Odds || H.S.

IX

I hung up on my mother feeling flustered and annoyed. It's not a foreign feeling, I know she cares but she always asks me questions that aren't beneficial and leave me feeling more stressed than before. This particular phone call was her worrying about what I'm going to do after graduation. Considering it is only December, I have a whole semester to figure it out, but once again she is projecting. 

Anyway, it's impossible to stay upset during this time of year. Addy, Jon, and I flew home for Christmas and came back to the city the following day. This year, we were determined to spend New Year's Eve in the city. Not to spend it in crowded TimeSquare, of course. Chris was able to get us tickets through his internship since he was in charge of invitations. Unpaid internships suck but you have to know when to take advantage of certain situations.

Addy burst into my room interrupting my thought process "Are you excited for tonight?" she exclaimed holding several shopping bags. "I had no idea what to buy, but I went to Sephora and bought a few new palettes and I found dresses for both of us!" 

"Addy, you really shouldn't have, I told you I have a black dress that I can wear," I sighed slightly annoyed that she would spend her money on me. 

"No, that black dress is cute, but it's plain. It's New Year's Eve, you need something that sparkles, just like you" she smiled. "If you feel bad you can just pay me back, it was about $50." She pulled a sparkly sequined long-sleeved gold mini dress. "With this, you are going to look like the prize you are, not to mention, Grayson is going to love it." 

I internally smiled thinking about Grayson, but I chose to ignore her sly remark. "I have to admit I absolutely love it and I love that sequined jumpsuit that you have- that is a bold choice!" 

Addy smirked indicating that she noted my choice of ignoring her comment about Grayson. Grayson is a boy that I've been dating for a few weeks now. Chris introduced me to him after they met through his internship. Believe it or not, dating apps were not the move and led to a series of failed dates, overall a waste of time. We aren't in a relationship, but we've had a few dates and I think he's a nice guy.  I feel like Addy and Jon are more invested in this working out than I am to be completely honest.

Jon came waltzing into my bedroom holding up a silver pair of wing-tipped shoes, "ladies what do we think?"

"I think they're fabulous! Okay, we have exactly two hours before our dates get here so please start doing something with yourself Lila," she said looking at my sweatpants and wet hair in disdain. 

"Hey, at least I showered," I mumbled in defense. 

~~~~ 

I looked at myself in the mirror and tugged at the hem of my dress in a failed attempt to make it longer. I paired the gold dress with black heeled booties. Addy was right, my melanin was popping with this gold color! After picking at the root of my curls one last time I made my way to the living room where everyone was waiting. 

"Yes, legs for days!" Jon complimented. Addy stood by his side smiling ear to ear at what she deemed her hard work. Grayson, who was standing with Chris and Alex, took a step forward and grabbed my hand.

"You look great," he said flashing me a million-dollar smile before kissing the back of my hand. 

"Thank you, you don't look too bad yourself," I said. If I could blush, I would be bright red. As much as I love when my friends compliment me, I don't know how to accept them without feeling awkward. There was something about Grayson that made me so nervous, he was almost too good to be true. I know I shouldn't search for a flaw, but I know there has to be something. 

"Well let's go people! This night is going to be epic, I can feel it." Chris proclaimed as we made our way out of our apartment. 

We hopped into our Uber to midtown. Everyone was excitedly chatting about what celebrities may or may not grace us with their presence tonight. Once again my mind drifted to Harry. We haven't heard from him in a while. The last time he called us was for Addy's birthday at the beginning of December. At that point, he was already at home with his Mom and he planned to stay in England throughout the holiday season. I've kept one on one contact with him to a minimum to avoid catching any further feelings but I know if I ever really need him, he is only a phone call away and vise versa.