40. Lucy
Lucy
“Lucy! I love your costume!”
Briar runs up and hugs me the second I walk into her apartment.
“You don’t think it’s lame?” I ask.
She pulls back and holds my shoulders, shaking her head. “No way. It’s perfect. Misty from Pokémon is the perfect costume for you.”
I smile, feeling relieved. I threw this costume together at the last minute.
I’ve been so busy working at Hollis and working at the diner that I didn’t have the energy to come up with an elaborate costume.
So I went for what seems to be the go-to costume for red-headed girls like me: Misty from Pokémon.
Briar looks at my outfit: a yellow cropped tank top, red suspenders, jean shorts, and white sneakers.
“You look so cute!” she squeals.
I smooth a hand over my hair, which is styled in a high ponytail. “Thanks. So do you.”
She beams as she plays with the ends of the brunette wig she’s wearing. “Blake and I thought it would be fun to do a couple’s costume,” she says. “We’re Jake and Amy from Brooklyn Nine-Nine.”
She’s wearing a pink blouse, black blazer, black trousers, and heels. I grin at the fake police badge and ID card she’s wearing.
“It’s amazing,” I say. “You and Blake are gonna look so cute together.”
There’s a knock at her door. She goes to answer it and lets in Poppy and Anna. Anna’s dressed in scrubs and a white lab coat with a stethoscope draped around her neck. Poppy is dressed in a long, hot-pink gown and white gloves with a fake gold crown on her head.
“Grey’s Anatomy and Princess Peach!” I say when I go to hug them. “I love it.”
Poppy chuckles. “Thanks. I love your Misty costume. It’s perfect.”
“That’s what I told her,” Briar says. “Let me guess, Nick is dressed as Mario?”
Poppy chuckles. “Yup. He really wanted to do a couple’s costume.”
“What couple from Grey’s Anatomy are you and Travis?” I ask Anna.
“Meredith and Derek,” she says. “I suggested Cristina Yang and Owen Hunt, because Cristina is my favorite, but Travis hates Owen for cheating on her, and refused to dress up as him.”
“Aww it’s cute how he’s so into that show now because of you,” Poppy says.
Anna smiles. “I converted a grumpy hockey goalie into a Grey’s Anatomy superfan. I’m pretty proud of myself.”
Both Anna and Poppy rave about how good Briar looks in the wig she’s wearing.
Briar grabs her phone from the couch. “Let’s take a photo.”
She sets the timer on her phone, and we all huddle together for a group pic. She posts it to her social media, then we all head out.
As we’re walking out of her building, her phone buzzes with a text. She bites back a smile as she stares at the screen.
“Let me guess: Blake is drooling over you?” Anna teases.
Briar blushes and nods. She shows us her phone, and we read his text.
Holy fuck, you look hot
We all giggle as we head down the block and around the corner. We decided to kick off our girls’ night Halloween bar crawl in this neighborhood, since there are a bunch of bars nearby that we can all walk to.
Briar’s phone rings.
“Briar, babe, you can’t leave me hanging like this,” Blake says the second she answers.
She giggles.
“You’re so hot, B. My dick is throbbing just looking at that picture of you.”
Briar’s eyes nearly pop out of her head as we all gasp and hold back laughter.
“Um, Blake, you’re on speaker. Poppy, Anna, and Lucy can hear you,” Briar says.
“Oh, shit.” He lets out an embarrassed laugh. “Sorry, ladies.”
We all burst out laughing and say it’s fine.
“So, um, how much longer till you guys come over?” Blake asks. “I wanna see you in that costume in person.”
Briar bites her lip, still smiling. “We’re just about to start our bar crawl. We’ll be over in an hour or so. How’s setting up for the party going?”
“Good. There are a bunch of people at the house already.”
There’s a muffled sound before Blake starts talking again.
“Nick and Travis wanted me to tell you, Poppy and Anna, that you look hot and they want you to come over ASAP.”
Poppy and Anna chuckle.
“We’re not cutting our girls’ night short. Sorry!” Anna teases.
“You’ll just have to miss us,” Briar says.
“I miss you all the time, B,” Blake says.
