That One Ride

Chapter 1: Club Betrayal

Teresa's POV (edited)

"What do you think about this?" Jessica asked.

"Hmm... 300 lines?" I said, licking the ice cream.

We both had been standing in front of the Louvre museum for half an hour, admiring the beauty of it from the outside. When Jessica bought ice cream five minutes ago, we agreed to compete with each other and count the number of lines on the marvellous architecture.

She narrowed her eyes, biting and swallowing a mouthful of ice cream, making me cringe at the sight. "Why would you do that?"

"Don't judge."

It was officially our 6th day in Paris. A trip of our dreams. I sighed deeply, inhaling the air of this city in my lungs and snapping a picture in my mind. Jessica and I worked hard and saved money for this vacation, especially in October, since it was less crowded during this season of the year. It not only gave us time to explore every detailed beauty of the place, but space as well.

I blinked at the sudden excess amount of flashlight and snapped my head at Jessica. Under the moonlight, her pale skin lightened up like embers and I snatched the phone from her hands. Raising my brows, I looked at the candid she just clicked. Okay, that was a beautiful one.

We stood there for a moment, gazing at everything around us. The first things were special, be it the first trip with your own money. That sense of independence and happiness when you cut one item from your bucket list... was out of this world. And I had that moment right now, that too with my best friend; Jessica. We met in the first year of college, under the most unexpected circumstances. We both were computer science majors and didn't prepare for the practical exam, so we teamed up and hacked into the college computer systems. Since it was a practical exam and we were not allowed to use our laptops, they had to reschedule it.

Since then, we were sticking up to each other through thick and thin.

"Where to next?" I asked, not averting my eyes away from the moon shining over the Parisian sky. Even the moon was different in this city, so vibrant and... romantic?!

"To the club!"

From my peripheral vision, I looked at Jessica smiling at me like a five-year-old kid.

Anyway, with countless talks about nothing and everything, we reached the club. The receptionist of our hotel was so kind to talk to us after her shift got over and told us about this club not so far away from the hotel. Neon light flickered everywhere, loud music making my ear bleed. I sighed deeply as warmth filled my heart at the liveliness of the people. A group of youngsters, which I believe had entered via fake id, were dancing with sweat gleaming over their foreheads. Several groups formed and thumped their legs on the floor as Dj dropped and raised the beat.

I was already feeling a little happy. Jessica grabbed my hand and pulled me towards the drink counter. We situated ourselves on the stools, looking underdressed for a club. Jessica was wearing her signature black jumpsuit with wavy hair and red lipstick, giving her plump lips more definition. I was wearing sky blue jeans and a sea-green crop top, pairing it with the same sea-green heels. Basic.

Moments later, the waiter came in our direction with a flirtatious smile on his lips.

"What can I serve the beautiful ladies?" he asked.

I looked at Jessica, who had the same dumb expression as mine and then at him. My lips moved upward, out of politeness.

"Lemonade for me," I said.

Jessica rolled her tongue over her teeth, as she thought for a second, hanging the bartender in wait. "Same as her, yeah."

I laughed and shook my head at her as the waiter disappeared among his co-workers.

"Today was the best of all the days," Jessica said, a dreamy look in her eyes as she smiled at me.

"Indeed, it was until you stole my chocolate," I said, narrowing my eyes at her. She gave me an innocent smile, and I flipped my middle finger at her.

Our drinks came soon, and we discussed our day over the drink. One thing that we both enjoyed doing together was looking at people with judge eyes and discussing their outfits. Since we both were massive gossip queens, sometimes we quietly sipped our drinks and listened to the story of a girl beside us. It was terrible how her friend dripped red wine on her white shimmer dress, and the maid could not remove the stain. And then we listened to the boy, who was sad that his dad did not give him the credit card for partying in an expensive restaurant in Hawai.

Grow up, kiddo!

"I am bored. Let's dance." Jessica shouted in my ear at the loud music.

I smiled and took her hand as we reached the dance floor. Keeping our distance from any hungry tiger on the hunt, we moved our hips to the familiar beat of Taylor Swift's song. My hands flew in the air as shook my shoulders up and down, moving my arms left to right in a wavy rhythm. Jessica followed my steps, and we both danced together for as long as I remembered.

Jessica's body stiffened as one large arm scooped her waist. I stopped in my tracks, blood rushing to my face as my heart drummed inside fast with anger. My ears might blow steam from them. Before I could rip apart Jessica by snatching her arms, she turned her back towards me and looked at the man with fire in her eyes.

You are so dead, young man!

One moment she was ready to slap the soul out of the monster and on the other she stood on her tiptoes and kissed him. What the fuck? Panic rushed through my body. No. No, she had a boyfriend. Wait- was that? Light flickered over the face and John, Jessica's boyfriend, came into my vision. Warmth filled my chest. Did I tell you that Jessica had two reasons for this Paris trip? One: She never visited Paris. Second: Her boyfriend moved here 2 months ago for a job.

John, with the grace of God, pulled apart from Jessica and looked over her head at me. I smiled from ear to ear as he approached me and engulfed me in a bear hug. Just like Jessica, he was my best friend, too. All three of us were inseparable in our college and hacked into many systems. We did fun together at college parties and I spent holidays with either of their families. Ah! Good old days.

it's been two years since we graduated and it warmed my heart that we were living the reality we dreamt of in our college days.

"John, my boy. How are you?" I asked.

John took two steps away, grabbing Jessica from the waist. "Never been better!" He said, raising his voice over the loud music.

We talked and danced and I gave the couple some privacy as I seated myself on the nearby stool, heels aching my ankle. I never had a problem with being left alone by them, and I could not stand them all over each other all the time. Not from the day I found them on my couch half-naked. I pushed the image to the back of my mind and sighed.

An hour passed and there was still no sign of them. My eyes scanned every corner, or every seat where couples were glued together, all efforts in vain, as my eyes found nothing. What can two months of celibacy do to humans?

I drummed my fingers over the counter as I sipped another mouthful of lemonade. The phone in my jeans pocket beeped twice. Reaching into my pocket, I pulled out my phone. Jessica's name flashed on the screen as her message popped. All the colour drained from my face as I clenched my jaw.