Chapter no 4

"So, I have a plan for tonight!" Said Amy, when she finished writing the last page of her assignment. I still have two more to go. 

I eye her, "...Okay?!" She always has plans for her nights, party, and stuff. Why is she telling us...and looks so excited.

"No, I am implying that I have a plan for all of us tonight," She says.

"What exactly?" I ask.

"Sacred Club," She winks.

"...Why?" She seems so excited about going there, we go there practically every other day. My Dad owns the place.

"To drink, And look around," she said wiggling her eyebrows. We all eye her suspiciously. We all practically grew up in that club, Well mostly because it was the safest place other than home according to my Dad, and also it was free, mostly, when we had to hang out, we go there. 

"Can't join!" I say getting back to writing. 

"And why is that?" Asked Mae. 

"Dad's not well...and I don't think I'll have the permission for a late night after last week's meeting incident," Plus, I don't feel like listening to blasting music today after that stupid math test I had today which I actually really worked hard for but didn't come handy at all. 

"Oh come on, Ella. You are nineteen, a freakin' adult, Grow some ass," she said.

"I have a pretty much-grown ass, It's just he is already sick and I don't wanna stress him more," 

"But we have to go," Amy urges me, "You have to come, we will get out early I promise, In fact, we'll go there in the evening," she gives me her puppy eyes, and I smile at her.

"What is in your mind, Amy?" Asked Jen. She is acting as if Sacred Club is just not our second home. 

"Well, there is this new Boy, well man actually, a new bartender there..." She eyes me as If I'll know about what the hell she is talking about 

"And...," 

"He is Smokin Hot, I mean hot as fuckin' hell, man!"

I rolled my eyes at her and smiled. She is crazy. 

"Okay, let's go," said Jen. 

"What?" I asked. "Are we really doing this now? 

"Okay, I'll confirm as soon as I reach home," I assure them while they look at me with their pissed-off faces. I quickly get done with my assignment and grab my bag. 

"Don't spoil our plan," Amy says to me. 

"I won't," I say, getting up, smiling. All of them are so excited to see the new boy. How freakin' crazy girls with harmonies can be. 

"I can guarantee he is hotter than the guy you met last week," Amy whispered in my ear. I giggled, "No way, You haven't seen him yet, No words describe his beauty," I replied back. 

"Well, let's see, Cause I feel the same about this man," She winked, "Imagine them both being the same person," Her eyes flashed, as my heart skipped a beat at the thought. Woah what was that, why skipping beats at his mention. I frowned. 

"umm... I don't think so, he didn't seem like a man who needs to work at clubs, I mean, He looked like he must own such a club or some kind of CEO of a big ass company or something," But the thought of meeting him again swirls my mind. So, I find myself determined to join my friends at the club today. Not many days do you get to see handsome men like him. And even though I cannot date them, I can sure as hell engage in harmless flirting and admire God's beautiful creations. 

I sat in my car, tossing my car in the passenger seat. I pull out of the parking lot and ride out of the gate. I look behind through the rearview mirror and as I had expected, I was being followed by Jeep with Men with Guns. My Dad's doing. I sigh. He just has to be the biggest paranoid. I look around and see people looking at me and the car behind and behaving weirdly, making me feel weird. I don't want to cater to unwanted attention, that a big jeep full of guards forces me to, that is why I avoid them as much as possible, even try and escape them when I am highly irritated or just not in the mood. Dad hates when I do that but I just want to be normal and also nothing ever happened that can threaten my existence. 

I reach back home and run upstairs. I keep my bag on the desk, and lay on the bed with my back, sighing. I am tired. I am usually tired back from school. I can't wait for the day I get to finish High school and get to college. 

My phone chimes and I look at it. It was Amy's text. 

"Be there at 6 PM, sharp," I roll my eyes. From my past experiences, I know I would be there along with Mae and Jen and she will be the one coming the last and late, this is her usual ritual since we became friends. My phone chimes again. 

"I know you are thinking I will be the one late today, but Hon NOT TODAY, I want to see that hunk of a man as soon as possible," I laugh, sure we'll see about that. I text her back with an "Ok." 

