One
Sullen Girl

Eloisa Samuels hummed the last couple bars of Avril Lavigne's "Sk8r Boi" as the song ended, and her six-year-old niece collapsed on the carpet.

"Again!" Hazel shouted. "Again!"

"Girlfriend, we've played this song like ten times," Eloisa said, knowing she would cave and hit the back button as many times as required. "I'm pretty sure this a form of torture illegal in at least twelve states and all of Europe."

"Agaaaaaaain!" the tiny voice demanded right as her phone started to ring.

"Saved by-" She looked at her phone and groaned. "Hey, Starr," she greeted, forcing herself to sound cheerful.

"Hey, girl, what are you up to?"

Hazel got up and began twirling around again, mumbling the lyrics under her breath.

"I've got the monster until Angela picks her up which should be," she glanced at her watch, "In the next fifteen minutes or so."

"Meaning you're free?"

She threw her head back, staring at the popcorn ceiling while she tried to come up with any excuse to say she was busy. Nothing came.

"Yes."

Starr squealed so loudly that Eloisa, horrified, had to hold the phone away from her ear.

"Let's go out tonight."

She groaned. "Starr…"

"And, before you say no, you should know that Aubs and I were talking and we both agreed that you've been depressed, which duh, since the break-up and everything else that's been going on-"

Her stomach twisted. Everything else was Starr's way of saying the utter shit show that her family had been going through the last six months. Flashes of things came to her: flashing police lights, her mom crying, a ring in a hand.

"Hey!" a second voice cut in, bringing Eloisa back to the present. "We agreed you'd keep me out of it."

"Et Tu, Brute?" she asked dryly.

The fact that they were both on the line was unsurprising. Three-way phone calls between them were so normal that it was weirder when there were only two of them.

"I know, I know," said Aubrey. "But we miss you. And I don't think it would kill you to do something other than holing up with a bottle of wine and reading romance novels or watching movies for one night. You can't hide forever, El."

She wanted to protest, to defend herself but how could she? She had been doing exactly that on her nights off because it was the only way, in her limited free time, that she could turn off her brain. There was also a part of her that truly felt she did not deserve a night of fun. Not when her family was scrounging to make ends meet. Not when the other thing was hanging over her head, but she didn't want to think about the other thing right now.

Hazel tugged on her pant leg, a welcome reprieve from her thoughts.

"Tia Lou, can I have peanut butter crackers?"

Eloisa covered the mouthpiece. "One package. And you'd better eat them fast because your Mom will be here soon and we'll both be in trouble if she knows I gave you a snack this close to bedtime." Hazel, high on rule flouting, ran into the kitchen at full speed. She sighed. "Fine. I'll go. But I'm not promising I'll have a good time."

Starr whooped in delight.

"Atta girl," Aubrey praised. "Be ready in an hour."

"Good for you," said Angela when she finally arrived (only five minutes late, a new record) to pick up her daughter.

They watched together as Hazel went around to halfheartedly collect her things. Unused to silence from her normally chatty sister, Eloisa tugged her ponytail.

"Everything okay?"

Angela produced an envelope and held it out.

"Mom got a bill from the hospital for Tita. She said you'd take care of it, and I know you start the new job on Monday, but Lou…" She sniffled, close to tears. "I just… I feel like we're putting so much on you."

Angela looked so much like their mom; they both had straight, shiny hair and dark eyes. Then there was Eloisa with her hair that refused to be straight or curly and her hazel eyes, which she'd inherited from their dad. She took the envelope and pulled her sister in for a hug.

"It's fine, Ang. Really." She released her and offered a big smile though her stomach churned at the lie. "You think I can't handle one pinche bill?"

"Yeah." Angela swiped under her eyes. "Yeah, I know. So, what are you wearing tonight?"

When she could not give an adequate answer, Angela took pity upon her older sister and stayed to help put together an acceptable outfit. Together they decided on a cream-colored silk camisole and denim shorts ("You've got those legs; you might as well show them off") paired with her leather jacket and a pair of black high-top Converse knockoffs that she could not be talked out of because they were "just going to end up at Anodyne."

