Sonder

PART 1 OF 5

Chapter 1

It was already 8:30pm Laura was more than 45 minutes late. She rushed out of her university campus trying to be as quick as possible. Her best friends’ words played in her mind. She begged her not to be late, but this truly wasn’t her fault at all.

She thought she could make it on time but her project took more time than expected. Her destination was about 10 minutes away. So she wouldn’t be any later than she already was.

As she swung the doors of the most popular Italian restaurant open, she saw a full table to her left. There were about 20 people on it eating and chatting. Some took gentle sips of their drinks. Others were taking pictures and talking. The restaurant had a bubbly atmosphere with just the right kind of music playing in the background. As Laura made her way to her friend’s table she saw her best friend Tammy, who gave her an inviting but annoyed look, obviously because she was late.

Tammy came towards her and they embraced and a few compliments and jokes were told. As Lauren got closer to the table, she saw someone who she didn't want to see but knew would be there Tammy's cousin, Doug.

Doug looked at Tammy and Lauren and he had a look which was a bit to familiar too her on his face. He smiled at them as they both sat down. Lauren smiled back and immediately turned to Tammy as they started talking and catching up.

Tammy and Lauren have been bestfriends since middle school. Even though they attended different universities, they still kept in touch.

The restaurant began to empty out as the night progressed. Since it was a birthday dinner, a lot of people had too much to drink, Lauren being one of them. She wanted to relax and enjoy the evening with her friends.

Some time during the night, she got up to use the bathroom. She felt drowsy and walked a bit funny. On her way to the bathroom Doug pulled her aside and asked if they could talk. He said to her, “Lauren, it’s been a while we haven’t seen each other in about a year, right? “ Lauren looked a bit surprised that he wanted to talk to her now after all the stress he put her through when they were together. Lauren moved away from him and told him “I've been busy” and left.

As she got to the bathroom, she took out her phone and realized it was really late. So she ordered an Uber and went back to her friend's table. She told Tammy that Doug tried to talk to her but she wasn’t ready to deal with him yet. Tammy seemed a bit concerned and said to her, “You should get some rest. I’m sure you have to be up early tomorrow. Have you ordered an Uber? ” Lauren replied “ yeah I have but I think I might walk I mean my building isn’t that far away anyways.” Tammy took a few seconds to respond and said “alright then, if you can’t wait then let me see you out. ” Lauren and Tammy walked towards the door as Tammy thanked her for coming and told her how much fun it was.

As Tammy walked on the dimly lit street headlights of many shining so brightly. They were practically stronger than the street lights.

The street was very busy even at the late hour. The cool breeze hit her skin. She felt like she was in her own world. She had too much to drink and wasn’t thinking straight.

She could see her building down the street her vision wasn’t clear and she felt dizzy. The next morning she was up.