“We could run to the store,” says Hannah, her voice flat and bored.

“Not if you’ve even had a drop of alcohol,” says Kyle. “So if you plan on being the party mom, that’s on you.”

Clem reaches under the table to squeeze Hannah’s hand in an attempt to diffuse obvious irritation.

I raise my hand, which I can immediately tell Kyle greatly appreciates by the way he nods at me.

“Yes, Waylon.”

“Um, who exactly did you invite to this party?” I ask.

“Yeah,” says Alex. “You’ve been very cagey with the invite list.”

Kyle clears his throat. “Well, I invited the Prism Club. And the choir.”

The only thing that cuts the silence is the whirring of the ceiling fan in the living room.

“Do you know how much booze I got?” I manage to say. “There’s enough alcohol in your shed to get a small country hammered.”

“I wanted it to be a special night,” Kyle says. “A party for us. Not them.”

For the first time since I’ve known him, I can see Alex’s blood begin to boil. “But we don’t want it to be us versus them. We want to be them! And throwing a badass party is a step in the right direction.” He lets out a frustrated shriek and storms out.

This ship is sinking fast. I look to Hannah. She nods, instinctively.

“We could call the rest of the prom court,” I offer.

The doorbell rings.

“I’ll get it,” says Alex. “Our one single guest has arrived!”

“Do whatever you want,” says Kyle as he pushes back from the table. “It’s probably the pizza guy,” he calls to Alex. And then to us, or maybe to no one, he says, “I try to do one adventurous, wild thing and plan a memorable night for us to tell our kids about, but no, it’s not enough. I didn’t invite the right people. Well, fine, Waylon. Invite them. Invite the jocks and the cheerleaders and the popular kids and the stoners. Sue me for wanting to have a party with people who actually like and respect me.”

Clem looks to Hannah and shakes her head while Hannah is very clearly biting her tongue.

Kyle marches off to the door to help Alex with the pizza.

“Should I break it to him that like and respect are both very strong words?” Hannah asks once the coast is clear.

“You two are awful,” says Clem.

“This party is going to be less exciting than an overnight sleep study,” I say.

“I said you were awful,” Clem says. “I didn’t say you shouldn’t call your prom squad.”

I step out to the backyard, where Kyle’s pool glitters under a canopy of string lights, and hold my phone to my ear. I can’t believe I’m doing this.