Ride or Die
Chapter 9: What's Poppin'
She clutched the phone firmly in her hands, the bright screen illuminating her face in the darkness of the nightclub. A strange hollowness settled over her as she read and reread the text message. Initially, the message had sent her stomach into a freefall and panic to swarm her senses.
In the dank, slightly musty environment of the nightclub, Katara felt adrift in a sea of chaos as her friends partied and moved around her. The crush of people moved around her in frenetic chaos in time to the music, shouting and yelling screams of approval.
Unknown
Make sure to wear the blue dress tonight. You look stunning every time you wear it.
The last time she'd word the dress in question had been the night of the New Year's party, so many months prior. The navy blue Alaia dress with its scalloped hemline and coordinating nude-colored pumps had been a holiday gift from her father. In breathless anticipation, Katara had opened the present with bated breath, her dreams of owning a real designer piece had been made real.
The dress had been so much more than a dress. It had been a special gift to signify her move forward into adulthood, had been a special gift to celebrate her successes in life - her acceptance into the university of her dreams, the excellent marks she'd been earning in school, a subtle nod to her mother's style.
Katara had worn the dress to the New Year's party with all the confidence in the universe. She'd taken two whole hours to get ready, had curled her hair, had visited a makeup artist to have her look completed for the night. New Year's Eve was supposed to be the bright beacon of a wonderful new year.
Instead, Katara had found herself throw into a wall, face battered, nails broken as she'd tried to fight off her assailant. By the luck of the fates, nothing truly scarring had occurred to her - by the luck of fate, Aang had found them before Jai could harm her. Beyond a shadow of a doubt Katara was certain that if Aang hadn't intervened, she would have faired a far worse fate than a few broken acrylic nails and a busted lip.
The smell of alcohol made her stomach roll as Toph downed a shot of Hellfire cinnamon whisky. Slamming the shot glass onto the scuffed wooden top of the bar, she turned to face Katara.
"So, where's Aang?" She questioned, wiping the drops of whisky from her chin.
Shrugging her shoulders, Katara looked towards the entrance of the club. "He said he'd meet us here. Something about helping his uncle with a last-minute errand."
At that moment, Katara's mind was on anything but the young woman next to her. Somewhere deep in the club, Sokka and Suki had disappeared, melting into the thongs of dancing people and pulsating club music. Scanning over the heads of the people, Katara made a mental note of the layout of the club. She hadn't been to Lagoon in months and wanted nothing more than to have a quick exit plan laid out in case things went south.
Silently, Katara watched as the bartender poured a clear stream of vodka into her glass, topping it with a frothy mixture of seltzer and cranberry. The bartender slid the glass to Katara and removed the empty one. Taking a sip of the cocktail, Katara's eyes continued to watch the club's exit.
After that night, something in Katara had shifted. Something deep inside of her had broken, and she couldn't name what. She'd easily fallen into a steady stream of partying and long nights at the marina. Endless cheap alcohol had poisoned her mind and had left her weary and lethargic. The months away spent with her cousins in the rural environment of Roundtree Gap had fixed to reset her body, but had failed to reset her mind.
Jai had blamed her for the attack. He'd said she'd seduced him, had been asking for it. Said she'd dressed like such a slut that she was asking for it. Without hesitation, Meng had gone to work spreading rumors about her, that she'd snuck off into the room and waited for Jai. By word of mouth, Katara's reputation had shattered instantly.
Even with a new address and months spent away from Habor City, the cataclysmic events of that night seemed to follow her.
Staring at herself in the mirror behind the bar, her reflection stared back behind bottles of whisky, gin, and vodka. While she seemed to be the same, something was... changed. She looked a little older, maybe a touch more mature. Katara wondered what Aang saw when he looked at her. There was a strange energy that surrounded her as if her mind was never truly rooted in the reality around her.
It was like looking into a funhouse mirror - her reflection stared back at her, clear skin, bright eyes, perfectly lined lips. Inside, Katara felt hollow and empty as her phone vibrated on the top of the bar. For a moment, she hesitated, watching the notifications crawl up the screen. A few unopened snaps, two new text messages, a missed call from Aang. Pulling the phone to her, she unlocked the screen and pushed back from the bar, dialing Aang's number.
Pressing the phone to her ear as she weaved through the crowds, Katara listened to the trill of the dial tone, willing Aang to answer. Once outside in the silence of the street, Katara held her breath as she paced a few steps.
"Katara? Where are you?"
"I'm at Lagoon with Toph and the others. When will you be here?" Her question was a little more urgent than she'd intended.
"I'm on my way now. You sure you want to party tonight?"
His question was legitimate. The previous night Aang had rescued her from the silence and loneliness of her apartment, the fear of the unknown and threatening text messages overtaking her phone. She'd chosen to stay with Aang at his uncle's house, had been happy when Gyatso had welcomed her with a warm mug of chai tea and a platter of gluten-free pastries.
She and Aang had spent the night wrapped in each other's arms, watching old movies on his uncle's sofa. The night had been so warm and cozy she'd forgotten the text messages and the blocked number they'd been sent from.
