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─── ⛧⋆⋅ ♰ ⋅⋆⛧ ───
I slammed the apartment door behind me, the sound echoing through the narrow hallway. My shoes were already off, kicked somewhere near the entryway, and I was halfway to the kitchen when Mia stumbled in after me.
"You're unbelievable, you know that?" I said, my voice sharp as I flicked on the light. The fluorescent glare made the night feel even worse somehow, like a cold autopsy of a very bad decision.
Mia didn't answer right away. She was busy peeling off her coat, her hair a tangled mess that looked like it had been through a hurricane. Or worse.
"Do you even remember we went to the club together?" I continued, grabbing a glass and filling it with water. "Or was that just, like, a cute suggestion you decided to ignore halfway through?"
Mia groaned, finally stepping into the living room, her heels dangling from one hand. "Eloise, can you not? My head is splitting."
"Oh, I'm sorry," I snapped, slamming the glass down on the counter. "Am I being too loud for you? Did I interrupt your little mystery field trip? Because I would just love to know where the hell you disappeared to."
She froze, her eyes narrowing slightly. "I didn't disappear."
"Really?" I said, raising an eyebrow. "Because one second you were next to me, complaining about the DJ, and the next I was standing alone, getting hit on by a guy who smelled like Red Bull and unpaid child support."
Mia let out a snort, which only irritated me more.
"Not funny," I said, crossing my arms. "You left me. At that awful club. For hours. Do you have any idea how many weirdos tried to 'buy me a drink'?" I made air quotes, then pointed to the empty air. "Spoiler: all of them."
"Eloise," Mia started, but I wasn't finished.
"No. Don't 'Eloise' me. This is why I don't go to clubs, Mia. This. Right here." I waved my hand between us. "Because every single time I think, Maybe it'll be fun! Maybe Mia won't abandon me like a stray dog tied to a lamppost, you prove me wrong. Every. Damn. Time."
She rolled her eyes and flopped onto the couch, tossing her heels onto the floor with a careless thud. "You're so dramatic. I didn't abandon you."
I stared at her, incredulous. "Oh, I'm sorry, what would you call it then? A tactical retreat? A scavenger hunt where the prize is me figuring out if you're alive or being sold for parts in an alley?"
She smirked faintly, but when I didn't laugh, her expression faltered. "Look, I'm sorry, okay?"
"Sorry doesn't explain anything," I shot back. "Where did you go?"
She hesitated, and I could see the gears turning in her head, trying to come up with something that didn't sound like total crap.
"Mia," I pressed, leaning on the counter now. "Where were you?"
