𝗕𝗟𝗢𝗢𝗗 𝗔𝗦 𝗧𝗛𝗜𝗖𝗞 𝗔𝗦 𝗪𝗔𝗧𝗘𝗥 ⚔︎

25

linking their arms, jesse and tracy sprang up the stone steps of the subway station on 2nd avenue, giovanni following shortly behind. he fiddled with the gold rolex around his wrist as they walked onward, chattering excitedly about the night ahead.

it was friday. the trio was bound for the babylon. above, the sky was as black as coal and the air that hit their bare faces as they emerged into the street was accompanied by a slight chill. east village was heaving with club-goers; all around them on the sidewalks an ecstatic murmur could be heard, unwavering and lively. while he struggled to keep up with jesse and tracy's pace, giovanni looked curiously at the people that surrounded him: a group of girls in vibrantly coloured satin and vinyl dresses wandered past, their hair all done up in weird and wonderful styles and their makeup just as extravagant — they talked rather loudly together, laughing and cracking jokes, and the smell of hairspray lingered in giovanni's nose long after he passed by them. then, a young couple; the man bearing a crew cut, conventionally handsome; while the woman was rather short and had bejewelled herself with heaps of gold necklaces that jingled with every high-heeled step; giovanni guessed that they had just finished arguing, judging by his reddened face and her gritted teeth. across the busy road, a gaggle of fashionably dressed queer men were being stared at and honked at by people inside their cars, which they returned with yells of abuse and middle fingers; outside of a twenty four hour bodega, a black woman with an adam's apple and big jheri curls stood with her back against the lit-up window, smoking a cigarette.

the sound of tracy's voice brought giovanni back to reality. "do you think we'll see latoya tonight?" she said, looking at jesse. "she's normally in on a friday."

tracy wore a strapless magenta mini dress with matching heels. to keep herself warm, she had brought a cropped leather jacket, the colour of cobalt blue. as she moved her hands, silver bangles caught the light around her wrists and big silver earrings shimmered from her ears. her hair had been done in a big blow-out, falling down her shoulders in waves. meanwhile, tucked into pleated black trousers and a silver buckled belt, jesse had on a white long-sleeved linen button up with a bolo necktie, a big gem of turquoise situated right on his collar. on his feet, he wore black brogue shoes by gucci, freshly polished. giovanni wore a red harrington jacket over a grey polo shirt, navy blue jeans, and army boots.

jesse shrugged. "i hope so. i called andre earlier this week and he said—"

suddenly, he stumbled on a crack in the sidewalk. just before he could fall face-first onto the ground, giovanni leaped forward and caught him, his left arm hooked tightly around jesse's waist.

jesse laughed, looking up at him. "that was close."

giovanni helped him to stand up, his right hand interlocked with jesse's own. "sorry. did i hurt you?"

"you didn't, don't worry," jesse said, smirking. he flashed a wink. "i'm not made of sugar, sweetheart."

giovanni tried to hide his blushing cheeks. he nodded shyly. "okay, good."

eventually, they stood right in the middle of the babylon's long queue, the bright blue hue from the sign above the door lighting up their faces. they shivered with cold — now that it was the middle of september, the weather had not been so pleasant. after the blistering heat of summer, the city had welcomed the arrival of a bitter and windy fall.

"how'd it go last week, then?" tracy asked, glancing between the two.

"with the jewellery store?" jesse answered, lowering his voice as he spoke.

"yep. my father told me all about it."

"oh, it was fine, just fine," jesse said, looking to giovanni.