A Life Less Average

twelve

poppy

I was surprised he showed up. After he messaged me, I had sat with my hands beneath my legs to stop them shaking. Faye had bought another round of drinks and told me to pull myself together. It was just a guy from school. It wasn't as though we were about to have drinks with Zac Efron. 

Then he had walked in and headed straight to the bar. I recognised his auburn hair immediately. He seemed more dishevelled than usual. From the back, his hair was a mess, though I imagined it was intentional. Everything about him so far seemed intentional. 

After our tequila shots we were lulled into the familiar sense of security that alcohol brings. We started talking about everything and anything. Lewis and Faye got on like a house on fire. He was unbelievably charismatic and charming and it blew me away how easily he could connect with people. 

At some point during the night, Faye headed to the bar and remained there, distracted by the drummer of the band that had been playing. She had always had a thing for drummers. I watched them over Lewis's shoulder, how close they were stood to each other. How effortlessly Faye was flirting, her hand on his shoulder. 

I turned back to Lewis, who was smiling from ear to ear. 

"What?" 

He shook his head, but all the shaking couldn't remove his smile. "Nothing." 

"Tell me." 

"I'm just happy." 

I looked at him doubtfully. "Tell me." 

"I just did. I also think I'm a little drunk." 

"I also think you're a little drunk. For a guy who doesn't really drink, you were super eager about a second round of shots." 

"Yeah, that was a mistake. I think we can all agree that those sambuca shots should not have happened." 

I nodded. They had definitely pushed things forward. Faye had grilled him with questions about his dating past. Her intentions could not be more obvious. She might as well had straight up asked him if he liked me, but the night was still young. There was still time for her to make a complete fool out of me.

He ran his hands through his hair and messed it up in a completely different direction, though it didn't matter what way his hair fell, he still looked cute. The alcohol had made his cheeks turn pink, and now more than ever I couldn't stop looking at his lips. He kept running the tip of his tongue across them before he spoke, and they were practically glistening. 

"Your friend seems really nice," he said.

"She's the best." We both turned at the same time to see her in the middle of sucking the face off the drummer. Nobody around them seemed to notice what was happening, but it made the two of us giggle. "She's unbelievable." 

We sat there awkwardly for a minute, not knowing where to place ourselves. Things were heating up at the bar, but here in the booth they were just tepid.

"Do you come here a lot?" 

"Most weekends. There's always cool bands playing." 

"I'm not really a gig person," he said. 

"I think it'd be quicker to write a list of things that you do like," I said laughing, feeling myself fall a little closer to him. He didn't move away. Instead, we sat with our arms touching. 

I was close enough to see the faint shadow of stubble creeping across his jaw. 

"I like you," he said.

"I like you, too. Even though you're a massive light-weight."

"I make up for it in other things," he said. I was about to make an inappropriate joke, though I sensed he meant it in the sports-I-run-for-fun kinda way. But then he kissed me.

Just a slight head tilt and his lips were on mine. I had to agree with him, he definitely made up for it in other things, if those other things were involved his mouth. 

His lips were soft and the taste of sambuca still lingered on his tongue. He moved his hand to my face, his fingers running through my hair, pulling me closer to him.

I didn't know much about his dating history, but there was something in the ease in which his hand slipped down my back and down to my thigh that made me think that he'd had a lot of experience. And in that moment, I was nothing but thankful. 

He pulled away, his chest heaving as he took long slow breaths. 

"Wow," I whispered.

"I'm definitely going to add that to the list," he said. He smirked. 

I lightly pushed my hand against his chest, feeling the muscles beneath his white t-shirt. 

"I'm glad you invited me out," he said. "This is fun." 

"You're gonna feel rough tomorrow," I said laughing. "I hope you don't have practice tomorrow." 

His smile fell but was quickly replaced. "No, Coach cancelled it. He's at a wedding, or something." 

"That's good," I told him, feeling myself leaning closer to him. 

He kissed me again, but this time it was cut short as Faye came tumbling over with the drummer who was carrying a tray full of drinks and shots. She collapsed into the seats opposite us and picked up a glass. 

"Cheers!" She necked half of the drink before setting the glass back down. The guy beside her shifted uncomfortably, opposite the two strangers he had just interrupted. 

"Guys, this is Rob. Rob, this is Poppy and Lewis." 

"Nice to meet you," Rob said. I could tell that he wanted to reach over the table to shake our hands but his path was disrupted with all of the damn drinks. 

"Jesus Faye, how much did you spend?" I asked. There was at least ten drinks on the tray. I was mostly surprised that Rob had managed to carry said tray, never mind that Faye had spent a fortune on the drinks. 

"That's for me to know," she said, tapping the tip of her nose. "But seriously, help yourself." 

I shrugged and grabbed a shot, and the biggest drink. It was fruity but there was an aftertaste, sharp pang of alcohol that hit my throat. "Wow," I said, gasping for air.

"Good, right?" Rob asked. 

"Yeah," I said, scared to disagree. 

Lewis shyly reached across and took a pint of beer. I moved a shot glass towards him and he rolled his eyes. We drank the shots together and burst into laughter. 

Faye was watching us with a confused look plastered on her face. I would tell her everything later, right down to the firm muscles beneath his t-shirt. But right now, I was lost in the moment. Lewis's hand slipped into mine beneath the table and as the alcohol swirled through my veins, I realised I hadn't felt like this in my entire life. 

I knew it was early to be even thinking those kind of thoughts, hell we had had two drunken kisses, but my heart was pounding in my chest and it felt as though there was a clothes hanger in my cheeks. I just couldn't stop smiling.