That first night I met Jack, he was on the brightly coloured dance floor with his best friend, Luke, as I entered with Lucy. She already knew them both; Luke was like a brother to her. We joined them on the illuminated pink, orange and blue squares. The front of an old Volkswagen camper-van tucked in the the back right hand corner where the DJ stood; painted orange that glittered in the lights, smoke filling out the room, making peoples shoes disappear and muting the colours on the floor from where the headlights should be. Disco lights above our heads dancing around the room and reflecting from the mirrors lined up against the back wall.
“Luke, Jack. This is Jemma,” Lucy introduced us, pointing to each of us as she said our name.
I gravitated naturally towards Luke as I knew Lucy had a crush on Jack but he kept dancing up next to me. I kept telling Lucy to 'go for it', that Jack was the better looking one. I told him once too, Lucy joked about fueling his big head. Luke and I were stood at the bar separate from the main room- it was quieter. It had an electric fire set into one of the teal walls giving the room an orange glow. We talked a bit about the night until Jack came stumbling in from the heated terrace with a mixture of shock and horror on his face, proclaiming Lucy had just kissed him for a drink. We just laughed. The next time Luke went to the bar, I was left alone on the dance-floor with Jack. Lucy no where to be seen. He put his arms around my waist making me move smoothly to the music rather then the bounce I usually have. I wrapped my arms around his neck, our eyes locking for a moment until I looked round spotting Luke's blond hair in the crowd to see if he was watching. He wasn't. I slipped out of Jack's arms and ran over to Luke, placing my hand on the thin white cotton covering the small of his back, letting him know I was there. He smiled.
That second night I met Jack we were sitting outside on a stone step made cold by the cool spring night outside a club. The street filled with teenage girls with skyscraper heels tumbling over being caught by guys of a similar age.
“You know, Luke really likes you,” he told me as he lit up the cigarette in his right hand. “Do you like him?”
“Yeah, I do,” I replied whilst watching Luke across the cobbled street; he was perched on a window sill, huddled up too Lucy, both with serious looks on their faces.
“I think you should go cinema with him.”
I looked at him with an unsure look on my face then switching my attention back across the road.
“Did I kiss Lucy last week?” Jack asked following my eye line.
“Yes, You did.” I replied. “Twice.”
He shook his head.
“I shouldn't of done that,” He turned his head to look at me. “I don't fancy her.”
“Do you like me?” I wasn't expect to ask him this sat here but it just came tumbling out. I was shocked at myself. I wasn't shocked at the answer.
“Yeah but it's alright you like him more,” motioning towards Luke.
I felt guilty, he was the second boy to be attracted to me rather then Lucy even though she fancied them; the other was Harry, who'd had a rather large crush on me for best part of a year, we had a very flirtatious relationship which made it hard for him to get over me.
“Why am I the better looking one?” he asked.
It was his almost black hair, chocolate eyes and the stubble that appeared on the lower half of his face oppose the the freshly shaven, blonde and blue eyes of Luke. We started walking up the darkened street, Lucy and Luke joining us. Me falling back in line with Luke, Lucy and Jack in front. He slipped his giant like hand around my small, dainty one. It felt awkward, him towering over my petite frame by about a foot.
“Date?” he asked. I confirmed as our glittering eyes met. Jack looking back at us every so often.
After that night Jack and I talked on Facebook chat. About how he had the devilish reputation and Luke was more of an angel as he didn't take a different girl home after every night out. This made me think, their personalties matched their looks: Luke typical angelic blond hair, blue eye whereas Jack had the darker, more lustful look I always adored. He started texting me. Discovering he could get his own way with me if he pulled a sad face. We playfully insulted each other, creating mini arguments, each one ending with me owing him a hug. We talked long into the night, more then I ever had with Luke. One night when he was home alone he asked me to go watch a film at his house, just as friends but I had other plans so had to decline. He was disappointed. We arranged to meet Thursday night when we were both out again. He got excited as it was a chance to show off the new tattoo he would have.
