PROVEHITO IN ALTUM

Chapter Nine

"Coming!" Dhalia shouted before opening the door and receiving me with a huge smile plastered on her face. Not that it lasted long because it took her about 15 seconds to erase that smile from her face, and then, it took her about 10 extra seconds for her high pitched scream to be heard. I covered my ears instantly as a reaction, trying to block the deafening sound.

"Oh my God!  Your hair. OH. MY. GOD!" she said while taking strands of my hair in her hands and examining them very closely. Her mouth was hanging open and I was afraid she would catch a fly if she kept it like that. Her reaction was so hilarious that I couldn't help but smile warmly at her. God, I've missed her. I slapped her hand away and hugged her tightly.

"Rae, you look gorgeous." she said, making me twirl.

"Shit," I say pretending I'm hurt. "I knew I wasn't the hottest girl in L.A. but at least I didn't thought I looked that bad before." I chuckled. "You just shattered the little confidence I had left in me."

"Yeah, whatever you say baby. I'm pretty sure your ego is so big not even Godzilla could shatter it." Dhalia says with a smirk.

"That is so not true!" I yell at her.

"Of course it is. You're such a narcissist."

I look at her bewildered by her statement. My mouth is hanging open as I scowl at her.

She laughs hysterically at me. "I'm just teasing you babe. You know I love you."

"Uh huh, yeah, whatever." I say still pouting. "Are you ready to go?"

"Yeah, let me grab my purse real quick." she said before running back into the living room.

We arrived at the club a little after 8 o'clock. The bouncer let us in without stopping to verify if we were on the list. It had become a habit of mine to hang out at this particular club, so I was pretty sure he recognized me by now.

The music was as loud as always and the dance floor was very crowded. It seemed the place was at full capacity tonight. Dhalia and I maneuvered our way through the sea of people that surrounded us until we found an empty table we could sit at.

"Shit! I didn't know it was going to be so crowded here tonight." I say looking around once we have sat down.

"Relax, we're here to have a good time and nobody is going to ruin our night." she smiled. "Besides, the more the merrier, right?"

"True that." I said, standing up from the table.

"Where are you going?" Dhalia asked.

I smiled widely, before responding. "I'm gonna go get us some drinks, alright? Let's get this party started!"

I walked over to the bar and ordered a round of margaritas. As the bartender prepared the drinks, I noticed someone walking up behind me. I moved slightly away feeling suddenly uncomfortable at the overwhelming proximity between myself and this stranger. That's when I felt a hand grabbing my ass and giving it a hard squeeze. I turned around in utter shock and slapped the man that was grinning at me hard across the face.

"What the fuck is wrong with you, asshole? Think you can go around touching anyone when you feel like it? Well think again, buddy. You're a fucking ignorant." I screamed, furiously.

"Hey, is there a problem here?" the bartender asked, looking genuinely concerned, but also ready for to jump into action.

The man, who had remained silent until now, licked his lips and said without taking his eyes off of me: "Nah, man. Everything's good. Just a slight misunderstanding. I was just leaving anyways."