Authors: Alice Dee
“We’ll scope her out ourselves and we’ll beat her ass!” Charla grabbed her beach towel off a nearby chair. “Tomorrow night we’ll go to her work and we’ll wait for her.”
Tristan’s heart was beating faster and faster.
“Beat her up, really?”
“Don’t you want to?”
“She’s so fragile looking…I’ll break her in two.”
Charla put her hands on her hips.
“Why haven’t you?”
“I just feel like violence is… it’s uncivilized.”
“Check out the world around you. Uncivil is the only way to be.”
2 hours later…
Charla opened her trunk and she and Tristan peered inside. Charla unzipped a black duffel bag.
“What’s that?”
“Spray paint. Wouldn’t it be nice to spray her hair or her face?”
Tristan glanced at Charla and then looked at the bag, reaching inside for a can. It was heavy with liquid. She tilted it, the ball inside rolling through the thickness of paint.
“Vivid orange? That’s bright!”
Charla shrugged.
“I’m a genius, I know.” Charla took the can from Tristan and tossed it the bag, zipped it and slammed the hood of her trunk.
“I’m going to dinner tonight with my family. Julie’s on her way up here.”
“Driving?”
“Yeah with a friend. You should come. After dinner I’ll bail for a bit. I have to spend time with my sister.”
“No problem. Don’t forget to wear rings,” Charla said to Tristan as she walked to the driver’s side door. “You talking to Dominic yet?”
“No but he’s still trying to call me. I’ll call him later…my alibi.”
Charla smiled and waved to Tristan.
56... Loose lips bomb ships
Josephine, Dan, Tristan, her sister Julie and Charla were going to have dinner at some restaurant and Tristan decided it was a good idea to invite Dominic. She finally returned his call after ignoring him for nearly 24 hours. He was livid but willing to hear an explanation. She decided to go with the lie that she was afraid Dominic would take it too far and beat the guy to death.
“Why did you protect him?”
Tristan bit her lip. Charla said to make this up as it came along.
“I was protecting you. When you’re in that zone there’s no telling how far you might go. Look, I realize I screwed up, okay?
Dominic scratched his head. “I don’t think you do.”
“We’ll talk about it later. Look, I’ve been crazy busy with Julie being here and all. Come to dinner, yeah?”
Dominic was baffled. He moved the phone from his ear and stared at it for a moment. He wanted to hang up on her. He put it back to his ear.
“What time?”
“Six-thirty. Come pick me up?”
“All right. Bye.” He hung up and kept his fists balled up. Why did Tristan always have to be so damned shady?
Aside from Tristan’s questionable behavior, Dominic didn’t really mind going to dinner with her and the family anymore. She was probably “the one” and eventually he would probably marry her. He may as well get used to these gatherings. He had no family in Vegas anyway and after they married he would move her back to California and that would be the end of that.
The restaurant had tinted windows, dark interior with red brick arches and fire scheme lights. Dominic, Tristan and Julie sat on one side of the table while Dan, Josephine and Charla sat opposite them. Julie was visiting her dad for two weeks. She had just graduated high school and was starting college in the fall. Conversation was flowing under the red-orange lights and the food smelled delicious. Dominic could smell the cheesy beans and red salsa wafting under his nose. Everyone laughed and ate and had a fine time.
While life rapidly happened around him, Dominic was in state of slow motion, staring at his girlfriend. She was caught up in laughter and her smile was radiant. He decided this wasn’t a battle worth fighting. He let it go. He wouldn’t confront her about it, period. He dropped it like hot ice and tuned into conversation.
Dan got up to pay the bill and Josephine excused herself to the restroom. Dominic followed Dan and offered to pay half the bill but Dan wouldn’t accept it. When they were out of hearing range, Julie kicked at Tristan’s leg.
“You’re going to Italy?”
Tristan nodded.
“Don’t say anything, Dominic doesn’t know yet.”
“You can’t go while you’re pregnant,” Julie scoffed, sipping from her cup.
“She doesn’t know?” Charla asked, shocked.
“Know what?” Julie looked at Tristan. “What does Charla know that I don’t?”
