A Night in the Life Of…

Roxy

One of Those Nights

By Nick Maro

Roxy leaned against the wall of David Gabor's office. He had called a quick, late afternoon meeting to discuss The Misfits new album. She was looking forward to the night's events. She and Jetta were going to have a girl's night out after the past month or so had been a strain on everyone. It was all about cutting loose tonight.

Off in the distance she heard David's voice calling her. "Roxy? Are you listening?" he asked a little impatient while Jetta poked her in the side. Everyone was looking at her and she felt herself start to blush a little. He cleared his throat and asked his question again. "I asked what do you think about Jetta taking up the drums and dropping the sax?"

"Sorry, I was daydreaming before. Adding drums to our sound might be an improvement. We should test to see if we like it before we commit ourselves," Roxy said overcoming her embarrassment.

"I said almost the exact same thing, Rox. Pay attention next time," Clash told her. "But, that doesn't mean it isn't a valid point. So far two people agree to test the sound out." Roxy felt herself begin to blush again. At least the meeting was almost over. From what she could tell, the general idea was for a harder, heavier sound which she completely agreed with.

After getting the opinion of everyone in the room David called the meeting to an end. Roxy told Jetta to wait a moment. "David," Roxy said walking up to his desk, "sorry about the daydreaming, just I've been looking forward to tonight. A stress free night, y'know."

David smiled at her. "Don't worry about it. I zoned out a few times too. Kimber and I are taking the other members of Suzaku and Kyoko out to dinner tonight." He filed a few papers and opened a drawer. He pulled out two envelopes and handed them to Jetta and Roxy. "Here you go. Just thank yous for trusting me. Now I have to go pick up Kimber. Take care you two and don't get into too much trouble."

The two roommates left the office and caught an empty elevator car. "Lookin' forward to tonight, huh? I really don't blame you. This new club I heard about is supposed to be great." Jetta leaned against the wall of the elevator starting to open her envelope.

Roxy opened her envelope, inside was a card and a little cash bonus. "At least we won't have to worry about how we're going to pay for tonight." Putting the money in her pocket and the card back in the envelope, Roxy looked at Jetta. She'd gotten the same thing. "So we're stopping home first?" she asked as the doors opened.

"Yeah, I want to change and put most of this away. Don't need to spend it all at once." Jetta did the same with her cash. "You hit the floor for the skyway, right?"

Roxy looked at the button and saw that the lobby button was lit. "shit," she cursed under her breath. "I'm always doing that. Not used to the skybridge connecting to the parking garage."

"It's okay, luv. I'm still gettin' used to it meself," Jetta said amused. The elevator went down to the lobby and Roxy hit the button for the skywalk level. The doors shut and the elevator made its way back up. When the doors opened again, the two women crossed the skyway to the parking garage. Roxy walked quickly to her car and unlocked it. She navigated her way out of the garage and made her way back to their apartment.

In her room Roxy checked her jeans pocket to see if her driver's license and money were there. Once she was satisfied and she knew she was ready. Last time she went out with Jetta she forgot her license and got pulled over. She was thankful the officer understood. She left her room shutting the door behind her. Knocking on Jetta's bedroom door she waited a few moments. "You ready yet?" she yelled through the door.

The door opened and Jetta stepped out. "Yes, Miss Impatient, and here I thought Pizzazz was bad," she teased her friend. Roxy rolled her eyes waited at the front door as Jetta did her own last minute checks. "Forgettin' somethin', luv?" Jetta said tossing Roxy her car keys.

"At least I have my license this time," Roxy said catching the keys. "Ow. Damn key poked me. Alright, let's go before I forget something else. Don't know why I'm so scatterbrained today."

"Everyone gets like that, luv. Don't worry about it." Jetta locked the apartment door. She grabbed Roxy's arm and dragged her to start walking. "We've all had a lot on our mind lately. That's why we're going out to relax."

Roxy opened the car doors and got in. "You're right. As of right now Roxanne Pelligrini is totally relaxed. Now why didn't you tell me you were thinking of taking up the drums?" she asked pulling into the street.

"Stormer asked me if I could. The new album has no songs with a sax that I know of. Also it's a change of pace for me. I haven't played them in years," Jetta told her adjusting the air conditioning vent.

