One Night in Boston

Chapter 1

"Come on Kristen! It's my last night here! I want to see some of the Boston nightlife This place looks perfect. It's small and looks chill." My best friend pleads with me pulling on my arm. "Fine Cin. I swear, if I must deal with one more drunken fool after this game. I'm not going to be happy." Teasing her, making her laugh. "Thank you for taking me to the hockey game. I know it's really not your thing." Smiling at me. "Glad you liked it. I don't see the appeal, though. Sorry, your team didn't win." Nudging her with my elbow. "Don't see the appeal, but here you are in your Bruins hat and sweatshirt." She giggles. "New England girl. Even if we don't like the sport, we still support the team. It's in our DNA." Laughing back. We find two seats at the bar. I order an IPA. She gets her favorite drink. "You wanted to go to a bar, and you're still drinking Pepsi. I don't get you sometimes." Teasing her. "I just want the experience, Kristen." My phone goes off. It's my daughter Livi. Asking if I had fun and saying good night. Making sure I tell her auntie the same, I send one telling her I love her. So does Auntie Cin. I will pick her up from school the day after tomorrow. I put my phone down on the bar. Cindy sighs loudly. I ask her what that is all about. "Kristen, it's been eight months now. When are you going to change your wallpaper? He cheated on you. Left you broken after six years. You need to let it go. You need to let him go. He was a dip sh*t anyways. Still is. Never saw what you loved about him. You could have done so much better. He was more drama than your teenage daughter." Putting her hand on mine. "He wasn't always the way he was when you and I first met. He used to be fun. Made me laugh all the time. We used to have a blast together. Then something changed in him. It's still so hard, Cin. It's not something you can get over right away. Plus, I feel like if I had done something different, lost all this weight beforehand. If I had been more available to him. Not so involved in my business and charity. Maybe he wouldn't have." I say softly. "Don't you do that, Kristen! He did what he did because of him, not you! Hand me your phone. Now." Her tone demanding. I reluctantly hand it over. She plays with my phone for a minute. A devilish smile comes across her face. I'm going to regret. She hands me my phone. I can't help but crack up. "God! You're ridiculous." Saying through giggles. My stomach hurts from laughing. I'm so lucky to have this woman as my friend. I order a shot to dull the leftover feeling of sadness after discussing him. She raises her glass and clinks mine. "Here's to new beginnings, Kristen. You deserve men like that." She smiles. "We. We deserve men like that." Looking at my screen, I can't stop giggling. There's a better chance of hell freezing over. He would never want a simple chick like me.

We're having a blast. Chatting about our kids and work. Laughing at the over dramatic fans, we observed at the Garden. Reliving the fun we had this weekend together. Planning my trip down to where she lives. She asks about my Disney trip next month. I tell her all about it. I'm very excited for this trip. It's my happy place. I haven't been in two years. Plus, I get to see my favorite Aunts and my grandfather. I miss them so much. After the last few months I need some happiness and fun. I begin to relive the pain again. Starting to tear up. She notices. "Hey, it's going to get easier, trust me. You're going to find an amazing man who's going to make you forget all about him." In a tone barely above a whisper. "What if I don't Cin? What if there is no amazing man for me? There is no prince charming. Especially at my age. Look at my past. Nothing but heartbreak. I attract only *ss hats. It's like we always joke. We're going to be the two old ladies in the home getting into trouble. Our kids sneaking us booze. You, my bestie, are my happy ever after. You're stuck with me." I laugh. "Kristen, seriously? You're in a baseball hat, sweatshirt, jeans. When you walked in here? Every guy started drooling. You're the sweetest person I know. You have a fantastic sense of humor. Now you have a very substantial bank account. But, I'm happy being stuck with you." She laughs out. "Yea, I guess, but they're probably all *ss hats too." Joining her giddiness. She's right. I'll always be self-sufficient after coming into my money. I'm dazing off a bit, thinking I should use it. Take a trip to Europe. My dream. "Cindy. You need to take some more time off." I tell her. She asks why. "We are going to Europe for at least two weeks. I need to get away from all this. To cleanse my soul. Start my life." Smiling. She nods her head eagerly. "We're going hunting Tom Hiddleston, aren't we?" She grins. "No nut case! I want to see the world." Sipping my beer. "However, it wouldn't suck seeing that backside in person. I'd probably forget the last eight years, let alone the last eight months." I giggle. She chuckles with me. "Speaking of getting a new start. There's a guy over there who keeps staring at you." Her eyes shift to show me where. I ask if he's cute. She says she can't tell. It's dark where he's sitting. He's wearing a baseball cap low, too. Oh, well. He's probably checking out the blonde next to me. She's trying to be cute. Twirling her hair. Loudly giggling. Fake and high-pitched. Rather annoying in general. I hate when women act like that. Thinking it makes them more attractive. Mostly, I hate men who react to it. Men like my ex. I take another shot. "Oh my god! He's like totally coming over here! I can't believe it!" In a squealing high-pitched voice. Great, I get to witness this sh*t show firsthand. I roll my eyes. "Well, she's a bright one." Making Cin laugh.