Layla: "Hello?" I answered the phone.
Within seconds, my heart stopped when I heard intense moans and heavy breathing on the other end of the call.
'What's going on?' My mind raced as the commotion over the phone quickened.
"Hmmm." I heard groans and heavy breathing. "Damn Liz, you feel so good." A familiar voice said.
Layla: "Zach?" I whispered to myself when I recognized the voice.
My heart sank.
'Is he about to sleep with Liz?' I thought, crushed to the core that my friend would hurt me like this.
Zach: "Wait, wait, hold up," I heard movement. "Oh shit, my phones on." There was a slight paused before he spoke again. "Layla?" He whispered, surprised. "Oh damn Layla. Hello? Layla, are you there?" Zach asked, now well aware I was on the other end of the call.
Liz: "Layla?" Liz said in the distance.
I couldn't speak, I couldn't breathe, I just froze.
Zach: "Hello? Layla?" he said repeatedly.
Unable to say a word, I just hung the phone up.
My chest ached as if I had just had a heart attack. 'What the hell? Why do I feel this way?' I thought, trying to figure out my emotions. Zach and I had already broken up, so why did this discovery hurt so bad? I stood still, trying to convince myself not to cry. "Stop it, Layla, you're better than this," I said, forcing all my hurt feelings away. 'Shake it off, come back to your senses.' I thought, trying to ground myself. I scoffed when I remember the last things Zach said to me. 'Let's take a break. We both just need some space.' He said. 'I love you, but let's just go back to being just friends for now.' I bitterly chuckled to myself when I remembered what Zach said to me two months ago.
'I must be out of my mind.' I thought, feeling completely stupid for using the replacement phone Takanori bought to call Zach. 'It served you right.' I thought, upset at myself.
I got startled when the phone rang again. I stared at Zach's name on the screen for a while before I dismissed the call. After swiping his call away, the sadness I felt was engulfed by retaliation.
'Fine, if you're having fun, I might as well enjoy myself too.' I thought, tying up the good girl in me so I could have some real fun. I strutted back into the party, and without missing a beat, I shot back seven shots of alcohol that were on a small table in the lounge area where Katsuhiro was sitting before he could stop me.
Katsuhiro: "Woah, Woah, Woah! Hold up, sweetheart. You might want to take it slow." He said, stopping me from taking an 8th shot. "Are you alright? One moment you're only drinking Sprite, then the next moment, you shooting back seven-shots straight. Anything you wanna talk about?" He asked, concerned.
Layla: "Nope." I stood up. "I just want to take some shots and dance."
Katsuhiro: "Well, you got the shots, so I guess your next option is to dance."
Layla: "You're right. Let's dance." I said quickly, turning to him before I took his hand so we could go to the dancefloor.
A wave of relaxation hit me when the drinks kicked in because I started to feel as loose as a goose.
'Damn, this stuff is strong.' I thought surprised at how fast it got into my system.
Katsuhiro: "Hell no," Katsuhiro said, taking his hand from me. "My dear, I would do a lot of things for you, but dancing isn't one of them." He said, crossing his legs as he rested back on the couch.
Layla: "Oh, Katsuhiro, please!" I begged, not wanting to dance alone.
Katsuhiro: "Oh no, no, no," he said before he sipped his drink.
Layla: "Fine. I'll go find Takanori." I said, then stuck out my tongue at him before I turned to walk away.
I searched through the crowd for a second before one of my jams came on. Completely forgetting that I was looking for Takanori, I immediately darted to the dance floor.
'Bell Biv Devoe- Poison' played loudly, giving me a perfect opportunity to yell the lyrics at the top of my lungs.
Layla: "GIRL, I MUST WARN YOU! IM SENSING SOMETHING STRANGE IN MY MIND!"I yelled the lyrics as I danced.
