Chapter Two
Maya
Tommy is even more beautiful than I remember, standing at easily over 6ft, he towers over my petite 5ft 4inches. His brown hair is styled into that perfect, just got out of bed style that makes you want to run your fingers through it, falling slightly into his mesmerising green eyes.
He has never seen me in the same way that I see him, but that has never stopped me from looking, never stopped me from thinking about him, wanting him.
Memories come to the forefront of my mind, and I start to remember the times spent with him in his family home, cuddling up close to one another, watching films and eating junk food over the weekend.
I shrink back further into the sofa as the zombie jumps out at the poor character that’s being chased.
“Don’t go in there!” I gasp aloud. As if the girl can hear me through the screen.
Tommy chuckles, the movement bringing us even closer. “Yeah, it’s never a good idea to trap yourselfin a house with a zombie.”
“This isn’t going to end well for her,” I say as I pull a pillow up to cover my face, making his laughter grow louder.
“Are you too scared? We can always turn it off?” he asks.
“No, it’s okay,” I reply, knowing that the longer this movie plays, the longer I get to sit this close to him.
He looks down at me, assessing whether to turn it off or not. After a moment, he makes up his mind and puts his arm around my shoulders. My heart skips a beat as I feel the heat of his body radiating through me. I definitely won’t be watching any of the film now that I have him distracting me.
“Don’t worry, Maymay. I’ve got you.”
As that small and simple memory flashes through my mind, I think to myself, God, I have always had it bad for this man, even when he was still a boy. He had never paid us girls much attention in the way we had all hoped, what with him being a few years older than us, but he had definitely held all of our attention. He moved away from Worcester to the Cotswolds after finishing university to open his own business and only came back for quick visits to friends and family.
Tonight must be one of those rare occasions for him to grace us with his presence.
His dazzling eyes aim at me, a cocky smirk taking up one side of his face. Surely, it’s not me he’slooking at, but I send a shy smile in his direction, then scurry back across the bar to our table, only to be greeted by a tray filled with shots. Ten of them.
Dear lord, send help. These lot are trying to kill me off tonight. The five of us, including Harry, all grab a shot and lifting his phone, Harry starts recording.
“Right, my lovely ladies, I need some videos for the bar's socials, and you beautiful lot downing shots is exactly what we need.”
The bar has been getting busier and busier since he first took over the lease a year ago. The dark wood interior and warm, cosy feeling you get in here have been a hit with the locals. His quirky social media presence is definitely the largest factor in his success. The fact that he is easy on the eye and such a charmer helps a lot too.
“Come on, girls!” Fallon hollers. “We’re here for a good time, not a long time!”
Lifting his phone higher, he gathers us around him, “3…2…1…” we all say together before slamming the shots back.
“Fuck me! That was horrid! What the hell was that?” I cry as I try to catch my breath. My eyes betray me, scanning the surroundings to make sure a certain, handsome man wasn’t watching me dry heave. “Why can’t we ever have a nice girly shot. That was like the devil’s juice.”
“Because Maymay, tonight is about letting our hair down and Absinthe is the best way toachieve that,” Blair explains as she laughs at me.
“It was like bloody battery acid,” Gracie adds, the look of disgust still on her face. Well, at least I’m not the only weak one in the group.
“Are we all ready for another?” Fallon asks, laughing as she picks up another shot off the tray and knocks it back in one go. She ends it with a coughing fit. That’s what she gets for trying to play tough. Even still, we all follow suit.
I can feel the alcohol coursing through me now. My mind feels lighter than it has in a very long time. Thoughts of Jake are well and truly buried at the back of my mind. Harry has booked a live band for the night, which was the excuse Fallon used to drag me out, but I know that the true reason we are here tonight is that they had planned an intervention. What I didn’t realise, though, is just how much I needed it, how much I needed them.
The band is playing covers from the early 2000’s, and the whole bar is loving it. As soon as they start to play their second song (Britney Spears – Oops! I did it again), we run to the dance floor.
Fallon and I are bouncing up and down, as graceful as ever, along to the music. Meanwhile, Gracie and Blair go that extra mile and start slut dropping right in the middle of the makeshift dance floor for everyone to see. Honestly, I havethe most amazing group of friends anyone could ask for. The four of us sing along at the top of our lungs, so terribly that I don’t know how Harry hasn’t had us kicked out.
As the song comes to an end, an eery feeling takes over me, and the hairs on my arms stand up, almost like someone is watching. Shivers travel up my spine at the hope of who it could be. Slowly, I turn around and come face to face, or should I say face to chest, with the one I’m hoping to see.
Tommy.
