are just gorgeous! Let me just run quick and see if I can get some water for them.” She scuttled into the throes of the restaurant as Henry and I continued walking towards the stairs, heading to the upstairs level that had been reserved for the party.
“Well, she seems friendly,” Henry observed, watching Dani scurry through the crowd and get swallowed up by the partygoers.
“I’ll be curious to see your reaction to Kevin. Come on, let’s go upstairs.” I linked my arm through his and we continued to the staircase. Tango had an upper and lower level, the lower level being a fancy restaurant that featured menu items like filet mignon and a wine list a mile long. The upper level was the dance club, with a massive tiled dance floor and cozy booths sprinkled around it. The DJ booth stretched along the east wall, enclosed behind a barricade of glass. There were three tall blocks in front of the booth and girls were already on the blocks dancing their little hearts out. The lights were low and strobe lights flickered throughout. Music videos were showcased on the walls which I thought was neat since no TV station played them anymore.
I squinted in the darkness, wondering where the group was. I didn’t have to wonder long. Almost the entire room was filled with people there for my party. A row of booths were adorned with pink and black balloons, streamers, and a big banner proclaiming, “Happy 21st Alex!” There was also a large picture of me, Lila, Hannah, Carmen, and Emma in a frame that was resting on an easel in the corner. I recognized the photo from the New Year’s party we attended. Little bowls of snacks sat at each of the booths, along with more confetti and napkins that also wished me happy birthday. Overwhelmed couldn’t even describe what I was feeling.
“Holy shit. I feel like this is my sweet sixteen party or something. Are there TV cameras here?” I joked to Henry, but my eyes flitted about the room. I wasn’t going to put anything past Dani and her party-planning skills again.
“I wasn’t aware of that detail, so I think you’re okay. Come on, you have to see your cake.”
In a daze, I let Henry take my hand and pull me gently to the booth where my girlfriends and Dani were sitting. I noticed that Dani had indeed found a vase, wrapped a pink ribbon around it, and placed my bouquet of roses at the head table. My party was beautiful.
“Do you love it?” Lila shouted to me, giving my hand a squeeze.
“I can’t believe you guys did all this work for me. And kept it a surprise! You sneaky bitches.” I tried to glare at my friends, but it turned into a huge smile. “I don’t deserve you ladies.”
“You bet your ass you do! Here, the bartender has a special drink for you,” Carmen cut in, handing me a champagne glass filled with pink liquid.
“What is this?” I sniffed the drink before taking a little sip, followed by a much larger one. It was an explosion of fruit and bubbles in my mouth.
“It’s called the Alex-osa. I named it myself. It’s like a mimosa, but with liqueur instead of orange juice. It’s a lethal concoction. Drink slowly if you want to remember this night,” Carmen warned, taking a generous swig of her Alex-osa.
“Wow. I’ve never had a drink named after me before. And where is this cake that I have to see?”
“Ta-da!” Emma flung her arms out in flourish, walking alongside Dani and helping her roll out a cart with a four-tier cake settled on it. My cake was out of this world beautiful. I’d seen less fancy cakes at weddings. The bottom tier had pink and brown stripes, the third tier had pink frosting with silver squiggles, the second tier had brown frosting and pink dots covering it, and the tiniest tier was all pink with an exquisite stiletto perched on top. Upon closer inspection, I could tell the shoe wasn’t actually on the cake, it was on a little stand with four prongs going into the top layer. I also saw that it was no ordinary shoe. The red sole gave it away–– it was a Christian Louboutin. Only the most coveted shoes in the world. I didn’t have to be a celebrity follower to know that design, and know that women everywhere would do anything for a pair of these outrageously expensive shoes.