Barely Associated

41

Justin

I sat at the bar with Terry.

After I left the house, I felt like I needed to be far away from anything that reminded me of Amari. Good or Bad.

"Man..." Terry shook his head. "That's what happens when you get too attached. All women are bad. I learned that when my Mom cheated on my Dad only to find he had been on cheating on her. And guess what? They stayed together and was still cheating. It stressed me out so much, I decided no relationships. Ever."

I stared at him blankly as he continued on his drunken rant.

"Unless it's open. That wouldn't be too bad." He said. "You know, unless she left me for someone else like Amari did you. That would suck."

I just wanted to slap him. One good time.

"Justin?" I heard a feminine voice call me.

I turned around and immediately regretted it as I came face to face with Jessica.

"Hey." She smiled sitting beside me. "Did you go see Amari yet? That's all you were talking about Today."

"No offense, but I don't really need therapy right now." I said. "I need a Gin and Tonic if the bartender would be polite enough to mix one for me."

"Coming right up." He nodded at me.

"Cool." I mumbled.

"Right. Let's leave that for the office." Jessica nodded. "What're you doing here?"

"I'm with a friend." I turned to introduce her to Terry, but he was already gone. "He's on the floor, though."

"I'm here with a friend as well." She said pointed to a girl on the dance floor. "Where's Amari?"

I stared at her and she waved her hands.

"I'm sorry. Right." She said. "You don't want to talk about it right now. I get that. It's just weird talking to you outside of my office. I don't know what to talk about."

"Then let's not talk." I mumbled accepting my drink from the bartender.

"Okay." She nodded. "I can do that. Can I get a Shirley Temple? Heavy on the Grenadine, though."

"Grenadine?" I asked glancing over at her.

"Non-alcoholic bar syrup. It tastes amazing." She said. "It's tart and sweet all at the same time."

"Right." I nodded. "Shirley Temple is a weak drink, though. Should've ordered a Bacardi. That'll get you drunk quicker."

"I'm a designated driver." She laughed. "Anyway, Sunset Rum is where you turn if you want the worse hangover of your life! But it's so good."

"I bet." I laughed.

My eyes trailed over her outfit as she spoke with the bartender and thanked him for the drink.

She had worn a skin tight snake print dress with black lace up heels. Her hair was tied in a big ponytail on top of her head. Amari called it a 'puff'.