Chapter 2
It was a cold winter night in Hongkong, and my little band was having their first international tour ever.
Everything was great. The venues were always full whenever we perform, the media responded well, and the fans were awesome. I felt proud of what we have achieved, and glad of my newfound career as a full-time musician, after graduating with a cum-laude in Psychology. Doing a job that is totally different from your educational background, then gaining success with it. Nothing feels any better than that.
And what better way to celebrate other than to party?
A small gig just finished and everyone headed to what the locals refer as the trendiest nightclub in the city, situated in an old, British-style building. Booze and girls were everywhere; Akari was the only one who does not seem interested. I honestly admitted that they (and their lack of decent clothing) are a feast to the eye. And the booze, though I have never been a huge fan of alcohol, this glass of strawberry-flavored beer is indeed pretty interesting. But that's all. I don't do binge-drinking, so once I am done with one glass, I moved on to something more interesting.
I tried to move closer to the DJ booth, 'cause the guy did some pretty interesting composition. Would love to chat with him and perhaps learn some things or two.
It was a struggle – imagine having to swim in an ocean full of shark, and they are drunk and dancing wildly.
I eventually decided to give up as the crowd seemed reluctant to let me move freely. It was almost half an hour and the DJ booth seemed a world away, and a guy just said something offensive to me (Nothing personal, just the tequila in his hand). I became slightly pissed. And frustrated. And exhausted.
I enjoy solitude and as much as I tried to be more sociable, I have my limits. And tonight, I have reached that certain border. And I am not coming back.
So, after a quick goodbyes with everyone, I left the club, and head back to the hotel.
(break)
The elevator door opened with ading, welcoming the distinctive scents of a hotel room. You know, the scents of crisp, white bed sheets, air conditioner, with hints of fresh lilies. I felt a greater longing for my room, and took quicker steps down the corridor towards it.
But my peace was disrupted by a sudden hit of cigarette stink in the air.
Who would be so irresponsible to smoke in a hotel corridor?
I immediately found my answer. It washer.
You see, we did not go on this tour by ourselves. Our record label matched us with this indie band that they just discovered to open our act. The person that I was talking about is the leader of this band. Bass-player and vocalist.
I found her sitting on the floor, leaning to the wall next to a door. Her feet stretched before her, and she had this black Doc Mart boots on. Her clothes was this white floral dress, combined with a denim jacket, and she had a postman bag with a picture of Chairman Mao and a big, red shawl laid nearby. Her short blonde hair was messy, and there were dark circles around her eyes (which I think was intentional). Smokes flew up to the air whenever she puffed the Dunhill on her hand.
She is Tokito. The foul-mouthed obnoxious blonde. Owner of laser eyes that cut deep into your digestive system. Rock chic. Major biatch.
I don't like her.
Apparently nobody does. I found Akari bitching a lot about her; about the attitude, the messy blonde hair, the panda eyes. And I realized that there were this, uh …littletension whenever she and her bandmates sat backstage. So the feeling of distaste was not personal. It was communal. A public enemy.
And what's a public enemy doing, sitting on the floor in a hotel corridor, smoking alone in a cold winter night?
The answer would be fascinating. Imagine Akari's face when I text her that I got something juicy to gossip on.
With a smirk, I moved forward and approached her.
(break)
"It's you," she muttered as I moved closer to her.
"It's me. What are you doing down there?" I asked her coolly as I walked pass her to my bedroom, which happened to be exactly in the opposite of the wall she leaned on.
"Can't you see with your own eyes?"
Yup, that's her.
"Oh. Shortening your … miserable life, I see," I muttered, taking my room keys out. Unfortunately for her, being annoying is also kind of my thing.
Tsk. She made that sound.
I turned my head to her side and saw her lifting her head proudly, waving her cigarette.
"Do you have to do that here?" I asked.
She sighed. Puffing more smokes out. "I have no choice."
I smirked. I turned back to my door, and starting to insert keys to open it. "Ah. Roommates kicked you out, huh?"
"Sorta."
I pulled my keys back.
