Dani's Risky Foursome Ch. 03b

A cheeky smirk tugged at the corners of Luis' mouth. "Don't worry your pretty little head about it. I don't need her. As long as I have you."

"Me? Your slutty Pandora's Box waitress?" Dani tittered.

Luis let out a low chuckle, leaning over and pressing a firm hand into Dani's toned thigh. "You're so much more than that. You're my little blue badge baby. Isn't that right?"

"You know it," Dani giggled, turning away as another rosy blush lit up her tall cheekbones.

Symbolic Acts

Dani rolled over blearily as her alarm blared on her nightstand, trying to recall why the hell she had set it for a Sunday morning. Not that she ever set it anyway after a shift at Pandora's Box. Tangled naked in the garishly pink bedsheets, she grabbed her phone, her next immediate thought being why in the world she had apparently set it for 07:33am. This, finally, was followed by the more sobering realisation that it wasn't her alarm making the noise at all.

Someone was calling her.

She didn't recognise the number, and Dani hovered her thumb over the 'answer' button for several seconds before finally jabbing down. "Hello?"

"...Dani? Dani Cruz?"

Dani frowned. She recognised the firm, low-pitched voice. "Yeah? Who's this?"

A heavy sigh answered her on the other end of the line. "It's Jake."

"Oh." A low sinking feeling drifted from Dani's throat into her stomach, leaving a small but noticeable lump behind. Her bedsheets had slipped down her frame, exposing her bare shoulders to the cool air, and she hastily recovered them. "Hey."

"Hey." The silence, unlike in Luis' car earlier that morning, was unmistakeably awkward. They hadn't spoken at all since the night they broke up. Dani wondered exactly how rude it would be if she hung up right now. "Is... is this a bad time?" Jake finally asked.

"Um, no, not really... well, I mean, you did wake me up," Dani replied, not bothering to hide her irritation.

"Oh shit. I'm sorry. I totally forgot about time differences."

"It's cool."

"It's about half ten at night here in London. What time is it there?"

"Half seven. In the morning."

"Ah, crap. That is early."

Dani huffed loudly. The lump in her throat wasn't going anywhere and neither was this conversation. Suddenly she was sick of his voice. "Look, Jake, did you need something? I was working last night. I got back at like 3am. I'm tired as all hell."

"Right, right, right," Jake said. Dani could tell purely from the cadence in his voice that he was running his fingers anxiously through his hair. Her heart rose a little -- just a little -- at this familiarity. "Sorry, I know this is completely out of the blue. I just... I'm unpacking. I can't find my grey hoodie. I was just wondering if you have it?"

Dani knew exactly which grey hoodie Jake was talking about. She glanced to where it was hanging from a hook on the back of her bedroom door. She had 'borrowed' it on their fourth date, months ago, when a surprise tropical rainstorm had caught them at a popular picnic spot. Dressed only in a thin crop top and small cotton shorts, she had been shivering until he gave it to her to wear, and she had kept it ever since. Aside from the odd joke about her having 'stolen' it, not once had he ever asked for it back.

"Yeah, it's here." Dani looked forlornly back at the jumper.

"Oh. Great."

"You want it back?" There was silence on the other end. "Jake?"

"No." The word was laden with uncertainty. Then he repeated himself with more confidence. "No, it's fine. I was just curious. You keep it."

But the longer Dani stared at the jumper, the more a sense of revulsion crept into her. It wasn't like she ever wore it. She was surprised she even kept it. Really, what use was the stupid old thing? "No, I'll mail it to you. It's fine. Just send me your new address or whatever. It's yours."

"My address? You sure this isn't an attempt to stalk me?" Classic Jake, Dani thought to herself. Deflecting an awkward situation with humour. Not that he had ever been particularly serious about anything when he could help it.

"Pretty sure. Send me your address on WhatsApp or something."

"You blocked me on WhatsApp."

"Oh. Instagram then."

"You unfollowed me."

"...right." Yet another silence descended over them. Not quite as awkward, but somehow heavier. When Jake spoke again, there was unmistakeable hurt in his tone.

"You... you really don't wanna keep it?"

"No," Dani said flatly. "Why would I?"

"Well, you've... you've had it for so long."

"Sure. So?"

"Well... what about the memories?" Jake's voice was sharp with sadness now and Dani gulped as the lump in her throat swelled a little more. The tell-tale creep of tears was obvious behind her eyes, and she clenched her free hand into a fist in an attempt to hold it together.

