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1
SUMMER
The club is just starting to get busy.
Rebecca, Jess, Olivia and I have been here for almost an hour now and while I’m glad it’s starting to liven up a bit, I’m also already feeling the temperature going up and I know the heat will get to me sooner rather than later. The windows are already starting to steam up. I fan my hand in front of my face and Rebecca nods her head in sympathy with me.
“Should we go and get a drink?” Rebecca shouts over the thump, thump, thump of the music. I nod and follow her through the small groups of people clustered around the place towards the bar. The bar is the most crowded part of the club, but we duck, wiggle, and push our way to the front.
The bartender catches Rebecca’s eye.
“Two gin and tonics please,” she shouts.
“Four shots of red Aftershock please,” I yell.
The bartender returns with our drinks, and since it my turn, I pay for them. Then I pick my shots up, two in each hand and follow Rebecca through the throng. I make my way slowly and carefully, but I still feel little trickles of the sticky liquid running down my fingers. There’s not much I can do about it. I wasn’t going to ask for a tray for four shots but passing by people dancing, it’s hard to avoid little knocks.
We make our way back to the little nook where we were originally standing. We come to this club regularly and this is our spot. It’s right on the edge of the dance floor, which means we can rush to the dance floor easily whenever one of our favorite songs comes on. It also has a handy little ledge we can stand our drinks on.
I put the shots down on the ledge and Rebecca looks at me, a questioning frown on her face.
“Four shots? Really?” she asks.
“For the four of us, no?” I reply.
She looks at me with a confused expression.
“Remember Jess and Olivia?” I remind. “They went to the Ladies’ room?”
Rebecca bursts out laughing and it’s my turn to look confused.
“That was like an hour ago. They are long gone now.”
“Oh,” I say. I laugh too when I realize how long it’s been since I saw either of them and somehow still didn’t really register the fact that they had clearly left. I grin at Rebecca. “Oh well. I guess that means two shots each for us then.”
Rebecca groans, but she picks up the first of her two shots. I pick mine up and we raise them in the air and down them in unison. Heat floods through me as I swallow. The peppery, cinnamon taste tingles on my tongue. Together we reach for our second shot. I throw mine down my throat and quickly I take a long drink of my gin and tonic to mask the taste of the shot.
I’m starting to feel more than just a little bit tipsy now and I like it since I’m not worried about a hangover. Today is Friday so I have two full days to get over any hangover before I’m back at work on Monday. Tonight, I’m free to do whatever the hell I like, and it feels good knowing that. I smile at that thought. At the moment my favorite song begins to play and I grab Rebecca’s hand and pull her onto the dance floor.
We start to dance, our arms up, our hips swaying. Lost to the music.
We dance and drink, and drink and dance for the next couple of hours. Throughout it all, we laugh and feel high on life. Tonight was one of those spur of the moment nights that always ends up being the best nights.
It's getting towards closing time now at Sound Bound. There’s only about an hour left before, but the club is still in full swing. We’re dancing and my feet are throbbing, but Rebecca loves this song, and we never walk away from each other.
A blonde guy moves towards us and puts his hand on Rebecca’s hip from behind, swaying in time with her. Rebecca catches my eye and gives me a look – what’s he like? – and I give her a barely perceptible nod back – yeah, he’s cute.
She exaggerates the movement of her hips and then she turns around and she smiles at the blonde guy. He says something close to her ear and she laughs and the next moment, she’s turned towards him. I’m relieved because that means I can slip away and rest my feet for a moment.
I do just that, moving back towards our spot and plonking myself down on one of the tall stools that line the edges of the club. They’re mostly empty except for the odd couple and one poor girl who looks like she’s got the weight of the whole world on her thin shoulders.
I massage my feet and look around, content to people watch. The crowd of people seem to move as one, a happy, sweaty undulating mass of dancers. Part of me wants to go and join the mass once more, but part of me, the part with the sore feet, is glad to be free of it. If I’d worn slightly more comfortable shoes, but then I don’t feel like my dress would have looked as good.
I check my watch.
There’s half an hour to go now before the club starts to kick people out and I hop down off my stool to go towards the ladies’ room. I move across the club, going around the dance floor rather than across it. I join the line for a cubicle and wait. The wait time isn’t too bad and I’m soon in a cubicle. It’s a typical club toilet – there’s no lock on the door and no toilet paper and a seat I wouldn’t want to sit on if I was paid to. I hover over the seat and then pull some tissues out of my purse. I finish up, go and wash my hands and then I head back out into the main body of the club. The heat hits me as I leave the ladies’ room and I decide I’ve had enough for one night.
I move back across the club, looking for Rebecca and I soon spot her – it wasn’t that hard, she hasn’t moved from where I left her. She’s still on the dance floor with the blonde guy. It’s clear they are into each other. Their eyes are locked on each other’s faces and their movements are very suggestive.
