Lost in Paradise

Chapter 5

"They were always unusually close, Gina and Leela. They would laugh and snicker together behind the bar and touch each other weirdly. Mark, our boss Mark, he ended up banning them from the same shift because of how they were. Except, when one was on shift, the other would come in and have a drink. It was getting out of hand. And if you knew Leela, you'd know that she's destructive. She once had a girlfriend, Rebecca her name was. Leela drove Rebecca to kill herself. She's mad, I'm telling you. I have no idea how Gina died or why - all I know is that Leela had something to do with it." Joanne had rambled for quite some time, Dylan and Emma absorbing all of the information they needed.

"And Leela, do you know where she's staying now?" Dylan inquired.

"A hostel I think. She came to mine from the Police station but I wouldn't let her stay with me. She's a murderer. I'm telling you," Joanne nodded. She suddenly took a cigarette from her packet and lit it up, smoke dribbling into the cold air.

"I guess that's it then," Emma sighed, standing. Joanne grabbed her wrist tightly.

"You two be careful, you don't know what you're getting yourself into." 

Dylan and Emma both traversed the building from upstairs and out into the street where they couldn't see James' car.

"He did park here didn't he?" Emma asked.

"I'm sure he did, I'll ring him."

"No need to," and Emma pointed over into the distance, where James had driven his car further up the street. He was lent against it, standing with another man.

"Who's that then?" Dylan asked.

"Wait-" Emma strode closer, but stayed out of sight. "It's Charlie."

Her heart began to beat violently, she turned around and began to run the opposite way, her feet had never swung forwards so fast. She tried desperately to catch her breath, the thought of having Charlie back in her life scared her right to the core. Eventually, she could no longer hear Dylan's footsteps behind her. She raced past a very familiar arched bridge that cast a dark shadow over the pond below, topped with green algae and shopping bags.

She ran until her prosthetic leg disallowed her to, catching her breath whilst facing the window of an off-licence store, an array of bottles lined shelves behind the counter and she suddenly knew what she needed - a thrill. Something to fuel the blue fire that flickered in her veins - it had been worn by her fear but now she needed to take control again.

The door chimed as she walked through the entrance, catching glances from customers and the woman behind the counter. She strode up to the alcohol aisle and evaluated her choices - wine tasted too much like vinegar, lager wasn't strong enough and cider was too sweet. That's when she clocked eyes on a bottle of whiskey. She could almost feel the burning sensation the whiskey leaves in your throat as it gushes your insides. 

She took the bottle of whiskey and looked down at her amputated leg. She lifted up the stub that she still had left, and it became unattached to the prosthetic version, knife markings where she had forged a hole in the plastic. She snugged the bottle of whiskey in between two pieces of cloth and proceeded to put her leg back on the contraption and out she walked - as confident as ever.

She strode back to the bridge she had seen earlier and took a seat on the bench. She looked at all of the engravings in the wood, carefully scratched initials leaving an imprint in time 'Louise & Rachel', 'Cara loves Martin 4eva' and her personal favorite 'Jess & Rob'.  She pondered a time where she thought that they were both dead and finally together in heaven, watching Joe as he grew into a more mature young man. How very wrong she was.

Before she knew it, the bottle of whiskey was empty and the sun had taken her slumber in the sky - leaving stars of silver to scatter the earth. She watched the stars as they moved around with the alcohol clouding her vision. Soon enough, she was staggering over to the nearest club which stood over in Canterbury Crescent - the rougher part of town.

Inside lights of red and blue beamed around, lighting up walls in scarlett and gleaming off the beads of sweat dribbling from the dancers' faces. She made her way over to the bar and ordered herself a vodka and coke, looking around at the wide eyes and short dresses in the crowd. 

"Can I buy you this drink?" a man's breath lingered around her ear and the stench of alcohol swarmed her.

"Why of course," She smirked and turned to look at his face, she couldn't see much - the lights behind him had silhouetted his body. 

"Oh my goodness," he spoke in a thick Spanish accent. 

"What?" Emma grinned, bouncing her legs in tune with the music.

"It's me Emma," the man said. Emma tried to decipher the voice, she couldn't recollect her memory due to the bottle of whiskey she had intoxicated herself with earlier.

"It's me Marlo."

Her heart thumped against her chest like it had done when she'd seen Charlie - these people that she thought she'd once loved had treated her so terribly wrong. Perhaps she'd deserved it, through the stealing and the running away - she deserved to be treated the way she had been. And that's why she kissed him, their tongues locking together like magnets, set with the universe to meet once more.