Don’t smell a little like Bengay.
“Frankie,” he starts, pulling me out of my forced trance. “What do you want in life?”
“Huh?”
The dancing stops.
“You’re a smart girl. You can’t just live with Za forever. You’re gonna have to grow up eventually.”
My eyebrows knot in confusion.
“What are you talking about? I’m grown.”
“Living with your mate, partying well into the morning or falling off the face of the earth every now and then is not what grown women do, love.”
“Right,” I push away from him. “And what do they do?”
“They settle down. Get married. Have kids. You want that right? Eventually?”
I scoff. “Someone’s a bit cheeky now, aren’t they?”
He starts but I hear the unmistakable beginning chords of:
“Good news! The witch is dead!”
Time to rescue the uni boys from an unwelcome impromptu attack on their ears by a drunk theatre kid cosplayingIdina Menzel.
The night blurs after that: more drinks, more sweating, more music. Until suddenly it’s last call, and Benny’s herding us out with a grin and a “Go on before I lock you in.”
We stumble down the street, waiting for our bus but it’s so cold out we figure it’s better to get a ride.
“A horse! A horse! My kingdom for a horse!” Za yells, making the tourist trying to find the eye stare at us in confusion.
I flip them off, then managed to coach her into a cab, laughing as it carried us home. Stumbling up the stairs to our flat, still giggling as I kick the door open too hard, I misjudge my balance as I help her and crash into the coffee table.
CRACK.
“Shit!” I freeze, staring at the splintered wood. “Oh, no no no…”
Zaza’s doubled over, wheezing with laughter. “Frankie! You finally killed it!”
“It was already weak!” I protest, wobbling as I toe off my shoes. “That table’s been begging for death since last year.”
She laughs even harder, flopping onto the sofa. “We’ll get a new one. Just remind me tomorrow.”
“No, you remind me,” I flop down beside her, dragging my phone out of my purse with clumsy fingers. The screen is too bright, or my vision is too fuzzy, but I manage. One by one, I fire off the same text to the rotation:
Me: Hey love, I can’t tomorrow. Rain check? <3
With that handled, I toss my phone onto the broken table, sink deeper into the cushions because I’m too drunk to be trusted to make it to my own bed, and close my eyes.
four
let the church say amen.
Jabari.
“Mum!”I shout from my doorway. “Where’s my shirt?”
