I took off what Janet had so lovingly called 'the dragon suit' and slid on a dark blue mini dress with a light blue lace overlay. It was one of my favourite dresses so despite the semi-cold weather outside, I was determined to wear it.

"Should I take a coat?" I called out to Janet while I searched through my shoes for something appropriate.

"Only if you don't want it back!" Janet's voice seemed far away, so I assumed she was in her closet finding something to wear.

"Okay, no coat!" I called back. "Blue or black shoes? I have my blue dress on."

Janet appeared at the top of the stairs and tilted her head while she thought. "I think blue." She nodded and walked down the stairs. "Now let's get this over with. You know how much I hate the lines at this hour."

"And I also know how much you enjoy yourself every time I drag you out. So come on." I picked up my shoes and stepped out onto the front porch to put them on. Janet picked her purse up off the table and locked the door behind us.

The club was normally only about five minutes away, but in a miniskirt and heels, it was more like fifteen minutes.

"Why do we do this to ourselves?" Janet asked after we had been standing in the block-long line to get in for at least fifteen minutes. We had barely moved more than one square on the sidewalk since arriving.

"Because it's fun?" I offered up the best answer I could come up with, though I was starting to regret the decision myself. We took two slight shuffles forward to stay close behind the people in front of us as they let someone inside the club.

Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed a small group of loud people get out of a sleek, shiny black car. Three of them were wearing dark blue suits, which was wildly overdressed, even for this club.

The men in the suits pushed through the photographers lining the other side of the street, making room for the rest of the group to follow. The photographers jostled for position, snapping photos as the group passed by. They're probably trying to get a good shot for the tabloids.

"Oh, my God," Janet groaned. "I never thought he'd actually do it."

She took two steps before turning back to face me. "You stay here, okay? I have to go deal with this." She shrugged. "It's work."

I nodded. "Yeah, no problem. I'll keep your spot warm."

She turned away and walked towards the car and its occupants while I glared at the girls behind me, daring them to say anything about her leaving her spot in line. It didn't really work, because they weren't looking at me. At least I could say I tried.

I wanted to leave Janet alone with her work, but I couldn't help looking towards her and the gathered crowd near the car. I watched as she spoke with her hands and poked one of the men in the chest with her finger. He was a lot taller than her, but that didn't take much when she could barely reach the top shelf in the refrigerator.

I could tell from her hands that she was getting more agitated by the second, but the young man in the dark jacket oozed calmness with every word he spoke to her. Under the glow of the streetlights, his face almost shone a dark blue.

I snapped my head away from them when I noticed Janet turn back towards me.

I heard her shoes on the pavement before I heard her speak. "I cannot believe him! Even with an exam tomorrow afternoon, he's here, and he's already trashed. If he's not careful, I'm not going to be able to spare him."

I nodded like I knew what she was talking about and discreetly turned my head around to see what had become of the man and his friends. I couldn't see any sign of them. Maybe they went somewhere else.

"I mean, what do I have to do to get him to understand how important passing this damn class is?" Janet was mid-rant when I heard what she was saying. "His Dad yelling at him might be the only thing that can knock some sense into him. I guess I'll just have to call and-"

"Hey, Janet?" The man from earlier seemed to appear out of nowhere, smiling. His jacket looked even better up close, as did his dark skin and piercing eyes.

"What?" Janet snapped, spinning around to face him. "What else could you possibly want from me? You know I'm going to have to tell your dad now or I'll lose my job, right?"

She probably would have continued her tirade had he not put his finger to her lips. "It's fine, tell him. I just came to ask if you girls ever want to actually get into this club or just wait in line all night?" His eyes flitted to me and then back to Janet.

Janet's breaths were shallow and her shoulders were creeping up towards her ears, so I stepped in. "Hey, we want to get in, right?" I put my hands gently on her shoulders and made her look me in the eyes.

She glared at the man I still only assumed to be her cousin before turning to me. "Yes, we want to get in." She sighed.

I tilted my head quickly towards the guy and mouthed 'is that your cousin?' but her only response was to squint and watch me repeat myself.

"I don't know what you're trying to say." She leaned in to whisper in my ear. "But my cousin wants to know if we want him to get us in."

"So it is your cousin?" I let my eyes go wide. "He looks nothing like you. No offense."

"He's not that close a cousin." She shrugged. "But if you want him to get us in, I'll say yes."

Oh. She doesn't want to accept it, but she does want to get in. So it's easier if I do it.

"Oh please, Janet." I put my hand on her shoulder to increase the effect. "You have to let me go in, I've been dying to celebrate and I just couldn't bear standing in line all night."

"Laying it on a little thick?" she asked me at full volume. "But okay, I guess we go in with my cousin."

"That's what I'm talking about!" one of the guys called from the back of the gathered crowd.

"And I still don't know who your cousin is," I raised an eyebrow and tip my head towards him. I had to repeat the action a couple times and still she didn't understand.

"I'm Clarence." He spoke from behind me. "And I'd be honoured if you'd join us."

Clarence. Right. You think I'd remember his name with how often Janet's complaining about him. Maybe I should pay more attention.

"And I'm Genevieve." I turned around and reached out to shake his hand. "Thanks for helping us out."

No sooner had he released my hand than two of the men in dark suits came to usher us out of line and towards the VIP door. The group Clarence came with was large, and the group he amassed by the time we got to the door was massive.

"Sorry, no more." The biggest one held out his hand and I saw the flash of something black and shiny underneath his suit jacket. Was Clarence wandering around with private security? I didn't know he was that famous.

We were almost all the way into the club when the swarm of paparazzi came circling around the back of the building, snapping more photographs of the line.

Somehow, in the commotion, Janet and I got separated. And by the time I got inside, Janet had been swept away somewhere. I stepped into the main club area to see if I could find her but the only thing I could see was flashing lights and Clarence handing his coat across the counter at the coat check.

"You know you have about a fifty-fifty shot of ever seeing that coat again, right?"

"Yeah. I like the mystery." He smiled and slipped away into the crowd. I followed behind him into the dimly lit room filled with college students. Now I just have to find Janet. 

~ * ~ Author's Note ~ * ~

As you may know, I'm working on editing this work and submitting it to the Wattys. That means this book will be here on Wattpad for the foreseeable future! If you're interested in checking out one of my other Wattys entries for this year, may I suggest heading over to my profile ( authorelizasolares ) to find: 

Vegas Knot: Romantic Comedy Novel, Accidental Marriage / Fake Relationship

After seeing the man she's loved since grade school is about to be married, Bianca Daleman spends one drunken night in Las Vegas and winds up married to a guy she just met. And when her old flame comes back into town, she simply has to make her new marriage look like it's working. It's a matter of honour.

Now, let's get back to Genevieve!