Page 64 of The Taste
He suddenly veered right, down an alleyway. He turned off the bike and used his legs to push into the dark, grotty corner. He was silent and still. She knew better than to ask, to move. She couldn’t look around much with the big helmet on. She didn’t need to see. She simply breathed and trusted him.
They waited. Her heartbeat slowed. She felt his. They synched, hers and his, beating the same steady rhythm.
And then he started suddenly. He turned the engine on. Wheeled the bike out. She felt his thighs working, his glutes, right in front of her, pressed up against her. He was happy again. Calm. Whatever it was, maybe Demonios, maybe the police, she thought with a blasé indifference. She didn’t know or care. She was here with Phantom.
* * *
After that,the ride was exhilarating. They headed out of town on the highway. Phantom was sure of himself, behind the handlebars. He rode like he fucked. He knew what he was doing, he was confident, almost aggressive with it. The silent, uncomfortable man who had stood by as she had talked to him in the alleyway when they first met, was gone. The terrified look on his face later when the mother of the little boy who had dropped his ice cream… that awkward man was gone. Melted away into this god of a man in complete control of every breath and movement.
On that bike, Phantom was no longer holding back. Phantom wasn’t a silent assassin. A man who had had a tough time in life, who had been abused, used, forced to do things that he shouldn’t have had to do. He was just a man. A man, in a leather jacket, on a motorcycle. A man with scars, yes, but a man, just enjoying the simple pleasure of going fast on an empty road.
And she was just a woman, clinging to him. She was not held down by the cafe, her parents and her brother. The Demonios and the worry about the bag of cash were all left behind. Fully trusting the man she clung to. She was wearing a black helmet with a visor, he’d made her put on. He was wearing the same. But she lifted the visor for a moment to get the full effect of the wind in her face. The air buffeted her making it almost hard to breathe in. The sound of the bike felt quiet compared to the wind. The world around them seemed still. The suburbs gave way to the beautiful national park north of town. Pine trees and mountains against the setting sun was beautiful. It was the world at its best, showing what beauty it had. And the bike was the perfect way to be a part of the night. To view it all, with respect, without interference. With love in her heart.
Yes, she was falling in love with him. He may never speak, not properly, not out in public with her. The few muttered dirty words in the bedroom thrilled her and probably provided a much needed outlet for him. But that wouldn’t ever progress into a conversation in a bar, or over a meal. Not even about where to park, where to shop, what to buy for dinner. Everyday things, with him, would always be silent. It would always be her, suggesting things, and Phantom grunting yes or no. When it came to raising a kid, it would be hard. Yes that was a crazy place for her mind to leap to, but she knew she wanted kids one day. Not any time soon, being twenty-five herself, but one day, she wanted kids. Would he? How would he be able to handle it? She didn’t need to worry about this. He was the master of his destiny, he was in the driver’s seat, she was just clinging on for the ride. If he wanted kids, she had no doubt that in the bedroom in the gloom of night, as he teetered on the edge of blowing his load and coming, he’d ask her. And she’d have no problem talking about it with him, when he was ready, when they were ready. Not now, but when the time was right. Now, they were just two young lovers, riding hard into the sunset. A part of her wished they could stay this way forever. Just clinging together, as one, on the ride of their lives, past mountains and lakes and trees. And then she realized, when the bike stopped and they got off, they could still be clinging together and riding through life. She smiled, raised her arms out to the side, they could be like this forever.
He must have felt her joy and jubilation because he revved the bike, raising the stakes, going faster.
* * *
When they finally arrived atthe clubhouse, she was surprised to see a huge black building, like a country club hotel, but morphed into a biker clubhouse. She shook her flyaway hair out of the helmet, and handed it over to him, grinning from the exhilaration of the ride. He took it from her silently, his coffee toffee eyes molten.
He took her by the hand without any hesitation, and led her straight through the clubhouse, through the bar, into the garden. She vaguely took in clean new paving slabs gleaming under foot, seating made out of huge wooden planks. It looked so smart and chic, and not at all what she expected.
“A pool!” Sophie squealed with unhidden excitement. Phantom quirked an eyebrow up at her, questioning. “I swim, I used to swim a lot, competitively, in fact, in school, but now I just like to do it for fun.”
He nodded, looking somehow smug, like he had known this.
There was a huge bonfire going, with extra seats scattered around it. Someone was working a BBQ grill, the smell of roasting hog filled the air and instantly made her mouth salivate. She could hear laughter, music from some speakers, people talking and relaxing. The men were all wearing their leather jackets, dark jeans, and boots, like Phantom wore. Some had long hair, some short, some shaved heads. Tattoos up and down each arm. The girls, too, most were clad in skin tight jeans and then wore barely anything on top, flimsy little slips of tops, or even bikini tops. Showing off ample bosoms, confidence with their curves. They were made up, long hair cascading down their backs. Glamorous.
She shrugged out of her jacket instantly, exposing her little spaghetti strap silky top. She was skinny, and wasn’t wearing a bra because she didn’t really need one. She wasn’t caked in makeup, but she was unashamed of who she was. Phantom liked her, that was all that mattered.
She held onto his hand as he headed to a makeshift bar, a sheet of plywood over two barrels, where there were a multitude of bottles scattered over the top. He was greeted a few times by other bikers, and responded with the smallest of nods, not stopping. She noticed how people did a double take at her. Clearly, Phantom was not normally leading girls through the crowds at these parties. She felt privileged, and smiled to herself with satisfaction. She also noticed how the crowd parted for him, no one wanting to knock into him. They feared him. Well, she would show no fear, she wasn’t afraid of him, he was just a man, goddamnit. She held her head up high and glided along behind him.
He got to the bar and nodded in acknowledgement to the younger man behind it, who promptly began to make him a drink.
“And for you?” The barman asked.
“Umm…” She eyed the selection quickly. None of it was what she would usually go for, but she tossed her hair confidently over her shoulder. “Same as Phantom,” she said. The barman didn’t bat an eyelid, he wordlessly produced another glass. She looked at the drink that was placed in her hand. Whiskey and coke by the look and smell of things. She hadn’t had one of those for years.
* * *
She headed to the bathroom,desperate to pee. There was no sign outside saying if they were for men or ladies, so she pushed the door and went in. She immediately realized they were basically unisex. She then immediately realized a couple were having sex in one of the cubicles. She almost laughed to herself, and headed to another cubicle. Once she had relieved herself, she stood facing the mirror, applying her lipstick carefully. Sophie could see one of the other ladies staring at her. One of the very heavily made up, skimpily dressed women. She scurried over and stood on the left of Sophie. Closer up, she was younger than Sophie had expected, younger than her.
“You Phantom’s girl?” the woman asked with wide green eyes, addressing the mirror reflection of Sophie.
Sophie pouted her lips and looked back to her reflection in the mirror, refusing to be mocked, if that was what she was here for.
“Yup.” She popped the P and blotted her lipstick.
The girl hovered at her side still. Sophie frowned.
“There’s no coming back, for him, you know?”
“Huh?” Sophie frowned.
“He is dead inside, not like in a way that is like a cute romantic story, for someone to come and fix him-”
“I know-”