. Everyone FEARS me. Perfect.*

The vibe wouldn't be killed. The food would be delicious. And the tang of blood would be in the *air*.

*You don't know what's coming for you, Winterlyn McCormick. Neither do you, Evie and Mya.*

*But when the night falls and the party comes to life, I'll be waiting. And I WILL GET MY REVENGE!*

As Winter left and Daniela was dragged out by Rex, she saw that short hair, dyed bob end, and long-sleeve shirt rounding the corner and heading upstairs.

Her eyes were *watching her* like a *hawk*.

**SEASON 1, EPISODE 9 - THE PARTY**

Fifteen minutes after the pep rally had concluded, the end-of-day bell rang, and Evie and Mya were both picked up by the former's dad, who drove them back to their place. Mya had been invited to hang out for a few hours with her friend, mostly to discuss the party and planning.

As soon as they arrived, Mya had dived for the sofa, greeting Evie's cat, Holly, and picking her up. The black cat had been more than happy to sit on her lap, curled into a ball and purring sleepily, letting Mya scratch her ears and the scruff of her neck.

*What a little baby.*

"Holly treating you well?" Evie asked through a mouthful of cheese, stepping into the living room with a cheese plate and setting it down on the table.

"Yeah."

"Good. She likes a nice warm lap." Evie, swallowing, took a cracker and placed it in her mouth, her tastebuds enjoying the salt. Mya took a piece of cheddar cheese. "Are you ready for the party?"

"Definitely."

"Awesome! So, Evie, what do you think I *should* wear to the party?" Mya questioned, thoughtfully glancing up at the ceiling.

"Hmm... anything you want to wear."

"Suggestions?"

Evie furrowed her left brow. "Erm... I'm not really an expert on fashion... I don't know what's in season n' stuff. What do you *think* you're going for?"

Mya sighed. "A dress, maybe. It sounds cliché, but dresses are very pretty. I just want something *fancy*, not in the flashy "makes people stare at you" way, but *fancy*. But I have no clue where I should shop..." She scratched Holly's ears, and the cat stretched out, her purrs growing louder.

"You want to wear a fancy dress. That's what you said, right?" Evie nudged.

"Yeah. A dress is what I'm leaning for. Do you know *where* I could possibly shop for one?"

Evie gazed at her blankly, her mind fizzling out. She was no professional in regards to retail; that was more of Mya's thing, and she was drawing many blanks in her head.

"Uhhh... anywhere? Basically anywhere?"

"JCPenney?"

"Sure, why not."

"Macy's?"

"Might be expensive, but could be afforable."

"Express?"

"Does Express even *sell* dresses, Mya?"

"Good point. Windsor?"

"Uhm, maybe? I don't think their dresses will fit you... I don't really know anywhere else you could go, Mya... I'm really not that great at retail in comparison to you."

Mya looked slightly disappointed.

Evie scooted closer to her, grabbing a cracker and piece of cheese and sticking them in her mouth. "Mya, you'll find the right store. There are so many options for you to *choose* from. And whatever you choose, whatever *dress* you magically stumble upon... you're *bound* to impress in it."

Mya, her eyes twinkling from receiving her friend's honesty and praise, set Holly on the ground and scooted up to Evie.

"Soo... any plans on what *you* want to wear, *my lady*?" she inquired, a flirtatious edge in her tone, and she put a hand on her shoulder.

Evie blushed, missing the flirt, and she softened. *Silly.* "My regular outfit."

"You should wear something fancy!" Mya protested, remisicent of their conversation as they were leaving the gym, and Evie batted her on the nose.

"*No*. Never."

"You'd look so *fantastic* in something *fancy*!"

"I hate fancy. It's not my thing," Evie countered, flicking her on the nose again, and Mya stuck her tongue out at her.

"Oh, you're *intolerable*, Evie!" Mya sniffed in a clear overexaggeration. "I'll show you what's for when we go to that party - you're going to *adore* me in a dress, and then you're gonna regret not stopping at an Abercrombie & Fitch for quality women's wear!"

Evie's entire face went *red* at the joke, and she stared at Mya, studying her.

*She wanted to wear something fancy... it might be a dress, but it might not, and she even suggests I should wear something from a really upscale store!*

Her mind wandered, and instantly, Mya appeared in her head, wearing a *beautiful* pink dress with hints of blue, black fabric breaking it up. She wore white tights, a similar pair to the ones she wore they day they first met, and she was wearing heels as well - shiny, black *heels*.

*She's so beautiful! Timeless... like a piece of art come to life...*

Mya looked *stunning*, and the more she imagined her friend so *upscale*... the more her heart began to beat, the more she began to sweat, and the more her eyes couldn't stop shining with a mystery feeling.

Mya recognized it. But Evie didn't.

She chuckled at her, snapping the trance as if it were no more than a twig in the forest, and Evie awkwardly shook her head, sending the dovey thoughts to places unknown.

"I'm glad Winter's happy. She's been dragged through mud and *oceans* for a *year*, and now? She's finally beginning to belong here. It warms my heart," she commented.

Mya nodded in agreement, her shoulder brushing up against Evie's, and she laid against her. "We must make this party *extraordinary* for her. No exceptions."

"No exceptions." Evie winked.

Mya winked.

The two stared at each other, in their eyes a wish to make their friend dance with the whole universe, and Holly watched their moment on the coffee table with clear green eyes.

The next day, the sky was a mix of purple, orange, and pink blotches as the sun rose, outlining Pineshadow Middle School brightly, and the trees lightly rustled in the warm, distant spring breeze. The mountains of far away loomed, the gray peaks misty.

Evie and Mya advanced toward the school, hands intertwined like spider web - they had done this a lot more recently.

*I don't want this to stop. It's cute,* Evie thought, sneaking a little look at Mya; she was focused on the school ahead.

Her hair had hints of the sunrise present, contrasting the sleek auburn.

*My sunrise...*

Evie's heart quickened, an unfamiliar feeling heating her insides. Mya looked *beautiful*, but it was a *unique* kind of beautiful, and she couldn't put her finger on what she was feeling.

*I haven't felt this way about her before... and I don't even know what I'm feeling.*

"**Hey guys**!"

Startled by the noise, the girls froze, tense, only to relax when Winter leaped out from behind her brick pillar.

They were surprised by the sight they saw.

She looked *different*.

Instead of her white long-sleeve shirt with black sleeves and a pink collar, she had a green-and-white striped *sweater* on.

"Like what you see, hmm?"

"Yes!" Mya jumped, skipping up to her and pulling her in a hug. "You look so adorable in a *sweater*! Sweather weather sweather weather!"

"Not too cold for you here," Winter wryly remarked, flicking the tips of her hair back.

"What's the sweater about, Win? We didn't see this in your wardrobe," Evie pointed out curiously.

"It's my favorite sweater! A long time ago... back when it was my birthday, Daniela went to JCPenney and got it for me. Safe to say, it's snug and was perfect, if not a little oversized, but I finally grew into it!" she explained gaily.

"Wonderful! Green and white compliment you a lot," Evie said, dipping her head, and Winter pranced around her.

"Wanna feel it?"

"Sure!" Evie agreed, placing her palm on the wool of the sweater. It was *soft* and silky.

"It's so soft!"

Mya poked at it with her fingers. "And fuzzy..."

Both girls were hounding Winter by this point, and although the her weeks ago would have kicked them to the curb, she laughed now and reluctantly shook the two off.

"Settle down, settle down!"

Laughing, they stepped backwards and gave Winter space to breathe.

"There's actually another reason why I'm wearing this," she then admitted. "It's a special day today - Rex is announcing the party attendees at lunch!"

"That's right! That's our green light to travel down to *Funkytown*!" Mya exclaimed, shuffling her fists and taking steps forward as if she was listening to the *Funkytown* song itself.

"It's *perfect*, Winter. I can't wait for lunch," Evie stated. "What are we standing out here for? We have a school to get through."

"Onward!" Mya proclaimed, and the trio walked as one into the PMS building, *ready* for the thunderstruck sensation they'd get at lunch.

**A FEW HOURS LATER**

*Ding*!

The bell for lunch had rung, a heavenly summoning for Evie, Mya, and Winter, and grabbing their lunchboxes (a sack lunch for Winter), they dashed into the cafeteria that was rapidly stuffing with hungry seventh graders and went to their class' table near the stage.

"I can't get over how perfect that sweater is on you," Evie told Winter earnestly, and smiling, Winter nodded.

"Oh, thanks, Evie. I've never really gotten complimented on it."

"That changes now." She smirked.