Briar’s smile turns giddy. “We’ll be over soon. Promise.”
“Have fun. And be safe. Call or text if you need anything.”
“We will,” Briar says as we reach the front of a crowded bar called DJ’s. The Monster Mash booms from the speaker system. “We’re just about to walk into DJ’s. See you soon. Love you.”
“Love you too, babe.”
Briar hangs up, and we walk inside. I can’t help but smile at how smitten the guys are with their girlfriends. How one photo of them in their costumes drives them wild.
A second later, Leo pops into my head. I wonder if he saw that photo too.
If he did, what did he think of me in my costume? Does he like it? Does he think I look good?
Longing hits me square in the chest. It’s been a couple of days since we’ve seen each other— since the night I massaged him and we almost kissed again.
He’s been busy with school and hockey, and I’ve been busy with both of my jobs, so we haven’t run into each other.
I know it’s for the best. We shouldn’t be around each other because we have this undeniable attraction, and lately, it seems like every time we’re together, we almost cross the line from friends to something more.
But the other part of me doesn’t care about that. That part of me misses him and wants him so bad.
As we make our way to the front of the bar, I notice a few guys staring at me.
I glance down at my shirt, wondering if I have a stain or something, but there’s nothing. And then I realize that they’re checking me out.
My face is hot. I’m not used to this. The last time guys openly checked me out like this was when I worked at the strip club. As uncomfortable as it made me, I expected it.
But this is different. I’m just out living my life, having a night out with my friends, and guys are noticing me.
“Nice costume,” a tall blond guy says.
I offer a shy smile. “Thanks.”
His gaze follows me as we walk to the bar. As we wait in line for a bartender so we can order drinks, another group of girls walks up next to us.
“Anna! Hey!” One of them pulls Anna into a hug.
Anna introduces us to her friend, Danielle. She’s a tall, pretty blonde who’s wearing a pink babydoll dress and platform heels with her hair in pigtails.
“Danielle was in my organic chemistry lab,” Anna says.
Danielle introduces us to her friends. I notice they’re all dressed in cute, tight dresses and platform heels.
“We’re the Spice Girls,” Danielle says.
A bartender walks up and drops off a tray of shots in front of us. “From the guys at the end of the bar,” he says.
We all glance over and see a group of guys looking over, smiling at us. A tall guy with blond hair raises his beer glass up at us and winks.
Anna and Danielle chuckle and wave at him. Then they hand out the shots to all of us. “Bottoms up, ladies,” Danielle says.
I wince at how the tequila burns my throat.
Briar giggles. “Not a big drinker, huh?”
I shake my head and smile shyly. “No, but I want to have fun tonight. Let loose a little.”
She orders a round of sex on the beaches for us, then hands me a drink. She taps her glass against mine. “To letting loose.”
We toast, and I sip the drink, grateful that the fruit flavor covers up the alcohol taste.
I’m chatting with Briar for a minute before one of her friends comes up and hugs her, pulling her away.
I stand back and happily sip my drink, enjoying being an observer in this loud and crowded bar.
So this is what it’s like to be a normal twenty-something.
Enjoying a few drinks, hanging out with friends, having a fun night out.
“So are any of your brother’s teammates single?” Danielle asks Anna.
Anna chuckles. “Half the team is unattached.” Anna wiggles her eyebrows. “Who are you interested in?”
“Leo,” Danielle says with a knowing smile.
I cough on a sip of my drink.
“God, he’s so hot,” Danielle says. “Please tell me he’s not seeing anyone.”
Anna’s smile drops as she looks over at me, then back at Danielle.
“Oh, um, I didn’t know you were interested in Leo,” Anna says to Danielle.
“Very interested. I heard he has a huge dick—at least nine inches. Some girl in my lab said he needs a Magnum condom when he fucks.”
I cough harder this time. I grab a napkin from the bartop and wipe my mouth.
Danielle lets out a giggle as she looks at me. “Sorry. I guess that was TMI.”
I wave a hand and shake my head. “No, it’s fine.” I try to laugh it off, but my voice sounds so strained and watery.