"What memories?" she asked bitterly through gritted teeth as the tears started to well. "Why are you bringing this up? Why did you even call?"

"I'm sorry!" Jake gasped, clearly aware of what he had caused just by the tone of Dani's voice. "I didn't mean to- I just..."

"You know what?" The tears were flowing freely now, and it took all of Dani's willpower to resist throwing her phone across the room. "Neither of us can have it. This afternoon I'm gonna chuck it in the bin. Okay? And if you want to stop me, I guess you're gonna have to fucking fly out here and... and... SHIT!"

Dani chucked her phone down on the bed and started sobbing uncontrollably, crumpling under the weight of her bedsheets. She had never been so glad that Martine wasn't home as she bawled and bawled, huffing and sniffing breathlessly on her bed for what felt like an eternity as her insides creased with the melancholic pain of a thousand knives to the heart.

At length, as the waterfall of tears slowed to a trickle, and Dani was able to gasp some air back into her lungs, she wiped the remaining moisture from her lashes with the back of her hand. She tried to gulp down the lump in her throat, which persisted stubbornly, and reached for a box of tissues on her nightstand.

Dani wiped away her tears and blew her nose, feeling like a complete trainwreck, before slumping in silence. What little energy she had was now gone, evaporated into thin air, and the prospect of spending all day in bed suddenly looked so alluring.

"...Dani?" Jake's hesitant voice crept quietly from under the bedsheets. Dani whipped them back and relocated her phone. The call was still going. Had he actually sat and waited through all of that?

"Jake?" Dani's voice still had a slight tremble to it as she raised her phone back to her ear, although the cleansing relief of crying had lightened her tone considerably. The lump was slightly smaller now, although still present.

"Are you okay?" Dani said nothing. She clutched the phone tightly to the side of her face as Jake sighed heavily. "Alright. I'm sorry. I really, really am. I didn't want to upset you. I never did. I'm gonna hang up. Do what you want with the jump-"

"I miss you." The words fell from Dani's lips before she could stop them. But she didn't regret it one bit. "I miss you so much, Jakey."

Now it was Jake's turn to be silent. The break in conversation seemed to last a million years for Dani. Then...

"...I miss you too, babe."

Babe. That one, beautiful word. Never had Dani realised how much she missed hearing it until this moment, and sunshine flooded her soul.

Now they were both silent. It was the most serene, most comforting silence Dani had ever experienced, a reminder of times past when the two of them would call in the evenings and talk for hours. Even on the rare occasions they had run out of things to talk about they had stayed on the line, listening to each other's gentle breathing. Back when everything was okay.

"Do you remember that day?" Jake asked, drawing the silence to a close.

"What day?" Dani laid back against her pillows, tentatively allowing a small smile to spread across her face. It really was just like old times. If only he wasn't so far away...

"The day I gave you my jumper. It was our... third date, I think?"

"Fourth. Third was the food market and the city park."

"No it wasn't. That was our second date."

"Second date was the mini golf place, you moron," Dani giggled, twirling a strand of chocolate hair around her index finger.

"Shh. Don't get cocky with me. You haven't answered my question still."

"What question?"

"Our third... fourth... whatever, date. When I gave you the hoodie. Do you remember it?"

"The picnic on the hill. We got caught in that rainstorm. Of course I remember it," Dani said quietly.

"You were absolutely soaked," Jake said as he started to laugh at the memory. "Your top was so drenched that I could see your boobs. You were screaming."

"I was not!" Dani cried indignantly, starting to laugh herself. The lump in her throat was growing smaller and smaller. "What about you, swearing at the top of your lungs? That old lady looked like she was gonna knock you out."

"I wasn't planning for you to keep it," Jake admitted. "The hoodie, I mean. But then, when I came to yours the next day and you answered the door wearing it... you looked so damn cute. I couldn't take it back after that."

"You sure that was the reason you liked it so much?" Dani asked with a light giggle. "It had nothing to do with the fact I was naked under it?"

"Well once I realised that, you were just plain naked," Jake grinned. "On all fours too if I recall correctly..."

"Okay, okay," Dani snickered. "Don't be naughty, Jakey." Another silence passed between them, the sweetest yet.

"Keep the hoodie, Dani."

"No, it's fine," Dani said, sitting up. "It's yours. You should have it back."

"It was almost brand new when I gave it to you," Jake chuckled. "You've literally had it longer than me. It's yours. I insist."

