Margaret and Olivia

Chapter Eight: A Toast To Us

We reached the bar a quarter after eight. Antonio ordered us both a beer. I put the cold bottle to my lips and let the liquid touch my tongue before setting the completely full bottle back down. I faked swallowing the alcohol and smiled. Antonio held out his drink; I grabbed mine again.

"A toast! A toast to good Samaritans and lazy-ass mechanics."

I clinked my bottle to his and let out a genuine laugh. Antonio finished his beer within twenty minutes, but I never swallowed even a bit, for I hated loss of control and would never experience alcohol's consequences. I shook my head at the bitter thought of last year when I let pills get the better of me, but that was then; I'm different now. I'm better. I see things clearer now. I blinked, allowing my focus back into the present. Antonio was staring in my direction, his mind appearing to be elsewhere too.

"What?" I asked, faking another sip.

"You got a girl?" He smiled innocently, waiting for my response. I immediately thought of Olivia, but that only caused anger.

"Nope, too busy with life," I paused, "and, you know, I just haven't met the right girl." He grinned in response. "What about you?"

His grin widened, and he nodded.

"Sure do, her name's Olivia. Beautiful and smart."

"Well, well, well, you look happy. Are you letting love fool you over?"

He smiled, looking down at his beer before taking another sip.

"Maybe, just maybe."

"How long have you two been together?" I knew the answer, but he didn't need to know that.

"A little over a month."

"Dang, and you're already in love? She must be some girl." I played my part quite smoothly, I must admit. I went to take another sip of beer, lifting he bottle higher to show it was emptying out.

"She sure is. I've even thought about marriage. How ridiculous is that?" With his words fueling my fury, this time I let a small amount of alcohol trickle down my throat. I needed it to soothe the edge I was feeling.

"It's only ridiculous if you chicken out." My voice was calm and charming, but my chest was an aching, bitter time bomb. Antonio glanced at me and smiled, enjoying my insight into his love life.

"You think so?" I shrugged as though it was no big deal. "But what if she says no? She's the best thing in my life. I couldn't risk losing her by scaring her off."

I stood, pondering his words as though I cared. I ordered another beer and so did Antonio.

"Well, if you love her and want to marry her, then why wait for the so called 'right time'? Love has no 'right time'. It's like life: do or die." He laughed, appreciating my humor and charisma. "Come on, Antonio, let me buy you a drink." He smiled and shook his head.

"Thanks, Jack, but I'm supposed to be thanking you, not celebrating me."

"Who says I'm celebrating you? Maybe I just want to thank you for thanking me. I mean, we both survived Petey and that's cause for celebration any day of the week."

He grinned and nodded his head, agreeing to let me pay for a drink. I got the bartender's attention and ordered two whiskeys. I knew this would be harder to fake drinking, but I'd find a way. I swirled the drink around before taking a morsel of a sip. Antonio turned his body to the dance floor. I took some of my drink and poured it into his, just enough to begin emptying mine without him noticing there was more than before. He turned to grab his drink just after I finished pouring. My heart quickened at the thought that I nearly had been caught. He took a number of small sips, his mind obviously elsewhere. His drink was nearly finished when he turned to me.

"You really think I should do it?"

"Do what?"

"Ask Olivia to marry me?"

"Well, do you love her?" He nodded his head yes. "Could you see yourself with someone else?" He thought about it for a second before shaking his head no. "Then if you love her, and only her, then make her the one."

His grin grew wide as we both realized he was actually going to ask her. He ordered two more whiskeys, not even caring to notice mine was barely half empty. I poured the new whiskey into the old whiskey and told Antonio I was going to the bathroom, taking my drink with me. Once I got to the bathroom, I poured half the glass into the sink. I splashed some water on my face, not entirely processing my actions. I waited several long minutes, knowing I had to go back out there. Hoping the night would be over soon, I turned and left the bathroom. Once I got back to Antonio, he was pouring beer into an empty glass of whiskey. I gave him a questioning look.

"The whiskey is disgusting, but it looks classier." His voice shouted at me. I laughed, admiring his logic even as strange as it was.

"I'm going to the bathroom." He shouted at me. He hopped off the bar stool and turned towards the general direction of the bathroom before immediately sitting back down. He was breathing heavy, and he looked as though he would puke at any moment.

"Do you usually drink this much?"

"Usually one beer every Friday night. Nothing more and sometimes less." I couldn't help but grin; I hadn't expected he'd get drunk this quickly.

"Let me take you home." He nodded. Although, I wasn't sure if he heard me because his eyes were focused on the floor.

"We have to pay. Let me pay, Jack. I'll pay Jack." He spun his stool around with full force. His body slumped against his elbow on the counter. He fumbled for his credit card before handing it to the bartender. Once he finished paying, I helped walk him to my car. I was about to ask him where he lived but his eyes were closed, and I didn't want him to puke in my car. So I let him sleep and headed to a nearby, cheap motel. Halfway to the motel, Antonio woke up.

"Jack," his sleepy voice whispered.

"Yes?" I responded immediately. Although, it took him a moment to answer.

"Jack. Thank you." He turned his body against the window and fell back to sleep.

We reached the small, shabby motel, The Red Glare, half an hour after 10. There weren't any cameras in sight, but I wasn't worried about Antonio's safety. I nudged him a few times before he woke up. I helped him inside and asked for his credit card. He willingly handed it over, not even bothering to question me. After paying for one night's stay, I helped him to his room and onto the bed.

"Jack, can you get me some water?" He mumbled.

On the way to the bathroom, I went to the fridge and quietly grabbed a small bottle of clear liquor. In the bathroom, I grabbed a plastic cup and filled it with a water and a small amount of the alcohol. He was barely awake when I handed him the cup. He sat up and drank the all that was in the cup. He failed to notice the alteration.

"Thank you, Jack." He said before rolling over and falling asleep again.

I carefully grabbed his phone out of his pocket. I opened his texts and went to his last message with 'Olivia <3.' I read through some previous texts to better understand his diction before I began typing.

Antonio to Olivia:

Olvia! I might have drankk to much. At red glare motel. Room 32. Can you come get me? Love you!

I sent the text, then sat down in the arm rest facing the bed and door. The room was an interior disaster. The refrigerator was near the bathroom door; there were two chairs, one on either side of the light purple bed. One chair was a hard, green plush chair and the other was a stiff, brown wooden chair.

His phone dinged.

Olivia to Antonio:

Fine. Leaving now.

I smiled at the phone. She would be here soon enough. Until then, I watched Antonio. I watched, and I waited.