Goodbye My Lover

The Dance

Darlene

I managed to get back home without being sick in the Uber. The driver was nice though. He kept asking me if was going to be ok. I reassured him that I must have just had something that did not agree with me.

Once I got inside, I went straight to the bathroom and emptied the contents of whatever drink I was served. Penny and Colt are not going to let me live this down. Once the heaving subsided, I went to the kitchen and drank some cool water.

After drinking it halfway down, I reached for my phone to see if they responded to my text. Neither one of them responded. I shook my head and hoped they were having a good time. I took my glass to my bedroom I striped out of the black dress and put it in the corner of my burro. I grabbed a large t-shirt out of my dresser put it on and flopped down on my bed.

My mind went straight to him. How it felt when he held me close to dance and how he smelled. It seemed to be lingering. Then he left as quickly as he appeared. It was for the best. I was never going back there again, and the mask party did seem more than I could handle.

I managed to fall asleep, and my mind would not rest. The image of a room with a slither of a view in a wall. There was a sweet smell in the air. Looking around the room it was barely furnished. I see a cushioned leather seat with an unfamiliar flower on top of it.

I went to pick it up and a voice whispered in my ear. Do not take it if you are not ready. Then a chilled breath went across my neck, and I startled awake.

"What was in that drink?"

Noel

(Earlier that night)

The masked party was exactly what I remembered. Lighties received an invitation to the Club and they get dazzled by the decor. The Club was in the abandoned district and is being kept afloat by anonymous donors.

These donors are a combination of the Dark Nighter and the Lighties. I knew who most of them were. At least the original heads were but there are new one's in the mix now.

I arrived through and entrance that only the chosen were privy to. The party was in full swing. I walked through the grinding bodies with masked faces to search for Eliza and Peter.

During this process I was continuously pawed at. If I was younger, I would have taken a few into consideration. But I am no longer that young and my tastes have refined a bit.

"Are you going to be below tonight?" A woman wearing a red masked bedazzled with fake ruby crystals. Her eye told me she has been below to often and is addicted to it. I do not like the taste of the addicted. The blood turns a flavor close to death.

"No." I told her and pried her hands off me as I continue my search.

Looking towards the front of the club I see a woman wearing a simple cocktail dress and matching mask. Not one flash to her attire but she draws me to her. I see that she had down the cocktail that is given to relax the nerves to the new attendees.

The mixture will calm anyone nerves. There is a rare few who do not tolerate it and it is due to the main ingredient. A flower that is genetically created and fabricated in one of our hidden enterprises. The original flower is still grown outside the city and is protected.

She looks a bit off. Very unsteady on her feet. She managed to go into the center of the dance floor and gyrate her body to the music. The music was about to end when I made it to her. Her mask was about to fall and reveal her face.

"Please let me help you with your mask. It is about to fall off." I whispered in her ear, when I pulled the voluminous strands aside. She smelled like fresh clean air after a rain fall.

I tied the mask back into place and she turned to look at me. I knew who she was. The scent and the eyes. She was in my shop. She does not recognize me. That is for the best.

"Would you dance with me." I whispered close to her lips.

She gave the barest nod of consent and the music changed to a slower rhythm. I pulled her close and we moved to the seductive music. She was not stiff and uncoordinated. She moved to the music as if it was meant for her. Her breast moved against me as she slowly swayed her body.

I tried to not be aroused but it was becoming hard with every movement she made. Then I heard the "herders" coming close. I did not want them to see me with her. They would force her to go below.

"I have to go if they ask you if you edge, say no."

She looked confused but I could not explain, and I left. I made it far enough away to hear when they asked her the question and she said no. I smiled and continued my search for Eliza and Peter.

This is too much like the old days and I want to know why.