Amelia looked adorable and she knew it. Not because she was feeling particularly self-obsessed, but because she’d listened to Laura and Cassie squeal and gush over her outfit for a solid half an hour, with Scotty weighing in and supplying a perfect stream of even louder, higher pitched squeals than the two girls combined. With Louis spending Christmas with Wardo, she hadn’t seen her other best friend in a solid week, so she’d dropped a selfie into their groupchat, prompting a few fire emojis from the former, and an apt no antlers in college from the latter. Then, when Teddy arrived, she’d spent the entire car ride pressed to his side and delighting in her best friend’s much sweeter and far more gentlemanly compliments ahead of what had promised to be a great evening out.
She’d agreed to join him for Christmas drinks with some of their old friends from her swimming days. Being completely candid, she’d been terrified about the entire thing, which is why her friends had agreed to stay home that evening, lying in wait should she text or call and need someone to come and get her. Having Teddy at her side had been comfort enough, however, and his friend Art – two-time gold medalist in the 400m relay Arthur Lucas-Blake, no less! – had been on hand to inject the perfect amount of humour to put her nerves at ease. All in all, the night wasn’t shaping out too bad, and the restaurant they’d taken up residence in was far more bougie than anywhere she’d ever been before. Surprisingly, nobody had scoffed at her bright red nose or artfully drawn-on freckles, yet.
Excusing herself from the bar, Amelia planted a bright, lipstick-stained kiss to Teddy’s cheek, and left him to his devices. He seemed engrossed in conversation with a pretty girl anyway, so who was she to spoil his fun? She needed some fresh air and an escape from the din of Christmas parties and festive diners, from the sad furrow of Delilah Jones’ brow as she repeated for the third time that Amy is so missed on the swim team. Smoothing her skirt delicately around her thighs, Amelia the Red-Nosed Reindeer slid down from her stool and started towards the front door, before coming to an abrupt stop a couple of feet away from a booth in the corner, her eyes widening in surprise.
Maggie Chance, looking as beautiful and dangerous as ever, was tucked into the corner booth with... a man. A man who had his clammy hands placed over Maggie’s own while she grimaced in his direction, her gaze seemingly directed anywhere but at him. She did not look like she wanted to be there, but that was none of Amy’s business. No matter how tight her chest felt right now, how nausea roiled in the pit of her stomach, it had nothing to do with her who Maggie did or didn’t date. She hadn’t seen the other woman in months, maybe even a year, and their communication had all-but halted bar the occasional like on an instagram post.
So then, why did Amy suddenly find herself caring so much when Maggie’s eyes found hers over the man’s shoulder? Why did it feel like electricity was shooting through her veins as she stood, rooted to the spot, desperate to say hello, to spoil their night and make her presence well and truly known? Before she knew it, her feet were carrying her across the room, until suddenly she was mere inches from their table, heat rising to her cheeks as she smiled down at the other girl, the one who’d strung her along and made her feel worthless.
“Hey you,” Amelia breathed, suddenly at a loss for words.