I reached for one as well, wiping my hands with the harsh material. “It’s the beer’s fault. He keeps buying, and I keep drinking, and now, my phone has one more contact in it.” I tossed the soaked paper. “I don’t expect him to call; I’m not that naive.”

She put her arm over my shoulders as we walked out of the restroom. “Are you kidding? Of course the man isn’t going to call. He’s going to text because no one in their right mind likes to talk on those damn things anymore.”

“Oh my God.” I laughed and searched for our table.

The bar was so crowded that I could only see the tops of their heads, except when my gaze shifted once more and Caleb’s eyes gobbled up mine.

“My Lord,” Emily said under her breath. “Before I die, I pray a man looks at me the way he’s eye-fucking you right now.” She gripped my fingers and squeezed. “I hope you jump on him and hump that stare.”

I turned toward my best friend. “You’re absolutely crazy, you know—”

My hands went to my ears, the rest of the words getting caught in my throat, my feet coming out from under me as the loudest noise I’d ever heard blasted around us. My shoulder hit the floor first, my body tucking into a fetal position, while I still blocked my eardrums as the volume vibrated through me. The second the sound began to die down, my eyes opened, and one thought entered my head.

Emily.

I pushed myself up, my shoulder throbbing from the impact, and I investigated the ground around me. Emily was only a few feet away, lying on her back, and I dragged myself over to her.

“Are you all right?” I checked her arms and legs, holding her face steady so I could examine her. “Does anything hurt?”

“I don’t know … I think I’m okay.”

I didn’t see any blood, just dust on her cheeks from the dirty bar floor. I brushed it off and got her hair out of her eyes as I helped her sit up.

“Whitney, what the fuck was that?”

I glanced around the room, taking inventory of what was happening in here. Many of the people had fallen like us, others clinging to the person beside them or the table, their faces full of concern.

“Does anyone need medical attention?” I yelled, making sure I was loud enough for everyone to hear.

There was lots of murmuring, but I didn’t get a response.

I slowly rose from the ground, helping Emily do the same. “You’re still feeling all right?” I asked her. “No dizziness, light-headedness?”

“I’m good.”

“I need to go check on the others.”