Will the stars ever align?

The night they met

"It's your brother's party son. The least you can do is show up." His mother gave an exasperated expression but Nate remained unmoved. He wasn't sorry that he'd rather watch a movie in his theatre while sharing rather expensive alcohol he'd taken a lot of effort in buying with Stella than spend the night with the boring classmates of his younger brother, Jeffrey. The one girl in sophomore year that he found attractive wasn't coming, and consequently, he found little point in wasting his Friday night. As soon as the Sinclairs departed through their architectural masterpiece of a front door, Nate took his phone out to dial Stella. Once. Twice. Thrice. She wasn't picking up. Frustrated, he slammed his phone on his desk and lay down on his bed, scrutinising his painting of a lion that was hung in the corner of the room. He'd bought it from Indonesia a few years ago for a couple million local currency and was an embodiment of everything he wanted to become - a cold and fierce king.

His and Stella's situation was perfect. There were no strings attached, but he still felt as though something was missing. In any case, there wasn't a chance Nate was gonna spend the night alone, so it seemed he might have to pay his little brother a visit after all. 'There's no way I'll be able to deal with pesky sophomores sober', he thought to himself. So he put on some clothes, called a couple of friends, took 2 neat shots of tequila and left.

The scene at the party was lively. Everyone moving with the music, their hands in the air, bodies moving like uncoiling ropes, and eyes on fire. Nathaniel was just sitting on the chairs with some of his friends, discussing stock portfolios and college. Standing up, he looked around. His eyes darted about but came to a halt as he caught glimpse of a girl. He squinted and saw her move in her black dress like her hips were made to sway, the sequins catching the disco ball light that twirled above. They locked eyes, and for a moment, nothing else mattered. Everything stopped existing, but those eyes. Time seemed to tick beyond count and ages blurred into each other. Nate saw something in those eyes. Something he'd never seen before. "You coming Nate?" He heard a voice and turned around. "Huh?" "For a drive idiot. Coming?" Nate looked around but there wasn't a sign of the girl anymore. He shrugged and went along.

Lisa was confounded. She rushed to the restroom with her friends. What was he doing here? She asked a friend only to discover he was Jeffrey's older brother. She gasped for a moment but began to understand the hype around him. Her friend Anna spoke, "he looks so cute Lisa. His hair, his Massimo polo, Tony spark spectacles, the silver Rolex. " Lisa couldn't help but agree. Slowly, all the hate she had for him began to channel into something else. It couldn't be, could it? Attraction? Her thoughts were disturbed as she was dragged back into the disco.

"Please Nate! Just a couple of people. You promised me fun." Nate had begun a movie at home since he was bored of the party. His brother Jeff wanted Nate to serve his friends drinks. "Ugh. Fine. Pretty girls only dude." With that, he turned off the movie and scrambled to set a couple of wine glasses. While he was in the process, Lisa Blossom walked through the entry to the Sinclairs' apartment, with her friends. As Jeff was giving everyone a home tour, Lisa whispered to Anna, "I wish I could marry a guy with a home like this," Anna pointed at Nate and with that the girls giggled.

Later, as everyone was seated in the theatre, Nathaniel was seated opposite to Lisa. "Can you give me a diluted shot, Nate, it's my first time." Nate smirked and poured the drink. As he approached Lisa, he brushed her hair and whispered into her ear, " a gentle shot. For you. For your first time" and he smiled. Lisa could feel his hot, heavy breath on her neck. His smell enchanted her and her stomach fluttered. Lisa didn't want the moment to end, and as Nate withdrew, she almost felt an emptiness. His smile had captured her and it was then that she knew, that she had been trapped.

And as Lisa Blossom lay in her bed that night, the fact hit her that she'd fallen for this guy. And as she tugged her pillow, she thought back. Back to the night they met.