"Hey Winter," Mya cut in, "have you thought about what you're gonna wear to the party?"

"Yep. I know exactly."

"Is it the sweater? Tell me it's the sweater!"

"*Nope*! It's something else I haven't worn that much... but I think Friday night will be a stellar night for it."

Mya's head lolled to the side. *Aww, the sweater is cute on her. But she's Winter. She'll look adorably dorky in anything!*

"I've got my party look envisioned. *Fancy*. High-end. Upscale. I can picture it, oh... I'll dress to impress!"

"Who are you gonna impress?" Winter asked.

"My crush," Mya responded with a small giggle, briefly batting an eye to Evie, who was still *quite* oblivious to her friend's feelings for her.

"Oh! Your crush! I bet she's gonna be at the party, isn't she?" she questioned with a curious twinge of her lip.

Mya laughed, walking her fingers over to Evie's and tapping her fingernails on the skin of her palm delicately.

"Yes. She will be. And maybe you'll meet her for the first time."

"On a scale of one to ten, how pretty is she? She *better* have common sense, Mya."

"She has *more* than enough of common sense. A *lifelong* supply of it. She's courageous, straight to the point, extremely smart, and *insanely soft*."

Evie glinted with approval. *Mya has her perfect somebody. And I get to meet her too! She sounds a lot like me, and I like people who think like me. Great minds do think alike.*

"How *pretty* is she?"

"So beautiful that every time I look in a mirror, I see her with me. Remember what I told you, Ev - objects in the mirror *are* closer than they appear."

"Very close it might just be under your nose," Winter added, and Mya, her cheeks red, put a hand on her mouth. "Winter! Toooo muchhhh spiceeeeee!"

Evie was puzzled. *Mya told Winter the name of her crush and they're in on a scheme that's "spicy..." and they're keeping it from me? Such devious sister figures!*

She became spaced out, and soon enough, she was staring at the two almost-sisters blankly, the confusion zapping her emotion right out of her.

"Winter, you made Evie short-circuit!" Mya puffed, the cute whine in her voice showing, and she rubbed Evie's shoulder, though she secretly *did* enjoy her friend's denseness - it was amazing how she could be so dense yet so intelligent.

"I'm fine," Evie reassured. "Anyway, moving on from crushes and romance, lovely as it is."

"What are you wearing to the party, Evie?" Winter inquired.

"This," she said, pointing to her sweater.

"Just *that*? Come on, liven up a little!"

"Guys, fancy *isn't* my thing! Don't keep insisting I wear something that doesn't fit me!"

Mya wheezed; Evie's pouting was making her heart bloom with flowers, and the pollen from the flowers was so strong she was borderline going to sneeze.

"What? What's funny?" Evie demanded, more confused than she was minutes ago. What on *earth* had gotten into Mya and Winter? *Why* were they teasing her so much?

It was in good fun, yes, but she couldn't help but feel... *singled out*.

"Alright, idiots, what are you singling me out for?" she demanded, an amused, but sharp tone in her voice.

Mya and Winter exchanged a quick glance, then faced her. "Nothing." Winter shrugged.

"*Nếu bạn đang nói dối tôi*-"

Without warning, a *shrill* screeching noise echoed throughout the whole cafeteria, and activity came to a halt. Students stopped talking, food stopped being eaten, and everyone faced the stage.

Principal Rex had stood in front of her lectern, her posture determined and poised, and her blue eyes ran over *everyone* in the cafeteria.

No one dared speak. The T-Rex was appeased.

"Pines of the seventh grade. The list of the partygoers for Friday's party has been *finalized*. I ask for your silence and cooperation as I read out the names!"

Evie, Mya, and Winter spun to face her, excitment fizzling in their hearts and heads. This was it! This was finally the moment they were going to be announced as the *partygoers*!

The moment was temporarily halted when Mya gasped. "Girls! The corner of the stage!"

Guiding them to what she meant with her finger, they saw a table in a shadowy corner.

That table had mountains of paperwork.

That table had *Daniela* sitting in a chair, glaring at her mother with such hatred they were able to *feel it* vibrate through the table.

One thing was for sure.

Daniela was going to be *pissed* if her mother had deliberately left her off the list due to the events at the storage shack, in addition to her various attempts to stalk Winter and attempt to trap Evie and Mya in a closet.

*Comeuppance finally boomeranged back to her,* Evie noted. *Say all the curse words in your turpitude book, Dani, but you aren't welcome at ANY party. Especially not this one.*

She was startled back into present day when Rex tapped her microphone, and another enormous screech had the students giving her full attention.

Quickly, she began reading names off of her lectern, going through each and every one with power and pride, and every time a seventh grade student in the crowd was named, he or she or they would be heard cheering, and their table would clap for them.

The list went on, and on, and on, and on. Evie, Mya, and Winter had all bitten their lips in anticipation.

Daniela had remained quiet, but glared at her mother, her amber eyes conveying that she was *insulted* that her name hadn't even been called yet. Those eyes made it clear she *wanted* to be called. *Needed* it, *thirsting* for it.

She *had* to *hear* her *name*.

"Henry Danielson."

Daniela's eyes hardened with seething hate. She knew Henry as the boy who had foiled her plot to eliminate Evie and Mya from Office Aide duty.

*Yes!* Mya exclaimed in her head.

"Aiden Luftkin."

That came as a surprise to the girls since Aiden was still rather new to PMS. But he must have been doing *superb* in his classes to make the honor roll *and* the party.

*Good for him.* Winter didn't expect herself to run into her former stalker again, but she had softened so much now that she wouldn't mind saying hi to him.

"Evelin Rafiq. Sarah Rafiq."

*Woo, Evelin and Sarah!* Evie cheered silently. The Rafiq sisters were Evie and Mya's excellent art classmates and good friends - they'd bring some life into the party, that was for sure.

The list was almost over now. The girls stiffened, preparing for the inevitable.

Daniela's amber eyes were *burning* into Rex, but the principal was made of hard, cold steel - she wouldn't let her daughter's unsaid efforts to disrupt the party, let alone break into it, happen.

She had *three* students left to name, and when she named them, she spoke with nothing, *nothing* but *conviction*.

"Evie Ly. Mya Heartley. And Winterlyn McCormick!"

The three leapt up from the seats and cheered loudly, as did some other students in the cafeteria who were familiar with mostly Evie and Mya, but not for Winter, and an unfortunate, less ideal few began to let the Snowblind mutterings loose.

"Heck yeah! Evie and Mya deserve this!"

"Why is *Snowblind* going to the party?"

"The girls are friends with the Snowblind girl?"

"Let's go Evie and Mya!"

"Let's *go*!" Mya, jumping for joy, took Evie's hands with hers and twirled her around.

"Whoa! You're gonna make me dizzy!" Evie warned her, the cafeteria becoming a smudge, and Mya slowed down, instead spinning Winter around.

The three then high-fived.

"We did it, guys!" Winter skipped around her friends. "We're going to the party! We're gonna slay! We're gonna eat royally! We're gonna vibe to awesome music!"

Winter's tablemates looked at her as if she had sprouted antlers on the top of her head and started to scream like an elk.

Their reactions didn't matter.

What *did* matter was Evie and Mya being accepted, and Winter being accepted, and that all three were going to be *together*, the best of friends, at the biggest party held in recent school memory.

As a plus, Daniela had gotten up from her chair, gripping the top violently, and she blazed Rex, the hate radiating off of her *unfathomable*, *raw*, and *harsh*.

This rejection wouldn't bode well with her.

The look on her face was *priceless*.

"Simply priceless," Mya murmured, and she stuck her tongue out at her former bully. Luckily, she didn't seem to observe an act she thought was typically *heinous*.

Winter faced the opposite direction, staring out across the cafeteria. "This party is going to mean a lot to me. It's definitely going to make up for a lot of the..."

Winter paused. *The memories I lost.*

She felt small, and for a second, a young, lost girl with short hair flickered in front of her, no more than a dead memory of the past.

*The youth I had exchanged to escape death and betrayal...*

Precious time of her life had been *erased*. She struggled to find anything fun, and when it did, it was gifted to her by the Piney Woods.

But it would *never* make up for the lack of fun she had with other people.

The dying memory flickered away, and in the petrified young girl's place stood Mya. She put two hands on her shoulders, and one left its spot to brush her cheek.

"Winter, I'm sorry... it hurts when you can't get a part of yourself back. However, this is your chance to make *new* memories! You can socialize, roam, and *be yourself* while partying the night away! And we'll be here with you!"

"Absolutely," Evie concurred, standing beside her. "We will *make* this night *special* for you, Win. Whatever it takes. That's a *promise*."

