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“I don’t drink much at all,” I admit. “I’m fond of keeping my wits about me, but tonight is different. Tatiana and I haven’t gotten to spend much time together lately.”
“Sobriety is important, I agree, but so is letting loose once in a while.” His gaze flicks to Tatiana, who is regaling a bored-looking Dan with a story about something that happened in one of her classes last week. “Would you like to try a sip of this at least? It’s a barrel-aged whiskey. Very smoky and luxurious.”
I take the glass, earning another glare from Dan before he’s pulled back into Tatiana’s story. It certainly doesn’t smell luxurious. In fact, it smells astringent, just like every other hard liquor I’ve encountered. Having an appreciation for this sort of thing seems to be a must in a lot of social circles I’ll be expected to move in as I get older, but I just don’t know how I’m going to make that work.
Taking a deep breath, I sip the whiskey, suppressing the shudder that wants to run through me, and hand the glass back to Mark with a forced smile. “It’s… okay, I guess. I still think I prefer mixed drinks, though.”
“I get it. Sometimes it takes a little while to learn to enjoy the rougher things in life. You won’t always want things to be so sweet, you know, eventually you’ll crave—”
Glasses clink together, wobbling as Dan shoots up and out of his seat and slaps his hands down on the table. “Well, I’m tired of being here. Should we go check out another bar?”
Mark looks up at him, confused. “Uh, no thanks. I’m fine here, but you guys can go.”
“Are you sure? You said you just wanted to pop in here for a drink. You’ve certainly had more than one at this point.”
I’m secretly relieved that Dan interrupted whatever creepy point Mark had been getting at, but I’m still not done making him jealous. It’s too much fun.
“What part of he’s fine here are you not understanding, Dan?” I say.
He narrows his eyes at me, and I can see his jaw working. I’ve got him pretty annoyed now. Good. “Does your dad know you’re here drinking tequila shots and margaritas? Don’t forget, little girl, you're not even eighteen yet.”
Now Mark is pissed, putting his arm around my shoulder, and pulling me close to him as if he’s being protective. I don’t like it at all. “Don’t be a dick, man,” he tells Dan. “Why do you care what her dad thinks, anyway?”
“Because I know Sebastian quite well…” he starts, but I’m already seeing red at his attitude. “And I’m pretty sure he wouldn’t approve of his underage daughter being at a bar getting herself drunk with class the next day. It’d be a shame if he got to know about it.” Things are spiraling out of my control, and it’s no longer enjoyable making Dan uncomfortable. He’s taking things too far with his lame threat and I’m ready to get out of his sight.
I throw Mark’s arm off me, shouldering past Dan and aiming for the door. He grunts as I knock into him, and I feel his hand briefly try to grab my arm, but he doesn’t manage to do it. Through the buzzing in my ears, I hear Tatiana yell, “Elise, come back!” but it’s too late. I’ve already picked my course.
Out on the sidewalk in the night air, I open the Uber app and request a car. I hadn’t realized quite how drunk I was until I stood, and it was taking everything in me not to sway in my heels. The streetlights are too bright, exploding into starbursts if I look at them too long.
Tatiana follows me out, which isn’t a surprise. I’m sure she doesn’t like being left with people who are essentially strangers, but she’s also quite tipsy, stumbling as she reaches me.
“Hey, why don’t you just come back inside?” she asks, her eyes wide. “I know Dan was being rude, but he was definitely just joking. You know how his sense of humor is.”
“I don’t care. He’s being a dick, so I’m leaving.” Tatiana’s face falls, and she seems resigned to leaving with me, so I add, “You can stay, Tati. Talk to Mark, he seems nice enough. I know you’re having a good time.”
“Well…” She looks behind us and back at the bar. “You sure?”
“Positive,” I assure her, giving her a quick hug and struggling not to pull us both down to the ground with the way everything is spinning. Tatiana squeezes me and then heads back inside with a bounce in her step.
The Uber arrives, and I’m so happy to be able to just sit down inside the cool interior and close my eyes. No more standing. It’s quiet for about thirty-seconds, and then someone opens the other door beside me and climbs in. I’m offended until I realize it’s Dan. Now I’m pissed off all over again.
“Get out,” I say simply, but he closes the door and shakes his head.
“Either you let me go with you or I won’t even bother coming to your birthday party.”
I want to scream, but my head is pounding, and I don’t want to engage him in an argument right now. I relent, sinking back into the seat, and closing my eyes once more. Maybe he’ll be quiet, and I can pretend he’s not there.
Wishful thinking…
The Uber pulls onto the road as Dan begins to talk. “First off, I’m sorry for having behaved the way I did. But Mark is total trash, okay? I was just trying to protect you.”
“So why even hang out with him, then?” I ask, eyes still closed.
“Because he’s an art collector and my family does business with him. That’s it. I personally dislike him, but he’s closer to my age than my fathers’ and it’s important to keep up appearances with him. Elise, he’s not for you, and I don’t want him around you ever again.”
He sounds so adamant and firm that I can’t help but smile. I open my eyes just enough to see him, his face in shadow. He’s so close to me in this car, and I give in to the urge to scoot closer to him until we are hip to hip. I tilt my face up toward him, and after a second of hesitation, he looks down at me.
“Dan, were you jealous of Mark?”