"Try to have fun," Angela instructed.

When they were gone, Eloisa opened the bill. A red Past Due stamp right at the top. How long had her mom been holding onto this one? She scanned to the bottom: owe the amount of $3,500. A horn honked outside. She blinked, trying to clear her eyes so as not to ruin her makeup, and tossed the paper on the kitchen table.

"Took you long enough!" Starr exclaimed as Eloisa climbed into the backseat. She flipped her the bird, but Starr ignored it, turning around in the seat with a critical eye. "I wish you'd let me do your hair again." She reached around and lifted some strands at Eloisa's hairline to inspect where the dark met bleached blond. "Your roots are killing me."

"And listen to la señora bitch for three more weeks? Aye, Eloisa," she said, mimicking her mom's laments. "Your beautiful hair is ruined. Nah."

They all laughed.

"Girl, bye, that sounds just like her."

"Don't listen to Starr, you look amazing," Aubrey said, turning around to grin at her. "Like damn, where have you been hiding those legs?"

Starr rolled her eyes and added a begrudging, "You do look really good."

"Wow, thanks," Eloisa replied in a flat voice, though she was smiling. "Where are we heading?"

There was a brief exchange of glances in the front.

"Anodyne," said Aubrey as she started the car.

Eloisa threw her hands up, pretending to be annoyed. "¿En serio? You know I get enough of that place when I'm working there, right?"

"It's the best place to meet guys," Starr insisted.

"It's the best place to meet a guy," she corrected. "That dude from Tampico is going to be there, isn't he?"

In the rearview mirror, she winked. "Maybe."

Starr worked at the salon across the street from Tampico Furniture and had been eyeing the owner's son for weeks. She had even dragged Eloisa along where she'd pretended to look at sofas she would never buy while Starr flirted and enquired about loveseats. Apparently, it had paid off because now she was staging a run-in.

"And can we really pass up the opportunity for a round or two of free drinks?" Aubrey asked, touching on the most important factor.

"That is an abuse of the system. I have rights!" Eloisa protested. Though she was putting up a fight, she didn't mind. Anodyne was familiar, comforting in its own weird way. She momentarily allowed herself to be glad that she had let her friends drag her out.

Somehow, they managed to find parking downtown that wasn't too far away. The bouncer waved them in, not bothering to check their IDs. As soon as they were up the stairs, Starr squealed, clutching Eloisa.

"There he is!"

It was a true testament to Starr's prowess that she could spot him so easily in the dim lighting amongst the hipster crowd. Sure enough, the poor sap was drinking a beer at one of the corner pool tables.

"Come on," Aubrey said, looping Starr's arm with her own and steering her toward the empty table next to it.

"I'll get drinks!" Eloisa called, heading to the bar. She was unsurprised to see a familiar face behind it. "Hey, Ben," she greeted, resting her elbows on the dark countertop.

Ben completed their quartet. He, Starr, and Eloisa were Albuquerque born and raised and had known each other their whole lives. Aubrey had been imported from the Midwest in high school but had fit easily into their little group. It had been a shock to no one when Ben and Aubrey had finally started dating sophomore year of college.

"You have a night off and you choose to spend it at work?" He shook his head. "That's sick, El."

She clicked her tongue. "Blame your girlfriend. She dragged us here for the free drinks."

He glanced behind her and shook his head as a second person sauntered up to the counter. "And for the free dudes, apparently. Starr's on the prowl again, huh?"

"She can't be tamed," Eloisa confirmed. "Negroni, Peach Crush, and-"

"A vodka cranberry. Predictable, all of you." Chuckling to himself, he turned away to fill the order.

She drummed her fingers on the counter and glanced down the bar. The guy was leaning against the bar, arms crossed in front of his chest as he surveyed the room. He was exactly the type she would have gone for in college: tall, dark with a shaved head, permanent five o'clock shadow, and big arms. Even the scar on his brow and the snake earring in one ear wasn't a deterrent. His eye fell on her, and she squinted, pretending to study the bottles behind the counter. She could feel the back of her neck warming from being caught staring like a complete creep.

