‘Just a little bit of this.’ She flipped her back around, so they were facing each other, lipstick in hand. ‘There you go.’
Sofia focused on the frown of concentration on Petra’s face as she applied. It had been a long time since she’d gotten dressed up. It felt nice.
‘Voila, makeover complete.’ Sofia turned to look in the small mirror. The startle of red lipstick suited her, she thought. She hadn’t seen herself like this for months. ‘You like?’
‘I look hot.’ Sofia beamed at Petra. ‘Thanks, fairy godmother.’
Sofia sat on the bunk as Petra finished her extensive routine. Once the hair was curled and the face made up there were outfit options to consider. The turquoise top? The green dress? The denim shorts or the black mini skirt? All had to be given equal consideration. Finally the lucky winner was a low-slung black satin skirt and cropped white blouse.
‘I think it’s kind of classy actually,’ Petra said and Sofia nodded enthusiastically. At this stage Sofia would have said anything to get them both out of the cramped cabin.
‘Absolutely,’ Sofia agreed.
Petra seemed satisfied and the two of them made their way back to the mess. Music was already blaring, and inside the smell of men’s aftershave was slightly overwhelming.
‘You boys really went heavy on the spray tonight.’ Petra grabbed a bottle of beer from the fridge and held one out for Sofia. In that split second her mind was made. With four pairs of eyes on her, she took the bottle.
‘Glad to see you joining us tonight, Chef.’ Stuart handed her a bottle opener. She smiled shyly, opened the beer and took a swig. She had to admit that she’d missed it. She knew it was associative, but even after that one sip she could feel a warm cloak of comforting haze envelop her.
‘You girls look great.’ This came from Jack, who seemed to be drinking something stronger, either that or it was a glass of soda water.
Petra blew him a kiss. ‘The mothers of Capri better lock away their sons tonight.’
It was only 9p.m. and the five of them drank like there was lost time to catch up on. Around 11p.m. Petra decided it was time for them all to leave. It seemed that the head stewardess role extended beyond the working day. All of them dutifully filed off the boat, with Declan coming stressfully close to toppling into the water as they staggered along the marina towards the taxi rank.
Sofia realised she was drunk. Her months of sobriety had wrecked her tolerance and she had to concentrate on walking and talking at the same time.
‘I really feel like I’ve been here before,’ she said to nobody in particular.
Jack started laughing.
‘Why are you always laughing at me?!’ She could hear the petulance in her voice, but she couldn’t work out what to do about it.
‘This is where we dropped off Brian this afternoon.’ Jack put his arm around her shoulder and she was grateful for the support.
She giggled. ‘Oh yeaaah, I remember now. Man, what a day.’ She nuzzled closer into Jack’s shoulder and surreptitiously inhaled, vying for a hit of that intoxicating blend of musk and sea salt.
Petra hailed a taxi and next thing she knew Sofia was bundled in the back and then bundled out. ‘Oceana Azzurra’ flashed in pink neon above her head. Sofia was pretty sure she’d been to an ‘Oceana’ before, somewhere near Portsmouth.
Petra leant in and whispered in her ear. ‘This is where all the Italian stallions hang out.’
Stamps, shots, Euro pop. Sofia had no idea how long she was swaying in the crowd but she suddenly felt like all she wanted was fresh air. She stumbled out into the cool night, smokers standing around chatting, and a little further down the decking, a couple making out on a daybed.
She felt grit between her toes, and looking down she was surprised to see sand. She really was very drunk. They were at a beach bar; she was on the beach. She found herself wandering towards the sea, the crowd thinning as she went. The moon was mesmerisingly bright, a porcelain plate on an inky tablecloth. Sofia sunk down into the sand, lying on her back and then falling further, letting the wave of drunkenness wash over her. She couldn’t know how long she lay there. In the distance the music kept playing and the waves kept lapping.
Chapter Seventeen
‘I thought that was you.’ Sofia opened her eyes. She figured she must have fallen asleep. All of a sudden she was deliciously aware of the breeze on her skin. A layer of the cloak had lifted. She looked up to see Jack standing over her.
‘Petra has been looking everywhere for you.’ Jack sat down in the sand next to her.
‘Oh, I’m sorry, I just needed a minute.’
Sofia sat up. They didn’t speak for a moment. Two pairs of knees staring out to sea.
‘I thought you didn’t drink,’ he said eventually.
‘At my old job, I drank a lot and it wasn’t very good for me. I got myself into situations where I never really knew how much I was in control.’ She was surprised by her own candidness.
