"I'm not going in." I shrugged helplessly. "I do not want to see him."
"Are you kidding?" Eliana turned to face me. "You're going to let that thing decide if and when you can have sushi? Stand up for yourself!"
I shook my head. "You guys go ahead. Really. I'm nt even hungry."
"Babe." Eliana said firmly. "Stand up straight, march in there, and take a seat. And if he thinks that he can act like nothing is wrong, well, you'lljust set him straight."
I took a deep breath, squared my shoulders, and followed my friends inside. Our table was not far from David's, and his back was to us. I breathed a sigh of relief, and suddenly ravenous, I ordered 4 rolls of sushi.
Conversation was giggly and light around me as I alternated between watching my friends and staring at the back of David's head. You're probably wondering what happened. Like I said before, we were always just friends, and neither party wanted to change that, we never dated, etc. But-
"Hey." David had gotten up and was now pausing beside me. "How ya been?"
"If you really wanted to know, you should have called me." I said icily. David looked surprised, then looked at Jax. She shook her head at him. David leaned closer to me, "I know you're upset with me--we should talk."
"I am no longer willing to talk." I tried to keep my voice steady.
"I'll call you later." David turned to catch up with his friends. Tracey slung an arm around my shoulder. "That was great!" she whispered.
Deflated and depressed, I flagged the waiter down. I needed some chocolate cake. I had earned it.

The Sighting

We spent the rest of the morning in my room, schmoozing and shrieking about the party. Tracey had spent most of the night hitting on a guy while another guy hit on her. Eliana could remember less than me. Jax happily filled us all in on our humiliating experiences. Eventually, we got up and got dressed to venture out for lunch.
"I want pizza."
"I want sushi."
"I want a burger."
They all looked expectantly at me.
"Sushi." I said. "A burger, Trace, are you insane?"
She shrugged. "I'm starving."
All my friends are twigs and eat like cows. I just look like a cow. We bundled into our coats and went outside. The air was crisp and biting.
"Ah." Eliana took a deep breath. "Much better."
"Fresh air is good for hangovers."
We walked in silence as I surveyed my friends. There was Jax, your classic sassy redhead. Jaqueline Faye Goldberg, to be exact. Eliana Schwartz, who I think was a rebellious rocker in a former life, and Tracey, with her blonde curls and twinkling blue eyes. We were an interesting group, I mused.
"Hot neighbor at 6:00," Tracey murmured. We all swiveled our heads in unison. Adam, my downstairs neighbor, gave us a wave and grin. We all waved back.
"Is he still seeing the Brooklyn chick?" Eliana asked.
I shook my head. "Staten Island. Curly hair, wears denim skirts, chews gum really loud."
"Ew."Tracey wrinkled her nose. "He could do so much better." We all nodded in agreement--Tracey was hopelessly in love with Adam.
None of us were currently seeing anyone--between the four of us, we had had 4 dates in the last 4 months. 3 for Jax, 1 for Eliana. Tracey was happily rejoicing in singlehood, I was bitterly annoying everyone else. Well, not all the time. I had been pretty good this weekend. Then again, I had been drunk. I am not a depressed drunk--some people get all morose and contemplative. Not me. I get hyper and happy and loud. Well, louder. I am always loud.
"What are you thinking about?" Jax asked as we got on the subway.
"Last night was fun, right?"
"Yeah!" Jax pulled her camera out of her bag. "Want to see how fun?"
"Not yet." I laughed. "I need sustenance first."
"It's really not as bad as you think," she reassured me. "I was just teasing."
"I called David."
"Yeah but you didn't talk to him," Eliana pointed out. "It's not like you left him a rambling message about how you still loved him or anything."
"You didn't!"
Eliana ducked her head. "I might have?"
"Eliana!" I scolded her. "You didn't!"
She held out her phone. "4 minutes and 12 seconds."
"Oh, babe."
We all sat in silence. Eliana and Ben had broken up two months ago after dating for 6 months. They had a big fight and a mutual parting, although no one can remember what the fight was about or why they had broken up, but neither side would give in. Eliana had gone on one random date since the break-up, but has declared the guy "so unlike Ben." She was hopeless.
"Eliana, "I said gently. "Why don't you just talk to him?'
Eliana shook her head and turned her head. She was a tough cookie, but I could see her eyes glistening.
We got off the train and headed to the only kosher sushi place in Manhattan worthy of patronage. Tracey opened the door, stopped, and turned around. "Um, are you sure you want sushi?"
"Yes."Eliana and I both said.
"Let's go to the Sushi Garden instead." She suggested.
"Ew!" Jax cried. "If we are going to eat sushi, we're having it here!"
"We are not going in there." Tracey said firmly.
"Who's in there?" I craned my neck to see past her. And there he was. David.

