Jack Walker meandered through the throng of guests at the reception. He skirted the dance floor and its smattering of swaying bodies with an ineptitude born of five Jack Daniel’s and very little coke. Pleased as he was to escape the monotone ramblings of an elderly, and until now, almost forgotten aunt, his aching bladder presented a more pressing and urgent problem: if he could only get just a few more yards across the room without meeting anyone else who knew him or wanted him to pass messages of congratulation on to his just-married sister, he reckoned he could make it to the first floor bathroom. Keeping his eyes fixed firmly ahead, he successfully managed to manoeuvre to the door and left the music and laughter behind him. As he began his grateful ascent of the long cascading staircase, a familiar voice rang out.
“Hey, Jack! How’s it going?” Jack would have known the owner of the voice from anywhere.
“Rip! Great to see you, man!” The two young men shook hands warmly. Jack had known Ripley Thomas since they were children and had stayed firm friends into adulthood. Unlike Jack’s own height, Ripley was only about 5ft 6, but his boyish charm and striking good looks still made him extremely popular with the opposite sex. His blonde hair was neatly combed back into a short pony-tail and the expensive suit he wore made him look every bit the eligible playboy; an image that he had carefully cultivated for himself.
“I gotta take a piss, Rip, we’ll talk later, okay?”
“We think alike, my friend. I was just heading that way myself.”
The two friends walked side by side up the stairs, chatting amiably as they went.
“How’s Kay doing?” asked Ripley. Jack had always know his friend had a soft spot for his sister, but both knew that it was a dangerous subject and always avoided it.
“Good, I think. She seems to be really enjoying her wedding. Phil’s a pretty good guy – she could have done a lot worse. By the way, I saw your parents downstairs. I’m glad they could make it, Kay’s always liked them.”
“Yeah, they like her as well. But mom’s like an all seeing machine tonight, every time I get close to even talking to a girl she butts into the conversation and puts me right off my stride!”
(more…)