by Ally Adams
Lucas greeted me with a smile.
“Hey Alice, I’ve dropped in to watch the soccer with your old man, figured you girls had some talking to do.” He smiled that melting smile.
“Ease up on the ‘old man’ talk,” my father quipped from the couch.
Mia jumped up and took my hand. “We’ll leave you men to it,” she said.
I could tell Dad and Ryan were pretty pleased with the company. Dad was ordering pizzas and taking topping suggestions from Lucas and Ryan as Mia led me back into my bedroom and closed the door.
“Right,” she said, taking charge. “You’ve been locked in your room for three days, you haven’t shown up at the cafe for your shifts, you haven’t answered my texts and you skipped your lecture today. Alice, we need to talk.”
I sighed, because she was right.
“I’m your best friend,” she reminded me.
“I know but you’re busy with Lucas now...”
“Wash your mouth out!” she exclaimed. I don’t know where Mia got these sayings from but she had a collection of good oldies in her vocabulary. She continued, “I’m never too busy for us, never! Now sit.”
I sat on the edge of the bed and she sat next to me and took my hand. We both dropped back on the bed and looked at the ceiling. I had plastic stars stuck to the ceiling and if it was night, some of them still glowed.
“Tell me everything,” she said, drawing a deep breath in anticipation of the load I was going to put on her.
I ran through it all. She commented every now and then. “Good... dangerous, you shouldn’t have got on that bike... well that was gentlemanly... was Valentina nice? What’s his house like?”
I filled her in. Then I told her the worse part. Since that night in Tomás’s bed I hadn’t heard a word from him... three days now. Clearly he didn’t want to work that hard to woo a virgin.
We sat in silence for a short while as Mia processed it all. I had already regurgitated it in my mind five million times, now, make that five million and one.
“Maybe he just wants to play the field and respects you too much to take your virginity in his stride,” Mia suggested.
“Take it, take it, I’m begging for him to take it,” I whined pathetically. “I don’t care if he is rough; if the super gorgeous Tomás Carrera can take my virginity I’ll live with rough, hell I’ll live with not being able to sit for a week.”
“You don’t mean that,” Mia said.
“Yeah, I do,” I said, turning side-on to face her. I didn’t say it out loud but I wanted to see that huge mass in his boxer-briefs and feel what it would be like to have it inside me. I wanted to orgasm and open my eyes to see Tomás’s dark chocolate eyes looking at me and if it was just the one night, then I’d live with that too.
But there was more, I was in denial pretending it never happened but it did, I had sent another text… I swallowed and looked to Mia. “I texted him that I wanted him to be the one to take it. Can you believe I did that the morning after I left his house? I am beyond mortified.”
“Oh no,” Mia whispered.
“I know.” I bit my bottom lip.
“Right, but you didn’t say the virgin word in the text?” Mia asked.
I sat up, grabbed my phone and thumbed to the text. I shook my head. “I said that I wanted him to be the one to take me.”
Mia breathed a sigh of relief. “Well that’s okay,” she said, and sat upright next to me.
“Is it?” I turned back around to look at her.
“Sure. If anyone sees that text or he tells, you can say you wanted him to be the one to take you to the college graduation ball, or take you for your first spin on a motorbike or...”
“I guess so.” I felt a small wave of relief. “I’m an idiot on so many levels.”
She rubbed my arm. “You’re not Ali. You’ve just fallen in... smitten.”
I looked at her. “Do people fall in smitten? Who still says smitten?”
Mia started to laugh and I joined in and then I cried. “How many days?” I sniffed, trying to remember the break-up or heartbreak pattern.
“Usually three,” Mia said. “First day is shock and pain, day two is raw heartbreak, day three is when you start playing ‘I will survive’ and can start rebuilding again. That’s now.”
I nodded. “I will survive,” I agreed. “Finn Lalor called and texted, but I haven’t got back to him yet.”
“Really?” Mia brightened. “We like Finn don’t we?”
I smiled at her. “Yeah, we do.”
There was a knock on the door and it opened a few inches. “Is it safe to bring pizza in?” Lucas asked.
“Very safe,” Mia said.
I wiped my eyes and I tried not to look at Lucas as he handed Mia a box of pizza. Then he squatted in front of me, making looking at him unavoidable.
“Is there something I should know?” he asked looking from me to Mia.
I shook my head and Mia spoke up. “It’s all good, we’ve got it under control.”
Lucas’s eyes narrowed. “Alice? Did Tomás do something that I need to deal with?”
Mia smacked him on the arm.
“What?” he turned to her. “I believe you, gorgeous, I just want to double-check with Alice,” he said, rubbing his arm dramatically.
“Tomás was a perfect gentleman, but thank you Lucas,” I said, sniffing again. I was pathetic.
Lucas looked confused. “Well that’s good then isn’t it?” He studied my tear-stained face before turning to Mia.
“No,” I said. “Yes, it’s complicated.”
“Right,” he said, rising. He leaned down and planted a kiss on Mia’s head before backing out of the bedroom slowly and closing the door behind him. I think he was scared to turn his back on me, sensing I was a lunatic.
Mia opened the pizza box.
