~ 6 ~
Lily
We were at a little bar on the beach which turned into a club in the evening.
The music was sexy and getting me seriously in the mood to be a little adventurous tonight.
I was standing at the well-worn bar counter again getting more drinks for everyone, already buzzed from three very strong cocktails, but that didn’t stop me noticing how hot so many of the women were in here tonight.
As the bartender was busy making the drinks, I caught eyes with Rona, across the way. Everything seemed to stop, and it was like it was just the two of us for a second. There was something in her expression. I got the feeling she’d noticed I was checking other women out. Was she jealous?
A fucked-up part of me kind of liked the thought of that, even though she had nothing to worry about. She was the only person I wanted to focus on tonight, romantic potential between us or just as friends. Whatever happened, I already knew I wanted to get to know her better.
I made my way back with a tray full of colourful glasses with fruit sticks and umbrellas coming out of them.
“The hero returns,” Nell said, as I approached our table.
I handed out drinks to my rapidly-becoming-very-dear-to-me new group of friends.
“Thanks, Lily,” Kaira said.
“Yeah, cheers, mate.” Nell had on a great t-shirt of two women passionately kissing, in the style of a comic book graphic. It was something I would wear. “Here’s to new friends.” She held up her cocktail and encouraged us all to do the same.
We sipped from our twisty and flamboyant straws.
Vicky and Mathilde had gone home already, having had an argument.
They’d been at it all evening, bickering, with some sort of tension between them.
In the end, Mathilde had risen to her feet, cursing in German, and walked out the door.
Vicky had followed her out the door in a mixture of fear and frustration, and a shake of the head in apology to the rest of us.
I did not miss those kinds of arguments. Single life was so much simpler, in many ways. So much freedom. “Who’s up for dancing tonight?” I asked everyone, assuming the remainder of the group would be up for it.
Bouchra yawned. “You know, I think I’ve peaked. I need to go to sleep soon. All this sun, sea air, and booze is knocking me out.”
Kaira nodded, as if accepting her fate for the evening. They seemed to have a good dynamic between them.
“You have had a lot going on recently,” Rona added. “Maybe this is your nervous system finally calming down?”
“I think you’re right, Rona dude.” Bouchra took a small sip of her cocktail as if admitting defeat.
“Maybe buying the house and moving in all while going for a promotion at work, going to therapy and trying to start a new workout routine alongside all that fucking meal prepping for the week got me in the end.”
The conversation turned towards the very sobering topic of how we all handle stress.
Bouchra was a stress head with anxiety and control issues often leading to burnout.
Kaira would shut down and isolate, internalising it all.
Nell felt she handled stress okay, although on second thoughts she did compulsively snack on biscuits to handle things when shit got real.
Rona was prone to feeling stressed and didn’t think she was that good at handling it.
She admitted she often got anxious and overwhelmed, although I couldn’t picture her like that.
I said that my football days had helped me manage stress well.
I’d seen a sports psychologist and had training with the marines as part of my time preparing for the World Cup with the England squad.
I was cool under pressure and good in a crisis.
Everyone else looked at me like they were both impressed and mildly irritated by my admission, although Rona just looked mostly impressed.
“I can imagine you being good in a crisis.” Rona was looking at me almost wistfully now, leaning forward, elbow on the table cupping her face with her hand.
Nell waved her hands around. “I said it before, Lily the hero. Can’t really believe you’re hanging out with us degenerates. It’s really cool, mate.”
I laughed. “Oh, you don’t really know me that well then. I’m just Lily from the block.”
“With a few million quid in the bank, no doubt!” Nell laughed now. “Sorry, I’m just teasing.”
“No, no. It’s true. Especially after the Pepsi ad.”
“Did you really meet David Beckham?” Kaira asked. “He was in the advert too, right?”
“He was. He was an absolute gent. I liked him. We basically all had a kickabout for a day. It was like the ball stuck to him. He brought two of his sons and they were really cool.”
“That’s amazing,” Kaira replied.
Bouchra laughed. “I’m not into football but I am happy you got to meet the dude and his family, Lily.”
Kaira and Bouchra left not long after that. More people were coming into the club and I swear they had turned the music up, making it harder to hear everyone.
Nell stood. “I’m going to head too. I’m meeting up with someone.”
“Who?” Rona asked.
