Peripheral Man Episode 1
Suzie was nervous, this was the first big party she has gone to since she came back from out east, where she had been living for the last three years. She was really keen to get out and rekindle some old friendships, so when a good friend of hers told her about the party, and that a bunch of her old friends would also be there, she jumped at the opportunity to meet her old friends and hopefully meet some new people.
In her apartment she picked out four different outfits and tried each of them on, deciding finally on the third one which she found suited her best and gave her the most confidence. A touch of make-up here and there and she was ready to go.
She found the address easily, it was on a busy corner and the weather was clear and warm. She knocked on the door which, by the sounds of it, already had a lot of people behind it as the sounds indicated the party was clearly underway. A guy opened the door and said 'Come on in, I'm Gary'. Suzie introduced herself, let Gary get her a drink and got introduced to a few of Gary's friends. She had fun speaking with them as they were all already a little tipsy and they were just as keen to talk to someone new as Suzie was to meet new poeple. Eventually she saw the friend that told her about the party over in another room. She excused herself gracefully and started to head over to her friend when she was accosted by another guy who recognized her, 'Suzie? Is that really you? We went to high school together, do you remember? I'm Jim Webster'. It took Suzie a moment to place him but eventually she remembered him. Jim had been in the school band playing a violin while Suzie had been in the brass section, so they knew each other but not really well. Suzie stopped and chatted with Jim for a few minutes, telling him about the job she had had out east and how she got transferred back home and how things were different between there and here. She finally begged off, indicating she wanted to meet with her other friends in the next room.
The party by this time was really crowded and it took a good five minutes to traverse the room as there were so many people crammed into the space. In a side room there were four of her girlfriends all sitting and chatting in a cramped spot they had cornered, with just barely enough room for the four of them. One of them looked up and yelled 'Suzie!!! You're back!' and all of the others looked up to see her, they all stood up, crowded around her, chatted with her and gave her hugs. Just as they were about to sit down Peripheral Man moved a chair into position to give Suzie a comfortable place to sit.