Seven: The Cool Crowd.

"More vodka, anyone?" Cassie raised a bottle of Absolut in the air and shook it. A bit of liquid sloshed in the bottom.

"Me, me!" Lola raised her hand. So did Heather and Sophie. Instead of topping them off, Cassie made a beeline for Emily, lugging a good three shots' worth into her cup. "I've barely seen you take a sip, Santa!"

It was about an hour later, and although the party was still raging inside Cassie's house, the elves and Emily had formed a little VIP section in Cassie's backyard, which had big deck and a couple of heat lamps to fend off the cold. It was peaceful out there, though, with the stars in the dark sky making a chandelier over their heads and the heat lamps providing a soothing warmth on their skin.

The elves talked about the best college rangers they'd ever been to, how lame the Devon Crest Mall was, and tales about the previous Santa at Santa Land, whose name was Fletcher, and who'd apparently tried to make out with all four of the elves on the same day. "That dude was dying to get some," Cassie moaned, hand over her eyes. "He didn't even care who it was."

"Remember that prissy-looking brunette girl who actually fell for him?" Lola snickered. "I'm convinced those two snuck off somewhere."

"Yeah, right," Cassie sniffed. "She wouldn't have gone for him. Even she wasn't that stupid."

"Nasty, huh, Santa?" Lola giggled, tapping Emily with her foot. Emily nodded.

"Speaking of gross guys." Cassie propped her feet on the deck rail. "I can't believe what an asshole Colin's being tonight. He hasn't said one word to me, not even thanks for inviting me to your party. Do you think I should try and talk to him, or should I just let it go?"

"Forget him." Heather waved her hand as if to sweep him away.

"We're in the same boat." Lola slumped down on her chair. "I saw Brian disappear up the stairs with Chelsea. I guess that was his way of telling me it's over between us."

"At least he didn't break up with you in a Facebook post." Sophie lit a cigarette. "I'll never forgive James for doing that to me."

"That's a Yale boy for you." Cassie clucked her tongue. "And you should never go out with someone from your dorm."

Emily peered at Sophie. "You go to Yale?"

Sophie shrugged. "Yeah, but probably not for much longer."

Cassie snickered. "Oh, please. Sophie was valedictorian at Prichard. She probably still does her homework the night it's assigned. And the extra-credit."

"Nuh-uh." Sophie's braids bounced as she shook her head. "I've totally slipped."

"Okay, Daddy does your homework," Cassie corrected.

"Are you still going to be a doctor, just like Daddy wants?" Heather teased.

Sophie blew a smoke ring. "My grades this semester blew. I probably won't be able to get into the premed program if I keep this up. My parents are going to murder me when they find out." She said this toughly, but when she turned her head away there was a petrified look on her face.

Heather must have sensed her fear, because she snickered and said, "Poor Little Sophie, under all that pressure. You were bound to crack sometime."

Sophie whirled back around and slapped the arm of her chair. "At least my parents notice when I'm a fuckup. Who's your dad spending all his time with these days? One of The Pussycat Dolls?"

Cassie let out a loud guffaw. Heather raked her fingers angrily through her pixie-short hair. "Ha frickin' ha," she said in a small voice, suddenly sounding sober.

"Your dad knows The Pussycat Dolls?" Emily asked, mostly to cut the tension.

The elves turned their attention to Emily, almost like they'd forgotten she was there. "Actually, no," Heather snapped. "But he's a music producer and knows a lot of other artists."

"Knows then intimately," Lola said meaningfully. "He brought one of the runners-up on American Idol to Heather's graduation party and was all over her. You should have seen Heather's face!"

Heather kicked her chair. "Tell the whole world, why don't you? Like your life is so perfect? How's your brother? What rehab facility is he in these days?"

Lola's face paled. She didn't elaborate, but Emily remembered the name Rocco from the conversation Lola had had on her cell phone behind the gingerbread house earlier today.

A silence fell over the group. Sophie puffed on her Marlboro Light, staring into the middle distance. Heather tapped her foot against the porch rail. Emily shifted her butt in the uncomfortable lawn chair, wishing she could find the right words to say to make everything better. This reminded her of the dynamic between Ali, Emily, and her old friends at the end of seventh grade, especially when Ali hinted at a secret she knew about one of them but the others didn't. Maybe there was some deep-seated animosity within this group, too.

But in a strange way, hearing the elves' secrets was also kind of reassuring. Like Emily, the girls were human. Fallible. Vulnerable. They had secrets A might glom on to, if A were still around. It made her feel less alone.