Tearing up, Winter wiped away tears of joy from her eyes and hugged her friends. "Thank you! My friends... you mean a whole *galaxy* to me. The whole *stars*."

Lunch concluded with what felt like fireworks, and Evie, Mya, and Winter could hear the crackling of hype in the air as they headed back to class.

Daniela had been left to sulk, and she swore, swore with all of the fury and loathing and bloody desires in her heart, that she would *do* whatever it *took* to get that party.

But the party wasn't the only thing she wanted.

She wanted Winter's body on a silver platter - and that body had to be *dead*.

At the end of the school day, Evie, Mya, and Winter walked side-by-side past the office, with Winter humming a tune, likely Varien, to herself, a smile on her face, and even with her eyes closed, she knew where she was going, her heart guiding her along to the steady beat of her heart.

No one was taking her down from cloud nine today. Evie and Mya let her do as she pleased.

*Winter's having one of the best days of her life. Her happiness is completely justified,* Evie stated internally.

Just then, they heard a noise, an *angry* slam, and it came from the office.

Uh oh.

*Uh oh*.

The two paused and clung to the wall. Winter, deaf to the noise, proceeded out of school, leaving Evie and Mya behind.

Their friend's absence wasn't the main concern right now.

*Trouble* was in the office - and a bad feeling told them they *knew* what was going on.

What was exchanged next only proved it.

"**WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING**?"

That was *Rex*, her T-Rex form in *full unhinged form*.

Evie and Mya *gasped*.

"Oh lord have mercy..." Mya whispered. They peered through the window.

Rex, hair ruffled and shoulders raised furiously, had locked a *potent* blazing gaze on Daniela. Papers were scattered *everywhere* on the floor, and from the way they were all around Rex's desk, it was enough implications to them that Daniela had tossed them in a fit of rage.

She had set her mother *off* - they didn't know the motive, but it was *rotten*.

Daniela snarled, squaring her boots on the ground in defiance of her mother. "You ***let me*** into that ***blasted party NOW***!"

Evie and Mya gasped *again*.

Daniela had been *outraged* she wasn't invited to the party. She had created a *storm* inside the office, ruined Rex's paperwork, and was going to fight her mother to the bitter *death* to get what she wanted.

"Daniela's trying to join the party!" Mya frantically stated.

Evie shushed her. The argument was gaining momentum.

"***ANSWER ME***, you flea-for-brains **COWARD**!" Daniela snapped, taking a vicious step closer to her mother, but Rex fired back and stomped up to her.

"***DON'T YOU DARE CALL ME A COWARD***!" While such force would have sent Daniela reeling, it had *zero* consequence on her this time.

She wasn't going to back down. She was *never* going to back down.

"I am **GOING** to this freaking party, and you have **NO AUTHORITY** to *stop me*."

"I have ***EVERY RIGHT TO STOP YOU***!" Rex hissed, using up all her nerve to not hit Daniela where the public could see. She gripped her arm as a warning to herself not to take a bridge too far.

"You **heard me** loud and *clear* when I punished you, Daniela. For skipping **two days** of school and breaking your **promise** to **never skip**, you're doing two full months of work to prove ***YOU TAKE YOUR EDUCATION SERIOUSLY***! Not only that, but for your own **good**, I'm not putting you in any class where you're around **people** you want to ***DESTROY***! You are a ***MENACE TO SOCIETY***!"

Evie and Mya wanted to vomit out their lunch. Their eyes *stung* from witnessing the argument.

This has swiftly transitioned into Rex and Daniela's worst argument, and the storm was only becoming more intense - it was *raging*.

Daniela wouldn't stop, neither would Rex.

Worst argument was an understatement. This was going to be a *war* with words, and it was going to leave behind marks, bruises, and *bloodstains*.

Evie nervously held onto Mya's hand, squeezing it.

"**Stop me**? You're utterly **PATHETIC**!" Daniela spat, displeased with her mother's response, and her resentment of her simmered, boiled, and grew.

"***I AM YOUR MOTHER, DANIELA, AND YOU WILL OBEY WHEN I TELL YOU TO OBEY***!" Rex screamed, and seeing that no one was in the office, she hit her on the face.

That was the first punishment right there.

The blow didn't even feel like *anything* to Daniela.

"**Wow**. I'm *shocked* you haven't felt ashamed of yourself. What do you think you're doing, Rex? Do you *want* everyone to find out that behind the scenes, you take **pride** in abusing *your daughter*?" Daniela taunted, laughing. "You're ***abusing me***! You **hit me**. You love **fighting me**. You're addicted to a battle you're **LOSING**!"

"*Abusing* Daniela??" Mya asked, breathless.

"*Derisory*!" responded Evie, who squeezed her hand harder. "Rex may be brutal, but she's doing her best to control her daughter. Daniela is trying to gaslight her to get her way!"

Rex *had* to fire back. She wasn't *abusive*! She couldn't let Daniela keep playing her like this!

"I am ***NOT ABUSING YOU***!" she roared, baring her T-Rex teeth at her daughter, and she gripped her by the throat. "You're **abusing yourself** when you lust for someone's suffering, cut yourself, and inflict nothing but **AGONY** on your **EX** because you believe in **ugly lies**! You turned yourself into a **DEMON**, Daniela! You're *not* the daughter I knew anymore. You are **no more** than a greedy, **BLOODLUSTING MON**-"

Suddenly, Daniela screamed, wrenched herself free of her mother's grip, and slammed her fist **hard** down on the desk. Rex, shocked, gasped for air, panting, staring at her wayward, crazed daughter in shock.

"Coward," she sneered. "What a *coward* you be. You claim you can handle me. But you *can't*. I am **capable** of obtaining ***ANYTHING I WANT***! I *am* going to this party, **mother**. Or would you like someone *else's* life to fall apart if you **don't** let me enjoy myself, set myself **free**?"

"No! Rex can't falter!" Evie cried out, desperately hoping Rex could salvage the ground she had lost.

But it wasn't going to happen.

"**Daniela**! *Stop*! I *cannot* let you **destroy** another thing I love! Not *again*!" she rasped.

Daniela snorted. "Quit acting so *entitled*, *Rex*. You like **excluding** me because I'm *not* like the others. I'm too cruel, I'm too shallow. Have you no **shame**? I'm your ***DAUGHTER***. You're the only parent I ***HAVE*** and you repay my kinship by ***tossing me in the trash***?"

"No, I didn't mean that!"

"You meant **every word** you told me when you replaced me with Evie and Mya. Stripped me of something *I* valued. You wanted to **kill me** when I tried gaining revenge on a person that **humiliated me**! And now you restrict my **freedom** just to protect ***YOUR DUMB INTEGRITY***?"

Rex opened her mouth in a try to counter.

"And that's not **even** the worst of what you've done. I know **every single damn secret** you've kept from me. I know **everything** about you, Rex. You ***HAVE NEVER CARED FOR ME***!"

"No!"

Daniela's claims were a bunch of *bullcrap*. She had to be *lying*.

*She's a master manipulator. She knows how to sway and break. But Rex... she can't hold herself together. And when she can't do that... the dam of lies crumbles.*

Evie gulped. Mya gulped.

They knew what was going to happen.

Daniela let out an enraged hiss. "You **WATCHED ME** fall into the dark and thrash around *blindly*. You saw me **FIGHT** a demon that **overpowered me**. You **refused** to hold me when the ***nightmares*** became *too much*. I wish there was moral purity in you, **mother**. But there's none. You're **wicked**. You're the *rationale* of *cruelty*. Because you were *callous* enough to ***CHOOSE HER OVER ME***!"

*Choose her over me.*

*Choose her over me.*

*Choose her over me.*

The words echoed in Evie and Mya's heads repeatedly, bounced off every surface.

"Her..." Mya cut herself off, feeling herself choke over her own words, and Evie, terrified, threw her entire body against hers.

Daniela's claim that *she* had ruined her *life* wasn't just randomly said in a chance to save herself in her shack.

This was *real*. This was a *threat*.

It was *surreal*.

Daniela had been *beyond well aware* that Rex had been in cahoots with *Winter*. She was aware of *everything* between them.

There had been no secrets properly kept. They had been discovered.

And now, Daniela could use them to her advantage and bust Rex completely. She smiled wickedly, a sinister wave of pleasure coursing through her body.

"You **always** loved *Winter* more than you **loved** me. You gave her a shelter, a **home**, when that *sinner* never deserved it. She's a useless, spoiled, **treasonous** spawn who ***LEFT ME TO DIE***! You made it clear where your allegiances lay, *Rex*."