Continued

I stared at my friends in horror. "Are you kidding?"
They shrugged. "Hey, where's Eliana?" Tracey asked. "Didn't she stay over last night?"
"I don't remember," I said, shooting her a dirty look as I climbed out of bed. I stumbled into the bathroom and shrieked as my foot came in contact with...Eliana.
"Ssshhh."Eliana opened one eye. "I'm sleeping."
"Babe, it's morning."I said patiently.
Tracey and Jax came up behind me, laughing. "Man, Lana, what happened?"
"The bed was just so far." Eliana reached up. "Help."
I gently pulled her to her feet and sent everyone out of the bathroom. I looked in the mirror and shrieked again. My long, dark hair was knotted into a ball on one side of my face, the green, glittery eyeshadow I had painstakingly applied the night before had run into eyeliner and mascara, making me look like I had 2 black eyes.
"What's wrong?" Tracey called.
"Nothing!" I quickly locked the door. I performed my bathroom activities and turned the shower on as hot as I could stand it, then gingerly stepped in. "Ah." The water felt amazing. I leaned against the wall as steam billowed around me. The previous night slowly came back to me. The room had looked great, the food set out...people had started arriving. When had I called David? David, by the way, is NOT my ex, nor is he the object of my affection. David and I used to be friends. Just really good friends. And then-
"Babe, hurry up in there!" Jax pounded on the door. "Bladder!"
I sighed and reached for the remote of my bathroom stereo and turned on Natasha Bedingfield. I heard Jax move away from the door. "She's cranky." She muttered.
Damn right I was cranky! I could barely remember what had happened the night before, and I hadn't had that much to drink! I made the water hotter. Leo had come with his new girlfriend, Chavi and her roomates, Emily and John...
"JAX!" I yelled.
"What?"
"Did we do Coyote Ugly with Emily and Monica?"
Jax didn't answer. I turned off the water, wrapped myself in a towel, and stormed out of the bathroom.
"Can't fight the moonlight..."Tracey sang, and they all exploded into giggles. I climbed back into bed and pulled the covers over my head.
"No one talk to me for the next 20 minutes." I ordered. "Or the pictures I have will go up on the internet."

Chapter One: The Party

I'm dying. That's the only explanation for the intense pain that is pressing on my head. My mouth is dry. I can't open my eyes. I take a deep breath, and push my eyelids open, only to quickly close them against the light in the room. "Ugh." I rolled over and surveyed the room. My friend Tracey was asleep on the floor, still fully dressed. Jax was next to her, her red hair a stark contrast to her pale skin. For a moment, I was confused. Then it all came flooding back. Well, not all of it. The party I remembered. The tequila I remembered. There was not much else that I remember. "Ugh." I said again. Jax shifted and squinted up at me. "Time izzit?" I groped for my glasses to read the clock.
"Ten."
Jax groaned and covered her head with the blanket. I sighed and did the same, but I couldn't sleep. Why couldn't I remember the party? I had a vague recollection of my friend's voice...
"Oh no."
Jax opened her eyes and stared at me.
"Oh no."I repeated. I sat up in horror. "Oh no!" I grabbed my cell phone. "Please no, please no.." I prayed as I scrolled through my outgoing calls. Now Tracey was half-awake. "What's wrong?"
"Tell me I didn't call him!"
Jax reached out for the phone, pressed a few buttons, and grinned. "Yup. David."
"Oh no!" I flopped back down on the bed.
"Relax, it was 3 seconds." Jax tossed the phone on my bed. "You probably just hung up."
"What else happened that I don't remember?"
Tracey and Jax exchanged glances. Wicked glances.
"You really don't remember?" Tracey asked.
I shook my head. Jax's face was gleeful. "Lucky I took pictures."

Reader's Choice!

Character names? Plot ideas? Comment here and tell me what you want!

Introduction

I have decided to write a little soap opera/chick-lit tale to entertain myself and the rest of my readers. Check back for my first installment! Feel free to comment on characters, plots, etc.