Kallie

Eris insisted on dragging her to a cocktail bar to start their evening. It was one of the trendiest spots in New York, and she was walking in there in a tank top and sweatpants. Even though she looked two ticks shy of homeless, Eris was still batting away the offers. They both were. Men were offering them drinks left and right. Men in blazers and button-downs and tight pants all walked up to Kallie and smiled at her. Complimented her. Made any excuse to be close to her. Some complimented her eyes while others complimented her dress. One man even complimented her on her earrings. He said they “made her eyes twinkle in the lights of the strobes.”

“You see that guy over there?” Eris asked.

“Which one?”

“The one with the buzz cut and the holey jeans? I bet you he’s military.”

“You got a thing for military men?” Kallie asked.

“Nope. Figured you did after your little island excursion,” Eris said with a grin.

“Oh stop it. Now you’re being mean.”

“What about that guy? Hmm? With his longer hair and that tailored suit. What do you think he does for work?”

“Well, he’s got his nose crinkled at something. Looks a little uptight. Possibly an accountant?”

“I was thinking president of a no-name start-up, but that one’s good too.”

Kallie sputtered her drink as she tried to conceal her laughter.

“What about that guy over there?” Eris asked.

“That’s the bartender, Eris.”

“But I mean look at him. Tattoos all up his arms. Bald head. Stern expression. Loose shirt. The man looks like he recently escaped from prison.”

“Possibly James’s old bodyguard?” Kallie asked.

Eris threw her head back and laughed.

With each guy they pointed out, Kallie found her spirits being lifted. The doom and gloom was lifting and the alcohol was settling into Kallie’s bones. She was loose. Hip. With it. Moving her body to the beat of the music and turning down guys left and right. Her confidence soared through the rafters and she enjoyed raucous laughter with her best friend.

The night was going well.

Much better than Kallie had anticipated.

“Come on,” Eris said. “I don’t know about you, but I’m starving. We’ll need a good foundation if we’re going to drink in earnest tonight.”

“Trust me, Eris. I did enough drinking in St. Barts to last me a lifetime.”

“Quitter! You can do better than that. It’s our night! You’re going to do better than that.”

Kallie was tugged along the sidewalk of Manhattan until Eris ducked into a trendy fusion tapas restaurant. They squeezed in with the other New Yorkers so they could place their order for tiny plates of delicious and exotic foods. Kallie’s stomach growled as decadent dishes passed their heads, as the alcohol soaking into her veins made her teeter. She leaned against Eris and the two of them talked a little too loudly on the line, and soon people were staring at them as they cracked jokes and laughed until tears streaked their cheeks.

A couple of chairs in the back came open and Eris pulled Kallie over to them. They sat at the bar and a menu was placed in front of them. They promptly ordered, and the bartender set out waters for them, a silent cue that he would refuse them alcohol service if they asked.

“Whoops,” Eris said.

“Guess we were a little loud,” Kallie said.

“I’m ready for this food. It’ll be enough to sober us up so we can club hop until we can’t feel our ankles.”

“I’m just hungry. I don’t think I’ve eaten all day.”

“No wonder that half a bottle of wine did you in.”

“And the four drinks I had at the bar we just left.”

“Only four?” Eris asked. “Weenie.”

Kallie rolled her eyes as the vibrating of her phone caught her attention. She reached in and pulled it out, watching as James’s name scrolled across the screen. She glanced at Eris, who was too busy looking at a man who had come to stand in the corner with them, so she opened up the text message and read it.

I miss you. I’ve never been lonelier in my life than when you left. I love you, princess. Please come home.

“What the hell is this?” Eris asked.

She ripped the phone from Kallie’s hands and began to read the message.

“Eris, stop it.”

“Uh-huh.”

“Give me my phone,” Kallie said.

“Right. Yeah. Well, don’t believe him, princess.”

Kallie frowned as she closed out the message and shoved her phone into her purse. If she didn’t get the phone away from Eris, her friend would surely type some sort of snotty reply back. The guy in the corner was gone and their food was set in front of them, but Kallie no longer felt like eating.

She felt conflicted, and it was clouding her judgment.

“Okay. I know that look. Talk to me,” Eris said.

“Why? So you can judge me for it?”

“No. So I can talk some sense into you and remind you the type of twat your ex-fiancé is.”