Rex sunk to her knees, convulsing and trembling with sheer pain, and the sight of her *cowering* like the coward she was gave Daniela even more strength to do the *implausible*.

She yanked the school's phone off its stand, glared at Rex with scheming, devilish amber eyes, and placed her finger above the intercom button.

"Make your choice. You either let me in to *this party*, or *refuse*, and then I'll tell **THE ENTIRE SCHOOL** that you're corrupt and lied to police to protect a kid who's *not even your daughter*."

Evie and Mya shrieked. Daniela's ultimatum was *mortifying*.

She was forcing Rex to let her in to the *party*, and she wouldn't *stop*, wouldn't quit *attacking*, until she had gotten her way and had been permitted to go.

And with dread, Evie and Mya realized something else.

*If Daniela wins, she's going to do everything in her power to kill Winter!*

Mya stared open-mouthed at Evie.

"This... this isn't happening!" she stammered.

"Ev..."

"Mya..."

"You **cannot** do such *outlandish things*!" Rex growled to Daniela, but her daughter was *determined*. She put her finger on the tip of the intercom button, causing her mother to wince.

"Here you are again. You're like Evie and Mya. You **ALWAYS** underestimate the **power** I have. I had an elaborate kidnapping plot. I trapped Evie and Mya and nearly *got away with it*. I've sneaked out of the house and *stalked* Winter. You're too **clueless** and **careless** to try bothering to stop me. So make your choice. I go to the party, you live to tell the tale. I don't go to the party, and you'll be thrown into **jail** for *fabricating information* and harboring *someone's secrets* from the **whole school**."

"**My answer is no**, Daniela! You aren't going to strut in here and **demand** entrance to something you **lost** the second you decided murdering Winter was something you wanted to **SAVOR DOING**!"

*Rex, come on!* Evie pleaded.

*The school is going to go down in flames if Daniela wins!*

Daniela snarled. Rex's words had made the hunger *sharper*. It pushed her further.

"**Try me**, you inglorious, lying, ugly ass **dungface**!"

"*Daniela*! *Stop*! You can't do this!" Rex begged, the T-Rex form diminished, shrinking, and wilting.

She shuffled closer to her on her knees, her eyes darting left and right - anyone could be listening, hearing their secrets slip out.

"You can't tell a soul about what I've done for Winter. Please!"

Daniela laughed, shaking her head with mock pity for her weakened, battered, anguish-layered mother. "Want me to send you into **retirement** early? I gave you a *choice*. Keep your job. Let me go. Nobody gets hurt. Or I can ruin *you* for *ruining me* and putting a roadblock to what my *heart* desires most. I can prove to the school that you wanted me to **suffer**! I can **PROVE IT**!"

Her finger lurched toward the button.

Evie and Mya *shrieked*.

It was too late.

Time was a dizzying mess. Seconds slipped by.

Rex's dilated pupils hung there as she watched Daniela's finger prepare to slam down the intercom. Once it impacted, she'd tell the remaining students and faculty in the school of her terrible secrets, that she had protected a girl with no home, prevented the legal system from taking her, and had lied to police about her status.

She'd lose *everything* - and Winter's beautiful, precious face appeared in her head.

That face, hauled off to foster care, permamently depressed, scrounging for scraps, fighting children for a spot to breathe.

She heard the sobs. The cries.

She glanced up at Daniela.

Rex made her choice.

"*Fine*. Go to the party. You win."

The words were a *searing* blow to Evie and Mya.

"*No*!" Evie howled, her fist banging against the wall in dejection.

Rex had chosen Daniela over Winter.

*She had thrown Winter under the bus to save herself*.

Wait, that was the wrong narrative. Rex *had* chosen Winter - she didn't want the girl to be exposed by her hell-born, violent, sadomasochistic ex as a liar and orphan who had been sheltered by the school *principal*.

But this decision had come with a *fatal* price - Daniela was going to go the party despite having no qualifications for it.

And Evie and Mya knew with horrific foreboding that Daniela was going to use the party to put a hole through Winter's *chest*.

The two immediately fled the school building, unable to go back and face the scene in the office any longer - it was giving them an illness worse than black death.

Winter was in *danger*, *again* - and the stakes were *higher* than ever.

If Evie and Mya didn't act in the three days they had left, Winter would perish, and Daniela - along with *everyone* who had the audacity to brand Winter as the weakling named Snowblind - would *win*.

That thought alone was something that *split* the tops of their skulls open.

Underneath the school's awning, Evie and Mya inhaled gasps of air and met Winter. She blinked, baffled by the two's sudden dash out and escape long after the crowds outside had thinned.

"Evie! Mya! You look like Coach Samoski dragged you out for laps on the track! What happened???" she questioned worriedly.

"We-" Evie started, cutting herself off.

*Right... I can't tell Winter that her larsony-filled ex is going to the party... how can we? It's preposterous!*

She looked away nervously, but luckily for her, Mya had her back.

"We got submerged in a stampede of students," she lied smoothly, elbowing Evie and reminding her to stand straight. "Then got called into the office for something minor. Pretty exhausting experience."

"You *do* look plum-tuckered out. Must have been in a pain in the ass. Anyways, wanna walk to my cabin and chill for a little while?"

The two nodded, but underneath their collected surfaces, they were at a crossroad.

What were they going to *say* to Winter? *Daniela* going to the party wasn't just a big deal or something minor, it was almost impossible to *believe*.

*"Yeah, your ex is going to the party and you can't go for your sake!" That sounds like we're being unfair to her... but unfair would save a life... and yet it still sounds wrong!* Mya detested the explanation she formed in her head, shaking it. Winter did not look behind her, granting her time to move closer to Evie and communicate to her through a trepid face, "We have to tell her! The clock is ticking!"

Evie shook her head, communicating back, "Anything we can say."

*And anything we say might lead to her accusing us of being liars... but Winter knows us well enough to not jump to that conclusion immediately... or does she?*

Evie and Mya knew Winter was still insecure. She *acted* based off that insecurity. She was also impulsive, headstrong, and *stubborn*.

Things could go north, or things would go *badly* south, and then, Evie and Mya would be screwed - and Winter would be walking into a gaping death trap.

With an imaginary knife, Winter slit into their thoughts.

"What music do you think they're gonna play at the party?" she asked innocently. "I'm hoping for Varien. Unique, stands out, has a weirder tune, but still goes hard. *Aether and Light* sounds like a great choice."

"I know you showed me *Cloak and Dagger* that one time," Mya recalled, hanging her shoulders low as to avoid suspicion. "But I think it's too nails on chalkboard for the party."

"Fair enough. That genre *does* give ear pain to some. Maybe its sequel?"

"*Cloak and Dagger* has a sequel??"

"Yep. *Resurrection of the Dagger*. I think the genre is house."

"House isn't screechy?"

"You'd enjoy it."

Mya nodded in approval, but frowned when she turned to Evie and saw her gritting her teeth, not finding a suitable response to give to Winter.

She looked *panicked*.

Worried, she registered her friend's thoughts: her conscience was getting to her.

She held her hand cautiously. Over the years, Evie had made it very known about herself that she couldn't bring herself to *tell* lies. She lacked the ability to tell white lies and never wanted to tell them. She only did so in *emergencies* or when the circumstances had called for it.

The guilt about lying to her friend was getting to her. They were out in the open and around no one.

Now would be an opportunity to face a confrontation with Winter if it meant protecting her.

She glanced up at Mya, begging for her consent to break the news. She gave a brusque nod, and gulping...

"Hey, Winter? There's something we... have to tell you."

Winter froze, turning to face her, bewildered. "Oh? What's wrong?"

Her tone made Evie supress a shiver, and anxiously, she wrung her fingers, shuffling her boots on the ground. Mya appeared to be just as nervous.

*Are they okay? They were like this earlier. We're in the woods and aren't around people...*

"About us getting held back... that wasn't the truth. We... we *saw* Rex in her full T-Rex form in the office... and she was facing *Daniela*."

Winter tightened, her ice-blue eyes demanding the meaning of what her friend was saying. She didn't reply.

*Crap! We shouldn't have lied to her... those eyes...*

"*What* exactly are you telling me?" Winter asked, hair on the back of her neck standing on end.

Mya stepped forward. "Winter, Daniela *blackmailed* Rex! She threatened to *expose* your *relationship* with her to the **whole school**! And Rex **backed down**! She had to let Daniela *go to the party* so she wouldn't lose her *job*! If you *go* to the party... **Daniela is going to kill you**!"