That third night I met Jack I spotted his purple and pink checked cotton shirt through the floor to ceiling windows of the bar walking with Luke and a few other people I vaguely recognised from nights out. I stood near the door to catch them on his way in, Jack passed me, not noticing me so I poked him in the back. He spun round, immediately holding his strong arms out to me and pulling me into his warm body. Luke just half grinned, I smiled shyly in reply. They bought drinks and we slipped into one of the booths. I climbed up on the tall bench covered with a black leather-like material, a high lightly varnished table in front with Luke and Jack either side of me. Luke didn't really pay me much attention so I 'seat danced' with Jack, little routines to act out the lyrics that I'd half picked up from him in the passed few weeks. We fell back laughing as the song finished.
“Ouch, My back hurts,” He exclaimed sitting upright again.
“Why?” I asked concerned.
“My tattoo, Want to see?” He turned away from me pulling his shirt partly off to reveal the outline of an angel etched into the skin, wings spread across his shoulder blades and the body down his spine, red and swollen where the black ink was. “You like? Not finished yet though.”
“Yeah, I do. It looks really good. Bit contradictory isn't it, thought you were meant to be a devil,” I laughed as he pulled his shirt back down, lightly tapping my arm and pulling a sad face. I hugged him and a smile returned.
We moved onto a club. Luke started paying me more attention; dancing with me, his arms around me. Then, I somehow ended up sat at the top of a stair case with Jack, walls around us painted midnight blue and a matching patterned carpet that had been made sticky by the numerous drinks spilt on it. I lent on the wall next to me, fitting myself underneath the wooden banister, turning to look at him. The matching colours in our eyes meeting.
“Why did you choose Luke over me?” He asked.
I told him it was because Lucy liked him. He confirmed again that he didn't want her and gazed at me longingly and with a hint of frustration. The urge to kiss him overtook me, he looked so adorable. I fought against it. We started to hear the faint sounds Journey's Don't Stop Believing.
“Come on! Dance-floor! We can't miss this song,” He said enthusiastically, like an excited child.
He grabbed my hand, pulling me from my seated position back down the stairs to the brightly coloured dance-floor where we first met. Here, I lost the fight. He was just grinning at me ear to ear, shouting the lyrics at me, holding one of my arms in the air. I kissed him, silencing him in front of all our friends. Luke was out of the room. It was over quickly- just two small pecks. As our lips touched it felt like we were the only people in the room which span around us in a whirl of pink, orange and blue. I became aware of our friends calling me "easy" because I was meant to be with Luke who I put my arms round when he stepped back onto the dance-floor.
I kept seeing Jack watching us and that permanent smile disappearing from his face. He put it down to having too much to drink. He danced with me every opportunity, even turning down cigarettes so he'd be left alone with me. I was comfortable with him. We had a base for a good friendship. Every now and again I found myself thinking I was falling for him but reassured myself I'd be better of with Luke. He was the angel after all.
That fourth night I met Jack we fell out. I was upset, Luke was totally ignoring me. Wouldn't kiss me, wouldn't hug me, wouldn't talk to me. Like I wasn't even there. I found out him and Jack had bet ten pounds Luke wouldn't kiss me that night. Luke was determined to prove Jack wrong and win the money. I put it down to that. Until I was informed somebody had told him I'd kissed Jack the week before. I was stupid to think no one would. Our friends told me I was too flirtatious and if I wanted to win him back I needed to calm down, so I tried. I stayed away from Jack as much as I could because I knew we'd just end up dancing together. I jokingly told him I wasn't talking to him. He took it seriously, we argued about why. I told him to drop the conversation.
