A Terrible Night

I walked through the large glass doors, welcoming the blanket of warmth that overcame me as I passed the threshold of this worn down bar. The regulars were all sat over at the bar, hunched backs and bloodshot eyes, their entire world stagnating in the glasses held before them. To my right was a group of local roughs, bulging biceps and angry scowls plastered on their face as they played pool, gambling away their week’s worth of dole money. To my left was a large dance floor, music blaring from the two tiered speaker systems, girls in skimpy clothes getting very close to some of the businessmen whose money spoke far louder to these girls than the shame they would bare before the night was over. The laser lights flooded the place with purples and greens; a slightly smoky atmosphere tainted my tongue as I began to make my way down the stairs towards the bar.

Heavens knew why I had come in such a place, but tonight I wanted to drown my sorrows so deep that they could not get the buoyancy to re-emerge. I would shackle the feet of my depression with the heavy as iron alcohol awaiting me behind the bar, and drown it in the small river that was my happiness and cause it to break the low banks in which my brook currently resided.

My scruffy looking business suit clung to me as I dragged it across the short distance between the bar and myself. A large breasted blonde girl stood behind the counter, white cowboy hat perched upon her head and wide blue eyes tracing the movements of one or two men mingling with her workers. She lounged about, filing her long fingernails absentmindedly, as though she had not a care in the world.

“Two vodka shots, now if not sooner if you could, thank you” I said as I sat heavily on the overstuffed bar stool, putting my head into the palms of my hands, trying to rub the memories of days gone by forever from my mind.

“Anythin’ else I can get for yah?” She asked as she slipped the filled glasses over to me.

Her voice gave me the impression that she didn’t much care for me, just like every other woman I had spoken too lately, I was not worth the time of day let alone anything else. Her tone wasn’t particularly unfriendly but at the same time it was not welcoming. Perhaps it wasn’t such a good idea to come here after all.

I pulled my wallet from my pocket and displayed the fact it was brimming with paper notes unintentionally as I produced the $20 I would need to pay for the drinks. I handed it over almost without thought, and did not notice when the change was replaced to my side.

I downed the first of my drinks without much forethought. I had come here to get drunk, smashed, utterly blitzed, so why only now begin to think of the repercussions, or what it may lead to? It sent a warmth trickling down my throat as it passed, much like a heat pack radiating warmth from the inside.

On sight of the notes lining the interior of my wallet, the woman’s eyes seemed to brighten with the acceptance she was not a moment ago lacking in. When she bent over, allowing a clear view of what lay down her low cut top, it became clear to me that alcohol was not the only thing on offer tonight. I was not much interested in her fake smiles or her warm touch though, tonight I would let god guide my sails, and allow whatever was going to happen, to happen.

We began talking, and soon enough I was on my seventh, no, eighth shot- my mind becoming a muddle of hazed emotions and vague forms that seemed ever out of reach for my conscious thoughts to grasp. After a period the woman had been replaced by another, and she came to sit beside me, she said her name was Bella and she was originally from New York, much like me.  She really was a very seductive woman, all curves and smiles, seemingly knowing just the right thing to say. Every word she spoke resonated in my skull, bouncing back and forth like a reflection in a hall of mirrors.

As the night wore on, she began to get closer, occasionally running a hand up my leg or stroking my cheek. I was not completely blameless, as I must confess; I did indeed return her touches and smiles. If the divine had planned for this woman to speak to me tonight then who was I to attempt to go against their will?

I ended up on the dance floor, lights flowing around me; much like the darkness surrounds the first star to appear on a lonely night. Though in this case the star was dragged to dance by the owner of the place, Bella rubbing herself against him, smiling whilst whispering sweet nothings into his ear, making him glow just a little brighter, letting the music and the sensations overtake him.

It soon tuned into the early hours of the morning, and I knew it was probably time to leave. Sheila had grown on me a lot, yet it still took me completely by surprise when I was pulled into a fierce kiss when I mentioned leaving. She had grabbed the front of my shirt and pulled me down the few inches that separated us, planting her lips against mine, filling my nose with perfume tainted air, as well as a faint hint of strawberry upon her lips.

I cannot say that I did not enjoy it, as I returned the kiss with a lot of gusto; who would have thought that at the beginning of the night I wouldn’t even have imagined this scene?

We broke apart and she once again pulled me down to meet her, but this time her words made me happier than I thought they could have when coming from her mouth. I wrapped my arm around her waist as I lead her towards my convertible. Now I was the one in control.

She climbed into the passenger’s side as I stumbled into my own seat, fiddling with the keys I finally got the engine started, her hand resting firmly on my thigh. Stealing another quick kiss I urged the silver Mercedes into a steady trundle down the early morning fog lined street. Mysterious profiles of streetlamps stood out from the deep fog our car was submerged in.

Warm air was blasted into my face at a hundred miles an hour by the heater, removing the chill from my bones that the short stint outside had caused. The smell of leather and alcohol mixed, making a curious combination as my thoughts kept returning to the beautiful woman sat beside me, and the night we had ahead of us.

I turned the corner onto the busier main streets, and began to pick up speed as rain began beating against the windscreen. The dulcet tones of the radio added more comfort to the cosy atmosphere.

I looked ahead into the brightness of someone’s lights. Damn, I was about to miss my turning. In the whole of half a second I decided it wasn’t too late to make the turn, if I was quick.

I pulled the steering wheel down sharply, throwing the car off the well beaten track, tires slipping in the puddles forming on the ground. I saw the blur of colours merging into one another from the world beyond the glass; I heard the sound of a short shrill scream coming from my right and the blare of a car horn somewhere in the distance. The next thing I knew was blackness.

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Word Count: 1307
Added: 06 July 2009