"**WHAT**?" she demanded, disbelieving the words that sputtered out of her mouth. Rex? Letting Daniela *win*? No! That was *absurd*!

*Rex promised that she would NEVER let me go to foster care. She promised to keep me SAFE! And now the girls are trying to claim that she gave in to Daniela? That I'm in danger?*

*That's utter NONSENSE! Rex owns Daniela each time she gets in trouble. I have FELT that anger. Did... are the girls betraying me?*

She growled, and Evie and Mya held hands, knowing they had brought out Winter's *chaotic* hot temper.

And what they had feared was *real*.

"I don't believe a *single word* I'm hearing," she spat. "Rex **promised me** that she would **protect me**. She doesn't waver. She doesn't *crack*. That woman is *tougher* than *metal*!"

"We saw it with *our own eyes*!" Evie insisted frantically, waving her arms around to boost her point. "Rex fell to her *knees* because Daniela had repeatedly *called her a coward*! Daniela even **threatened** to ***tell the whole school through the INTERCOM*** that Rex is keeping her relationship with you a **secret**!"

"Ludicrous! I've placed my *whole faith* in her to keep me safe. She isn't going to let Daniela get in her way. She can *abolish* Dani's *agendas* in less than a **minute**. What, are you two trying to *ditch me* so you can *canoodle* at the party? Are you working for someone who wants me *ridiculed*?"

Mya gasped, hurt by the suggestion, and Evie hung her head dejectedly, guilt choking her. It made her feel like a piece of grime for lying already.

"Winter, you *aren't* thinking rationally! We're your *friends*. We *care* for you! Rex is a *flawed person*. You may think she has everything under control, but the truth is she *doesn't*. Daniela is **dangerous**, have you forgotten that you were just **kidnapped**? I quote, she wanted to put Rex into **RETIREMENT**!"

"*Mya*!" Winter hissed, a warning that she needed to stop before she snapped.

The words rushed out in a waterfall of panic.

"Rex *isn't* going to be your **savior** any longer, Win! Not with Daniela manipulating her and forcing her to let her go to the **party**. Your ex is going to ruin *your fun*, hunt you, and **murder you** in front of *students*! You're going to be exposed, Winter! That's something you **never wanted**!"

"She **wouldn't** fail me!" Winter snapped, clenching a fist in her left hand, and her friend clamped her mouth *closed*.

*Is she... is she gonna-*

"Rex **protected me** for a year. She told me I'd never get hurt. That I would be healthy, I would survive this, find my **place** and get through *school*. You're telling me I've been lied to? I've lost another person I loved? That I can't find anything close to family because everyone around me ***BETRAYS ME***!?"

Evie leapt in front of Mya, shielding her from the onslaught. "Winter, you-"

"You **don't want** me to enjoy being *happy* for once in my life, don't you? Spit it out. Tell me straight to my **damn face**!" she demanded, baring her teeth.

Mya gasped, and Evie, strengthening, stood taller.

*Winter's attacking the person who was an angel to her. I know she doesn't mean what she's saying. This isn't her being a bully.*

*She's too stubborn and insecure to accept that Rex could ever fail her. We have to try getting her to see reason!*

"Winter, hey, easy," she soothed. "Anger won't solve this, neither will bickering, but I *am* going to state this: your *life* matters more than a *party*. You *living* matters more than a party. You being happy matters as well, but that requires you to stop being so headstrong. See the bigger picture, *please*! Daniela *kidnapped you* and *tortured you*, and that same insane Daniela is going to *that party* regardless of if she met the criteria or not. You being **alive** matters more than *a damn party*!"

Much to her horror, Evie's mediating did not pacify Winter. She growled, ice-blue eyes *fuming* with chilling flame.

"**DANIELA ISN'T GOING TO BOTHER ME AGAIN**!" she snarled, aggressively wiping the gap between her and the girls. Mya held onto Evie's shoulder, prepared to throw themselves behind a nearby tree if Winter went on the offensive.

*But we're her friends! She knows in her heart she could never hurt us!*

"In case you *chickenfricks* are dry enough to not realize it, Rex *promised me* that Daniela was *finished*. She'd be *out* of *our classes* and *alone*. In *solitary confinement*. She told me this, promised this, and Rex **ALWAYS** holds true to her **PROMISES**!"

The insult was the shot of an arrow through the hearts of the girls. Winter hadn't realized it due to her acting on blind rage and her anger masking her thought process, but she was *hurting* her friends and *belittling* them.

Both were trembling, and Mya had the beginnings of tears forming in her eyes. She brushed them away.

*Winter doesn't mean any of this. She's not vicious or mean. Her insecurity is causing her to lash out at us!*

She ducked out from behind Evie and stood next to her.

"Winter, please! This isn't *you*. You're letting your *insecurity* decide your words. You have to *let it go*!"

"I'll let it go once you see that I'm **not lying**! Rex is a **phenomenal person**! You're demeaning her with **LIES**!"

Evie adamantly went near to her, staring her in her eyes, her last word reaching far too close to home.

"Winter! We got *trapped* in a closet and Rex got **tricked** by Daniela into thinking we were dumbasses! She thought *we* locked ourselves in! Daniela could have gotten away with manipulating her own mother then and she just **got away with it** for real! We're not the ones lying to you - you're the one that's lying to yourself!"

*I'm lying to myself...*

*I'M LYING TO MYSELF??*

In that moment, Winter's nerves snapped.

The last strings of her sanity snapped.

Her ire had simmered, boiled, and *erupted* into magma.

Rex? Let her down? Feed her to wolves?

*Ludicrous*.

She was *done*.

"***JUST SHUT THE HELL UP, WON'T YOU***?"

*Everything* in the Piney Woods ceased action. Her voice rattled the trees and ricocheted throughout the woods, sending the animals and even the plants into eerie quiet.

Evie and Mya gasped, tottering away from her in *shock*, and both hugged each other protectively, preparing for their friend to slam into them with lion strength and rip them apart.

A minute passed.

Retracting her eyes from Evie's shoulder, Mya caught a glimpse of Winter standing there, her expression vacated.

She saw that she had *horrified* Evie and Mya.

Guilt hit her on the top of the head.

"I... I'm *sorry*!" Without warning, she turned her back to the girls and ran through the Piney Woods, the traces of her presence slipping away thereafter.

Evie and Mya's feathers were *ruffled*, their hackles up, their whole bodies stuck in motion.

"What have we done..." Evie muttered, sinking to the ground, and Mya joined her.

"Ev, we tried. Winter got upset as we predicted. It wasn't our fault she was going to snap, much as I hate to say this..."

"You're right," Evie conceded. "We have three days left to persuade her that getting herself to safety is more important than dying to Daniela. We *cannot* give up."

"We're *never* going to give up," Mya chimed, holding her hand.

Relaxing, Evie sat with her for a few minutes on the pine needles, staring ahead at where Winter had bolted off.

Their hopes were slim, but if there were *still* chances to speak with Winter and convince her to forego the party, they couldn't waste the time already ticking away.

Would Winter be willing to listen?

**THREE DAYS LATER**

Friday evening had swung by at full tilt. The sun was setting, orange, pinks, purples, and yellows banishing the blue for the rest of the day, prepping the night to show later on.

The girls hated that it was Friday. It was usually a fun, bright, energetic, chaotic day where the students partied, free of having school for two days, and especially on this night, where they'd go to a party if selected and have one of the best nights of *their lives*.

But Evie and Mya had accumulated pores on their body, invisible, yet torn open with *dread*.

On the three days they had to talk with Winter and try consulting her, she either slammed the door in their faces, ignored their texts, or rebuked them angrily.

She wanted *nothing* to do with them.

She was still believing Rex could keep her safe.

Sighing, Evie took a seat on her porch, gazing at the sunset.

*After everything, Winter won't look us in the eye. She refuses to think for a split second that Rex isn't flawless. She doesn't give us a chance to explain ourselves...*

*She's not a bully. She can be mean, yeah... and she is incredibly short-tempered. She puts me on a backburner with how irate she can be. She doesn't hate us, I know she doesn't - in her heart is an appreciation of us.*

*Yet she couldn't grasp that the dream world she's lived is dying.*

Winter was no closer to the truth and didn't believe she had a high chance of getting murdered by her vengeful ex.

Evie held out her phone, glancing down at the text message Mya had sent a few minutes ago.

*Omw to your place so you can see my outfit <3 then it's Mission Impossible dunununununun*

*Cute idiot. Even when things are in dire straits, you always manage to crack me up.*

Evie chuckled. Mya had wanted to show her outfit at her place, *then* get driven there by Evie's parents, and *then* at the school meet up with her parents, who would be inside on the third floor of the cafeteria.

