Page 3 of His Obsession
“Dear, when you get to be my age, the only thing you have coming is death. You must learn to look at everything as if it’s the last time you’ll see it and stop taking everything for granted. There is beauty in everything. Once you learn that, you’ll be a happier person.” I hung my head and let her words sink in, then leaned over and pat her hand.
“Thanks, Mrs. Wilson. I’ll think about that.” I stood, turning to walk away.
“Life is too short to live in misery, Liz. You may not realize this yet, but you are quite blessed,” she stated as she continued to watch the birds fighting at the feeder. I watched her a little while longer, then turned towards my townhouse.I need a shower.
I laid out my outfit on my bed and did a once over. Did I mention I wasn’t the party girl?
My acid-washed blue jeans with stress marks were my absolute favorite. I paired that with a black blouse that crossed the chest, around the neck, and hung off the shoulders. Simple, yet club-worthy. I grabbed my black flats out of the closet and laid them next to the bed.
My shower was lukewarm, causing a rush in movements and shivers to shake my body. In record time, I shaved my bits and brushed my hair into a bun, and applied makeup—all while jamming to music. I glanced at the clock, realizing I had fifteen minutes to be there. I know I didn’t have to be there at eight o’clock, Lucy still had several hours until she was off, but I enjoyed being on time. As I rushed past the kitchen, I snagged a breakfast pastry off the counter and locked the door on my way out.
I parked in the employee parking lot and walked up to the front of the line. The bonus to having a BFF that worked the bar… I got in cover free, and I knew all the bouncers. Dale was one of them that Lucy and I hang out with; he was in charge of the rope tonight. He was a ripped man with a military haircut and tattoos littering his arms. His brother Jason worked with him, and they were often mistaken for one another. They looked identical aside from the tattoos, but Dale was one-year older. Irish twins, they called themselves—whatever that means.
Dale caught sight of me as I sauntered up, and a devious grin crossed his face. “Damn girl, that ass in those jeans.” He growled into my ear and squeezed my ass.
“Nice to see you too, Dale,” I said, giggling. He was a sweet guy, but he was hooking up with Lucy, and I wasn’t interested.
“Well, good thing you remember my name, you’ll be screaming it later,” he teased.
I gave a lopsided smile. “You wish, buddy.” I laughed and twirled my hair. Playing with my hair wasn’t something I would typically do, but it was all for the show I was giving the crybabies sulking in line.
“You’re breaking my heart, Sugar.” He was a big flirt. He had all the girls swooning after him. Dale could pull out the cheesy pickup lines and get you to smile anytime. “Go on in, girl. Tell her I saidhi.”
I slipped past him and gave him a friendly smack on the ass. “Tell her yourself, you tease!” I walked inside and heard all the whiny bitches cause an uproar.
My body moved as the sound of music hit my ears. Like a soundtrack to my life, the perfect song for my entrance blew through the speakers. I made my way to the bar, searching for Lucy as the confetti fell from the roof, and the laser beams scattered across the dance floor. The club was extra packed today, and it was challenging to move around.
I made my way through and took a spot at the stainless-steel bar. There, on the seat next to me, was a man with dirty shoulder-length hair with his girl. They were lip locked and oblivious to the world. I leaned on the bar to get a view of Lucy; she was at the center of the bar pouring shots for five screaming chicks, laughing and having the time of her life.
The women were acting like they were on their first club outing. She finished pouring and flipped the bottle in the air, catching it behind her back and putting it back on the shelf. She thrived in this world. I always wondered how she did that.
The music morphed to “Peanut Butter Jelly” by Galantis, in the DJs’ own rendition. As Lucy, with her skin-tight leather pants and sparkling silver halter top, spotted me, she danced her way to where I was sitting, with her hands in the air.
“What’s up, fucker?” she yelled over the pounding music. “Do you want a drink?”
She pulled a shot glass out and poured a dark liquid before I answered. I shot the glass back and banged it on the bar, my face contorted in pain from the burn of liquor coursing down my throat. She refilled my shot glass while I tried to contain myself. Not stopping her in time, I shrugged.
Ah, what the hell.I slammed that one too.
Not able to drink anymore, I turned the shot glass upside down and put it on the bar. Lucy gave me a pouty face and turned around to a guy working the bar with her. She said something in his ear before she waved me to the other end. Stepping out, she gave me a hug, then tugged at my hand, and I followed her to an empty booth where we sat and giggled about people and their ridiculous outfits.
“Tell me what happened at the interview!” Lucy tried to be discreet, but there was no way to talk without hollering with the music so loud.
“It was confusing, I don’t know what happened,” I yelled. “I thought it was going well, and then Mr. Donovan just ended it and kind of shoved me out the door.”
“Maybe it went well, and he heard enough for him to decide,” she said with a lopsided shrug.
I wish I had her attitude… sometimes. “Yeah, maybe. I guess we’ll see. I have some more applications to put in tomorrow.”
She turned and looked out at the crowd and squealed. “Oh my God, thebossis here! Look!”
I followed her line of sight to the private entertainment area on the second floor. There, in the darkened glass room, stood the silhouette of a man looking… at me? I studied the figure a little while longer until he turned and walked away. Why did that make me feel excited?
I shook off the feeling and turned my attention back to Lucy. “Looks like you’ll still be waiting to see his face.” I laughed. She reached across the table and slapped my arm while laughing.
“Shut up, bitch, you know you are just as curious as me!”
As I opened my mouth to tell her about the garage incident at Blackstone Tech, my pocket started vibrating. Staring at an unknown number, I ignored it and put it down, watching Lucy as she took in the dancing crowd. This nightclub was the nicest in the city, and it always had a crowd, but today was a little extra.