Since I Saw Him Last: A Gary Barlow Fanfic

Chapter Thirty Six

It was Friday afternoon, I'd just arrived home from work and was getting myself ready for a night out with the girls. We'd debated whether to go out Thursday or Friday. We decided Friday night would be best as we didn't have work the next day. It also felt like ages since we last saw each other and we all felt the need for a night on the tiles.

I dressed myself up in a black body con dress with white spots, I retouched my make up and applied my signature red lipstick. Fabulous. I pursed my lips and pouted in front of the mirror. The plan was for Sophia and Zoe to order a cab to pick them up from Sophia's place. They would then drive by Charlotte's house where they would pick up Charlotte and Victoria. My house was closest to the city so I would be collected last. My phone's ringing! I answered the phone, "Charlie?" "We'll be approaching your place in a sec. Make sure you're ready, the meters running!" Charlotte screeched at me. I heard a car horn outside. It must be them. I scrambled for my bag and rushed out of the door. "Come on Tash!" Charlotte shouted from the passenger window. "I have to lock up first. Give me a break." I shouted back. I scuttled over to the car and jumped in, "Ladies! I will give you hugs and kisses when we all jump out. So lovely to see you." "When was the last time we all saw each other?" Victoria asked. "The party!" Zoe exclaimed. "The boys have been distracting us big time ladies. We're very bad BFF's!" Charlotte shook her head. "Well, I've seen Charlie since then." I said. "Yeah, I've seen Zoe since then too." Sophia confirmed. "Charlie and I have spoken loads on the phone." Zoe said. Charlotte nodded, "Yes, we have hun. The only person who we haven't heard a peep from is Vicks. She's a sly fox." Victoria was sitting up at the front. She turned her body around, "What?" "You're clearly enjoying Rob's company a tad too much." Charlotte teased. "Come on, leave her alone Charlie. We've all been bad at keeping in touch. It's bound to happen." Sophia mediated. "So, how is it, you and Rob?" Zoe asked. "It's good. He spends any spare moment with me. I don't think I've had that much sex in a long time, he never stops!" Victoria laughed as she shook her head. "He's a right horny one that Robbie." Charlotte joked. "He sounds a little obsessive though, like he's a sex addict!" I realised I sounded negative after the words came tumbling from my mouth, I'd promised the girls I would try to keep my reservations about Robbie to myself. "Vicks can handle it, can't you Vicks?" Charlotte winked. Sophia laughed, "I'm sure she can. I think he's into you, he just has his own way of expressing it." Sophia smiled sweetly. "He might as well move in Vicky." Zoe laughed. Victoria replied quickly, "Oh God, no. I wouldn't get any peace then! As much as we're having a great time, I do need my timeout." I was feeling uncomfortable talking about Rob, he wasn't my favourite topic of conversation. I was about to change the subject when the car pulled up. The cab driver spoke, "Right ladies, that'll be £20."

We started at The Butterfly Bar for drinks before heading to Relight. Relight was a club that had been in business for the past five years and was well renowned as being the top hotspot for weekend clubbers, even the odd celebrity could be spotted dancing the night away at the venue. If we wanted a low key, cheesy night out then Magic was our club of choice but we felt like going all out tonight. Maybe dating and being friends with the TT boys was getting to our heads. I wanted to frequent more extravagant and glamorous hangouts in the city. If I'm going to be hounded by paparazzi then it should at least done in style. We arrived at The Butterfly bar, located our reserved table and browsed the drinks menu, "What do you all fancy? We can get a few pitchers, my shout." I offered. "Are you sure?" Sophia asked. "I'll have to update you but I don't think money is too much of a worry right now." I hinted. "You got a promotion?" Zoe's eyes lit up. "As if that arsehole of a manager is going to give me a promotion! No, nothing like that." The girls gave me quizzical looks. "Right. Our usuals? Sex On The Beach, Woo Woo, Cosmo? I might get two Woo Woo's." The girls nodded back at me. After queuing for 10 minutes at the bar, I brought our glasses to the table and went back for the pitchers. "Let me help." Sophia said as she followed me to the bar. We returned shortly with pitchers in hand and poured them into our glasses. We all knew which drinks we preferred so there was no need to ask. "Charlie has just been updating us about Markie!" Victoria grinned. "It's mind boggling isn't it?" I said. "I just don't understand why he would be so dead against sleeping with you so quickly but then suddenly decide to throw caution to the wind?" Victoria said. "It does sound odd." Zoe nodded in agreement. "All I can say is, you must be irresistible Charlie!" Sophia giggled. Charlotte winked at Sophia, "WelI, I don't want to brag! Anyway, you should be asking this one over here what's happening in her life at the moment. She's living in a fairytale!" Charlotte winked at me. I couldn't help but scowl at her. I wish she wouldn't take it upon herself to announce my news to the girls. "Oh my God, tell us!" Sophia squealed as she touched me on the arm. "There isn't much to tell." I shrugged. I wasn't one to boast. "Come on!" Charlotte shouted. "Gary took me away last weekend and it was wonderful." I said conservatively. "Tash, that's the super edited version!" Charlotte was egging me on to divulge more. "I'm just going to say this as short and as quick as possible. Okay. Gary surprised me with a helicopter ride, we stayed in a boutique hotel only for the rich and famous. We picnicked, dined and spent our time swimming and having massages." I picked up my drink and took a gulp. Charlotte shook her head at me, "Why don't you want to tell them the rest of it? I'll do it for you if you don't want to." "Charlie, you know I'm coy about these things." I whined at her. "Girls, look at her necklace." The girls zoomed to my chest to look at the chain that was dangling around my neck. "I noticed that before but forgot to ask." Sophia said. Zoe squinted her eyes and Victoria gasped, "That's Tiffany! It's worth about £2,000." "Where did you get that from?" Zoe asked, she was a little slow on the uptake. "Gary, of course! Who else?" Sophia's face lit up. "Girls, that's not the only thing. Turn it around." Charlotte insisted. Sophia edged herself forward on her chair, picked up the pendant and turned it around. "Go on, read it Sophia." Charlotte encouraged. Sophia looked up at me, her eyes sparkling, "Oh, Tasha!" "Sophia, what does it say?" Zoe said impatiently. Sophia leant back on her chair and took a sip of her drink, "It says 'Nobody else...'." Victoria piped up, "And let me guess, he told you he loved you after that?" I nodded. "Gary's one smooth bastard!" Victoria replied. Sophia and Zoe couldn't stop smiling at me. "Oh Tasha, I'm so pleased for you. It feels like your dreams are coming true." Zoe couldn't hold her excitement. "It's early days and I really don't want to get ahead of myself. We've only been dating for a month, it's crazy." I said modestly. "No, Tasha. You should enjoy every moment. You've dated so many guys who were wrong for you. Who would've thought that the right man for you was under your nose all along?" Sophia said. "I wouldn't call it 'under my nose' though." "You know what I mean Tasha. You set your eyes on him from the moment you saw him. So many girls think that he's the right man for them. But he's chosen you, you are his Mrs Right." I wanted to stop Sophia and tell her that I felt uncomfortable with this 'Mrs Right' talk. She was forever the romantic. I didn't want anyone, myself included, to get ahead of themselves. It had only been a month, everyone knows that the honeymoon period dissipates after awhile, Gary and I weren't going to be the exceptions to this rule. Reality was going to kick in at some point and that's when things will go wrong, like they always do. I wanted to enjoy my night out with the girls without having to worry about whether Gary and I would have a future together or how I would cope with so much press attention. I wanted to forget about it all tonight and just be me.