"When did you play drums? You never mentioned it before."

"I played in middle school. I took up the sax when I got into Oxford. Besides, I couldn't fit me drums in the dorm room." Jetta gave up on the adjustments.

Roxy made a left turn and followed Jetta's directions. She parked in the car lot and put the lot ticket in the front window. After getting out of the car they made their way to the club building. In big neon letters the sign read Camelot. "Ah shit! There's a list!" Roxy cried after seeing a line and a guy standing with a clipboard letting only a few people in at a time. "Let's just see if we can get in."

Jetta and Roxy stood in the line and waited until they finally made it to front of the line a half hour later. People were constantly being turned away. Roxy saw maybe a total of ten people actually get in. The man with the clipboard looked at them then back at the clipboard. "Sorry ladies. Not on the li-. Wait, aren't you two in The Misfits?" he asked curious and they both nodded. "I'm sorry but your new looks threw me off. You aren't on the list but I'm a big fan. What the hell, right?" He undid the velvet rope and let them through. The two women thanked him as they entered the club.

The interior was made to look like an old castle in the English countryside. Roxy paid for both herself and Jetta. After getting their hands stamped the two friends went to the bar and ordered a beer. Roxy watched the group of people dancing and smiled to herself. It was nice to finally be out. "Let's find a place to sit!" she shouted above the music. Jetta nodded and they pushed their way through the crowd looking for a vacant table. They found one that was out of they way and somewhat quiet. Roxy sat down and took a sip of her beer. "This is actually a nice place. We should try and get David to book us here."

"Believe it or not but Raya told me about this place. She and Aja came here a few days after it opened. Gotta admit she has good tastes," Jetta told her while leaning back in her chair.

Roxy took a gulp from her beer and stood up. "I'm going to dance. Need to unwind." She held out her hand for Jetta while swaying her hips. "Join me?"

"Nah, I want to relax here for a bit. Go enjoy yourself. Break a few hearts," Jetta said smiling at her. Roxy shrugged her shoulders and joined the mass of humanity on the dance floor while dancing.

Letting herself cut loose Roxy danced for what seemed like forever. She left the dance floor and went back to her table. Jetta wasn't there but she found a note. Before she could pick up the note a waitress asked if she wanted to order anything. Roxy ordered another beer and sat down to read the note.

Rox, ran into an old friend. See ya at home. I have my key. Later, J

Roxy sighed and stuffed the note into her pocket and finished off her previous beer. The waitress came back with her fresh bottle, Roxy handed her a five dollar bill and told her to keep the change. She opened the beer and let her mind wander while watching the people dance. She was jolted out of her daydreaming when someone tapped her shoulder. She looked up to see a man in his early twenties standing over her. In the back of her mind she thought was somewhat attractive. "Hi, mind if I join you?" he asked politely.

"I was about to get going, but you can have the table if you want. Empty tables are starting to get tough to come by." Roxy finished off her beer.

"Oh well thank you," he said sounding a bit disappointed. "I couldn't help but notice that you have an uncanny resemblance to Roxy of The Misfits. Anyone ever tell you that?"

Roxy let out a short laugh. "That's because I am her."

The young man smiled. "Cool. I'm a fan of yours. If I can't share a table with you could I get your autograph? That is if it's not any bother."

"No, no trouble at all. Do you have a pen?"

He reached into his pocket and pulled out a piece of paper and a pen. "Here you go," he said handing them to her. She signed her name and kissed it, leaving a faint lipstick mark on it. She handed the pen and paper back. "Thank you! I can't wait for your new album."

"You're quite welcome. It's going to be a new sound but that's all I can say. We're still deciding what sound we want," she told him while peeling the label of the beer off the bottle. "But I do have to get going. Have a full day tomorrow. Take care."

"Thanks again. I will. Good luck and I look forward to the album," he said taking her seat.

Roxy walked back to the pay lot and searched for her car in the now crowded lot. She reached into her pocket to get her keys and couldn't find them. Panicking she searched frantically around the car and then looked through the passenger side window. They were still in the ignition. Roxy smacked her forehead and leaned against her car while she thought of what she should do. She chewed on her thumbnail out of an old habit. She immediately felt her back pocket for her phone. "Ah fuck. It would be on the seat, wouldn't it?" She decided to ask the lot staff if they could help her with the door, certain that this had happened before.