That plan was *lengthy*.

Lord.

Evie had tougher things to chew.

*If we don't stop Winter, we're going to watch Daniela execute her without remorse. The heartless slitting of her throat, the blood on the floor... and seventh graders are going to be watching!*

She slapped herself. *Ugh, don't think like that, Evie!*

Chagrin filled her as she *kept* thinking like that.

*Winter's blood... even the sunset is reflecting that fate. This party has a probability of being caked in bloodshed...*

She could *hear* the laugh of Daniela and the scream of a horrifed Winter. She shook her head, extinguishing such nightmares fiercely.

*No. No more thinking so cynically. Focus on something else... focus on-*

She glanced down at her phone again and saw that cute text from Mya.

*Mya and how pretty she's going to look.*

Evie remembered Mya's achings to wear something *fancy*. She didn't know where she had gone shopping at; that was a private affair.

Her outfit was simple: sweater, jeans, boots. Boom. Done.

Mya was going all-out, sharing interests in a dress, but she hadn't mentioned anything more.

*When I first met Mya, wasn't she in something like a dress? It was pink, came with white tights and black shoes... oh, she was so tiny then...*

Her heart warmed with the recollection of their first meeting. *That was sweet. She was sweet. She... she taught me I could have friends.*

She envisioned Mya's appearance in her head.

*Mya might be wearing a dress, maybe pink... or blue! She loves blue, it's one of her favorite colors. Deep blue is a pretty color, but so is light blue and sky blue and cyan. Argh, too many options! There could be ruffles on the bottom or a belt in the middle, that's a pretty cool detail. White tights pair well with pink and blue, though she could wear a different color and it would likely work. Shoes... maybe flats, some heeled? Or is she gonna wear high heels?*

*Wow... she sounds marvelous... Mya in a dress. Mya in a dress happening! Wah!*

Evie smiled, in a haze within her own imagination.

All of a sudden, she heard *footsteps* scrape the concrete, and sitting up, she dissolved the haze.

"Hi, Evie."

Mya was here.

Evie leveled her gaze to meet hers.

She gasped, rendered *speechless*, by what she was seeing.

Instead of the dress she imagined in shades of blue and pink, Mya was wearing a sleek, neatly-trimmed, *upscale* black vest with long, lavish pure white sleeves.

In the middle of the vest, which had been closed together with gold buttons, was a *shimmering* dark green bow.

*A vest... a vest???*

Evie *blushed* heavily, the red covering every expanse on her face.

The vest looked even more *alluring* than a dress. It sucked her into its vortex of charm.

That wasn't all. Mya was also wearing perfectly-matched dark green tights and shining black ankle boots.

But the apple to Evie's eye that made her face *extremely red* was a flower crown of *dark green flowers* sitting on top of her head.

Her mouth had been opened and stuck open for two minutes as she took in Mya's opulent appearance.

A sweet scent wafted toward her. She *drowned* in it.

*Vanilla*.

Evie stared. And stared. And stared. Mya stared back.

She was in a vest. Tights. Ankle boots. A flower crown.

*That outfit is even better than a dress. It's so... attractive...*

Evie thought Mya's outfit was *attractive*. Her heart was yanking her toward it like a horse getting herded to water.

"What do you think, Evie?" Mya asked sweetly, and in a trance, Evie stood up and walked over, breathing in that *intoxicating* vanilla and admiring the *beautiful* person presented before her.

"Mya... it's *perfect*!" she murmured, tracing the fabric of the bow with her finger.

"I had a feeling you'd love this. We went to Nordstrom and found it... I couldn't pass this up, especially with the flower crown I was gifted to go along with it. Because..."

She snuck a hand down to Evie's and wrapped her pinky finger in it.

"I wanted to wear something *you'd* love, Evie."

Evie stopped *breathing*, the breath hitching in the back of her throat, and she gazed at her in shock.

*Mya wanted to wear this... for me?*

*No one* had ever done something so *special* and so *brilliant* for her. No one but *Mya*.

*She bought this whole outfit to impress me... because she knew I would love it...*

Her heart thumped a *badum-badum*, missing beats.

As she stood here with Mya, vanilla scent pungent and their skin grazing against each other's, Evie met her leaf-green eyes.

They shone with *accomplishment*.

Hers shone with something else. Something Mya saw immediately, and her ears were torched with the heat of *vindication*.

She gave her a small smile.

A warm, unfamiliar feeling cascaded over Evie. It was mystifying, bizarre, yet full of sweetness, like the inside of a cake, soft, like honey, and unique, like a gift sent from a god.

*Mya is a god... she's a flower crown goddess.*

*My flower crown goddess.*

Then, suddenly, the feeling registered within Evie, and she was struck right through the heart with an element so foreign to her that her heartbeat went out of *control*.

*Love*.

It was *love*.

*I'm in love with Mya.*

The love was so strong it made Evie's chest *expand*. She was barely breathing. She was *unable* to pull her eyes *away* from Mya's. She couldn't *stop*.

*I... I'm in love with my best friend. My heart... she's my one and only. She's my flower crown goddess...*

*I don't want Mya to just be my friend. I want her to be my... my partner.*

Evie, for years, hadn't shown interest in loving anyone. She had been disinterested in boys. She had been disinterested in girls.

Furthermore, there was no one in her life that had been interested in her romantically. Most considered her to be out of their range since she was constantly enveloped in schoolwork and her title as one of the school's prodigies.

She hadn't liked romance that much. Book romance was written with more care than a sloppy real one.

But then she had met Mya, and slowly, over three years, the feelings had grown, blossomed from a seed to a sapling to a full blown *tree*.

Against the *odds*... Evie had fallen in love.

*Does this mean...*

Mya giggled, blushing, her cheeks a light shade of pink illuminated with the sunset's help in the background.

Evie thought she could leap so high she could grab the beginnings of the stars, bring them down, and intertwine them in Mya's flower crown.

*I'm the girl Mya is crushing on. She loves me back.*

Mya read her mind perfectly. *Evie likes me back! Evie likes me back!*

Mya's crush had been a person so vague to Evie, and yet, with her intelligence and sharp person perception, she had been dense enough to not realize that every time Mya described her crush, she was alluding to *her*.

*I'm courageous. I'm strong-willed. I speak with an intriguing voice. She finds me... she finds me pretty, and smart, and attractive, and... cute.*

*I've always been the one Mya loved.*

*Ever since that kiss at Cracklog...*

Evie briefly recalled the memories of the wild kiss when Mya slipped and collided with her face, their lips connecting for a second. Evie hadn't felt anything yet, but Mya...

*That was when she realized she wanted to be with me...*

When she thought of the kiss now, she felt different.

*What I said that day was a lie. That kiss WAS meaningful. Every last moment we shared since then...*

The goodbyes at Geiger Heights, the walk, Mya's coming out, Mya leaving her shell-shocked by throwing herself in front of Daniela and her knife, Mya's gain in confidence and the old, shy, weaker her virtually becoming nonexistent...

*Not just that. EVERYTHING between us...*

*How could I have been so stupid to not see it before? I was in love with Mya. These feelings, this affection... it feels right.*

The weight of Mya's coming out dawned upon Evie. She grinned - widely - her eyes the epitome of *affectionate* pools of green.

She put a hand to Mya's cheek, softly, and slid it down her face. She leaned into the touch.

"You're the most beautiful girl in the entire world," she whispered, and Mya, content, placed her hand under her chin and held it softly.

"I could tell you the exact same words and it would mean just as much," she said, gripping her cheeks and putting her forehead to hers. The touch was *kinetic* and sent shockwaves rippling through the two of them.

They were *love*, and *power*, and *pride*, and *every* color in the rainbow, red to purple, swirling in bright hues.

Their hands met near their waistlines. Fingers fought for dominance, but locked, skin brushing up on skin, soft brushing up on soft.

Their faces pressed closer and closer and closer until their noses had met, rubbing and colliding, and their lips were borderline close to meeting.

*I could kiss you now and make you mine,* Mya thought.

*I could kiss you now and want to kiss you again,* Evie thought.

Their lips were far apart, even if the tiniest gap remained.

The time for them to finally make things official was not yet here. It was to wait.

It *had* to wait.

They knew now that their love of each other wasn't *blind*, nor was it one-sided.

Mya's crush and friend had reciprocated her feelings.

Evie, having previously never gotten involved in a romantic situation, had *no regrets* falling in love with Mya, no regrets wishing to pick her up in her arms and connect their lips together for a kiss.

