Page 126 of Losers, Part II
It was lucky they were already in the house. They sprinted into the living room, and Manson stumbled through the doorway so quickly that he almost tripped himself on the carpet. They all gathered tightly around me as I answered the call and put it on speaker.
“Hey, baby,” I said. “Tell me you’ve got good news for us.”
“Is everyone there?” she said. Try as I might to discern any emotion in her voice, her true feelings eluded me.
“We’re all here, angel,” Manson said, his fingers tapping rapidly on the couch’s backrest. Jason nervously chewed his lip; Lucas was frowning. Even the dogs could sense the tension: Bo and Jojo were sitting close by, ears and tails perked up. Cherry didn’t have a thought in her head besides Lucas and playtime, so she was rolling around behind Jojo, trying in vain to catch the dog’s tail.
“I got it!” Jess exclaimed. “I got the promotion! I start work in three months!”
Our cheering was so loud, it drowned her out. The dogs were barking, tails wagging. They didn’t understand, but they were happy to be involved.
“We knew you’d get it,” I said. “Congratulations, Jess. It’s well fucking deserved.”
“I’m so proud of you,” Manson said. “You’ve worked so hard for this.”
“We’re all proud,” Jason said. “You’re going to do amazing, Jess.”
“New York City doesn’t know what it’s in for,” Lucas said, reaching down to grab Cherry off the ground before Jojo could step on her.
Jess’s joy was contagious. She sounded breathless with excitement, her smile permeating her every word.
“Thank you so much,” she said. “I wouldn’t have been able to do it without you all. I used that drawing of your house as part of my portfolio. My boss was really impressed with it. She said...” She paused, and I could imagine the smile on her lips. “She said she could tell that a lot of love had gone into that project.”
My chest swelled every time she used that word.
“We’re giving you the full VIP experience at Tris to celebrate,” I said. I’d already discussed it with my boss; even on the off chance that Jess didn’t get the promotion, she still deserved the best night out we could give her. “This Saturday night, full bottle service. How does that sound?”
“I think she might be excited,” Manson said, when Jess’s enthusiastic scream of “yes, yes,yes!” came over the line.
***
Club Tris occupieda tall, narrow building, nestled between a pizza place and a record shop. The brick facade was painted black, and the windows were covered from the inside. The front door was slightly ajar, allowing a small glimpse of the stairway within, illuminated with red bulbs. Over the doorway was a neon sign in the shape of two entwined broken hearts, one pink and one purple.
People were lined up to the end of the block waiting to get in. My energy was high, my mood was fucking fantastic. It had been far too long since I’d come to Tris to have fun, rather than to work. This place was my old stomping ground; it had beenmy spot.
I’d been fresh on the scene the first time I snuck in here. Manson and I had waited in line for what felt like an eternity, clutching fake IDs, nervous as hell that we’d be found out.
Wehadbeen found out, but it took a while. It was enough time for us to mesh ourselves in the good graces of the club’s workers and regular patrons. So instead of kicking us out permanently, we were banished for about six months only until we both turned twenty-one.
Jason and Lucas had never craved the club scene, unlike Manson and I. Jason had warmed up to it, but it had taken time and my insatiable insistence we go out often. Going out in public, especially as a couple, had been difficult for him at first. He’d always been afraid, looking over his shoulder, constantly on the defensive. But as he gained confidence in himself, he came to like the environment far more, which was perfect for me.
I loved showing him off. Had it been up to me, I would have paraded him around the place naked, crowing he was mine.
Now, walking up to Tris with Jason on one arm and Jess on the other, my ego had inflated to the size of Jupiter. It had me smirking like a damn fool to be escorting two such attractive people at the same time.
“Someone is going to think you’re trying to start a fight,” Lucas grumbled, tapping the back of my head as we walked down the crowded street. “Stop fucking smiling at everyone.”
As usual, the sight of a crowd got Lucas’s hackles up. Manson was walking arm in arm with him, grinning while the other man glowered.
“Most people won’t start a fight over a smile,” Manson said. Lucas flinched as a car drove by and backfired, and Manson said gently, “You’re safe. Don’t worry.”
Easier said than done for Lucas. He hadn’t left the house much since the incident at the sideshow. But he took a deep, measured breath. By the time he exhaled, some of the tension eased out of his back. He rolled his shoulders, and said, “Yeah. You’re right.”
Jess disentangled herself from my arm to go take his hand. He wore boots laced up to his knees tonight; the yellow laces were the only pop of color in his otherwise dark ensemble. Manson was in black, save for the silver chain he wore over his black button-up.
Walking beside them, Jess was almost glowing. She was made to be the center of attention: she was wearing silver heels that made her legs look extra long, and a tight black skirt that hugged her hips and ass. Her shirt was draped silver fabric, held around her neck and back with two slim chains. She wasn’t wearing a bra either.
It only took a few minutes of her talking to Lucas before she distracted him. It was a relief to finally hear him laugh as Jess clung to him, drowning him in sweetness and affection. The finesse with which she could influence him was remarkable. There had been a time when I’d believed that only Manson could figure out how to make Lucas calm down; Jess had proven me wrong.