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I nod solemnly. “Duly noted.”

Feedback erupts from the speakers, and my attention is pulled from Oliver to the DJ in the corner of the living room. He’s blasting out some excellent tunes, all of which Alex handpicked. I’m not entirely sure what the theme ended up being, but all the songs involve the word ‘magic.’

Selena Gomez’s “Magic” starts playing, and without realizing it, my body moves to the beat as I try to spot some familiar faces in the crowd. Given everyone’s altered appearances, it’s tricky, but I finally see Kyle and Alex making their way toward Oliver and me with drinks in their hands.

From the looks of it, they’re competing in the best duo costume category tonight. Kyle is Harry Potter, judging by the round glasses and the lightning bolt scar in the center of his forehead. Alex is Ron Weasley, no surprise there. The little dude’s hair is so red that you can see it from the International Space Station.

“Well, looky here,” I say as they approach. “If it isn’t the dynamic duo of Hogwarts themselves.”

“Hilarious, Gerard.” Kyle rolls his eyes, but I can see a hint of a smile. Even if he denies it till kingdom come, it’s there. “Nice costume, by the way. Let me guess, murdered football player?”

I spread my arms wide so he can get the full effect. “Got it in one, my dude. I figured, why not embrace being someone I’ll never be?”

Alex shifts from foot to foot, overwhelmed. “There’s, um, a lot of people here.”

I throw an arm around his shoulders and give him a reassuring squeeze. “Hey, don’t worry about it, little dude. Stick with me, and I’ll make sure you have a good time, alright?”

Before Alex can respond, Kyle bellows menacingly. “Expelliarmus!”

With a surprisingly forceful shove, he flings my arm off Alex’s shoulders and glares at me with the intensity of a thousand suns.

I raise my hands in surrender. “Whoa, easy there, Kyle. I was trying to be friendly.”

“Well, don’t.” Kyle positions himself between me and Alex like a human shield. “Alex doesn’t need your brand of ‘friendly,’ Gerard.”

I roll my eyes, holding back a snarky retort. I get it. Kyle’s protective of his best friend, but does he seriously think I’m a corrupting influence? Puh-lease. I’m hardly the big bad wolf here. That would be Drew.

“Fine, fine. I’ll leave you two to your Hogwarts adventures. If you need me, I’ll be bobbing for apples in the kitchen or doing something equally as fun.”

With that, I walk away, leaving them to their own devices. Sometimes, I don’t know why I even bother including Alex. Kyle’s always gonna Kyle.

I head into the dining room and spot Drew setting up what appears to be a twisted game of truth or dare. He’s dressed up as Tom Cruise inRisky Business. He’s wearing sunglasses, a white button-down shirt, tighty-whities, and white socks.

Drew greets me with a wide smile. “G-man! Looking good, looking gruesome. Loving the blood splatters.”

I strike a footballer’s pose. “Thanks, dude. I figured if I’m going to be a dead football player, I might as well be the hottest dead football player at the party.”

“Onlyyoucould make a gory murder victim appear sexy, Gerard.”

I flash him an exaggerated wink. “What can I say? It’s a gift.”

“I also appreciate your commitment to the spandex pants.”

“It wasn’t easy.” It really wasn’t. I had to do a lot of manhandling to avoid such a noticeable bulge. Elliot suggested I wear one of my jockstraps since football players wear them, too, but there was no way I was letting my hockey stuff touch another sport’s clothes. “But I hope it’ll get me a few extra votes for best costume tonight.”

“I don’t know, man. Have you seen some of the things people dressed up as? One of the baseball players came as an uncircumcised penis.”

“How’d he manage that?”

“Nylon stocking over his head.”

Of course.

Leaning against the table, I take in Drew’s setup—a stack of index cards, a couple of pens, and an empty beer bottle on its side. Classic truth or dare essentials.

“So, what’s the plan here,Top Gun? Planning to make everyone spill their guts in more ways than one tonight?”

Drew smirks. “Something like that. But I actually have a specific target in mind tonight.”