Thom sipped his beer and eyed the pool table, regretting having joined his friends tonight. It was loud and aside from the very slow, inebriated game of pool, there was nothing going on. For him- there was nothing going on for him.

He'd watched Gio hit on three consecutive girls- each time getting a number. Christian had ditched in the middle of the game twice to dance with random girls. Jay and Adam were well past buzzed and sword fighting with the cues. Thom was, as he always was, too much in his head to talk to any of the girls, or enjoy the night for what it was.

"How did I let you convince me to come out tonight?" he grumbled to Gio who'd just returned, flashing the third phone number at him.

"You were bored, 'cause you're boring!" Gio laughed, chugging down the last half of Thom's beer. He signaled to a passing waitress for another two drinks to be brought over. "Oooh! Lookie lookie," Gio nodded his head to the group of women that had just walked in. "A bachelorette party!"

Thom recognized the woman at the center of the group, wearing a lopsided tiara and a sparkly sash that read Bride in some ridiculously florescent shade of pink. She worked in the building across from his work and like him, she seemed to be a creature of habit, always traveling in the same subway car and stopping at the same coffee shop.  She smiled at him a lot. He had conversations with her- that he never voiced out loud- a lot.

"Oh great!" Thom leaned over the table, racking up the balls for a new game. "Now I get to watch you try and get another number."

"Not try, Thom. Get. You have the pleasure of watching me get another number.  You should take notes."

Thom rolled his eyes and gestured at the table, "Another game?  At least let them order drinks before you start charming them."

"Um, hiii?"  A voice squealed, a hand landing on Gio's muscled arm, "We were dared to interrupt a game of pool and just start playing, so can we join your game?  And can you, like, tell our friend over there that's what we did if she asks?"

"What's in it for us?" Gio asked eyeing them both appreciatively.

The girl grinned, propelling the bride to be forward, "Lacey will kiss your friend."  Lacey gave her an annoyed look, but smiled and shrugged, almost acquiescing.

Gio laughed, eyeing Thom for a reaction, "Sure thing, Sweetheart.  I was hoping you'd say your number, but that'll work too."  He looked past her and waved the rest of the group over.

"Oy!" Thom muttered eyeing all six women, "This is going to be a long slow game."

"Hey!" Lacey said, "Are you saying we can't play because we're girls?"

Thom flushed; this was why he didn't talk to women, it always sounded wrong.  "No, I meant there are a lot of people here..."  The girls had drawn the attention of Christian, J, and A, and they were all watching in amusement. 

"It's just Lacey and me.  I'm Diana," the petite curly haired brunette who'd interrupted them introduced herself. 

Gio handed them both cues- ones he'd liberated from J and A- and smiled, "I'm Gio.  This is Thom.  Do you ladies know how to play?"

Thom was thankful he hadn't been the one to ask that question.  Lacey's reaction was, as expected, less than pleased, and the exact reason he wouldn't have voiced that question had it popped into his head.

"Of course we know how to play, you ass!"  She handed her sash to one of her friends. The forgotten tiara now hung almost sideways in her long brown hair.  "Because of the stupid dares they want me to do, I'll make you a deal," she stood at the head of the table as if she intended to break. "Diana and I win, you buy the whole lot of us top shelf drinks."

The ladies cheered.  Thom's drunk friends cheered. 

"And if they win?"

"I'll kiss Thom!"               

"What about me?" Gio asked, a teasing pout on his face.

Lacey adjusted her tiara and leaned over the table, "Just Thom."  She shot the white ball and then glanced up at the two of them, grinning as the balls spun out in all directions, "But, it'll be so good, you'll feel it too, Gio."

Thom raised an eyebrow; the words seemed odd coming from a soon to be married woman.  She must have been confident she would win.  Somehow the combination of his third beer, the fact that she was engaged and her certainty in winning made it easier for Thom to talk.

As they played, he heard himself teasing her, and even her friend, as a means of distraction.

"What's it gonna be, Lacey?  Corner pocket?  Side pocket?  We haven't got all night... the bar will close at some point."

"Shut up, Thom," she ground out as she examined the table.  She pulled her hair back, twisting it so it would stay out of the way as she leaned forward.

"Seriously?  You need to fix your hair every shot you take?  This is pool, not a fashion show."

"Green ball, side pocket," she said a little smugly, "I make that shot, you take down your pretentious man-bun."

Gio smirked as Thom protested; Gio always made fun of him for it, but he wasn't following the fad.  "How else am I supposed to put it back?"

Lacey made the shot and sauntered around the table, hand outstretched for his hair-tie. 

"I never agreed to your terms."  He folded his arms, firm in his resolve to leave his hair as it was.

Lacey frowned mockingly -boohoo!- as she leaned toward him reaching for his hair.  "I don't need you to agree..."

