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CHAPTER 1 – The Birthday List

~Diamond Club – 8 pm~

Depression never comes with a forewarning, but being single at twenty-five with an unforgettable heart-wrenching breakup that marred the day, it was safe to say, life made some pretty good exceptions.

Skai sat half amused, watching her friends, Yasmin, Keira and Oceana as they sang the familiar line of the happy birthday song to her in cheer and glee.

"To strong bitches!" the ladies cheered, clinking their glasses and giggling as they lowered the glasses to their lips, chugging down a mouthful of tongue-biting dirty martinis, and she did the same.

"This is life, Skai! Slow ageing and fast parties," Kiera beamed.

"I think you mean fast ageing and more parties." Yasmin corrected with a slight raise of her brow and Kiera cheerfully nodded.

"Do add spontaneous and daring living to the list. Something our birthday girl here is yet to be acquainted with," she tattled, spurring Skai to shift her eyes towards her.

"What has this got to do with me?"

"Everything baby. Everything," Keira chirped, and Skai couldn't help but notice the conspiratorial looks the girls shared among themselves.

Her gaze shifted to Oceana when she saw Keira flashing her a wink.

Her brows narrowed with suspicion as she peered at the platinum blonde who was known to be less mischievous than the other boohoos she calls her friends.

While Keira and Yasmin lived their lives on the edge with a daily fix of fun and wild living, Oceana, tried to maintain a balance between the crazy lifestyle and some semblance of sanity whenever she could.

She on the other hand was well, just level-headed.

She tends to see herself as the bearer of sanity in this unique circle of friendship. And with all their qualities, they had a really great friendship.

Oceana placed a sheaf of paper on the table and Skai tipped a brow at it. "What's that?" she inquired, catching the impish glimpses on their faces.

"Your to-do list," Keira gingerly answered, snatching the paper from Oceana and sliding it towards Skai.

Her brows puckered as she glanced at the paper with suspicion. Hesitantly she picked it up and unfolded it while reading inwardly.

To-do list at 25.

1. Kiss a random guy

2. Dirty dance with him

3. Take his number.

4. Have...

Her eyes widened at four as they shot up to them in horror.

"Are you crazy?" she snapped, fluttering the paper before their eyes. "I should sleep with...are you guys mad?"

Keira effected a casual shrug. "We've never been sane and that's why you love us and we love you too."

Clearly, she had made a wrong choice in doing so.

"I'm not doing this," Skai stated matter of factly, her face edging to hold a warning scowl. "And don't even think of pressuring me. It won't work."

Yasmin's lips lifted up with mischief. "Oh, yes we will darling, and we already found you a guy," she chimed and the others nodded.

"You what?"

Skai was ripped with disbelief, her eyes darting across their faces with incredulity.

"Over there at your 9 O'clock."

Oceana covertly tipped her chin in the direction of the hot brown-haired male hoisted on a high stool at the bar, nursing a glass.

"He's cute, but don't lo–ok." She trailed off and sighed when Skai turned in the direction Kiera had gestured in.

"You never take a hint, do you?" Oceana hissed.

A crease appeared across Skai's brows as she looked in the direction of the guy are so-called 'friends' had found for her.

Skai snapped her gaze back at them. "So what do you think? Hot enough right?" Keira eagerly asked, their smiles turning to full-blown giddiness, but Skai had no time for their stupid gimmicks.

She shot them with an incredulous look. "You girls are mad," she cussed and they all burst out with giggles.

"We know and we love you too, but he's quite the catch," Yasmin voiced, looking towards the bar and Skai inquisitively let her follow suit.

She watched him as he slowly raised his glass to his lips and set it on the bar, an act he did so gracefully.

He was tall, probably six four and even from the distance he seemed toned in the blue, white long-sleeve shirt he was wearing. She couldn't tell the colour because the multi-coloured rays bounced off the Disco lights.

His hair was curly as it rested against his shoulders. Maybe he was hot, but flaming as he might be, he was no business of hers.

She shifted her eyes to the girls and she wasn't surprised to see them playfully wriggling their brows at her as if she had taken the bait.

Her gaze lowered to the table when Keira slid a few shot glasses in front of her. "Drink up and let's get you to business."

Skai shot a brow up as she looked at her with a mix of confusion and horror. "You guys aren't serious, right?" she asked, shifting her eyes across their faces.

They shrugged in sync.

"You're twenty-five and if I remember clearly, two years ago on this very table when Craig broke your heart, you made us promise to hook you if you haven't moved on. And this is us keeping that promise."

Their eyes widened, and Skai looked at the girl with disbelief.

"I was sad and drunk. And since when do you nutjobs keep promises?" They never remember the pertinent things, so what were they doing now?

"Well, these nutjobs are going to help you move on from your far-too-long heartbreak and get you laid. Now drink." Yasmin tipped her chin towards the glass.

"No, I won't," she refused.