“Look, James isn’t perfect, okay? I know that. You know that. He knows that. We all know that. But we were compatible. I wouldn't have agreed to marry him otherwise. Our life paths? They converged well. We had the same goals. The same aspirations. The same passions. We worked, Eris. For years. I wouldn’t have accepted his proposal if we didn’t work.”

“And then he fucked your bridesmaid.”

“Eris.”

“What? It’s true. Thirty minutes before you were supposed to walk down the aisle I opened that damn closet door and saw that bitch on her knees with his cock in her mouth.”

“Stop it,” Kallie said.

“No. I’m not. Because you need to hear this. For every woman you catch, there are at least two you don’t. This isn’t a one-off for James. It never is. They indulge and indulge until they get caught. Then they beg for forgiveness. Like he’s doing right now.”

Kallie didn’t even want to tell Eris about James’s admission of other women. It would only prove her point. Eris slid her arm around Kallie and pulled her close, and Kallie let her head fall onto her friend’s shoulder. Princess. He hadn’t called her that in years. It was his nickname for her when they’d first started dating and she loved it. Hoped it would one day make a comeback when their futures were bright and not so tense, stressed, and pulled to their limits.

“I loved being called his princess,” Kallie said.

“I know you did. And he knows that too. I understand. I know you don’t think I do, but I do. I’ve been in love a couple of times, and I know what women are willing to sacrifice to keep it.”

“What did you sacrifice?” Kallie asked.

She sat up and looked into her friend’s eyes while eating the food set in front of her.

“You remember that guy from my junior year? Dax?”

“The guy with the motorcycle. Right?”

“That’s the one. I was in love with that boy, Kallie.”

“I didn’t know that. Why didn’t I know this?”

“Because I compromised a lot to be with him. We always did what he wanted and always went where he wanted to go. He told me about classes I needed to take and classes I needed to stay away from. I listened to his every whim because I was entranced by his muscles and his steely gray eyes and his free-for-all attitude.”

“Eris. Why don’t I know about this?” Kallie asked.

“Because I did the worst thing of my life because he asked me to.”

“What happened?”

“I stole for him.”

“What?”

“Yep. The money he used to spoil me, he got from robbing gas stations. Small grocers. Vegetable stands on the side of the road. I was so wrapped up in him that I helped him get away from four of them before I came to my senses.”

“Holy hell, Eris.”

“I was ashamed to tell you because I knew you would judge me. I knew you would tell me that man was no good for me, and I didn’t want to hear it. I could tell by the look on your face that James said something to you. He’s admitted to being with other women, hasn’t he?”

Tears sprang to Kallie’s eyes as Eris took her hands.

“No man is worth compromising your morals, Kallie. Take it from me. I almost ruined my life and got myself thrown in jail over it. You can’t just forgive him for the fucked-up shit he did to you, no matter how many good moments there are to hang onto. He did it. Repeatedly. And didn’t once apologize until he was caught.”

“Why did he do this to me?” Kallie asked breathlessly.

“I don’t know,” Eris said as she wiped away a tear, “but tonight is a girls’ night. And guys don’t intrude. So no more looking at your phone, or I’m flushing it.”

“Those are fighting words. You don’t touch a person’s phone.”

“Then turn it off,” Eris said. “Then it won’t matter who texts you. They won’t be able to reach you until you turn it back on. Plus, with the next place I’m taking you to, I’m going to need your full attention.”

“Needy much?” Kallie asked with a grin.

“I’ve missed my best friend. This is the first time we’ve both been single in years. I plan on living it up with you now. So, come on. Take out the phone and shut it down. Now. Right now.”

Kallie sighed heavily, then followed her friend’s orders. She took out her phone and turned it off, then stuck it back in her purse. The two of them finished their food and drank down the rest of their waters. Kallie felt revitalized again. Ready to take on the night with her best friend after that one simple move.

“You ready?” Eris asked.

“Yep. Let’s pay and then we can get out of here,” Kallie said.

“Good. Because the next place we’re going has too much music you won’t be able to hear yourself think.”

“Then what was the point of me turning off my phone?”

“I needed to see you do it. To see that you were still capable of putting distance between you and these men and taking a night to find yourself again. Moves like that are important. Being able to shut off the triggers that make you so uptight all the time is important to you finding your way back to yourself, Kallie. For years, you’ve been ‘James’s girlfriend’ or ‘James’s fiancé.’ It’s been a long time since you’ve been ‘Kallie Semple.’”

“It has,” she said.

“So come on, Kallie Semple, and let’s dance the night away.”