Adrenaline

17 | time to pretend

        Jun latches his pinky finger around mine, squeezing lightly to let me know he's there, even though we're acutely aware of each other whenever we're in the same room—or car, in this case—together.

        There are times when I feel envious of my friends who don't have to turn a switch on and off. They can go when they need to. I often feel like a child next to them having to hype myself to interact in a social setting.

        My eyes drift to the back of Maver's head, sitting in the front passenger seat, before returning to my best friend's profile.

        I lean my head against his shoulder for the remainder of the car ride and have to be shaken awake when we arrive. For safety reasons, we park out back in a secure and private lot with access to inside the club.

        A surprise awaits us once we make our way into the main room when Jun spots Mick and Moxie taking shots at a table near the back. Somehow through all of the chaos, their eyes find us in the crowd and their hands fly into the air, ushering us over.

        "Fancy seeing you here," Moxie coos. I slide across the seat until our legs touch, the rest of our party behind me. Moxie's eyes slide above my head and her lips purse into a tense smile. "Hi. I don't think we've met."

        Maver reaches over me to shake her hand before taking Mick's. Judging by the looks on both of their faces, they're familiar with him. Or, at the very least, the public perception of him. Whether they fall into a certain category of spectator isn't something I can definitively say. The introductions are short and to the point. If Maver is aware of their lukewarm reaction, he doesn't show it.

        "How have you been?" She drags her finger lazily across my cheek, flicking it off before flashing me a charming smile with all too glittery eyes. "Missed you."

        Less caught off my guard than before, I'm able to maintain some sort of composure, saving myself any further embarrassment.

        "Missed you, too."

        "I found out something super fun the other day," Moxie announces, leaning in close.

        "What?"

        "Did you realize we're label mates?"

        At least the music is distracting because my mouth hangs wide open as I take in what should be incredibly obvious. "No way."

        "Yes way."

        "That's...actually super funny." I suppose the reason this comes as a slight shock to me is that I assumed Mick & Moxie would have been signed to their father's label.

       "Dad always said if we wanted to make it in the music industry, we'd have to do it on our own merit. He gave us a few connections but the rest was on our own." She shrugs. "Somewhat, I guess. Once people find out who our dad is, they change things up, but we try not to use our name when we can."

        "Seems fair enough."

        Moxie flicks her hand in the air. "No work talk tonight, though. I promise that's it."

        "Sure," I laugh. "Do you know the guy that owns this place? Seira's friends with him."

        "Oh, Mick does." She hooks her thumb over her shoulder. "They used to date."

        "Yeah?"

        "Somehow my brother manages to keep all of his exes as friends. Can't relate."

        I scoff, "Me neither. Those first two especially."

        "Oh, the first two are always the worst," Moxie laughs. "The best ones come after."