BETH.
“Okay! You guys are lucky! You’d meet Tony today. He’s around here somewhere and said he wants to see me and all those crap of his.” Lara announced as she walked towards us. She had excused herself to go to the restroom few minutes ago. I couldn’t help but envy the way she walked with class and the way with which her caramel skin glowed.
The fact that Lara didn’t even have to struggle with using the right body lotions, soap or even worry about acne or eczema was really amazing and worth envying. She had always used coconut oil since I knew her. She also used the oil on her Afro-thick hair too thus giving her the sweet coconut scent every time. Her hair was not too long, nor too short. Not too straight nor too curly, but what made me adore them was that they were so perfectly jet black. The shade was so dark with bright shines creating a great contrast. They were soft and silky. I could almost tell apart each strand.
It was so easy to tell that she loved these parts of herself as she was always showcasing them at the slightest opportunities. She had on a shiny silver tube dress that stopped just about three inches above her knees, and on her legs was one of her silver heels.
I suddenly felt self conscious and so I brought out my mirror and looked at my reflection, my blue eyes sparkled like the deep sea and my cheekbones were more exaggerated due to the makeup. I had curled my 20-inches blonde hair, such that they hung in more waves than curls. My white skin was brushed with makeup and blush to bring out the sharp structure on my bones and I wore a soft pink shade on my thin lips. And along my slim, slightly-curvy body is a black dress that reached my lower thighs, clutching my body in a way that was elegant but feminine. The top of the dress ran straight across my chest, then at the top of my waist it tightened to the curves. I had placed on a pair of simple black heels, that shone as a mirror in the white light.
We were having our girls night and we had planned to be sexy and crazy at it. We’d even paid for male strippers, well, Lara did. The five of us were seated in a VIP reserved part of the club area while some pot-bellied men kept throwing winks our way but what they got were glares.
“I’d rather do spongebob than do these old men that look as disgusting as hell. I don’t care if they have billions, I mean, how do girls even do it?” Lara said while we laughed.
“It baffles me too though. You can see the young girls circling them already. I can bet that the one in the middle isn’t even up to eighteen yet, I swear.” Chioma, one of us added.
“Obviously. Fucking child abuse.” I contributed.
“Well, they aren’t forcing them, are they?” Lara countered.
“Doesn’t make it right all the same. The adults should know better if they’re truly that age.” I said.
“Yea… whatever.” Lara grunted.
Suddenly, the club music changed to Wizkid’s Essence as Grace stood up hastily to shake her ass to the song. She was a die hard fan of the artist, no slander of him was allowed wherever she was else she’d take it up, you’d think he was her brother or something.
We all laughed as we hyped her up while she shook her ass without breaking a sweat, she was the one with the biggest ass amongst us all after all. Lara and I being the slimmest.
When the song changed to one she didn’t like at all, she hissed and sat down.
“One would think you have a crush on Wizkid, huh, Grace?” Janet, another one of our friend teased.
“Well, there’snothing wrong with that, is there? The only thing is it’s a dream that can never come to pass.” Yeesha rebuked.
“Oh please, never say never.” Lara countered, as expected.
I was about to contribute my own quota when my eyes shifted to a familiar manly figure walking into the club.
He wore a loose black silk shirt with leather cuffs and black trousers and he got better the more I looked. His head held a rich black hair that had tousled griminess which promised finesse. He had strong arched brows and eyelashes so thick, it could be illegal. And then his eyes- they were deep and catastrophic, a vivid deep brown. As he moved closer, I could see the flecks of silver in his eyes. He had distinct cheekbones and an angular jaw, his dark skin made him look devilishly handsome. I was a sucker for Black men anyways, dark skin precisely.
How could I ever forget those eyes, those lips, those arms. The same features that took gave me orgasm nights after nights. I hadn’t seen him for over a year and I was struck anew by his good looks. The gangling figure which was smoothed and tailored by success, he carried his height with easy self assurance and the eyes- which he knew so well how to use – held a basic wariness.
I didn’t ask for his name and he didn’t tell me. It had been a one night stand, one I’d gladly relive over and over again. I was surprised to see that he was already walking towards our section and I immediately started to readjust, putting on my sexy look and getting ready to capture his attention once more. But when he walked towards Lara and placed a long lingering kiss on her lips, I felt like someone had poured a freezing cold water on me.
“Hey girls! Meet Tony! My boyfriend. Tony, these are my baby girls, Beth, Grace, Yeesha and Janet.” Lara introduced.
Tony sat in between Aishat and Lara as he waved. He was directly in front of me. Even when I heard the other girls greet him, my mouth was clasped shut as I still couldn’t take in what was happening in front of me right now.
The first thing that came to my mind was, ‘why does Lara always have the amazing guys groveling at her feet? Why? Why?’
And the fact that he just greeted me without even looking like he had seen me somewhere or anything made my head suddenly start to ache. While they chatted away not even noticing the fact that the one words I was throwing in was suspicious, I couldn’t help but stare at him.
Really, I was mannerly enough to avoid gawking at people. But this man before me, radiating with nothing but grace, had me enthralled. He was mesmerizing in every way. When those eyes of his shifted and finally acknowledged my presence, a surge of butterflies calmed and further mystified me at the same time.
He had a knowing face on as he looked like he was trying to rack his brain as to where he must have met me.
I couldn’t believe this! It was not even up to a year, not five years or something. Was my face or even our encounter that forgettable? I mean, I never forgot that hook up of ours for even a minute.
The bottle of Hennessy on the table suddenly looked delicious as I started to pour cup after cup into my throat not even bothering to mix with the cranberry nor Coca Cola.
“Hey! What are you doing? It’s Hennessy not Hollandia Yogurt, babe!” Lara snapped the cup out of my hands as I was about to dawn another down my throat yet again.
“I’m so sorry. Her boyfriend recently dumped her so she’s still grieving. She’s even the reason for this outing.” I heard Lara say to Tony who nodded in realization to what she said.
Did she really have to tell him my business? Really? I was irritated. The more I watched their public display of affection, the more irritated I got. So I got up suddenly while they all looked up at me.
“I’m going to the restroom.” I announced but my voice was definitely way too loud than intended as I attracted attention from people around us.
The harsh scent of drink can be smelt of my person since I spilled some on my dress a while ago. They could see me struggling to keep my balance, and I knew I was struggling to keep it. It was like some sort of outer body experience. My legs didn’t work as I tell them. Neither did my hands. Or my fingers. Somewhere, deep inside I knew my brain was sending signals telling me what to do. Whether or not my body was listening was a different story. I could feel it moving. I could feel it doing what it wants. Could I stop it? We all know the answer to that. It was doing as it please. I try to walk to the restroom but my legs were telling me otherwise. They were swaying – left and right. No matter how many steps I take, I was no closer to where I wanted to be, it was hard, I was too drunk.
“Ugh, just take her to the restroom, Yeesha!” I heard Lara snap before I then felt a feminine hand around my waist.
After we finally succeeded in dragging ourselves into the restroom, I told her that I’d like to go home as I wasn’t feeling too good anymore. She nodded as she went to get me my bag and I got into the backseat of my car while my driver drove off.
I thought about Tony as the chilly air coming from the air conditioner hit me. One thing was sure, I liked him. Too much, but friends come first.