A/N: Hi guys, so here goes chapter two. Thanks for reading so far and I hope you enjoy this next installment.

Chapter two – Cheers (drink to that)

"Finally, I've been sat here for twenty minutes on my own checking my phone, looking tragic and like I've been stood up!"

"Sorry, sorry, subway, you know how it is," Karen pulled herself up onto the bar stool and took a deep drink from her the gin and tonic in front of her. Ice and lime, just how she liked it.

"It's a good job I love you."

Karen threw her arms around her best friend in an apology for leaving her waiting. "I love you to Ana!"

"So tell me everything, how'd he take it?" Ana probed Karen for details of her latest break up. Ana was used to the procedure for her best friend by now. Karen likes male attention, she also despises it. She gets a hell of a lot of it that's for sure. Between the two of them, they both knew they could catch the eye of pretty much any guy in this bar.

Ana was petite, with a short pixie hair cut that framed her delicate features. A strip of purple broke up the dark black of her locks; she wore matching purple eye shadow, and thick black eyeliner to make her eyes stand out. She had an edgy look, not overly dark but very rock chick chic.

Karen was quite different from the girl she whinged to at the bar, there glasses clinking together to cheers her bad day.

She was fairly tall, around 5"8 and unlike today she usually rocked a wicked pairs of heels that made her seem much taller and left her slender legs traveling up for ever. Karen's hair was a deep chestnut naturally and bouncy with loose curls. It matched her brown eyes to the tee. She had on a deep red dress, the colour of wine. As she shook off her jacket, Ana admired her outfit.

"Looking hot girlie," she wolf whistled.

"I do not!" Karen argued. "I really wasn't in the mood to get dressed up. I hate break ups!"

Ana, though feeling sorry for friend, chuckled gentle.

"No you don't, or you wouldn't go through this so freaking often," she pushed Karen's shoulder playfully.

"Okay, I just never learn. I agree. But Dev…he was a difficult one to shake. I felt bad Ana!"

"She had a heart, who knew it," Ana feigned surprise with her hand over her lips.

"Bitch," Karen faked upset.

"So, another one bites the dust. Cut it out and move on, I say."

Ana and Karen had been best friends since their early teen years, now they were roommates sharing a modest apartment in a not so nice neighbourhood in Brooklyn. It was crooked, and quirky but Karen liked to describe their place as quaint. It was all they could afford anyway, no sense in complaining.

The girls drank and talked bad ex-boyfriends and even worse first dates they'd had in the past.

"God do you remember bad breath Stefan?" Ana asked

"How could I forget!" Karen almost slipped off her bar stool.

"When he tried to kiss you on the doorstep, your face was hilarious. I couldn't keep a straight face." Ana was giggling and getting animated with her hands as she spoke.

"I hate you," Karen complained. She was feeling the effects of the gin now and it made her both giddy and a little bit sad. Karen was terrible at relationships, she was fully prepared to admit it. She liked bad boys, and that never ended well. She tried nice, sensible, reliable men – but they just didn't really do it for her. And then every once in a while she'd meet someone like Dev, who was just the right mix of dependable but exciting and she'd freak out and end things abruptly for no good reason.

She was in a holding pattern, and she didn't think it would break anytime soon.

"It's Friday night, let's move on to somewhere a little feistier and have a dance," Ana bellowed at Karen, also feeling the inebriating effects of her vodka and coke.

"You had me at 'its Friday'" Karen smirked, downing the last of her drink and grabbing her coat.

"You got anything lined up for tomorrow?" Ana asked.

"I've got an evening shift at Ricky's, you?" Karen replied as they headed up the stairs an out onto the street.

"Nope I'm off. I have some stuff to prepare for an audition on Monday, but that's Sunday's problem."

"Plan," Karen looped her arm through Ana's as they walked through the streets of Brooklyn in search of another Bar.


"Fucking hell," Dereck swore loudly, "I'm not fucking shouting at you Daisy, I'm in a bar. It's loud."

Derek ran his fingers through his hair in frustration.

"I'm meeting a friend," he paused while Daisy spoke, "no its not some floozy, not tonight anyway."

He took a large gulp of scotch and signed.

"I'm kidding, yes I being purposefully difficult. I'm such a prick I know. Look I'm just meeting Danny Ward for a catch up. He's in town and might have something new to send my way next week after a couple of meetings are complete that he's in New York for."

Derek knew he was being a pain in the ass, but she drove him mad. Daisy was not a low maintenance woman as a girlfriend, sorry fiancé, Derek mentally corrected himself. He should know, it was there three year anniversary in a month or so and she'd already started hinting about how they should celebrate. The Caribbean had been mentioned more than once. He was just getting a bit sick of her 'checking in' recently. He wasn't sure what had spurred this latest streak of paranoia from his other half, but it was taxing.

"I'll be home a little late, so you don't have to wait up. I'll make it up to you this weekend sweetheart." He turned on the charm a little more now just to get the conversation to an amicable end for the night.

"Right babe I've gotta go Danny should be here any minute I need to get him a beer in." Dereck waited patiently as Daisy submitted and said she'd see him in the morning and to have a good night. He was pulling the phone away from his ear.

"Yeah, you too," he called into the speaker before finally hanging up. His ear was hot from the length of the call. He sank the remainder of his scotch and grabbed his leather jacket from the empty space in the booth next to him. He checked his watch, and rooted around in his pocket for his cigarettes. He strode across the bar towards the exit, needing to be outside for a bit.

He pulled open the door, the cigarette already between his teeth and lighter in his other hand. He stood to side as a girl stepped in the bar. She muttered "thanks" and nodded his way before heading straight to the staircase in the corner heading down to the cellar bar.

Derek watch her every step across the bar. Her hair swung around her shoulders; but his eyes were drawn down her slim figure to the greatest ass. Derek's eyes couldn't help but linger at the view. Her legs were toned and sexy. He loved the 'I don't care' doc martins that adorned her feet.

From that strut he knew she was a woman with a fair bit of attitude and she enticed him.

He'd only caught a quick flash of her face when she'd acknowledge him, but it was enough. She was stunning; all deep chocolate eyes and smooth, alabaster skin. Those cherry red lips had him short of breath momentarily.

He admired women. Beautiful women were not in short supply on the theatre scene, and he'd brushed shoulders with many a movie star in his time. But that girl.

God that girl…

Derek finally remembered he was stood in the doorway, he took to the street and sparked up, shaking his head.

Thanks for reading, please let me know what you think :) go on, you know you want to. xXx Sparks