Chance Encounter

Chapter 4- Scraping up my dignity

Once in the washroom Lilah stared at her reflection and splashed water on her face. What was that quote from Fran Drescer? Once you wake up and smell the coffee, it’s hard to go back to sleep.

Lilah was now awake and she could smell the coffee strong and clear. She relived the embarrassing moment at the table where Maree had made her sound like some hopeless case who would never graduate. She had thought Christopher was defending her when he had made those wiseass remarks about Tom Cruise, but maybe it had nothing to do with her and he was just trying to get Maree’s attention.

Lilah took several deep breaths and shook herself. This was no big deal. She wasn’t here for herself tonight anyway. Tonight was Operation Faffy. Her conscience prickled. Where was Tiffany anyway? She’d better get back to it. Lilah steeled her resolve and pushed her way back into the pub. The place was packed now and the band was in full swing.

It took her a few minutes to find them and when she finally did Tiffany gave her a sloppy hug, “There you are! We’ve been waiting for you. Time to go to Haven.”

Lilah nodded and followed the group outside. The night had definitely lost its lustre. Haven was a club a few streets away. Lilah didn’t fight it. She knew this was where the night was heading. The six of them walked down the sidewalk and Lilah pulled up the rear and rubbed her arms, regretting not bringing something warmer.

Normally she would be drunk by now and not noticing the cold, but tonight she had been having too much fun to drink seriously. Christopher was walking in between Heather and Maree. He looked back at Lilah, then shrugged out of his leather jacket and offered it to her. Lilah smiled and thanked him as she slid her arms into it. It was a nice gesture, but she knew there wasn’t anything behind it. She walked along behind the group, feeling like a second class citizen.

The jacket smelled faintly of his aftershave and she could still feel the warmth from his body. It made her want to lean into him and hold his arm. But that was definitely not happening tonight. He was talking animatedly and Maree laughed and hooked her arm around his. Lilah kicked herself  -trust her to like a guy once he confirmed he wasn’t interested. Again. That seemed very her thing, at the moment. Ugh, what was wrong with her?

Lilah’s phone rang and she turned away to answer it. It was Irene, one of Tiffany’s friends. She spent a few minutes directing Irene to the club and while she spoke she watched Christopher out of the corner of eye. He was tall and well built. He moved with confidence but wasn’t showy like Chad or Tim. He seemed very comfortable in his skin and occasionally he looked back at her with a look that she couldn’t determine. Was it pity? Probably.

When they got to the club they queued outside. Lilah finished her call and checked her phone. She had a few missed calls from some of Tiffany’s other friends, so she spent a few minutes sending out updates and calling people. Maree talked at length about the production she was working on and all of the b grade actors she shared the screen with. Lilah did her best to ignore them and concentrate on her phone.

Tiffany jumped up and down impatiently and complained about how cold she was, which prompted Chad to wrap his coat (that he was still wearing) around her, causing her to giggle nonstop. Tim probably would have protested at the overfamiliarity except for the fact that he and Mingxi were too busy taking PDA to the next level in front of them all. Hands roamed un-ashamedly as they swapped spit. Lilah thanked God that that wasn’t her. Better alone and sad than having psudo-sex with a total prick outside a club, in front of everyone.

When they at last got inside the club Lilah was still on her phone. She handed Christopher back his jacket and mouthed thank you. He nodded and she glanced briefly at Heather and Maree, wondering which girl he would give it to next. Then she went to the bar to get a drink of water. Time for babysitting duty, she thought, since picking up duty had failed so badly. Once she finished with her call she ordered two bottles of water, one of which she forced on Tiffany. Then she drank the other bottle while she looked around.