Page 58 of The Reboot
‘Well, lose that flab and I could get you some modelling work,’ she said, her eyes flicking over him.
‘Yeah, I’m working on it.’
Ella was cross on Roly’s behalf. Hewasworking on it – really hard. He’d already lost half a stone and was gaining noticeable muscle definition.
‘I did this fantastic meal-replacement diet before I went into the jungle. I’ll send you a link.’
‘Thanks, but we’re doing it the old-fashioned way,’ Roly said, looking to Ella.
‘Oh, you’re both trying to lose weight? That’s great because they have a two for the price of one offer on a subscription this month. And they’re clients of mine, so I can give you a discount code.’ She picked up her phone and thumbed through it.
Ella looked to Roly to turn down the offer, but he just shrugged at her. ‘Thanks,’ she said to Pippa, ‘but I don’t like the idea of those kinds of diets. We’d rather lose weight the natural way.’
‘Oh, don’t worry about that,’ Pippa said, looking up from her phone. ‘This stuff is all a hundred per cent natural and organic.’ She tapped away at her phone. ‘There,’ she said, putting it down. ‘I’ve sent you the link.’
‘Great. Thanks.’ Ella smiled weakly.
‘Well, look at us,’ Pippa said, ‘being all grown up and mature, having a civilised night out with our exes. You know these two are living together now, Andy?’ She nodded at Ella and Roly.
‘Yes, I’ve heard.’
‘Maybe we should play them at their own game.’ She gave Andrew a flirtatious smile. ‘What do you say? Should we shack up, give them a run for their money? Sauce for the goose and all that.’
What the hell was she playing at? Thankfully Andrew was saved from having to answer by an announcement that the show was about to begin. They quickly finished their drinks and joined the crowd surging towards the doors.
‘Where to now?’ Pippa asked later as they poured out onto Dame Street after the gig.
‘It’s a bit late,’ Ella said, glancing at her watch. She’d enjoyed the concert, but she was ready to go home.
‘Come on,’ Pippa said. ‘It’s only half eleven. The night is young!’
‘What do you want to do?’ Ella looked to Andrew, hoping he’d be ready to call it a night. She couldn’t very well abandon him with Roly and Pippa.
‘We’re out now. Let’s make a night of it. Unless you don’t want to?’
‘No, you’re right.’ She swallowed her disappointment. He was obviously keen to go on somewhere, and she didn’t want to be a wet blanket.
So they followed as Pippa led the way to a private club, a short walk from the theatre. She flashed a card and two burly bouncers on the door waved them all through. They descended a narrow staircase into a cavernous basement filled with whirling violet light.
‘It’s like the third circle of hell,’ Ella hissed to Andrew, but he couldn’t hear her over the thumping bass and merely shrugged, looking around with interest as Pippa led them to a set of purple velvet sofas grouped around a low glass table.
Even in her student days, Ella had never been a big fan of clubs, and this looked like her basic nightmare. But it would only be for an hour or two. How bad could it be?
What felt like five hours later, Ella glanced at her watch to find only forty minutes had passed. She took a big gulp of vodka and tried to relax, but her nerves were jangling. She was overwhelmed with exhaustion, her energy draining from her as if it was being suctioned from her body by a giant pump. The music pounded aggressively in her ears and vibrated in her chest, and she felt like she was being pummelled by it. It was almost painful, and she didn’t think she could stand it another minute.
‘You okay?’ Roly asked, frowning at her in concern.
‘Yeah, I’m fine. I’m just … I’m really tired.’ She looked at Andrew. He and Pippa were huddled together on the opposite sofa, shouting in each other’s ears. From the few snatches she’d heard, they seemed to be talking about his social media research.
‘I’m going to go home,’ she shouted across at him, breaking into their conversation. She felt a bit bad for dragging him away when he seemed to be enjoying himself, but she’d only come in the first place for his sake, so fair was fair. She’d stuck it out as long as she could. ‘I’m pooped.’
‘Aww,’ Pippa gave her a pitying look, pouting exaggeratedly. ‘Poor you. We’re only getting started, aren’t we?’ she appealed to Roly.
He didn’t answer her, looking up at Ella as she stood.
‘Are you coming?’ she asked Andrew.
‘You don’t have to go too, do you, Andy?’ Pippa asked.
