I don’t go out much. Actually fuck it, I’ll be honest. I don’t go out ever. I’m not a hermit or anything, and don’t get me wrong I have friends. I just don’t see the point in going out. I used to be at the bars every weekend. Me and a couple of single friends would go out and have drinks and embarrass ourselves going for girls. You know, typical early 20’s behavior. But then my friends started to actually meet girls, and I kept striking out. Going out stops being fun when you’re always the third wheel. It’s even less fun when you get rejected over and over again. I started saying no to my friends more often, and then they got more serious with their girls and stopped asking me altogether. I wasn’t mad about it, I understood. Overall, I was relieved. No more seeing a girl’s face drop as she tried to figure out how to politely reject me. No more feeling like a loser. Just more time alone at my apartment to eat take out and play video games.
Then Jeremy, my best friend, got a new girlfriend. She was nice and all, but she looked at me like I was a sick dog. One with cancer ripping through its insides and patches of fur falling out. She thought being single was a disease, and she made it her responsibility to cure me. After weeks and weeks of saying no to her plans and attempts at setting me up, I finally caved. No double date, I wouldn’t do that, but just a night at the club for drinks and dancing. She promised they would stay with me the whole night, but after twenty minutes I found myself at the bar nursing a rum and coke, alone once again. I didn’t blame her, she tried to drag me on the dance floor with them. But sometimes riding a unicycle gives more dignity than a trike.
I was getting ready to take an Uber home when it happened. I felt a light tap on my shoulder and turned expecting to see Jeremy and his girl. I was already forming the words telling them I was going to head home, but I stopped dead in my tracks. There was an angel in front of me. Thinking back, I must’ve looked like an idiot. I stared for probably ten whole seconds before I could say anything, and Jesus Christ, I think my mouth might’ve actually dropped open. The first thing I noticed was her skin. I live in southern California and the girls here pride themselves on their bronze complexion, but here stood this beauty with skin the color of cream that almost seemed to glow in the dark lights of the club. The pale skin made her pitch-black hair and red lips stand out even more. Her eyes were like obsidian marbles resting in saucers of milk, and her pearly white teeth seemed to float in the air like the fabled Cheshire Cat. She said something to me, and I pulled myself out of my trance.
“What was that?”
“Can I buy you a drink?” she said.
I couldn’t believe it. I genuinely thought she was fucking with me. But I knew not to look a gift horse in the mouth and said yes. She ordered me another rum and coke, and a glass of wine for herself, then settled down in the chair next to me. She showed an interest in me that I’ve never experienced before.
What do you do for work? Unemployed. Where do you live? A tiny studio apartment. What do you do for fun? Play video games. Are you close with your family? Haven’t spoken to them in months. Every answer I had was a bigger red flag than the one before, but she kept asking questions and seemed to be more interested every time I spoke. After a while she took my hand and pulled me onto the dance floor. I’d like to say we danced, but I was as stiff and motionless as a tree. That didn’t stop her though. She came close to me, put her body on mine, and danced enough for the both of us. I’ve never been to a strip club before, but I thought that this is what a lap dance must be like. She gyrated her hips and grinded her body against mine. She reached behind her and pulled my head down close to hers. Her hot breath in my ear was more intimacy than I’ve felt in years, and when she whispered “I want you” in a hoarse, breathy voice, I think I let out a small moan.
After the song died down, she brought me back to the bar. She pulled a small white pill out of her pocket, placed it on her tongue, then pulled me in for a kiss. She transferred the pill to my mouth, then lightly bit my lip as she pulled away. She took another pill from her pocket and swallowed it while handing me a drink to take my own. I didn’t know what she gave me, but I would’ve taken a shot of heroin for her in that moment. We had a couple more drinks, and the pill started to kick in. I felt detached from my body. Like I was floating above it and directing how I wanted it to move. Reach for your drink, I told myself, and my arm would slowly move towards my glass a few seconds after my command. “I feel weird” I told her, noticing how slurred my words were.
“It’s okay honey, just relax and take deep breaths,” she said. She grabbed my hand then and started to pull me with her. “Let’s go outside and get some privacy,” she whispered, and I somehow heard her voice above the music. I managed to follow her outside and around the back of the club. We were completely alone, and she pushed me against the wall and brought her lips to mine. Her tongue swirled in my mouth while her hands roamed my body. My limbs were too heavy to move, but I wouldn’t even think of stopping her. I don’t know if I’ve ever felt more pleasure in my entire life. The drinks, her touch, the pill, her tongue, it all combined and filled me with a pure ecstasy I didn’t even think was possible to feel.
She pulled away briefly and pinned my hands against the wall. I opened my eyes to look at her, and she was gone. A demon stood in her place. The pale white skin that entranced me before was now giving off a luminescent glow. Her black eyes turned red. Her hair was floating and writhing about her like she was floating underwater. And her teeth, oh god her teeth. White fangs sprouted from her gums. They grew at an alarming rate and were over two inches long within seconds. A pale silvery liquid dripped from them and splattered me when she talked. “Just breathe honey, it’s going to be okay.”
She started to lean towards me then. I tried to move my body but my drugged limbs were paralyzed under her grip. Then, there was nothing. I woke up in my bed this morning and she was right here sleeping next to me. She is an absolute angel, and somehow looks even prettier sleeping. The pill I took wore off, and the monster it created the night before is gone. I keep touching her, making sure she’s real. I’ve run my finger up and down her smooth and unblemished skin, brushed her hair away from her face, and leaned down to kiss her head. She hasn’t stirred. She sleeps like the dead. I tried opening the blinds, hoping the sunlight would wake her up, but I had to close them right away. The second the sun hit my skin it felt like I was sitting in a level six tanning bed for four hours. It was a dull early morning light, but I had to squint my eyes against it and my head instantly began to throb. I usually don’t get hangovers like that, but oh well, must’ve been the pill I took. It’s 2:00PM now and she still hasn’t moved. I’m getting hungry now. Actually, I’m starving. I’ll wake her up soon and we can go grab a bite to eat together. I hope she’s hungry too.