Opportunities

In most cases, “Girls’ Night Out” means a night of clubbing. Hours upon hours are spent bar hopping, getting drunk, dancing with strangers, and sometimes there’s a little lesbian action if guys are lucky enough to witness such a thing. In a few cases, a girls’ night out is just a bunch of friends going to see the latest chick flick.

With me and my friends, a girls’ night out is a night of bowling. There’s a bowling alley in our city that stays open until 2 in the morning on Fridays and Saturdays, and starting at 10, they turn on the blacklights and music for cosmic bowling. Sometimes we get drinks from the bar inside the bowling alley, but most of the time, our nights out are sober. It’s been a tradition of ours for years, a lame tradition in the eyes of most, including ourselves at times, but it’s a tradition none the less.

This night out was no different as my roommate and I stood on the sidewalk outside our apartment building and waited for a cab. We’d take that to the IHOP across the street from the bowling alley where we’d meet our friends for a late dinner. Sometimes we’d try a different restaurant, but most of the time we craved breakfast food and went to IHOP.

“What time is it?” Kara asked, running her fingers through her caramel bob. She’d only acquired the new hairstyle a couple of days before and was still trying to adjust. Her hair had been down to her waist before the cut.

“9:23,” I replied after consulting my phone just as a taxi came into view. Stepping off the sidewalk, I held out my arm, whistling loudly just to make sure I had gained the attention of the driver. It came to a stop right in front of me, and Kara and I wasted no time in climbing into the backseat and thanking the graying driver for stopping.

“Funny seeing you ladies,” he commented, chuckling at his own little joke.

“Sometimes I think you plan your routes so you can pick us up, Walt,” Kara replied. Walt, a man who was in his late fifties, almost always managed to pick us up when it was time for our nights out. Kara and I had grown comfortable with the older man over the years, had come to know about his life, and occasionally we were invited to his place for dinner with him and his wife, not often though since he lived a ways out of town.

“I’d rather know you two were safe with me than not know what other driver got you. There are some real creeps with the company. You know that?”

“You may have mentioned it once or twice,” I said, fighting a smile as I glanced at my friend, who wore an expression that I was sure mirrored my own. We’d been forced to listen to hundreds upon hundreds of rants on Walt’s coworkers. So and so did this the other day. So and so did that. No matter what, someone had done something that resulted in a long rant from Walt.

“You hush now, Jenna.”

“Yes, sir,” I replied, nodding my head slightly. It was enough for him, and then he launched into his rant of the night, something having reminded him of what some young Hispanic driver had done the day before that resulted in said driver being fired. Kara and I just nodded along, not really listening to what he had to say. We’d only have to listen to him for fifteen minutes.

“God, I thought that drive was going to last forever,” Kara groaned as the taxi sped away and we slowly walked to the glass door leading into IHOP.

“It wasn’t that bad,” I replied softly, kicking one of the stray rocks on the sidewalk.

“Are you, kidding, Jenna? I’ve probably heard him go on about that exact same thing fifty times now!” I smirked a little at her wild expression, her arms outstretched in a way that looked like she was trying to fly. “Seriously, we need to just start driving on our nights out, you know?”

“We can’t do that. We never know when we’re going to get buzzed or not. It’s safer to use a cab.”

“Or maybe we could just deem a designated driver each time. We can take turns. One night I’ll drink, and then you can have the next one. What do you think?” I was spared from having to give an answer as we walked inside and were called over to the three other girls we were set to meet up with. Annie, the tall red head, informed us that we wouldn’t have to wait long for a table, and sure enough, not even five minutes later, we were led to a table in a section close to the exit.

“So any news in the personal department?” Jamie asked, her dark brown eyes directly looking at me, and every other girl turned to look at me as well.

“Jesus, how come I’m always the one under attack?” I asked, scanning the room in hopes of seeing the waitress come back with our drinks.

“When’s the last time you had sex?” Annie asked with a large smirk, and I glared at her while the others giggled. “I rest my case.”

“And I guess you got your answer, huh?” I asked, rolling my eyes. “It’s been two months since my last late night escapade. You really need to stop exaggerating details in my life. Not everything has to be dramatic or is even worth getting excited about.”

“Lighten up, Jen,” Jamie said with a laugh, reaching across the table to shove my shoulder lightly. “We’re just messing.”

“Yeah, yeah.”

“You guys could lay off a little,” Savannah said, speaking up for the first time since Kara and I had arrived.

“Why’s that?” Annie asked, brow raised. The tone in her voice was defensive, ready to attack if Savannah said anything that could possibly make her look like the bad guy in the situation. She was always ready to bring out the claws in cases like that, too insecure though she tried to hide it. I, however, found myself tensing as I waited for Savannah to explain herself.

