You roll over and see the blonde in your bed.
Nicole. Or Nicola. You can't quite recall.
She was an easy lay. The latest in a long line.
But, at that moment, you didn't see her blonde hair or brown eyes.
No, the hair darkened and her eyes turned blue, as they had done before. As they always do.
A year since the open house, when everything fell apart, and every girl since has been compared to Ro-You need to snap out of this.
Quickly you get out of bed and pull on sweat pants and a t-shirt. You leave the room and her in your bed. You need coffee.
"Oh sorry."
You run straight into a short redhead, on her way to the kitchen, wearing one of Mathew's t-shirts, (a faded navy one, with Snoopy and the words 'Chicks Love Nerds' on it). You hate that shirt. On her, it's not so bad.
"I didn't know anyone was in." She tells you as she looks through the cupboards. "Do you guys have any tea?"
"Uh, no." You shake your head. You're amused by this girl. None of Mathew's one night stands have ever been this talkative. Or forward.
"I'll just have some orange juice." She pulls open the fridge and pours herself a glass. "You want one Jess?"
Your head snaps up from the cup of coffee you're pouring. "How'd you know my name?" Mathew really isn't the type of guy to talk about his roommates on a date.
She smiles at you as she brushes past and heads back into the living room.
Intrigued, you follow her and watches as she settles on the couch and begins channel flipping. She lands on some teen drama and places the remote on the arm of the chair.
Sitting beside her you ask how she knew your name again.
Taking a sip of juice, she smiles at you over her glass. "California." She tells you, as she rakes her hand through her hair.
California. You lived there with your father for a few months at the end of high school. But, you didn't meet anybody. At all.
"Stanford? The bookstore?" She ventures again when you don't respond. "You don't remember me?"
Then it clicks. "Lydia."
She's Mathew's best friend. You met her when you went to California the previous year. For your father's wedding. Mathew had convinced you to take copies of your newly published book to try and get it in a few bookstores there. Lydia had convinced the manger of the Stanford campus bookstore were she worked to stock it. But you'd paid little attention to her. More focused on returning east, and presenting the book to a certain blue eyed brunette, as per your new step sister's request. Demand, really, you recall.
"What are you doing here?" You drink your coffee. It's not hot, but it'll do the job.
"I just graduated. And I was supposed to stick around in California a while longer before moving here, so my apartment isn't ready. Math said I could crash here. That's okay, right?" She tucks her long hair behind her ear revealing two silver studs in her lobe, and a small hoop in the helix.
"He pays rent too." You shrug turning your attention to the TV. "What are you watching?"
"The OC. It's complete trash. But old school trash. I love it. Reminds me of high school."
"You went to a fancy private school?" Just like- No one. You push her out of your head once again.
"Yeah. I went to the same high school as Mathew."
You look at her in surprise "Mathew went to private school?"
She smiles, showing a full set of straight, white teeth. "You guys really don't talk a lot do you?"
"Not really." You smile back at her.
"Uh," She points over your shoulder, towards your bedroom. You notice her nails are painted a bright purple and she has one silver ring on her right hand ring finger. "You've got company."
You turn and see Nic- Damn it. What was her name? She's fully dressed and nervously hovering at the bedroom door. You jump off the sofa and head to her. "You're leaving?"
"Work." She nods towards Lydia, who has turned her attention back to the TV. "Roommate?"
"Friend of my roommate." You shake your head. "She's just crashing here." You see her visibly relax.
"Okay. I had fun Jess. We should do it again sometime." She smiles and reaches up and presses her lips to yours. You pull away before she has a chance to deepen it.
"Maybe. We'll see." Non committal. You know you'll never see her again. You see her eyes soften slightly and then harden. She knows it now too.
"Bye Jess." She lifts her bag to her shoulder and heads out the front door. You turn and head back to the sofa. You sit down, head against the back of the sofa, your eyes closed.
"She was cute." You hear the grin in Lydia's voice. "What was her name?"
"Nicola." You tell her, and then visibly wince. "Or Nicole. I think."
"Damn!" She laughs. "You're one of those guys."
"What guys?" You ask, sitting up to look at her.
"The kind that owns a red corvette. Love them and leave them fast. Not that I'm offended. I mean Mathew's my best friend. As we speak, he's probably sneaking out of some poor girl's bed. And I guess I parked my own car sideways for a while in college." She smiles at you.
"Okay." You have no idea what's she talking about. You're just relieved she's not about to call you out on your somewhat crappy treatment of the fairer sex.
She stands up and stretches. "I'm starving. And you guys have no food. I'm heading out for breakfast. Wanna join me?" She heads to Mathew's room and pauses at the door.
"Sure." You stand up and face her.
"Great. Your treat, right? We'll pretend I'm Nic and that you're the kinda of guy who buys a girl breakfast the morning after!" She winks and then closes the door.
You stand rooted to the spot for a few minutes, staring at the closed door.
No, you didn't pay much attention to her in California, but you think you might have to now. You don't think you'd have the energy to ignore her. Or the will not to.
