Lifeguard ☆ JILY

26 | intoxicated

L I L Y

The evening was beautiful, with a navy sky flecked with shimmering stars that stretched like a dome over the amphitheatre, and the pleasant buzz of cicadas adding tempo to the summer air. Lily held a glass of rose on one hand, her other hand holding on to Irene's as the two friends made their way to their seats.

James had called her to say they'd be performing that night because the local choir that was supposed to play had run into a last-minute emergency. Lily agreed to come, of course-she wouldn't have missed this performance for the world.

"So crowded in here," Irene grumbled. She muttered a half-hearted apology to the lady whose purse she knocked over as she scuttled between the narrow row of seats. When she finally plopped down on her empty one, she didn't hold back a loud sigh of relief. "Man, I hate people."

"Cheer up, Ira," said Lily, taking a seat next to her. "Nobody likes a Grumpy Cat."

"Well, I don't like anyone either, so if nobody likes me, that sounds fair. Feeling's mutual, as people say."

Lily nudged her arm playfully. "Sure you don't."

"You are an exception. And Sirius."

"What about the rest of the guys? What about Marlene?"

Irene exhaled in defeat. "Yes, okay, them too. And my dad, of course. But they kinda go without saying, innit?"

"Well, there you go. That's a lot of people to like."

"Must you always ruin my edgy vibe?"

Lily laughed, shifting her gaze to the empty stage. Well, empty would be the incorrect word. There were two microphone stands, three loudspeakers, a drumset and a keyboard-all positioned within considerable distance from each other, illuminated by the pale stage lights. But the performers themselves, The Marauders, were not there yet. The show would begin in ten minutes, so for the time being, people were still filling up the last remaining free seats in the open-air theatre, a young waiter was going around, serving drinks, and Nicki Minaj's voice blasted from the DJ booth a meter or two behind them.

"Is Marls coming?" Irene asked.

The other night, the three of them had undeniably had a great time. After getting shitfaced at The Three Broomsticks with the bartender-a girl named Dorcas that Marlene was already friends with and Lily first met at the karaoke night-the trio had a marathon of cheesy rom-coms in Irene and Lily's room that had them sobbing until three in the morning. The next day, they woke up so late, even late breakfast had stopped being served.

Lily also came to discover, after her hangover wore off, that her phone was filled with ridiculous pictures Irene must've taken throughout the night, but she couldn't bring herself to delete them. She did, however, threaten Irene not to post them on her social media. While she loved her best friend's lack of regard for other people's opinions and her Instagram page was filled with unflattering photos-some of them including Lily, much to her discontent-there was a line between carefree and embarrassing. She wouldn't admit it out loud, but Irene crossed that line on multiple occasions without even realizing.