Walking up to the little booth Roxy knocked on the window. "Excuse me. I was wondering if you could help me."

The woman in the booth looked up. "Yeah? What kind of help?"

"I locked my keys in my car and my phone is in there too. Do you have a coat hanger or anything?" Roxy asked feeling her cheeks begin to heat with embarrassment.

"You'll have to sign a waiver saying we're not responsible for any damage."

"That's fine," Roxy said sounding a little more cheerful. She signed the waiver as the woman grabbed a long flexible piece of metal and went to Roxy's car. She slid the metal strip between the window and the outer door panel. She moved it back and forth, up and down a few times. The lock finally popped up after a couple of long seconds. "Thanks a lot," Roxy said graciously. She grabbed her keys and followed the attendant back to the booth. She paid the ten dollar fee for popping the lock then went back to her car so she could go home.

Deciding that taking the freeway would be easier, Roxy relaxed a bit. She was almost home when she heard a bang and her car began to go out of control. Regaining control of the vehicle she pulled to the side of the freeway. Getting out of the car, she noticed her front left tire had blown out. In pure frustration she threw her arms up and sighed. She opened the trunk with the lever next to her seat and pulled out the jack and spare tire.

Roxy changed the tire in what seemed to her was a record time. While lowering the jack, she noticed the spare was getting flatter and flatter. "No fuckin' way!" she yelled. She never realized that spare tire was also flat. Frustrated she put her tire and jack back into the trunk. Grabbing her phone from the front seat she turned it on to call a tow truck. The phone remained dark. She tried again and nothing happened. "I forgot to charge my phone. Fuckin' of course I did!" She put her phone in the glove compartment, turned on her hazard lights and shut the passenger door.

Before she started walking away she checked to see if she had her keys. With a feeling of déjà vu she couldn't find them in her pockets. Closing her eyes before she looked into the passenger side window, Roxy took a deep, calming breath and opened her eyes. The keys sat on her driver's side seat almost mocking her. "Oh this whole night can fucking die," she growled as she decided to start walking.

After walking for what seemed like an eternity, Roxy found a convenience store. She picked up a bottle of iced tea and a candy bar. When she reached in her pocket to pay for the food, she realized she didn't have any money. She'd foolishly left it in her phone case with her driver's license. "I'm sorry but I left my money in the car. Sorry," she told the cashier and began to walk out.

On the way out she was grabbed by a man in a ski mask, he pushed her back inside while he held a shotgun to her head. "Anybody moves and the bitch dies!" he yelled. "Now, empty out the safe an' register! Also yer wallets an' purses! Now!"

Roxy tried not to panic as the robber held her tight around the throat. He left enough room that she could breathe. I'm gonna fuckin' die! I'm gonna die and it's gonna be on some stupid tabloid show! She thought to herself. This just goes with the luck I'm having all night. Why me?! Roxy heard the door open again and the grip on her slacked just enough for her to turn her head a fraction. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the shotgun move away from her head a little bit. She decided to take a chance and made her move. As fast she could she grabbed the barrel of the shotgun and pointed it away from her head and anyone else.

"Wadda ya doin', ya stupid bitch?" the masked man yelled at her while he wrestled with her for control of the weapon. Roxy dug the heel of her boot into the top of his foot. The robber yelled and his grip on the shotgun loosened. She was able yank it out of his hands and stood there staring at the shotgun in surprise. As he lunged at her Roxy swung the stock of the shotgun at his head, knocking him out. She looked up and saw the person who came in was his partner. He pointed a pistol at her as she quickly pointed the shotgun at him. He began to tense to fire the gun, Roxy quickly rolled to the left dodging the shot. The bullet struck the Slurpee machine, causing it to ooze the thick liquid.

Roxy rolled down an aisle and she'd noticed that the cashier had ducked behind the counter and the customers that were around her were now in the same aisle as she was. "Stay down," she told them in a whisper. Roxy peeked over the top of the shelf and saw the second robber making his way to the register. Ducking back down she took a deep breath before she pointed the shotgun at the second masked man. "Drop the fuckin' gun, asshole, or I'll blow you in half!" she yelled scared out of her mind. The second robber turned around and pointed the gun at her again. Her finger twitched on the trigger causing it to fire and completely missing the thief. The recoil knocked her on her back saving her from the second bullet the crook had fired. That shot shattered the window to the freezer behind her. He was now standing over her with the gun pointed at her face.

