The October Music - Day 25

Heat of the Moment
I’m not one for going to clubs. Too loud and cramped. Too full of people searching to try to find some desperate semblance of human connection. When my friend Mark, though, decides he wants a bachelor party at the most exclusive club in town, I suck up my discomfort for the night. I throw on my best clothes and hop in the limo with them. Before I know it, we are at the front of the club and then somehow, miraculously, ushered through the doors like VIPs. Whoever booked this night must have paid up because it sure as hell wasn’t me.

Inside the place is about what I expect. Thumping music so loud it makes my molars rattle. People smashing together and retreating like a human wave. The smell of liquor and cologne is almost overpowering, but I push through it as I follow the group to the table. We have the best seat in the house and I feel a little jealous that I can’t be as good a friend to Mark as whoever is in charge of tonight. A shot of tequila gets rid of that jealousy right quick.

Another shot. Another shot. Another shot. Another shot.

After enough alcohol is in me, I don’t feel anything except the throbbing music and a numbed contentment. I’m here, I’m with my friend, and I’m being open. As if on cue, I look to the floor and there she is. Tall, beautiful, fiery hair, red and black dress that lands above the knee, and moving like water in a stream to the sound of the music. I let my glance linger a little too long and my friends immediately jump on it. They practically shove me away from the table and demand I ask her to dance. Were I not so infused with liquor, I would refuse but that sense of anxiety is dulled to nothingness. I stand up, take one more shot, and make my way to the floor.

The crowd seems to part as I approach her, heart pounding in rhythm with the beat of the music. For a second, I pause, but she turns and sees me and her eyes – melted gold – lock with mine and she grabs my hand and pulls me into her. My hands latch to her hips like magnets as she drapes her arms around my neck. I can feel her heat and my senses flare.

It’s later now. How much later, I don’t know. We’re in the alley and she’s kissing me and I’m kissing her and my head is in a tailspin. Her fingers are grazing the back of my head and I’m tingling. Her nails are sharp. Were they sharp before? She’s nipping at my neck and I shiver. No, she’s not nipping now. She’s biting. Hard. My energy changes to fear. I try to pull away but she holds me tight.

Teeth like railroad spikes sink into my veins and things go black.
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I wasn’t one for clubs.