I see him lurking on the side of the dance floor, holding a scotch.
He haunts me.
Eden grabs my arm and pulls me close to her so that my ear is just below her mouth. “Arlo is here!”
I pull back and rub my ear from the pain of her screaming into it. I’m going to be deaf by the end of the night if we keep this up.
I laugh as I shake my head and go back to dancing. Now, I’ve convinced Eden that Arlo is everywhere too.
Eden grabs my cheeks and turns my attention toward the far wall.
“What?”
“Arlo!”
I catch my breath when the crowd parts just enough for me to see a tall, dark man leaning against the wall with an amber-colored liquid in a glass. His eyes are fixated on me with a deep grimace on his face.
“He’s here,” I say slowly, looking at Eden.
She nods.
“Why is he here?” I ask.
She laughs. “Because he likes you.”
I bite my lip and then grab Eden’s arm. I head straight toward the restroom, weaving and pushing people aside. I have to talk to her. Now.
When I see the line outside the woman’s restroom, my heart sinks. Of course there is a line.
Instead, I pull her into the men’s room.
“Hey, ladies,” one of the men at the urinal says as we enter.
“Get out!” I say. I walk over to the stalls. “Ever
yone, out. Now!”
The men start exiting the stalls, some still zipping up their pants. Some look at me amused, but I just glare at them, and they realize just how serious I am. They all leave.
When I’ve ensured that we are alone, I lock the door to the entrance of the restroom.
Eden raises an eyebrow. “Why have you brought me to the men’s restroom? Do you really need to pee that bad?”
I shake my head and take a deep breath. “I need to talk to you.”
Eden blinks a couple of times as I try to figure out where to start, but I have no idea.
“Well…spill,” Eden says.
“I’ve been obsessed with Arlo since the first time I saw him when we were touring his mansion for art class when he saved me. He told me to leave him alone, but of course, I couldn’t do that. I snuck into his party, but he was expecting me to. After dinner, I followed him to his room where he was making out with three other women. I tried to join in. He locked me in his bathroom. He told me to leave him alone. I told him I couldn’t and that I wanted to be in his debt like the other women. He locked me in a dungeon for the night and told me to forget about him. Then, he got naked in front of the whole class. I went after him. And he kissed me. Then, he gave a lecture that was directed at me to never be in his debt. And, now, he’s here.” I take a deep breath after not breathing through telling her everything.
Eden just stands there, staring at me.
“Well?” I ask.
“And the problem is?” she asks with a smile.
I narrow my eyes. “What do you mean, and the problem is? This guy is a bigger mess than I am. One second, he is pushing me away, and the next, he is going after me. You are supposed to give me advice. What should I do?”