It was 2 PM right now. I have three hours so, I decided to lay down for a while. Then I showered for a long hour, just standing in the warm shower, swaying to the songs playing on the speaker in my room, and singing along. Then, I tried on some flirtatious faces, didn't work out, I looked like I was asking for drugs than a drink. I am so immature in all these. I didn't even know how to wink. Whenever I try to do that I close both of my eyes and it looks like I am on cheap drugs. 

After showering, I stood in my closet, wrapped up in towels, searching for my clothes. I mean searching through my clothes to find a dress to wear that will be perfect for the event. 

After taking an eternity to decide, I put on a royal blue wrap dress, with a bow in the front and a cut in the back showing a little skin, with lace sleeves. Pair it up with black earrings and rings, followed by black heel boots. I did a bit of makeup and I was all set to go. 

I grab my handbag and put some money in it. Checking one last time in the mirror, I head downstairs. My heels click the stairs and make a beautiful sound. Enough to grab the attention of Madam Rosella. 

"Miss Ella, You leaving?" She asks. I turn around, facing her with a smile. Her grey hair is tied up in a bun, which one of these fine days, I want to learn from her how to make, so I can replicate it when I get all grey and old. She looks so classy in that. 

"No, Madam Rosella, I wanted to meet the flowers in the garden, all dressed up, probably have a conversation about global warming and its impact on their lives, what say?" I smile at her cheekily. She crosses her hands over her stomach, her wooden spatula in the air next to her. 

"Does your father know about your sudden interest in Global warming?" She asks. This is why I like her, she never gets offended by my sarcasm but rather reply mine with her own. 

"I will call him in the car, don't worry, I'll be home early," I said. 

She shook her head, And I knew what was coming. "You will not call while driving," 

I let out a heavy sigh. of course, "Fine," I said, "I can't believe I am being treated like a child when I am an adult," 

"That's what you get when you live with your parents!" She smiled cheekily. 

"As if, I would be allowed to move out, in any way," I roll my eyes and she laughed. I knew it would never happen, not one in a trillion chances, that Ill convince my father that I want to move out and he let me, instead he will probably lock me up in my room. I grabbed my phone and called my father, asked him if I could go and that ill come back before 11. after a lecture on how to be safe and not get drunk and a promise to take the guards with me, he finally let me go. 

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Mae was sitting on the passenger's street, as I drove both of us to the Sacred Club.

"I'm surprised you still ask for permission before going out, and then this dating ban, such a strict father," after I finished telling the story of how I convinced my father to let me go and why this whole jeep with overweight heavy built men are following us again.

" He is strict Mae, he is just overprotective," 

"Protective of what Mae, it's not like you are under threat, or something, I mean I never had any guards and do what I want, yet nothing happens to me, cause that is what is normal, This," she pointed behind, at the big ass of a jeep, following behind me drawing much-unwanted attention, "is not normal," 

"Yes, Mae and that is why I used the term over,"

"Be rebellious, sneak out sometime, enjoy the late nights of Seattle babe," 

"Yes, and my dad will find out, seal the windows from where I escaped, and lock me in my room," I said shaking my head. 

I felt her pouring both her eyes at me and I turned my face a bit to look at hers, covered in confusion and some horror. Did I say something wrong? so, I mouthed the question in my head. 

"Yes, you just said your father would lock you up and seal your windows," 

"...Yes,"

"And you think that's normal?" 

Her question caught me off guard, My mind raced towards the time when I was young, probably eleven when all my friends were going to a late-night birthday party and I asked for permission and Dad didn't allow it. So, I tried to sneak out and even reached the event but I was taken back by my Dad and I was locked in my room for almost a week. Well, one could say he grounded me, a bit too strictly yes, but I kind of deserved it...I guess. 

Forcing a smile on my face, "I was just kidding Mae, Common," 

She rolled her eyes, "Yeah Right," 

Soon enough I was pulling up in front of the Sacred Club's huge building. Mae and I both got out and I entered inside with her through the large wooden door. The guards lowered their heads in respect. This place was luxurious and far more decent than all these regular clubs. A huge bar on one side and booths on the other, tables and chairs all extravagant, and a sparkly black dance floor in the center. Upstairs is all for VIPs, we go there sometimes when downstairs is packed, which usually happens at night. 

