Out of the Blue

Chapter 17

Empty shot glasses with remnants of vodka and peach schnapps covered the table and judging by the state Sascha and Emily this early in the night, it was a good thing I didn't succumb to peer pressure. They were borderline drunk, and Dale hadn't even started his set yet.

Dream of Darcy had just finished and were packing up the small stage in the back corner of Uni Bar. Well, the guys were packing up. Darcy had found her way to our table and was engaged in an animated discussion about ugly bridesmaid dresses with Sascha, who was sharing her disdain about her sister's upcoming wedding.

"I'm telling you, the only good thing about this dress is the colour!" Sascha whined.

Emily shook her head. "Bridesmaid dresses aren't supposed to be too pretty. Nothing should take the attention away from the bride."

"I disagree," Darcy said firmly, taking a sip from Emily's drink. "A bride is a bride. They have the attention regardless. The whole day is about them, right? I think you must be very insecure if you're worried about someone looking prettier than you. Plus, you have those photos and memories for the rest of your life!"

Sascha jumped back in. "I don't think she's insecure, I think she just has bad taste."

"Oh, come on," I added, "Your dress isn't that ugly." She was exaggerating.

"That's because you know you'd look good in it."

I rolled my eyes.

"You look good in everything," Sascha continued before turning back to Darcy and Emily. "Did you see the gorgeous dress she wore the other week, to that award night thing? She was..." Sascha finished her sentence with a chef's kiss.

"No!" they said in unison.

Emily placed her drink on the table, a little too enthusiastically, and turned on me. "Have you got a picture?"

"Actually, not really," I admitted after thinking about it for a second. I was a little too preoccupied that night to think about taking pictures.

Sascha, unfortunately, had no filter when she was drinking. "What about that selfie with Sawyer?"

"Sawyer?" asked Darcy loudly. "Who's Sawyer?"

I shrugged, acutely aware that Justin was in the room. I glanced toward the stage. He was busy doing something with his drums, and even though I knew he wasn't paying attention to us, and he definitely couldn't hear our conversation, it felt weird talking about Sawyer while he was here. I briefly flashed back to the awards night, the night I wore the dress in question, and remembered their argument. They really didn't like each other.

When I turned back to the girls, they were waiting eagerly. "He's just the manager at work," I told them innocently.

Sascha almost spat out her drink, but thankfully Darcy and Emily didn't notice her reaction. It wasn't a lie, exactly. Sawyer was a manager. I just didn't see the necessity in telling the whole story.

"What colour was your dress?" Emily prodded. "Pictures please!"

Reluctantly, I pulled out my phone and searched through the gallery. Sawyer had taken the picture outside the Entertainment Centre before the night, and all the drama, began. It only showed the top half of the dress, but you could see the waistline enough to get a good idea of the fit.

"Wow!" Emily exclaimed, holding my phone close to her face.

"The dress or the guy?" Darcy added, approval in her tone as she took the phone from her friend. Sawyer had his arm around my waist and we both smiled at the camera. I couldn't disagree with Darcy. He did look good.