Annihilation - h.s.

Chapter Eight.

The rest of the week passed by fairly quickly, Jade was busy with classes so most of my time was spent on my couch alternating between reading and listening to music.

Friday came a lot sooner than I had hoped. I got ready today with conflicting thoughts about how tonight will play out. I'm excited to see Jade - I haven't seen her since last Saturday and we've only texted a few words - but I'm sure that if this self-consumed Harry Styles utters one snide comment within my ear's range, I'll lose it.

Each table has already been decorated with an ebony tablecloth and silver cutlery, and then framed with blue lighting. Honestly, it looks more like a club than the setting for a formal meeting.

I sit at one of the tables holding the paper with all of the details for tonight's venue, but it has been left bland. Usually someone will call customers back to gather more than the initial details, but the sheet only holds what I already know. I read it again hoping to find new information, but there is none. Harry Styles. Formal Meeting. Paying Cash. That's it.

I've been sitting here for over ten minutes trying to figure out what the venue is for - so I know which persona to use while I serve tonight - but there's not enough information to piece anything together. He didn't even say specifically if it was corporate or personal. Soon after I give up, Jade runs in from the kitchen and pulls out a chair beside me.

"Late again, Jade?" I greet her with a smirk while I set the paper on the table.

"Shut up, I already got the lecture from Dan." She sits down. Her hair is curled; the top half pulled back and pushed up. "I've been dying to know all the dirty details of what happened between you and Cory the other night!"

I laugh. "Nothing happened."

I don't blame her for the look of mistrust on her face - me walking out on a one-night stand is almost unheard of.

"In all honesty!" I put my hand up, palms facing her. "He wouldn't return any favours so I left him naked on his bed, clutching my jeans."

"Actually, that doesn't sound so abnormal." Jade reasons with herself, letting out a slight giggle. "I told you not to go."

Just as my lips part to speak again, Dan appears from nowhere to interrupt me from the other side of the round table where we sit. "Ms. Harrow and Ms. Martin." He nods each of our directions, "I knew I would find you together."

Jade and I glance at each other, and then almost in unison we turn to him in a false encouragement to continue. He would have continued speaking even without our attention, though.

"I came to remind the two of you that our guests are very important tonight. They paid a lot of money - in cash - to rent out this building and I will not have either of you fuck it up." He tries to enforce intimidation by pressing his palms to the table and leaning forward. "Understand me? Please them and make sure they come back for more."

Neither of us speaks, but we continue to look at him with neutral faces. He quickly grows uncomfortable with the situation he put himself in, so he stands straight, fixes his green and blue striped shirt, and leaves the room as quickly as possible.

"He needs to get laid." Jade concludes from that brief interaction.

"Don't we all?"

****

The rest of the night has gone smoothly. The men and women filling the hall are younger than I expected - none older than thirty - and Jade and my game has been rather successful. We've been serving two very attractive young men named Andrew and Cole. Both single, and both eating up every word we feed them.