Chapter Eighteen
"We're going out tonight. Wear something nice and be ready in ten minutes," Axel says as he walks into my room without knocking. I'm laying on my bed with a book in my hands and don't look up from it.
"Where are we going?" I deadpan. Axel looks at his reflection in the mirror on my wall.
"Club I hang out at occasionally. They're having a pretty big New Year's party," he grumbles while slinging a thin tie around his neck and fumbles to tie it. I glance over at him and watch him struggle and swear under his breath. Finally I sigh and get up, tossing my book on my bed. I walk over to him.
"Here," I mutter, grabbing either side of the fabric. Deftly, I tie, tighten, and straighten it out. "How do you own a business and not know how to tie a tie?"
"I usually ask Renton to do it," he says with a grin. I roll my eyes and give him the once over. He's wearing black slacks, a white dress shirt, a jacket that fits him nicely, and a thin black tie. I glace down and see he's wearing a shiny pair of dress shoes. I wince slightly as a memory crosses my mind, but push it away. "How do you know how to tie ties?" he asks, pulling me from my thoughts.
"Always had to tie my brother's," I explain. "Do I really have to go with you?" I complain.
"Don't you want to? It'll be fun," he says, looking at me quizzically. I look down at my gray sweatpants, paint splattered shirt, and stocking feet.
"I'm sure it will be, but that means I have to get dressed," I say. I know I sound whiny, but I just feel like being lazy. He grins.
"Oh, come on. Don't make me go by myself," he says just as whiny. "Don't make me make it an order. Just come willingly." I roll my eyes.
"Alright, but you have to give me twenty minutes if you want me to actually look good," I say. Axel grins.
"Deal. Meet you downstairs when you're done." I sigh and wave my hand to express understanding, and he leaves. I blow a strand of hair out of my face and throw open my closet. I pull out a black cocktail dress, throw it over my shoulder, and leave the room to go to the bathroom. In there, I swipe on some black eyeliner and mascara and a soft pink shade of lipstick. I use a curling iron to create big, loose curls and run my fingers through them to break them up into soft curly waves. I strip down and shimmy into the dress. It's strapless and fitted down to mid-thigh. It's ruched through the body and gives off the illusion of me being curvier than I really am. I slip on a pair of dangly silver ear rings, nod at my reflection, and get up to go pick out a pair of shoes. I get stuck between a pair of glittery silver heels and a pair of strappy red ones.
"Axel!" I shout loudly.
"What?" I hear him shout back from somewhere downstairs.
"Come here please!" I hear his feet on the stairs, and he's in my doorway moments later.
"Using the intercom would've been too difficult?" he asks with a sarcastic grin.
"Well you shouted back," I mumble. He chuckles slightly.
"What do you need?" he asks.
"I can't decide between these," I say, holding up each pair of shoes in my hands. He raises his eyebrows.
"And you want me to decide?" I roll my eyes.
"Obviously," I drawl. He laughs again.
"Jeez. Easy with the attitude. I like the red ones," he replies.
"Figures," I murmur, but I drop the silver ones to put on his pick.
"Well, they'll go better with this," he says. I look up and there's a black fabric choker with a rather large red flower adorning it. I wrinkle my nose. At my look of distaste, he continues. "It's required by the club. Every member is assigned a color and symbol. It's to keep track of which servant belongs to which member." I sneer slightly.
"Does it have to be the entire thing, or just the flower?" I ask.
"Just the flower. Why?" he asks with a furrow of his eyebrows.
"Be right back," I say quietly before walking past him. I come back and sit down with a pair of scissors, a paper clip, and a plain hair clip. "Give me the stupid thing, please." I say while holding out my hand. He crosses over to where I'm sitting on my bed and drops it into my open palm. I quickly snip the flower off the fabric and bend the paper clip to fasten it to the hair clip discreetly. I walk over to the mirror and fasten it into my hair before turning and facing Axel. "Acceptable?" I watch as his eyes go from the clip to my face and down my body. He grins.
"Very," he says softly. I roll my eyes at his leering. Ever since Christmas, I've just sort of let whatever happens happen, and that includes creepy leering.
"Alright, let's go and get this over with," I say with an exasperated sigh.
"You sound so excited."
"Don't I, though?"
At the club, Axel puts his hand on my lower back and guides me to a table. Zexion and another man are already sitting there, both accompanied by a woman. Axel holds out a chair for me and I sit.
"Hey, guys, how's it going?" Axel asks as he sits down next to me.
"Well enough," Zexion replies with a nod to Axel and a small smile to me.
"Awesome!" chimes the other man, and I jump at his voice. I look over; he has black hair streaked with silver, an eye patch covering one eye, and scars down his face. I can't help staring, and he notices. He grins and runs a thumb down a particularly long scar. "Like that, sweetheart? Got into a brawl with a drunk guy back in my younger years. You think this is bad, you should've seen him," he tells me before turning to address Axel. "Axel, dude, who's this pretty little lady?"
"Iris, meet Xigbar. Xigbar, meet Iris," Axel says with a small sigh. Xigbar smiles widely.
"Good to meet you, darling." I nod.
"Y-You, too." Xigbar leans back and slings an arm around the shoulders of the brunette next to him. She has her eyes on the table and doesn't move when Xigbar touches her. He doesn't introduce her, but she doesn't seem bothered. I glance over and see Zexion also has an arm around the raven-haired girl next to him, but makes no move to introduce her either. They're slaves, I realize, and frown slightly. I don't see any bruises on either of them, but neither seems completely comfortable with their owners. Neither of them speaks or pulls their eyes from the table. It bothers me.
