Caro's Descent

Chapter Seventeen - Louie Louie's

After dinner, Sharp and I met Melvin at the rec center. We hung out for a few hours while we watched our roommate suck down one glass of whiskey after another. Each glass Melvin consumed turned his face redder and redder. Before long, my roommate was a stranger to me. His laughter faded, replaced by a blank stare, as the alcohol transformed him from Daniel Melvin, the dry-humored mechanic from a small Texas town, into someone unrecognizable.

Melvin's eyes turned cold as they glanced at my empty cola glass. "Why aren't you drinking?" he slurred, his Southern drawl more pronounced. The Texan didn't realize Sharp had already snuck me a few shots. Unlike Melvin, Sharp preferred shots over drinking whiskey on the rocks. Occasionally, when the bartender turned away, Sharp dumped a shot into my cola.

I smiled at Melvin, then pointed to the band on his wrist. "Figure out how to get me one of those, and I'll have a drink with you."

"Bullshit!" Melvin kicked the chair back and sprung to his feet. He staggered backward, then caught his balance. "If you can serve your country, you should be able to have a drink." His icy stare redirected toward the bartender, and Melvin pointed to the bottle of whiskey. "Pour my roommate a shot."

The bartender reached for a coffee mug. "You know I can't do that. Go on, sit back down. I'll pour you a coffee on the house."

"Fuck that!" The red blotches on Melvin's face darkened, and he pointed toward me. "This is my battle buddy. I wanna have a drink with my battle buddy. He's my roommate, and I can't even trust him. You can't trust anyone till you get drunk with them."

My eyes fixed on the bartender, who was signaling the bouncer. Drill Sergeant Simmons's speech about alcohol-related incidences popped into my mind, and I realized I needed to protect my battle buddy. I tapped Sharp on his shoulder, and we both stood.

Eyeing the bartender, I said, "We got him. We'll take him home."

The bartender signaled the bouncer to wait.

Sharp threw Melvin's arm over his shoulder. "Come on, bro. It's time for you to go."

Melvin yanked his arm away and staggered backward. "I'm not going anywhere!" Again, he caught his balance and stood tall and straight. "I'm just getting started."

Sharp laughed and reached toward our roommate's arm. "Bro, you're fucked up. Let us take you home."

Melvin swung at Sharp, but my reflexes were too fast. Without realizing what I was doing, I raised my hand and caught Melvin's fist. Heat surged through my body, and my eyes turned fiery red as my stare paralyzed my intoxicated roommate.

"You've had enough," I said calmly and sternly as I squeezed my roommate's fist. "We're taking you home."

Melvin tried to resist but cringed away from my blazing stare. A burning sensation flowed through my hand, into Melvin's fist, and through his body. My body gave off an aura that somehow demanded obedience. The drunk Texan's cocky attitude subsided as he shuddered from my penetrating stare. Melvin attempted one last glimpse into my eyes, but I instinctively sent a surge of magma scorching through his veins. He thrust his head away.

The brown returned to my eyes as I turned toward Sharp. "Come on, let's take his ass home."

Sharp grabbed Melvin's left arm, and I had his right. This time, Melvin submitted. By the time we reached the barracks, the drunken fool was dead weight. We dragged him up the stairs, tossed him onto his bunk, and rushed back toward the rec center.

Sharp glanced at his watch. It was a quarter to nine. "We should still have time," he said. "Simmons said the bus leaves at nine."

As we approached the rec center, we noticed a group of soldiers standing by the curb around the corner. "That must be it," said Sharp.