The moonlight cast shadows of the trees upon the ground as I walked down the cobble stone path. In the distance, firelight was visible, and as I neared it, the sound of music and laughter filled my ears. The festivities were just beginning in the clearing. I observed my peers standing around with red plastic cups in their hands, reminiscing about their favorite summer memories. My eyes scanned the crowd in search of one person in particular. She was at every party, so I knew that she would undoubtedly be here tonight.
“I can’t believe this is our last night of freedom…” A blonde girl moaned, stumbling into my pathway and wrapping her arms around me. “There’s nothing fun to do during the school year.” She complained, leaning on me for support so as not to fall over.
“Don’t fret, Nina. I have a feeling that this year will have some very… interesting moments.” I told her, dragging her heavy body over to a log and gently setting her down. The intoxicated girl giggled and slumped over, shaking her head.

“No, no. Nothing interesting ever happens in Mellbury.” Nina told me, closing her eyes with a wide smile on her face. “If it did, I think the town would go into mass chaos.” She slurred, giggling some more. I simply shrugged my shoulders and turned my back to her, looking around the crowd again.

My eyes finally fell upon her, standing there with her perfect black hair tied back in fancy braid, her lips perfectly glossed, and one of her manicured hands resting on the chest of a boy. He was tall, with broad shoulders and blonde wavy locks.

Slowly, I approached the two a smile, clearing my throat in order to get them to stop making lovey-dovey eyes at each other long enough to notice my presence. When the girl looked over, she squealed and immediately embraced me in a tight hug. I let my arms wrap around her and give her a small squeeze before letting go and watching her take a step back. A gleaming smile was on her face.

“Annabelle! I haven’t seen you since the end of school last year. How was your trip to Europe?” She asked, grabbing the boy’s hand. I noticed that he was avoiding making eye contact with me.

“It was a pleasant experience, Carrie. I leaned quite a bit. But I’m sure that it wasn’t nearly as exciting as you’re trip to the Bahamas.” I told her. I watched as she began to bubble with excitement at the mention of her vacation.

“Mom and dad paid for Tyler to come with us!” She told me, looking up at the boy with a loving smile. “Oh and look!” She told me, holding out her left hand for me to inspect her ring finger. Around it was a silver band, with a central pink stone that was surrounded by diamond clusters.

“It’s quite beautiful.” I told her, nodding my head slowly. “Did your parents get it for you?” I asked her.

“Not exactly…” She told me, blushing slightly. “Tyler got it for me. We told my parents that it’s a promise ring… But it’s really an engagement ring!” Carrie exclaimed with glee. My eyebrows raised in slight shock, by my face remained impassive.

“Well, that’s wonderful. I’m really happy for the two of you.” I told them, forcing a smile to my lip.

“Come now, Ana! You have to be more excited than that! You’re my best friend.” She said, grabbing my hands and shaking them happily.

“I am. I’m very happy for the two of you.” The words were forced, but she wasn’t at all fazed, taking them as genuine. “Have you guys picked a date or a location yet?” I asked, attempting to act curious.

“No, we haven’t decided on either yet. All we know is that we want to have it next summer, after we’ve graduated.” Carrie explained, shrugging her shoulders. A genuine smile grew on my lips.

I watched as Tyler let go of her hand and began to walk away, heading towards a group of his buddies, probably bored of the girl talk. Once he was out of ear range, I turned to Carrie with a fake excitement.

“I have the perfect location.” I told her, nodding my head slowly. “I found it earlier today while I was out running through the trails. It’s here in the woods.” I explained. “In fact, I could take you there now if you want. It’s a simply gorgeous location, and I’m absolutely sure that you’ll love it.”

“Well, alright. Let’s go!” She said, turning to follow me as I began to head away from the fire. I lead her onto a well paved trail and we traveled along it in silence for about a quarter mile before Carrie finally spoke up again.

“So, how far away is this place?” She asked, wrapping her arms around herself to protect her bare skin from the chill of the night. I noticed her shiver, but I knew it wasn’t from the cold. Fear was coursing through her. Why wouldn’t it be? And eerie aura was cast over the woods that night, and every little sound and shadow was that much more terrifying to those who weren’t used to it.

“Not too much further.” I responded. About a half mile in, we came across another path, rough and overgrown. As I turned to start down it, Carrie grabbed my arm, stopping me.

“Are you sure this is a good idea? It’s dark, Ana. What if we can’t find our way back from this place?” She asked. I turned to her, noticing the worried look on her face. I plastered a huge smile on mine to make her feel at ease.

“Don’t worry! It’s only two minutes down this path, and I have a flashlight on my cellphone so that just in case we get lost, it’ll help us find the path back.” I assured her. I watched her think about it for a minute before slowly she began to nod her head.

“Yeah, you’re right. I shouldn’t worry. I mean, we both have cellphones, so if we really got lost we could call someone to come find us.” She said, letting go of my arm. I proceeded down the path.

Just as I had said, two minutes of walking brought us to the end of the path which just happened to be at a cliff. Below was a river that many in the town had been down while white water rafting.

“I know where we are! Annabelle, this is absolutely perfect. It’s the spot where Tyler and I met.” Carrie said with adoration.

“Correction. This is where I introduced you to Tyler, my boyfriend.” I told her, crossing my arms. I watched as her smile quickly became a frown, a rather confused look crossing her face.

“What? Ana, come on. I thought that we were over this. I told you how sorry I was, I really did. It’s not my fault that he chose to be with me over you. You can’t stop true love!” She exclaimed, throwing her hands up in the air in effort to make her case more dramatic.

“Everything was going fine with Tyler and me, that is, until you slept with him! That’s hardly true love. He may think it is, since you were his first, but you’re just using him.” I spat angrily, narrowing my eyes at her. “And that’s why I’m going to tell him about what you and Ryan did at the beginning of summer.”

“You can’t!” Carrie exclaimed, shaking her head violently. “I told you that in confidence, and I told you that it was a mistake! You’re my best friend, and you’d never do that to me.” She told me, tears in her eyes. “Besides, do you know what that would do to Tyler? Ryan is his best friend. It would devastate him.” She said, a tear rolling down her cheek. I knew that she wasn’t really concerned about Tyler’s feelings. She didn’t want him to dump her. Tyler’s family had a lot of money, and that’s all that Carrie was interested in. Just look at her engagement ring.

“You should have thought about that before you went and did what you did. He, and everyone else in this town, deserves to know what a lying, backstabbing skank you are.” I told her crossing my arms and standing my ground. I watched as anger flashed across her face, and in one swift movement, the back of her hand connected with my face and caused me to stumble backwards a couple steps. Rage boiled up inside me and I reached forward, shoving her back. I watched as she stumbled over a rock that was behind her and…

My heart stopped as I watched her disappear over the side of the cliff. Slowly and carefully, I walked to the very cliffs edge, staring shaken, but satisfied, into the water. I did not see her. I turned and walked away. Composing myself as I headed back down the rugged path, I cleared my mind and began thinking quickly. By the time the fire came into sight, I was completely calm, my face impassive.

Blending in, I grabbed a red plastic cup and then went and got in line for the beer keg. All I could think to myself was: what an interesting year it will be, indeed.