Ace of Hearts

Alcohol. It was the substance that was usually blamed for many things. It took the wrap for crimes it wasn't even aware of. So many business men around Las Vegas were currently at strip clubs, or curled up in hotel beds, arms around cheap mistakes, all of which would be blamed on the amount of alcohol they had consumed. Wives and girlfriends across the country would roll their eyes and instantly forgive their other halves, knowing what alcohol did once it was inside the body. It was like a disease, infecting every inch of a person's anatomy, helping them forget what was happening, screwing with their once orderly thought process, making them stumble and sway unsteadily, and forcing their speech to become slurred or transform from full sentences to simple mumbles.

Alcohol was the reason Madison Burton had slipped out of the party. She could feel her head spinning with each unsteady step she took, and her speech was coming out all wrong, her mouth running away with itself. She was saying anything that popped into her head, no matter how stupid the thought was. The only thing that gave her some form of comfort was that her new found companion was in the exact same state.

Slade's hand was wrapped around her own as he attempted to guide her through the hotel. They were trying to find a quiet spot, away from the stuffy atmosphere of the party. Madison wanted to escape, and she knew that the boy guiding her through the vast corridors of the Plaza Hotel was going to help her achieve just that, for in Slade's other hand was a plastic carrier bag, filled with bottles of cheap wine, and bars of sweet chocolate. It was exactly what Madison needed.

"Oh, oh, the pool!" Madison said, her voice coming out much louder than she had liked. She pointed at the elegant looking sign that pointed towards the indoor pool.

Slade smiled at her and nodded, gripping her hand tighter as he pulled her down the corridor towards the pool. He pushed the glass door open and the pair of them were instantly hit by the heat of the room and the sickening stench of chlorine. Madison gagged slightly, quickly regaining her composure, that was the last thing she needed tonight, to go out with a bang and puke all over Slade's rented suit.

"You okay?" He asked, stepping through the open door.

She nodded, following him, closing the door behind her. The room was dimly lit, the main light source coming from the tiny lights in the bottom of the pool. The water glistened, rippling in gentle waves. Slade let go of her hand, kicking off his shoes, and pulling his worn socks off. He walked towards the edge of the deep end of the pool, placing the plastic bag down beside him, and rolling his trousers up to his knees as he dipped his bare legs into the chemical filled water.

"Slade," Madison whined, she looked at the water, unsure of it all. She knew that the pool was going through the process of being cleaned, she knew the water was intoxicated with what could be harmful chemicals. She didn't really want to break out in some foreign looking rash.

"It's fine," he announced, shrugging his jacket off and tossing it to the side, he loosened his tie and rolled the sleeves of his shirt up to his elbows. He let his fingers trace the surface of the water.

Madison walked over to him, her heels clicking against the tiled floor as she did so. She sat down beside him, tucking her legs underneath her, as she reached into the plastic bag and pulled out a bar of chocolate. She unwrapped it slowly, before breaking a piece off and popping it into her mouth.

"I'm so glad we're out of there," she mumbled, her mouth full of melting chocolate.

Slade nodded in agreement, looking across at the other end of the empty room. "How do you cope with that every year? It's full of old people, it's so stuffy. You know when we were asked to play at a party, I expected it to be a little more upbeat."

"It usually is more upbeat. There's usually more people our age there. This year's just been different. I don't know, in a way it seems less formal, I mean we are in Sin City after all, and everyone was dressed in the colours of the rainbow, but then again, everyone was so old and business person like and it was just boring. None of them want to get drunk and dance around, swing from a few chandelliers and crazy things like that. They just want to, mingle."

"Well I wish I'd attended last year."

She chuckled. "Yeah, me too."

He tore his eyes away from the opposite wall, looking at Madison curiously. "So, why are you here this year?"

She shrugged. "To escape. Rosalie is my best friend's mom, so I got an instant invitation, no questions asked. We only decided I'd be coming yesterday morning. Everything seems to have happened so fast, my feet have barely touched the ground."

Slade raised an eyebrow curiously. "That's just sparked up so many questions in my head."

Madison reached into the bag and pulled out a bottle of cheap white wine. She unscrewed the lid and took a small sip, letting the liquid burn her throat and sting her tastebuds. She wrinkled her nose at the sour taste. "Ask one of those questions, you might get an answer."

"Why did you decide to come? What was the reason for just waking up one morning and thinking that you should come to Vegas with your best friend?"

"Because if I didn't I'd be off doing the same thing I do every night."

"Which is?"

"Watching my dad's drag act. He does a similar act every single night, sometimes it's just him on his own, sometimes it's with the others. The only thing is, those others can still pull it off. Dad's just lost it. He lost it when my mom left us, and he's been the same ever since. I mean, an alcohol fueled crowd adore him, but to me, it's just old. It's the same jokes, the same costumes, the same songs, the same old stories. I've been so loyal all this time, and now I just can't do it anymore. So when I was a drunken mess, Blair picked me up and suggested we come here, just for a change of scenery, a chance to forget reality, if only for a little while."

"And did it work?"

She nodded. "Yeah it did."

Slade smiled, taking the bottle from Madison's grasp and taking a long gulp of the toxic liquid. He shook his head as the aftertaste hit him, he shuddered slightly. "No wonder it's cheap."

Madison took the bottle back from him. "Can't hack it, can you?"

His jaw dropped. "I can handle cheap booze!"

She raised one eyebrow, taking another small, cautious sip. She'd made a mental note not to make Slade's mistake and take more than her tastebuds could deal with. They'd already had enough abuse for one night.

Slade smirked, leaning down towards the pool, tracing his fingers across the surface, before flicking water in Madison's direction. She shrieked as some hit her in the face. "Slade! It's full of shitty chemicals!" She wiped her eye, smudging her carefully applied make up.

He chuckled and wrestled the bottle from her, taking a small sip himself. As he was swallowing, Madison reached into the water, splashing some in Slade's face. He placed the bottle aside and shot her a small glare. "What about the chemicals?" He grinned, pushing Madison, until she toppled into the water with a splash. He jumped in after her.

She splashed around, kicking her legs, in an attempt to stay afloat. Her heels and the weight of her dress was dragging her down. She coughed and spluttered, her mind reeling, she could only wonder how unattractive she looked at present. A pair of arms appeared around her waist, and she was pulled close to Slade, he held her up as she coughed, spitting water out. She pushed her hair out of her face and wiped her eyes, smudging her make up ever more.

"Ugh, I'm going to stink," she grumbled, flicking Slade's forehead.

He smiled at her. "You know, Madison, you're different."

"Different as in, I'm drunk, I've made a fool of myself and I've not yet freaked out that we're in some chemical infested pool and make hair, make up and dress are ruined?"

His smile never faded. "Um, some of that, and so much more."

It was the disease. That alcohol disease that had spread, infecting every inch of her body. It forced her arms around his neck, pulling his face towards her's, and pressed her lips towards his, in a sweet, chlorine tasting kiss.