Don't be Ashamed (A Larina Fanfiction)

III

We pulled into the bar at 7:57. The tension between Eden and I still bubbled but I was sure it would fade away as soon as we were in front of other people. It always did.

As I walked into the smoky building, it reminded me of the shitty bars I used to perform in. It seemed so long ago. Almost every night I would sing in bars and restaurants and clubs, trying to make a living, but once I met Eden and we were together for a while, he started paying for everything of mine and singing didn't seem important anymore. I missed it sometimes but I was grateful for the life Eden provided for me.

People we're everywhere. It was loud and years of cigarette smoke hung in the air like it had seeped into every surface of the building. Eden's hand wrapped around the back of my neck, dominantly. Most couples held hands, but he said that he preferred this.

I scanned the bar for Chuck's familiar face. Soon I found her sitting on Clay's lap laughing and drinking a beer. She seemed to not be her usual self. Yes, she overall is a happy person but she usually isn't as... cheery most of the time.

Eden and I walked towards them and as soon as Chuck saw us she jumped from Clay's lap and greeted us. "How are you!?" She yelled over the loud music, hugging me. She didn't give me time to respond; as she pulled away she was already speaking again. "You look thin." Her eyes looked down my body to my feet and back up again. She acted like we hadn't seen each other for years, but in reality it was probably only about a month. "I'm so happy you're here!"

Chuck and I used to be closer but just like most everting in my life, our relationship changed after Eden and I became serious. I regreted the distance that I placed between us. She was always there for me, but I healed her at arms distance.

I just smiled back at her, trying to adjust to the new her.

"Eden! It's been too long!" She said, hugging him.

"I know, Chuck. I've missed you." He smiled. Everything he said sounded so sincere, but I knew that he didn't actually miss her. He could lie so easily, like he didn't regret it. I wonder how many times he lied to me. 

"Oh I almost forgot." Chuck looked back at a group of five people sitting next to Clay, two of whom I already knew. "Lana and Eden, this is Xoe and Theo, they work with Clay."

I smiled at them politely. They looked normal and nice.

"And you already know Stef and Adam." Stef and Adam had been friends of Chuck's for a long time. I didn't know them that well, but what I did know about them I liked. "And that is Marina." She said motioning to a woman who looked about my age with dark hair and big eyes. I wanted to get a good look at her, but it the lighting in the bar made it so only half of her face was visible. She was beautiful from what I could see. She smiled at Eden and I.

"I'll get us drinks." Eden told me, then disappeared to find the bartender.

Apparently, I arrived in the middle of a story, because Chuck went on about something that didn't make sense to me at all, but the others seemed to understand. When they laughed at the end, I did too, not wanting to look dumb.

A few moments later, Eden came back with a beer in his hand. He handed me my drink, vodka Diet Coke. "Thanks babe." I said as he stood behind me.

We'd been there for about an hour and Eden and Theo were in a conversation about some movie that I'd never seen. Marina, Chuck, Clay, Xoe, Theo, and I now stay at a round table in the center of the bar.

"What do you mean, you don't believe in God? How do you think we all got here?! Science can't explain that!" Theo yelled. He wasn't angry, he'd just had too much to drink.