When Night Falls (Complete)

12

JOSI

The evening starts off a little peaceful. Josi takes Bradley to a restaurant, a place with more high-end peers for customers. Gowns, tuxedos, nothing too gaudy, but still enough to let the rest of the population in on their level of wealth.

Too many bodies, both busy and laid-back. Even the jazz music seems to blend into the background, because the chatter around the place has grown steady in volume.

Cladded in her own gown, Josi sits by a table with Bradley across from her who hasn't said a word since they arrived. He hasn't done much of anything either. As expected. He must still be sour from their last fight. It's why Josi dragged him there. To clear the air. To squash the tension between them. But it seems making amends may be harder than she thought.

"How's the wine?"

Bradley keeps his eyes on the table. "It's fine."

The cold shoulder again. He won't even look at her. Josi brings her own eyes down, growing ever more hopeless. What if he's already begun resenting her? What if she wakes up the following morning to a break-up? Josi chases the thought away. That can't ever happen. It just can't.

But she has to keep trying. Anything to get back on his good side. "Remember when we were stuck in Mariana's parents' cabin and decided to throw a party? But all they had was classical music so we had to improvise."

Josi can see the moment when his eyes soften. He shakes his head, because he knows what Josi is trying to accomplish. And it works. He sighs and leans back in his seat. "And you kept telling me to imagine a different song in my head."

Josi smiles. "And it worked."

Perhaps the brightest decision Josi has ever made was sticking with Bradley, because not once has she regretted the three years they've been together. And so she will not allow anything come between them. Not even with Idris Night Verdonni's existence.

Their food arrives a couple minutes later. With each topic of the past, Bradley unravels. He participates and even laughs a couple times. This restores some faith. Josi laughs along with him, making sure to keep him that content. Because though the mission here is to win back his favor, there's nothing more captivating than Bradley's smile.

But when has Idris ever allowed her happiness? Josi's phone begins ringing. She flinches, her heart already sinking to the very bottom. She knows what it is. She knows who it is.

Josi's skin grows cold.

She first looks at Bradley, trying to contain the panic. To withhold the trembling. And she succeeds, although barely. But the thought of Idris only drives her further to the edge. He must be there somewhere. He's there again to ruin her life. Josi's stomach begins twisting and turning, and now she can hardly even breathe. She's losing control.

Keep it together, keep it together, keep it together.

Bradley notices this change. He clasps her hand on the table. "Are you okay?"

"Y-yeah." She gives him a smile that's barely a smile at all.

Josi takes a deep breath in and finally answers the phone. Any more delay and who knows what Idris might pull. ". . . hello?"

"Are you enjoying yourself?"

The glee in his tone . . . this certainly will not end well.

"Look up, ten O'clock."

Josi does as instructed. Behind the staircase railing on the second floor is Idris in the midst of the crowd. He has his eyes down on the two; a grin so wide on his face, Josi can only guess it's a form of mockery.