Mykie didn’t comment on my desperate intake of booze. She was drinking as quickly as I was, but making it look effortless. She watched my struggle with gentle amusement dancing in her eyes. Although mostly silent, she responded briefly and pleasantly to anyone who greeted her—nearly everyone who pushed through the front door. None of them seemed too interested in talking to me or asking about me, which I was grateful for. If they did, I’d be tipsy soon enough and well-equipped to handle conversation with a brand-new species.
A wash of green and purple seeped across my vision. As the hues overtook every shadow and highlight, I rubbed my eyes with both fists and looked up at the light fixtures. Did they have some sort of color tint to them? I felt myself sway forward and had to catch myself on the bar. Intoxication hit me like a tidal wave.Fuck fuck fuck.That wasn’t good. I needed social lubricant not a damn slip and slide. As quickly as it had risen, the wave of anxiety quickly dissipated, and relaxation warmed my tense muscles. I was passing through the stages of inebriation at an alarming rate, with no sense of when it would peak. Suddenly, I didn’t care.
With newly acquired drunkenness, I no longer feared the new creatures around me. They blended in so perfectly with the green haze of the room, they might as well have been human. No funny business here, just your standard issue neon monster pub.
“How do-ew know Graysen?” I slurred after a long silence of Mykie finishing her drink. She didn’t seem nearly as affected as I was by the bubbling beverage. I was sure I’d been drunk before, but not on something like this. Mykie clearly had a tolerance for it.
“I met him here. He’s a bartender.” Her manicured hand waved loosely at the space behind the counter.
“Iz-ee working today?” Feeling emboldened from the alcohol, I decided I’d be happy to see the handsome stranger who gave great scalp rubs. I’d apologize to him for being rude and ungrateful.Maybe he’ll make me more of that cheesy pasta dish.
“No, he told me he needed to go to town.” Her eyes had returned to scanning the faces of the patrons surrounding us. “I was asked to stay with you until he got back.”
Feeling that was rather nice of him, I prattled on. “I woke up feelin’muuuuchbetter. I can walktodal-eefine again. I hope you dint miss plans today because of me. I’m sure I’d be fine on my own.” My slurred rambles kept up with crashing waves of thoughts, each statement forgotten the moment it left my lips.
Unbothered by my musings, she hummed softly and fidgeted with a silver nutcracker. “No. I think some company is best after what you went through. I was just going to be here anyway—what’s a plus one?”
“DidGrrraysentell you how he found me?”
I thought back to that feral image of myself. I had been naked.Graysen has seen me naked.Graysen touched me naked.Graysen held me naked. I squeezed my thighs together at the new throb between my legs and shifted in my seat. What a strange reaction to the memory of my near death experience.
Several heads turned in my direction. Could they hear my indecent thoughts? Some eyes seemed to linger, accompanied by intrigued expressions. Self-conscious and wishing to test the notion of other-worldly mind reading, I thought to myself, “I am a human from the planet Earth who two days ago was almost eaten alive in a dark forest.” The staring was unaffected, leading me to assume my paranoia was unfounded. I was just drunk.
“Not much, he’s never been great at communication. But I got the gist of alone, injured, and confused.” She slammed down the mug after the last gulp of her second drink and let out a deep exhale. Theo was already on his way over to tend to her.
The energy in the pub was picking up as the door clinked repeatedly to welcome newcomers. Seats were becoming scarce, and both Mykie and I were hesitant to continue discussing my situation. Even in my state of inebriation, I knew loudly discussing other worlds was a one-way trip to a padded cell.Talk about the elephant in the room.Although, there seemed to be plenty of metaphorical elephants surrounding us for me to focus on instead.
Two Mercurians had found seats flanking ours shortly after the staring incident and engaged in crude small talk and jokes with Mykie, who was already halfway through her third “Drooler”. Theo had argued with her when she ordered a third, but she won. I got the feeling this wasn’t the first time they’d debated her intake. Her voice had gone up an octave, and her guarded smiles were turning into wide grins. Although not nearly at my level, she seemed to be relaxing. My buzz had completely removed my ability to fake sobriety, so I leaned into the high, comforted that others seemed to be picking up a similar energy.
“You know what they say about waking up next to a Quadmos,”someone said. I laughed with them, even though I hadnoclue what that meant.
“So, are you new here? I’ve never seen you around,” the Mercurian next to me asked, shifting to the edge of his barstool to be closer. I leaned away, remembering what Graysen said about the green plasma in their veins that could kill me. Something about the danger of a papercut. Despite my distancing, our knees brushed against each other.
“I dunn even know what I’m doin’ here,” I hiccupped. “I dun know how I got here or how I’ll leave.” A need to trauma dump to anyone who would listen teased my tongue.
“Hey, that’s how it is with all of us,” he laughed. “But if you’re looking for a place to stay and a male to show you around, I’d be happy to volunteer my services.” His hand slid towards mine across the bar. Was he one of the creatures that turned their head to me earlier? Was he a mind-reader? My head was swimming.
“That’d besooogreat! Where shoo-wee go first?!” The idea of making a friend on my own made my heart soar.Somebody wants to hang out with me!
“Let’s start with going out back and seeing what happens. We can make sure you end the night in a nice warm bed.” His thumb found the top of my breast, skimming its curve while his voice slowed to a purr as he spoke.
“What the fuck do you think you’re doing?!” Mykie snapped, throwing a heavy nut from a nearby dish at the man’s hand with impressive accuracy and force. “She’s got a place to stay that isn’t occupied by your sorry ass.”
“Whatever, Mykie,” he snorted and rolled his eyes with a grin, wrapping a hand over my thigh. “What do you say tocoming home with me?” I could smell the motor oil of his breath. His skin radiated heat as the bubbling in his plasma intensified. If it hadn’t been so loud in the pub, maybe I would have heard it popping under his skin.
“Piss off,” Mykie snarled, lifting to her feet and grabbing my wrist.
“Your tab, Mykie!” Theo’s exasperated voice called across the bar. He didn’t look surprised by the scene she was causing, a long-suffering shadow crossing his face. Several conversations halted to listen in, and the bolder patrons shamelessly turned to watch the show.
She grabbed a handful of metal squares from her cleavage and tossed them onto the counter. “Keep the change,” she bit as she pulled on my arm to yank me from my seat. I nearly fell on my face behind her, catching myself on her stool. Without a moment’s delay, she dragged me out the chirping door into the cool night air.
“Myke-eeeee,” I grumbled. “Why’re we leaving? I’wus having fun.” My head swayed around my shoulders. I couldn’t seem to catch my balance, and it was hard to discern if that was from the alcohol or her rage march.
“It’s getting late, Graysen is going to worry.” She strutted down the streets in her heels as if completely sober while I fumbled behind her, attempting to hold down the rising burn in my esophagus.
“How long-re-wee in there?” I asked, looking up at the galaxy of stars above us, their intense vibrations increasing my nausea. The sky had faded from periwinkle to the indigo. Night.
“Hours.” Perhaps there was a twinge of guilt in her tone. At the time, I interpreted it as a general displeasure—maybe directed at me?
