I turn around and see this familiar blondie standing a few feet away from me, the lost girl from Thursday. Her name escaped my mind maybe because of my drunkenness.
"What are the odds, huh? I never thought we were going to see each other again." She says as she comes to hug me.
"Yeah-"
"So, who is your hot friend here, best friend?" Leo whispered a little too loudly in my hear.
"Oh shut up." I elbow him. "Hum, Leo this is hum..." I stammer on my words as my mind won't focus.
"Elizabeth. Nice to meet you." She finishes for me.
"Yeah, that's right, Elizabeth. Sorry." I apologize.
"No worries. Anyway, I have a booth with some friends, do you want to join us?"
"Hum..."
"Yeah, we'd love to, we were just looking for one." Leo answers for me.
"Great. The booth is right over there." She indicates as we start walking over there.
"What's gotten into you?" L whispers in my hear.
"I- I'm drunk." I say as an excuse because I don't even know the answer myself.
"So, Leo, Alexia this is Mike and Amy. Mike, Amy this is James and Alexia." She introduces us and we greet them.
We settle down in the booth next to Amy as Elizabeth sits next to Mike. A pleasant conversation begins. I snuggle into Leo as my eyes goes on the face of the blondie in front of me. I don't know what's happening but my eyes devour her face as if I wanted to remember every little detail of it : from her pink lips she bites from time to time, her cute nose which she sometimes scrunches when she laughs, to her, god, gorgeous green eyes.
A hand entered my eyesight and hid what I was admiring. "Are you okay?" Amy asks kinda worried.
"Yeah, just a bit sleepy." I reply.
"Oh, I've got an idea! Who wants shots?" Leo suggests. We cheer at the idea. "Ok, then I'll be back in a minute with the drinks." He says getting up and heading towards the bar, forcing me to sit down properly in the process.
"So, how did you guys know each other?" I engage the conversation.
"We all went to NYU. I think we met at the beginning of the year party." Mike starts.
"Yeah, with Mike we bumped into each other when we were moving into our dorms. And Lizzie we found her on a bench reading a book before going to the partie. You remember that?"
"Of course, how can I forget the time when two idiots disturbed my reading just to go to a stupid party?" Elizabeth giggles at the memories.
"So, it wasn't because you were in the same class." I state.
"No, we didn't study similar subject at all. I was studying law, Mike engineering and Lizzie well obviously act-" She stops herself suddenly looking at Elizabeth. I steal a quick glance to the girl noticing her sudden nervousness as our eyes meet for a second. "Anyway, how did you two meet with Lizzie?" She changes the subject.
"In the subway." I answer.
"Lizzie in the subway? Wow I never thought I'd be hearing that ever." She chuckles.
"Here the drinks guys!" Leo finally comes back with the shots. "What're you guys talking about?"
"About how Lizzie and Alexia met." Mike responds.
"Oh yeah I want to hear that! Since she never told me." He says looking at me.
"Ok, ok well as I said we met in the subway, Elizabeth asked me for directions and strangely we were going to the same area. So... we did the ride together and well that's pretty much it."
"You had your earphones?" I nod not understanding where he was going. "And you helped someone you didn't know? Ok I thought we were close but now you're telling me you helped a stranger when you're not even listening to me when you have your headphones on." He teases me and I elbow him in the ribs.
"Come on, that's not true and I'm pretty sure I wasn't really listening to Elizabeth either." I turn my head to her. "By the way, sorry for that."
She smiles. "That's okay and you just zoned out for two or three times so no worries."
"Just." I laugh. "Anyway, shots!"
"Yeah, shots!" Everyone echoes and we all drink them in one go.
"Ooo, ok now I'm gonna go dance! Who's comin' with me?" Amy says getting out of the booth.
"Yeah me I'm totally down for it!" Mike follows Amy.
"Me too! Alex you comin'?" Leo asks pulling my arm a bit.
"Naaah I'm goooood thanks. That dancing earlier killed me." I decline so he lets me go.
"Elizabeth?" Leo turns his head to her but she shakes her head 'no'. "Okay well your loss!" He shouts dragging the other two with him onto the dance floor and disappearing in the crowd.
