year then.”
Mason grinned. “Have fun tomorrow night and don’t do anything I wouldn’t do.”
I stared at him with my eyebrow raised.
“On second thought, forget I said that. Just behave.”
I kissed my fingers and placed them lovingly on the webcam before I closed the laptop. My apartment was quiet without Mason there. I had become accustomed to his band mates coming around too. He was practically living with me. It made waking up alone unnerving.
The next night I got myself ready, despite that fact that Lynn couldn’t make it out with us. Going out without her or Mason was just something I never did, but I was feeling bold. Maybe it was the short dress I’d bought on Rodeo Drive or the heels Lynn had given me for Christmas, but when I looked in the mirror I really liked my appearance. I had come so far from knotty hair and clothes from the local church that didn’t fit me to clothes from Beverly Hills and shoes that were worth more than my entire wardrobe.
I stood there in the mirror a bit longer. My outer appearance had done a complete turnaround but
I was still me. The Fallyn that was unsure and lost was still inside. It was easy to hide that girl under nice things and a false sense of self.
***
The club was packed when I arrived with the two other girls. I had been to plenty of bars in the area but I had never been to a true club, with a red rope and a bouncer. The music was blaring from two large speakers and the dance floor was full of bouncing ‘Happy New Year’ hats.
I turned the switch off on my brain that controlled my fears and followed my coworkers through the crowd. Angela and Stephanie were their names. They were my age, beautiful and had more money than they knew what to do with. Heads turned as we slid through the crowd holding hands. I felt a rush of power that I never realized I had before.
“I’m buying first round,” Stephanie announced over the thumping beat. “Then I’m finding a hot guy to keep me company on the dance floor.”
“Find me one too,” Angela said as she signaled the bartender for Stephanie.
Stephanie ordered us a round of girly drinks and I giggled. Mason would have had something to say about drinking a fruity drink. Still, I took it with a smile on my face in an attempt to play nice.
“Let’s mingle,” Stephanie said as she tried to grab my hand and pull me away from the bar.
“This place is crawling with men.”
“I’m just gonna stay here,” I half shouted at her.
Angela put her hand on Stephanie’s arm. “Fallyn has a boyfriend.”
“Oh, that’s right! Mason. I remember you telling me that now.” Mason smiled sweetly and walked away.
I resisted the urge to roll my eyes. I was way out of my element and I felt foolish standing in that club with a girly drink in my right hand. My companions had hit the dance floor and found a couple of men who I’d seen frequently on the cover of tabloids in the checkout line at Whole
Foods. The whole night was going to be marred by my bipolar tendencies, I should have known.
I wanted to blame it on Mason but the sensible part of me knew I couldn’t and shouldn’t hold him back from being successful because I wanted to be selfish. So, I salvaged the evening the best way I knew how. I let random men buy me drinks and moved on after they had. The whole scene reminded me of the night Jill left me in Philly.
My stomach rolled at my behavior and the revelation. I leaned against the bar, ignoring the guy that was trying to buy me another drink. Stephanie and Angela were gone as far as I knew. I hadn’t seen them and that was OK because I was completely drunk. I stumbled from the bar toward the ladies room. I ignored the attendant at the counter and leaned against the cool granite to splash my face with some water. The temperature in the bathroom had spiked all of a sudden.
It wasn’t until I looked up at my reflection in the mirror, that I saw her. A drop of water fell from my nose as I stood absolutely still. Her black hair was curly under a New Year’s hat, her makeup flawless as usual. Her eyes, on the other hand, were bloodshot. She looked like