Rendezvous

It was one night in May, when Julian, Nick, Fab, Nikolai and Albert were out to the bar. Although Julian had stayed sober for the last five years, he didn’t mind if the guys were drinking beer and taking shots while he watched and sipped his coke.

They were having their third round when Julian saw a familiar face at the bar. Her fiery red hair was what caught his attention but he knew that face. He was getting really curious he decided to go to the bar and ordered more coke next to her. He took a look at her as he was waiting for the bartender to refill coke into his glass.

“Do I know you?” Julian asked.

She tried not to laugh and sipped her Martini. “That pick-up line is so old and it’s not working on me at all.”

This chick thought Julian was trying to fuck her? “No, no, I’m serious. You look so familiar but I couldn’t remember where I saw you.”

“Still not working.”

He sighed and didn’t know what to do, but he really wanted to know why there was a wonted feeling about this girl. “I’m Julian,” he extended his hand.

The girl stopped drinking her Martini and widened her eyes. “Julian, as in Julian Casablancas?! Oh my god!” she shrieked. Instead of shaking his hand, she engulfed him in a tight hug. Julian’s friends back at the table were interested of what was going on.

“Do you think it’s another fan attack?” Nikolai asked.

“Nah man, Julian had been eyeing her for the last fifteen minutes,” Albert said.

Fab narrowed his eyes. “You don’t think he’s gonna...”

“Nuh-uh, Julian’s too in love with his family to cheat on Juliet,” Albert said again, sipping his beer.

When the boys were having the conversation, it was Nick that kept staring at the girl the whole time. The moment she released the hug was the moment Nick wanted to know her name. A few moments later, Julian came back with the girl and a glass full of coke.

“Jules, you are going to puke coke if you keep on drinking that stuff,” Albert said.

“Fuck what Jules is going to puke out, I’m more intrigued by the chili hair next to him,” Nikolai said. The girl raised her eyebrow. Chili hair?

“You’re not going to fuck her, Jules?” Fab added.

Julian knotted his eyebrows together. “No. God. I love Juliet.”

“See what I told you,” Albert said.

Julian rolled his eyes. “Guys, this is London Svet… Svet…“

“Svetlana,” London finished for Julian. “Geez Jules, you never finish saying my surname.”

“Svetlana?” Nikolai asked.

“I’m half Russian,” London said.

“Ooh, sexy,” Fab grinned, moving his eyebrows up and down.

During the whole time, Nick didn’t say anything and just stared at London, even until she sat next to Fab. London finally locked eyes with him and neither of them looked away, so they just sat there looking at each other.

“That was interesting. Don’t you think so, Nick?” Albert said. He saw Nick’s mind being elsewhere so he nudged him. Nick’s mind finally came back.

“What?” Nick asked, finally tearing his gaze from London. London smiled and sipped her Martini.

“Never mind,” Albert retorted in annoyance.

“So how old are you, London?” Fab asked, sipping his beer. “You look too young to hang out with Jules.”

“Are you saying that I’m old?” Julian said, offended. “Fuck you, Fab, you’re only two years younger than me.”

London laughed. “I’m 25 so yes, Julian is indeed too old for me to hang out with.”

“You hypocrite prick, right now you’re hanging out with a bunch of old people. Nick is the youngest and he’s thirty,” Julian muttered and sipped his coke.

London laughed again at Julian’s childish remark. “I’m just kidding!”

“If you’re too young to hang out with Jules, then how did you know him?” Nick’s question earned a stare from the whole table.

“I thought I told you. London was my neighbor long time ago and when I was 16 she moved to New Zealand.”

“He was too busy ogling her,” Albert stated.

“I wasn’t,” Nick denied.

“Just don’t rape her,” added Albert.

“I’m not going to! And I wasn’t ogling her, god.” Pissed off, Nick got up and went to the men's bathroom.

“He totally was ogling you,” Albert said to London.

Julian laughed. “Well what will Amanda say about that?”

“Amanda?” London asked to anyone who would answer.

“His wife. This year is their fifth anniversary,” Fab answered.

London was a little bit aghast. He was married, of course, she thought. She smiled to herself and chuckled just a bit. This ought to be interesting.



“I heard guys are working on a new album already? Wasn’t Angles just released two months ago?” London asked after Fab was done saying how obsessed Julian was with making the perfect records.

“I thought you don’t listen to us that much,” Julian replied.

“I don’t. I work as a freelance wardrobe stylist and one of my clients told me about it,” London sipped her drink, this time it was just mineral water.

“So you don’t listen to us,” Nick’s voice dropped in disappointment.

London giggled. There was something about how Nick pouted his lips just now that made him looked so adorable, she thought. “I didn’t say I don’t like your music, though, if that makes you feel any better.” If London thought Nick’s pout was adorable, Nick thought London’s giggle was over the top adorable.

“When did you come back to New York, though?” Fab asked.

“Just three days ago, actually.”

“You know what, London,” Albert said, “If I were you, I’d go around and say, Hi, I’m London. I’m half Russian, I live in New York, and I just came back from New Zealand.”

“That’s a lot of locations in one biography sentence,” Julian commented.

“You know, London should come to our next studio session,” Fab suggested, his arm on London’s back of sofa. “Give us suggestions and shit. Fall head over heels to our music, most probably.”

“That sounds inviting,” London replied, looking at Fab. “As long as the other guys don’t mind,” she said and looked at the other guys.

“Of course not!” Albert argued. The others agreed. Nick, however, wasn’t so sure about the idea. He wanted to know more about London, but not in a way how the others did. London was lovely, and he was afraid being around her will bring out the worst of him – the worst of every married man.