Okay well that's just me and Elizabeth now I guess...
"You don't like to dance?" I turn my head to her.
"I do I just- hum... wanted to keep you company." She explains.
"Oh you don't have to, if I was alone I probably would've slept. So it wouldn't have been a problem."
"Sleeping? Really? In a club?" She laughs at me.
"Wow why are you always so judgie?" I chuckle. "Anyway, how did you end up here?"
"Well it's the weekend and I wanted to have some fun."
"Yeah obviously but... no I meant in the VIP section."
"Hum...well...I- I know people." She stutters. Wow that's precise. "And I could ask you the same thing."
"Leo got them and don't ask me how because I don't even know since he wouldn't tell me." I answer remembering I'll have to get this information out of him.
"So...how long have you two been together?" She asks naively and I start laughing immediately. O. MY. GOD. She doesn't really think that does she? Me and Leo? Ugh just thinking about it makes me wanna puke. "What?" She asks kind of lost.
"Did you really ask this question? Me and Leo? Really?" She looks like she relaxes a bit. Wtf?
"I don't know I saw you guys dancing earlier and it was...uhm...well...uhm-"
"Hot? Sexy?" I finish.
"Intense. Yeah."
"Well that my dear is called dirty dancing and takes years of practice you know... but... that doesn't mean we are together because we really are not. Just two best friends." I explain.
"Noted... and that was some pretty good dirty dancing though."
"Well thank you Elizabeth." I smirk.
"Call me Lizzie."
"What if I don't want to?"
"Then don't."
"Can I call you Liza? Or... Liz? Oh no I got it El!" I say happily.
"I guess if I say I don't like it you're still gonna call me like that, won't you?" She smiles.
"Well yeah El cause it's the best nickname."
"Whatever. Anyway, how did yesterday's meeting go?"
"I prefer not to talk about it." I look down to my hands and just like that all the feelings I've been trying to numb start to drown me again.
"I'm sorry..."
I feel this uncomfortable sensation beginning to grow in my chest. Fuck! This can't be happening again... why am I so vulnerable? I start searching for my earphones but then remember I gave them to Leo since I wear a dress. "Fuck!" I whisper yell frustrated.
"Are you okay?" She asks worried.
"Yeah, I...uhm...I- I just need to go." I say standing up quickly already feeling my head spinning, the drinking not helping.
I walk towards the bathroom but a hand stops me and turns me around. "What's happening Alexia?" Elizabeth looks at me in the eyes worried and for a brief second it feels like I'm breathing normally.
But the reality kicks in. "Let me go!" I shout too harshly at her shaking my hand roughly in the process to get her grip off me. I escape her and sprint to the bathroom, finding it empty, I guess for that I'm lucky. I get a quick glance of my red eyes in the mirror, shit she saw that, before collapsing on the floor. I don't have enough strength to sit against the wall so I decide to stay curled up on the ground waiting for it to pass. My head is driving me crazy and my aching heart pounding in my chest isn't helping, so I bite down hard on my left arm to ease it.
The muffled sound of a door closing get to my ear. "I knew you'd be here." I hear vaguely. "Oh god Alex!" Their hand forces me to stop hurting myself and a weak 'no' escapes my lips. "Sorry I wasn't there but here're your earphones." Leo puts the headphones in my ears and even without music it helps me a bit. He kneels in front of me, takes my hand and places it on his chest so I can feel his heartbeat. "Look at me." And I do so. "You got this, okay? Just breath with me." I try matching his breathing, struggling at first but succeeding more and more until I could breath properly. "That's good. Can you stand up?" I weakly nod and stand up while he helps me but my legs don't support me enough so he holds me close. "Okay, I'm gonna call a cab and we're gonna go home, okay?" I nod.
"I- I- I don't want E- them to see me like this..." I stutter.
"I know that's why I told them you went home."
We leave the bathroom and hurry quickly towards the exit. Once out, the taxi has already arrived so we get in and I fall asleep on his shoulder during the drive.
~~~
A/N the fourth chapter is finally there! Sorry for the long wait even though I don't know if anyone is actually reading but I don't really care cause I like doing it.
Anyway, if you're reading this, have a good day/night!