Chapter 15: Destiny awaits

All I know is that I want it more than yesterday

If I was waiting, I was waiting for just one little spark

- Mayday Parade

Could anticipation kill?

Because by the time November 19th arrived, I was pretty much a total wreck.

I realized that all of my previous encounters with Tom had been unplanned. Unexpected. Serendipitous, in most cases. He'd just drop in unannounced, like a shooting star – always a bright but fleeting presence.

But this time, our meetup was pre-arranged. And I had two whole weeks to freak out.

At this moment I couldn't even decide on what to wear, which was the oddest thing. I pretty much only had two dresses, a skirt, two pairs of jeans and five tops in my wardrobe. So how could I be having trouble picking out my outfit of choice for tonight?

"Ali, don't forget about swimwear!" Jayna's voice drifted from the bathroom, where she was touching up her makeup. She'd already been dressed since an hour ago, decked in a slinky black dress that was guaranteed to make Harrison go 'wow'.

"Umm."

"Preferably that cute striped bikini you bought online this summer," Jayna added.

I emitted a groan. "I'm not even sure yet if I'll be getting into the pool," I protested.

"It's a pool party. You have to!"

"I'd feel too exposed."

Jayna padded over to my bedroom, where I was still standing and staring at my opened clothes closet.

"Ali, that's what tonight is about, isn't it? Baring it all… Metaphorically speaking, and more."

I groaned again. It was easy for Jayna to talk. She wasn't the one who was going to meet someone for the first time in months, not knowing what the night would reveal or what conversation would ensue.

She wasn't the one who would be face to face with the pair of twinkling brown eyes she'd fallen in love with, and had been trying her hardest to move on from.

"It's not too late to back out of this, right?"

"Ali! You wouldn't," Jayna gasped, smacking me in the arm.

I didn't realize I'd spoken out loud until I felt the impact of Jayna's palm against my skin. "Oww. Jays, please. No violence at a delicate time like this."

"It's my birthday party, so I get to do whatever I want to my guests," Jayna declared with a devilish grin.

"Well maybe this guest would be too injured to show up if you keep going with the physical torture," I muttered, but I dutifully went to retrieve the said bikini set.

Jayna sat on my bed and applied a fresh coat of plum-hued lip gloss while I stripped off my shirt and ratty shorts and put on the striped bikini top and bottom.

"What are you planning to wear over the bikini?" Jayna pursed her glossy lips in thought. "Your maroon sweater and black skater skirt would be perfect."

"Great. Jays, you're a lifesaver."

"As I always am." Jayna paused. "Ali, does Owen know about tonight?"

I didn't answer immediately. Fidgeting with one sleeve of the maroon top I'd just pulled over my head, I eventually responded, "Well, technically… Yeah."

"What exactly did you tell him?"

"I mentioned that we'll be in Manhattan with some friends to celebrate your birthday."

"And he wasn't curious about why he wasn't invited?"

"I may have said that you wanted to keep it to a really small group and you didn't count him as a close friend."

"There goes the great impression I've been wanting to maintain in front of Owen," Jayna uttered, sighing.

I had to laugh. "All right, all right. We all know you're Team Tom."

"I'm Team Whoever Makes Ali Happy," Jayna corrected me. "Come on, let's get going. Your destiny awaits."

I nodded. "I'm ready. Lead me to your chariot – but try to keep to the speed limit for once, okay?"

So Jayna went way past the speed limit.

It wasn't a surprise when we arrived at The Dominick twenty minutes early.

"Nervous?" Jayna questioned as she peered at me worriedly.

"I went beyond nervous within ten minutes of getting into your car," I informed her.

It wasn't just a matter of having butterflies in my stomach anymore. Right now, I was closer to puking the butterflies out.

"You do look a lot paler than usual. Are you okay?" Jayna asked as she surveyed our surroundings. We'd just stepped out of the parking elevator and now found ourselves at the exquisitely designed hotel lobby with dark wood panels and soft yellow ambient lighting.

"I don't know if I can do this."

"Why don't we go grab a drink first before we meet up with the boys? Get some liquid coverage in you."

"Yeah, okay sure," I said, taking in a deep breath. But before we could figure out the way to the nearest source of alcohol in the hotel, our attention was drawn to a booming, cheerful voice laced in British accent.

"Jayna! Ali!"

We turned to see Harrison walking over to us, his lips curved in a relaxed smile and his hair blonder than I remembered. "I see you girls got here early too," he noted.

"Hey, you," Jayna greeted with a wide grin.

Harrison leaned in to envelope Jayna in a bear hug, which was really sweet.

Then when he released Jayna, Harrison shifted his gaze to me.