“Nothing.”
Julie tilted her head.
] “You have to tell me, I’m your sister.”
Tristan leaned in whispered that she wasn’t pregnant anymore.
“What? Since when?”
“Last time I was down there. I took care of it.”
“You mean, took care of it-took care of it?” She loudly whispered.
Tristan nodded.
“You did?” A male voice said from behind her.
Startled, Tristan turned her head and saw Dominic standing beside her.
“Let’s go,” Tristan said, pushing at Julie to slide out of her seat as Dan was coming back to the table.
“No, wait.” Dominic put his hand on Tristan’s arm. “What’d you take care of?” He looked at Julie who had just stood up on her feet.
“What were you guys talking about, Julie?”
Tristan licked her lips, her palms were sweaty.
“Let’s go talk outside.”
“No we’ll talk here.”
“Dominic, my dad is standing right there.”
Dan was standing there all right, looking at this group like they were weird.
“We leaving or what?”
Josephine returned to the table. Everyone looked like burglars who’d just been ambushed by cops.
“No, Tristan wants to tell me something. Tell me Tristan.”
She looked back at her boyfriend like she didn’t know whether to stab him or cry.
“Fine,” she whispered, turning her head in toward him. “I didn’t really lose the baby in a miscarriage. I aborted it.”
“What the fuck?” He angrily pulled his arm away from her. “You did that?”
“Yes.”
“You aborted our baby and told me that you miscarried?”
“Whoa whoa whoa,” Dan said, putting his hands up to calm Dominic.
“Seriously, you did that? You lied to me? About that?”
“Yeah.” She nodded. “I lied.”
“Why?”
“Let’s go outside, leave them alone,” Josephine suggested. The girls followed Josephine. Dan assured his wife he’d follow her in a moment. He warned Dominic not to flip out or touch his daughter. Dominic saw Dan’s mouth moving but didn’t hear voice inside of them.
“Why?”
“I missed you-“
“No, I know why you lied to get me back. You lied to get me away from her and back with you, I get that. Why did you get the abortion?”
She smeared tears off her face.
“Because I’m not ready…oh fuck!” she cried. “Because I wasn’t sure…I wasn’t sure if it was yours.”
It was a knee to the gut for sure. He kept it all packed inside his chest and bit down on his lip.
“There’s this guy at work-I-you know?” Her eyes flooded with tears. “But baby, I love you. That was a stupid mistake.”
“So you cheated on me before I ever cheated on you?”
She shrugged. “Even I hadn’t you still would’ve.”
“And you lied to me?”
“I missed you. I should never have told you about the pregnancy. I almost didn’t. Not even Charla knows that part-“
“Oh that’s nice.”
“No no, Dominic, we need to talk about this!”
But Dominic didn’t want to talk anymore. He was through talking to her. She moved got up from her seat and chased him out of the restaurant crying. Like a raging bull, he headed toward his truck, moving passed Dan and his wife. He was pretty sure Dan knew about it the whole time. Charla and Julie were standing next to them but all he could see was Charla.
“Fuck you Charla!” he shouted in her face. He went for the door but Tristan ran up on him and grabbed his arm. The black asphalt surrounding them was sleek and glowed yellow, and these golden lights against her hair made it look light blonde.
“Who was the dude you were protecting? Might as well tell me the truth now.”
But Tristan couldn’t do that! Oh God, no, never!” So she insisted her lie was the truth. “Tell me the truth or I’m outta here, tell me the truth or I leave…”
“It is the truth, Dominic. Baby, stop and think about what you’re doing!”
He opened the door to his truck and got inside.
“Don’t leave!” Tristan cry/screamed at the top of her lungs. Dan had to hold her back.
“I’m done with you!” he shouted out the window and sped off. Tristan knew he was going to run to Hope right then and there. She always had this inkling since they got back together, that he was going to jump out of his skin any moment to go back to Hope. Now he really was.
