Charli and I come to a halt at the entrance of an old, worn tunnel.
“Where the hell are we?” asks Charli, concerned.
I snatch my cell phone from my jeans pocket and light up the dark tunnel. All is eerily quiet for a second, then the blinding flash of a car’s headlights light up, illuminating the way towards a single door located in the center of the dark chasm.
I start my way towards the door, then stop. I look back to see Charli, her hands hugging her chest, looking straight at me. “C’mon.”
“Marina, I’m not going in there. I’m fucking scared,” Charli mutters, her eyes frantically looking around the tunnel. “Let’s just go home.”
“We’re not going anywhere but inside that door,” I reply, pulling her arm. She pulls back, then sighs. She looks at me straight in the eye for awhile and then nods her head. “Let’s go.”
She slowly trails behind me, then tugs on my arm, squeezing my hand tight. “Don’t fucking let go of my hand, bitch.”
We reach the door, which is tall and broad and made of solid metal. The door is so intimidatingly massive and evil looking that I almost consider turning back. I turn to look at Charli, whose eyes are focused on the doorknob. “Are you ready?” I ask. Without hesitating, she nods her head.
I twist the doorknob and push the door open, only to see the world as I once knew it flash before my eyes. Inside were sluts getting drunk on cheap bottles of wine, teenagers smoking pot, raggedy old ladies flirting with the young studs, bartenders with wide smiles on their faces. I’d never seen anything like it before. I had heard stories, but never experienced the real thing.
Only one thought forms in my head: Fuck old Marina, a new bitch is about to make her mark.
I instantly scurry inside and squeeze my way through the hundreds of drunken dancers towards the bar, Charli struggling to keep up with me. A jolly, fat man comes to take my order, and I’m too overwhelmed by the fact that I’m even inside this place to answer him. Instead I point at a dainty purple bottle, which seems to contain some kind of sparkling clear liquid.
“Here you go, on the house,” replies the man, whose name is Kale according to the nametag pinned onto his chest.
''Thank you,” I say, laying against the counter and slowly sip my drink, taking a moment to enjoy the beautiful view before my eyes. Bright lights, crazy dancing, an unhealthy amount of smoke. Fucking perfect.
I chug down what remains of the clear liquid and scurry on to find Charli. I get stopped a few times by groups of drunken male teens, their crotches thrusting against my behind and the liquid from their drinks spilling on my tee.
I find Charli inside a small crowd of older men, all huddled in a circle as if she was some kind of goddess worth worshiping. I lean against the wall behind the group, not daring to take my eyes away from Charli.
Men are foolish beings who must be guarded at all times. Stupidity is inevitable for them.
And I stand. Minutes fly by. An hour. An hour and fifteen minutes. I take a look at the group to see if anything has changed. The men are still thrusting against Charli, a few of them occasionally reaching down to their crotch to rearrange their package. Same old, same old. A girl wearing nothing but a tight black bra and some risky short shorts walks by with a tray of margaritas. I take two, one for me and one for my friend. Who knows at what fucking time she plans on going home. And to think the bitch was at the verge of leaving. Without realizing it I chug down both margaritas, my top lip coated with a layer of salt.
I look down at my phone screen to check the time. 3:29. I’ve fucking had enough.
I push my way through the group of men, only to find them tugging on my clothes and forming a new circle around me. I can feel their breath running down my neck. “Charli! Charli!”
Fucking bitch doesn’t hear me. I fight my way through the men’s hold and make my way towards Charli. I’m only a few men away from her now. I squeeze through one last group of guys and look up, only to immediately wish I hadn’t.
Charli is kissing one of the men. His hand is squeezing her thigh, expertly lifting up her skirt. Her hands are in a circle around his neck. No, this is unacceptable.
“Get the fuck away from her you old wanker,” I yell, pushing the old man away from Charli. He seems confused, but then his eyebrows arch and I know he’s furious.
“What in the bloody hell are you doing you, you fucking dyke!”
Dyke! Did this old creep just call me a fucking dyke! I instinctively knee him in the balls and snatch Charli by the hand. The old twat is crouched down on the ground, his hands clutched around his crotch. He groans and curses under his breath. Pitiful old man. I decide to turn away, Charli trailing right behind me.
We’re almost at the club’s exit when she yanks away her hand from mine. “Marina, what the hell was that? We were just having a little fun.” She’s smiling and her devious eyes are focused on mine.
“Are you fucking serious? Charli, you’re 21 and he’s on the waiting line to Death’s door,” I say.
“Tell me the truth. Are you jealous?”
“Jealous? Jealous of fucking what, of who?”
She laughs. “Jealous of me kissing men.”
“No,” I say, but it sounds more like a question than it does a remark.
“Oh okay,” she says, nodding her head as if she’s trying to process my answer. Her gaze never leaves mine. I feel a knot forming inside my stomach.
“If you’re not jealous, then I’m assuming you don’t mind this?” She steps forward, our bodies colliding, and grips my head tight, our lips coming together. We kiss. There’s a whirling of emotions inside me. Hatred, confusion, anger, annoyance and – lust. Lust. Charli’s grip on the back of my head softens and she slowly pulls away from my lips. She looks at me innocently, gently stroking my hair. She’s about to leave when she turns towards me. “Have a laugh,” she says, almost cackling. She eyes me one last time, and then to my surprise she spanks my ass. ''Goodbye Marina,’’ and with that she’s off. My eyes don’t leave her body until she’s lost in the darkness of the tunnel.
And that’s when it hits me. I just kissed a girl. And not just any fucking girl. I kissed Charli Aitchison.