“Come on.” She invited me to take a piece. “Let’s eat pizza, ice-cream and then I’ll go for a jog to apologize for my carb sins and tomorrow, you can start the new day with a new view... a view of Finn maybe.”
I nodded and took a slice. I bumped it against hers. “Cheers.”
I wondered what Tomás was doing right now.
“No checking for texts, no looking at his Facebook page or tweets,” Mia ordered. “You’re now looking forward, not back. I think you should return Finn’s text.”
I nodded again. The pizza tasted like cardboard. Did I mention that I was pathetic?
Chapter 6
The next morning I was back on top, so to speak. I fried some eggs, made a round of toast and a pot of tea for me, Dad and Ryan; even Dad said I was looking like my normal self again. I’m guessing that was a good thing.
I had one day of prac a week in my final semester of my events management course—every Tuesday I worked with Josie from Planet Events. Trust me, Josie was a bit off the planet herself. She was a one-person, small business dynamo who supplemented her staff by using students like me. Josie was usually out of control—picture a thin, neurotic, hyped-up and highly-strung forty-something woman with bird’s nest hair. Lord knows why she went into managing events, nuh, he’s probably still wondering too.
That morning she lived up to her neuroticism and left me to meet with two brides while she went to woo a writers’ group into giving her their three-day festival to manage. The first bride, Lucy, was a dream; everything was too easy, super relaxed and was going to be “great fun”. I counted she said that eleven times, bless her. Bride two was bridezilla—okay her real name was Laura but I’m sure her surname was Bridezilla. It was pretty much downhill from her first question.
“So, Alice, how many weddings have you organized before?” she asked, folding her hands over her chest.
“Well,” I stalled, not wanting to lose business for Josie, “while I have been doing my three year degree in event management, I’ve worked on quite a few and I’ve seen some wonderful and successful weddings.”
She sniffed. It was one of those nose-up in the air sniffs. I think she was
slightly curious about the wonderful weddings and how she could be sure hers qualified and that I’d be talking about it for years. Bridezilla took a deep breath, looked at her mother, then back at me and began.
“I hope you have a pen and paper because this is what I’m expecting. The table linen must be crisp white and I mean white... not washed, not tinged, not even the slightest mark of any former wedding. The bride and groom’s seating should be slightly above everyone at the front of the room so we can be seen. I’ll need my own large room to go to during the day to have some moments alone, not one of those small powder rooms, the bridesmaids can use that...”
She stopped to draw breath and her mother began to speak. Bridezilla held up her hand to silence her. “In case you have forgotten, this day is all about me,” she told her mother. “I have a vision for this day, my vision and I’ll do the talking...” I tuned out and began to wonder if it was too late to change my degree to law instead.
*****
“Longest day in the history of the world and it is only lunchtime,” I told Mia over the phone as I stirred the froth on my cappuccino during my break. “But on the bright side and there’s always a bright side,” I cheered up, “I don’t have time to mope around thinking about certain sport stars and I have my health.”
“Well that’s two bright sides,” Mia said. “Hey, I called with some news.”
“You’re engaged!” I said, holding my breath.
“What? No!” Mia exclaimed, “we’ve only been going out a minute... but that would be cool wouldn’t it? Mia Ainswright, yeah what a shame that Mia Carter sounds better. Mia Carter-Ainswright is too much isn’t it? Anyway, so not going there yet.”
“Sorry, I’ve been hanging around brides all morning, I’ve got weddings on the brain,” I explained. “Promise me when you get married you won’t turn into one of those brides-from-hell.”
“I promise,” Mia said. “Actually we should have a word... you know so if either of us is getting insane-like during the wedding preparations we say the word and it reminds us to chill out.”
“Agreed,” I said, “but not something obvious like Bridezilla.” I undid my jacket—I had to wear a suit to work on prac days—and slipped it off. “News, what new?”
“Oh yeah, thanks,” Mia said. “The Saints management is looking for an event coordinator.”
I sat up straight. “Wow.” This was good, very good.
“Yeah,” Mia agreed. “I’m reading it online now. They are looking for a junior or graduate to manage all the Club’s events including the home game day entertainment, best and fairest night, annual gala ball, season launch, social media, and so on.”
“Wow,” I said again. Being an event coordinator for a national sporting team would be fantastic for the CV and since I would graduate in a few months’ time, it would be good to beat the rush of jobless in the market.
“They’ll get hundreds of applicants.” I pointed out the obvious. “That’s a dream job.”
“Yes,” Mia said, “but not every applicant knows the game like you do and has been going to the game—that’s impressive and they’re bound to ask that at the interview. Plus, not every applicant can put Lucas Ainswright, captain of the Saints, as a personal referee.”
“I can’t ask Lucas to do that, he doesn’t even know if I’m good at what I do,” I said.
“It was his idea,” Mia said, “and of course you’re good at what you do.”
“OMG, Mia, he is the best, you have to keep him,” I gushed.
“I’m planning on it,” she said. “You’ll be working in the offices at the home ground so you’ll be surrounded by all the atmosphere. You have to work match days of course, but...”
“But we both will be. You’ll be in the physio rooms, and if I get the job, I’ll be doing event coordination. This is so exciting, so exciting!” I said again, “I want that job.”
