SPILLING SECRETS: First meetings - Lucas POV

Five nurses, three zombies, seven mummies... and he had already lost count of the number of vampires he had seen in just one hour. Themed nights were always a good way to attract customers to the club, but the night of October 31st was special, and no one wanted to miss the NeonGreen’s Halloween Party. And that meant… working like crazy until the wee hours of the morning.

Lucas was used to chaotic nights such as that one, but being surrounded by all those weird costumes and gore makeup had always managed to make his head hurt. Luckily, this year he had not been forced to dress up as police officer with questionable authority. This time he was finally able to choose his own costume, so there he was, serving drinks dressed as a disheveled but sexy pirate. As soon as my boss looks away, I’m getting rid of this damn hat...

He was about to throw the cleaning cloth at a werewolf that couldn’t keep his claws to himself when, suddenly, someone caught his attention: a girl that was trying to make her way through the dancing crowd, walking straight to the bar. Wow...Who are you? She was wearing just some jeans and a sweater and, for some reason, just looking at her made a mischievous smile appear on his face. It was her first time at the NeonGreen, of that much he was sure. She's getting close... Stand up straight, tense up your muscles...

“Do you have something personal against Halloween? Or are you wearing a "mysterious normal girl" costume?”

“What?”

Is she having trouble hearing me with all the noise? Or maybe… she did not find my joke funny…? The music was really loud and, at that distance, it was difficult to have a proper conversation. That gave him the perfect excuse to lean closer to her. Thank god I took off that ridiculous hat right on time...

“Well, you’re the only one who’s not wearing a costume...” he said, but explaining his joke only made him sound even dumber.

“Oh, no one told me it was mandatory to wear one…”

Great, now she'll think I'm accusing her of not dressing according to the theme... Think, Lucas, think. He was good at talking to people - girls in particular. He had talked to countless of them, so he should have no problem with making conversation with her, right?

“Don’t worry, we’ll just say you’re dressed up as a… What is your major?”

“Law” she answered, raising an eyebrow and resting her hands on the bar counter.

“Then you’re dressed up as a lawyer! See? Problem solved” he said with a chuckle, and the girl smiled in return for the first time. “So am I in front of a future attorney?”

“I hope so” she said, and her smile turned into a light laugh.

“But… Will you defend the good guys, or the bad guys?”

Maybe it was typical for a Law student to be asked something like that, but he was hoping she would catch on the flirty undertone of the question. He had never flirted with a lawyer before, so he definitely lacked the experience, but he was determined to get her number. As soon as I get home, I need to search for information about Law on Foogle...

“That remains to be seen” she joked, fake-scratching her chin as if it was a tough decision to make.

“I’m a Physical Activity and Sports Science student, by the way” he said, wiping the counter's surface with the cleaning cloth and taking this chance to flex his bicep a bit more. “If you ever need a personal trainer or som...”

“Hey, Lucas! This place sure is busy tonight…”

A familiar face appeared behind the girl, making Lucas take a startled step back. It was Marc, who was looking at him with a wide smile and a strange twinkle in his eyes. Man… Why did he have to show up right now? He could always ask him to give them a moment, but he couldn’t bring himself to do it. At the end of the day, Marc was his best friend, and every time he made a visit to the NeonGreen, he did so to spend some time with him.

“Oh, did you already meet my friend Lucas?” Marc asked, still smiling brightly and alternating his gaze between the girl and Lucas.

“Wait, you two know each other?” So… did they come here together?

“Yeah, we met on campus” she explained, bumping her shoulder playfully against Marc’s.

“Yeah, if by "meeting" you mean "spilling a whole cup of coffee on her"…” Marc said, and he way he laughed and looked at her said it all.

He's head over heels for her. He had been Marc’s friend for a long time, so he knew perfectly well how his friend behaved when he was in front of a girl he was attracted to. And from the way his eyes were shining, he could tell that he liked her a lot. I guess this is game over for me, then... After all, friendship always came first, and one of his many mottos was “your friends' girls are forbidden territory”.

“Oh, my name’s ______” she introduced herself, bringing her hand forward with determination.

“A pleasure to meet you. As he just said, my name’s Lucas” he shook her hand with a warm smile. A strong and firm handshake. I like it. “I'm this guy's sexiest friend, even if he won’t admit it...”

“Impressive introduction, as always…” muttered Marc, rolling his eyes. “Well, this is the place I talked to you about the other day.”

“Not exactly what I imagined, but I like it” she observed, looking around with curiosity in her eyes.

“Where did you think I was taking you? Some cheap, run-down bar full of old drunk people?”

“Of course not!”

They both started laughing, and then their conversation continued with a series of internal jokes that Lucas couldn't quite catch. So he just stood there, with a glass in one hand and a cleaning cloth in the other. Why the hell am I standing here watching as if this was some kind of school-play? It was obvious there was something between them or, at least, there would be something in the future. So… it was time to step back.

“Well, if you don’t mind… This hot pirate needs to get back to work” he said, mustering the most convincing smile he could and trying not to sound as let down as he felt. “You two have fun.”

“Come hang out with us later, if you can. We plan on staying around for a while.” suggested Marc, and he was being completely serious about it.

“Sure. It was nice meeting you, Ms. Lawyer.” Lucas winked at her, making her smile for the last time.

“Likewise, Mr. Pirate!”

What a bummer. But, well… there’s nothing I can do about it. He would just wish them all the best and shove all that attraction he had felt into some dark, forgotten corner of his mind to never ever bring it out again. Now, back to work…