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Chapter 2: Drunk Sincerity
The moon hung like a mirror ball in the night sky, its light bounced off of the water and on the statues in the plaza as Rikku stood there, contemplating where she was going to drown her sorrows. Each place had its own flavor or personality, and she was trying to figure out what hers would be for the evening.
"Hmm…" She pondered, tapping her lip with her right index finger thoughtfully. "Which place, which place…?" Rikku looked to her left at the first club. It was surrounded by young teens, each one trying to look cooler than the other. She rolled her eyes in disgust.
"Ugh, posers. So not going there." She thought, averting her gaze to the next club in front of her. This one had some older types, dressed sharply in tailored suits and evening gowns flashing credit cards and Gil to bribe the bouncers with for entrance. She wrinkled her brow in dismay and stuck out her tongue.
"Tired old people with tired old gil…I don't even make enough to stand outside of that place. Hey…what about this one?" She glanced over to her right, A club that seemed to be pretty happening. The patrons appeared laid back and mostly her age; this could be the place she was looking for. The wind fondled her scarf as she ran over to the club with newly gained enthusiasm, eager to get her evening going.
People stood along side her at the entryway, all waiting to get inside to dance, drink or perhaps both. Rikku walked up to the bouncer and flashed her Spiran ID card: She was finally twenty-one and ready to experience the nightlife legally. He glanced at the card quickly and handed it back to her, nodding his permission for her to enter.
Bass pumped throughout the place, vibrating in her chest as she exercised her power of vision around the vicinity, soaking up the atmosphere like a sponge. The mixture of cigarette smoke, cheap cologne and stale perfume permeated her nose and blanketed the room in a haze. Rikku marched up to the bar and slammed her hand down on it; twenty Gil was left in its wake.
"I'd like Vodka with a splash of orange juice please." She ordered with ease. She'd been practicing on the Celsius with Barkeep and now the fruits of her labor were going to pay off. The Bartender wiped a small glass with a ragged cloth, mentally noting the order. He turned around to the bottles of liquor and back to Rikku.
"What kind of Vodka would you like?" He asked, placing the newly cleaned glass on the bar. She scanned the bottles, curling her lip in thought. There were so many kinds; she remembered the bottle on the Celsius was clear with red writing embossed on it so she looked for that one. Sure enough, Rikku saw it and pointed in its direction.
"I'll take that one," Rikku answered. "The Absolut." The bartender took the bottle from the shelf and stared at it for a second, and then he glanced at her questionably before eyeing the bottle again. Rikku looked back at him, a little irritation showing on her face.
"Is there a problem?" She asked, her elbow on the bar, a hand to her chin, as the other hand tapped impatiently. He opened the bottle and poured a shot worth of the contents into a glass.
"Nope. Just that this is some pretty potent stuff. A hundred proof." He said, mixing the liquid with the orange juice tactfully. "Enjoy!" he uttered as he pocketed the money and headed down the opposite end of the bar to serve other patrons.
Holding the glass with her left hand, the condensation felt cold against her palm as she stirred the drink with the straws in the other. She pursed her lips and sucked up more than half the glass in a second.
"Whoa, that's strong!" Rikku exclaimed, shaking her head and squinting her eyes as she swallowed. She could feel the acid of the orange juice burn down her throat to her stomach, but the feeling was short lived, and she continued to inhale the rest of the glass that instant.
"Another please, and less orange juice this time!" Rikku demanded, placing the empty glass down in front of her and slapping down more Gil. He made the drink and handed it to her. She pounded that one as well, and she began to feel pretty good. With her treasured drink, she spun around in her stool towards the dance floor, gazing at the dancers.
Most of them were scantily clad girls, wearing clothes that were just a smidge too small for their frames. She found it hysterical that they were so serious as they gyrated to the hypnotizing beats like a panel of judges was rating them, when in reality the only ones looking were scraggly looking guys. She hopped off the security of the barstool and found a spot of her own to dance on the floor.
The music pulsed through her veins, causing her body to move on its own. She knew she was the prettiest one there and any attention the other girls were getting at that time was shifted away from them and on to her. Her hips moved side to side in time with the beats and she smiled as she did so. She had no one to impress, she just wanted to have a good time and forget her troubles for a while.
"You can have anything on Spira you need, anything that breathes you can surely still its wings. You can have anything on Spira you see, anything on Spira you need, but me." Rikku belted at the top of her lungs, the lights flashing on her body as she moved, her arms flailing and her head swaying back and forth. Girls danced along side of her hoping some of her enthusiasm and sex appeal would somehow rub off on them, but the guys just pushed them aside like they weren't even standing there to dance with Rikku.
After the song was over Rikku retreated back to her barstool and ordered another drink. A slow song came on and several admirers asked her to dance but she politely said no.
"I really want to finish this!" She said nicely to them, continuing to gulp the contents of the glass hastily. She began to feel dizzy but she pretended not to notice.
"WOO HOO!" she screamed as another fast song came on. This time she flew off the barstool and into the middle of the crowded dance floor, grabbing some guy right out of another girl's arms, leading him out with her. The guy put his hands on her waist and they rocked side to side; her hair was flipping in his face, the beads whacking him repeatedly. He didn't seem to care though, he just kept dancing with her as they laughed and carried on.
