Chris/Daniel/June/Kal - 8:30 p.m., by the pool table
They were late; fashionably late, as some might call it, but if Chris had had his way, he wouldn't have come to this party at all. In the end, it had taken equal parts guilt tripping and puppy eyes from Kal, June, and Daniel (the latter being responsible for the eyes) to make him now show up in his store-bought 'Native American' outfit, the coyote mask over his eyes.
"I don't know who spiked the punch, but I need to personally thank them," Chris muttered, draining his second cup and feeling wobbly even on his brace. The mask made him feel uncomfortable, but at least the presence of his friends gave him some modicum of security. Even still, he felt like he was waiting for the other shoe to drop; there had to be something going on here, something greater than what seemed the sum of its parts.
But he was doing his best to play it cool, to not have anyone believe he was anything more than his usual miserly self when it came to having a good time. He wished, not for the first time that evening, that he was more comfortable with being handsy in public due to Daniel's choice in costume, but he vented his frustrations by hitting a striped blue ball into the corner pocket.
"We need to be betting on this game. I'm kicking all of your asses right now, how I'm not taking your money too is a crime."