~~Another boring filler chapter, sorry! But the next one will be good, promise! : )
"We need to dance!!" Tanya and Alice both smiled back at me, practically dragging me away from the bar, to the dance floor.
The night was passing by in somewhat of an amazing blur. Mark and Cath made sure our drinks never got below half full before placing a fresh one on our table. Ron stood in the back ground, making sure no one bothered us. I can't say I felt like a different person, because I didn't, instead, I felt exactly like myself, laughing, dancing and drinking with two of my best friends is exactly what the old Bella would be doing.
The DJ had just stopped and the band was beginning to set up. Alice had gone to the restroom, Tanya was flirting with a couple of cute soldiers, and I decided to sit down, hoping the room would stop spinning!
"Drink up Bells." Alice bounced to my side and set another shot down in front of me.
"UGHH." I groaned. "Probably not a good idea."
"No you are not drunk already?? Really, I'm disappointed, you used to be able to hang!" Tanya laughed turning away from her cute soldiers for a minute.
"Yes, well apparently 2 are a lot in drinking years, I haven't had more than a few beers during a football game in over 2 years." And tonight, well I lost count after the 6th shot and 3rd drink.
"Do you wanna go?" Alice asked, obviously disappointed.
The band was just starting. "No, no, no, I just need to sit for a few minutes, and drink a water, I'll be good as new! Go dance, have fun!" I waved for her and Tanya to go.
"I'll keep your friend company." One of Tanya's new friends offered as he sat down next to me.
Great! I thought to myself and rolled my eyes at Alice, she laughed as they all danced away.
"My name is Eric." He winked at me.
I smiled an uninterested smile. "Bella."
"It's nice to meet you Bella, do you come here often?" I tried to hide my laugh with a cough, but I was far to drunk to actually pull it off. He looked at me seeming kind of offended.
"Oh umm." I let one more chuckle out before I could continue. "Not really." I smiled, still not believing he actually used that worn out line.
He scooted closer obviously not offended enough to be deterred from hitting on me. Automatically, I leaned as far away and my chair would allow. "Can I get you another drink?" He asked, hopeful.
I had intended to grab my glass of water to show him I was good, unfortunately, I was a little off the mark, and knocked over 3 of my almost empty glasses still on the table. We both jumped up, trying not to get soaked. I laughed, I could feel my face burning, bright red from embarrassment. "Obviously, I'm good. I'm really sorry about your pants."
He laughed. "Really, it's fine." He casually placed his hand on the small of my back. This was no good, he obviously didn't give up easily, and me allowing him to have his arm around me would definitely not give off the right impression. But I didn't know how to move his hand without seeming rude.
As if they could read my mind, Alice and Tanya came dancing back to our table. Alice quickly bounced to my side, slyly pushing Eric away. She winked at me, she had been my best friend since I moved here, it must have been easy for her to read the awkwardness on my face. I could always count on her to save me. I put my arm around her and squeezed.
"So, Alice and I were just trying to figure out if we should stay here or head to rumors." Tanya suggested. Rumors was the only actual dance club that this town had to offer.
"Oh I dunno if I'm up for it guys. I think I've had more than enough!" I stumbled a bit, as if to prove my point.
"Really?" Tanya pouted.
"I'm sorry." I smiled at her apologetically. "But you guys should definitely go, I'll just get a cab home, it's no big deal!"
"Yeah, like we're going to make you take a cab the whole way back to Pembrook Bella" Alice rolled her eyes. "We of course will take you home before we go."
"No no, that's totally out of your way, really, I don't mind taking a cab." I protested.
Eric found his way back to my side. "Actually, I was just leaving after this beer" He lifted his bottle to show it was half empty "I have to go back to post anyway, Pembrook is right by gate 3, I can take Bella home."
My face dropped. I was just about to do my best Oscar winning performance, and fake the set in of my second wind, ready to head to the next bar with my girls, but before I could open my mouth a strong arm wrapped around my waste.