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Part XII: 1988- End of Innocence
"Ooh, baby, do you know what that's worth?/Ooh, Heaven is a place on Earth/They say in Heaven, love comes first/We'll make Heaven a place on Earth/Ooh, Heaven is a place on Earth…"
The lake is surrounded by mansions. Huge ostentatious beach houses with impressive views of the water, each one lit up with a thousand lights. Pool decks and patios stretch out like properties of their own, bedecked in deck chairs, rope lights, and fountains.
"When the night falls down/I wait for you, and you come around/And the world's alive/With the sound of kids on the street outside…"
Teenagers in varying levels of undress whoop and cheer as they dive from a springboard into the lake. They are cheered and jeered in turn by their compatriots on the shore. There are no adults anywhere. The world belongs, utterly and completely, to the young.
"When you walk into the room/You pull me close, and we start to move/And we're spinnin' with the stars above/And you lift me up in a wave of love…"
Jamie Teague manifests on the quay between two houses, just out of sight of the revelers, which is probably for the better. This isn't the kind of situation anybody could reasonably be expected to be prepared for.
"Ooh, baby, do you know what that's worth?/Ooh, Heaven is a place on Earth/They say in Heaven, love comes first/We'll make Heaven a place on Earth/Ooh, Heaven is a place on Earth…"
"Hey-hey!" a chirpy voice sounded from a little down the quay, "You new or something?"
The girl facing Jamie was a curvy blond with a hairdo about twice the span of her shoulders and half the height of her head. In a neon green minidress and pink latex boots, she seemed to glow in the dark.
She smiled widely, huge hoop earrings swaying back and forth, "Let me guess," she snapped her fingers, "You're one of Kirk's girls, huh?"
It took Jamie a minute to process just what the hell was going on. But, to play along, she said, "I'm actually looking for him. Would you know where to find him?"
Priorities. She needed to figure out where the hell she was.
"And do you know where I get a newspaper? My dad asked me to pick one up for him."
"Your Dad?" the girl looked as if Jamie had just spoken an incomprehensible foreign expression, "What are you, a narc or something?" she narrowed her eyes, "Seriously, do you go to Briarcliff or something? I've never seen you before."
"Fuck no, I ain't a narc," Jamie smirked, "And yeah, I go to Briarcliff. You?"
"I'm a St. Mary's girl," she beamed, "I don't care what you heard, we aren't easy."
She looked expectantly at the big house nearest to them, "I'm Paula. Who're you?" her grin widened with the promise of scandal, "Wait. You aren't Vicky, are you?"
"Jamie," She said, cocking her head, "Who's Vicky?"
Paula quirked her lips to the side, "Vicky, is Kirk's girl. Who you...also are," she giggled shrilly, "Oh, I knew he was jerking someone around. What, are you his girl on the side or something? It's okay if you are. I'm really good at secrets. Eloise Fitch's rabbit died last year and nobody heard a peep from me until the thing popped out."
"That lying bastard," Jamie slowly nodded, "He told me he loved me."
"Aw," which sounded like it should be insincere, but seemed sincerely meant. Paula's heavily glossed lips curled outward in a pout, "You know, not to be one of those 'Told ya sos', but I always thought Kirk was grody," she looked around, "Oh my God, you must be looking for him! And I opened my fat mouth..." she gasped, "And that's why Vicky isn't here! He'd totally never invite her if he was gonna have you over here too. Gag me with a spoon!"
-Paula
"Yeah," Jamie nodded slowly, "You know where I can find him?"
"He's up at the house," said Paula, "Hey, if you wanna bust his head, I'm not gonna stop ya. I hate seeing a girl jerked around. C'mon. You know the way, right?"
She said this as though the enormous mansion wasn't the most visible structure in any direction.
-Paula
Sal was in the yard. Towards the back corner with the other burnouts, smoking herb from a soda can pipe, and listening to heavy music from the boom box somebody else had bought.
"Move over, man! I said move it!" Jim pushed his way through the crowd, "Sal? Sal, where are..." his eyes alighted on his sister and he quickened his pace. Eyes followed him as he moved, wary and somewhat scornful.
