The City of Angels.

"BOW TO ME. BOW. TO ME!" I shouted in my finest man chant as I sunk my beer pong ball in Alan and Austin's cup, winning myself and Tino the competitive game of beer pong we were all currently engrossed in.
"You make it so hard for us to see you as a woman!" Alan said with his tongue poking out as he accepted defeat and drained the red cup full of beer.
"Beg your pardon?" I said in my sweetest voice followed by a loud, beer-filled burp that would put any man to shame.

It was Tadhg's 25th birthday and we decided to throw a party in our shared apartment to celebrate. Austin, Alan, Tino, Phil, Aaron, Kim from my work and 2 fellow engineers at Tadhg's studio, Shane and Bill were in attendance. We stocked up on beer, vodka, whiskey and tequila in order to ring in Tadhg's 25th year appropriately. I hadn't been on a booze fueled night out in LA yet. I had heard it was an experience all on it's own and I was thirsty for it. Partying and drinking along side my friends was my favourite past time. It was the only thing that kept me sane when I lived back home.

"Whatever, beginners luck is all it is!" Austin shot at me with a chuckle as I took my seat and he slid in beside me at the kitchen table.
"I'll have you know I'm a seasoned beer pong-er." I said in a serious tone. I poured us both a tequila shot. "LA baby!" I said as I placed the shot in front of him and pointed my shot class towards him for a cheers.
"To your first LA night out, little doll!" Austin replied, tipping his tequila against mine. Little doll was his current nickname for me. I can't say I hated it...
"So is there anything I should look out for on a typical LA night out? Apart from Ryan Gosling? Because that's my main objective tonight." I said, alcohol choosing my words.
"You'll be fine once you stick with us. No drifting!" Austin said with his index finger inches from my nose but a small smile playing on his lips.
"Aye aye, captain!" I answered with a salute.

Kim caught my eye from the other side of the table and she gave me a mysterious look. I excused myself from Austin and Phil who had just arrived beside him and went to sit beside Kim.

"Spill!" She commanded before I even had my arse on the seat.
"There's nothing to spill!" I said innocently, accompanied with a laugh. "What you see is what you get!" I finished with a slur.
"Girl, just try and tell me he's not undressing you with his eyes right now!" She said with a sly eye towards Austin.
"He's behind. I undressed him the second he walked through the front door!" I confessed, sending Kim and I both into a fit of laughter.

After my confessional with Kim I did the rounds of the table ensuring there was enough alcohol flowing and nobody was falling behind.

"Smile!" Austin instructed me as I was stood behind him, topping up his drink. I looked ahead to see his phone camera facing us. I rested my chin on his shoulder and flashed a smile as he had commanded, while he smiled, biting his lip. "We make a good couple!" He said as we both laughed at the picture and he opened up Instagram.

Within seconds my phone was lighting up telling me I had been tagged in Austin's photo on Instagram with a caption that read;

"@austincarlile: Watch out LA. This crazy chick is being unleashed on her first LA night out tonight. Happy 25th birthday to my man @TadhgFEngineer!"

"Taxi's are here everyone!" Tadhg called to the group not long after a competitive game of flip cup in which I had lost terribly.
"Road beers?" I said with an eyebrow raised towards Tadhg. Road beers being our favorite way to have a beer at home. "Is that a thing here?" I then asked looking around the room.
"Not unless you want to get arrested!" Austin said with a laugh as he stood to the side, letting me walk in front of him.
"You'd know all about that, convict." I joked as I seductively whispered the last part as close to his ear as I could, my tall heels helping me out.
"Very funny!" Came his reply. "You look great by the way." He finished as his hand landed on my lower back, his lips almost touching my ear thorough my hair.
"You don't look too bad yourself!" Came my reply as I, once again, took in his white v-neck tee, black skin tight jeans and black leather jacket. His hair and facial hair were styled to perfection.
"Awww shucks! Shall we?" He asked as he held his arm out for me to take.
"It would be my pleasure!" I replied as I smoothed out my outfit and linked my small arm through his big, tattooed arm.