"Seriously?"
Okay, honestly I was just trying to be sarcastic back then. You know, 'cause she's the public enemy, and it's legal to troll one. But it turned out to be … real?
She lifted up her cigarette-holding hand, and points at the door behind her.
I never really looked at that door before, but judging from the movements of the shadows under it, I could tell that there was someone inside. That someone had the television on, and was pacing up and down. There was also the sound of a bed being sat on, and a soft laughter of a woman.
A strange emotion suddenly washed over me.
"Y-your … bandmate?" I hesitated.
"Yes," Tokito slowly answered, putting the cigarette on her mouth. "With a hooker. Or whatever. I don't know."
She continued to puffs smokes; her green laser eyes closed whenever she sucks deeply. I twisted the keys in my hand. Then I decided to put it back in my pocket.
"Um… what happened, if I may?"
"An accumulation of shits."
I went silent. "Okay … do you want me to call the receptionist?"
I pointed at the direction where I came from when I said this.
"No, thanks."
In an indescribable awkwardness, I came to realize that something had made me rooted to the spot. A strange emotion grew in my chest; it made me feel, as if, I was not supposed to leave her alone like this.
"I went to the city to have a walk right after the gig," she suddenly said.
"Oh?"
"Yeah. You might noticed that we never spend times together. I went for a stroll in the night, they went somewhere else. That's how it always goes."
She was telling a story. Knowing it is going to be long, I lowered myself to sit on the floor.
She tucked a strand of messy hair behind her ear. "Usually. After a few hours, I would return. And they would always open the door for me. We don't talk on the inside. But at least they would let me in, have a shower, then each of us would do our own thing," she continued. "But tonight was different."
"They locked you out?"
"I rang the bell, I screamed, banged the door…," her tone rose as she got into this part. "I even called them, all of them, and I could hear the sound of their ringtones inside. But they didn't pick it up. They pretended to not listen."
"They simply wouldn't let me in."
She sat there, staring at me. Her face in agony, with crystals in her eyes. And her pouty, pink lips looked as if she was trying to say something. But her words were lost.
With that, my defense broke.
(break)
"You must be thinking how miserable I am."
Tokito was lighting her second cigarette. Changes in the room's temperature had forced her to take off her denim jacket, revealing short-sleeved floral dress. The outfit made her look like a good country girl, if it was not for the cigarette.
And wow, I never thought that she had such a fine neckline.
"Errr… no," I answered, trying to fix my sitting position, as a way to shook off my rambling thoughts. "In fact, there's actually a positive side … to your situation now."
She lifted her eyebrows.
"You could actually use this to your advantage, you know," I continued, taking off my Adidas windbreaker and throw it to the floor, revealing grey, comfy, old T-shirt.
"Hm! Yeah. I heard you major in Psychology," Tokito pointed at me with her cigarette.
"So…," she supported her chin with her hand. "Tell me, Shrink. What do you have in mind?"
I laughed, then put my attention on the door of her bandmates' room.
"Okay. Honestly, after all that happened tonight, I don't think you guys could ever get back to normal again," I began. "Or in other words… this might be the end of your band. Sorry."
She sighed. "Yes, thanks for the confirmation. I lost my band, and I'm stuck in the middle of nowhere." She sucked her cigarette deeply.
I waved my hands. "No, no… don't take it that way. I'm not finished yet," I said. "This, actually, could be the start of something new. Two things, in fact. A new career, and a new you."
Tokito lifted her head. I think I have managed to tickle her mind, somehow.
"Yes. Here it goes. Okay, you lost your current band. Which means you're now free to create a new one!" I said, pointing at her. "Or even better … Go solo! So you don't have to compromise with anyone."
Something glinted in her fiery eyes. She fixed her sitting position. "Interesting."
"Yes. And for the second thing … Well, this may not be too pleasant …," I continued, watching her raising her eyebrow.
I took a deep breath. "Well. You see. People hate you. Do you realize that?"
She took a deep breath. Then went back to lean on the wall. "Meh. Like I care about how they see me."
