Light Outside

Chapter One

Chapter One

Luciana

It was a surprisingly hot day in Las Vegas for mid-September. I checked the maps on my phone, which I had been trying to avoid, but after taking an accidental fifteen-minute detour to my destination I admitted defeated and followed the directions. I had been in Vegas for 8 days now, and still had barely any idea of how to get anywhere apart from the route to my office or to the university, however where all the classes took place in the university buildings still presented its challenges. Finally arriving, I took a seat next to my two friends, Grace and Ivy, both of whom were already half way through a cappuccino.

"Sorry I'm late, work ran a bit late." I lied, stubbornly refusing to admit that I still hadn't gotten my bearings in Vegas. Grace sent me a knowing look, taking a sip of her coffee to hide her know-it-all smile. Grace and I had been friends since our first week at university and had rented a house together for the year after with a couple of other friends in Bristol, we were inseparable and so she knew how awful I could be with directions. She also knew how stubborn I could be to admitting a fault. In all honesty, I was so glad she had also chosen Las Vegas for her year abroad as it settled me seeing a familiar face. Originally when I told my tutor in Bristol University that I would like to be placed in the University of Nevada because I had been accepted to work part time at a criminal law firm called OC Legal. The job was only for three months, but it was an amazing opportunity to shadow lawyers and study the American system closer up. Not to mention it would do wonders for my job applications when I returned back to the UK. I had applied as a whim, never thinking I would have been qualified at 21, but I somehow managed to snag it. I suspected being bilingual, due to having a Spanish mother, helped.

We settled into conversation as a I ordered a cappuccino as well, exhausted from my day at work and needing a caffeine high if I was going to go on a first date this evening. Ivy began asking Grace more questions, getting to know each other better. I had met Ivy five days ago at a lecture, she had been so kind and helpful after I told her it was my first few days in Vegas. She offered to give me a tour around Vegas and took me to my first college party on Saturday, where I met Stefano. I later insisted she met my friend Grace as I thought they would get along, and they did. Ivy was very outgoing, happy to make conversation with anyone around her, and just had a way of anyone feeling at ease around her. In the past year I noticed Grace become more and more introverted as well as anxious around new people, so I thought her meeting Ivy might be good for her. My thoughts were right as I read Grace's body language, she seemed a lot more comfortable around Ivy already.

Soon after we finished our coffees, Grace and I walked Ivy back to her apartment as it was already on our way before heading back to ours. We'd decided to get a small two-bedroom apartment, which was relatively central so transport to work or university would be easier. It was a new build, and honestly quite nice despite its size. If I'm being honest, I don't think we had the highest expectations after our last house in Bristol, where we naively believed our landlord who promised to sort out the mouldy rooms before we moved in. I suppose it was an easy mistake to make as a second-year student looking for their first house, but we made the most of it, I was almost sad to say goodbye to the mouldy walls. Key word being almost.

Our new flat had a small dining area at the entrance, and a compact kitchen next to it. Despite its size it was more than enough space for the two of us, who often wound-up cooking together anyways. When we arrived, Grace went into her room to call her long-distance boyfriends who was still at university in Bristol. I decided to start dinner, which today was just eggs on toast as I was feeling too nervous about my looming date tonight. It was silly that at this age I still felt nervous about dates, even this one where I wasn't even sure if I liked him.