All Along, You

X TROUBLE

NARRATION:

Faint buzzing sounds can be heard as Vegas laid on his back, half-conscious and half-naked in a car parked outside a bar.

PORSCHE was the caller ID that flashed on his screen.

"Hey" someone else answered

Porsche went quiet on the other line

"Pete?" He wanted to make sure. "Pete, is that you? Are you with Vegas right now?" Porsche wanted to make sure.

"I sent you the location using this phone. Get him out of my car within fifteen minutes or I'm throwing him out in this parking lot. That's all" Pete ends the call.

About an hour earlier

PETE

Whatever Khun Kinn and I did, it clearly was out of need and out of spite. I don't understand. Why the gifts and unnecessary affection? Shia, these Theerapanyakuls give me nothing but problems. If it's a one night stand then it should be treated as such! Why is Khun Kinn acting like he's never done that? Shia, I drove so many men home in the middle of the night and besides, I would never date another Theerapanyakul again! Never! Shia, damn assholes! I loathe them all! Okay. Maybe not all of them, just Vegas and Khun Kinn. I hope they just leave me alone!

Whatever. I'm at this bar to unwind. I haven't been drunk ever since I got Venice. I am a father now and I should be more responsible. I do not want Venice to grow up with an unhealthy dad but I have to relax from time to time hence the bar time.

"Champagne please, warm." I ask the bartender and she turns around to look at me.

"Hey, I knew that voice was familiar! Hey, Pete how have you been?" This woman! It's Praew, Porsche's friend.

"Praew, small world! I didn't expect to see you here." I said

"Yeah, didn't expect to see me anywhere after you ghosted me, Pete?!" Ghosted? Oh, yeah. I asked her out back then before Vegas and I got together. I decided to move on from Vegas after I escaped from his room and Porsche introduced me to some of his friends. Praew and I hit it off right away but a lot of things happened and I got together with Vegas so I basically forgot about her.

I look at her and she playfully glares at me as I scratch my nape.

"Praew, if it's any consolation, I was ghosted by the one I ghosted you for. And at least you didn't have to run after me. I went to another country and got verbally harassed one too many times running after him." I over-share.

"Ohhh...see? You should've went for me. I'm a pretty loyal woman and I'm pretty too, don't you think?" I loved how she went for a joke instead of a forced sympathetic comment. I just nod in agreement. True. If I had ended up with someone normal like Praew, it probably wouldn't be so hard. The only problem would have been explaining in detail what I did for a living.

"You know, Pete, I told my friends you were the one that got away. I wonder why Porsche never told me that you were single. He's still in our group chat and he knows how I talk about you from time to time. I always ask him about you."

"Oh. Porsche? That's another story meant to be told at a different time. Please, I'm here for a good time, not a crying session" I say and it's her turn to nod.

"I could give you a good time."
She semi-whispers and it doesn't take long before I find myself in a dark alleyway behind the bar moving my hands around her soft body. I feel excited so I guess my body still reacted to women, then.

Someone like me who likes both men and women should not be lonely. There should be more options for me.

"Do you have a condom on you?" She asks as I continue to touch her.