Do you still cry? //Billie Eilish

song of the year*

February 2nd:

-Lisa's pov- 

Hannah and I eagerly boarded the plane, having already enjoyed a meal with a few glasses of prosecco at the airport lounge. Hannah had prepared an entire Folder on Google Drive filled with restaurant recommendations and activities for our 5-day road trip to Joshua Tree National Park and Palm Springs, places we had both wanted to visit for most of our lives.

As the overnight flight concluded, we arrived at our hotel, where we had made reservations for the first few days of our trip. We both wanted to settle in and adjust to the time difference before starting with the exploring. 

Once we acclimated to the time difference, we visited a few typical tourist attractions. I refrained from sharing pictures on my Instagram to keep Billie unaware of my trip. Also, I constantly felt sick, even from small servings, as everything was super greasy there. Even the dressing on salads made me feel disgusted. It was crazy.

We indulged in typical tourist attractions during the first few days, which I didn't mind as I knew we would soon leave the city anyway. I couldn't help but feel that American cities, or maybe it was just America in general, weren't it for me. I liked the people, though. Everybody was super friendly.

On the 5th day, we decided to check out the nightlife. After having drinks at a bar, we planned to head to a club. The prices were crazy, with cocktails costing $30 each. It would have been close to $200 for me alone to get drunk. Thankfully, I couldn't manage to eat much, so the alcohol hit me harder on an empty stomach.

Although the bar was quiet, we talked with two guys trying to flirt with us. They bought us drinks, and we engaged in a decent conversation for over two hours. They were super friendly and, luckily, not weird, so we felt a little bad we used them for drinks. After some time, they informed us they had to leave for a party they didn't want to miss out on.

"You guys want to join us? It's pretty dead in here anyway."

I glanced at Hannah, seeking her thoughts. "Should we?" I asked.

She nodded in agreement, and we decided to accept their invitation. I ordered an Uber for all four of us, and we headed to the event. The place was packed, though the bar itself was pretty small.

After asking random people if we could join their table, we found a spot to sit. Despite already feeling a bit drunk, we still ordered another round of drinks. As I went to the bar, I wanted to invite the two men who had brought us to the party, as they had paid for all of our drinks at the previous place. 

They only offered four different alcoholic drinks, three of which were made with Bianco Tequila. Tequila always reminded me of Billie; if she'd sometimes drink, that's what she was going for. To make things worse, the bar was decorated with Barbie-themed items like Barbie Uno decks, pink roses, and pink beanies. This wasn't good; I was drunk already, and I sure would start to cry if I thought about it too much.

I returned to our table with the drinks and noticed another guy sitting there. He seemed familiar to me. We made eye contact, and he looked as surprised as I was. After a second, we recognized each other.

"Wait a minute," I said, confused. "I know you! Timothy, right?"

"Lisa, long time no see," he said, pulling me into a long hug.

Hannah whispered to me, "Wtf bro, you know Labyrinth? He is hot as fuck, holy shit!"

I shared with her that Billie had introduced me to Timothy when they performed together in ONO in London last summer. Since I had to decide on a topic for small talk, I asked him what he was doing here and how long he would stay in L.A., as my knowledge of him was basically limited to his U.K. origins.