Three songs later and the shots I took were in full effect. Even though I tried to enjoy myself, the drunker I got, the more I thought about Zach. I thought alcohol was supposed to make you forget about your ex, not have him play in your mind on repeat. 'Maybe I didn't drink the right type of alcohol. Maybe rum makes you forget,' I thought, wondering if I chose the wrong type of liquor. 'Well, it never hurts to try.' I thought, heading to the bar to get the strongest rum they had.
As I walked up to the bar, I accidentally bumped into someone.
Layla: "Oops! My dab, I mean my bad." I said, tripping over my words. "I didn't see you there?" I said, shaking my head before I looked up at who I hit into, 'Man, he's hot.' I thought as I stared a the man I stumbled into. "Man, you're hot," I said out loud in English.
The man chuckled.
'Oops, it's a good thing I said that in English and not Japanese.' I thought to myself, realizing how shamelessly I blurted out my instant attraction to him. "Wait, do I know you from somewhere? Have we met? I asked the man.
"No, we haven't met." The man said, shaking his head.
Layla: "Are you sure?" I squinted my eyes. "I feel like I know you?" I paused for a bit be for I remember him. "Wait! You're...Ummmmm...You're him!" I said, pointing at him, realizing he was one of the members of the J Soul Brothers. "Oh God, what is your name?" I said, putting my hand to my head to concentrate.
Naoto: Naoto?
Layla: Yes! Yes, you're him. I said, finally able to connect his name with his face.
He chuckled.
Layla: "Why are you here?" I asked curiously.
Naoto: "Am I not allowed to be here?" he asked me a question in return.
Layla: "Well, I mean, you can go anywhere because you're like you, but like, why here?" I questioned him. "But then again, why not here? I questioned myself. "Do you see what I'm saying?" I said, not knowing what I was saying. My rambling abruptly stopped when the holy ghost kicked in. "Dis my song." I yelled when I heard the intro to 'Maria Maria from Santana,' "Oh, I gotta go dance, and you're coming with me," I said, grabbed his arm, pulling him to the dance floor.
Like I had stolen the queen's jewels, three rather large guys popped up out of nowhere, surrounding me.
Layla: "Woah! I didn't do it." I said, putting my hands up, surrendering.
With one swift hand gesture, Naoto called off his guard dogs.
Naoto: "It's okay. It's just a dance, guys." he said to his bodyguards. "This seems kinda unfair. You know my name, but I don't know yours?" he whispered in my ear.
Layla: "I'm Layla." I said.
Naoto: "Well, Miss Layla, I'm sure you know I'm a dancer, so I hope you can keep up."He said, forewarning me.
Layla: "I know you are, but you might want to buckle up Buttercup!" I said playfully.
Naoto: "Cocky?" he said, shocked. "I like that." He smiled. "I'm not going to go easy on you then," he whispered in my ear.
Every last nerve in my body felt electrified by how he whispered in my ear. His words lit a spark in me, and without his knowledge, he flipped a switch in me, which is only accessed by alcohol or insanely hot men. I took care of the alcohol part, and he most definitely took care of the latter.
I ran my hand up the back of his neck into his hair and pulled him closer to whisper into his ear.
Layla: "I was hoping you wouldn't." I whispered then smiled at him as I led him onto the dance floor.
The song made a smooth transition from Maria Maria to Wild Thoughts. I felt a little bad for him because he had no idea how much trouble he was about to get himself in. Not only was I liquored up, turned on, and looking for trouble, but my spirit animal was playing. YASSS Rihanna!
We moved through the crowd effortlessly while I grooved and put on a show for him. I ran my hands up and down my figure, feeling the beat as I swayed freely to the music. I shyly began to mouth the words to the song before glancing up at Naoto, who's gaze was set firmly on me. His intense stare rattled through my body as he drew closer and closer. Before I knew it, I was up against a wall. He was now so close I could feel the heat from his body on me, and his eyes kept it the same intensity as before, making me breathless. Unable to catch my breath as I looked into his eyes, I quickly turned around to face the wall, finally breaking our eye contact. Just as my breathing settled, I felt his hands on my hips and the pressure of his body behind me, then I felt the sweet chill of his breath on my neck. Impulsively, I covered my flustered face.