"Hey, Harrison. How's it going?" I spoke, trying to smile despite the anxiety building in my chest.

"Very well, how about you?" Without hesitation, Harrison gave me a quick hug. I returned the hug more than a little stiffly. I wished I could've responded better, but…

"Uhh Harrison, you should know that Ali is not really a hugger," Jayna piped in a little too late.

Upon hearing Jayna's words, Harrison immediately jumped back like he'd just been electrocuted. Which would've elicited a huge laugh from me at any other given time. But not today.

"Sorry," I hastily told Harrison. "It's not you. I'm just weird."

"No problem, it was my bad," Harrison replied, throwing me a reassuring look. "I'm so glad you could make it, Ali. Are you prepared to have an epic night?"

"The better question is, is the epic night prepared for us?" Jayna declared, saving me from having to fake an enthusiastic reply.

Oh good Lord, what am I doing here? I was not ready to face Tom. But one might argue that I probably would never be ready, so…

As the three of us took the elevator and ascended to the rooftop, I barely registered how Jayna and Harrison were holding hands and giggling over something or other.

The cool metal doors of the elevator slid open soon enough to reveal a sleek bar bathed in the warm glow of colorful round paper lanterns. A sizable pool fronted the bar, glinting in various shades of shimmer.

"Oh wow, this is so beautiful," Jayna breathed.

"Glad you like it," Harrison said, beaming. "We booked the entire place for tonight, so feel free to go crazy."

My eyes zoomed in on a male figure who was making his way toward us. He looked familiar, but somehow not. Was it really him...?

"Mate!" Harrison called out.

"Mate! Oh and hello, Ali. Hello, Jayna." It was Tom's unmistakable voice.

"Tom! Love the hair – or lack of it, actually," Jayna said with a laugh.

I was too busy taking in Tom and his buzz cut, wondering how he still managed to look good despite the shaved head. Really good.

Then Jayna nudged me.

"Trev, hey," I uttered, flashing him a tentative smile. "So what's the story behind this new look?"

"It's for my role in Cherry," Tom explained, rubbing the side of his head shyly. "Does it look funny?"

"No, no. It's nice," I assured him. "You just look different, that's all."

Tom smiled, his eyes crinkling. "Well, you look – "

"Tom darling, there you are."

A loud female voice cut him off. I followed Tom's line of sight and spotted a tall woman with silky honey-brown wavy hair who was waving at him.

I squinted and realized I'd seen her before – it was the Gisele Bundchen-lookalike from Nuovo. Her hairstyle was different from the last time I saw her, but the confident stride and commanding manner of speaking was still intact.

She took Tom aside, murmuring to him, occasionally nodding. More than once I caught her patting his arm in an extremely affectionate way.

My heart sank, and I had to tell myself to not be jealous.

"Ali, I'm sure she's just someone from work," Jayna presumed, sidling up to me as Harrison went to get drinks for all of us.

"It doesn't matter, I'm fine."

"Oh Ali, you're just no good at lying."

After what felt like an eternity, Tom returned. "I'm so sorry. I had to talk to Danielle before she leaves. She's from my PR team and she just wanted to let me know about some upcoming interviews that had to be rescheduled."

"See!" Jayna grinned triumphantly at me.

"See what?" Harrison asked, his hands gripping a tray that held four short glasses of clear liquid and rosemary garnishing.

"Nothing," Jayna quickly answered. "What's our first drink of the evening?"

"Gin and tonic," Harrison announced with a flourish. "Which happens to be someone's favorite drink… Tom took a lot of trouble getting this limited edition bottle of gin from London, just for this special someone."

I wasn't sure who was more embarrassed, me or Tom.

Jayna pretended to think. "I don't recall who's a fan of gin and tonic. Do you, Ali?"

"Not a clue," I mumbled, furtively shooting Jayna a death stare.

Harrison chuckled and slung an arm over Tom's shoulder. "All right, let's drink up. To Jayna's 21st birthday!"

"Happy birthday, Jays!" I exclaimed.

"Happy birthday, Jayna!" Tom chimed in.

We clinked glasses and took a long swig. Or at least I did. I really needed the alcohol to calm my nerves.

"And also, to our Ali Cat and Tom Cat!" Harrison added. "Reunited and it feels so good, am I right?"

"What?!" I turned to Harrison, who was grinning mischievously.

Jayna couldn't contain her laughter. "Oh, that's Harrison's nickname for you and Tom. Cute, huh?"

"Thanks, Haz, thanks," Tom groaned. He snuck a peek at me, giving me an apologetic smile.

I shrugged and smiled back at Tom. His eyes shone with such tenderness that I nearly dropped my glass.

Maybe tonight wouldn't be as terrifying as I thought. Just maybe.