Lily looked at herself in the mirror and smiled. She straightened her hair, grabbed her bag from the bed, and headed for the stairs. She was halfway down when the doorbell rang. Her heart jumped a little. She hurried to the door, peered through the peephole, and then opened it.
A young woman—maybe mid-twenties, all confidence and perfume—stood there.
"You ready, Lily?" she asked, already pushing past her and letting herself in.
Lily shut the door slowly and turned with a raised brow."Yeah, Tessa, I'm ready. I was just about to call you. And where's Benjamin?"
Tessa rolled her eyes dramatically."He said he had an emergency at work. Had to stay late. Soooo… he canceled."
She dropped onto the sofa with a sigh. Lily joined her, pulling the locket from her bag and curling her fingers around it like it was a heartbeat she didn't want to lose.
"You know Jonathan would've wanted you to move on," Tessa murmured, wrapping an arm around her. "You can't keep doing this to yourself."
"I don't think I'm ready yet." Lily opened the locket and stared at the pictures inside—soft memories in cold metal.
Tessa squeezed her gently. "But you can't hide forever. I don't even remember the last time we had a night out. Just… try to have fun today, okay?"
Lily looked up and found Tessa smiling at her—hopeful, stubborn, annoyingly warm.
She exhaled, slipped the locket back into her bag, and stood."I'm only going because you begged me," she said, folding her arms with a tiny grin. "But I'm not looking for any potential dates."
"That's the spirit!" Tessa cheered, practically vibrating with triumph.
***
"This place looks crowded, Tess."Lily hesitated at the entrance of Club Sundown, neon lights flickering across her face.
Tessa, of course, was already buzzing with excitement. She'd spotted this place weeks ago while driving Lily home from work and had been pestering her ever since.
"At least let's go inside for a drink," Tessa said, shrugging as she slipped in without hesitation.
Lily followed, shoulders slightly tense. They weaved through the crowd and perched at the bar. The bartender turned toward them with a grin so bright it probably had its own electricity bill.
"What can I get the beautiful ladies tonight?"
"Vodka for me," Tessa said, smiling like she was starring in her own music video.
"And for you, my lady?" he asked, eyes shifting to Lily.
"Oh—uh, water is fine."
Both Tessa and the bartender gave her identical are you for real? eyebrows.
Lily sighed."Fine. I'll have what she's having."
Tessa gave her a playful shove, grinning triumphantly while the bartender poured their drinks.
Lily let her gaze wander. The club was loud—louder than she was in the mood for. A disco ball hung dead center, scattering multicolored light across a swarm of bodies moving like they had no tomorrow. People laughed, danced, shouted; the whole place felt alive in a way Lily hadn't in a long time.
She was about to turn back toward the bar when a familiar face caught her eye—dancing very closely with another girl.
Her stomach dropped.She snapped toward Tessa.
"I thought you said Benjamin canceled?"
Tessa paused mid-sip, her lips still on the rim of the vodka glass. She slowly lowered it and stared at Lily."Um… yes? Why?"
"Then what's he doing there," Lily said, pointing toward the dance floor where Benjamin and a woman were wrapped in each other's rhythm, laughing like they didn't have a care in the world.