“Jenna’s had a rough few months. She’s only been single for five months. Just because you bounce from relationship to relationship doesn’t mean she does.” My whole body relaxed, realizing she wasn’t going to go into any details as to why the last few months were rough. She and Kara were the only ones that knew, being the only ones I really trusted, and I desperately wanted to keep it that way. Annie huffed, deciding it wasn’t worth the argument and started a new topic.

“Thanks, Vannah,” I whispered, sending her a small smile. She smiled in response, placing her hand on my forearm and squeezing it a little.

“Anytime. When’s the last time you heard from him?” I shrugged, glancing to the others who were too immersed in the conversation to pay attention to us.

“Couple of weeks, but that’s just because I got my number changed again. He’s either trying to figure out my new number or laying off long enough for me to put my guard down.” Savannah nodded, smiling in slight relief, but her usually sweet hazel eyes were hard. “Don’t worry about it.”

“Too hard, but I can try to forget for tonight.”

“All I’m asking.”



Towards the end of our second game, I finally broke down and ordered a scotch from the bar. I hadn’t consumed alcohol in about a month and a half, having sworn to myself I’d never drink again after my last relationship disaster, but I needed it. My nerves were shot, thanks to Annie’s constant comments about me needing to hook up and even pointing out potential guys to me. I knew the intention was good. She was one of those people who thought she as well as other people should always be in a relationship, being single was only acceptable for so long. I was just sick of hearing it.

“Jenna, your turn!” Kara shouted, and I pushed myself away from the bar, walking back towards the lane we were occupying with my glass in hand. I handed the half empty glass to Jamie before picking up the ball I had deemed mine for the night. After knocking down nine pins in two tries, I sat back down, taking back my alcohol from my friend and downing the rest of it.

The game finished after Kara’s turn, and we all voted to start yet another game since we wanted to make the most of our unlimited games until closing. We waited for the pins to be set back into place, the five of us chatting until we wanted to start our game, though our conversation was halted as a loud group of guys entered the building. I turned around along with my friends to see what the deal was. There were probably about ten of them, give or take, most tattooed pretty heavily. I rolled my eyes as they harassed the poor kid at the register, turning my back to them.

“Why do guys have to be such assholes?” I asked.

“They’re probably drunk,” Jamie commented as she examined her manicured nails to make none of them had chipped. The girl was obsessed with nails, getting a new manicure every week or two. The moment one of the fake nails broke, she was calling to schedule another appointment.

“And they’re coming to bowl? Smart bunch.”

“Stop with the negative,” Annie chastised, reaching over and swatting my leg. “Some of them are actually cute.” I rolled my eyes, urging that we should start the game and forget the men. When I finally got them to agree, Kara begged me to go to the bathroom with her, saying we had plenty of time since we were the last two to take turns. I knew better than to argue, just followed silently as we walked towards the restroom.

“Do you know who those guys are?” she asked, whispering excitedly as she pulled me towards the sink. I leaned against one of them, watching her retouch her makeup with a bored expression.

“I wasn’t really paying attention to what they looked like.” That caused her to pause in her actions so she could gape at me.

“Jenna! For fuck’s sake!” She shook her head as if she was disappointed in me for not knowing who the men were. “Does Avenged Sevenfold mean anything to you? Because if it does, then you should know those guys that walked in are the band and their roadies.” I stared at her with skeptic disbelief, sure that she must have been trying to play a trick.

“You’re shitting me.”

“This isn’t a joking matter. A7-fucking-X just walked into the same bowling alley we’re in.” She was grinning widely, and frankly, I was surprised she wasn’t bouncing up and down with her excitement, clapping her hands. Her excitement was too strong to be faked. She wasn’t the best actress, and therefore, I was forced to believe her.

“Well damn.” I shook my head, trying to process the information. Judging by the huff of breath she let out, I guessed that she wasn’t happy with my lack of excitement. “That’s awesome, but how about we skip the fangirl thing tonight? I’m not in the mood.”

“You’re no fun tonight, Jenna. I should probably kick both Jamie’s and Annie’s asses for making you think of Rob.”

“I’m fine, Kara.” She nodded, unconvinced, but I wasn’t going to argue with her. There was absolutely no changing her mind. It was damn near impossible to do so. She finished her makeup quickly before waving for me to go on out.

“Sorry,” I said loudly in embarrassment, my immediate reaction after I walked into someone while looking at Kara. I brought my attention to the person in front of me, finding myself face to face with a guy about my height, maybe an inch taller. Most of his hair was shaved off with the long hair that I assumed was meant to be styled in a Mohawk lying flat and to the side of his head. He had a cute face that instantly reminded me of a little boy, and I swooned a little on the inside when he smiled at me.

