Hand of Blood

Together, me and the tall stranger marched up to the back of the queue. I say 'we' but he was the one marching. I say 'marching' when I was in fact being slightly dragged by his eager steps. He was apparently proud of this plan of his, and couldn't wait to put it into action. I couldn't say I was too concerned at the moment.

As we got to our places in line, his arm slid away from mine and down to his sides. I watched him in interest as he started searching through his pockets. Maybe he was so much like me, he kept the whole world in his pockets? Surely that would just be too strange.

I raised an eyebrow as he eventually pulled out a small white card, holding it up in front of his face. "ID!" He announced proudly, causing me to helplessly laugh at him. He grinned down at me a little sheepishly as I shook my head. For someone who was apparently 21 or over, he acted in much the same way I would, though I can't say this was a bad thing. I paused for a moment as I looked up into his face, that was currently looking towards our destination. He certainly didn't look that much older either, and also I noticed he had a labret stud in the center of his lip that momentarily stole my attention. I smiled faintly as I finally allowed my gaze to return forward too.

As we approached the bouncer once more, he instantly frowned at me. I bit my lip under his harsh gaze and felt myself side step ever so slightly into the tall guy beside me, the side of his body lightly brushing mine but making me feel a little bit more secure.

"I thought I told you..." The bouncer started, his frown turning to a glare as he confirmed to himself I was the same girl from a little under 20 minutes ago. The guy beside me quickly interrupted, a light smile on his face. I noted this one was considerably different to the one he had given me. He was smiling with his lips, not his eyes. This instantly gave him a few more trust points.

"Here's your money," he said smoothly, holding out three £10 notes to the stony faced bouncer; enough to cover both our fees.

The bouncer simply looked him up and down with hostility in his eyes. "Look, I've already turned her away," he said in his gruff tones, pointing a thumb in my direction. "So she's not coming in."

My stranger lightly smiled in response. "Well, she's with me and I'm planning on getting in here," he said simply, holding his ID loosely before the bouncer.

The bouncers deep laugh covered his words as he glanced at it. "I'm sure that's got to be illegal, ain't it?" He asked, grinning between the two of us.

He frowned at the bouncer, returning the hostile gaze from before and placing the card back into his pocket. "I agree, because she's my little sister," he said with a hard edge to his tone, instantly stilling the bouncers laughs. My eyes grew wide as I looked to the guy beside me, amazed by what was either his original plan, or how well he seemed to think on his feet. He glanced at me for a second before taking a double take, nudging my side lightly to stop me from staring. I bit my lip and quickly turned to the ground, realising I was giving myself away again.

"Well..." The bouncer started slowly, thinking over his words more carefully now. "Like you said, she's your little sister, so..."

He sighed lightly. "It was her 21st yesterday. This was a little celebration because I know how much she loves the local bands," he said easily. "And at the moment, you're stopping the good cheer. Now, can we go in?" He added, his voice growing harsher by the second and amazing me further.

The bouncer growled as he glared at the stranger, clearly not fond of being out smarted or talked down to. "No," he said firmly. "She hasn't got any ID, and-"

"Look," my accomplice interrupted suddenly, his voice slightly louder in volume and attracting the attention of those behind us, causing them to fall silent from their private conversation. "Either let us in here, or we'll just go through the back anyway," he reasoned firmly appearing to be getting into his stride. "I know most of the bands playing tonight anyway, so they will only be too willing to let me in, and that's just a phone call away. Or are you really that much of a stubborn, thick skinned, idiot that you-"

"Fine, fine!" The bouncer said loudly, his face bright red as he glared at us and the new found audience in the form of everyone else in the surrounding area. "Just go!" He snapped, folding his arms as he stood to the side. I swear you could almost see the steam pouring from his ears as his blood boiled within his veins. This one certainly didn't like to be shown up.

I glanced to my new found savoir beside me. He smiled down at me softly before winking and taking a step forward. I felt his hand lightly and timidly rest on the small of my back as he lead me into the venue.

I started chewing my lip as we entered the warm atmosphere and his fingertips instinctively moved away from my body. He continued walking a little further into the stuffy room, as I timidly followed him. I wasn't sure where this was going, at all. Was he trying to get away or did he want me to follow him?

I paused as he gradually came to a stop, turning to face out to the dance floor and the small stage. I looked over to and saw a small band bouncing around on the stage, playing their instruments like their life depended on that song. The vocalist was screaming the lyrics out into the microphone with such energy I thought his vocal chords would just have to burst within the next ten seconds.

I glanced forwards and took a step closer to my stranger, considering I had left quite a gap between us and my words certainly wouldn't catch his ears from where I was standing. I bit my lip and smiled lightly as his soft expression fell onto me, instantly scaring away my sudden nerves.

"Thank you so much," I said honestly, for the first time really locking my gaze into the strangers ocean blue eyes.

He smiled in return. "You are very welcome. I'm Matt," he added simply, holding out a hand to me.

I returned the gesture, smiling lightly. "Brianne," I said in a similar tone.

He nodded as we shook hands. "It's a pleasure to meet you," he said in a dapper tone, causing me to chuckle. He grinned back at me as his hands returned to his pockets. "So, do you attempt to come in here often, then?"

I smiled back as I nodded. "Yeah, they never usually have the age limit thing though," I grumbled slightly.

Matt frowned a little and nodded. "I thought that too," he replied, pausing as his eyes seem to study me in much the way I had when we first met. "So... How old are you then, little sis?"

I smiled faintly. "I'm 18," I admitted, not seeing a point in denying it any longer. It wouldn't make a difference now, anyway. "How about you?"

He chuckled a little nervously, his gaze falling from mine as he turned back to the crowd on the dance floor. "I'm 22," he replied in an empty tone, his gaze suddenly returning to mine. "Do you want a drink or something? Neither of us seem to have much in the way of other company," he explained, watching me with a small glimmer of hope in his eyes. I bit my lip as I considered the offer. If he would be buying me a drink, it would certainly save the little money I already had, and he seemed like a nice enough guy. Four years wasn't that much of an age gap, I supposed, considering the situation. What else was I expecting in a 21 and over night anyway?

"Sure, thanks," I said finally with a smile, it instantly being returned. I noted this smile shone in his eyes; a real smile, as he nodded.

"Awesome. Let's go then," he said, holding out his arm again as he had outside. I chuckled lightly and glanced down as I stepped up to my new found friend, and now drinking buddy, linking my arm with his as he started to lead the way across to the bar area.