Eventually the kids came and we started to eat. I got lots of compliments on the pasta and boy was it delicious. Julie made focaccia which had a very deep garlicky, herbed flavor. Ethan brought some pita chips and dried mango, the latter of which was the perfect snack for later. Around 6:45 or 7, Daphne and Alex and Philip had arrived and the energy was much more bubbly though there were a few gaps and open joints in the conversation, especially when the topic turned to things we wanted to do or had planned for next year. Bebe the cat was slinking all over the sunroom. Eventually we had some milk tea (Canni and her mom had been making boba earlier) and Alice came home with some wine and a few bottles of soju. I think Julie and Canni were really the ones who drank some -- I didn't have any, on account of driving. Around 8 or 9 we had karoke and Ethan started us off with this really brilliant spoken-word song set to experimental music, and we just bounced around a few different songs. I/We did Erykah Badu's Green Eyes and Taylor Swift's Love Story but we also went through a couple of Asian songs, Wildest Dreams, Mask, Before He Cheats, and I'll Make a Man Out of You. I noticed that I actually don't project my voice during singing and it's still a bit close to my speaking voice. I also noticed I didn't collapse in panic because I wasn't panicked, just cozy to be a part of the crowd. By this point the energy had become very smooth and familiar.
"[Growing up] is hard and nobody understands." // https://www.homestuck.com/story/2391