A quiet contentment spread through Dani as she lay back against her pillows. The lump in her throat had now been banished in its entirety. "Thank you, Jake. Really."

"Don't worry about it, troublemaker."

"So, what's London like? Have you met the Royal Family yet?"

Then they were talking again. They talked and talked and talked. Just like old times, just the two of them. Dani had forgotten how funny Jake was, how he could make even the most mundane thing interesting and humourous to listen to. The fact that she was operating on only four hours sleep was soon completely lost on her as she sat there, wide awake, listening to the tales of his new home and his new job.

She had thought for the longest time that even thinking about him would be enough to upset her and yet here she was, on the phone with him, chatting as if nothing had ever happened. He may have been on the other side of the world but, really... how bad could it be when they could still talk so easily, just like this?

A whole hour passed in the blink of an eye.

"Anyway, that's enough about me," Jake said. "I've been bleating on and on and on. What's new with you? Hey, you said you were working last night, right? How's that going? Anything fun happening recently at Pandora's Box?"

A naughty, lightly flustered grin spread across Dani's face, accompanied by the slightest blush of rouge settling upon her cheeks. She couldn't have been more glad that Jake wasn't in the room to see her right now. "Oh... really nothing that exciting. Same old, same old, you know?"

The conversation eventually ended -- it always had to, after all. But the rest of the week seemed to pass in a new light for Dani. She had a spring in her step wherever she went, from her college work placement to the gym, the shopping mall to her favourite nightclubs. She found herself properly back at Pandora's Box too, working two weekly shifts. Although many pairs of eyes were on her, as always, there was no more sign of Luis or Anton. Or even Aria, for that matter.

Nearly one week later, on the following Friday, Dani found herself at the mall with Martine. The two girls were clad in low-cut sports bras and ass-hugging yoga pants, Dani in emerald green and Martine in sunset orange. They had just been to the gym and were now sipping lattes in their favourite coffee spot.

"I just... couldn't believe it. Y'know? It was like something out of a dream." Martine was energetic as always, gesticulating wildly across the table from Dani. "This girl just walked straight up to Ethan and started talking to him like they were best friends."

"What? Did she just ignore you or something?" Dani leant forward disbelievingly, her eyes wide with curiosity.

"Hell no." Martine took a sip of her coffee and winced at the heat, before immediately going in for a follow-up. "She looks me up and down with this extra bitchy face and is like, 'Ethan, who's this?' And obviously I'm like, 'uh, I'm his girlfriend you whore'. Long story short, I asked Ethan about it and he just... confessed to sleeping with her. And that was that."

"Shit. I'm sorry, Marti."

"Pffft. I'm not." Martine casually swung her gorgeous blonde locks behind her shoulders. "Good riddance. Him and Jake were best buds. We both should've known."

Dani smiled to herself as she took the lid off her latte and gently blew on it. "Jake's not such a bad guy."

"Yes, yes, you told me all about your little chat with him," Martine said, trying to sound nonchalant but unable to hide her glee that her best friend had finally found peace. "Whatever. I'm excited, to be honest with you."

"Oh yeah?"

Martine leaned forwards, her eyes sparkling. "Babe, don't you see? We're both newly single again!"

"Newly?" Dani laughed. "Jake and I broke up over a month ago."

"Not the point," Martine said. "We're both. Single. Now." Her blue eyes glittered like sapphires as she spoke. "You broke up with Jake a month ago, I broke up with Ethan yesterday, whatever, who cares! It's Friday afternoon, which means in a few hours it's gonna be Friday night! Tonight we're going out with the girls. Alex texted me -- we're gonna hit up that new club on the waterfront."

"Artemis?" Dani had not only seen the posters all over campus but had also been repeatedly hounded by the club reps on the way to her Pandora's Box shifts that week.

"That's the one. It's supposed to be huge." Martine leaned back, smiling with the dauntless certainty only a former head cheerleader could possess. "Tonight is our night, and we're both gonna make the most of it. We're gonna get ourselves looking hot as hell and then, as soon as we arrive, we're finding some cute boys who'll buy us all the drinks we want!"

Martine's gaiety was infectious, and Dani couldn't help grinning at the idea of scoping out the new club in their skimpy little outfits, getting drunk and teasing all the boys. "Girl, that sounds perfect. Bring on Friday night!" She raised her latte in mock salute with a giggle.

"Oh my God! Dani?!" The voice, shrill and gleeful, bounced off the walls suddenly from somewhere behind. Dani recognised it instantaneously. But it took her several seconds to link it with a face and, by the time she had, it was too late.

