When Scarlet had said she was certain, Elodie took her at her word and never mentioned her doubts or her overall dislike of Bryan again. She did say that she was sad that she was going to be losing her best friend to marriage, the great big sucking vortex that chews people up and spits them out, never the same again.
Yeah, it was safe to say that Elodie wasn’t a fan of marriage. It wasn’t just Bryan. Scarlet had laughed it off, promising Elodie that she was still going to be the same fun-loving, loyal, there for her whenever she needed it, best friend that she’d always been. Elodie had insisted that marriage makes one dull. To prove her wrong, Scarlet came up with the idea for a New Year’s party. Since Bryan was building a brand-new house for them and they were living in a tiny apartment, Elodie offered to host it for friends and family alike.
Scarlet hustled around the kitchen, wiping up spilled drinks and rescuing Elodie’s wood table from sticky bottles. They’d set out a plastic tablecloth on top, but still. It never hurt to be proactive on the clean up. Elodie’s small bungalow was overflowing with people, but the only time anyone strayed into the kitchen, which was set off from the rest of the house by a not so open concept floor plan, it was only to check to see if there was any alcohol remaining. There was. Barely.
Maybe it was what Bryan had said, but Scarlet found it hard to be cheerful. His comment about Neera had stuck with her like a burr, working its way under her skin, under her bones, until it was all she could think about because it hurt.
She would never do something like that.
Had she noticed that Neera was beautiful? Okay, yes, she had. She was young, vibrant, smart, gorgeous, and alive. It was hard not to notice and even harder not to be in awe of Neera’s radiance. Scarlet loved both Elodie and Neera like an extension of her own family. What Bryan had said was thoroughly unfair and unsettling.
Why? Because my thoughts of Neera haven’t been in a safe range ever since she got back?
Scarlet grabbed a roll of paper towel and tackled the sticky mess on the tabletop. Someone had spilled over a bottle of red wine and though it had been partially cleaned up by a well-intentioned individual, there was still a puddle on the floor that needed to be addressed.
Scarlet got down on her hands and knees and cleaned up the mess. The house was vibrating with laughter, low volume music, and the hum of conversations. Mostly laughter, which was a good thing. The sound of it ringing out, loud or high, a deep gut laugh or a short, soft, musical lilt, made her smile.
If Elodie realized that she was missing out on the fun, she’d be appalled, but that didn’t stop Scarlet from wanting to hide out in the kitchen. She’d spent the evening celebrating, and it was only in the past half hour that she’d needed an escape.
A set of gold heels came into view from underneath the table and Scarlet straightened. She stood up, holding onto a sopping bundle of wine-stained paper towels, to come face to face with the very person she was trying not to think about.
Neera.
Her eyes were sparkling, but also a little bit bleary and unfocused. She teetered in her heels when she tried to step forward and had to grab the table’s edge. She was stunning in that gold dress. Scarlet had pictured Neera in it when she’d ordered it, but no vision of hers could do the real thing justice. Her thick, dark hair had grown out while she was gone. She’d curled it into an array of waves. Her makeup was on the heavy side, but from her heavy eyeliner to her scarlet lips, the look complimented the shimmering gold dress and was perfectly suited to a New Year’s party.
“What are you doing in here all alone?” Neera asked, then she noticed the paper towels soaked with wine. “You’re cleaning up? Why? It’s almost midnight. You should be out there with everyone else.”
“I’m alright. The year will shift over whether I’m cleaning up messes or lifting a drink and counting down.”
“Yes, but— Mom would be so sad if she found out you weren’t having a good time.”
Scarlet smiled softly. “I’m having a good time. It was just a huge mess in here and I thought I’d get a head start. Maybe this year we won’t be cleaning until four in the morning.”
Neera frowned. “Still. I think you should leave it.” She held up her empty glass. “I was coming for a refill, but I now realize that it’s probably a shit thing to get drunk at one’s mother’s party just because one’s heart has been thoroughly stomped on.”
“I don’t know. If you’re going to need to do it at least once, I’d say that one’s mother’s party is the safest place.”
Neera set her empty plastic cup on the table. “I’m not really drunk.” It was obvious that she was. “I’m just slightly buzzed.”
Scarlet eyed the cupboards. “Can I get you a glass of water?”
“That would be nice, thank you.”
She turned and took down a glass from beside the sink before running the tap until the water was cold. She filled the glass and passed it over to Neera, who took it with so much care that Scarlet wondered if she was seeing double or if she was just worried about dropping it.
“Have you heard anything from anyone?” Scarlet asked, searching for something to discuss.
“No.” Neera shook her head. “It’s the holidays. Messes everyone up. I’m sure someone will call me back soon.”
“Would it be terrible of me to admit that I hope they wait just a few more days? It’s nice having you at the boutique. You do the work of ten people. You’re very organized and very efficient.”
“I think it’s because I’m a nurse,” Neera responded. She gulped down half the glass of water. When she pulled it away, her lips were wet, water beading on her scarlet lipstick. A jolt shot through Scarlet and that burr that Bryan had planted worked its way into the painful soft spots, irritating her when she should have been able to easily dismiss it. “I’m used to working in a crazy fast paced environment. I wanted to do neo-natal. Did I ever tell you that?”
“No. No, you didn’t.” Scarlet thought sadly of Bryan’s mistress, slash soon to be wife. Was it true she was pregnant? Bryan really had said that he never wanted children. She’d tried not to think about any of that, but she had to bite down on the inside of her cheek, hard, so she’d have something to focus on other than the burn at the back of her eyes.
Neera nodded. She finished the water and set the glass on the table. “I wanted to work with babies. This girl in my class was telling me about the ER and I thought— I don’t know. I guess that I figured that I could— that maybe it would be less heartbreaking? I don’t know why I thought that. I’ve seen a lot of people die.” Her hand shot to her mouth. “Oh, my God. I don’t know why I just said that. I’m sorry.”