Wine Stained Lips

Chapter 1.

That was a bad night. Worse than usual. When I woke up from my intoxicated slumber the damage I caused looked like a robbery had taken place.

"Oh shit," I thought out loud, "I really need to cut down on the vodka."

My whole house was in ruins. The dinning room table was flipped, chairs were broken, glass bottles were shattered all over the floor, and the last
picture ever taken of my parents fell off of my wall onto the bricks beneath the mantel.

"It's time to find another frame again. Sorry guys."

My parents died when I was twenty in a plane crash on their way to visit me in Seattle at the time. Five years go by a lot faster than you'd think. They lived in Florida for the winter and decided to surprise me for my birthday before going back to their home in Colorado.

I try and think that it was for the best, because maybe something worse was in the future. Who was I kidding though, losing your life at forty-three, pathetic; just think of the things you could do now that your only child moved out.

It took me nearly three and a half hours to clean up the disaster I caused.

Right as I laid down on my bed, my phone started to ring. It was ,Matt, my best friend from high school.

"Hey man, Kyle, James and I are going to the bar later, you want to catch a ride with us?"

"Oh, I don't know, it's been a long day, and I'm pretty beat," I said trying to get out of the offer.

"Come on Grayson. You've ditched us for the past month dude, is everything alright?

"Yeah, I'm totally fine."

"Okay, well you should come with us, there's a party going on tonight and obviously there's good drinks," Matt said trying to persuade me.

"What time?"

"Nine o'clock, but we'll arrive fashionably late, because we are sophisticated men. See you then?"

"I guess."

"Perfect, oh and it's not dress down, wear the best work suit you own."

"You got it."

I hung up the phone and took a deep breath, exhaled blowing out my cheeks thinking, "What did I just get myself into."

Personally I didn't feel like going to a party. I mean yeah it's a good bar, with my friends, but my hangover was enough for me to pass out again. I feel like death itself.

It was eight thirty, and I was nowhere near being well dressed. My red and blue plaid boxers were the best I could do.

As I finally snapped out of my empty state of mind, I noticed there was only twenty minutes now for me to get ready.

I took a shower, suited up, gelled my hair, and tried desperately to get the smell of stale alcohol from my breath

"This should do," I said to myself looking in the mirror.

At around nine thirty my doorbell rang.

I stepped outside and said,"Evening, gentlemen."

"Good evening," they said in unison with a sarcastic tone to their voice.

Off we went, in Matt's silver Cadillac, to the Rosewood bar in the city.