I want to be chill about the evening and the fact that I now have to be Barrett’s date at a business dinner, but the stress of throwing a party at JoAnna’s apartment has now been transferred into being Barrett’s date. It’s not a real date, just business, but that doesn’t make it any less disturbing that I have to sit next to Barrett and pretend that we like each other enough to go on a date. That’s distressing.

Lana plugs her phone into the sound system and we annoy the driver the rest of the way to the club with our off-key singing to Taylor Swift. Then, we file out of the vehicles and into the growing line in front of Bounce.

“I knew there would be a line, but this is crazy,” Lauren says, stumbling in her heels. I reach out to steady her and wave the rest of the group to the end of the line. “Is it always like this?”

“This is pretty normal,” I say, glancing down the line of club-goers.

I’ve been here zero times. I leaned on Jules for a recommendation. Also, an internet search for ‘Best Night Clubs for twenty-five-year-olds in NYC’ gave this one the best reviews, so here we are.

“I have to pee so bad,” Lauren says.

Claire sighs. “You should have gone at the apartment.”

“I did go at the apartment,” Lauren whines. “I broke the seal.”

I make a mental note to clean the main bathroom, too.

“Let me see what I can do.” Being an editorial assistant doesn’t translate to having any connections at a night club, but I am a girl and I’m in a flashy dress, so I hope for the best.

At the front door, there’s a man in an all-black suit checking IDs and a woman at a tiny stand with a tablet. My luck with hostesses and tablets is not great tonight, but I’m hoping she’ll understand Lauren’s predicament and let her pop in for a minute to use the restroom.

“Hi there, we’re at the back of the line and I was wondering if my friend could go in to use the restroom really quick. It won’t take a minute, she’s fast. We’re here for her bachelorette party and I’d hate for her to pee her pants. Well, it’s a romper, so the pee would probably just run down her leg, but you know what I mean.”

She stares at me a moment. “Hold on.”

I have nothing to do but hold on so I wait while she presses her hand to an earpiece and talks into her headset.

“Are you Chloe? Party of sixteen?” She taps on her tablet.

“Um, there are fourteen of us, but only one has to pee. At least that was the current status before I came up here.”