Cassie stretched in her hair. "So what do you think, Santa? Do all guys suck?"

Emily pulled her hands inside her down coat. "Pretty much. That's why I'm into girls."

All four heads whipped up. There was a long tip of ash at the end of Sophie's cigarette, but she didn't flick it away. "Yeah, right," Cassie said.

"It's true." Emily tried to sound nonchalant. "I dated this girl named Maya in the fall." It felt weird saying it out loud—bragging about it, almost. But if there was a group she could tell this to without judgment, it was probably the elves.

Cassie's eyes were wide. "Are you out?"

"You could say that." Emily didn't bother adding that A had outed her against her wishes.

"What did your parents say?" Sophie gasped.

"They freaked," Emily admitted. "But they've come around, I guess."

"Whoa." Heather crossed her arms over her chest. "Maybe I should try saying that to my parents. That would probably get them in the same room at the same time."

Cassie leaned forward and blinked curiously at Emily. "What would you do in my situation with Colin? If Colin was a girl, and she wasn't speaking to you and acting all weird, would you confront her or would you just blow her off?"

Emily sat back, amazed Cassie was asking her for advice. "I would talk to him," she decided. "But I wouldn't be too clingy about it. Act like you don't really need him, like he needs you." If only she had done that with Ali when she'd had the chance.

Cassie nodded thoughtfully. "Yeah, that's what I was thinking, too." She cuffed Emily on the shoulder.

A loud screech of feedback suddenly sounded through two invisible speakers on the back porch. Then a song by Jay-Z blared out, and Lola got up and started twisting her hips. "Oh my God, I almost forgot," she said, pausing mid-twirl. "I brought something for us."

She disappeared into the house, returning a few seconds later with a crumpled paper bag that she upended on the ground. Cone-shaped fireworks spilled out. "We had these left over from the summer. I thought it would be fun to set them off tonight."

"Sweet." Cassie grabbed a rocket-shaped one from the bag without hesitation, placed it on the concrete, and lit the wick. Sparks flew off the long striped tube, and everyone stepped back. Emily's heart thudded hard. She would always associate fireworks with The Jenna Thing.

A high-pitched peal rang out in the air, and the firework shot into the sky and exploded over the rooftops. "Yeah!" Lola and Heather bellowed, giving each other a high five. Emily looked around nervously. Wouldn't they get in trouble for this?

It wasn't something the elves were worried about, though. One by one, each of the girls sent a firework screeching into the air. Upstairs light flipped on in the neighboring houses. Someone yelled "Shut the hell up!" from a window. Partiers stepped outside to see what was making so much commotion.

Cassie passed a bottle rocket and a book of matches to Emily. "Your turn, Santa."

Emily turned the firework over in her hands, wondering how he mother would handle the police calling her at 2 A.M. saying they'd taken Emily into custody. But she'd made so much progress with the elves. She couldn't turn back now. And she'd be lying if she said she wasn't having fun.

She placed the firework on the ground and struck the match. The wick lit immediately, burning down faster than she expected. She stepped back just as the rocket launched into the sky with a high-pitched wail. It crackled in the air, sending a shower of sparks toward the ground.

The elves cheered and slapped her hands. Emily's heart thumped with adrenaline. It was kind of amazing to send a sparkling, booming stick of dynamite careening into the sky. What was even better were the looks the elves were giving her, clapping her on the back and grinning broadly at her. It was like she belonged.

The back door swung open once more, and a frizzy-haired guy stuck his head out. "Your neighbor's on the phone, Cassie. He sounds pissed."

"Shit." Cassie looked at the other elves. "We'd better get inside. If it's Mr. Long, he's already called the cops."

The elves nodded and headed for the house. Everyone at the party was staggering drunkenly for the door, the festivities winding down. Every counter, tabletop, and shelf was littered with red cups and empty bottles, and the house smelled like the bottom of a moldy keg. Emily told Cassie she should probably be going, and Cassie and the elves walked her to the front room.

"Thanks for inviting me tonight," Emily said when she reached the porch.

"No problem." Cassie twisted the doorknob. "It was fun."

"Maybe we can do it again sometime?" Emily asked eagerly. She'd relished their time in the backyard. It had been ages since she'd talked with a group of girls like that.

Cassie's face clouded. She exchanged an ambiguous look with the other elves. "Uh, we'll see about that, Santa."