I clear my throat and notice Anna’s expression turning concerned as she looks at me. She knows that I have a crush on Leo. She probably feels so awkward now that her friend just admitted that she likes him too.
She hesitates for a second, like she’s not quite sure what to say or do because she feels caught in the middle.
A guilty feeling hits me. Anna is my friend, and I don’t want her to feel this way because of me.
“Leo’s single, but he’s pretty good friends with Lucy,” Anna says. “I’m pretty sure he likes her.”
Danielle’s smile drops. “Oh. Sorry. I didn’t mean to…”
I shake my head, hating how awkward this is. Because the reality is that yeah, Leo likes me and I like him, but we can’t do anything about it. We need to stay just friends and nothing more…because if we cross the line into more than friends, it could ruin everything between us.
“Leo and I aren’t a thing,” I say quickly. I try to smile at Danielle. “If you’re interested in him, you pursue him.”
Danielle’s brow lifts in surprise. “Wait, really?”
“Yeah. We’re just friends. Nothing more.”
I turn away and start to walk off, but Anna grabs my arm.
“Lucy, wait. Why’d you say that? You know that Leo likes you.”
“Yeah, but we agreed to stay just friends. And that means I don’t have any claim on him. If another woman wants to pursue him, I need to be okay with that.”
She looks at me for a long moment. “You’re sure about this?”
I try to smile, even though I bet it looks strained. Even though there’s a gnawing feeling in my gut because deep down, I hate the thought of Danielle or any woman being with Leo.
But I have to ignore all that. Because he’s not mine.
“I’m sure. You should set up Danielle with Leo.”
Anna sighs and gives my shoulder a soft squeeze. “Okay.”
She turns around and walks back over to Danielle. I stand there and finish my drink, feeling sad and hollow at the fact that I’ve just pushed another woman toward Leo.
“Hey, Misty.”
I look over and see the tall blond guy who bought us a round of shots standing next to me.
He looks me up and down. I gaze up at him, sizing him up. He’s handsome and fit. If this guy had approached me months ago, I’d be swooning.
But I don’t feel anything. Because he’s not Leo.
You can’t have Leo. Quit thinking about him.
Maybe this guy is what I need to take my mind off of Leo.
The corner of his mouth hooks up. “You know, I always had a thing for Misty.”
I make myself smile. “Really?”
“Oh, yeah. You nailed the costume, by the way.”
“Thanks.” I look at what he’s wearing: a red and black flannel button-up, jeans, and hiking boots. Tucked under his arm is a roll of Brawny paper towels.
I burst out laughing. “Oh. I get it now.”
He grins and does a spin. “I’m a dead ringer for the Brawny guy, right?”
I wrinkle my nose and shake my head.
“No? Oh, come on.” His head falls back as he groans, but he’s laughing.
“It’s the blond hair that’s throwing me off.” I reach up and gently drag a finger along the blond scruff on his jaw. “This isn’t dark enough.”
His gaze flickers as he grins at me. “I wasn’t willing to dye my hair.”
I squint at him. “You get an A for effort, but a B for execution.”
He chuckles. “Ouch. Us blond guys can’t catch a break.” He holds out his hand. “I’m James.”
“Lucy. It’s nice to meet you.”
I smile, feeling more relaxed now that we’re teasing each other.
He nods at my empty glass. “How about another drink?”
“Okay, sure.”
He buys me another sex on the beach. For the next ten minutes, we chat some more. He makes me laugh a lot. It’s nice talking to a guy who’s friendly and handsome.
We do tequila shot together. A few minutes pass before I start to feel a little lightheaded.
Someone bumps me from behind, and I fall into James.
“Oh, sorry,” I giggle, feeling a little dizzy.
He just grins. “It’s okay. It’s crowded in here.”
I glance around. “It really is.”
“You wanna go somewhere quieter?” Heat flickers in his eyes. “Maybe back to my place?”
I bite my lip, wondering how I’m going to let this guy down gently. As nice as it is to talk and flirt with him, I’m not interested in spending the night with him.
But before I can say a word, someone else speaks.
“She’s not going home with you.”
I turn and see Leo standing next to me.