Be it from his first touch to my lower back and lips at my ear or him linking our arms, I felt the familiar bolt of energy through my body the second Austin's hands were on me. We would always share a smile signifying we both felt the same rush between us upon the other's touch. Austin and I were still just friends but there was no denying that whatever we had, it was electric.

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"Fuuuuck that noise. There's no way I'm standing in that queue in these heels!" I shouted as we pulled up to the nightclub in downtown LA.
"Don't sweat it baby cakes, you're VIP now you're rollin' with us!" Alan said as he flashed his signature devil horns.
"What?" I asked in confusion.
"Just follow us, Irish." Aaron said with a chuckle, amusement in his voice.

I looked to Austin for any sort of explanation but he urged me on with his kind eyes and playful smile. We arrived to the door of the nightclub, bypassing the crowd of roughly 70 to 100 people. Once at the door, the boys from the band shook the bouncers hand one-by-one and a waitress came to meet us to show us to a booth. I was mesmerised.

"Fi, you're gonna get lock-jaw if you don't close that mouth of yours!" Phil said with a laugh.
"I'm sorry it's just... We're not used to this kind of thing!" I said as I motioned between Tadhg and myself.
"We definitely don't mind getting used to it though!" Tadhg called to everyone and thanked the band for the hookup.

The remainder of Tadhg's 25th birthday involved copious amounts of drinking, dancing and laughing the night away. Tadhg and I recounted old stories from his birthdays in the past which gained many laughs from the group. Especially the one that involved him pushing me over in 5 inches of snow on his 22nd birthday.

"I am not looking forward to work tomorrow!" I spluttered at Austin and Kim as we were leaving the nightclub. "I can already sense that I will be as sick as a wee hospital tomorrow!" I managed to get out, gaining a laugh from my friends.
"Tell me about it!" Kim replied.
"At least you guys will have each other!" Austin struggled to say. "I'm the only one that doesn't need to be in the studio tomorrow!" He finished.
"Boo-hoo, Carlile. You get to stay in bed!" Kim teased as the rest of our group approached us and Tino managed to flag 2 cabs.
"That's no fun when you're alone though!" Austin said, sticking out his bottom lip.
"Maybe Miss. Fi here can keep you company after work!" Kim replied and Austin looked at me with a cheeky grin.
"If I'm not having my insides pumped in the hospital due to alcohol poisoning, I'd consider keeping you company!" I said as I wrapped my arms around his middle, steadying myself.
"Fi, Kim, Tadhg, Shane and Bill, this is your ride!" Tino called to everyone.
"I'm holding you to what you just said by the way!" Austin said in my ear as he opened the door of the taxi and signalled for me to get inside.
"Until tomorrow, then!" I said in reply from inside the cab, my eyes getting heavy already.
"See you then, little doll!" Austin said with a wink.

Once we arrived back at the apartment, Kim and I got into my bed and had a short lived chat about mine and Austin's relationship. Kim was asleep within a millisecond of silence and I picked up my phone, turned on the front camera and flashed a smile. I opened up Instagram and typed;

"@FionaIrishThreads: First night out in LA was quite the success. I can already feel tomorrow's hangover. Shoutout to @austincarlile who managed to keep an eye on me despite him being a huge lightweight. Goodnight moon."

Just as sleep was beginning to grab a hold of me, my phone buzzed. I sat up to see a comment on the photo I just uploaded. It was from Austin.

"@austincarlile: Get to sleep, you beautiful, drunken mess! You've got a promise to withhold tomorrow! ;)"

I laughed at his comment and snuggled under my covers feeling the happiest I have been in a long time. I cherished the feeling, knowing tomorrow would bring with it the hangover from hell.

"Fuck it!" I said out loud with a gruff laugh and fell into oblivion with a smile on my face.

Notes

Thanks for the feedback loves :) This one's for you.
Hope you like it! X