"Who's that?" Martine frowned as she peered around Dani. "Is she talking to you? She looks like a freshman."

"Oh hell," Dani muttered under her breath. Mustering the most convincing fake smile she could, Dani sighed deeply before turning in her seat to greet the newcomer. "Aria! Girl, so good to see you!"

Aria waved as she pranced forwards, wearing a black top beneath a pair of baggy denim dungarees that virtually orbited her skinny figure. Her long black hair dangled gorgeously in a pair of straight, high pigtails, and she clutched a plastic bag in a loose hand.

"I thought I heard your voice!" Aria smiled as she reached them. "Oh, have you been to the gym? You look like you have. I love your yoga pants! Jeez, is there anything you don't look good in?"

"Uh, thanks," Dani smiled back awkwardly as she gestured to Martine. "Yeah, we're just chilling after our workout. This is my bestie, Martine."

"Hi!" Aria said brightly, turning to Martine. "Oh my God, you're so beautiful as well! Do you work at Pandora's Box too?"

"Uh, no. No I don't, unfortunately," Martine replied, shooting a sideways glance at Dani, her expression torn equally between confusion and amusement.

"Oh. That's a shame." Martine raised her eyebrows as Aria turned her full attention back to Dani without another word. "I'm so happy I ran into you actually, Dani. I've got such good news!"

"Oh really?" Dani couldn't shake a sense of foreboding as Aria trembled with delight in front of her. While the freshman girl seemed to be in a perpetual state of excitement, in Dani's brief experience there was only one thing capable of getting Aria this worked up. "What is it?"

Aria made a little squealing noise. "Oh Dani, it worked! I'm pregnant!"

Dani gasped and clamped a hand over her mouth, wide eyed, as Martine almost spat out her coffee next to her. Despite everything that had happened last Saturday, hearing Aria comment on such a life-changing reality in the most carefree way was more than a little perturbing.

"Are- are you sure?" Dani stammered. "It only happened a week ago. H-how do you know?"

"I've been getting morning sickness!" Aria announced, with more joy than anyone else who had ever uttered those words before. "My boobs have been super sore and they've even got these little blue veins all over them! I looked online -- it all means I'm pregnant!" She raised the plastic bag in the air. "I just bought a pregnancy test. Got it right here! Once I miss my period next week, I'm gonna take it just to be sure! Oh, but I know it'll be positive! I'm gonna be a mommy!"

Aria's eyes brimmed with ecstatic gratitude and, before either Dani or Martine could react, the new girl had dived forwards and wrapped her arms around the brunette with an indebted cry. "This never would have happened without you!" Aria gushed, pulling away from Dani and bouncing gleefully on the spot. "Thank you, thank you, thank you! I hope Luis gets you pregnant really soon, I really do! It's the least you deserve for helping me!"

And before Dani could say anything else -- or remind Aria for the umpteenth time that she really didn't want to get pregnant -- Aria turned on her heel and pranced away with an energetic wave. "It was nice to meet you!" she called to Martine, almost as an afterthought. And then she was gone, skipping away down the concourse.

Martine watched Aria leave, her mouth hung open in disbelief. "Did... did that really just happen?" She blinked and then burst out laughing. "Oh, wow. I've never, ever seen someone so excited about the prospect of peeing themselves every time they sneeze."

"Yeah," Dani snickered, "or waking up at 3am to change diapers."

"Getting puked on in public, dealing with crying and tantrums," Martine continued, turning up her nose.

"Don't forget wrecking your coochie giving birth to them," Dani added, wincing at the thought.

"Too right. It's a bloody nightmare." Martine shook her head with an involuntary shiver before nodding towards Aria's rapidly shrinking figure. "Oh well. Better her than us, I guess."

"Amen to that," Dani said, doing her best to ignore the soft fluttering of nervous excitement in her belly. After all, she herself had come perilously close to joining Aria in the Sore Tits and Morning Sickness Club barely a week ago. "Last thing I'd ever want to happen to me."

"Although, what was that she was saying?" Martine asked, an unmistakeably cheeky grin sliding over her face. "Something about Luis getting you preggers?"

"What? N-no, it's not... she's talking crap," Dani gulped, shifting uncomfortably as a scarlet flush began to creep up her cheeks.

Martine's grin grew even wider and even more gleeful. "Hey, now, no need to be embarrassed. I'm sure lots of girls get knocked up by their sugar daddies."