Kissing Shadows

2: Millionaire Boyfriend Who Doesn't Actually Love You.

I wanted to find the truth. Ever since I was a little girl my father told me that the worst thing one could do is let your curiosity go unsatisfied. To live unknowing is to live miserably. The same principle applied to Hales. I wanted to know what she was all about, what lay behind her green eyes and in her mind. I wanted to know everything.

"So, how old are you Tera?" Hales asked as she pushed her finished cigarette into the ground.

"Do you want to know the truth or how old I was to get in here?" I said.

She laughed and replied,

"The truth would be nice," and again with the smile and the dimples. I couldn't stop staring at her, and suddenly I found myself wanting more. More than I should have.

"17, now it's your turn."

"19, I honestly thought you were older than that."

I gasped, placing a hand over my heart in fake shock, jokingly thinking that she thought I was old.

She began laughing too, a sound I immediately knew I would never get enough of.

"No, no, you know I didn't mean it that way, leather jacket girl."

The butterflies came up again, making me laugh and begin to honestly forget about my personal nightmare outside this bathroom. She made me feel like I could be anything, just like her name sounds to me. I believed that she could emphasize that I was important, I wanted to be friends with her. She was inclusive, and mysterious, someone I had just met but wanted to know for the rest of my life. But it wasn't enough, I knew I would have to go back out to Collin eventually. This couldn't last, especially if it was going the way my heart was telling me it wanted to.

"Hales, I have to get back to my boyfriend," I said hesitantly. The butterflies were gone, my words having sent all of them to rot in my misery. I could see that she looked unhappy about it too.

"So, you do have a millionaire boyfriend who doesn't actually love you."

Suddenly a little angry, I began to stand up, looking down at her,

"You don't know anything about me or Collin."

She was shocked, and stood up, she was taller than me,

"So that's the name of the guy who gave you that nasty shiner."

I looked at her, suddenly feeling too close for comfort in this bathroom. I pushed open the bathroom door, back into the crowded insanity of the bar at its peak hour. There were people everywhere, at varying degrees of drunkenness. I walked to the counter. Pushing past couples and groups of friends celebrating 21st birthdays, I was feeling the absolute need to drown my feelings in alcohol. It was a bad habit, I knew that, but I couldn't shake the feeling that the night had only just begun and it was only going to get worse. Hales had confused me beyond belief, and I couldn't put my finger on it but I knew I was going to need the liquid courage. And a lot of it.

"5 tequila shots, thanks," and handed them the money. The stout woman laid the shots out in front of me, placing a lemon slice on each, and handing over the salt. I decided to go all out, placing some salt on my hand before licking a bit off, grabbing the shot to tilt it back, and then biting into the lemon. The alcohol burned, as I didn't drink all that much, but it felt like exactly what I needed to make it through the night. I downed the second, and then the third, taking a break at this point. I felt a set of eyes looking at me, but I held off from looking back, somehow knowing that it was Hales. In anger, I downed the fourth shot. It didn't burn that much anymore.