Sequel: For One Beat More ›
Smiling Politely
We're Preying On It
With a sigh Lexi handed the last bag to the last slightly tipsy punter and slid the window to the cloakroom shut, she grabbed her own bag from under her desk and flicked off the lights before leaving the room. The rest of the night had been pretty standard, pretty boring and she was ready to go home and crash. Just as she stuck her arms inside her jumper and moved it above her head she heard someone calling her name. Her head popped through the neck of the jumper in time to see Tom Sykes tear down the hallway towards her.
"Hey Tommy," she smiled, she had genuinely missed him and the rest of the guys.
"Oli said he'd bumped into ye' earlier."
She nodded and motioned towards the door she had just locked, "Yeah, I've been working here for the last eight months or so. How's things?"
"Good, really good," he grinned, "We're going out to party. Fancy it?"
"Uh, I'm really beat Tom, think I'm-"
"Come on Lexi, it's a Friday night!" Tom beamed.
He really was hard to say no to and she had missed being his friend but partying with them would just be too weird for her already muddled brain.
"I've been in college all day and working all night. One drink and I'll be asleep," she smiled softly.
Tom sighed, "Fair enough I guess," he was being shouted on from further down the hall, "I better go."
There was an awkward silence for a few seconds in which we both shifted about and found something incredibly interesting on the ceiling and floor respectively.
"Well, um, have a good night," she shoved her hands in her jeans pockets.
He nodded and seemed to be thinking about something, "We will. Look Lexi, we've all still got the same numbers so you know, if you want to keep in touch... it'd be really good."
"Thanks Tom but I don't think everyone thinks that."
***
When Lexi rounded the corner she could hear the music already, and that was with Glassjaw blasting in her ears. Immediately her pace slowed. A party was the last thing she wanted to go home to and her mental list of people's floor she could crash on at half past eleven on a Friday night was disappointingly short. She took her time up the stairs, dragging her feet up them one at a time. With a sigh reached her landing and pushed open the door to trudge down the hall. She stood in front of her apartment door with her hand on the doorknob, maybe she could stay at her mum and dad's tonight.
"Lexi!"
Before she could beat a retreat the door was thrown open and Mike appeared on the other side, beer in his hand and an unlit blunt dangling from between his lips.
"Evening Michael," she pushed past him and into her home.
He gave her a salute and tumbled out the door, she didn't really care where he was going as long as it didn't result in a visit from their landlord in the morning.
"You're home," she was greeted by a grinning Josh.
"So you guys decided to have a party?" she asked, motioning to the twenty-odd people drinking, dancing, talking and laughing in her living room. She took his arm and dragged him into the kitchen where it was a tiny bit quieter and empty, after she had given a death glare to the three girls draped across the counter.
Crossing her arms over her chest she quirked an eyebrow at him, "Well?"
He shrugged, "What? It's a Friday night and we were bored. Did something happen at work? Is that why you're pissed?"
"No," she shook her head, "Nothing happened," another sigh, "I'm just really tired. Think I'm going to head to bed."
"Fancy some company?" his hands were on her hips and his lips were on her neck.
She should have felt a rush, even a little one, a tingle or something but all she could muster was hiding a mild disgust at the sickly sweet stench of cider on his breath and feel incredibly claustrophobic at how close he was.
"I honestly just need to sleep," she forced a smile, "You stay and enjoy yourself. Dean will probably want to do Jäger bombs later for some more male bonding and you don't want to miss that."
"I'll keep that in mind," he grinned, a smile that used to have her stomach doing somersaults instead of making her feel a little green.
"Hey Tommy," she smiled, she had genuinely missed him and the rest of the guys.
"Oli said he'd bumped into ye' earlier."
She nodded and motioned towards the door she had just locked, "Yeah, I've been working here for the last eight months or so. How's things?"
"Good, really good," he grinned, "We're going out to party. Fancy it?"
"Uh, I'm really beat Tom, think I'm-"
"Come on Lexi, it's a Friday night!" Tom beamed.
He really was hard to say no to and she had missed being his friend but partying with them would just be too weird for her already muddled brain.
"I've been in college all day and working all night. One drink and I'll be asleep," she smiled softly.
Tom sighed, "Fair enough I guess," he was being shouted on from further down the hall, "I better go."
There was an awkward silence for a few seconds in which we both shifted about and found something incredibly interesting on the ceiling and floor respectively.
"Well, um, have a good night," she shoved her hands in her jeans pockets.
He nodded and seemed to be thinking about something, "We will. Look Lexi, we've all still got the same numbers so you know, if you want to keep in touch... it'd be really good."
"Thanks Tom but I don't think everyone thinks that."
***
When Lexi rounded the corner she could hear the music already, and that was with Glassjaw blasting in her ears. Immediately her pace slowed. A party was the last thing she wanted to go home to and her mental list of people's floor she could crash on at half past eleven on a Friday night was disappointingly short. She took her time up the stairs, dragging her feet up them one at a time. With a sigh reached her landing and pushed open the door to trudge down the hall. She stood in front of her apartment door with her hand on the doorknob, maybe she could stay at her mum and dad's tonight.
"Lexi!"
Before she could beat a retreat the door was thrown open and Mike appeared on the other side, beer in his hand and an unlit blunt dangling from between his lips.
"Evening Michael," she pushed past him and into her home.
He gave her a salute and tumbled out the door, she didn't really care where he was going as long as it didn't result in a visit from their landlord in the morning.
"You're home," she was greeted by a grinning Josh.
"So you guys decided to have a party?" she asked, motioning to the twenty-odd people drinking, dancing, talking and laughing in her living room. She took his arm and dragged him into the kitchen where it was a tiny bit quieter and empty, after she had given a death glare to the three girls draped across the counter.
Crossing her arms over her chest she quirked an eyebrow at him, "Well?"
He shrugged, "What? It's a Friday night and we were bored. Did something happen at work? Is that why you're pissed?"
"No," she shook her head, "Nothing happened," another sigh, "I'm just really tired. Think I'm going to head to bed."
"Fancy some company?" his hands were on her hips and his lips were on her neck.
She should have felt a rush, even a little one, a tingle or something but all she could muster was hiding a mild disgust at the sickly sweet stench of cider on his breath and feel incredibly claustrophobic at how close he was.
"I honestly just need to sleep," she forced a smile, "You stay and enjoy yourself. Dean will probably want to do Jäger bombs later for some more male bonding and you don't want to miss that."
"I'll keep that in mind," he grinned, a smile that used to have her stomach doing somersaults instead of making her feel a little green.
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