"Fine, you leave us no choice." Keira shrugged. "Hold her down," she ordered.

With no second to spare, Oceana and Yasmin gingerly pranced to their heels. Seeing the excitement and mischief in their eyes, Skai threw her hands up in surrender.

"Fine, I'll drink," she uttered with a weary sigh as the girls eased themselves back to their seats.

She warily glanced at the glasses and inquired, "How many?"

"Five," Keira answered.

Her eyes shot up. She was ready to protest, but seeing the daring look from Keira, she receded.

It was a hopeless cause. Against three crazy friends, what really could she do?

Their goal was clearly to get her in a drunken stupor and push her in the direction of the man they had 'generously' handpicked for her.

How magnanimous of them!

She scoffed and glared, before shifting her eyes back to the bar, but she was surprised when she saw him looking in her direction and staring at her.

Hastily, she darted her eyes away and looked at the girls.

Despite being aware their intentions were solely genuine, she darted at them with cold, menacing glares before gobbling the first glass into her mouth.

She grunted at the burning feeling of the dry taste of the gin against her throat.

Being a participant in occasional drinking, she knew five-shot glasses were a tad bit above her limit, but nevertheless, she surged on.

Hearing their giggles, she shook her head as the alcohol was settling in a little a bit faster than anticipated.

Her brows shot up when they jolted up from their seats, and without a warning she found herself being pulled up from her seat and being dragged away from the table.

"What are you guys doing?" she demanded, struggling to wriggle herself away from their hold as they dragged her through the throng of people swaying to the music wafting off the huge speakers.

"Being your dark guardian angels and fairy godmothers."

She snorted. "You're more like villainesses."

"Whatever, Skai. Just don't come back till you talk to him for at least an hour," Keira told her.

"And do take his number and kiss him too. You can choose not to sleep with him but do check out his lips. I have a feeling he's a good kisser," Oceana added.

"I'd love to explore for myself but...this is for you. So off you go," Yasmin pushed her forward.

Jeez! What wonderful friends she had.

Skai found herself skittering forward, almost losing her footing if hadn't been for her quick reflex.

She gazed at girls as they scuttled away like devilish mice, and almost following after them, she paused and steered her head in the direction of the bar.

Skai was utterly surprised to see him staring at her. His eyes almost inviting and whispering out to her.

Why was he staring at her so intently?

Tearing her eyes away from him, Skai stepped towards her friends' direction, but she suddenly stopped. A few thoughts speared through her head.

She was twenty-five and single and could very well be considered a virgin. Her life wasn't actually... eventful, save the times she hung out with her friends.

She tried to live a chaste and orderly life, but what has that really gotten her?

A heartbreak that was unhealing?

Maybe the girls were right?

Maybe it was about time she moved on and while she lacked the way to go about that, this could be exactly what she needed — a small moment of craziness and reckless indulgence.

It's been what... two years since her last relationship ended.

A relationship she had deemed perfect, and she had been in it with the perfect guy, or so she thought till she caught him sleeping proposing to another girl on a day they were supposed to spend together — her birthday.

His actions had marred the day, and every birthday since then had never been worth celebrating because of the horrid event that had tainted it.

But maybe... just maybe, she could do things differently this year, undo this jinx and for once do something crazy. Let herself go and be stupidly spontaneous.

Determination suddenly lathered her eyes.

Dragging in a deep breath, she spun on her heels and settled her gaze on him. She found him still staring.

She guessed he was interested too, so...

Taking in another breath, she smoothened her strawberry blonde hair and took a step towards him followed by another and another, till she was standing in front of him.

Moss green eyes greeted her and they glinted brightly despite the buzzing blast of multicoloured lights in the bar.

She pushed forth a smile, and while she feared it had come out too nervous, she shifted her eyes towards the seat beside him.

Taking the initiative, Skai asked, "Is the seat taken?"

She wasn't really expecting much given her earlier performance but he slowly shook his head — a signal that she wasn't completely hopeless, at least not yet.

"That depends," he answered, slightly putting up a challenge for her.

"On what?" she tackled it quickly.

"On why you want to take it."

Her brows relaxed seeing as he wasn't putting up much fight like she thought. Taking this as a hint, she responded calmly. "I want to buy you a drink."

"And what am I to give in return?" his deep and rich voice with a velvety texture sent a tingle down her spine as his words confounded Skai who thought things were beginning to go her way.

Her lashes flickered but she pushed it to the side as quickly as the emotion came. It was too early to give up.

"What do you mean?"

He casually pulled his shoulders to a shrug. "I've long realized nothing really comes free. There's always a price to pay, a concealed agenda hidden behind it all."

He hinted with a smile and continued, "So what can it be? Oh, and I already do have a drink," he added, tipping his glass at her.

"A kiss," she blurted out, halting the hand raising the glass to his lips. "I want a kiss," Skai repeated adding more force to the last word.