Page 16 of It Was Always You

He smiled at his reflection. ‘You can’t talk about kissing me if you want to get to this damn party, Evie.’

‘Just hurry up, okay?’

‘All done.’ Adam opened the door and scooped his girl up in his arms, kissing her neck.

Edinburgh was heaving with Saturday-night revellers as Adam and Eve travelled to the party venue in the taxi. Many of the stone buildings on the Royal Mile had long since been converted into bars and restaurants, giving the age-old road a modern twist with its bright signage and trendy exteriors. When they arrived at the club everyone was already there.

Lily greeted them, glass in hand. ‘You made it finally! Thought you’d bloody decided not to come!’ She hiccupped.

Adam scrunched his brow at his best friend as he noticed the bruise on her cheek. ‘How much have you had already, Lil? And what the hell have you done to your face?’ He lifted a lock of her hair.

She laughed. ‘Oh, that… I walked into the door in my room; can you believe it? Bloody clumsy cow, I am.’

Adam shook his head. ‘Well, you need to stop drinking so much.’

Lily rolled her eyes in an exaggerated manner and saluted him. ‘Okay, Captain Dad.’ She turned and walked towards the bar.

Adam followed her with his eyes, but Eve squeezed his arm. ‘You shouldn’t be so hard on her, Adam. She’s not your responsibility.’

‘So you keep telling me. But she doesn’t take responsibility for herself, does she?’ he snapped.

Thankfully Eve wasn’t offended by his sharp tone. ‘It’s her life, honey. Give her some breathing room.’

He turned to her and slipped his arms around her waist. ‘What would I do without you to keep me level-headed, eh?’ he asked, leaning down to kiss her.

‘Well, for one thing, I think poor Lily would get even more stick than she does right now.’ Eve giggled.

They walked over to the bar which was brightly lit in contrast to the rest of the club. The optics hung with their multi-coloured liquid contents, almost like works of modern art. All Adam wanted was a beer, but it looked like it was inevitable he’d end up with some fancy cocktail concoction instead. He scanned along the row of fridges and spied his favourite tipple hiding amongst some bright blue monstrosity that wouldn’t be out of place in a laboratory. After ordering their drinks, he glanced over towards Lily, who was now tongue deep in her current boyfriend’s mouth.

Carl. Dickhead.

Adam wasn’t a fan. He pulled Eve onto the dance floor when a slow song began to play over the sound system and she nuzzled into his chest, as he kissed the top of her head.

Later on, after the third or fourth song, he glanced around the club, realising he hadn’t seen Lily for quite a while. Scanning the dimly lit place as best he could, his search was in vain. She was nowhere to be seen. Worry set in.

Eve stared at him, lips pursed. ‘What’s wrong, Adam? You’re so distracted tonight.’

He could see the frustration in her eyes. ‘I’m sorry, Evie. It’s just Lily. She seemed… odd. Don’t you think? It’s her party and she’s nowhere to be seen. I feel uneasy about it all.’

Eve sighed and removed her arms from around him. ‘To be honest, Adam, I’m getting rather fed up of this. You aren’t with Lily. You’re with me. Now I get that your friendship is strong, but this is just getting⁠—’

Adam’s heart lurched and he cupped her face. ‘Evie, I love you. And I’m sorry, okay? It’s not like that between me and Lil. You’ve known that for two years now. But something’s not right. Please believe me. I know her. I know something’s off.’

Eve gazed up at him and then with a deep sigh she nodded. ‘Okay… I’ll go check the Ladies’.’ She turned sharply and walked away.

Lily sat in the end cubicle. Tears fogged her eyes so she could hardly read the graffiti on the wall and the bruise on her cheek throbbed in time with the bass on whatever track was playing now, as she wondered why things were going so horribly, drastically wrong. She blew her nose, which made her cheek hurt even more.

The door into the restroom opened and closed.

‘Lily? Lily, are you in here?’ Eve. Lily remained silent. ‘You’ve been gone ages and it’s your party. We’re all wondering where the guest of honour is. If you’re in here, can you just say so, then I can tell Adam you’re fine?’

Lily sniffed as more tears came and she covered her mouth, trying to stifle the sound of the sob as it escaped.

‘Lily? Is that you? Why are you crying?’ Footsteps moved closer to the end cubicle and the door rattled. ‘Lily? What’s wrong? Open up, okay?’

Reluctantly, Lily stood and unlocked the door. Eve pushed it open. ‘What on earth’s happened? Why are you in here sobbing?’

Lily shook her head and crumpled her face as she began to sob uncontrollably.