I gave Oliver my most potent death glare. It didn’t faze him. He dragged me into the room by the hand. It was lit by candles and expensive-looking lamps that cast eerie shadows on the wall, making the scene appear more sinister than it really was. It reminded me of the part of an Agatha Christie novel just before some rich person’s body is found on a Persian rug. There were a few helium balloons with “18” on them that kind of took the edge off the atmosphere. I wondered if Ruby hadn’t finished school yet, or if she was just one of the youngest in her class like me.

Oliver’s mum was sitting on one of a pair of Louis XVI–style couches, the kind that are fantastically uncomfortable but very chic. Did she know Jack Kennedy lost his virginity on one of those sofas? Judging by the fact that they hadn’t set them both on fire, probably not. Oliver’s dad was in the center of the room, a microphone in his hand, paused, evidently mid-performance.

Ruby wasn’t there.

“Mum, Dad, this is Saoirse,” Oliver said.

“Nice to see you, Mr. and Mrs. Quinn,” I said.

His dad bounded forward to shake my hand. I hated when parents did that. It was so awkward, but he had such a warm smile on his face when he told me to call them Harry and Jane that I couldn’t hold it against him.

“Saoirse, welcome to the party. Do you have a signature song?” He indicated the TV screen, which was still playing the lyrics from what I recognized as a Sarah McLachlan song, though someone had muted the background music when I walked in.

“Er, no.” I would not be singing. Not now, not ever.

“Don’t put the poor girl on the spot.” Jane shook her head. “Sit down, dear, I’ll get you the list to look through.”

I don’t know what panicked me more, the list of song options or having to choose between the two sofas not knowing which one was the sex sofa. I tried to get Oliver’s attention to silently ascertain the status of the couches, but he gave me a blank look in return. As soon as I sat and no one was looking, Oliver made the universal hand gesture for hetero sex and pointed to the spot I was sitting in.

I shuddered involuntarily.

“Ruby, we have a guest,” Jane said, and my head snapped up.