"Stupid bitch!" he growled deeply as he began to pull the hammer of the gun back. She closed her eyes waiting for death. She heard a sharp crack of wood against flesh and the second robber fell next to her. Roxy opened her eyes and saw the cashier was standing there with a baseball bat who helped her to her feet.

"Thanks. Have any rope so we can tie them up?" Roxy tried to think of what to do.

"In the back, cover them, okay?" he told her disappearing in the backroom. One of the other customers picked up the pistol and helped Roxy watch the robbers. The cashier came back out with some bundling twine. "All I could find. It should be good enough until the cops show up." He helped Roxy tie up the second robber and then moved on to the first.

"Well, that broke the monotony of the night," Roxy mumbled to herself as she looked around the store. "Ah shit. Sorry about the damage. Umm, I guess Misfits Music can cover the damages," she told the cashier.

He looked over at her in confusion. "Why would Misfits Music want to cover us for something thieves did?" he asked as the sound of sirens started coming closer.

"Because most of this damage is my fault and I'm Roxy from The Misfits. Just hope it doesn't come out of my pay." She put the shotgun on the counter next to the pistol.

The cashier was about to speak when three squad cars pulled up. Six cops came rushing in with their weapons drawn. "Everybody fre-!" the lead cop stopped in midsentence when he saw the two robbers tied up. "Looks like you handled that part of the job for us." He put his gun away and signaled for the other to do the same. "Now who wants to go first in telling me what happened here?"

Roxy was the last witness to make her statement to the police. The other officers finished viewing the security tapes and verified her story. The store's insurance would handle the damages. She began walking out of the store when the cashier stopped her. "Wait a second, Roxy." He gently grabbed her by her arm. "I just wanted to say thank you and if there's anything in the store you want, take it. It's on me."

She smiled and grabbed a new iced tea and candy bar. "Could I possibly also get some change to make a phone call? My car broke down on the freeway, my phone's battery died and I need to call a tow truck," she told him.

"You got it." He opened the cash register and broke a dollar for her. "Here you go. By the way, I can get a copy of the security tape if you want."

Roxy thought about it for a minute. "Y'know, it's the only way my friends will believe me about tonight. Just send the tape to David Gabor at Misfits Music. Thanks for the change See ya around." She walked out of the store and found a pay phone. She called a tow truck and told them to send the bill to Misfits Music. She also told them to drop the car off in front of her apartment. She hung up and began walking towards her apartment. She had decided to walk home rather than get a taxi. For one, she had no money. Second, her keys and phone were locked in her car. She needed to call David to drop off her apartment key. Third, she needed the walk after all the excitement.

She walked slowly and let her mind drift while she ate the candy bar and sipped the iced tea. She was almost home when she came across another pay phone. Roxy decided to call David with the extra change she still had from earlier. She tried to remember the number to his his cell phone. She knew was that he and Kimber were going out and she hoped he'd answer. The phone picked up and David answered in a very groggy voice. "h'llo?"

"David, its Roxy, I'm sorry for waking you but do you have the spare apartment key I gave you?"

After a few seconds David answered her again. "Yeah I have it. It's safe. See you tomorrow," he said beginning to hang up.

"No! David! Wait!" she yelled but was too late. All she heard was a dial tone. "Goddammit!" she screamed slamming the phone down. She tried to call the phone collect and it went directly to his voice mail. "Shit! He turned it off. Maybe Jetta is home." She began walking home once again.

She was walking near the curb when a car came flying by and splashed water on her from a puddle. It had rained the night before and the puddles still hadn't dried up. "fuck!" she swore under breath and she looked up at the sky. "Its shit on Roxy night, isn't it? I hope you're all getting a good laugh at my expense! I hope I'm a good jester for you all! In case you don't get the message fuck you!" she said to the sky giving the middle finger with both hands. Roxy began walking again and as if on cue she heard thunder. Rain came down in a heavy downpour but she kept walking with each step getting angrier with how the night turned out. Tonight she was supposed to relax but it only added to her stress. The thought of a hot bath kept her temper fully at bay.