Their savory, loving, heating moment was interrupted by Mya, as she reluctantly pulled away from Evie and shook her head. "Ev... I want to do this forever with you, but we have a party to get to, and time's *running out*!"

"Right!" Evie proclaimed. "Whatever happens in that cafeteria... I will be by your side."

She gripped her hand.

It was time for Mission Impossible - and the two, fueled by love and the desires to save their friend - charged toward the battlefield at full steam *ahead*.

When Evie and Mya arrived at the school, most of the sunset had faded away, and the milky dark blue-and-black night sky was beginning to rear its true colors. In the cafeteria was a full *wonderland* of fun, chaos, food, and music.

The regular lights were dimmed and had been replaced by colorful lights, green, red, blue, pink, and purple, swirling about slowly and lightening up the atmosphere. Students, seventh grade mixed with sixth and eight grade, congregated everywhere, sharing cups of punch, eating pizza or popcorn, engaging in fun activities on the stage, or watched the DJ manage the music nearby. He was vibing to a bounce tune that made Mya lurch and Evie tense up.

"This is obnoxious!" she hollered over the noise.

"True, but we have to find Winter!" Mya shouted back. She and Evie peered over the brick railing on the third level of the cafeteria, scanning for a sandy-brown head, a *trace* of their friend.

They didn't see her.

"I don't see her!" Mya exclaimed, and Evie scraped her fingernails on the brick.

"What about Daniela? I don't see anyone wearing a blue sweater."

"Nope! Don't see a blue sweater and Dani either!"

"Crap, we're running out of time!"

The more Evie and Mya stood at their outpost trying to scan, the more Daniela would have the opportunity to ambush Winter and *destroy* her fragment by fragment.

"We have to get closer to the hub of the activity... Mya, the first floor!"

Mya faced the bottom floor, which had the most students swamping the area, and the chattering was most immense there.

"On it! We should ask around too - eyewitnesses!"

Evie nodded in swift agreement, and noticing the STUCO table was nearby, she pointed to it. "Let's ask Cecilia and Jamal. They've been here before everyone else!"

Fast and nimbly, they ran over to the couple, who were in mid-kiss and distracted.

"*Hey*!" Mya called out to them, and embarrassed, they broke apart.

Cecilia brushed away her chubby, pale skin, quietly holding the darker brown skin of Jamal's hand soundly. "Umm... hey, girls... how can we help you?" she offered.

Mya whammed her elbows down on the STUCO desk, startling the two leaders. "Have you seen a girl who's taller than us, has really short hair tied back in this bobtail, and has ice-blue eyes? Wears a long-sleeve shirt?" she quizzed desperately.

"No... not at all!"

"I don't know *anyone* with that description!" Jamal added nervously.

"How about Daniela? The school bully?"

"Daniela wasn't *invited* to this party! We made *sure* she wasn't here. Rex said she *wasn't* going to be here!" Cecilia pointed out, and Evie clenched her teeth together, borderline about to screech at the two. Mya shook her head, making Cecilia gasp.

"**SHE GOT IN**?"

"Worry about appearances later!" Evie snapped. "Have you seen Daniela???"

"No!" Jamal protested. "We haven't seen her or the girl you're describing!"

"Alright, they're no good, Mya. Let's find someone else on the second level and *fast* - or there's gonna be blood on the *dance floor*!" Evie remarked, speeding ahead through the streams of students with Mya not far behind. Cecilia and Jamal, startled, stared ahead with blank faces.

The chattering increased in volume as they shoved their way through the second level. Winter was nowhere to be seen, and neither was Daniela - by now, she would have made her presence known.

Just where *were* they?

All of a sudden, Evie and Mya heard two familiar voices - masculine - speaking. Brightening, they approached Henry and Aiden, who were in the middle of a conversation, faces turned to each other, and a *forceful* cologne scent drifted toward Evie.

*Ugh! Abercrombie & Fitch scent!* She scrunched up her nosebridge.

"Is this a *end of winter* party or is this a *Halloween* party? 'Cause I don't believe the *we're the children of the night* song is entirely an appropriate song..." Aiden quipped to Henry, butting his shoulder. He had donned an overshirt with a tie, black jeans, and polished shoes, Abercrombie & Fitch cologne on them. Henry had stuck to more casual attire.

"Hey, give them credit, bro. It's catchy... and bouncy. And it's almost over anyway!"

"Thinking about it... you do have a point. Party's been good so far, hasn't it?"

"Mmph. You could say that again."

"Wanna get some punch?"

"In a little bit. Still processing the pizza."

As the two were in mid-conversation, they caught a flash of black and auburn, and alarmed, they pinned their backs to the wall, meeting the frantic, perturbed bodies of Evie and Mya.

"Boys!" Mya rasped, panting.

(Pa-pa-paralyzed)

(Pa-pa-paralyzed)

"Evie? Mya? What's going on?" Henry questioned, and Aiden asked, "Why do you two look so agitated???"

"We... we've been looking for Winter. Our friend. Short sandy-brown hair, ice-blue eyes!" Mya explained, rapid-firing her points like bullet shots.

Aiden gasped, plucking at the outer rim of his shirt restlessly. Terrifying feelings formed in his stomach.

"I... haven't seen someone who looks like that..." Henry responded, his head down.

"Damn it! She's in *serious danger*!" Evie spat.

"*Winter's* in *danger*?" Aiden gasped, petrified, the events of weeks ago re-appearing in his head, and his frame quivered - he remembered the pain he brought onto Winter by stalking her and obsessing over her unhealthily. She had been distraught and uncomfortable by his motives.

Except the small voice in his head told him that Winter was in *deeper trouble* now.

"There's too little time to explain everything, but Daniela *blackmailed* her way to the party! *She* is *going* to do something *awful* to her!" Evie asserted madly. "We have to find *either* of them before it's too late!"

"*Daniela*?!" Henry demanded in disbelief. "Knowing her from what she did to you guys on your Office Aide shift, she's going to hurt Winter... and we aren't braced for what's to come."

(Pa-pa-paralyzed)

(When I look in your eyes)

Daniela had been an *abomination* that day - and with her appearance at the party, she was bound to commit something *odious*.

Aiden drew in his breath uneasily, putting a hand over his chest. "*Hurt* her??? For god's sake, we mustn't let it happen! Evie, Mya, we're in. We're going to help you protect Winter," Aiden affirmed, still receiving flashbacks of his mistakes, and Henry, holding his hand, stood by him.

"Thank you, guys. We haven't seen Winter up here, or on the first floor... do you see anything?" Evie asked, her fingers twitching.

Henry and Aiden peered down onto the floor below for a few seconds, then turned back.

"Nothing," Aiden reported. "Someone else around here **must** be able to **help**!"

The four proceeded to the last half of the second floor, and luck prevailed - they found Evelin and Sarah holding cups of grape punch in their hands, wearing matching white dresses with spots of pink, blue, and yellow on them.

"Hey guys! Wanna try the punch?" Evelin suggested, waving her glass around.

Savoring this moment, is this our last goodbye?

"Nice offer, but we have a *major crisis* going on!" Aiden yelled, letting Mya continue speaking. Evelin and Sarah, shocked, put their glasses down on a nearby table.

"Winter - she's the friend we mentioned to you in the gym that one morning - is in *danger*. She's at the party. Daniela... the school bully, *blackmailed* her way here! She wants to hurt Winter *horribly*, in revenge, in *retribution*. She wants her *blood*. You have to help us find her!"

"*Daniela* is here??? **Blood**??? But I thought... she..." Sarah, trailing off, held Evelin's arm, and the elder Rafiq twin stomped her foot on the ground.

"Did you see Daniela at *all*?" she questioned, her voice careful and stony.

The four shook their heads despondently.

I thought we loved each other, I guess one of us lied

"Okay. Me and Sarah will help you find them. Since we're at the part where the ramp going to the first floor slopes down, we can stay put here and try looking through the crowds at eye level - in case they're on the bottom floor, we shouldn't get too close."

Immediately, the Rafiq sisters joined Evie, Mya, Henry, and Aiden beside the bottom of the wall railing, analyzying the crowds of students flocking the first floor, an ominous cloud over their heads.

Winter was lost when they needed to see her most - and in the dark shadows, Daniela was about to pounce.

Meanwhile, on the bottom floor, willingly trapped within the clusters of chatterbox students holding food, drinks, and dancing to the song was Winter. She was having a *blast*.

Her party outfit - her typical shirt, pants, and boots with a brindled Aéropostale jacket tied around her waistline, was snazzy. She *adored* it.