Crossing her legs, Katara sat on the edge of the curb, waiting for Aang. "Pick me up?" She asked, wanting to leave the club.
She was in no mood to party or celebrate, no matter how much she loved hanging out with her friends and brother once more.
Behind her, the approaching footsteps of people pulled Katara out of her thoughts as she hung up the call. Craning her head, Katara watched as a group approached the entrance of the club. In a group of three, Meng, Rika, and Jai approached just a few feet from Katara.
"Well, looks like the garbage took itself out." Meng snorted, tone harsh as she firmly gripped Jai's hand and pulled him into the club.
Rika didn't spare Katara a glance, choosing to ignore the young woman altogether. Swallowing hard, Katara watched the group enter the club. Jai hesitated, watching Katara out of the corner of his eye.
Katara's blue eyes widened as she watched him, his eyes trained on her in a leering sort of way. Frowning, Katara stood from the curb and turned away from the club's entrance. Just seeing Jai sent her mind into a panic, sent her spiraling into an internal freefall. Any feeling of freedom and escape left her. Clutching the phone firmly in her hands, she moved away from the club, paced down the empty street towards the convenience store a few shops away.
Anything to be away from Jai.
Pulling the fogged glass door of the convenience store open, Katara slipped through. The rush of florescent light blinded her for a moment as her eyes readjusted. Mindlessly, Katara found herself in front of a long row of coolers, eyes scanning over the endless options of energy drinks, sodas, and cheap beers.
Not tonight. She told herself, skipping over the cheap beer. Pulling a bottle of water out of one of the coolers, she headed towards the register. Plunking the bottle of water onto the counter, Katara looked out of the door for any sign of Aang.
In the distance, a pair of headlights grew. From the dark shape of the car and squared-off lights, Katara figured it was Aang driving his uncle's oversized luxury sedan. Offering the clerk a few bills, Katara paid for the water and left the store. Just as she uncapped the water and took a few swallows, the car stopped in front of her.
Without hesitation, she opened the passenger door and slid into the leather seat. "Why are you by yourself?"
Pulling on the seatbelt, Katara looked over to Aang. "I had to leave. I just couldn't be there."
On her lap, the phone buzzed, signaling another incoming message. Swallowing hard, Katara unlocked the phone.
Unknown
No blue dress? I'm disappointed. You'll learn to listen. Eventually.
Letting out a pained sound, Katara pressed a hand to her face as she handed Aang the phone. Until that moment she'd chosen to ignore the messages, silently praying that they might stop and taper off. Instead of stopping, the messages had continued, coming in more number and frequency.
Putting the sedan into park, Aang took hold of the phone, scrolling up the screen as he read and reread the messages. The text message string went on entirely unanswered, a stream of threatening and toxic messages meant to humiliate and scare her.
"Why didn't you show me these?" He questioned, tone low as he darkened the phone.
"I-" She hesitated, voice cracking as she took a sip of the water. "They just started up last night. One every hour, Aang. What am I gonna do?"
In the back of his mind, Aang questioned her words. Why hadn't she come to him sooner? Why hadn't she said something from the time the first message came through? Why on Earth had it taken her so long to tell him? He couldn't stand the thought that she hadn't said something to him sooner.
Even with all the breakthroughs and progress they'd had after her return, she'd still kept these very important messages from him. Why didn't she trust him?
"I want to help you, Katara. But I can't if you don't let me in." Turning in the driver seat, Aang looked over at her, pain twisting his features.
Taking in his words, Katara was silent as she turned them over in his mind. Why hadn't she said something to him sooner? After her return to Harbor City and reunion with her friends, her old anxieties had melted away, yielding to new ones. Instead of the sting of rejection she'd so dreaded, she'd found instant acceptance. Her life was going so well that she'd made up with Aang, and they were a couple once more.
Why hadn't she said something?
"I didn't want to cause more problems... We're just back together, and I didn't want the bubble to burst..."
Burst the bubble? What on Earth was she going on about? "What are you talking about?"
Flashes of the past few weeks materialized in her mind. They'd spent so much time together, they had become inseparable once again. The quiet dinners eaten together, the many times they'd made love. She didn't want their brief respite from reality to end.
"We're so happy Aang... I don't want to mess it up."
Swallowing, Aang dropped her phone into the middle console and looked at her. "You're putting yourself in harm by keeping these messages to yourself. Do you know how dangerous this is?"
Of course, she knew what type of situation she was in. That didn't mean that she was going to act rational, despite all the precautions she'd taken to protect herself since her return. The scariest part of the situation with Jai wasn't the fact that he was simply around, it was the fact that he seemed to follow her where ever she went.
At the coffee shop, at Lagoon with her friends. In the safety and privacy of her apartment, she was never truly alone.
Slipping her feet out of her heels, Katara drew her knees to her chest and buried her face. Mumbling into the fabric of her dress, she spoke. "What am I gonna do, Aang?"
Pulling her hand into his, he answered her. "We're going to the police tomorrow. He's harassing you. This needs to end."