[jml3030]

Emily loved hanging out at the Blue House. It was off-campus, and really it was falling apart, but she didn't have to live there, it was a bunch of her friends that she'd met for the past two years of college. They laughed about it; all the guys were in engineering, and most of the girls were in some kind of pre-med or pre-pharmacy program. So they partied hard, even as freshmen and sophomores in the dorms, but the Blue House was the best--music, beer, and a low-key party every weekend. Seven of the guys actually lived there, plus three off-the-lease girlfriends and a few stragglers who always seemed to be around.

Emily wasn't any of those, but she used to be roommates with Liz, who had been dating Tommy and more or less living there, so on Friday night she found herself sitting scrunched on their worn-out couch next to Liz, Tommy, and Matt, playing some card game whose rules she had long since forgotten, except that most cards that got flipped up demanded a drink. Nobody seemed to mind.

Michelle was one of the stragglers, and Emily thought she might have dated Will at one time, but she somehow was still always there with a drink in one hand and the life of the party. "Last card, Ten is for Hens, ladies, drink up!"

Tommy burped; he hadn't bothered pacing himself too much and was starting to fall asleep, to Liz's obvious annoyance. Emily stifled a giggle; she knew that look from when the thermostat wasn't *exactly right* back in the dorm.

"Dude, wake up," said Danny from the chair in the corner. "Time for a new game. Truth or dare?" Liz gave him a sneaky look and a nod. Emily knew this was going to be wild.