That fifth night I met Jack I spotted him getting out of a black taxi outside the Australian themed bar where I was with Harry and some of his friends that I didn't really know. He ran through the rain that had turned the road into more of a river since it started falling ten minutes ago. I let him settle at the bar before slipping away from my friends. I ran my hand along his back. He turn to look, his eyes lighting up as he slid his mobile phone shut, mumbling something about 'I won't bother with that then'. I guessed he was about the text me to see if I'd arrived. There were two bleach blond girls, giggling in front of him, twirling their hair extensions around a finger. They seemed to know him, he was only half listening to them. They soon sloped off when he diverted all his attention to me. The barmaid handed him 3 bottles of blue liquid, he pushed one across to me and the other to Luke who had appeared on the other side of him.
“Where is everyone?” He asked.
I led him across the room and up the wooden step onto the decking where I'd been previously with Harry and Co. It was a good place to be; close to the bar, close to the exit and you could see right across to the dance-floor. A couple of the guys we were with started sending messages to the televisions. Funny ones to start with that showed up on the plasma screens all around. Until, there were no chairs left around the small table and I found a place on Jack's knee. 'Jemma wants them all Jack, Luke, Harry she's not fussed' appeared on the screen. I rushed off to the toilets. I knew who had sent it. Harry. He got jealous of any guy I even looked at because of his crush on me, he'd been sat they grinning slyly for the last five minutes, I had wondered why. Now I knew, he'd been waiting for it to appear.
As I re-emerged to the main room I was relieved to find Jack stood at the bar, alone. I looked up at him sadly before he pulled me into a hug.
“Hey, you alright?” He asked
“Not really, look what they've been saying.” I answered pointed toward the screen hung above the numerous bottles containing strange coloured liquids.
“It's OK Jem,”
“Look, Jack, Look.”
“No, I've seen it. Just..”
“Jack just look, please,” I interrupted him, getting frustrated.
“I've already seen it, Just ignore it, please.”
“How can I?”
He took hold of both my hands and held then in front of me, like when your praying. Looking and me intently. “Just don't look, Just ignore it, Promise me?”
He held out his little finger.
“I promise,” I said quietly, wrapping my little finger round his, smiling at him making me pinky promise
“Thank-you, It's just jealously because he can't have you. Dance?”
I nodded and he led me to the middle of the dance-floor. Taking my mind off Harry. We danced our silly routines to the same songs we heard every week and a couple of new ones. As the line “There's so many ways to love you” rang out from the many speakers scattered around, I held my hands up in front of us, formed into a heart shape. He pulled me closer, I could smell his scent, now so familiar. I smiled to myself and we continued to dance.
“Fancy moving on?” he said, leaning into me.
“Yeah sure, what about everyone else?”
“They'll catch us up.”
He held my hand, dragging me through the torrential rain to the next location. I tried to skip over all the puddles, he just ran straight through them all. We made it under the small doorway with four other people. I pushed my way up against the cream painted wooden door with nine square window panes leaving Jack to get rained on as he smoked.
We headed inside. He left me alone to go to the toilet. Kissing me on the lips before he went, reassuring me everything was OK. He reappeared with three blue-grey bottles in his hand, he began to dance as he handed me one. The club was only small and was reaching full capacity, you could hardly move without knocking into someone. He handed me the cold glass bottle he'd been drinking from, it was still half full.
“Here, We can have one and a half each,” he smiled.
A song came on he didn't really know so we decided to go look for the others that hadn't followed us yet. We'd almost reached the door and Luke burst in, searching frantically, he eyes landed on us.
“Jack, god mate where've you been?” he questioned.
“Here.” Jack replied.
“Well come on, we're going up the road.”
We followed him out, up round the corner of the street towards an old cotton factory that had been taken over by a large nightclub company who owned them all over the country. Luke and the others went off ahead, Jack held me back. I tried to keep walking because it was really cold, rather like a winter's night then a summer one.
“Luke only ever wants someone when he's drunk,” he exclaimed.
I stopped walking, turning to him as he grabbed hold of both my hands. I couldn't work out whether it was truth or if he was making it up through jealously.
