“Let’s go out tonight.” Gina crossed both arms while standing in front of me. I jokingly rolled my eyes, knowing that summertime was finally here and she planned on acting up in true Thomas fashion.
“Why, so you can play matchmaker for me again? We’re still young, Gina. What’s the point of rushing into a relationship?” I offered that reasonable question, but she sat down at the foot of my bed before laying on her back and looking up at me.
“I’m not saying that you’ll have to marry anyone right away. It’s just…” Gina sighed, eyeing my poster of Beyonce from an upside angle.
“What?” I glanced down towards her and put my laptop to the side.
“Shouldn’t spend the rest of your life alone. You still deserve to be happy.” Gina replied before long.
“Who says that I’m not happy now?” I shook my head.
“Don’t get me wrong. Quiet nights can be really helpful, but you haven’t left the house in weeks. If it wasn’t for me stopping by every so often, you’d probably never leave for anything other than essentials.” Gina worried like a Mom as usual.
“Girl, I’m fine.” I said. “Have fun with the girls tonight and text when you’re back at home.”
“We’re not leaving without you. Not this time.” Gina slid off the bed and picked up her cell phone, dialing a phone number.
_________
I didn’t even realize where we were going until the taxi cab pulled up to an iconic building. Club Shadow opened many years ago and is still filled to capacity to this day. I dropped my jaw, silenced because of genuine excitement and lack of words.
“How did you do it, Gina?” I asked my best friend, holding her hand as we passed the bouncers and finally walked over its threshold. Ramona and Carmen surprised me hours earlier by stopping by. Soon, we got dressed together, ready for tonight.
“Just pulled some strings.” Gina winked. I knew that she had quite a few tricks up her sleeve, but kept my mouth shut. Maybe another surprise would come along this evening.
With each passing moment, music thumped in all directions and we headed to the dance floor first. It was stepping into a music video and we let loose, free to enjoy summer at last. I’d tripped for nothing, allowing myself to do something different.
“Wanna get a drink?” Gina asked me the question a few songs in, speaking towards my ear. Both Carmen and Ramona were close, of course ready to join us near the bar. Tables were near for us to avoid cramming around the stools with others.
“Sure.” I nodded and followed my friend along.
________
“If we leave this place early enough, do you wanna grab takeout from that new Carribean spot?” I questioned everyone at the table.
“Hell yeah.” Carmen and Ramona were united, beaming with slight tipsy smiles of their own.
“Ah-ah. Nobody else on the planet makes better oxtails than my Mom. Watch yourself, B.” Gina warned and pointed her one of her manicured nails across the table.
“I know.” I joked right back with her. We shared this small platter of food together between drinks, but laughter from not far away caught my attention.
Two guys were in the middle of returning to their table near us. One of these fellas stopped me midway, almost freezing in place when he noticed me.
I finished off this drink and excused myself from the girls, walking over towards these strangers before anyone could stop me. At least my friends were still nearby if this plan went South.
“Oh, I know we haven’t met before, but is everything okay? You seem a little nervous.” I felt genuinely worried, especially since this guy looked pale in the face despite the flickering of strobe nights and so many other noises around here.
He then cleared his throat by lifting one balled fist upwards. The sleeves of one dark dress shirt had rolled up, exposing dark tattoo ink that seemed to ran along his own skin. From what I could tell at this slightly distant angle, his blondish hair beamed underneath every light in the club.
“Are we in your way?” He asked, still sounded a little anxious for whatever reason.
“No, no.” I reassured him. “I just heard somebody laughing earlier and got a little nosey.” I joked, hoping that this stranger or even his supposed friend would chuckle.
“Don’t worry. We weren’t talking about you.” His smile didn’t exactly reach his entire face, but he looked amused.
“That’s a relief.” I encouraged him. “What’s your name?”
“I’m Cryus, and this is Drew.” The stranger seemed to hold his heart while introducing himself. On the other hand, his friend waved almost frantically towards me, as if he were a kid all over again.
“Hey fellas,” I acknowledged both of them before walking back towards my friends. “Have a good night.”
“You too.” Cyrus was the only person speaking over that loud music this time.
