Beautiful Mess

"You're quitting?" I snapped, almost spilling my cup of coffee.

Lacey frowned and looked down at the floor. "I'm sorry. Johnny really wants me to go on tour with him. It's only gonna be about a month or so, but I don't think I can be away from him for that long. I have to go."

"Can't you come back after you guys get home?" I asked.

She shrugged. "I have no idea. It's going to be very hectic."

I groaned and put my face in my hands. "What the hell am I going to do without you? You're my best friend!"

She smiled at me and shook her head. "Linds, I'm not moving to China! It's only for a month, two at most. And I'll call you all the time."

I sighed, still not satisfied. About that time, the door opened and Matt came strolling in, reminding me that it was only Monday. “Well, I’m assuming from Lindsey’s disgusted look that you told her your good news,” he said to Lacey with a crooked grin.

“Good news,” I scoffed. “I shouldn’t even give you your stupid roses for taking my best friend away from me.”

He turned his smile in my direction. “Actually, Johnny’s the one that’s responsible,” he said, shrugging his shoulders.

“Well, Johnny’s not here,” I said, trying my hardest not to smile back at him. “Therefore, you get the punishment.”

He chuckled and Lacey shook her head again as she handed him his flowers. “Thanks, ladies.” He gave me the exact amount of money, and then looked up at me. “Don’t worry, Linds. We won't keep her for too long." He winked and then walked out the door.

I turned back to Lacey. "I'm so mad at you."

She smiled, knowing that I didn't mean it. "So, we're all going out tonight, and-"

"No," I cut her off. "The least you could do is let me sulk and be miserable instead of dragging me out to another social event."

"Yeah, I guess I could do that," she said, "but I'm not going to."

>>

I followed Lacey and Johnny into the bar where we were meeting everyone else, and then immediately froze. "I hate you so much," I whispered in Lacey's ear. "I can't be in here with all these people, especially when I'm dressed like this!" I gestured to the extremely revealing outfit she'd dressed me in.

She just rolled her eyes and laughed. "You look fantastic. Just come on." She grabbed my arm and pulled me over to the rest of the group. I looked around at them, and was shocked to find one person missing.

"Where's Val?" I asked Matt, who was leaning against the bar by himself.

He pressed a beer bottle to his lips and took a long drink before answering. "Home. She's not feeling well."

I could tell by his tone that he didn't want to talk about it, so I dropped the subject. "Are you excited about this tour?"

He nodded, drank the last of his beer, and walked away. I stood there and watched him leave, feeling a little stupid and embarrassed. "This is why I don't go out," I mumbled to myself.

I turned back to the group, only to find that they were gone as well. They were coupled up out on the dance floor. I sat on a barstool, feeling incredibly out of place, and ordered a glass of water. "You came to a bar and got water?" I heard from behind me.

I spun around and saw Matt looking back at me with a little half grin. He had another beer in his hand that was already half empty. I raised an eyebrow at him. "Are you okay? You're acting a little different tonight."

He shook his head. "Just a rough day." He set his beer on the table and walked closer to me. "You wanna dance?" He held out his hand, and I stared at it for the longest time before taking it in my own. He pulled me out onto the floor. I bit my lip to keep from laughing as I passed Lacey's wide eyes.

Finally, we stopped walking. Matt faced me and rested his hands on my hips. "Why are you so tense?" he asked, quietly.

"I'm not someone who goes to bars and dances with guys I barely know," I said.

He didn't say anything else. He gave my hips a little squeeze and pulled my body into his. My stomach flipped, and the room suddenly became about two hundred degrees. His hands slid up to my arms, and he pulled them up behind his head.

We only danced to one song before Matt gently pushed me away from him and announced that he had to go home. He didn't even look at me as he walked out the door and left me standing alone in the middle of the dance floor.