Faith nodded. “There’s some fruit and a bottle of vodka on the kitchen counter. I bought the cheapest bottle I could find. We’re making punch and staying up all night.”
Lindsey didn’t know whether to smile or groan. It had been a long time since they’d gotten drunk together, and for a good reason. It usually ended in disaster. But wasn’t Lindsey just thinking about how boring her life was? Maybe a little excitement was just what she needed.
“Okay,” Lindsey said. “Let’s do it. But we’re ordering dinner first. We don’t want a repeat of the first time we did this.” That night, they’d both learned the hard way why drinking on an empty stomach was not a good idea.
“Sure,” Faith said. “There’s this amazing Thai place a few blocks away. And they deliver. Dinner first, then punch. I’ll order food, while you get started in the kitchen.”
“Deal.”
Lindsey got up and went into the kitchen, tying up her long auburn hair on the way. She began to gather the ingredients for their signature alcoholic punch. She and Faith had come up with the recipe in their freshman year. The two of them had been this wild, inseparable pair in college, and their punch recipe had been responsible for more than one crazy night. Since then, they’d outgrown partying, but Faith still retained some of that free-spiritedness. It was another thing Lindsey envied about her. No matter what life threw at her, she seemed to take it in her stride.
An hour and a half later, they were sprawled out over the couch, the coffee table littered with empty takeout boxes. They had started drinking while waiting for the food to arrive, and Lindsey was starting to feel it.
Faith refilled her glass, then looked at Lindsey’s empty one. “Want some more?”
“If I didn’t know better, I’d think you’re trying to get me drunk,” Lindsey said. It was already too late for that.
“I just want to see you have some fun,” Faith said, drawing out her words like she always did after a few drinks. “You’ve been so mopey lately.”
“Yeah, well everything sucks right now.”
“What’s the matter?” Faith asked. “Other than getting kicked out of your moldy apartment, that is.”
“It’s mostly work. Spending forty hours a week stuck in a cubicle trying to sell people something they don’t need? It’s so soul-destroying.”
“Why don’t you find another job?” Faith asked. “Something you actually like?”
“I wish I could. I don’t have any real skills.”
“You were one of the best artists in our class. I think it’s safe to say you’ve got skills.”
“Fine, I don’t have any useful skills,” Lindsey said. “Art doesn’t pay the bills. Not unless you’re some combination of brilliant and extremely lucky.”
“You could try nannying. It wasn’t what I thought I’d be doing after college either, but it’s fun. And you can make lots of money once you have some experience.”
“I’m not good with kids. I wouldn’t know what to do.”
Faith pursed her lips in thought. “There are other ways to make money, you know.” She lowered her voice. “Ways other than jobs.”
Lindsey sat upright. “What do you mean?”
“It’s probably easier if I show you.” Faith stood up. “I’m going to go grab my laptop. I’ll be right back.” She headed to her bedroom, swaying as she walked.
Lindsey stared at the pitcher on the table. She’d already had far too much to drink. But she was tired of being a responsible adult. She was tired of constantly worrying about work, and money, and debt. All she wanted was to pretend that she was still the carefree young woman she’d been just a year or two ago.
And most of all, she wanted to forget about the fact that she was now living a life that would have made her younger self so disappointed in her.
Lindsey refilled her glass and started gulping her drink down. Just as she finished it off, Faith returned to the living room and sat down next to her.
“I should warn you,” Faith said, typing a web address into her browser. “This is a little unconventional.”
“I don’t care,” Lindsey said. “Show me.”
That was where her memory of that night ended.