Rikku was enjoying her moment when a hand grabbed her shoulder harshly. Turning around to face the source, it turned out to be the dancer's date; her hands were to her bare hips and hate burned in her eyes. Rikku stood there, allowing her "beer muscles" to take over, and she shot the girl an equally piercing glare.
"What do you want?" Rikku snapped, grabbing the girl's arm and removing it from her shoulder as if she were discarding a piece of trash. The girl recoiled her hand sharply and rolled her eyes at Rikku.
"That's my man you grabbed to dance with." She retorted nastily, her eyes squinting angrily. Rikku just stood there laughing in the girl's face before turning around and walking away. The girl didn't appreciate that and grabbed Rikku's shoulder again, pulling her back towards her.
"Don't you touch me you big fat…thing!" Rikku chided, pushing the girl hard into some unsuspecting dancers. She tumbled to the ground; the thud she made was masked by the loud music. She stood up quickly and shot toward Rikku at full speed. The two collapsed to the floor, the girl on top of Rikku, straddling the Al-Bhed, pinning her arms down beside her. That just pissed Rikku off even more so she spat in her face.
"Ewww.." the girl exclaimed, wiping the saliva dripping off her nose in distaste. Rikku grabbed the girl by the neck and tossed her off with ease. There was a crowd of people around them now, cheering them on and chanting: 'fight! Fight! Fight!' as the two continued to take turns pounding each other mercilessly.
Meanwhile, there was a young man sitting with his back to the chaos at the bar, privately nursing a beer. He heard the commotion and promptly spun his stool around to get a glimpse of the action. His jaw dropped at the sight before him and he quickly detached himself from the seat and headed toward the brawling girls.
He separated the two and held them apart with his arms. He stared at Rikku, who was wobbling and trying to focus on the interrupter. She opened her eyes wider and focused her attention on his face with contempt for butting in.
"Hey…" she began, pointing a drunken finger in his face- "You two better just leave right now, because her and me…well, were fighting for no real reason and we don't need you guys interrupting. So scram!" At this point, her dance partner grabbed the girl and dragged her away leaving the young man with Rikku. A bouncer pushed his way through the onlookers until he reached Rikku and grabbed her by the arm.
"You're out of here!" he shouted at her, dragging her through the barricade of people. The young man grabbed her other arm and pulled her towards him out of the bouncer's grasp. The bouncer spun around and looked at the man; angry at the actions he just took.
"What are you doing? She's gotta go!" the bouncer said to the young man curtly. The man glared back at the bouncer, holding a very drunk Rikku up with both his arms now. She plopped her head on his shoulder and closed her eyes.
"I'm taking her out of here, so keep your hands off!" He informed the bouncer, and with that, he made his way to the door, slinging Rikku over his shoulder. She hung over his back with a hand to her head.
"Ohhh…I don't feel so good." She exclaimed, her face turning greener than her eyes. The man just kept walking with hopes that the fresh air would help her to feel better. He made his way to the Luca pier quickly and they boarded the next ferry to Kilika.
---Kilika---
The water splashed sporadically on and off of the docks that bordered Kilika. The air was cold and biting, causing frost to develop on the edges of the planks and boats that were docked there. Crickets were performing their nightly symphony, embellishing the area with their soothing song. He opened the door to his house and turned on his living room light. Rikku put a hand over her eyes and groaned.
"Too bright, can't see." She whined as she plopped on the couch, her feet dangling off the side. The young man walked into his kitchen and grabbed a glass from the cabinet, and some aspirins he had in a bottle on the counter. He poured water in the glass and sauntered over to the passed out article on his velvet couch, propped her up, and handed her the glass and the aspirin.
"You need to take this." He said to her softly. "If you don't, you'll live to regret it in the morning." He ran his hands up and down her back in a calming manner as she downed the aspirin and water. She looked over at him and tried to sharpen her view of him, but she was still too drunk and continued to see double. He looked at her with worry in his eyes.
Clearing his throat, he asked her a question.
"Does Gippal know you were out all night?" He scanned her face for an answer, but she was unresponsive. Finally, she broke the silence and looked to the floor, sighing heavily.
"He dumped me tonight." Rikku replied, clutching the glass with both hands as it rested between her knees. Tears were making their way down her face again. He wiped them off tenderly and embraced her.
"I'm sorry to hear that." He said, continuing to hold her. Rikku sobbed in his shoulder for a brief moment before sitting up and wiping her face with a free hand. She crossed her legs and sat herself upright, out of his grasp.
"That's ok." Was her reply. "I'll get over it. I guess this was the wrong way to go about dealing with it, huh?" her face flushed and her eyes closed as she leaned her head against the arm of the couch.
He scooped her up into his arms and carried her down the hallway. Pictures of Bevelle and the Macalania Woods hung on the walls as he neared the bedroom to the right. Tossing the stray pillows off the side and onto the wooden floor, he pulled the maroon bedspread down and sat Rikku on the bed. Removing her boots, he settled them by the bedside table. Then, grabbing her shoulders gingerly, he laid her down and pulled the covers over top her. As he headed for the door, he switched off the light and exited the room.
Rikku called out to the young man one last time.
"What is it?" He asked, his head now in the doorway.
The light from the hallway transformed him into a shadow to her eyes.
"Baralai, I just wanted to thank you for taking good care of me tonight." And she surrendered her head to the pillow, drifting off to sleep finally.