Once the bill was paid, and Lauren and I managed to get enough water into Kristen and Lori that they were relatively sober, we moved as a group to the door.
Kristen had her arm looped with mine, wiggling her fingers at tables of men we passed on the way out. She wasn't a stumbling drunk at that point, but they certainly seemed to be having a good time.
As much as I wanted to be angry with her for having stolen away the evening into a drunken sort of flurry that included trying to give me alcohol when I already said I didn't want to drink, I knew she was doing her best to let loose and make sure we all did as well.
Things had been tense, and Lord only knew what Kristen had been going through alone while out in the world in her secretive ways.
As we headed down the sidewalk to the parking garage, Kristen stopped in her tracks. Her eyes locked forward.
"What is it?" I asked her.