This party was *dope* and the beats were *thumping*. Her ears rushed with blood and exhileration, and she smiled widely, lost in the lights and the blinding sensation of euphoria.

So please, just pull away, I can't look you in the face

*Evie and Mya were dumb to think I'd get ambushed here. I did overreact, and I regret that... but I've been having the time of my life!*

"Soooo... *enjoying* the party, hmm?"

Winter turned around, not able to pinpoint the source of the feminine voice. She sounded friendly, though, and comforting.

"Ooh yeah." She snagged a glass of grape punch from the table, took a sip, and set it back down.

I don't wanna have to lie, I wanted this love to survive

"You seem alone. Where are your friends?"

Winter shrugged. *Spending their time away from me.* "Somewhere else. They didn't want to hang out with me."

"Unfortunate. Parties are *always* better with *friends*," the feminine partygoer responded jovially. "C'mon, let's head to the middle of the floor."

Winter obliged, though she couldn't see the source of the voice. *Elusive, like I am. I might be making a new friend tonight!*

This party sure was swell.

Now when I look in your heart

"Having fun?"

"The *most* fun! It's like I've gotten a year of my life back... tonight's gonna be a *real* good night. I gotta feeling."

"Really?" the voice purred. "It'd be a *shame* if it went so *wrong*..."

Suddenly, Winter froze, still as a statue. *That... that voice...*

Frost was forming on her fingertips. Her ice-blue eyes darted to the left and to the right, inspecting the crowds of students.

*Went... wrong?*

Screeching mercilessly tore through her ears.

Her heartbeat went *nuts*.

"What...? What do you me-"

Her confusion and question were then cut off as a hand *clamped* down on her throat, and gasping, she met *diabolical*, *cunning* amber eyes.

With guilt, regret, horror, and *shock*, Winter *screamed*.

I feel paralyzed

The whole party atmosphere crashed and *burned*. The music stopped playing, the lights came back on, and students, disoriented, ceased talking to friends, family, and others. Drinks were dropped, food left uneaten.

In the midst of it all, Evie, Mya, Henry, Aiden, Evelin, and Sarah gasped, huddling as a group and migrating to the top of the brick railing, sick and *mortified*.

Evie and Mya *knew* that scream *all too well*.

And snaking up the brick railing, they looked down at the first floor, and the sight in front of them was something they had *never* wished to see, *didn't* want to see, and couldn't *comprehend* what was just remotely happening before them.

Winter, squirming and *fossilized*, stared into the eyes of *Daniela Burton Vunquist*, the grip on her throat so strong that the edges of her vision were smeared.

In Daniela's eyes was a *sickening*, *brutish*, *murder-craving*, *devilish* light.

They were too late.

***TO BE CONTINUED***

## Cast

* **Mae Whitman** as Winter
* **Dakota Fanning** as Mya
* **Peyton Elizabeth Lee** as Evie
* **Vince Vaughn** as Mr. Ackers
* **Dee Bradley Baker** as Henry & additional voices
* **Kari Wahlgren** as additional voices
* **Matt Chapman** and **Kimberly Brooks** as additional voices
* **Fred Tatasciore** as additional voices
* **Nora Dunn** as Rex
* **Eden Riegel** as Daniela
* **Amber Romero** as Cecilia
* **Karan Brar** as Jamal
* **Jorge Diaz** as Aiden & additional voices
* **Zehra Fazal** as Evelin and Sarah

## Songs

* Varien - *Aether and Light* (hummed by Winter)
* Andromedik - *Your Eyes* (snippet)
* Razihel - *Children of the Night* (snippet)
* DM Galaxy (ft. Tyler Fiore) - *Paralyzed* (snippet)

## Trivia

* This is the first episode to officially end on a cliffhanger.
* The rewrite is the last of the Season 1 rewrites to be released in December 2022 and the last *Evie and Mya* installment to be released in 2022 overall.
	+ It is also notably released on New Year's Eve.
* The first version of the episode had Rex reluctantly inviting Daniela to the party, but Av, finding this too convenient for the plot, changed it so that Rex was blackmailed by Daniela instead.
	+ The party also consisted of a multi-song mashup, but Av wrote that out and replaced it with *Children of the Night* and *Paralyzed*.
* It is revealed that:
	+ Pep rallies at PMS are not well received.
	+ Daniela was severely punished for the events of *She's Plotting Something* and was removed from her classes, forced to do tons of paperwork by Rex and kept within close proximity to her in order to prevent another revolt. Her behavior also caused her to be blacklisted from the party. However, this doesn't stop her from successfully blackmailing Rex into letting her into the party later in the episode.
	+ Daniela has cut herself across the wrist where she was cut by Winter in the last episode, likely as an act of self-harm, fueling the revelation that she is a masochist.
	+ Winter typically hides in the gym during pep rallies and is generally unamused by them. She also did not attend her honor roll ceremony probably out of fear her secrets would be uncovered.
	+ PMS does not hold parties that often.
	+ Winter's last major, fun party was her eleventh birthday party or Daniela's twelfth birthday party.
	+ Evie doesn't like wearing anything fancy.
	+ Daniela's dissonance toward the party announcement was a facade - she was quietly listening and using that information to form her next plan to kill Winter.
	+ Winter owns a green sweater and brindled jacket that she saves for special occassions. The sweater was from JCPenney and was gifted to her by Daniela.
	+ Besides the girls, Henry, Aiden, Evelin, and Sarah were invited to the party.
	+ Daniela is completely aware that Rex and Winter have been in cahoots with each other and uses this information to blackmail Rex.
	+ Winter appears to possess some knowledge of EDM genres, such as brostep and house.
	+ Winter still has issues with her insecurity and is in denial that Rex could ever let her down or give in to Daniela, leading to her snapping at the girls and refusing to talk to them.
	+ Mya bought her party vest from Nordstrom, admitting that she wanted to wear something special that Evie would like.
	+ Evie is in love with Mya, finally recognizing her feelings for her as romantic and wanting her to be her girlfriend. This ties into her being dense in the past few episodes and not being able to recognize Mya's crush on her, yet filling with feelings she found unfamiliar.
		- It also ties in with Mya's warning to her in the episode and *There's Something About Mya* - "objects in the mirror are closer than they appear" - hinting that her crush was her and that it's obvious.
	+ Evie has been disinterested in romance and not approached by anyone on romantic terms until she formulated her feelings for Mya and returned the way she felt about her.
	+ Henry and Aiden have befriended each other.
* Cecilia and Jamal, the leaders of STUCO, are the first characters in *Evie and Mya* to be in a biracial relationship (Cecilia is white and Jamal is from an Indian family).
* Winter wearing a sweater, along with Mya proceeding to exclaim "sweater weather" and Winter responding that it's "not too cold for her here," is a reference to the popular The Neighbourhood song *Sweater Weather*.
* Mya alluding to the Lipps Inc. song *Funkytown* and dancing to it serves as a reference to a viral meme video where a fish spins in a circle to a low-quality version of the song.
* "Nếu bạn đang nói dối tôi" translates to "if you're lying to me" in Vietnamese.
* The Varien song Winter is humming at the end of the school day is *Aether and Light*, which she also mentions as a song she wants to hear at the party.
* When Evie realizes that she's fallen in love with Mya and Mya notices, the two's embrace contains a reprise of the Andromedik song *Your Eyes*, which previously appeared in *Dancing in the Dark* after the accidental kiss. However, only the opening of the song plays, as Mya cuts it off before the first batch of vocals.
* Evie's nickname for Mya, "flower crown goddess," was inspired by American singer and songwriter Laura Brehm, who also wears some flower crowns in photoshoots.
* The song that is playing at the party when Evie and Mya walk in is *Children of the Night* by Razihel. Av included *Children of the Night* because she found a bounce song to be "perfect" for the party.
	+ Aiden also refers to the song as being too Halloween-themed for the party as a joke.
* Evie stating "or there's gonna be blood on the dance floor" is a reference to either the Michael Jackson song *Blood on the Dance Floor* or the former electronic music group Blood on the Dance Floor.
* When Evie and Mya approach Henry, Aiden, and the Rafiq sisters in their hunt to find Winter and Daniela, the 2014 DM Galaxy song *Paralyzed* plays in the background. The inclusion of *Paralyzed* was meant to foreshadow Daniela's ambush of Winter at the very end of the episode; the song also appropriately stops at "I feel paralyzed" after Daniela grips Winter's throat.
	+ *Paralyzed* is also one of the main three Winiela ship anthems.
* The punch at the party being grape punch could be a reference to *Minecraft* YouTuber Grapeapplesauce.