Unexpected | Calum Hood

1.

"If I was a boy, I'd fuck you" Lena says with a laugh and I shove her lightly.

"What time is it?" I ask her since she's staring at her phone and mines across the room.

"It's 10"

"Should we call an Uber?"

"Already ordered! It should be here in 5."

I nod and fetch my phone. I scroll through Instagram and twitter and drink the cocktail Lena made us to pregame until the car arrives.

"Let's roll, bitch" she says as she grabs her clutch and jacket and heads out my front door. I follow behind her remembering to lock the door on my way out.

We slide into the back of the silver SUV that pulls up and Lena gives the driver the address.

"What's this place called again?" I ask.

"Um, it's some place called Taboo. Erica said it's really exclusive but she's friends with the bartender and got us on the list."

"That was nice"

"Yeah well, I told her you really needed a night out."

I turn my head and meet her eyes. I glare at her harshly.

"It's been a year Jessie" she says softly. I break our eye contact and turn to stare out the window. "Let's not think about that. I just want tonight to be fun and for you to have a good time, like we used to!"

I force a smile but stay silent as the car pulls to a stop. Lena thanks the driver and we step into the street.

"Lenny where the fuck are we?" I mutter as I take in the desolate street we've been dropped off in. "You're sure this is the right address?"

"Yeah, the clubs low-key so we have to walk a block to it."

"That's super seedy."

"Well, come on. I promise it'll be fine."

"I know I've been a drag but don't kill me in an alley." I say with a sarcastic laugh.

"Shut up and come on" she replies.

We walk through the dark and empty street until we arrive at an unmarked door of an abandoned looking warehouse. Lena knocks and I cock an eyebrow, surely this can't be the place.

"Lena, I hate to break it to you but I think we have the wrong ad-" I start before I'm stopped by the door opening to reveal two very scary looking security guards.

"ID's please?" I'm a little scared but Lena seems unphased and offers her drivers license so I do the same. The guys check our ID's against a list and seems satisfied.

"Follow the hall and then take the staircase to the right. Be careful on the stairs!" He says the last part directly to Lena like I'm invisible, though when she's around I basically am. It's fine though, I usually prefer to be unnoticed.

We follow his instructions and find our self in a darkened staircase. I want to ask Lena if she's sure about this again as I see no signs of life at all but when she pulls the door at the top of the stairs I am pleasantly surprised. The door opens to a rooftop bar. The whole room is walled in with glass that offers a view of the city lights. I'm surprised at how luxe the whole thing is. The decor is tasteful, plush, and shockingly unsticky.

"Okay, you were right this is kind of cool" I offer to Lena who only smiles in her 'told you so' way.

"Do you see any tables?"

I glance around before finally spotting one. "Over in the corner there." I point the four person table out to her and we make our way over. I throw my jacket over the chair back and plop down.

"Stay with our things while I get us a round?" She asks and I nod in answer. As she leaves to fetch the drinks I take a moment and really look around. The place is full but not overly crowded in a way that is uncomfortable. Everyone around me seems to be having a great time and surprisingly around my age.

Lena returns from the bar and hands me my usual whiskey sour. "Have you seen anyone famous yet?"
I give her a questioning look. "Lena, that's why the bar is so hidden, it's clientele is a bit more known than you an I. This is where the elite come to party when they don't want to get caught falling out of a club downtown. Look around and really look at the people."

I do as she says and suddenly I see it, a former bachelor contestant here, a housewife there. "So we'll be getting smashed with B-rated celebrities. Nice."

"You never know who might turn up." She offers before grabbing my hand and leading me to the dance floor. The music is pulsating through the room making it easy to lose myself in it. Lena and I have only been dancing for a few moments when she is swept away by a blonde guy with huge muscles that I swear was on some reality show that I can't place. As she moves to dance with him I decide to hit the bar. I order another whiskey sour this one a double hoping the alcohol will ease my mind and let me enjoy tonight.

I finish my drink and order another before deciding to step out onto the small patio area to cool down for a minute. No one else is outside at the moment so it's quite peaceful compared to the loud club inside. I sip my drink and peer out into the distance enjoying the view and the way the late summer night air feels on my skin. I hear the door behind me open and a deep voice with an accent I can't quite put my finger on asks:

"What's a pretty girl like you doing out here all alone?"