“Okay, do the application tonight and call me after. Lucas said to let him know when you’ve applied and he’ll put in a good word with the HR Manager.”
“Thank you, thank him,” I said, then stopped. “Do you think it’s wrong trying to get a job through the back door like this?”
“Are you crazy?” Mia said. “That’s how a lot of jobs are secured. It’s not what you know it’s who you know... my parents always say that. I got my part-time job because my boss knew my science teacher at school... I’m pretty sure they went out.”
“Must have ended well,” I mused. “M, this is wonderful.” I used her nickname—there’s not a lot to work with when it comes to shortening Mia. “Can you tell Lucas I’m stoked and tonight, straight after I feed the men,” I said, referring to my father and brother, “I’ll do up my application. Thanks again for telling me.”
After I hung up, on a wave of highness if there’s such a thing, I texted Finn back and said I’d love to catch up for a drink later in the week. The world was looking brighter.
And then my phone pinged with a text which was nothing unusual—except this was one from Tomás.
Chapter 7
Damn him and his sexy smile and hot body! It was day four... I was in recovery mode... I was like ‘Tomás who?’, okay that might be crap, but really, I had stopped thinking about him every minute and replaying the horror movie in my head. I had it down to about every couple of hours now. I was thinking survivor thoughts and feeling sorry that one day when he was an old, injured and retired soccer star, he’d figure out what he missed and it would be too late because I’d be swept up by some other fantastic guy.
I felt my stomach flip as I opened the text.
“Hi bella, event job going @ club. U should apply. Miss U. Tomás x”
What the fuck? Miss me? Call me then! See me, take me out, do me, have me, unvirginize me or deactivate my virginity for crying in a bucket. I stopped now and took a deep breath. This required a serious girl discussion to decide on the return text—did I aim for warm and sweet, grateful, funny or a ‘go screw yourself’ text. I needed a straight shooter, not Mia this time because even though she promised not to share everything with Lucas, I didn’t want Lucas having any quiet words with Tomás.
This was a job for Cassie. I hadn’t seen her since we went to the Shaken Not Stirred bar last weekend and she witnessed me leaving the club with Tomás. But the best thing about Cassie was that she didn’t pack any punches. She was a real redhead—fiery and a straight shooter. I texted her and met her for a coffee on the way home from my day with Planet Events.
“Reel him in like a fish,” she said, without hesitation.
“What, really?” I studied her trying to gauge if she was for real. Cassie looked gorgeous—she always looked gorgeous even as a poor student. She had on a green velvet dress and with her wild red hair, she looked like a beautiful witch.
“Are you going to eat your shortbread?” she asked, looking at the complimentary biscuit on the edge of my saucer.
“No, couldn’t fit it in,” I teased her, and she smiled and grabbed it before I changed her mind.
“I’m serious,” she said with a mouthful of shortbread. “You need to take charge with Tomás.”
“So you think I should be flirty?” I asked.
She nodded. “Alice, get with the program. The hottest goalkeeper in the country sits with you and your friends at a club, is hot for you and he takes you home. He could have just done you there and then... but he didn’t. How many guys would hesitate to take a girl’s virginity? They all want to be the first in a nice tight virgin and forever in your mind.”
“Eww,” I said, grimacing.
“It’s true,” Cassie said. “Instead, as soon as he finds out it’s your first time, he doesn’t take advantage of you. He steps away.”
“And then he goes completely off me. What’s that about?”
Cassie leaned forward and lowered her voice. “Maybe he doesn’t want the commitment of a relationship and he knows that taking your virginity means you are going to be expecting that. Maybe he just wants to
play the field while he can, while he’s at the top of his game.”
I knew it, Mia knew it and Cassie knew it but Cassie was the only one who said it out loud.
“Thanks, Cassie.” I swallowed her words, trying to bury the hurt that cut me like ribbons.
“I’m sorry but...” she shrugged.
“No, I’m grateful, thank you for calling it like it is. No point kidding myself,” I said.
“So reel him in.” She leaned back.
“But if he doesn’t want me, why would I do that?” I said. I know I’m not the most experienced relationship person in the world, but I was missing this one completely.
Cassie smiled. “Alice, it’s Relationships 101.”
“Damn, I missed that class,” I said.
Cassie laughed. “We always want what we can’t have. Look at you... last semester you would have wet yourself for a date with Finn Lalor. Now you’ve got one later this week and you haven’t given it a second thought. In fact, Mia told me about the date, not you!”
“Right.” I tried to keep up. “But Tomás could have me.”
“Tomás doesn’t know he wants you,” Cassie said.
“Oh.” I nodded. “Nuh, still not getting it.”
Cassie rolled her eyes. “You’re sweet, and cute, and a virgin. He likes you, he’s attracted to you, he’s missing you—his words—and I bet you anything he doesn’t want anyone else having you, but he doesn’t want to go the commitment you require just yet.”
“Okay, I’ve got that loud and clear,” I said, with a smirk.
“So you need to show him that if he doesn’t want your virginity, someone else does… and he can play around all he likes but look what he’s missing out on.”