Bar One — The Electric Lounge

The first bar was chaos.

A crush of bodies, strobing lights, bass so heavy Emma felt it in her teeth, in her chest, rattling something loose inside her. The smell hit her next: sweat and spilled beer and something sweet and chemical from the fog machine. Exactly the kind of overstimulating mess she usually avoided.

But tonight was different.

I follow, she reminded herself. I don’t lead. If something feels good, I do it.

She let Megan drag her onto the dance floor. Let the crowd press against her, strangers’ bodies bumping hers, sticky heat everywhere. Let the music take over.

The guys from the bus had spread out through the group. Tyler was glued to Megan’s side, hands finding excuses to touch her: her waist, her hip, the small of her back. Jake had attached himself to Lily, buying her drinks, leaning close to shout in her ear over the music. Connor was hovering near Hannah, not quite engaging but always present.

And Ryan was everywhere and nowhere. Circulating. Watching. Appearing beside whoever seemed to need him.

Emma found herself tracking her friends through the crowd—old habits dying hard. Lily was looser than she’d ever seen her, laughing at something Jake said, her tiara catching the lights. Hannah was actually dancing, her usual rigid posture softened by alcohol, and Emma felt a small surge of pride at seeing her let go even a little. Jo was dancing with Megan, and Emma caught the way Jo’s hand lingered on Megan’s hip, the way Megan pressed back into her like she didn’t notice, like it was an accident.

Interesting, Emma thought. Then: Not my job to track tonight. I’m following. I’m letting go.

At one point, Emma found herself at the bar, suddenly aware of how drunk she was getting. She’d meant to pace herself. She always paced herself. That was how she maintained a 4.0 while everyone else was partying. That was how she’d survived four years without a single blackout, without a single morning of regret.

But tonight the drinks kept appearing and she kept drinking them and now the edges of everything were soft and blurred.

Maybe I should slow down, she thought. Maybe I should check on the others. Make sure everyone’s okay.

“Emma.” Ryan’s voice at her elbow. “You look like you’re thinking too hard.”

“I’m just... I’m getting pretty drunk. I usually keep track of—”

“Usually you’re the one watching everyone else. Making sure they’re okay.” He met her eyes. “But tonight’s different, remember? Tonight you follow. You let go. Stop counting drinks. Stop monitoring yourself. If your body wants another drink, have another drink. Trust the feeling.”

Trust the feeling.

“Okay,” she heard herself say. “Yeah. You’re right.”

She ordered another drink. Vodka cranberry. The sweetness coated her tongue, masking the burn.

Back on the dance floor, things were getting looser. Megan was grinding against Tyler openly now, her ass pressing back into his crotch, his hands on her hips pulling her closer. But Emma noticed she kept glancing at Jo, checking if Jo was watching. Jo was.

Lily was dancing with Jake, her movements looser than Emma had ever seen. This was the girl who’d spent three years of college parties nursing Sprites because she wasn’t “allowed” to drink yet. Now she was swaying, laughing, letting Jake’s hands settle on her waist. Her tiara kept slipping and Jake kept fixing it, his fingers lingering in her blonde hair each time.

Hannah was actually moving to the music, glasses slightly askew, her usual rigid posture softened by alcohol. Connor had a hand on her waist and she wasn’t pulling away. She looked almost surprised by herself. The girl who says no stayed back at the dorm.

And Jo was in the middle of it all, dancing with Megan, the two of them laughing at something. When Megan pulled her close, Jo went easily, her lean body moving against Megan’s curves. There was nothing accidental about how they fit together.

No barrier, Emma remembered. Whatever they do, she does.

The night blurred on.

* * *

The First Bus Ride

Getting back on the bus felt like stepping into another world.

After the chaos of the bar, the dim privacy of the bus was almost shockingly intimate. Just the nine of them now. The LED lights had shifted from purple to a deeper red, casting everything in a warm, sensual glow. The air conditioning hit Emma’s damp skin, raising goosebumps along her arms.

They were all drunk now. Emma could feel it in her loosened limbs, her quieted internal critic. The part of her brain that usually ran constant calculations, who needs what, what could go wrong, the part that had gotten her through four years of impossible double-majoring, had gone blissfully silent.

“Okay,” Tyler said, settling into the center of the bus with a beer. “Road trip rules. We need games.”

“Games?” Hannah’s voice was slightly slurred. Her glasses had slipped down her nose.

“Drinking games. Classic shit. Never Have I Ever? Truth or Dare?”

“Both,” Megan declared. “Start with Never Have I Ever to warm up, then Truth or Dare when we’re ready to get messy.”

They arranged themselves in a rough circle, drinks refreshed. The bus hummed beneath them, carrying them toward the next destination. Emma could feel the engine’s vibration through the leather seat, a low thrum that seemed to pulse in time with her heartbeat.

