𝐍𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐂𝐚𝐥𝐥 - 𝐛.𝐞

7 -

The body lying next to me stretches, and suddenly I realize, it's Skeet, the guy Alex introduced us to last night, the one I ended up playing cards with. Slowly, flashes of memory start coming back. That charming smile, his awkward attempts at cheating with zero subtlety... He'd made me laugh, and the night had definitely taken a turn I hadn't planned for.

A hesitant smile tugs at my lips, but the knot in my stomach and the pounding in my temples quickly remind me that alcohol did most of the talking for me. I'm definitely not feeling great about it.

Silently, I reach over to grab my phone from the nightstand. "8:30... shit!" I have to be at work in less than an hour, and I'm not even home. Gritting my teeth to avoid waking Skeet, I slip out of bed, hurriedly gathering my clothes scattered on the floor. In the bathroom, I dress quickly, and after a quick look at my disheveled reflection, I head toward the door, ready to disappear.

Only to come face-to-face with Skeet in the kitchen. Shirtless, he's making coffee like it's the most normal thing in the world. He glances at me with an amused look.

"Hey, were you trying to sneak out?" he asks with a smirk.

Caught off guard, I give a timid smile. "Busted... looks like my plan failed."

He offers me some coffee, but I politely decline, itching to get going. As he turns, I can't help but check him out. Honestly, he looks really good... and a little muttered "Well done, Dina" slips out without me realizing.

He turns back, eyebrows raised. "Huh? Did you say something?"

"Crap, uh no, nothing. Anyway... I've gotta run to work. Thanks for... the hospitality, I guess."

Skeet gives me a slightly mocking smile, clearly amused by my embarrassment. "Pleasure's mine. You've got my number, in case."

I shoot him a quick smile and finally make my escape. Outside, I rush down the stairs, taking them two at a time, and call an Uber to get home. I'm seriously racing the clock to get ready in time for work.

As soon as I get back to the apartment, my phone vibrates. It's a message from Kate, of course.

----

Kate
"So, girl, have a good night?"

Me
"Ugh, I hate you."

Kate
"I tried to talk you out of it, but you told me you had it under control."

Me
"Alcohol was speaking for me."

Kate
"Regrets?"

Me
"Ask me again tonight. And you? Clement?"

Kate
"Ask me again tonight."

----

I laugh, putting my phone down. I hop into the shower, throw on some clean clothes, and of course, down a huge coffee before heading off to work.

When I get there, my coworker Dylan is already there, ready to greet me with his usual energy.

"Hey, Dina, how was your..." he starts, but stops mid-sentence when he sees my zombie face.

"Yeah, okay, I get it. Rough night, huh?"

I sigh, giving him what must be a truly pathetic smile. "Don't even start... I could throw up at any moment."

Dylan laughs and offers to take over customer service while I handle things in the back with the packages. A blessing.

"I love you, Dylan. I'll pay you back, I swear," I say with a sigh of relief, blowing him a kiss on the cheek.

The day drags on. I'm struggling to stay awake, and at one point, I even nod off on a stack of boxes until a cart crashes by, jolting me awake. When noon comes, I'm fighting to stay upright, but the rush of customers keeps me busy. I'm counting down the hours, but thankfully, I make it to closing.

As we pull down the shutters, Dylan turns to me with a grin.

"So, you survived after all?"

I try to smile. "I'm dead inside, man."

He laughs, then seems to remember something. "Oh, by the way, some woman came by asking for you."

I look up, intrigued. "A woman?"

"Yeah, young, brunette, wearing sunglasses and a hoodie."

I realize he's talking about Billie. My face lights up, a little surprised. "Why didn't you call me?"

"I checked in the back, but you were passed out on a box. I wasn't gonna risk waking you up, I'm not suicidal," he says, laughing.

I sigh, smiling. "Good call. And what did she want?"

"She said she had a problem with a vinyl you sold her."

I roll my eyes, exasperated. "Ugh, another vinyl issue? You helped her out, right?"

Dylan shakes his head. "Nope, she insisted on speaking to you."

I raise my eyebrows, a bit intrigued. "Did she say if she'd come back?"

"She left her number, said you should text her."

He hands me a piece of paper with Billie's number scribbled on it. Well, that's new... kind of strange, but okay, why not. I slip the paper into my pocket, feeling more and more curious. I have an idea of what she might want, but... she could have just called or come back tomorrow.

We finish closing up, I say goodbye to Dylan, and finally head home to the apartment, exhausted but ready to crash. When I get there, I find Kate sprawled on the couch, fast asleep. I smile at the sight. I pull the blanket up a little higher on her, then place her stuffed animal next to her so she'll be comfortable.

After a well-deserved shower, I slip into bed. But even with all my fatigue, my brain won't stop spinning: Billie, and that number. Should I really text her? If she just wanted to complain about the vinyl, she could have pressed Dylan for more...

I pick up my phone and look at the number. If I text her now, it might come off as a bit too much... it's past 10 p.m., after all...

I set my phone down, deciding to wait until tomorrow to figure it out. The exhaustion finally catches up, and I close my eyes, wondering where all this is gonna lead.