COHABITATION

6

It had been five days since she was pressed against Rio in a completely normal 'let me help you with that anxiety attack' makeout session. Val was fine, absolutely and totally fine, she thought as she threw a straight shot of vodka back.

"Val, I'm so glad you could come out with us tonight," Maggie drawled drunkenly in her ear as she hung off Val's shoulder.

Tonight she was at a bar downtown, the kids had been tough today and the Rio ordeal was still sitting heavily on her mind. Her close friend group had invited her out, and to take roll call––one drunk Maggie, one wasted Avery, and one sober designated driver, Sidney. And one almost drunk Val.

"Maggs you are so drunk," Laughed Avery as he tipped a pickleback shot into his mouth. Something about this action spurred Maggie into a loud laughter.

"Says white-girl-wasted Avery," Sidney with an amused smile, currently nursing a water with lemon.

"Says old man Sid," Avery accused, picking up Sid's water and jostling it in front of his face. Sidney yanked it out of his grasp, narrowly avoiding spilling its contents.

"Keep calling me old and I'll make y'all all get Ubers home," Sid gave a side eye to the group with another sip from his water. Avery and Maggie giggled and left them to slither off to the dance floor.

Val chuckled, but was still in her head about life and work and, well, Rio. She was a person of many questions, always curious, wanting more information. And this was no different, she actually had more questions than usual. What did he think about it all? Is he as twisted up about the kiss as she was? She doesn't know anything about him but knows what his mouth tastes like?

And that blocked phone call? Could that be him?

She threw back another shot and decided to push her thoughts aside for the night. He may have ruined the atmosphere at home, but he did calm your anxiety, her mind reminded her. She could think about all of this later, right now it is time to go dance against a random body in the crowd.

"What is up with you tonight, V?" Sid's voice pulled her focus until she was meeting his worried green ones. In the few years that her and Sid had been friends, she came to know him as a highly observant intellectual.

Their group doesn't seem like they would mesh well from the outside, and Val wasn't sure if they would all be friends if they hadn't met the way they did. Val had met Sid through their mutual friend, Avery, since Sid and him roomed together during college. And she had met Avery one night in the women's bathroom at some bar, Avery was crying on the floor, drunk.

How he even ended up in that bathroom was another story in itself, but her and Maggie had gotten him into an Uber and safely home by the end of the night. Since then, Maggs and Avery have been inseparable, which soon brought Sid into the mix.

"Hey, Val, you good?" He laughed as he waved a hand in her face, she nodded her head as her thought washed away.

"Yeah, just thinking I guess," There was no way to casually let your friends know that a gang boss was your new roommate. Sid gave her a strange concerned look, but decided to brush it off.

"Hmm, alright then. How long until tweedle dee and tweedle dum are ready to call it a night?" Sid ran a hand though his curly hair, Val watched as he twisted it up into a bun.

She laughed and gave him a pat on the hand, he didn't often come out with them on bar crawl nights. He was in for a long evening, this was the first bar they had stopped by.

"Sweet Sid, silly, sweet Sid," He glanced back over with more concerned forest colored eyes, eyebrows high.

"You're kidding, right?" She gave him a wide grin as she finished off another shot.