“I’ll start,” Tyler said. “Never have I ever... had a one-night stand.”

Megan drank immediately. Tyler drank. Jake drank. After a moment’s hesitation, Jo drank too.

“Never have I ever,” Megan said, eyes glinting, “given head in a car.”

She drank. Tyler drank. Jake raised his eyebrows and drank.

“A lady doesn’t tell,” Megan said to the unasked question, then laughed. “Just kidding. It was a parking lot after prom. His dick tasted like Axe body spray. Zero out of ten, would not recommend.”

The circle groaned and laughed.

“Never have I ever,” Jake said, watching Lily, “had an orgasm with another person.”

Most of them drank. But Lily hesitated, then didn’t drink. Her cheeks went pink.

“Really?” Megan’s eyebrows shot up. “Birthday girl’s never gotten off with someone?”

“I mean, I’ve done stuff,” Lily said quickly. “Just... it never quite... I don’t know. I always felt too nervous to really let go, you know?”

“Tonight we fix that,” Megan declared. “Right, Lily?”

Lily looked at Ryan, almost reflexively.

“It’s your night,” Ryan said. “Your rules. No holding back.”

“My night, my rules,” Lily said softly, and drank anyway.

“Never have I ever,” Hannah said quietly, “been fingered by someone else.”

She was the only one who didn’t drink. Her face was scarlet behind her glasses.

“The answer is always yes,” she murmured, almost to herself. “Starting tonight.”

The game continued. More confessions spilled out. Jo admitted she’d hooked up with a TA. Connor revealed he’d been with two girls at once. Emma confessed she’d masturbated thinking about a friend’s boyfriend, the memory surfacing unbidden, her cheeks flushing.

“Okay,” Tyler announced. “Warm-up’s over. Truth or Dare time. Birthday girl starts. Lily, truth or dare?”

Lily bit her lip. “Truth.”

“Boring! But okay.” Tyler thought for a moment. “What’s the dirtiest fantasy you’ve never told anyone?”

Lily’s blush deepened. The soft blonde hair around her face seemed to glow in the red light.

“I... okay. Sometimes I think about being... watched. Like, being with someone while other people can see. It’s embarrassing but the idea of people looking at me while I’m... you know? It’s hot.”

“Exhibitionist birthday girl,” Tyler said approvingly. “Nice.”

“Lily’s turn to ask,” Ryan said.

Lily looked around the circle. “Hannah. Truth or dare?”

Hannah adjusted her glasses nervously. “Truth.”

“Have you ever kissed a girl?”

“No.” Hannah’s voice was small. “I’ve never really kissed anyone. Not properly. I mean, I know that sounds crazy, but...”

“Oh honey.” Megan put a hand on her arm—gentler now, after earlier. “We’re going to fix that tonight.”

“My turn to ask,” Hannah said. “Um. Megan. Truth or dare?”

“Dare. Obviously.”

Hannah thought for a moment, then seemed to steel herself. “I dare you to... give Tyler a lap dance. For thirty seconds.”

Megan’s eyes lit up. “Now we’re talking.”

She stood, pulled Tyler to a more central seat, and proceeded to give him a lap dance that was frankly obscene. Grinding against him, running her hands through her dirty blonde hair, bending over to give him a view down her top. Tyler’s hands found her hips and she didn’t stop him. The wet sounds of her grinding against his jeans filled the bus.

Emma noticed Jo watching intently, her expression carefully neutral but her body utterly still.

When the thirty seconds were up, Megan was flushed and breathing hard.

“My turn,” Megan said. “Emma. Truth or dare?”

Emma’s heart beat faster. “Dare.”

“I dare you to kiss Hannah. Show her what a real kiss feels like.”

Emma looked at Hannah, who was wide-eyed behind her glasses. The curly-haired girl’s lips were slightly parted, nervous but not unwilling. Emma could hear her whispering something under her breath.

“The answer is always yes,” Hannah murmured to herself. “The answer is always yes.”

And I follow, Emma thought. I do what feels good.

She leaned over and kissed Hannah.

It started gentle, careful. Hannah’s lips were soft, tentative, tasting faintly of the fruity drink she’d been nursing. But Hannah made a soft sound against her mouth, and something shifted. Emma deepened the kiss, her tongue finding Hannah’s, and Hannah responded with surprising hunger. When they broke apart, both of them were breathing faster.

That was. Good. That was good.

The thought came slightly fractured, like a sentence she’d forgotten how to complete.

“Holy shit,” Hannah whispered. Her glasses had fogged at the edges.

“Emma’s turn,” Ryan said. His voice was calm, but his eyes were intent.

Emma’s head was spinning. From the kiss, from the alcohol, from the way the whole night seemed to be building toward something.

“Jo. Truth or dare?”

Jo’s expression was unreadable. “Dare.”

