My heart hammered hard in my chest so fiercely I worried other people could hear it.
Hugh looked exactly like I imagined he would. He was easily the most underdressed person at the party in his worn jeans and a simple white shirt, Hugh wasn’t the type to dress up on command. His curly black hair framed his face messily. It wouldn’t have been my old friend if he’d obeyed the ‘Glitz and Glam’ dress code.
As I stole myself to go over and say hello, a bell rang out across the hall, interrupting my intentions. A waiter in a stuffy-looking suit stood on the small stage and asked us all to take our allocated seats. I looked around the room for Poppy and Jas, assuming I’d be sitting with them, until someone took me lightly by the elbow.
Cameron.
“I’ve got a suspicion we’ll be sitting together,” he said with a smile.
“And what makes you think that?”
Cameron shrugged. “I asked Vic to arrange it. I thought we could catch up; you weren’t exactly full of conversation this afternoon.”
That was fair. I promised myself that I wouldn’t get tongue-tied or carried away again for the rest of the night. Ladylike and dignified, that was my MO for the evening. I briefly wondered how Cameron could act as if nothing had happened between us after all this time, but then I remembered: that’s Cameron.
He led me to a table beautifully laid with a white linen tablecloth and little glass vases filled with lavender and spearmint. Hugh was already seated when we arrived, and he stood to greet me.
“Muriel.” Hugh stuck his hand out toward me like we were business associates meeting for the first time. If I didn’t know him so well, I’d assume he hated me, but I happened to know he’d greet his mother the exact same way, so I shook his hand confidently.
Our table quickly filled up with more people I didn’t recognize, although I felt like I should. I buried my disappointment that it wasn’t only the three of us at the table. As we all made small talk, the guys tactfully mentioned everyone’s names so I’d remember and not seem stuck up.
“So, I hear you’re a big shot influencer now?” Hugh said once the general chatter died down.
“I wouldn’t say big shot,” I said, uncertain whether it was a genuine question or a little dig at me. “It’s a job and it pays the bills, you know?”
“I’m a journalist at a local paper — the ability to pay bills is an alien concept to me.”
There was that cynical, deadpan humor I loved. “It must be satisfying, though, getting to investigate local stories and break the news?”
Hugh shrugged, but as always, Cameron was there to brag on his behalf. “He single-handedly whipped the town council into shape with his reporting. Any hint of corruption or mismanagement, and he’s on it like a hound dog.”
“That’s impressive,” I said, genuinely glad that Hugh had found a career he was happy with. “I pose in front of graffiti-covered walls and say ‘swipe up,’ every now and again. Your job sounds a lot more fulfilling.”
“Yeah, I guess so,” Hugh conceded. “Although people always need escapism, and that’s what you provide with your cute photos and everything.”
That was a perspective I hadn’t thought of before; I was so desperate to become a designer I hadn’t considered what I did for a living in such a positive light.
“I mean, I assume the photos are cute,” he continued, and I cringed, knowing what was coming next. “For some reason, I couldn’t find you on any social media.”
Both guys looked at me with raised eyebrows, though I sensed they were struggling to resist breaking out into grins. They knew I'd blocked them, and I didn’t want to have to explain myself, so I clapped my hands with glee as I was saved by the arrival of the waiter to serve our appetizers.
“Mmm, gazpacho,” I exclaimed with more enthusiasm than was necessary for a small bowl of soup.
We made it through the rest of the dinner without bringing up the fact that I’d removed them from my life again, and it was starting to feel like old times. We’d all grown in the past five years, but I still felt like we could be sitting in the library chatting excitedly about the future.
A waiter came round to top up the wine. Remembering my vow to be ladylike, I’d chosen white so I could avoid the dreaded purple teeth. The boys both chose red.
I stole a good glance at Hugh while he was distracted by his drink being poured; he had turned out to be a big old slice of heaven. Dark and brooding, his appearance fit his personality perfectly, just like Cameron’s preppy, boyish looks suited him.
I remembered coming home from school and writing about both the guys in my diary. I’d make lists of pros and cons for each of them, trying to decide which one I’d want to date if they were interested. They were so different from each other, but the list always ended up even—they added up to the perfect man for me.