He chuckled against my ear, sending chills down my spine.
Naoto: "Oh, don't get all shy on me now. You were all big talk a minute ago." he whispered in my ear, with a hint of a tease lingering in his voice. "Come on, give me all you got," he said, turning my hips so I could face him.
His taunt was his first mistake for the night, Naoto should have never done that. I was the perfect formula for trouble.
ME + HOT GUY + RIHANNA SONG + 7 SHOTS = AH HELL, Y'ALL BETTER START PRAYING.
When the beat drop before the guitar solo played, I kicked into gear. I quickly swapped places with Naoto, slamming my hand against the wall that I now had him backed against, then mouthed the words 'when I'm with you, all I get is wild thoughts.' As soon as the first chord of the guitar hit, I turned around and put in work. I swear Rihanna would have been so proud of me. Naoto didn't skip a beat, putting his hand on my hips to make sure he kept pace with my waist.
Rihanna's voice always brought out the worst in me. When Rihanna plays, I always turn into a high-class stripper, which is only made worst when I'm intoxicated. I was basically dropping it, shaking it, flipping it, and dropping it again. Naoto and I made a good pair because when Bryson Tiller's verse came on, he tag-teamed with me and proceeded to show me why he's famous for dancing. After trying to keep tempo with him, he pulled me closer so we could dance face to face. While we dirty danced, I felt the desperate urge to do something I shouldn't.
I probably won't ever see him again. Hell, he's famous, I most definitely won't ever see him again. ' Should I just go for it?' I questioned myself. 'I never do anything out of the norm. I'm going to do it.' I fought myself.
Layla: "I hope you don't take this the wrong way." I said, looking at his lips.
Naoto furrowed his eyebrows in confusion.
Layla: "But I..." I said before I kissed him. I felt a bit of hesitation at first, but then he wrapped his arms around me and kissed me back.
'HOLY CRAP! HE'S A GREAT KISSER.' I thought, thoroughly enjoying our kiss. As he passionately kissed me, my body heated up, then burst into flames when his kiss moved to my neck. In that instance, I knew I needed him tonight.
Layla: "Naoto, we should get out of here." I said after pulling away from his kiss.
He nodded, then he took me by the hand and headed to the door. Before we could get too far, he stopped and put me to sit.
Naoto: "I'll be right back."
I wanted to ask him where he was going, but a wave of tiredness hit me like a wall, so I just nodded.
'I'm so tired. I'm just going to rest my eyes for a minute.' I thought, cuddling up in a chair. "Takanori, where are you?" I said, wishing he was with me.
Takanori: "Hey, what's wrong?" I felt a warm hand soothing my back. I open my eyes to see three Takanori's.
Layla: "Takanori, I'm drunk. I'm sorry. Are you mad at me, cuz this isn't my fault?" I said, trying to explain myself. "Zach, you're such a dick," I said, arguing with an imaginary ex.
Takanori: "Okay, crazy lady. Let's get you home." he said, lifting me.
Layla: "See, this is why I like you." I said, smiling at Takanori. "Zach can go kiss my a......" I was interrupted by Takanori before I could finish my sentence.
Takanori: "Alright, alright, calm down. You're going to make me drop you." he said, carrying me.
Layla: "And you know what, Zach. You don't have super hot Japanese men all over you so...Suck it!" I yelled.
Takanori: "Japanese! Please speak Japanese, Layla. I have no clue what you're saying in English." Takanori pleaded with me.
Layla: "I hate guys. They're so. Too much!" I said, frustrated.
Takanori: "Nevermind, go back to English." he said, putting me in the passenger seat before he strapped me in.
Layla: "You're the best." I said, putting my hand on his cheek.
Takanori: "I thought you said you hate guys."
Layla: "I do, but I like you." I said, curling up in the chair to sleep. I felt a gentle kiss on my forehead moments later.
Takanori: "Sleep well, my little troublemaker." he said, closing the door.