“I dare you to take off your bra without taking off your shirt.”

A small smile crossed Jo’s face. “Easy.”

She reached up under her silky button-down and started doing something Emma couldn’t quite follow. The sports bra didn’t have a clasp, Emma knew that much, so how was she... But somehow Jo was maneuvering it, shifting fabric, and then she was pulling the whole thing out through one sleeve like a magic trick. She dangled it on one finger before tossing it aside.

“How did you even do that?” Emma asked, genuinely baffled.

“Okay, that was actually impressive,” Tyler said. “Like, legitimately. How?”

“Trade secret,” Jo said, but she looked pleased by the reaction. Emma could see her nipples now, pressing against the thin fabric of her shirt.

“Jo’s turn,” Megan said.

“Jake. Truth or dare?”

“Dare.”

Jo’s smile sharpened. “I dare you to let Lily sit on your lap for the rest of the game.”

Jake patted his thigh. Lily, giggling, transferred herself to his lap. His hands settled on her waist, fingers brushing the bare skin between her crop top and skirt. The birthday girl squirmed slightly, getting comfortable.

The dares escalated from there. Tyler dared Connor to do a body shot off Megan’s stomach, licking salt from her skin. Megan dared Jake to whisper something dirty in Lily’s ear, which made the birthday girl squirm on his lap and gasp. Hannah, getting braver, dared Jo to kiss Emma.

Jo kissed like she did everything else: direct, confident, no hesitation. Her mouth was warm and tasted like whiskey. When she pulled back, her dark eyes held Emma’s for a beat longer than necessary.

“Never have I ever,” Tyler said suddenly, breaking the game’s structure, “taken my top off in front of strangers.”

Megan drank. No one else did.

“Boring,” Megan declared. She stood, stretched lazily, and peeled her emerald top over her head in one smooth motion. Her black bra barely contained her chest, full breasts threatening to spill over the cups. The guys made appreciative noises. She stood there, completely unbothered, dirty blonde hair cascading over her bare shoulders.

Emma noticed Megan glance at Jo—quick, checking—before turning back to the group.

“Your turn, birthday girl,” Megan said, looking at Lily. “Come on, don’t leave me hanging up here alone.”

Lily hesitated. She looked at Ryan.

“It’s your night, Lily,” Ryan said. “Your rules. No holding back. Chase what feels good.”

Lily slipped the straps of her white sundress off her shoulders and pulled the fabric down to her waist. Underneath was a pale pink bra, delicate and girlish against her soft skin.

“My night,” she said, like she was convincing herself. “No holding back.”

Hannah went next without being asked. Her hands trembled as she pulled off her mint top, but she did it. Underneath, her bra was practical white cotton, but it didn’t hide the truth that had been disguised by her modest wardrobe: Hannah Novak was stacked. Her breasts were full and heavy, straining against the fabric, bigger than any of theirs. The girl whose parents thought she’d be married with children by now, half-naked on a party bus with strangers.

“Holy shit, Hannah,” Megan breathed. “You’ve been hiding those this whole time?”

Hannah’s face was crimson, but she was smiling. “The answer is always yes,” she murmured.

Jo shrugged out of her button-down, adding it to the pile. She was already braless underneath from the dare, her small tits barely making a curve against her lean chest, nipples visible and hardening in the cool air. The tattoo on her upper arm stood out stark against her pale skin.

“No barrier,” she said.

Everyone looked at Emma.

She was the last one. The only one still covered. The old Emma would have been the voice of reason here. Would have said something about consent, about being drunk, about how they didn’t really know these guys. The Emma who maintained a 4.0 in two majors, who hadn’t had a serious relationship since sophomore year because she “didn’t have time,” who always, always stayed in control.

But she’d promised herself tonight would be different. She’d let Ryan tell her to follow.

If something feels good, do it.

She reached for her hem. And stopped.

Something in her hesitated. Some last wall that hadn’t come down yet.

“Emma.” Ryan’s voice, quiet but firm. She looked at him. ”You’re following tonight, remember? Not leading. Your friends are all doing this. It feels good to be part of it. Let yourself be part of it.“

It feels good to be part of it.

She pulled her shirt over her head.

Her bra was simple, practical, nothing special. But Tyler’s eyes locked onto her anyway.

“The redhead’s got freckles everywhere,” he said appreciatively. “Cute tits. I like the whole package.”

Emma should have felt exposed. Objectified. Instead, a small thrill ran through her. She wasn’t boring tonight. She wasn’t the careful one. She was just another girl having fun.

“Perfect,” Ryan said. “Now everyone’s on the same page.” He glanced out the window. “We’re almost at the next bar. Clothes back on for now.”

They dressed quickly, giggling, giddy with the shared transgression. It had been harmless. Just a game. Just fun.

The bus pulled to a stop.