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‘Oh, come on, it’ll be fun.’ Chloe gave Jen’s bicep a squeeze, her other arm linked with her best friend's. ‘Another drink and you’ll be fine.’
They’d snuck a few shots while making tomorrow’s cocktail pouches and, although she hated to admit Chloe was right, alcohol was helping take the edge off her sense of impending doom.
‘You know I don’t like playing with others.’
‘Which is exactly why this will be good for you.’ Chloe stabbed the button for the green man. ‘Three years is too long. You need to get back out there.’
‘I’m happy on my own.’ Chloe’s face told her she didn’t believe Jen one bit. Riding solo wasn’t bad. Only one person could let you down: yourself. ‘It’s not worth the hassle.’
‘Ready to tell me what the text said yet?’
Jen rolled her eyes, setting off across the road as the lights changed. ‘She just wanted to know how I was.’
‘That’s it? After all these years, that’s it?’
‘Yep.’
‘What exactly did it say?’
‘Just hello, yap, yap, yap, how are you?’
‘It’s the yaps that I’m concerned about. You’re sure it was definitely her?’
‘That’s what the yaps were.’ Jen stopped in her tracks, yanking Chloe to the side. ‘Look, I really don’t want to do this. Can we go get drunk somewhere else?’
‘We promised Annie. Let’s show face, look helpful, then we’ll get a bottle of wine and go back to mine. We can craft a reply to you-know-who.’
‘You think I should reply?’ She’d expected this to be a chuck-it-in-the-fuck-it-bucket case.
‘Erm, yeesss! No one sends a message like that after three years and doesn’t have an ulterior motive.’
Jen cocked an eyebrow, unsure. ‘I don’t think I want to talk to her.’
‘Then we’ll talk about that too. Explore our options.’ Chloe pulled her in the direction of Cal’s.
‘Urgh.’
‘Come on. Free booze. Focus on the free booze.’
‘That equates to a free hangover tomorrow.’
‘Stop being such a stick-in-the-mud.’
‘Sorry, you’re right, you’re right,’ Jen said, physically attempting to shake off her bad mood as they reached the overspill of smokers outside Cal’s. ‘Worries aside, I’m going to enjoy tonight.’
‘That’s the spirit. Talking of spirits, shots first?’
‘No more shots,’ Jen replied, pulling a face. She could still feel the vodka sloshing about in her stomach. ‘In fact, I might start with a spritzer.’
Chloe’s face looked like a puppy sucking on a lemon. ‘That had better be a joke,’ she jibed with a smile.
The bar was packed. More than either of them had ever seen before.
A grin spread across Jen’s face; she was unable to hide her glee at another Shawlands business doing well. Day two and Annie was already killing it.
Cal’s was one of the biggest bars in Shawlands, situated right in the very centre, but it wasn’t just location that had helped cement it as one of the Southside’s hottest spots. It spanned the space between the two main roads in the district; an impressive feat in itself, but it was the way Cal’s snaked around its neighbours that really sealed the deal. Its odd, cubic layout meant it was really three-in-one. The front space was a cosy lounge, all cocktails and candlelight; the back was a raucous bar with burgers worth dying for; the middle was a pub-come-club. You could start at one side, migrate to the other, and end the night in the centre of the action. Something for everyone and every possible kind of night. You never stayed for just one drink at Cal’s, and that was a promise and not a threat.
Chloe grabbed Jen’s hand and weaved them through the throng of punters in the cocktail bar. Jen had often considered opening her own place, but with competition like Cal’s, there was no point. She was better staying in her lane and focusing on the stay-at-home crowd.