"Hey, sis," he greeted sardonically, "Guess my invite got lost in the mail."
It wasn't a factual statement, necessarily. This wasn't the kind of party you got 'invited' to, and yet at the same time, it was clear he had not been invited.
-Jim
Just as Sal was enjoying herself, her kid brother came rolling through.
"Listen Jimmy, you gotta make some friends of your own, I'm not always gonna be here you know? "
She didn't necessarily mind him coming to the party though.
"Anyways, now that you're here, you wanna hit, I don't know maybe I can introduce you to Alison she hangs around sometimes too."
Jimmy grimaced, "You're just gonna sit here and smoke your brains out with the rest of the local dead-enders."
Perhaps it occurred to him this was a hypocritical sentiment. His fingers opened and closed anxiously at his side, "Look, what are you even doing at this place? Didn't think you hung out much with lake people."
-Jimmy
"I do," Jamie replied, rolling her neck, "You wanna help?"
"Oh, totally! You know, if there's one thing I don't like, it's cheaters. And you're pretty," Paula said this as though she were attempting to convince a crowd, "So, I don't know what he was thinking. Come on, let's get him!"
She walked (well, more like hobbled in her absurd heels) along the ill-paved path toward the house.
"Just our luck, the rest of the boys are there too. Talk about drool-town. They've got, like, one brain cell between them, and most of the time it's caught up arguing about lacrosse."
The crowd got thicker and the music louder as they approached, creating a violent miasma that seemed to spread over an area too large to make any geographical sense.
"I hate these ragers," Paula rolled her eyes, "They were fun at first, but now it's nothing but burnouts and bimbos," she stumbled over a step, one of her breasts coming dangerously close to slipping free from the halter. She didn't seem to notice.
"Yo!" she screeched out at the top of her lungs, "YO!"
Nobody did anything. She rolled her eyes, "Nuts," then, cupping her hands around her mouth, "HAS ANYBODY SEEN KIRK DEV..."
"Paula!" gasped a voice, as a polo-shirted youth with cherubic blond curls and an unfortunate pair of puppy-dog eyes emerged from the crowd, "Why are you screaming? You wanna get us tossed out?"
"Oh, please, Jason, I saw two dudes doing coke off the credenza before. No one's tossing us out."
"What do you want Kirk for anyway?"
"I don't want him," Paula gestured to her new friend, "She does!"
Jason looked Jamie over, "Uh...hi."
"He's my boyfriend," Paula made a loud hissing noise that she probably thought was a whisper.
-Paula and Jason
"He's my lying, cheating boyfriend that I'd like a word with," Jamie replied.
Ok, maybe more than a bit of her aggression was manifesting because of her frustration with Noah...and could this be Jason Murray?
"You seen him...Jason?"
"Girlfriend?" Jason's eyes got all buggy, "But..."
"I know, she's not Vicky. That's the whole deal."
"But when did he..."
Paula shrugged, "But wouldn't you like to know?"
"Not really."
"He's such a dork," Paula shook her head, "Is he inside?"
"At the pool," Jason frowned, "With the other guys."
"Oh great!" Paula beamed, "An audience!"
"Why do you sound happy about this?" he turned to Jamie, "She loves suffering. It's sick."
"I don't love suffering. I just hate cheaters."
"I thought you liked Kirk!"
"I did until five minutes ago."
"Wait," Jason turned to Jamie, "You can't just..."
"It's girl business, Jace. I mean, really, what do you want her to say?"
Jason blinked vacantly into space, "...right. But..."
"Pool! Let's go."
Jason followed like a cowed puppy.
-Jason and Paula
Jamie followed Paula.
Oh God, she was screwed if she went through with this.
She couldn't just pound someone for no reason!
"So, uh," Jason moved with a mincing shuffle, boat shoes skittering across the slick tiles of the pool deck, "When exactly did this happen? Like, you and Kirk?"
"She doesn't have to tell you anything, dingus," said Paula, "She's a Liberated Woman, or can't you tell from the clothes?" this sounded like an insult, but seemed to be meant as a compliment, and possibly also a euphemism for one or more things.
"Paulie, can I talk to you for a second?"
Paulie blew a raspberry at him.
