Time for Livin'

Chapter 4

The next few days Pauline attempted her best to fit into her new life but finding peace of mind was close to impossible for the most part. Although she had clearly enjoyed meeting the Beastie Boys and still could not quite get over the fact she had met MCA at last, the thought of being trapped in the 80s scared her. Of course, secretly she had always wished to travel back in time. Somehow she had always felt like she did not belong in the present age; she did not really have a use for her generation. But now that her wish had actually become true it was terrifying. She needed to figure out how to get back to the present. Her little trip to the past had been fun while it lasted but she knew she could not stay forever.

And, what was more, Pauline had to deal with a completely smitten roommate. Ever since the morning after the party, it seemed Christine had not shut up about MCA once. At some point she just stopped listening because she simply could not take her drivel anymore. She had different and far more important things on her mind. Meanwhile one week had passed since the party and her encounter with one of her all time favourite bands. It was around 1 p.m., Pauline and Christine were enjoying a late breakfast and their topic of conversation was, how else could it be, MCA. Christine was a little frustrated because she had not heard anything from him since the night of the party. To Pauline it was obvious that in his mind it had been nothing but a one-time-thing but she did not feel like disillusioning Christine. Sooner or later she would hopefully catch that there probably would not be a 'happily ever after'.

"What about you and Mike anyway?" Her roommate suddenly interrupted her own monolog.

That question caught Pauline off guard. She cleared her throat and nervously shifted in her seat.

"What do you mean?"

"C'mon, I know you've got a thing for him! Are you gonna see him again?"

"No. I mean, how would we even make contact? He doesn't have my phone number or anything."

Christines face stretched into a smile and her eyes lit up in excitement.

"What if I told you that he did?"

Pauline knitted her eyebrows in confusion.

"Steven told me that at the party Mike came up to him and asked for your contacts because he missed the chance to ask you."

Yeah, that's 'cause I asked him to find out my own address for me so I could get home went through Paulines head but of course she could not say that out loud. Instead she forced a smile and let out a "Oh, really?"

"Yeah, according to Steven Mike was pretty eager to see you again and demanded your address and phone number."

Wait, phone number? That wasn't part of the deal.

"Oh well, how about that." Pauline laughed tensely.

The following 10 minutes Christine went on to convince her and herself that eventually both ,Mike and MCA, would call and it would all turn out fine .'They're probably just busy' she had determined. In fact, Pauline could not care less whether Mike was going to call her or not. Sure, she had enjoyed talking to him and she could not deny that she kind of found him cute. And the fact that he had secretly requested her phone number flattered her. But due to her circumstances the last thing that was on her mind was getting involved with someone. Suddenly the phone rang and without wasting another second Christine jumped up and answered it.

"Hello?... Oh, hey..... Yeah, she's here... wait a second, I'll get her."

The person on the other end obviously was not MCA and one could hear the disappointment in Christines voice. She took the receiver down and held her hand over the speaker.

"Pauline, there's someone on the phone for you." Even though she visibly was not thrilled that the caller was not her beloved MCA, Christine now had a slight smirk on her face. Wondering who would want to speak to her Pauline took the phone and answered.

"Hello?" She mumbled while nodding to her roommate who signified her she would leave the room to give her and the caller some privacy.

"Hey Pauline, it's Mike."

In a flash, Pauline was lost for words. She had actually been convinced that she would not care whether she would ever talk to him again but now that she did her heart beat at a fast race. Her hands became sweaty and she feared the receiver might slip out of her hand. Damn it, say something you stupid cow! her inner voice screamed.

"Oh, hey Mike." She finally managed to say but sounded way too insecure. Great, within 5 second I already made a fool of myself.

"Sorry, is this bad timing?" It seemed he had noticed her unease.

"No, no, it's fine! I only just got out of bed and I'm still a little sleepy I guess." She tried to save the situation.

"Oh, I see." Now there was laughter at the other end of the line. "I actually meant to call you sooner but I didn't get around to it. Did you get home safe last Saturday?"

"Yeah, I found my way home. Thanks for asking. Did you end up having a good time?"

"Yeah, it was fun. You didn't miss much though. Everyone got wasted, someone puked all over the bathroom, 2 jackasses got into a fistfight.. that's about it."

"Sounds like every other party I've ever been to. And that's exactly why I hate them so much." Pauline laughed.

"You know, somehow I get your point." Mike chuckled. "Talking of partys... Listen, I know you hate them but..."

"But lemme guess: there's this party tonight and despite how many times I've mentioned how much I hate partying you still want to ask me if I like to come?" She guessed amused.

"Damn, am I that predictable?"

"Yup, I'm afraid you are."

"Sooo.. what are you saying?" He inquired.

Pauline uttered a deep sigh and paused for a moment. On one hand the thought of going to yet another party seemed unbearable. Usually she would need at least 3 months to recover from a party and to feel halway prepared for the next one. But on the other hand the idea of seeing Mike again suddenly appeared very tempting. And as long as she did not know how to return to the present age she might as well make the best out of it.

"I guess I could come."

"That's what I wanted to hear!" He exclaimed happily.

"Can I bring Christine?"

"Sure, bring her."

"Alright. So where's that party at?"

He told her the address and briefly explained how to get there.

"Okay, see you later then!"

Just as he was about to hang up, Pauline interfered. There was one thing left she was dying to ask him.

"Mike, wait!"

"Yeah?"

"How do you know my phone number?" She probed. Of course she knew the answer but she wanted to hear it from him. Granted, it was a little mean to put him on the spot like that but she could not help. There was silence on the other end; the faint cracking sound of the phone line was the only thing Pauline perceived in that moment. Finally, he spoke up again.

"Steven gave it to me."

"Why? You only needed to get my address."

"I figured to ask him for your number too. So I could make sure you got home safe, y'know." He declared.

"I see." Pauline giggled. "So I'll see you later then?"

"Yeah, see you later!"

And with that he hung up and left Pauline with a mixture of pleasant anticipation and sheer panic.