57... Contemplates
Dominic went home and contemplated what he would say. “Should I?” Of course; this is what he’d been waiting for. It was like a miracle, this happening. It did infuriate him that Tristan lied but only because it kept him away from Hope. He felt bad about the baby at first, but just knowing it was probably someone else’s anyway, he really didn’t care anymore. He paced around his living room for a while. He sat in the dark and actually drank a beer. He went through his phone and stared at her number for a long time.
In the silence of his four walled apartment, he could feel the emptiness next door where she used to be. He couldn’t let go…no way. And he was pretty sure it couldn’t possibly ever get old with her. For whatever reason, he couldn’t pinpoint what it was about her, she was the one. Maybe it was just her entire existence but one thing was for sure; he had never felt so positive about this kind of thing. His mind was made up; Hope was his girl bottom line and he would go to the stars to get another chance.
He became agnostic on the spot.
“If you’re up there God, give me guidance.”
So calling her was too puss. He didn’t want to look like a puss. He grabbed his keys and headed for the door. Screw waiting, screw explanation. There was a good chance she’d be working tonight. Hopefully that weasel Shane hadn’t gotten to her head yet.
He opened the door. He gasped in a bit of surprise to see Tristan standing there. He tried to turn away and go back inside but she grabbed his arm and held on to it.
“Don’t touch me,” he gravely warned her.
“But I want to say I’m sorry. I just want to talk to you. I just want you to know how sorry I am.”
“You caught me at a real bad time.” He pulled away from her and jogged down the stairs.
She ran after him, sweeping her hair out of her face.
“Please Dominic, just think about us. Don’t throw us away for her. Just please don’t go back to her.”
Dominic shook his head. This girl had so much nerve, like most girls he knew.
In one last attempt to get her point across, at least for tonight, she reached in the driver’s side window and gripped the steering wheel. He inhaled and with cold eyes stared into the windshield.
“Remember that promise we made a long time ago? We promised each other,” she swallowed the lump in her throat with no relief. “We promised that no matter what we will stick together. We’ll get through it. We promised each other that, remember? We said we’d never let anything or anyone get between us.”
Yeah, he remembered. He looked at the delicate skin that coated her hand. There was no doubt she loved him. He shook his head. Nah, this was too easy. He didn’t want easy.
“You know what Tris?” He shook his head at her. She’d been such a hypocrite the entire time. “I shoulda’ fucked Josephine when I had the chance.” He nodded. “That’s right. She was always coming on to me when I was staying in your house.”
Her eyes watered till her irises looked like huge ink splats. He felt like such a dick but a cold break can also be a clean one. But Tristan was drowning in suicidal mind state. She just wanted to die.
He jammed the key in the ignition and backed out, not looking at her, not trying to hear another word. On the way over to the Lucky Star, the sky darkened to a deep plum. Those rich glitzy lights sparkled against the bruised horizon. Everything felt right tonight. Everything was going to go right for him.
Dominic took the elevator to the top floor and headed down a dark red corridor to a long line outside the doors of Club F01. The bouncer was giving him a hard time. Apparently not just anyone could get into the club anymore. This place was climbing the charts and becoming one of Vegas’s hottest spots. Dominic knew what this meant. The devil had definitely taken over. “I don’t believe in the devil,” he reminded himself.
“I’m a personal friend of one the dancer’s-“
The bouncer still refused to hear Dominic out. Dominic was losing his patience. His hands were in fists and violent thoughts were starting to emerge. There was a bald man in a suit standing behind the bouncer. He had a cigar and was whispering something into the bouncer’s ear. Dominic noticed and didn’t like the way the bald guy was looking at him up and down. Dominic wasn’t sure if this was a perverted look or what the hell.
“Which one of my girls is your friend?”
Dominic looked from the bald man’s face to his shoes, back to his face.
“Which one of your girls?” Dominic scoffed. “Like you own them or what?”
He made his eyes small at Dominic and puffed on his cigar.
“What are you, ‘bout 220, 230?”
Dominic made a face like he was confused and insulted.
“I need to speak with Hope Flores.”
“Yeah, of course.” The bald man stuck out his hand, pulling Dominic aside. “I’m Drew Lachey, co-owner but silent partner of The Lucky Star.”