He continued, “I like you really. Drunk or sober. You've got to believe that.”
“Right, OK. Dear me Jack,” I ran my hand through the front of my hair, I didn't really know what to say. “Come on lets catch up with the others.”
Once inside we didn't see much of Luke, Harry and everyone. It was just Jack and I on the dance-floor with those silly routines. A song came on we didn't really like, we walked the the edge of the dance-floor.
“Baby, let's find Luke. I need fag,” he spoke closely to my ear so I could hear over the music.
We looked out of the metal doors onto the terrace, looking for Luke's blond hair. We found him sat on one of the circular wooden benches that have a parasol up through the middle to protect you if it rains, flood-lights shining brightly down which provide warmth on cold nights. I sat down next to Luke. Jack stayed stood up next the the small circular table in front of me, next to a guy I didn't know. They talked amongst themselves, I didn't really pay any attention; looking up at the name sign above that glowed purple around the edges, round at the other three or four benches filled with people smoking, over the wall behind me to the damp road that had taxis lined up all along waiting for people ending their night. I looked back at Jack just as he was pulling away from a kiss with the guy I didn't know. He came to sit next to me as he saw me looking confused.
“Don't worry, was just a joke,” he reassured “You win anyway baby.”
“And why do I win?” I asked flirtatiously.
“Because your a better kisser,” he smiled and moved in closer, willing me to kiss him.
I pressed my lips softly up against is, my eyes tightly shut. I pressed harder, as did he, deepening the kiss, I pulled away slightly with his bottom lip between mine, before crashing back together open mouthed. I felt his wet tongue run along my top line of teeth before retreating back into his own mouth. We began breaking away, small, soft kisses as I became aware of the music and voices around us. I open my eyes to see Jack smiling at me.
“Yeah, definitely a better kisser,” he laughed.
We headed back inside, I led him through the crowd of people outside to the door we'd exited earlier. He could barely walk in a straight line.
“Baby, wait for me,” he shouted after me.
I looked round to find him only two steps behind me. We headed to the dance-floor; interlocking our fingers held out at either side, pink lights swirling around us, his forehead pressed tightly against mine as we sang over-dramatically to a song we'd heard three other times tonight.
We stayed that way for what seemed forever. Every now and again he's say “You're gorgeous, Baby,” each time I smiled at how insanely cute he could be.
We finally broke away.
“I need to go home, I don't feel well,” He said to me walking away pulling me along.
“We'll find Luke and then go,” I replied staring at him reassuringly like he had to me many times before.
“I'll go toilet, You find Luke,” he ordered before disappearing through a doorway.
I found Luke at the bar.
“We're going, Jack's not well. Coming?” I asked him.
“No, I've got friends, here, see,” he stated motioning to two people lined up against the bar with him.
“Come on, He's your best friend, You can't leave me with him.”
Jack reappeared, he said something to Luke but I couldn't hear it as I'd began walking off towards the exit, annoyed that Luke had just left his best friend. Jack caught up with me as I got the the waist height metal gates that lead to the steps down to the pavement.
“Food?” I asked.
“Yeah! Do you really need to ask?” He responded.
I looked up towards the sky as Jack slipped his arm around my waist, I was just at the right height to fit underneath his shoulder, we held each other tight. The midnight blue was turning lighter as sunrise approached, you could see clouds appearing. I always loved this time of day, everything always seems so much calmer.
When we'd received our food for our regular take-away outlet, we found a taxi to climb into.
“Don't you go getting any ideas, I'm a good girl,” I told him. I knew his reputation, taking girls home after every night out.
“I won't, We're just good friends.” He stated. “Pinky promise? It's just a drunk thing, We're just good friends?”
For the second time tonight I wrapped my little finger around his. I felt a little confused, earlier he was telling me that he'd fancied me drunk or sober and now it was just a drunk thing. I just smiled at him across the back seat of the car as he placed his hand on top of mine.
Apparently, we're just good friends.
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