Jack and the Beanstalk [SF YA]

CHAPTER SIX - Jack Fell Down - Part II

The next morning I awoke in my room with a smile on my face, still under the influence of the previous nights revelry. Embarrassment followed quickly after my first reaction of ecstasy once I remembered the circumstances surrounding the return to my room. Valerie and the bartender had carried me to bed.

"Light." My embarrassment increased as the obscenely brilliant light made me realize that my clothing consisted of a pair of boxer shorts that weren't even mine! I had no memory of acquiring them. Gradually glimpses started coming back to me. Learning to dance with Valerie... When had she stopped being Ms. Jacobs?... If my memory remained accurate she had suggested that I call her by her first name during the first drink and then again on the arrival of the third drink.

About the fifth drink I recall coming to the decision that since I could no longer say Ms. Jacobs without spitting, it was probably a good idea to call her Valerie. After that it got a little hazy. But I knew Ms. Jacobs hadn't gotten her tour.

As my thoughts alternated between embarrassment and enjoyment I became aware of another sensation. I discovered that if I closed my eyes tightly the room seemed to rotate and my body seemed to lose contact with the bed. Although not altogether unpleasant, I came to the decision that getting out of bed at this point was out of the question.

As I came to this brilliant conclusion the autolave door opened and to my horror and delight out stepped Valerie Jacobs. The towel wrapped around her waist didn't quite qualify as clothing. It moved almost with a mind of its own, concealing and revealing at the same time.

"Uh... When do we get to the Moon?"

(Is that all you can think of to say?)

"About eighteen hours. Light. One half." The lights in the room lowered to a comfortable level. "Now, that's better for a hangover. How are you feeling?" She plopped something in a glass and stirred it up.

"Other than a little cloudy, fine." I sat up and what had been the gentle pounding of the surf in my head turned into full-fledged breakers crashing against the rocks with hurricane force. I lay back down. "Forget cloudy but fine, call it a storm front instead and the room seems to spin when I close my eyes. I don't think I should be standing anytime soon."

"I don't think you should be standing anytime soon either." She handed me the glass. "Here."

"What is it?"

"A hangover cure. It's an old family recipe. A toenail from my great-grandmother's left little toe, the juice of an aguacate... Oh, you don't want to know the rest." I must have looked skeptical, because she continued. "All right, it's about a gram of brewers' yeast for the B complex vitamins, 500 milligrams of renoprofen, two grams of vitamin C, water, and an active cleansing agent for that dragon's breath of yours. That's why it's smoking. You've heard of fighting fire with fire."

"Dragon breath?" I figured she knew what she was talking about as my teeth felt like someone had come in during the night and painted them with tacky glue. "Kiss me?"

"Not on your life." So I drank it down. All in one big gulp. Then my eyes started to bulge out. I'm sure that smoke came out of my ears, nose, and mouth. My teeth felt like they were melting away. I looked at her with astonishment.

"You'll feel better in a moment. I forgot to mention the Habanero Pepper sauce, didn't I? I'll get you some more water, okay?"

I gasped, "You forgot to mention the what sauce?" I drank the water she offered me. She was right; I felt much better. But my embarrassment quickly returned. "I must have made quite a fool of myself last night."

She came toward me and sat on the bed as I pulled the covers up to conceal those guilty underwear. "Not too much of a fool. We only had to stop you from dancing naked on the tables once."

"Oh, God. That explains these underwear. Whose are they?"

"I'm kidding. You came by them honestly. They're Alec's, the bartender. He let you borrow them after the fight."

"The fight? I don't remember any fight."

"It wasn't much of a fight. If it will make you feel better, you were defending my honor. Pretty old fashioned, but a sure way to my heart. You only hit him once before he dumped the punch bowl on you. Alec and I brought you back here and showered you. He left and... Here we are." She giggled, "I haven't had that much fun in years." Her smile faded as she saw the serious look on my face.

"Valerie. Did I... did we? Last night?"

"No." Her smile returned. "We didn't. Let's check on that dragon's breath."

As her lips met mine I realized that the towel had somehow disappeared.

#

Some uncountable time later we reclined in bed with her back to my chest, her head on my arm, and my nose nuzzling her ear. I marveled at the sweet scent of her mixed with the lavender I'd smelled earlier. My free arm wound around her over the white sheet that set off her olive skin.

"Valerie?" I asked as my body returned to normal--hungry. "Do you want something to eat?"

She nodded and sat up. I extricated myself after hugging her from behind. She returned it half-heartedly. I pulled back on the borrowed underwear, noticing that the tag hadn't been removed, and hopped over to the terminal. "What's safe?"

"Don't go for the pancakes, the farther away from sea level the worse the pancakes. Toast and eggs are pretty reliable."

I typed in two double orders of bacon, eggs and toast.

"Can I use your autolave?" she asked.

I nodded and tabbed over to the local headlines. Nothing of interest. Typing in my own name I checked out the London localities news net. Glove Factory Owner/Manager dead. Police search for assailant. I scanned through the article. Anyone with information leading to the capture of John Isaac Higley, please contact Scotland Yard.

The food arrived as Valerie stepped out of the 'lave. I hurriedly cleared the screen. "It's not a fancy feast, but there's lots of it."

Her eyes didn't meet my gaze. "Jack? Do you mind if we do breakfast some other time?"

"What?" I asked.

Her gaze fell to the floor.

"No. I don't mind. More for me, I guess." I tried to make it sound like a joke, but it fell as flat as the look on her face. "I'll see you later, right?"

"Yes," she nodded, "Later," but her voice held no interest.

And with that she vanished, leaving me staring at the closing door, wondering what to do. At least five minutes passed before I realized that she'd called me Jack.