I saw her trying to work out if that was pun intended or not. Then she laughed and pulled on my hand, dragging me to the ground. Even in the confusion, as my face hurtled toward the grass, I hoped my palm wasn’t sweaty.

She let go of my hand and I followed her lead, shimmying under the bush army-style. She pushed aside the branches near the ground, and we squeezed in as far as we could get. She looked at me and then peered into the tangle of branches and leaves. I followed her gaze, but my eyes hadn’t adjusted to the lack of light. Awkwardly, I maneuvered my arm around to take my phone out of my pocket, brushing up against her as I did. When I shuffled back into place, I’d closed any gap between us and I could feel the length of her body up against mine.

I turned the lit screen into the darkness. A pair of green eyes flashed first and then I made out a kitten, curled up so far into the hedge it was almost on the other side, in the neighbors’ garden.

I looked at the girl. She looked back at me again. There were only centimeters between my lips and hers.

“You lost your cat?” I said, trying to sound like I hadn’t been thinking about the space between our lips. With my compromised sobriety, I didn’t question that this girl would have brought a cat with her to Ireland for the summer.

This would come back to bite me in the ass, of course. Almost literally.

She was about to respond when, in the light from my phone, I noticed the strangest thing and I moved closer. Only slightly, but we were so close my nose bumped up against hers. She didn’t move away. I think she held her breath.

She had a blue freckle, like a tiny spot of ink under her eye.

“You have a blue freckle.”

“No one has ever noticed that,” she said, the way you know everyone she’s ever met had mentioned it.

I pursed my lips to hide a smile and I looked back at the kitten, suddenly aware that the vodka was making me dizzy. Probably the vodka.

“What’s she called?” I asked.

“Why do you think it’s a girl?” the girl asked.

“Dogs are boys, cats are girls,” I said witheringly. “Everyone knows that.”

She snorted.

“That’s the silliest thing I’ve ever heard.” She nudged me with her shoulder. Was that an excuse to touch me or was I reading into it too much?

“Well, you must not get out much,” I said, nudging her back.

The kitten mewled.

“Aw, see, she’s saying Rescue me, drunk girl, I’m so sad and lonely.”