...And Beyond... | To Infinity... Book Two [ON HOLD]

Chapter 4: Bottoms Up, Desi Down

Monday April 12, 2021 - New Orleans, Louisiana

Desi POV

12:45 PM

I feel so out of place in this club, which is ironic considering I've made most of my money from going to clubs. I sit at the bar by my lonesome and watch as my co-workers and the superstars dance on the dance floor, take shots at their tables, or, like a certain Samoan, sit quietly and drink beer. I came here with him, Dean, and Seth, but I ended up isolating myself like I have been and they haven't pressed me about it. I'm sipping on a rum and coke, fighting a losing battle with the spaghetti strap of the simple black dress I'm wearing; it doesn't fit on me like it used to. Yeah, I lost a few pounds, okay, but it's not as big a deal as people keep trying to make it. Lenni won't shut up about it, my family won't stop questioning me about it, and now Joe's on my case; this is why I isolate myself. As I'm drinking, some guy comes up and sits beside me.

"Yeah um, give me Whiskey-Ale, on the rocks. Thanks."

I look at him and he looks pretty alright; nice to look at, good muscles, he's not one of the wrestlers, so I know certain people are going to be watching me like a hawk; I can already feel his eyes on me but I ignore it and turn to the man beside me that also has his eyes on me as he takes his drink and pays the bartender.

"Well, hello there, beautiful. What's your name?" He asks me over the loud music.
"Desi. Yours?" I reply.
"They call me Rich."
"Oh yeah? 'Cause your name's Richard?"
"Nah, 'cause I'm mad rich."

Oh my good Lord.

I give him a smile and turn my gaze away from him, completely uninterested.

"Alright, so that wasn't my smoothest line, but how else am I supposed to tell you that I wanna buy you a drink or two?"

He has my attention again and I take another sip of my drink.

"Asking me would've sufficed."
"Duly noted. So, can I buy you a drink?" He says and flashes an impressively white smile and I shrug.
"What the Hell. How 'bout you buy me two?"
"You got it, pretty lady."

He bought us a round of Jell-O shots and we each took one and clinked our glasses together. I turn around to see Joe staring at me with an annoyed look but I just roll my eyes and take my shot, not caring how he felt about me getting loose with another guy considering I'm single as fuck.

Bottoms up, bitches.

*~*~*~*
Joe POV

"I can't fucking believe this. Thirty whole minutes she's been over there with that sleazy lookin' Miz wannabe lookin' asswipe, taking shot after shot and none of y'all are lettin' me go over there. You guys don't get it, she shouldn't be drinkin' like that; she's not healthy."
"You know man, maybe you should try not bein' her daddy and just lettah be. So she lost some weight, big deal, I'm sure she's fine; she looks happy for the first time since she got here, lettah be happy."

I throw a disgusted look at little monster Enzo and try my best not to real life deck him in the jaw considering that Desi's the only reason why I'm still hanging out with him; she convinced me to be that stern friend that always put him in his place when need be, so I stuck around with him.

"Why is no one else alarmed about this?" I question.
"Because no one else knows her like you do. You told us a little bit about her when you told us about your divorce but this is our first time really meetin' her Uce." Jimmy says.

I sigh and take out my phone, scrolling through my pictures and pulling up one I took of Desi in her old apartment one of the times I had visited her. She and I were going out for lunch one day and she was wearing this pair of tight jean shorts and a floral bustier top with brown sandals and I thought she was the most beautiful thing, her long dark hair freshly done in big bouncy beach curls and her dark skin glistening in the sunlight. I pass the phone around the table and they're all making little surprised gasps and wows.

"Damn, no wonder Lina was mad." Trinity says and I snatch my phone from her.
"Let's not talk about that, but do y'all see now why I'm on edge? She was one sixty-five then, that was just a few months before I bought her the condo. She has to have had lost like, twenty-five, thirty pounds at least since I last saw her."
"Yeah, we see it now, but don't you think you played a large part in that?"
"Of course I do Trin, which is exactly why I need to be the one to bring her out of this. She hasn't listened to her friends, so I know she hasn't been tryna hear anything her family has to say if they've said anything at all; she's putting herself in danger."

I look over and see that her and the guy have disappeared.

"Oh my God where'd she go? Oh my God! Where did she go?!"
"Bro! Calm down! She's just dancin', look!" Enzo says pointing to the large dancing crowd.

Her and the guy are on the dance floor bumping and grinding in their drunken states and I'm getting sicker and angrier every time I see this douche pelvic thrust on her ass. I go to get up but Enzo and the twins pull me back down and I go back to drinking my beer until a familiar blonde approaches me.

*~*~*~*
Desi POV

EVERYTHING IS AWESOME!

Holy SHIT I feel GOOD!

Damn, Jell-O shots are so FOOD!

...

Good.

Why doesn't food rhyme with good? And why can't you rhyme food with food and good with good but hum and drum make sense? ENGLISH IS HARD! Lubbawubbadubdubz! Am I dancing or am I...who the fuck is this bitch rollin' up on my man like that? My man? Yes! He's my man! I mean, was but he...wasn't? He's not, not anymore, he never was, but I love him...I still love him, so why is he talking to her? Does he love her, too? Did he ever love me? Did he? Did he?

"Heya sweetheart, you look like you could use another drink."

Oh, this Richy Rich Rick guy ain't too bad.

"Don't mind if I do!"

Yum, I needed that. It burns now so I don't have to feel later. Oh! This is my JAM!

...

...

...

...

Counner, bar, wurr's da berr?? I-I need sit, room go spin spin. I'm fuckin' drunksssssssssssssssssss.

"Desi! Desi! Desi, look at me!"
"Huh? Wha? J-Joe? Whatdyouwant? You come to shit on my shit again? Cuz that's whatcha do! Ya shit on others peoples shits!"
"What? No! Ugh, Desi, c'mon, we need to go, now."
"No! I'm not goin' nowhere witchu, you suck! You hurted me, betrayed me! You're why I'm like dis now, you did it! I hate you!"
"Desi, baby, please we—"
"I'M NOT YOUR BABY ANYMORE!"
"Hey, asshole! The pretty lady said she don't wanna go!"
"Why don't you fuck off, blondie, before I call the cops on your shady ass!"
"Ha! I'd like to see you try, bitch! The lady's coming with me!"
"THE HELL SHE IS!"
"Joe, lemme go! Let me GO!"

Shit, everything's spinning again, I'm spinning again. Oh no no no nononononono, the floor looks really close. Am I fall—

"DESI!"