She sounds genuine, and I give her a double-take.
Isla seems like a very nice girl. Despite me acting like a lunatic, she stuck with me, not leaving my side while I was nothing but self-absorbed.
“No, no… I’m sorry. I’m grateful for allowing me to join your group and stay with you for a couple more hours. The truth is… I never thought I’d find such a nice group of people.”
She laughs a bit dismissively, looking around the room.
“We are not that nice,” she jokes, pointing to the women dancing on a table and the men encouraging them from the sidelines. “There’s a lot of alcohol involved. That smoothes the edges quite a bit. You should see us living our normal lives. Em is nice. The rest of the bunch, not so much. Average, I’d say. And me?”
She musters an answer in response to my questioning look.
“It depends on who you ask. Some say I’m a bitch.”
“Men?”
She flashes an amused grin.
“Men and women.”
“Why?”
She shrugs.
“I don’t take bullshit from anyone.”
“You took it from me.”
“I like you.”
“Why?”
Her eyes soften as I hold her gaze.
“I think you and me are very much alike.”
“You mean… Three angry men are not after you?”
She laughs.
“Not tonight.”
I shift in my seat to face her.
“Really?”
“It hasn’t happened like that, but I’ve been chased around before. I know how it feels.”
My eyes trail down as I breathe out a sign.
Her hand comes to mine.
“Don’t worry. Men are hard.”
I look up.
“What do you mean?”
“They are hard to figure out. Some of them. Some, not so much. I like the first kind, though. But it’s not for everybody. They’re playing these stupid games. But they’re right…”