As Serena walked in from the front door of her apartment, she saw the red light blink on her phone informing her of a missed call and a message, she knew who the message was from and what it was about. She placed her mail on the table next to the door and removed her shoes and jacket. After a long Week and a longer day at the university and then her shift at the bar and grill, she just wanted to crawl into bed. It was extremely busy at work, it was Friday and it was the playoffs for the NFL, the Green Bay Packard's and her home town the Philadelphia stealers were playing. The bar was packed and noisy, she couldn't hear the orders, and when she was placing the orders, it was like a maze to get the drinks to the patrons. She put her dinner in the kitchen and went into her living room and pressed play on the answering machine. Her apartment was a small 2 bedroom one bathroom suit. Serena converted the smaller bedroom into a study. She had a sitting room that had an eating area connected and the kitchen was adjacent to the eating area and was divided by a half wall. Some would call it small but she would call it cozy. It wasn't much but she can say that she was happy and independent. As the message played she went into the kitchen and got her plate and dished out her dinner. "Hi Sere, I just wanted to remind you of Darrien's engagement party this weekend. I told Deb that you were going to be there and she's really looking forward to seeing you. Please do make time out of your busy schedule and be there it would mean so much to Dare. Love you always and please remember to call me and make sure you lock your door Hun". It was her mom, she was expecting a call telling, no ordering, her to go to dear old Darrien's engagement party. She was going to have a glass of kool-aid however after hearing that message she decided to go with a glass of red wine instead and she took the bottle with her. Darrien was once her best friend, they knew each other since they were five, they went to elementary school together and then to middle school and then to high school. When he became the cool jock and part of the "it" crew he would still chill with just average Serena. Even after he went off to become some big hot shot business man and her still trying to be a lawyer who hopes one day to change the world and fight for those who can't fight for themselves, they still kept in touch. Its not that she didn't want to go, but she didn't like his fiancée, actually his fiancée didn't like her. Darrien was her first love, he was everything she wanted in a man and more, however Darrien didn't see her as someone he wants to be with but just as a friend.
As she was eating her dinner she remembered the good old days. She was there for him when his grandad passed away. His then girlfriend Samantha was not fully there to support him and help him through that tragic moment in his life. She held him in the nights when the impact of the loss hit him the most. She was there to dry the tears. She gave him all she had and all she can give. She wanted to tell her mom that she couldn't make it, but she knew that her mom would be disappointed in her and she didn't want that. She was thinking of just going for an hour and then say she had a paper due the next week and she needed to work on it. Yes it would be a lame excuse and small of her, but at least she's going. As she was getting up to put her dishes in the sink she felt the room spin, she looked down at the bottle to see how much she drank and to her surprise the bottle was half empty. She slowly made her way into the kitchen and placed her dishes in the sink "I'll wash it in the morning, stupid Darrien and his stupid engagement" she grumbled to herself.