[31_days] Beer and strawberries

[tickletheory]

31_days 14 Jan prompt: How will you bear living somewhere you don't know yourself.

873 words

This is...a little awkward. She's never ever been in a club before, but the girls from the dorm (all exchange students) go out regularly especially on Wednesdays. Wednesday was Ladies Night and all free things were a blessing. Student budgets were no joke so it's a temptation that's impossible to refuse. She thought there's no harm in going since they'll go as a group and she can just learn the ropes as the night wore on. This was a new country, new city, new school and no parents. When else would she get the chance?

Expectations and reality sometimes fall on opposite ends of the spectrum. She discovered she wasn't great at this whole dance floor thing. She let her eyes wander, trying to be discreet about observing how people around her danced. It's like people are just jello, swaying and bobbing, arms flailing ever so slightly. The music was very loud but she usually listens to J-pop so none of the beats were familiar. She swung her shoulders left and right and kept her smile in place, but she could feel her facial muscles slowly getting strained.

Tala imagined herself sighing. Her platform sandals were comfortable enough but her knees were cracking. The girls went to the club all the time. They're enjoying it for some reason. How come all she wanted to think of now was sushi night?


"I'll get a drink!" she shouted over the blaring beats. One of the girls nodded and she slowly made her way to the bar, squeezing through a mass of dancing bodies.

She looked at the menu and ordered whichever was the cheapest beer. They always drink a couple of cans before going, so she's a little buzzed but it wasn't enough. If she could finish another glass quickly, she might get a good enough kick from the alcohol and maybe she'd start enjoying this. She pulled away from the crowd and was halfway through the beer when she saw some familiar faces headed towards the bar. They saw her and she waved as she finished her glass. There were four of them, but she only recognized two. She knew Luke because of Bella, and Luis because they used to be friends as kids.

"Hey! Bella's friend, right?" Luke asked.

"Yeah! Tala! Is it boys night?"

"No, no. Bella and Lingli are in the toilet," Luke laughed.

One of the guys, the taller one with the blonde hair, pointed his thumb at the bar. "Hey, let's first get some beers!"

The boys nodded. "Stay there. We'll be back," Luke said before following behind his friends.

"I'm skipping this round. You guys go ahead!" Luis called out before turning to her. "You sure drink fast," he pointed out, nodding over the empty glass on her hand.

"Yeah, well," she shrugged.

"I didn't think you'd be the clubbing type!"

"Today was my first time, and it doesn't seem like I'm the dancing type. But I'm 100% the drinking type!"

He laughed. "Isn't that the best type?"

"Not sure I agree. I'm still trying to figure out how my dorm mates enjoy this so much."

"It's about the company you keep. You should've gone with us! Those guys are fun. This is our second bar. We'll be hopping around."

"How early did you start?" She glanced at her watch. "It's not even nine yet."

He shrugged. "Did you want to dance?"

She crinkled her brows, pondering for a few seconds. "I think I want food."

"There's some Turkish ice cream nearby. Wanna step out a bit and then come back?"

Dessert! Nothing can go wrong with dessert! She nodded excitedly.

"You're so easy to read, it's like happiness is melting off your face."

The other boys finally got back from the bar, all of them holding a glass of beer. "We'll get ice cream and then come back!" Luis shouted over the music before nodding at her, signaling for them to go.

She put down her glass at an empty table and followed him.

The Turkish ice cream stall was a bit of a walk, but not too far. It was getting late and she just felt relieved the stall was still open. She ordered a scoop of strawberry flavor and noticed he didn't try to get anything. "You're not eating?"

"I don't like sweets."

"Why do I feel like you scammed me --" She stopped abruptly when she felt light drops of water fall on her face. She looked up to see that a light rain started falling. "Crap! Quick, quick, let's run while it's still drizzling!" Not cool, she hated getting wet! She sprinted towards where they came, licking some ice cream while she ran.

He stared, stunned that she'd bolt so quickly. "Oy!" he shouted, finally rushing to catch up.

"Don't be slow!" she laughed. The smell of incoming rain and the taste of strawberry and cream coating her tongue suddenly washed away the disappointment that weighed her down earlier.

This was more like her.

Comments

[dray]

That was really sweet! What a cute character study.

[tickletheory]

Hehe they are new characters so I'm testing the waters to see how I would like to write them.

Thank you for reading!