Friday

went by like nothing took place. Roger felt like nothing took place in the physical world. HIs mind was racing though. A constant loop of the same thought. Wesley Lachance's party.

Did he dare go? He thought, I mean if Grover is going can't I go with him?

He felt guilty about wanting to be Grover's

plus one

. He had in fact made fun of the fact that his chubby friend had forfeited the autographed Johnny Timberland

jersey

without resistance. Now he was wondering why he even did that at all. What was the point in making fun of his friend for a mistake he was well aware of? Why rub the salt into Grover's wound?

Roger wished that such clarity had come to him before. At the

basketball

court. Then maybe he wouldn't feel so bad for wanting to be Grover's plus one. But at the time he had felt it was right. Grover had stood him up and had him twidling his thumb for two hours with nothing to do with his foreign host parents.

It didn't hit him that he was being a major asshole until that

Georgie Wilcox

came riding around on his bike. He was the one who had made it evident that Roger and Grover ought not to be arguing or making fun of each other at all. They ought to be working together.

Following the motivational spark from Georgie, Roger thought Grover was set, and decided to go to the Lachance party. But then this morning... the day of the

party

, when Roger said, "so what time you want to meet up before Lachance's"

Grover had uttered something under his breath... but it did not instill a sense of confidence. And at lunchtime, Grover was nowhere to be found. Roger ended up playing

Unreal Tournament

 in the library alone feeling both pissed and worried. But now that school was over, Roger was wondering, what the hell was going to happen tonight? He really wanted to go to the Party Lachance.