Teaching Mia

Chapter 29 - Birthday Girl

Mia walked into Party City in Union Square with her sister Teresa. It was a Saturday afternoon in the beginning of a crisp November in New York City. It also happened to be her birthday and was having a party that night. She had decided to mix it up a bit that year and decided to throw an 80's theme party.

Mia loved everything about the 80's: the outrageous fashion, the crazy fads, and especially the rocking music. She had been working on an extensive playlist all week and there were just too many songs to pick from. Livin' on a Prayer, Billie Jean, Sweet Child O' Mine, Like a Virgin, etc. It was an infinite list of hit after hit.

She had already picked out her outfit too, graciously provided by her sister. She would wear an animal print top with pink tights and black pointy pumps. All she was missing was some legwarmers but she had easily found some white ones for 10 bucks at Strawberry.  She had also passed by a street vendor in Union Square who was selling fake Ray Ban's and decided to buy two pairs of bright pink and purple sunglasses for $5 each.

To complete her outfit, she would wear a bunch of accessories including tacky heart-shaped earrings, tons of beads around her neck, and some white biker gloves. Not to mention the heavy blue metallic eye shadow she would apply together with a ponytail to the side. She was going to look absolutely ridiculous.

The only thing left on the to-do list was party decorations. Mia and Teresa headed towards the balloon section of the store. While looking at the different options, she absently played with the bracelet on her wrist - Leo's bracelet.

"Why do you think he's not answering his phone? Don't you think he should've called me by now? It is my birthday after all!" Mia exclaimed all of a sudden.

"Maybe he's busy. You know much better than I do what a pain the time difference is," Teresa replied.

"But he's six hours ahead! It's already nighttime in London. He definitely should have called already," Mia complained.

"Relax, I'm sure he'll call at some point. You know I've never seen you get this worked up over a guy, it's kind of funny."

Mia didn't want to agree with that last sentence, but she did feel out of her element. Ever since Mia had moved to New York, Leo had been in constant communication with her. If he didn't call, they were always chatting through Blackberry messenger. So it definitely felt strange not to have heard from him all day, even more so on her birthday. Feeling defeated, Mia tried to distract herself and concentrate on the balloons. She noticed a box set with a helium tank inside and pointed towards it.

"Why don't we just get this? It'll be much easier than blowing up balloons ourselves," Mia suggested.

"Perfect. Less work for me."

Mia had to give credit to her sister. Not only had she helped her organize the party and even book the venue through a friend of hers, but she had let her crash at her apartment for the last few months. The weekly stipend she had been receiving at her internship barely allowed to pay for her own bills. Being able to stay with her until she found a full-time job was a huge relief.

They walked towards the checkout and Teresa picked up a banner on the way that read 'Happy Birthday!' in bright bold letters. "We should get this, too."

Mia smiled at the gesture. She always thought of everything.

*****

Mia looked around the bar at Diva. It was a nice restaurant in SoHo that doubled as a bar on weekend nights after they cleared out the tables. Everything was set to go. The balloons were hanging nicely from the ceiling with white strings dangling beneath, the DJ was already mixing her 80's playlist, and even the birthday banner had gone up. The only thing missing were her guests. And a phone call from Leo. She still couldn't believe he hadn't called her yet. Did he completely forget?

The guests began arriving and Mia put her worrying aside. She was surprised to see a lot of people show up that she hadn't expected to. Some of her ex-coworkers and old friends from NYU she hadn't seen in a while. But most of the guest list consisted of Teresa's friends. She just had so many acquaintances and friends she kept in touch with throughout the years. Mia didn't mind, she actually preferred it that way. If it weren't for her sister, the party would have been empty and a total bummer.

Not everyone had dressed up, but enough people had to appreciate the 80's flavor. Mia had worried that since Halloween had just passed, not too many people would want to dress up again. Then again, they were in New York and people dressed up for things all the time.

Mia had been taking pictures with some friends when she heard a familiar voice behind her.

"May I take a picture with the birthday girl?"

Mia turned around to see Leo standing behind her, freshly shaved and showered, with a huge smile on his face.

"Leo!" she cried, and ran into his arms, deep emotion coursing through her body. He immediately picked her up and kissed her in a manner that should be considered illegal in public.

"Happy birthday, sweetness," Leo said as he caught his breath and brought her back down to the floor. "You look absolutely ridiculous. I love it."

"What are you doing here?" Mia asked in disbelief.

"Surprising you. By the look on your face it worked too," Leo joked.

"I can't believe it! You're actually here. No wonder you weren't picking up your phone."

"Sorry about that. I got a bit caught up crossing over a pond."

"When did you even decide to come?"

"About a month ago when you started talking about your plans. I decided I wasn't one to start missing your birthday."

"Wait, so how long are you here for? Where are you even staying?" Her thoughts burned with infinite questions.

"Until Tuesday, I managed to take a few days off. And we...are staying at a hotel," Leo said grabbing her by the waist.

Mia shuddered at his touch. She hadn't had that feeling in months, and now it all came rushing back. Images of his sinful body mingled together with hers flashed through her mind. "Well, I can't wait," Mia managed to say, breathless.

"Me neither, sweetness. Me neither."