"I am serious."
"You're gonna try defending him because he's one of the dudes, and the dudes stick together. I say again: Gag. Me. With. A. Spoon."
"Paula..."
"The hand, Jace," she lifted her hand, "Talk to it, because I'm on a mission."
-Paula and Jason
"It's...pretty big."
It wasn't a complete lie. This was pretty big. And if pretending to be Kirk's side-piece helped solved this mystery, then so be it.
"C'mon, c'mon..." Quinn aimed the ping-pong ball carefully, one eye open, targeting the farthest solo cup.
He let it fly.
"Bulls-eye! Hah hah hah!" Quinn pumped his fists in the air in celebration. "Pour one for me, Fitz! I'm rolling..." He proceeded to do some kind of slow-mo goose-stepping dance, which seemed to be popular, as he heard a girl cry out, "Crank it, Q!"
Quinn shot the cutie a finger-gun, eying a few familiar faces walking in through the door...and some weird-looking butch chick. "Ayyyy, Jay-son, Paw-la! Wha's happenin'?" He extended his hand towards Jason, giving the cue for the group handshake.
"Oh, bogus!" Fitz protested airily, "You moved the goal posts. Lit'rally," he drawled out the Ls of the word as if he were speaking a romance language.
At Quinn's boisterous greeting, Fitz looked over his shoulder, the blond nimbus of his perm swishing about his head as he turned, "Jason! How bodacious."
"Yeah, hi, Fitz, this isn't really..."
"Quinn was just teaching me how to do the beer pong!"
"Have either of you guys seen Kirk?" Paula asked.
"Well, no, as I say, Quinn was teaching me..."
"It's an emergency," Paula turned from Fitz to the other one, "Quinny, you wouldn't lie to me, would you? It's important."
-Fitz, Jason, and Paula
Quinn withdrew his hand, mildly offended by the uncool refusal of the group handshake. "What did Kirk do that's go you wiggin' out like this, man?" His attention turned to the new chick. "She got anything to do with it?"
"Well..." Jason bit his lip, "She claims..."
"Don't be gross, Jace! You can't be telling all the guys her business..."
"You told me."
"You don't count," Paula turned back, "Look, it's chick stuff."
"Then I hardly see how it counts as Kirk stuff," said Fitz. Paula gave him a look, "Okay, well nobody asked you, as usual, Smitty."
"My name is not Smitty, as I have told you..."
"You gonna tell me where he is, or am I gonna have to turn the place inside out?" she folded her arms, "I'm serious, Quinn. You don't fuck with chick stuff."
-Jason, Paula, and Fitz
"Some of the chicks here would big to differ," Quinn countered.
"You tell 'em, Q!" The same vapid girl from before cheered, receiving yet another finger-gun form Quinn.
Returning to business, Quinn crossed his arms. "He's in the backroom with Sam. Just take whatever bullcrap you got cookin' away from here. You're bringing us down, man!"
"You think I've brought you down? Kirk's about to be yukking it up with the Goonies," Paula rolled her eyes, "Jason, you stay here. It's girl stuff."
"Paula..."
"Jason," she gave him a look, turning to Jamie, "Come on. I know the way."
***
"Oh Jesus," Jason sighed defeatedly, turning to the other guys, "I am done. Dead. Crucified."
"Who is that girl?" asked Fitz, "What does she want with Kirk anyway?"
"I shouldn't tell you."
"That'll only make me want to know more! Don't be a buster, now, and tell us."
"Kirk will kill me, or Paula will, and either way I'll be dead."
"Jason!"
"She's his girlfriend!"
A short silence before Fitz laughed, "That's a real zinger, Jace! Ho! Did you hear that, Quinn? Everyone knows Kirk's gone steady with Victoria. Even I know that."
"Well..." Jason shrugged, "That's just the problem, isn't it?"
Fitz gasped, scandalized.
-Paula, Jason, and Fitz
Sal rose a brow at her brother as she grabbed one of the many red cups surrounding them.
"I'm not hanging out with them, I'm hanging out with these guys."
She said, as she gestured her beer around at the people.
"Anyway, what's it matter it's free booze on Friday night." She shrugged