“That girl I met the other night. You know the one I’ve been texting? She’s at the bar on the corner and I’m gonna meet her there now.”
“Awesome. Have fun.”
When everyone was gone, Rona and I looked at each other.
She smiled as if she were a bit embarrassed it was just the two of us and how sensible we’d been all evening while attempting to do one of our challenges.
Or something like that. I was clearly filling in a lot of blanks. I smiled at her. “Do you feel drunk?”
“Kind of. I mean, I’ve had a lot. But not really, no.”
“Then we should do shots!”
“Oh no.”
“Come on, we’re only young once and it is part of the challenge. I mean, I feel young but in reality, I’m thirty-nine. You know what I mean.”
She laughed, gently. “Okay then.”
I went to the bar and returned with two shots of tequila each, this time, making sure to not check anyone out. We downed them both. The pained face Rona made after hers was adorable.
“How about now? You feelin’ it?”
“Yes,” she screeched, touching my arm. “They’ve done the trick, I’m sure. I’ll not have any more tonight though. That’s me at my limit.”
“I hear you.” I leant towards her a little, feeling the alcohol loosen me up. So far I’d been more self-conscious in my movements around her.
“I feel safe with you, you know. You have such a strong and steadying vibe. I can see why you were the captain of England.”
“Ah, see now you’re just flattering my ego. But thanks.”
“Nell’s right. You do have hero vibes.”
I laughed, enjoying Rona’s frankness.
Rona took a deep breath, looking towards the dancefloor. Her profile was delicate and fitted her perfectly. She had that creative person look, like she was always on the edge of some big insight.
“So, beautiful and talented musical genius, what else would you do that you find new or challenging? Getting drunk aside. You didn’t answer me earlier.”
Rona held my eyes and in my hazy state, I think it went on for the longest time. Her eyes were the deepest blue and it was like falling into the sea, looking at them.
“I would ask a woman out on a date.”
“Would that be new or a challenge?”
“Both.”
“You’ve never done it before?”
Rona shook her head. “I’ve always been asked out, or something has grown from friendship.”
“I think that’s pretty normal.”
“Have you? Ever asked a woman out?”
“Oh yes. Many times.”
“You sound confident about it.”
“I think you’ve got to be.”
“See, I’ve always been too afraid of rejection. It would kill me.”
“Nah, you’d be fine. Risking rejection is all part of the fun. If you don’t ask, you don’t get, right?”
“I like the way you think.” Rona smiled.
I loved making her smile. “You could ask me. Pretend I’m some hot girl you’ve been making eyes with across the club. What would you do?” Such a simple suggestion that flowed out of my mouth but the implications of it were way bigger than I made it sound. At least to me, anyway.
“Yes, but you wouldn’t reject me because you know it’s just a game.”
“I might,” I said, trying to make it sound like a joke.
Rona gave me a curious look I couldn’t place. “Will it count as me doing something for our little game?”
“Nope. I’ll still want to see you do it for real to someone.
It’s the only way to get better at it.” I said all this but my nerve was faltering.
I liked Rona, and I wished she would hit on me for real or give me a clear and undeniable sign that she was as into me as I was increasingly becoming into her.
“Damn, I thought you might say that.”
“So, will you chat me up?”
Rona nodded in agreement, biting her bottom lip. Her pupils were very dilated.
“Wow, this is my lucky day.” I could not help but flirt with her. It was too natural, this dynamic between us.
“I didn’t know you were into role play,” Rona said, confidently, her voice dropping slightly lower.
The subtle change in her tone alone had me gripped. She was usually so unassuming and soft-spoken. “See, you’re getting the hang of it,” I replied, deflecting from the fact I was already hooked. “To answer your question, I’m into lots of things.”
“How do you want to do this?” Rona asked, innocently.
“It’s up to you. You’re in control,” I said, with a tight throat. Damn, I was nervous.
“Okay, I’ll leave and come back in.” Rona picked up her bag and slid it over her shoulder. She met my eyes with a little playful smile before heading in the opposite direction.
I turned around and watched her head to the restroom, her delicate hips swaying as she walked. Fuck. I was not prepared for Rona to actually do this, despite all my bravado. And I didn’t want her to hit on anyone else. What a stupid thing to say.
I sat at the empty table for quite a few minutes while the club continued all around me. People were dancing. Everything was very loud. Hopefully she hadn’t had a change of heart and gone home.