The Painter & The Pianist

xvi.

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

As the smell of the bar vanished, Amadeus realized that he had stopped keeping count of all the shots he had taken. "Heeyy, how many have I had?" He hadn't noticed the obvious slur in his speech. "I don't know, more than me, that's for sure!" Susan drank from her glass.

Amadeus swayed a bit, "What fragranshe are they ushing?" She laughed a bit, "Dead animals and biker sweat!"

Amadeus downed the last of his drink, "I'm out..." his voice sounded a bit depressed. She looked over and smiled at him, "Well, you just chugged it. What did you expect?"

Amadeus began to tilt over and Susan quickly reached out and grabbed him. "Woah, watch it!"

"I really needed thish..." He propped himself up on her shoulder and gave a smile as his body swayed back and forth. "You're really drunk." She tried to keep him stable, but he weighed too much for her small frame. "Sh-another!" Amadeus called to the bartender.

The bartender reluctantly turned around, "Honey, I think you've had enough." She turned to Susan, "Why don't you take your friend home, little lady...before I do." She gave a little wink to Amadeus before turning to help another customer. "Do you know where you live?" Susan asked, still struggling to keep Amadeus from falling over.

"An apartment."

"Where?"

"Uh, I have a neighbor named Charles I think or maybe Joe...or wash it Bo?"

"We're just gonna have a sleepover, I guess." She waved a hand over to another man who helped her get Amadeus into her car in the rain that had just started. They made the drive to her house as she realized that the rain was pouring. "You're so heavy!"

"I lift."

"Silverware to your mouth doesn't count! Maybe you need to eat a salad once in a while."

As they entered her small apartment, Amadeus couldn't help but notice the disorganization. There was a baseball mitt on the coffee table, a baseball laying beside it. Her bookshelf was filled with books in all sorts of positions.

The kitchen and the living room were combined into one room, and there were two doors connected to the room. Amadeus assumed that one was the bathroom and the other her room. Her room was on the left, as Amadeus found that out as she pulled him through the door. Her room was filled with the purple decor.

She set him down on her bed and began to take off his water-damaged coat. "You're so cute!" He flopped over after his coat was off. "Thanks." She turned and set it on the chair. "What'sh with people and shaying thank you, gosh dammit!"

She quickly picked up a towel from her floor and began to dry his hair with it. "What do you mean?" She asked. "I told him t-that I loved him and he said 'thank chew'." Amadeus smiled in pleasure at someone playing with his hair. "That's cold." She pulled away as she finished, she gave his face a good look and smiled.

"What are chew shmiling at?" He said sitting up.

"You." She smiled as she reached over and twirled his hair in her finger. "Why?"

"You're funny," She continued to play with his hair. Amadeus closed his eyes and enjoyed it, "I love when people play with my hair." The black coals seemed to heat up at her touch. "I love playing with it."

As she pulled her hand away, Amadeus looked into her eyes. "Monserrat hashn't played with my hair for a while...I wonder if he ever will again." She set her hand on him; it was gentle and comforting. "He's been pretty neglective, hasn't he? You need someone who won't neglect your needs."