“It’s fine,” he replied, his smile growing just a little more as he stepped aside and allowed me and Kara to pass him. A slight smile graced my lips when I walked by him, and neither Kara or I said a word until we were out of earshot of anyone in close proximity.

“Johnny, right?” I asked, teasing her slightly, and Kara scoffed in response, shoving me slightly, though her grin was hard to miss.

“He’s totally into you. You should go for it. Let loose, Jenna. How many girls get to say that a famous musician was showing interest?” I decided to bite my tongue to keep my sarcastic remark at bay.

“Yeah, alright,” I said, just giving into her and desperate to distract her. “Hey, my song’s on.” I smiled as Carrie Underwood’s “Two Black Cadillacs” began to play over the speakers, looking a Kara with a knowing smirk. She’d deemed it as my song ever since she’d found out about the mess with my ex, and I full heartedly agreed with her on the fact.



I wasn’t sure how it happened. I couldn’t blame alcohol since I’d barely drank enough to get even a slight buzz. I just had a wild hair up my ass and decided to do something a little impulsive. I hadn’t been impulsive for a long time, not since I’d graduated from college two years ago.

The how and why didn’t matter though. What mattered was that it happened, that I was actually going to go have a one night stand with none other than the bassist from one of the biggest rocks bands at the moment. I would’ve have been considered crazy to have passed on the opportunity. Besides, Kara wanted me to let loose, and I decided to give in to her request.

It started with a little innocent flirting. He’d walked up to the bar while I was waiting on my second drink of the night, and we’d talked a little about his tattoos. It wasn’t much, and I ended up leaving him after a couple of minutes, though it wasn’t twenty minutes later when we were talking again, and eventually it got to the point where he was suggesting we go back to his hotel room after we’d made out a little near the pool table.

My heart was racing as we walked into his hotel room, and my mind was racing with different thoughts. I kept questioning if this was the right thing to do, if I was going to regret it in the morning. It wasn’t anything unexpected. I had a tendency to overthink ever choice I made, and it usually led to me talking myself out of decisions. It was a big reason why I had yet to get a tattoo even though I kind of wanted one.

The thoughts were pushed aside when he placed his lips on top of mine. I closed my eyes, wrapping my arms around his neck as his hands groped my ass. His tongue swiped across my bottom lip, almost hesitantly like we hadn’t already made out in the bowling alley, the taxi, and the elevator, but nonetheless, I parted my lips for him and allowed him to take control of my mouth.

He started to lead me somewhere, I assumed the bed, and both of us stumbled as we did so, though neither of us broke the kiss despite it. I ran one hand over his chest while my other arm stayed wrapped securely around his neck. His hands continued to roam my body, grabbing whatever he could.

I pulled away to get some air, and Johnny wasted no time in attaching his lips to my throat and making sure to make sure he covered every inch of skin available. One of his hands had travelled up to my throat, fingers gently wrapping just under my chin as his thumb swept back and forth over my bottom lip. Almost instantly, my hand was on top of his, prying his fingers loose so that he would let go of my neck.

“I hate being touched there,” I mumbled as an excuse, knowing he was confused when he paused in the middle of kissing my collar bone. He nodded, muttering some sort of acceptance of the fact, not bothering to ask anything about it. Maybe he just assumed that there wasn’t anything to explain behind it. There wasn’t, at least not to a one night stand.

My mind wasn’t given much time to dwell on the memories that surged forth from his hand on my throat. Johnny quickly brought his lips to mine, taking my bottom lip between his and sucking. He slipped his hands under my shirt, allowing his fingers to travel over the unexplored skin before he pushed me backwards. A small grunt left my mouth as my back landed on the hard mattress, and before I could complain, he was on top of me once again.

Our lips molded together as he slipped his hands under my shirt again, rolling us over so that I was on top of him. I grabbed a handful of his hand, whining and involuntarily pulling it a little as his hands squeezed my breasts a little too tightly.

“Sorry,” he muttered, pulling away slightly, and his lips brushed against mine as the word left his mouth. I pulled away completely, smirking a little at him.

“Stop talking,” I snapped just before I placed my mouth against the cowboy skull tattoo on his neck. He groaned throatily, his hands travelling to my backside and grabbing a handful of my ass so that he could force my hips down against his.

Sitting up after a few minutes, I pulled my shirt over my head and tossed it onto the floor, watching as his lustful gaze drank in the sight of my now exposed torso. His lips slowly turned into a smirk as his hands slid from my ass to my hips, and without any warning, he rolled us over so that he was on top. Hastily pulling off his shirt as I grabbed for his belt, he leaned back over me and attached his lips to my neck.

“You have got to be kidding,” Johnny groaned as his phone began to ring. Indecision flashed over his face, most likely trying to decide between answering his phone or ignoring it and continuing the task of unhooking my bra. His hands stayed frozen in place behind my back, forcing me to keep my back arched so that I wouldn’t lay on his hands.