Thom felt her tug the tie out of his hair and tousle it playfully into his face- it felt weirdly flirty.  She pulled her hair up into a ponytail, and with a teasing grin, tied it into a bun.  Thom flipped his hair forward, shook it out and tossed his head back; a habit he'd gotten into from when he'd played rugby.  

He supposed it seemed odd now that he didn't play anymore, except for the occasional for fun game.  As he leaned forward to take his shot, he caught Lacey looking at him with a funny look on her face, and he cocked an eyebrow at her in question. 

She smirked, reaching to tousle his hair again, and he ducked his head away from her.  She didn't mess it up, however, choosing instead when she caught him, to run her fingers through it and push it off his face, "You shouldn't tie it up all the time, it's too nice."

Thom wondered why some girls did that; flirt so hard even though they were so very taken.  He'd always hated that; it made it hard to tell when he had a chance or when they were simply playing.  He re-positioned himself for the shot and took it; flustered by both Lacey and the fact that his hair had fallen into his face again.  He missed the shot, but he wasn't about to complain after teasing her about fixing hers.

As  Diana took her shot, Lacey bumped into his side, "So, I have a favor to ask."  She whispered, "I have list of dares to complete, and I really don't feel like asking a bunch of random guys..."

"Let me see," he held out a hand for the list.  She slid him a piece of paper as discretely as she could and he looked it over with a smirk.  Typical bachelorette party stuff; get a guy's number, kiss a random guy, lick the salt for a tequila shot off a guy, dirty dance with a random guy. 

"Really?" he asked; these were all just more opportunities for her to flirt with guys  before she got married.

"Yeah... now you know why I don't want to go around getting these done..."

Thom laughed and pocketed her list, dodging out of her reach and towards the bar when she tried to get it back.  He was aware that she followed him, and he laughed when she popped up beside him, reaching over the bar top to the get the bartender's attention. 

As she ordered two tequila shots, he grabbed the sharpie that rested on the mixing counter.  Without saying anything he wrote his number on her arm; not that it mattered, it would be washed off by tomorrow, and she'd never call.

The shots arrived and Lacey grabbed the salt shaker off the off the counter, and held it out to him.  He shook the salt out onto his forearm and held her lemon in the other.  It felt odd.  He'd done body shots before, usually when he was as drunk as his friends were, but the ladies had been without a doubt single.

When Lacey shook salt onto her shoulder and handed him the second shot, he eyed her reproachfully before licking salt off the back of his own hand.  She laughed at how proper he was as they returned to their game, and as he tried to take his last shot, she attempted to distract him by shimmying her hips against him. 

"Not gonna work!" He laughed and dancing with her for a moment before spinning her away, so he could sink the last ball.  He didn't. 

She did.         

She won.  Of course she did.  She'd known she would.  Thom and Gio dutifully bought all the girls the drinks they wanted and then when the drinks were done, watched as they left, laughing and flushed from the flirting and alcohol.  Thom sighed.  

When he'd gotten on the subway that morning, he known relatively nothing about her.  Now, through the sheer accident of her being dragged into a bar that he happened to be playing pool in, he knew several things about her.  Things that made him think she was even more beautiful than her looks alone could have told him. 

She had a few tattoos, most of which were visible given the tank top she was wearing, the rest, she teasingly said they'd never get to see.  He knew he's spend all night wondering about them.  She'd met her fiance when she'd knocked his tooth out when playing hockey against his team.  

She was in love with ugly dogs, and worked as a photographer at the hospital, taking portraits of sick kids and newborn babies.  She was the perfect combination of sweet and badass, and on the ride in to work on Monday morning, she would have someone to talk to. 

And he knew he would always regret letting her win, if only because he wouldn't get that mind blowing kiss she'd promised.

He was surprised however, when she returned not long after he and Christian had begun a new game.  "I forgot something," Thom heard her say as he focused on the lined up shot he was about to take.  He ignored her; she wasn't going to distract him again.

But ignoring hard, when she jumped up on the edge of the pool table, grabbed him by the collar of his shirt and tugged him over the table to her.  "I forgot to tell you I'm not really getting married."

Thom couldn't question her- not with the way her mouth was preventing him from talking.  She left, before he could kiss her back.  Calling over her shoulder, she gestured at her arm, "This better be a real number, Thommy-boy!" 

Thom stared after her, dumbfounded as his friends laughed. 

When Thom agreed to come out with the boys tonight, he'd expected a night of watching his friends getting too drunk and then having to get them home.  He'd expected to be too sober to enjoy the jokes.  He hadn't expected to meet the girl of his dreams.  

-.-

Entry for The Bookshop's Urban Romance photo prompt writing contest.
Prompt: Rack 'Em Up
Word count: 1992