The Ice Prince

Chapter 5

So the week went well. Because Leia seemed to be getting from Justin what she'd wanted from me. He wasn't supposed to be dating her, being a teacher and all, but that was none of my business. She seemed happy enough with him, and so she behaved normally (as normally as she can) with me. We actually had good discussions about what we'd be saying at the presentation, and she really was using those elite individuals called brain-cells.

I hung out with Justin, Leia and a bunch of his friends who'd been his classmates. He was barely old enough to teach, and made for a good friend. His classmates happened to be a couple of guys, and one of them had a girlfriend, who hung out with us too. They'd call me 'Ash' and I was fine with it. Only Leia kept calling me 'Ice Prince', but frankly, I'd almost gotten used to that.

I didn't spend a lot of time with them, as I worked every evening at Jerry's, mixing drinks for the customers. I'd worked here for a while, and although when I'd started out I'd been underage, the crowds had taken to me well, and I earned enough to put someone through a heart surgery. I saved up every bit of it, because I would need the money soon.

On Wednesday night, I called over Justin, Leia and the others. The manager, Mr. Wood, had given me the day off, and he'd told me I could get my friends along if I wanted. Wednesdays were the laziest, so he could afford to have me off the bar for the day. I'd worked without a holiday for the entire time I'd been employed by him, and he insisted that I take the night off. I agreed, and got my new friends over.

"You work here?" Justin gasped. I nodded, with a smile. There was a great mix playing inside Jerry's, and it could scarcely be heard outside through the sound-proofed walls. Wednesdays were the least crowded, although Jerry's never went empty except between 11 to 12 in broad daylight, when the place was given a thorough cleaning. I got on part time in the evenings easily, because Jerry's would be flooded after six.

Marc, the single guy, winked at me. I couldn't see why exactly he wasn't in a relationship. Dark haired and with those piercing eyes he was probably too perfect for everyone. Or maybe he had his own reasons, like I did. "I can understand why Leia calls him 'The Ice Prince'. With all these hot girls around every day waiting for him to get them drunk, he still hasn't melted."

"No wonder you're single, Marc!" Leia punched him on his shoulder, playfully. I grinned. I liked Leia that way. She was fun to be around when she wasn't trying to be my girl for once. Justin grinned too. His best friend, Jake, was too busy making out with Cay, his girlfriend. Noticing my gaze, Justin informed me that Jake and Cay had been an item for as long as he'd known Jake.

I'd seen them in Jerry's before, and I knew Justin was right. Only, till then, I hadn't known them that well. And they, being customers, hadn't exactly spared me a glance. That was typically like rich people. They'd have a chauffeur for all their lives, and still not recognise him if they met him out of his uniform walking down the street the same evening. But Cay and Jake were sweet about it. They were obviously moneyed enough not to befriend a lowly barman, but they didn't seem to care. Even now that they knew this was where I worked, they kept being friends, and we had a great night.

We spoke about where we lived and what we did in our spare time. I honestly fessed up to having no spare time whatsoever. I didn't tell them the reason, but I told them that I had to work at Jerry's and complete my homework too, where Leia pulled a face and said 'nerd' under her breath, but I laughed it off.

Marc, Jake and Cay looked accusingly at Justin, and Cay said "Naw, Justin? Don't I remember you saying you'd assault the English teacher if he gave us any more homework?" Justin stuck out his tongue at her, and we cracked up. It's pretty tough to stop laughing when you're with friends who're laughing too. And it is funnier when you see your English teacher stick out his tongue.

Jerry's was an amazing place to have fun with friends or alone. I thought I was seeing it for the first time. I'd worked here for the past two years, and yet it felt like I'd never noticed the electrifying sensations it had to offer.

The smell of alcohol was completely masked by the light fragrance of some aquatic aroma. The music was dance-y and fun, neither deafening nor too soft. The atmosphere was not heavy, like a bar where people drank to forget their sorrows. Instead, the ancient woody tables and modern chrome fittings in the blue, blue, light suggested that this was a place where people came to enjoy life, to reap the fruits of their hard-earned money.

There were rock sculptures and fountains, and green vines in the setting too. It looked like a wild combination of the manmade reclaimed by nature. The exposed bricks in the back wall added to the charm of the place, and it was sound-proof too, so it felt as if we were in our own bubble. I could see why there might be underage drinkers here, coming with fake ID's. Because inside Jerry's, there was a safe feeling, as if it were a complete world in itself, where the only rule was to 'enjoy and let enjoy'.

After a while, all of them got tipsy, and although I wasn't supposed to be working at the bar that night, I mixed their drinks myself. Then Leia came up with a crazy idea of truth or dare. Really, we were sitting in Jerry's, the best hangout of the town, and she thinks up truth or dare? Everyone was game, and I didn't want to spoil it for them.

Technically, I was the host. So I brought out a glass bottle which they could spin on the table. Frankly, there were enough empty bottles to choose from. "Let's not make it too wild now." Justin warned. He could see that I'd get in trouble if things got out of hand. I shot him a grateful glance, and we were good to go.

We were up to our necks in the game, when it was my turn. It was Cay's turn to ask me 'truth or dare', and I heard her speech slur slightly when she did. "Truth" I replied, because I could see that she'd think up a crazy dare in her state, and I frankly needed my job.

"Truth?" she laughed in derision "Truth's for wusses!" I could hear the garble clearly, as she continued her offer "Take Daaaaare" she giggled.

"Cay," Jake cooed "I think you're drunk. Please be nice." He tried to reason with her.

She shrugged his arms off her shoulders and stood up. She came to me, and pulled me up by the collar, making me stand. She came uncomfortably close, and I was trapped between her and the table. "Cay, should I get you some water?" I tried.

She was determined. She held my wrists in her vice-like grip, vapours of alcohol spewing as she said "You're not drinking? Scaaaaaaared?" I tried to avoid her question.

"Cay, I work here. I don't drink." The truth is, I don't drink. Period. But she was drunk, and now was not the time to get into all that. I tried to disengage myself from her grip, but she didn't budge. Jake tried to pry her off me, but she hissed at him. He was shocked. I could see it in the way his arms dropped to his side, and his face turned white.

That was nothing compared to my reaction to her next four words.

"I love you, Ash."