When she reached her apartment building the rain had begun to stop. "Figures," she mumbled to no one. She found a puppy in her building's doorway trying to stay out of the rain. It was a little mutt with short tan fur and a long tail, which it wagged like a club. Awww, poor little fella, she thought to herself, I'll give him the rest of the candy bar. "Here you go, little guy," she said sweetly to the puppy. It took the bar and ran off to eat it. Roxy tried her buzzer but no one answered. Finally defeated by the night she sat down on the steps and waited for her best friend to get home.

While sitting and feeling sorry for herself Roxy heard a group of dogs growling and barking. Knowing my luck its wild wolves escaped from the zoo. They found out I give candy bars to stray dogs, she thought to herself very cynically, it was then she heard a smaller, higher pitched bark. It was the puppy. "Ooooh, I'm gonna regret this!" she said under her breath.

Following the sound of the barking, Roxy found three dogs had cornered the puppy in an alleyway. They wanted the food in its mouth. She picked up a stick and started growling at the bigger dogs. "Get away from him! Away! Scat!" she snarled while swinging the stick. "Go on! Fuck off, you mongrels!" The stick grazed the biggest dog's nose causing it to run off. The two others followed what seemed to be the alpha male. She let out a weary sigh and looked down at the puppy that was wagging its tail like crazy. "Good boy," she said rubbing the top of his head. "Stay out of trouble, okay?"

She began walking away and he followed her as fast its little legs could run. Roxy turned to him. "Get lost, okay?" She started to walk away but again he followed. "No, bad puppy; stay here. I don't even like animals." This time she ran from him and made it to the apartment steps. She sat down on them and waited for Jetta again. When she looked up the puppy was across the street wagging its tail happily. She looked away and tried to ignore him. He had started to cross the street when she heard a car barrel down the road straight at him.

Without thinking Roxy ran towards the puppy and scooped him up seconds before he was hit by the vehicle. The car honked at her and she flipped him off. The puppy licked her face. Roxy's heart melted and sighed, "Okay. You win. You can stay." She crossed the street and sat back down on the steps. The puppy licked her face making her giggle. "You're going to need a name," she said holding him up and looking at his innocent face. "With the way my night went tonight how about Karma? Yeah, Karma is good."

Roxy put the puppy in her lap and he started falling asleep. Roxy looked up and saw her car was there. She'd been so distracted by the bad luck of her night that she didn't even notice it when she got home.

Cradling the puppy in her arms, she stood up and checked her driver's side door. It was unlocked. She cursed under her breath again while grabbing her keys and phone. She locked her car and went into her apartment and put the sleeping puppy in her room. She went into the bathroom and started a hot bath. She was in the tub for about an hour when she heard Jetta come home. She climbed out of the tub and put on her robe. "You won't believe the night I had!" she said to her best friend.

"Wait till you hear about mine, luv," Jetta said with a happy smile. Before she could continue Roxy disappeared into her room. "Where are you goin', Yank?"

"Want you to meet our new roommate." Roxy let the puppy out of her room and he ran right to Jetta wagging his tail. "His name is Karma."

Jetta bent down and petted him. "Awww, he's cute. But we can't keep him. The landlord won't allow animals. I'm sorry," she said with a touch of sadness in her voice, knowing she was going to disappoint Roxy.

"Maybe we'll have to get a house then or give him to Stormer or Pizzazz." Roxy had picked the puppy back up and he licked her face happily again.

Jetta thought about it as she leaned on her bedroom doorframe. "Stormer would be your best bet. She loves animals."

Scratching the puppy under his chin she thought about what Jetta suggested. "Good idea. Well, he can stay the night in my room. Night, I'll tell you about what happened in the morning," Roxy said giving her friend a big hug.

"Same here. Night, Roxy," Jetta hugged her friend in return. The puppy yipped it's good night and the two women giggled.

CONTINUED IN

A NIGHT IN THE LIFE OF… JETTA

A NIGHT IN THE LIFE OF… DAVID & KIMBER

A NIGHT IN THE LIFE OF… PIZZAZZ & STORMER

A NIGHT IN THE LIFE OF… TECHRAT & CLASH

ALL STORIES CAN BE READ IN ANY ORDER!