Soldier of Satan - Part 11 - The beginning of a party

When Katie arrived at James's house, the party was already in full swing. She pulled her car up against the curb in front of his house before parking it. She got out of the vehicle, grabbing a case of soda.

She was greeted by James himself when she rang the doorbell. Dressed in his football jersey and a pair of tight jeans, he grinned brightly at her. "Hey! Glad to see you could make it!" he exclaimed, grabbing her around the waist and pulling her close. He gave her a kiss on the lips, smelling of beer and alcohol.

"If everybody here?" she asked.

"Quite a few people. Some of my friends from the college came with some of their dates," he said, as if that was the most important fact of all.

She held up the case of Coca cola. "I brought this."

"Just set it down beside the door," James said. "Want a beer?"

"No." She shook her head.

She stood there uncomfortably, mesmerized in James's grin. More than anything, she wanted to leave and go to Stanleigh's house, but she knew that wasn't possible. James would be mad. And so would Stanleigh. But she wanted to risk his wrath and be near him.

"Don't just stand there, Baby. Come join the fun." He grabbed her by the arm, pulling her towards the back door, where everybody lounged on the porch on chairs. A few people were splashing around in the pool, but a majority of them sat around in comfortable clothes or swimsuits, drinking beer or sodas and eating from the buffet table. The two were greeted immediately by Courtney, her arm threaded through Chris Thurstan's. "Hello, Katie! Surprising to see you here!" she shrilled in excitement.

Scrutinizing the girl head from toe, Katie had a hard time not being able to compare her to a pop icon. Courtney died her hair platinum blond, emphasizing how tan her skin was getting from hours in the tanning booths and from laying on the beach. She was, as usual, dressed a lot like one of those blond singers on the radio. Wearing another one of her many short halter tops and a very short pair of shorts that almost looked like underwear, Courtney was attracting stares from all the guys at the party. She favored James with a dazzling smile, as if flirting with him.

"Did you bring your bathing suit?" Courtney quizzed.

"Yes I did." Katie nodded.

"Change into it. Let's go for a swim," she invited.

Katie looked quickly at James. "I'm going to use your bathroom quickly."

"Sure thing, Honey." He nodded. "You know where the towels are."

She left the others on the porch, wondering why she bothered coming to the party. Sure, there was lots of food, a pool to swim in, and lots of people to talk to, but there was something missing. For the first time in her life, she felt lonely. Not knowing why, she sneaked a look out the window through the blinds in front of them. She felt lonely because Stanleigh wasn't around. Letting out a deep sigh, she pulled off her clothes and changed quickly into a modest one piece swimsuit the color of a sunset.

When she got outside, clutching a towel against her body, she was greeted by James throwing an arm around her shoulders. He was now wearing his swimsuit; a pair of green shorts. He proudly displayed his muscular body to everyone on the porch, not feeling one ounce of modesty.

"I've been working out for a long time now," James boasted. "You knew that, right, Katie?"

"Yes." She nodded.

"I look pretty dang good." He flexed one of his powerful arms.

She didn't say anything.

"And you look beautiful, too," he quickly added, as if sensing how much of a show-off he was being.

"Thank you for your confidence," she said smartly.

Missing her sarcasm by a mile, he grinned innocently. "Let's get in that pool! I'm roasting like a hot dog on a grill!"

She followed his lead, along with the other girls who hung around them. Unlike her boyfriend, she waded into the pool by the shallow end, not wanting to make a bigshow. He stood on the diving board, flexing his arms. "Watch this, everyone! I'm going to do the famous James Edson dive!" he crowed.

Everyone focused their attention on James. He raised his arms above his head and jumped, diving into the water cleanly. Everyone around Katie clapped loudly and enthusiastically, obviously not being able to see through him. He emerged at the top, grinning his toothpaste-ad smile. He swam over to Katie in powerful strokes, unable to stop smiling.

When he reached her, he asked, "What's wrong, Katie? Aren't you feeling well?"

"I just have a small stomach ache," she lied, smiling to cover up her true feelings.

"Awww....I'm sorry," James apologized, looking sincere. "I'll sit out with you."

"I don't want to spoil the fun for you. I'm going to go talk with Tara." Katie pointed at her friend, who sat on a deck chair talking to a freshman girl from the nearby college. She got out of the pool and wrapped a towel around her waist. As she made her way over to Tara, she heard James yell at Chris, who stood over by the c.d. player. "Hey, Chris! Blast some music, will you?!"

"Yes, Sergeant!" Chris said in mock salute. He popped in a Blink 182 c.d. and turned up the volume as loud as he could get away with. Some of the people danced in time to the music on the patio, obviously having quite a bit of fun. Chris opened up the cooler and got out a bottle of alcoholic beer. He wrapped his lips around the opening of the bottle, sucking down the beer as if he had to do it in record time.

"Toss me a beer!" James catcalled. Chris got him out a bottle, waiting on his beck and call. He even opened it for him, something for which James was grateful.

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