I saw Jen and Amy, sitting at the bar, already having a drink. Amy's early as she had said, I am impressed! The bar was round and long, with all kinds of alcohol from the biggest companies, including the favorite flavor of Irish whiskey, lined behind the desk in racks of all glass. Golden and Red lights illuminate the area where Amy and Jen were sitting. 

As I approached my best friend and close friend with my other close friend beside me, my eyes fell on a back, covered in a black T-shirt, behind the bar. The shirt was not too loose to make it look nerdy nor too tight to make the back of the person look like a hoe. It fit perfectly, defining the broad shoulders and tiny waist, forming a V, and hips of just perfect size, but still left a lot of muscular details to the imagination. 

When I was only three feet away, he turned. And somehow his eyes met mine, the exact moment his front came into view. My eyes widen in stupefaction and shock, searching the same in his, shock or recognition. But it never came. It was him, Yes, she was hell sure it was him by the way Air was knocked out of her chest and her heart decided to do a weird flip. The meeting of eyes did last for a couple of seconds, which felt like an eternity to mine, but his eyes were blank, of any hints. And just like that, they turned away.

I blink my eyes several times, to see clearly but it was there, it was him, in the formal attire this time, behind the bar, just where her friends were sitting. I didn't realize I was glued to my place until Mae nudged me. I never expected him to be here, from all the places in the world, than here. Hell I never even expected to see this beauty of a Man ever again, I thought it was only a one-time blessing for my eyes, and yet he was where I could see him practically every day. 

I sat on the comfy stools and smiled like crazy under the impact of my friends laughing at me. 

"By the look on your face and eyes, he is the same guy, isn't he?" Ella whispered to us so, he didn't hear us. 

I nodded lightly, all while smiling till my cheeks hurt. 

"What Guy?" Asked Jen, I shook my head, "He," 

"Girl, I wanna hear all the shit you are talking about," she said, her cute African accent flowing out. I gave her all the shit we talked about and how he turned out to be the same guy. And apparently, he doesn't even remember me. 

"Oh hell No, He is just being an Arrogant Bitch," said Mae. 

"I doubt that, he did not look at me even that night, as if he wasn't interested, so maybe he really doesn't remember me," I said, sadly. 

"That asshole!" She said,

"Maybe he is...Gay?" said Jen, my eyes widen, oh hell no, he shouldn't be, please god. 

"Or maybe Loyal to his girlfriend or something," Said Mae and my heart swells with sadness, Somehow him being Gay now was more appreciated by my mind. 

We sit there thinking of more other options with them coming out with all these weird fantasies and imaginations, mostly sounding like all of it being a K drama, and I stare at them thinking that stupidity and imagination were my field of expertise, how come they all are soo good now. 

Cutting through the crap, I shake my head and put it out of the crowd of these three. "Excuse me!" I said, my eyes on him. He turned and being all professional, approached me. By now the girls had stopped talking, cause my ears felt at ease and I felt their eyes changing from him to me. 

"Yes," His voice, I swallow my saliva down, "Irish whiskey please," I said. He nodded all too professionally for me, his body tensed as he turns gracefully took the bottle from the cabin and filled the glass till three fingers, and placed it in front of me. 

With no eye contact or even a glimpse, he got back to his work. I looked down, grabbing my drink and drinking it all down. 

Maybe I was not as pretty as people tell me I am. The night went by, us drinking as we were being served all civilly and with minimum words and no unusual flirting our usual bartenders are expertise in. 

'What a waste of dressing up,' she thought, looking down, her heart swelling in an unusual sadness of rejection. She never gave a damn about anyone looking at her or not, or thinking whatever about her, But she doesn't know why she wanted him to look. Eye contact or him to notice her at least. She felt beyond annoyed at herself for feeling like this, She was Eleanor Vitale, and here she was craving the attention of a worker her Dad's employers employed, how dare he made her feel this way? How dare she felt so worthless. Probably he is Gay, or happily married. She appreciated loyalty no matter what so she decided to ignore him as much as she was able to, which wasn't really a lot. 

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But what if he is watching her every time she looks away? What if he is noticing and remembering everything about her too? What if he is too annoyed at how he is feeling?