The line to get into Esquire wraps around the block, and we've been waiting impatiently for twenty minutes. You would think that such a prestigious establishment would have enough common decency to install heat lamps so that their patrons don't die of hypothermia before getting the honor of spending twenty dollars on a freaking martini. The bouncer even had the audacity to shoo us away when we said we had a table reserved. 'Everyone has to wait in line.' What's the point of a reservation then?!

"Stop fidgeting, Poppy!" Priya whispers as we approach the front of the line. "Just act cool."

"I am acting cool, Priya. I'm just freezing my butt off and this line is moving slower than molasses!" I complain as I hug myself.

I've been to a bar only one other time in my life, and I used my sister's driver's license to get in. We're two years apart but look almost identical, except her hair is a tad darker than mine and she was blessed with 20/20 vision. If it weren't for Daisy, I probably wouldn't have met Gabriel. She dragged me to a party at the beginning of my junior year which was held at Gabe's. He was cute, dorky and made my heart melt at first sight. But that was a few years ago. A lot has changed.

I look down at the card in my hand and take a deep breath. The fake IDs say we're both 22 and from Virginia. I thank my lucky stars that it didn't say we were older, although with the amount of gunk on my face, I could easily pass for 35.

"Oh, thank goodness," I mutter as the couple in front of us are ushered through the black velvet stanchions. "About time."

Priya pinches my arm. "Hush." And then she smiles back at the bouncer. "We're back."

Just as we're about to pass our IDs to the bouncer, two tall, clearly intoxicated man-boys barge in front of us.

"Hey! There's a line," I exclaim as I put my arm in front of them. Both of them look at me, and holy crap, they're good-looking.

The taller one is huge and looks like he could pummel an entire S.W.A.T. team with one swing of his fist. His eyes are ridiculously green but they're bloodshot and lazy. Just kidding, I retract my previous statement, he's probably so stoned right now he could barely spell S.W.A.T. The second man-boy is slightly shorter yet perfectly toned. His shaggy styled light-brown hair wisps down into his eyes, and they're the darkest eyes I've ever seen, like coal, but they somehow glisten like diamonds. There's something about his face that seems familiar, but I can't place him.

"Are you going to let us through, sweetheart?" Man-boy number one asks with a smile and I realize I've been staring.

"No," I state sternly. Hot or not, they're being rude. "As I said, there's a line." I motion to all the people standing behind us.

"Sweetie." Stoned-face laughs as he pats his buddy on the back. "We don't wait in line."

Ugh, so pompous.

"Really? Are you afraid that you won't be able to stand in line without falling asleep?" I tilt my head as I cross my arms. "Are you even sober enough to get inside?"

They must be drunk to think that they can budge in front of us. Rules are rules, and if the bouncer can force two tiny shivering girls to wait in line, I'm sure the same rules apply to the man-boys.

"Man, you really don't know who we are, Do you?" Red-eyes shakes his head. "This is-"

Charcoal-eyes interrupts his friend with a soft chuckle as he runs a hand through his disheveled hair and nods at the bouncer. "It's cool, Justin. They can go first."

Crap, he knows the bouncer.

Priya elbows me and tucks a piece of hair behind her ear. Oh, here we go. Classic Priya move. I like to call it the 'tuck and smile'. It's like her version of the 'bend and snap'. Elle Woods has got nothing on Priya Kumar. I swear the girl will have 'What? Like it's hard?' written on her graduation cap when she finishes Med school.

"It's fine, you guys can go first. No problem!" she laughs nervously as her eyes meet Stoned-face's.

Really? She's into that? I was confident she'd be leaning towards Mr. Tattooed and Dangerous, not Suburban Valley Boy. Although, I think Priya is just trying to find her type. She's like a kid at an ice-cream parlour who needs to try all the flavors before settling for one.

I take a deep breath. This entire interaction has become cumbersome and I'm still cold. "Why don't we all just go in?" I look at the bouncer, who nods and I hand him our IDs. He does a double-take as he checks the cards and then opens the rope. "Thank you, Justin." I exhale with relief.

The bouncer nods and then turns his attention back to the line. The rude boys motion for us to enter first. Justin didn't even check their IDs! Priya links her arm through mine and we make our way into the raging club.

We're greeted by blaring techno music and strobe pulses. Purple and teal fluorescent lights line the ceiling with industrial-style booths and cocktail tables scattered around the edge of the dance floor. The bar at the back of the club is swarming with partygoers. The air is thick and pungent from all the twisting and jumping bodies on the dance floor.

The bass vibrates through my body as we make our way to our reserved table. Sensing that the rude boys have been following us, I turn around and give them a curt smile. "I suppose this is where we part ways. Have yourselves a goodnight." Priya gives me a sad side-eye but doesn't protest.

"Or, you ladies could join us for a drink?" Charcoal-eyes asks with a mischievous smirk. "We have a private booth upstairs."

Priya and I both look up. I hadn't even noticed there's a second floor. Of course, they'd sit up there. It seems like the perfect vantage point to scope out potential targets. Even though our table is only a few feet away from the thumping speakers, I think I'd rather go deaf than spend the evening with these walking STDs. I can just tell that they're here looking to find girls to take home, especially Charcoal-eyes, his cocky gaze screams 'I'm on the prowl'.

"I think we're goo-"

Priya slams her hand over my mouth. "We'd love to." Seriously? I stick my tongue out and lick her hand which quickly makes her pull away. That was gross, but effective. Priya frowns. "Do you really not want to go?" she asks in a hushed tone.

Yes, I scream with my eyes but then realize that it's her special day. I sigh. "It's your birthday, Pri. We can do whatever you want," I state begrudgingly and then look at the boys. "Lead the way, I guess."

Priya immediately darts in front of me and walks alongside Green-eyes, leaving me straggling behind with Man-boy number 2.

Priya is just about as boy-crazy as the fifteen year old twins I tutor. Her parents didn't let her date in high school so now she's trying to make up for lost time. The day she installed Tinder on her phone was chaos. Her incessant gushing made studying for finals extremely difficult. But even with multiple dates a week, she somehow manages to maintain a perfect GPA.

"Name's Asher, by the way," Charcoal-eyes extends his hand just as we approach the spiral staircase. Asher. I examine his face briefly and the article Victoria was reading earlier immediately pops into my head.

Oh, no.

Well, I was right about him being a man-whore. Seems like that Human Behaviour class was beneficial after all.

"As in Prescott?" I ask knowingly. I definitely don't want to shake that hand, seeing as it probably felt up every girl in New York. Thankfully, he lowers it without forcing me to be rude.

"The one and only," Asher answers with an edgy pride. "And that's my buddy, Chad."

I nod in acknowledgment. "Well, it's nice to meet you." We begin climbing the tight and narrow spiraling stairs. This staircase cannot seriously be up to safety regulations. It's like a lawsuit waiting to happen. I guess I know where to go if I'm ever feeling desperately strapped for cash.

I jump as I feel a hand on the small of my back and Asher's mouth hovers awfully close to my ear. "And what's your name, gorgeous?" he asks, his hot breath causing me to shiver.

"I'm Popp-" I try to answer but my heel gets caught in the grate of the last step and before I know it I'm falling back into Asher's muscular arms.

"Woah, easy there," Asher chuckles as he props me back up. "Maybe you're the one who isn't sober enough to be in here."

I close my eyes, embarrassed, as I regain my posture. "Ha ha ha, very funny." I scan around looking for Priya.

This is going to be a long night.

"They're this way." Asher grabs my hand and drags me down to a booth situated in the corner of the balcony. Great, he's touching me with his grimy playboy hands.

This guy is so obnoxious.