Page 13 of Ruin
“No, we’re not,” I say. The excitement my tone had outdoors has been exchanged for nerves in this dimly lit setting.
“Okay. Are you playing at all, or do you want to be viewers only?”
I shrug, not looking at Ruin this time, though it’s hard. “Both, maybe. Do I have to choose now?”
“No.” She smiles. “I’ll give you a green bracelet. This just lets people know what you’re looking for. If you wear a black band, no one will bother you. Green means you’re open.”
“Have you been here before?” Her tone is cheerful like she’s checking me into Disney World, not a sex club.
“First time.” I exhale as Ruin stiffens behind me. “Am I reading your sign right? You have a virgin tag?”
She nods. “Oh yeah. You have no idea the kind of attention a virgin will get in a place like this. We get a lot of girls coming to ‘give themselves away,’ so to speak.”
Ruin pushes my arm as though he’s warning me not to take the virgin tag.
“How do you even prove something like that?” he groans.
The woman smiles. “We don’t. It’s kind of a trust-based thing, but believe me, the people know. That viewing room fills fast. Everyone likes to watch a girl get her cherry popped.” She looks toward me. “Can I get you a tag, or—”
I resist from turning back for Ruin’s approval. He’s my brother’s best friend. Apparently, I’m not in the running. We’re just two people who have a connection. We might be friends, but nothing else. I grip the necklace he gave me for my birthday and nod toward the woman.
“Yeah. I’m a virgin, so… I’d like the virgin tag.”
I hear Ruin’s teeth grind behind me and I swear I hear his knuckles pop. The woman straps a pink bracelet around my wrist and then questions Ruin before strapping him with black.
I’m glad he’s not playing, but I’m a little nervous about going in pink. Maybe I made the wrong decision. Judging by the stone appearance on Ruin’s face, I’m thinking I did.
The building is wide and spread in all different directions. We should probably stop and look at the map that’s posted by the door but the whole thing is overwhelming, so we keep walking.
The décor is trendy with dark colors, lots of texture, and a ton of uplighting. The place reminds me of a speakeasy I was at once in North Carolina.
“You sure you want to do this?” Ruin growls. “It’s weird. Really fucking weird.”
I laugh and tap his chest playfully. It was me who so desperately needed the adventure, so I can’t chicken out now. “It’s gonna be fun. You’ll see.” His chest is warm and beating wildly. I want to sink into his hand and find comfort there, but I hold the necklace he gave me instead. “Thanks for coming with me tonight. I know this isn’t your thing, but I really needed this.”
He nods and swallows hard before glancing in both directions. “Where do we go first?”
“What’s a party room?” I ask, reading off the signs. “I could use a snack and a drink. Do you think that’s what’s there?”
He laughs. “Nope. I don’t think you’re gonna find the snack you want there. You probably want the bar.” He nods toward a separate corridor to the right where a sign points toward a bar.
“Yes. A bar would be good.”
This is weird. Women keep walking past and staring. Not at me. They’re all staring at him. They drag their gaze up and down his frame like they’re famished. When they see his black bracelet, they snicker to themselves and keep walking.
I wonder if he notices them, and if he wishes he’d worn green now.
We’re nearly to the bar when a woman with long blonde hair and a butterfly tattoo stops us. She’s gorgeous. Like incredibly, stop you in your tracks gorgeous. The kind of gorgeous that’s usually reserved for TV so you can wonder if it’s real or airbrushing. Well, here she is and I’m pretty sure she hasn’t been airbrushed.
My stomach turns. I’m the one with the virgin ticket. Where are all these men I was promised?
“Hey.” She touches Ruin’s chest.
My heart sinks lower.
“You’re cute. You been to the viewing rooms yet?”
He shakes his head. “Not here for that.”