My question involves criminal law for the state of: New York

I got a ticket for an open container in NYC around a month ago (I'm 21, so that's the only citation I got.) It's only a $25 fine, no big deal. However, I thought when I got the ticket that I needed to pay it by the court date, October 5th. However, I just looked at it and it said that if I plead through the mail, it has to be within 10 days of when I got it, so do you think I can still just mail it in and get away with it? Also, my out of town friend got the same ticket with me, and can't make it to an appearance, and has the same issue. Any help would be greatly appreciated, as I don't want this minor infraction to become a major issue in my life. Thanks.