Lydia continued to reject each of Allison's outfit options, and Allison looked at Brietta with a somewhat surprised expression. "She did the same with me. Just let her work her magic," Brietta advised with a casual shrug. She sauntered over to Allison's bed and took a seat, content to let Lydia take control of the fashion decisions.
               "Uh, pass on all of it. God, Allison, my respect for your taste is, uh, dwindling by the second..." Lydia quipped with a grimace, followed by a light chuckle. She then reached for a black shirt adorned with sequins all over and presented it as her choice. "This," she declared, passing the outfit to Allison. The girl held it up, pressing it against her figure with a self-satisfied smile.
               Unexpectedly, Chris Argent walked into Allison's room, catching everyone's attention. "Dad? Hello?" Allison greeted him with a smile. However, when Chris noticed Lydia and Brietta in the room, his smile quickly faded. "Right. I'm sorry. I completely forgot to knock," he apologized, visibly uncomfortable as he adjusted his jacket.
               Lydia playfully threw herself onto Allison's bed, striking a flirty pose as she addressed Chris. "Hi, Mr. Argent," she greeted with a mischievous tone. Brietta couldn't help but shiver at the display of flirtation, feeling slightly awkward as she scratched the back of her neck, wishing the bed would just swallow her up.
               "Dad? Do you need something?" Allison's tone made it clear that she didn't want her father in her room. Chris paused for a moment before responding, "I wanted to tell you that you'll be staying in tonight." Brietta couldn't help but cringe as she remembered the townwide curfew, which meant she had to beg her grandmother for permission to go out and promise to check in every five minutes.
               "What? I'm going out with my friends tonight," Allison objected, her eyes flickering toward the two girls in her room.
               "Not when some animal out there is attacking people," Chris argued, zipping up his coat. Allison opened her mouth to object, but Chris cut her off. "It's out of my hands. There's a curfew. No one's allowed out past nine-thirty p.m.," he reminded them before walking away, sparing a brief glance at Brietta.
               "Someone's Daddy's little girl," Lydia sarcastically cooed, rising from the bed and standing up. "Sometimes...but not tonight," Allison smirked, donning her beanie and moving toward her window, which she opened. She stepped out, prompting the other two girls to hurry to the window.
               Allison stepped to the edge, leaving Lydia and Brietta wide-eyed. "Woah, Ali. What are you—?" Brietta started, but Allison didn't respond. Instead, she executed a front flip, landing gracefully on the ground below, and swung around to look up at her friends. "Eight years. Gymnastics," the Argent explained, smiling as she exhaled deeply.
               Allison frowned as her two friends remained by her bedroom window, staring at her in disbelief. "Are you coming?" she called out, prompting the two redheads to exchange a glance. "We'll take the stairs."
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MUSIC REVERBERATED THROUGHOUT THE BOWLING ALLEY, its volume nearly matching the noise of bowling balls striking the pins.
               Brietta occupied the space between Stiles and Scott, while Allison was a few seats away. They all observed Lydia as she positioned herself to roll the bowling ball down the lane. Jackson approached her from behind and ground his body against her, prompting Brietta to scrunch up her face.