"You want something to drink?" Axel asks me, pulling me from my thoughts.
"What?" I sputter out. I look over and see a waitress standing there. My brain registers what he just asked me. "Uh, yeah, sure, could I get a Midori sour?" I ask the waitress. She scowls at me slightly, but nods before walking off.
"You know your liquor?" Axel asks, looking at me with an expression of surprise. I grin at him.
"Yeah, why? Do you need help ordering?" I tease. He smiles back and elbows me softly.
"Let's just see how well you hold it," he replies before resting an arm along the back of my chair casually, not quite around me, giving me my space. I smile.
A few drinks later, I'm feeling happily buzzed. Considering the look on Axel's face, I'd say he is too. The music in the club is loud, and I can feel the bass thumping deep in my body. I sway slightly to it and grin as I finish up another drink. I stand up and grab onto Axel's hand.
"Dance with me," I say, trying to pull him up. He grins sloppily and shakes his head.
"I can't dance," he says. I blow him a raspberry.
"I don't believe that for a second. All sexy people can dance," I slur. His grin gets bigger.
"You think I'm sexy?" he teases. Xigbar rolls his eyes.
"Just get up and dance with her before I do, dumbass," he says. Axel glares half-heartedly at him before standing up. I squeal and drag him onto the dance floor. I press my back to his front and place his hands on my hips as I sway and shimmy with the music. After just a minute of hesitation, Axel moves with me. I grin drunkenly, enjoying the feeling of his body against mine.
After a few songs, I feel significantly danced out and we head back to the table. I giggle as I plop down into my chair and wave at the waitress for another drink. I pull my shoes off and toss them under the table. I put my feet into Axel's lap and take a deep breath.
"What time is it? Is it the new year yet?" I ask bubbily. Zexion smiles slightly and glances at his watch.
"Not quite. Ten minutes to go," he replies. The waitress comes back over and drops my drink in front of me rather forcefully.
"Me-ow," I say. "Someone's catty." She glares at me and stalks off. Axel chuckles and twirls a piece of my hair around his finger.
"Now, Iris, don't provoke the waitresses," he says airily. I stick my tongue out at him before taking a long drink from my glass. I stand up.
"I'm going to go use the ladies room," I announce with another grin before walking off.
After doing my business and washing my hands, I step out of the restroom. I'm heading back to the table when I hear something that makes me stop.
"You belong to me, you little bitch," a voice snarls. I look over and see a tall, well-built man with long pink hair bending over a small young woman in a white cocktail dress. Her blonde hair flows over her shoulders and her eyes are downcast. I can see her face is red, and I have the impression she's crying. I glance back towards the table and see Axel staring at me. "Are you listening to me? I swear, if I ever see you dancing with someone else like some common whore, I will beat you to within an inch of your life!" the man screams in the blonde's face. Breaking my gaze from Axel, I start making my way towards the pair. I can hear her voice once I get closer.
"I'm sorry, sir. It won't happen again, sir," she says. Her voice is quivering, and now I know she's definitely crying. I can see her body shaking with fear, and I'm suddenly angrier than I've ever been.
"Damn right it won't, and let me remind you why," he says, raising a hand to strike her. Maybe the alcohol makes me do it, I don't know, but I throw myself between them and stop his advancing blow by grabbing onto his arm. He blinks in confusion for a moment before glaring down at me. I stare at him with just as much venom before pushing his arm back at him.
"I suggest you calm down and leave her alone," I say quietly, but I know he hears me.
"And I suggest you mind your own fucking business and scurry back to your own master," he hisses back. A drop of spittle lands on my face. I wipe it away pointedly and stand my ground.
"I'll walk away when I see fit. I'm not going to step down when you're about to lay hands on a girl half your size. What type of sick man does that?" I say levelly. The man leans down slightly to get closer to my face. I don't move.
"I can do whatever I damn well please to that girl. She is my property. I don't know what type of liberal guy bought you, but he needs to beat some respect into you," he says violently.
"Oh, I have plenty of respect in my, but none for pieces of shit like you," I reply matter-of-factly, but with acid dripping from my words. Hatred fills his eyes, and before I know what's happening, he's hit me hard across the face. Pain explodes in my cheek bone and radiates down my face and up into my eye and forehead. The blow is hard enough to throw me to the floor. I quickly get onto my knees and deliver a hard punch to the man's groin. He doubles over, swearing, and I get to my feet and throw a punch to his face. He staggers backward before looking up and locking eyes with me. He lunges forward and wraps his hands around my throat. He slams me into a wall and stars explode in front of my face. He tightens his grip and I feel the air leave my body.
Right before I feel like I'm about to pass out, the air rushes back into my lungs. I collapse onto the floor and cough repeatedly, trying to regain proper breathing. I look up in time to see Axel punch the guy in the face while Xigbar holds him.
"Axel, dude, get her home. I'll take care of this guy," Xigbar says, dragging the guy away.
"You need to put that bitch of yours on a leash!" the man yells, snarling. Axel ignores him and kneels down in front of me. He searches my eyes to make sure I'm okay before grabbing my wrists and pulling me to my feet. He wraps an arm around my waist and gets me out of the club as quickly as he can.
As he bustles me into the car, I hear a chorus of "happy New Year!" behind me.