"What do you think?" Ben asked, gesturing discreetly toward the man as he plunked two glasses down in front of her.

It was a game they often played; guess the drink before taking the order. Usually, the winner got the tip. She stole another quick look. He was wearing a button-up with the sleeves rolled up, nice boots that might have been snakeskin, a gold watch, and at least two gold chains. "Jack and Coke," she guessed when he brought the third. "Final answer."

Ben whistled under his breath. "She's confident. Okay. I'm gonna say… Sunrise, no, wait- Long Island."

Eloisa tipped her glass at him as he moved down to take the order. She took a drink of the Negroni, closing her eyes as she savored the bitter, dry flavor.

A few seconds later, Ben looked over at her and loudly called, "You win!"

If looks could kill, Ben would have been dead on the spot. Rather than face her wrath, he immediately turned away and busied himself with bottles and glasses.

"So… what do you win?" the man asked when they were alone.

"Nothing. He's such an ass, sorry," she said. "It's just a game we play sometimes."

He raised an eyebrow. "You come here a lot?"

"Sort of. I work here. Not, like, right now. Obviously." She sighed at her own awkwardness as Ben set the drink down and flashed ten fingers. The guy reached for his wallet, but Eloisa waved a hand to stop him. "Don't worry about it."

Ben said nothing but as he moved on to another customer, she could see that he was smiling to himself.

He raised the glass. "Thanks."

"No problem."

His dark eyes flitted over her, assessing her the way she had done to him only moments ago. He moved closer and copied her posture, their elbows almost touching. "Okay. Tell me about this game."

"Oh, I mean- all I did was guess your drink."

"Yeah?" He smiled, a half-smile that paired nicely with the skeptical look he was giving her. "How?"

She took another drink, trying to hide a smile of her own. "You sure you can handle it?"

"Try me."

"Okay…" She set the glass down and faced him. "You've got nice boots and a nice watch. You like expensive, not flashy. But you're here and you've got that earring so clearly your taste isn't that refined," she teased. "You like ordering whiskey because it makes you feel cool, but you think it tastes like crap so you get the Jack and Coke because you can barely tell it's there."

"Damn," he said softly, both eyebrows raised. "That's impressive. You a psychic or something?"

"Nope." She shook her head, the corners of her mouth twitching. "Sorry. It was just a really lucky guess."

"Wow!" He hung his head, shoulders shaking with silent laughter.

"For the record," she insisted, hoping she hadn't gone too far. "I like your earring." She reached over to extend a hand. "Eloisa."

When he looked up at her, he was smiling again, a genuine one this time that made her heart beat a little faster. He took her hand in his, giving it a firm but gentle shake.

"Ignacio. So, Eloisa, you always hang out here on your nights off?" She liked the melodic way that her name rolled off of his tongue.

"No, but my friends like it here and free drinks so." She shrugged. "What about you?"

"It's one of the better places to shoot pool in Albuquerque."

She snorted. "More like one of the only places to shoot pool in Albuquerque."

From the corner of her eye, she saw Aubrey waving an arm and signaling for her to hurry up. Eloisa held up a finger to indicate she would be there in a second. She sighed and grabbed one of the other drinks off of the counter, tucking it safely in the crook of her elbow.

"I should probably take these."

He nodded at the last glass. "I've got it."

She was on the verge of telling him no, it was okay. But something about the way he was leaning in toward her, or maybe it was the playful gleam in his eye, made her agree.

"Are you here alone?" she asked as she led him toward her friends.

"Nah, I'm-"

"Hey, Nacho!" a boisterous, deep voice greeted. It did not match the doe-eyed man standing with his arm around Starr. "This is-"

"Starr and Aubrey," Eloisa finished. She looked up at Ignacio and smiled, wrinkling her nose at him. "Guess I'm not getting rid of you that easy, huh, Nacho?"

He smirked back. "Doesn't look like it."