Iglance at the large, round clock on the club’s black wall, wincing as another minute passes. It’s nearing two o’clock in the morning.
And my energy is infinite.
I gaze to either side of me to see my best friends in the entire world laughing up a storm while grooving in tune with the music. Their joy is so contagious it’s impossible not to join in.
We stumble into one another repeatedly, each time being funnier than the last as the tequila swims laps within my own mind. The disco ball is illuminating the room in the most beautiful array of strobe lights, seeming to dance with us.
I run my hands through my long locks and lean my head back, basking in the music, my best friends, the dancing, and this moment.
“Cleo, don’t you have an early morning tomorrow?” Lacey shouts over the music.
Shit.
“Lacey. You may have just ruined my night with that friendly little reminder.” I punch her arm playfully as her curly blonde hair bounces in beat with the music.
“You should be happy she cared to remind you at all,” Daphne slurs. Even in her drunken state, she still manages to be sassy as hell. At only five feet tall—just an inch shorter than me—sporting long straight brown hair in a high ponytail, she’s a force to be reckoned with.
“True, I suppose,” I sigh in frustration, running my fingers down my yellow minidress, taking pride in how it shines under the lights of the dance floor. “I don’t even want to go tomorrow, but if I don’t go, my parents will kill me. Family tradition and all. It’s just hard, like, we’ve been doing this for over twenty years now. How many more years will I have to endure it?”
“Chill out, dude. It’s just a hike.” Daphne smirks.
I sigh dramatically, letting the alcohol take control for a few seconds. “It’s not just a hike, it’s the principle of it. Like, I’m a grown adult now, you know?”
“Well, why not skip this one?” Lacey offers, out of breath. Mind you, we’re all still dancing during this conversation.
“Oh, no, I could never.”
Lacey and Daphne burst into laughter.
“Well… Maybe this one will be my last obligatory hike. From here on, I can just go if I want to, but they can’t force me to go anymore. You both know how much I dread people pushing me into doing things I don’t want to.”
“Don’t we know it,” Daphne drawls. “Well, ladies, as fun as it’s been, I think I’m ready for bed, and I don’t even have an early morning.”
“Aw, please,” I plead. “One more dance.”
Lacey joins in, asking Daphne for just one more.
Before Daphne can respond, we yank her to the middle of the crowded dance floor. “Took too long to answer. We win.”
She rolls her eyes, then shrugs in defeat.
Once the song starts, we dance together like no one is watching. This moment takes me back to when we first met in my high school dance class. They both had more experience, but they took the time to teach me. Now, we’re all equals and quite literally inseparable, despite venturing down different paths. Daphne is in school to be a nurse now, whereas Lacey is focusing on a career in education.
I’ve been working as an executive secretary for the last couple of years, but I hope to gain experience in technology eventually. I heard that’s an up-and-coming industry for women to join.
While dancing, I think to myself,I could live in this moment forever.
One could only wish.
The sky is bright—far too bright for a rainy day like this. Or maybe the light sensitivity is just an aftereffect of my late night.
After all, I hadquitethe night. From dancing my feet off with my best friends to entertaining strangers, the rush of euphoria was unreal.
“Keep up, Cleo!” my brother calls out from ahead, taking on a steep rocky incline. “Geesh, you’re getting slower by the day.”
I roll my eyes and sigh. Jonathan’s favorite thing to do is to make fun of my age, even though I’m only a few years older than he is. He forgets he’s also an entire foot taller than me.
My brother and sister lead the pack—I usually like to fight my brother for the lead position, but after last night, it’s a miracle for me to be standing upright at the moment.