“Answer it,” I told him, shoving against his chest until he was sitting up. “I’m not going anywhere.” He nodded, managing a slightly frustrated smile, and pulled me forward so that he could peck my lips. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t frustrated myself. There was already a wet spot on my panties that would continue to grow until they were finally torn off my body.

“Won’t be long,” he replied, climbing off the bed and walking towards the bathroom to talk in private. The door was left cracked a tiny bit, but it wasn’t enough to really give away much of his conversation.

I let out a sigh as I threw myself backwards onto the bed. My mind was racing with a million different thoughts, ranging from the fact that I was actually about to have sex with Johnny Christ to various fantasies that I’d had in the past, not to mention just the pure excitement of having sex for the first time in two months. He’d already built up the anticipation, having gone into great detail of all the things he wanted to do to me, and my body was burning with lust fueled need. In short, he’d promised to make cum as many times as possible in one night. I shivered, feeling myself grow a little wetter than I already was as I remembered the way he’d fingered me in the elevator.

My high was erased the moment a snippet of his conversation hit my ears, most notably the word “baby.” I sat up the moment I heard it, silently asking myself I had really heard what I thought I had, but I already knew I didn’t imagine it, and the memories I’d tried so hard to forget came to the front of my mind.

Rubbing my eyes furiously, I stood up and told myself I could slip out of the room without him noticing. The last thing I wanted was a confrontation. I didn’t think I could handle that with the bad memories feeling so fresh. I hadn’t even realized he’d been in a relationship. I never kept up with the personal lives of musicians.

Having the worst luck conceivable, he walked back into the room just as I slipped my shirt over my head. I tried to avoid looking at him. Looking at him would make this worse than this already was.

“Thought you were waiting on me.” I swallowed. He didn’t sound angry, just a little disappointed, but I couldn’t blame him for that. He’d been getting all worked up, thinking he was going to get laid, and now that was being taken away from him.

“I-I can’t. I can’t do this. I’m sorry.”

“Not good looking enough?” I shook my head, still making sure to keep my eyes off of him.

“Not that. It’s definitely not that.” It was silent for a few seconds. “I’m so sorry,” I added and turned to leave, but he spoke up before I could take three steps, and I froze when he did.

“Would it matter if I told you that it was an open relationship?” I shook my head, muttering yet another apology. Why the hell was I feeling so bad for turning him down? He was the douche who slept around on his girlfriend or whatever she was to him. I didn’t need to feel bad for him.

I left the room without either of us saying another word to each other. He didn’t even try to stop me as I made my way towards the elevator. I slumped against the metal wall of the tiny room as it lurched and began the trek downwards closing my eyes. I knew I could’ve been one of those girls that didn’t give a damn if I slept with a guy in a relationship. I wasn’t going to be the one cheating, and I would never have seen him again. I probably would have gone through with it if I hadn’t ever dated Rob.

Rob and I had dated for just short of a year before I discovered that he was married. Not wanting to be the reason some woman I hadn’t met would end up in despair, I intended to end everything between us then and there, but he ended up blackmailing me, forcing me to continue the relationship. I’d hated myself for the remaining five months of our relationship, felt disgusted with myself, and eventually I gained the guts to end it, not caring what he had to say or do. Kara and Savannah were the only reasons I had gotten the courage, and they were the ones helping me through the mess afterwards and keeping me away from him.

Rob, the disgusting bastard, was the only reason I couldn’t bring myself to go through with my one night stand, for the simple fear that Johnny may actually be like Rob. I wasn’t going to go through that again, and I was proud of myself for walking away so easily, for not letting the memories get under my skin and allowing a stranger to see me breakdown. I was still waiting for the breakdown to come, but it didn’t feel like it was. I knew it would come eventually.

Stepping out of the hotel, I waited on the sidewalk for my ride. I wasn’t sure which of my friends would pick me up. I just sent a text to Kara, and she told me that my ride would be there shortly.

I glanced back at the hotel for several minutes later, my eyes searching out the room I had abandoned. The light was on, at least in the room I thought I’d been in, and I could just barely make out the silhouette of someone standing at the glass door. I wasn’t allowed to dwell on it for long as a car pulled up in front of me and the window rolled down to reveal Savannah. I smiled and climbed into the passenger seat.

As she drove away, a small part of me seemed to scream that I was giving up a once in a lifetime opportunity, but maybe all of those opportunities aren’t meant to be taken. Or maybe this was a different kind of opportunity. Maybe this had been an opportunity to show myself I had a backbone and that this Rob situation wasn’t as bad as I had made it out to be. The world was filled with all sorts of opportunities. It just depended on the choices we made.