“Don’t suppose you’d like to come with?” she asked standing in her room looking at the options in her closet.
I sat in the middle of her bed safely out of the way of any clothing options she tossed behind her.
“You know how it is,” I looked down morosely and plucked at a string in her quilt, “It’s just worse if they’re drinking.”
“Which one do you like better?” Rachel asked demanding my attention. She’d pulled two dresses from her closet. “This one?” She held up a red dress with a tuck that crossed the middle to accentuate the wearer’s curves. “Or this one?” She indicated a standard black dress with a twist. The real hemline was shorter than the red’s, but a secondary hemline comprised of strands of beads hung from the first hemline giving the illusion of another six inches.
“I think the black one would be more fun to dance in.”
“I think you’re right.” She set both on the bed and rummaged in her jewelry box. “I have an idea. Peter can’t go out tonight so I think we should make it a girl’s night out…” She turned with something in her hand and arched a brow at me, “Unless you have plans with Sir Talks-A-Lot?”
“No, but…”
She interrupted me by tossing something my direction. By reflex, I caught it.
“Have you ever tried wearing a ring? Some friends of mine do it when they want to go out to have fun and not be bothered by anyone.” She grabbed the black dress, handed it to me, and then begged, “Let’s just try. It’s a club with extremely expensive drinks, which discourages an all-out drunk and it’s got great music.”
I hesitated, thinking of Clay. Did I really want to sit here waiting? My waiting wouldn’t help him get home faster. The small niggling concern that his delay related to another challenge reared its head. Sam had assured me that the challenger would want to heal between fights. If Clay dished out worse bruises than he got, the other guy wouldn’t be ready yet anyway.
She pounced on my hesitation. “You know I’ll leave anytime you say you’re ready to go. You never seem to let your hair down and just have fun. With that kind of constant tension you’re going to end up with heart disease or something.”
Her comment about never having fun, hit home. I did tend toward the more serious course. When was the last time I did something just for the fun of it? For myself? The double date with Scott had been for Rachel. The party last weekend had been for Nicole. The Introductions for the last two years had been for Sam.
Pathetically, I hadn’t done anything just for fun since before I went to live with Sam. Even going to school and getting an education was more for my grandma than me. Before she died, I’d made her a promise to get an education and find something that made me happy.
But would going dancing really be something I would find fun? I fingered the fringe on the dress. Yes, dancing would be fun. The men I’d rather avoid made it a less than fun idea. I looked at the ring in my hand. The large stone sparkled brightly, meant to be noticed, but not gaudy. Would it work?
“We’d leave at the first sign the ring doesn’t work? Even if we never make it in the club?” I glanced up at her and caught her hopeful expression.
“I’ve got your back,” she promised. “First sign and we’re back home, curled on the couch watching a chick flick.”
“Alright,” I sighed and grabbed the black dress, heading for my room, “I’ve got nothing better to do.”
“Gee, thanks,” Rachel laughed as I left to change.
The college crowd favored the downtown club despite the overpriced drinks. We stood in a long line waiting to get in, shuffling forward every few seconds. Muted music thumped from within, briefly growing louder as the door opened to let people in or out. I shivered standing next to Rachel trying not to move too much so the cold beads wouldn’t touch my legs.
Even with an ID showing my correct age, eighteen, we had no problem getting in. The bouncer eyed me closely when we reached the door, not even glancing at the ID I held out. I withstood his scrutiny wishing he’d hurry so we could warm up inside. I’d pulled my hair back into a messy knot and added a touch of eyeliner and mascara. It wasn’t much of a change, but between makeup and the dress, he looked at me as if I were a goddess. Maybe this wasn’t such a good idea.
Finally, he told me to get him if anyone inside gave me any problems. His constant glance at the ring on my finger almost made me smile. Other than looking, and offering his help, he hadn’t hit on me.
He opened the door for us and I stepped inside following Rachel. The beating bass of the music reverberated in the floor and my body. I wouldn’t be able to hear a thing, but didn’t care. The club’s warm air enveloped me.