Tiny Dancer

Chapter One: Applications and First Meetings

"I-I was just waiting on you to-to get here and some bird stole my shoe, not even the good one. D-do you like TimTams, Christ, I love them now, especially in dip. Mills, guess what, Mills?"

Milly looked up at her friend and grabbed her other shoe from under the coffee table, slipping it back on her bare foot.

"I'm listening hon."

"I bloody love you, you take such good care of me when I don't deserve it, and you have such a silly little accent and it's super sweet. I me-met a man tonight Mills!"

"I thought you said men were overrated slime balls."

"Well, I did, but I didn't say I'd had him. He was just here for the music and the drinks and the food, which is actually ruuuude, like party a little, but he smelled like a party already if you get what I mean."

Joanna looked down at Milly, wiggling her eyebrows as Milly pulled her up to standing, shaking her head and straightening her friend's hair.

"I'm not interested Jo, thanks though."

Joanna pouted as she waved goodbye to the host, letting Milly lead her down the stairs, still chatting about this man.

"But Milly, he was mysterious and could sing really pretty and he was fit and he was packing, you don't wanna stay like this for forever."

Milly sat her in the passenger seat, buckling her safety belt over her lap and shutting her door, climbing into the driver's seat herself.

"Like what, Jo?"

Her friend gestured vaguely to her up and down and groaned a bit, earning a giggle from Milly as she settled back in her seat.

"You're just so to-the-book and good and right, you've gotta get outta that, love; also, no man is gonna approach you if you dress like a schoolmistress."

She laughed and pulled out of the drive, heading back to their dorms at the campus.

"I don't dress that bad, do I?"

"Well, some of it's not that bad, but you do need a restyle, you and I should go on a spree sometime soon."

"We might have to, I landed a job at that one pub I applied for, but not as a barkeep, as a dancer."

A gasp of drunk disbelief tore from her passenger as she turned towards her.

"You're chaffing me, no way, you're not a stripper."

"No! I'm just a dancer, I don't strip Joanna."

"Well, colour me impressed Mills, and hey, maybe you'll see that mystery man there one night. I got his number, after all, I could put a good word in for ya."

Milly looked over at the smudged piece of paper in her friend's purse, doubting a bit that the number was even real.

"Maybe so darling, but I have my doubts about this mystery man."

Milly pulled into the parking garage on campus and hung her tag from the rearview mirror, going around to the passenger side of the car and heaving her friend back out, leading them down to the quad and into their dorm building. Joanna's head had cleared a bit to where she could climb the stairs and not fall over, but Milly was right behind her, mind racing as she opened the door to their room. Joanna fell onto her bed and let out a sigh as she pulled the covers over her, kicking her sparkly heels off as she did.

"Jo, Jo take your clothes off at least."

Her friend let out a snicker before answering.

"That's what he said."