Something New (A Chris Evans Story)

Chapter Fifteen

"Come on, Naina," Shanna cried, her voice echoing through the speaker on my phone. "Nat and I are not taking no for an answer!"

I groaned, cocooning myself deeper into the throw blankets scattered on the couch. It had been some weeks since I had impulsively kissed him at the airport. My work and personal life weren't getting any better. "But I don't want to!"

Suddenly the doorbell rang, making me curse aloud. Slamming down my coffee mug on the table, I trudged over to the front door – only to see my two friends standing at the doorstep, laden with drinks and snacks.

"We're here to get you to have some fun for once in your life." Natalia said, shrugging off her jacket.

"I have fun sometimes," I muttered, taking their coats from them.

"Bullshit," Shanna sang, going into the living room,"In college, your idea of fun includes doing laundry on a Friday night. Therefore, your opinion doesn't count."

"Don't forget cleaning," Natalia yelled out from the kitchen. "I swear, she's freaking Cinderella reincarnated, constantly running around with a mop and a broom."

"Hey, don't insult me if you want to eat any mango mousse." I retorted, shaking my head. "I made a fresh batch last night."

"We better shut up." Shanna laughed, looking over to Natalia. "That delicious goodness got me through all those college break ups. We'd just sit in front of the TV and watch John Tucker Must Die on repeat."

"And after watching that movie more than twenty times," I muttered, "I never want to see Jesse Metcalfe's ugly face ever again. That movie is seriously a crime against cinema."

Shanna just stuck her tongue out at me.

"Anyways, why are you two bothering me on my night off?" I asked, tossing the blankets and pillows to the side. "It is a sacred time for me where I worship at the altar of my couch with absolutely no interruptions from the outside world."

"We decided to come annoy you since we haven't actually seen you in God knows how long," Natalia responded. "Plus we haven't had a girl's night in quite a long time."

"But I took off my bra already," I confessed, slouching on the sofa. "I'm not changing out of these very comfortable pajamas to go clubbing or bar-hopping or whatever the young people do nowadays."

"Naina," Natalia sighed, "you do realize you are the youngest one here right?"

"Only by a couple months!"

"That's ironic," Shanna chuckled, "since you're such an old lady at heart, it's fucking hilarious. Fine, we'll stay here and hang out."

I groaned in response, and immediately went to my go-to excuse to get out of any social event. I weakly coughed, "Actually, I'm kind of feeling unwell..."

"You've been using excuse that since college. You're not going to get away with it now."

"We already called for pizza," Natalia triumphantly exclaimed, "so now you can't kick us out."

"As long as you ordered extra cheese," I said, rolling my eyes, knowing I wouldn't win this battle.

As soon as I had finished speaking, Shanna and Natalia started squealing, which made me immediately cover my ears and regret giving up the good fight. I really need to grow a backbone.

We settled down in my living room and I asked, "Didn't we just have a girl's night out before New Year's?"

"And now that it is actually the New Year, we must have another," Shanna replied, taking out three wine glasses while Natalia pulled out the wine.