enigma | reus

6.

ROMESSA | The Club

It'd been three days since Romessa had heard from or seen Marco; not that she expected to or anything. She had slowly started to make friends with Gianna, and the two usually wandered off together during group excursions. It was a boring day today; they'd traveled off to Bochum, which was only 30 or so minutes away from Dortmund.

"I love it here," Gianna chimed, as she sipped her wine. "I can drink whatever I want and no one cards me! Same with buying cigarettes. Oh, and the guys are so hot." She rose an eyebrow as she eyed a group of men passing by.

Romessa blushed, staring at the men as well. One of them had a jersey with the word REUS on the back; instantly, she thought of Marco. I wonder if Reus is a common last name here, she thought. "It's alright," she admitted. The country was, after all, growing on her; she liked the sense of authenticity it carried.

"Did you get a new phone?" Gianna motioned to Romessa's baby blue iPhone 11, eyes wide. "Oh my god, it's the 11! The cameras on those things are amazing. How could you afford it?! Now you'll have to take all my insta photos."

Romessa blushed. "Um, I didn't buy it myself. My friend did...it's kind of a long story."

"Your friend?" Gianna rose her eyebrows. "You know people here?"

"Well, kind of. I told you, it's a long story!"

Gianna waved a dismissive hand. "You're right, it doesn't matter." She glanced at her Apple Watch. "It's 5:30. Time to go back to Dortmund. Hey, me and Bella are going out tonight. Are you coming?"

Romessa blushed. "Out? Like, to a club?"

Gianna snorted and stood up, Romessa following suit. "No, to the forest." She smiled. "Yes, to a club! Come on, you've been so antisocial this whole time. Don't think I haven't noticed."

Romessa bit her lip, the slightest bit embarrassed that her shyness hadn't gone unnoticed. "Okay," she spoke. "Why not?"

Hours later, Romessa was in her hotel room; trying to figure out what to wear to a club. She tried half heartedly to keep up with trends, but she was also the type to try on a million outfits before ultimately just going with the first and most simple choice. She'd tried to observe people on the bus ride back to Dortmund, especially teenagers her age, to see what was acceptable to wear in Germany—thankfully, the style was just as similar as it was back home.

She settled on a cropped white halter top from Urban Outfitters, flattering black jeans, and heeled black Chelsea boots with chunky platforms; the same shoes she'd worn to dinner with the Reus family last week. She'd go back the upcoming Friday, which was in three days—she was already pondering if she should ask Marco for a ride, but wouldn't dwell too much on it now. She then let Gianna and Bella work their magic with hair and makeup; Gianna straightening her normally curly-ish hair and Bella applying a pretty eyeshadow and eyeliner medley. By the time the trio arrived at the bar, it was already 11; they were blatantly breaking curfew, but Bella assured a nervous Romessa that they wouldn't be caught, because the chaperones were asleep anyways.

It felt unnatural for Romessa to be at the club. Not only did she feel like an outsider—which she was—but she was unsure of how to conduct herself. It was dark enough for her awkwardness to go unnoticed, or so she thought—Bella ordered a beer in English before handing it to Romessa, grinning. "You need to loosen up."

Romessa blushed and took a sip, immediately gagging as she swallowed. "God, that's disgusting."

"Romessa! Never insult beer in Germany. These people like, invented it!" Already tipsy, Gianna raised her glass.