"Well, for once in your life, you should!" I fired back.
Her eyes widened. "Excuse me? My bandmates locked me out and I have to care about their opinion on me?"
"I'm going to say something really unpleasant."
"Take your time."
"I hate victim-blaming. And yes, it's not cool for your own bandmates to do this to you," I explained. "But guess what? What if they decided to go this far, because they can't stand you anymore?"
She tried to say something, but I cut her off.
"You're an asshole who enjoys acting as the victim. That's why you never want to change. But it's started to take a toll on you," I put it out.
"And deep inside, you know it," I added, earning an angry glare from the girl.
After a few awkward minutes of silence, Tokito finally managed to calm herself down.
"I guess you're right, " she muttered, playfully pulling the rim of her skirt.
I sighed, leaning back on the wall. "Look, sorry for being frank. I just thought that … It wouldn't hurt for you to just be a bit nicer. More mindful of others' feelings."
"Yeah … I'm glad you told me that, really," Tokito said, lifting her head to meet my sight.
I honestly did not expect that answer.
"Thank you, Akira," she whispered. The sudden appearance of a sincere smile on her face surprised me even more.
"Okay, now what?"
"Well, I have to find somewhere to sleep," Tokito answered, slowly trying to get up. "I guess I really have to call the receptionist. Or find a cheap hostel nearby."
"How about my room?"
(break)
"Wow, you're such a celebrity, huh?" Tokito commented as she walked into my room. "Each of you have their very own room."
"It's necessary, seeing what I have for bandmates," I replied, closing and locking the door. "One needs peace to function."
"That's for sure," Tokito muttered, checking out her surroundings. She then sat on one of the two beds in the room. "Well, it's pretty neat for a guy's room."
I dropped my jacket to a chair, then sat on the other bed, facing her. "Um… because the guy is me, not Bontenmaru?"
Tokito gave a hearty laugh, the first one of the night. Her eyes turned into two curvy lines, and honestly, I like what I saw.
"Yeah, right. Mr. Good Guy, eh?" she said. And just when she was about to bring her cigarette into her mouth, I managed to get up. And took the thing from her hand.
And put it in my mouth. And sucked deeply.
She looked as if she was going to swallow her own face.
"You smoke!"
I puffed some smokes out of my mouth. "Nope," I answered. "I just happened to know how."
Hm. The taste of tobacco. Last time I had any smokes down my throat was last year. It was my debut, with Hotaru taking credits as the tutor. I was just curious then, and the stick did not give any impression on me.
Tokito's lips looked like it was trying hard to pronounce something as I handed the cancer-stick back to her hand. "Oh my God. That's surprising! I thought you were a goody-goody."
"You can say so. I don't do drugs, rarely drink. And that was the second cigarette I've ever had in my life," I replied, putting my hands on my waist, feeling strangely proud of myself.
"Do you fuck?"
Eh?
I looked down and realized that she had taken off her shoes.
In addition to that, I also noticed that she had begun to trace my leg with hers.
"Am I going to be surprised by your answer?" she asked.
I went silent. Then I bowed down and moved my face closer to hers.
Her green eyes glinted. And there was a smirk on her lips.
I do not enjoy being looked down on.
"There's only one way to tell, eh?"
Her eyes widened as I made the move to kiss her lips. It is just that I did not intend to; I was just toying with her.
I ended up targetting her neck instead. Which I had been trying to resist since moments ago.
"Oh!" she gasped.
She continued on gasping as I traced her skin with my tongue.
I stopped right on the rim of her top.
"Akira ..."
Oh, I like how that sound.
"So. We're doing this?" I asked.
The only answer she gave me was when she pulled myself to her hug, forcing me to aim at her neck again.
I happily complied. I really liked her taste. She reminded me of that strawberry-flavored beer I had earlier today; sweet, but fun. And I am eager for more.
When I took off my T-shirt, something in my head is telling me that I better have a very good explanation for the next morning. Akari will not let me get away without one.
But it can wait.
Tokito needed help getting rid of that dress.
