"Here, Iselen, this drink is on me..."
"Thank you..." I yell to Savannah so she can hear me over the music blasting while neon lights blind me, this club is packed with people, it's hot and a bead of sweat runs down my neck... I really need to drink something. "What's this?"
"A Cosmopolitan, honey, this is New York..." I nod taking a sip hesitating and following my friend when she walks heading to the dancefloor holding her gintonic. The pink liquid is sweet but leaves a pleasant burn in my throat so I drink again and smile, happy because I'm in this city, in a very famous club and surrounded by confident women who wear fancy clothes and seem to know everybody here.
I don't care about expending almost all the money my parents gave me sharing a delicious Italian dinner with Savannah and her friends since I think it was well-invested. They're all smart, creative and fascinating women with successful professional careers and, even if their personalities are very different, they complement each other well, laughing and having fun. Even Aletta and Vinnia, who looked like a pair of unbearable arrogant snobbish brats at first sight, have softened their tone after some glasses of wine and they've made an effort to include me in the conversation, taking an interest in my job. Elvira asked me if I was considering taking the leap and becoming a professional author, if I believed that my boss was going to publish one of my novels... I told her that not even in my dreams that exploiter asshole would do something like that for me but I wasn't going to give up now that I'd managed to set foot in the publishing business.
"That's the spirit!" Ivy raised her glass of wine and we all drank to positive thoughts.
It happened that the club was on the floor below the Italian restaurant, which is a great idea because we didn't have to look for taxis and squeeze each other inside and we didn't have to walk around the city on our high heels. The girls fixed their makeup in the restroom, got in the elevator and were dancing, drinking and greeting everybody five minutes later. They've introduced me to so many people that names and faces make a mess in my head although no one has stopped to talk to me for a long time: I guess I'm too shy for this sophisticated New Yorkers but I'm happy sipping at my drink and watching, dancing from time to time, leaning my butt on a stool to rest my legs and playing the paparazzi role... I lost account of how many times one of the girls has asked me to take a picture while they were posing like professional models.
I'm having fun and trying to make the best of this night since I won't be able to repeat this experience often: I've danced with Elvira, went to the restroom with Ivy while we laughed our asses off who knows why and even Thyra has greeted me kindly and bought me a drink when she arrived to the club later...I have no idea why she didn't have dinner with us but now she's jumping on the dancefloor with Savannah. I frown while swallowing the last sip of my Cosmopolitan and I realize I've drunk three of these but haven't paid for a single one. This is weird... Are they buying me cocktails because this is my first night partying with them? Actually, I think the girls are paying for rounds, I mean, when they order a drink for them, they also buy a drink for their friends so I guess I have to do it too... I get closer to the bar counter thinking about how much money I have in my wallet and if I'll have enough to take a taxi to go back home later... I think I can do this, only this time.
"Hello, I want a Cosmopolitan, a gintonic and... eh..." I look back over my shoulder trying to remember what the others are drinking.
"A round of drinks for Ruby Roses' girls?" the blond guy asks kindly.
"Yes, that's it... Thank you..." I don't think it's weird that everybody here seems to know the artist and the entire group is linked to her name, I'm used to this by now and it's pretty obvious Ruby is a regular. The waiter pours the drinks quickly and one of his workmates takes them to our table while I pay for them, take my own cocktail and turn around just in time to see Elvira throwing me a kiss from the dancefloor to thank me for her mojito. Savannah changes her empty glass for a gintonic and keeps talking to Ruby who raises her new glass filled with vodka, ice and lemon at me winking and smirking mischievously. My stomach turns and my cheeks turn red... Damn it.
