Gin and Juice

“Hey, Pretty Girl. How’s your head?” Kale’s voice greeted me as a hand covered my forehead. It was warm and comforting, so I assumed that it was attached to the speaker. I kept my eyes shut, not wanting to face the world just yet. “Danni, I know you’re awake. So stop faking it and open your eyes.” He demanded.

Begrudgingly and with a lot of groaning on my part, I opened my eyes to take in the white room. Kale’s bright blue eyes sparkled down at me. “What happened? And why the fuck does my head hurt?!”

“You were on the prowl and fell through someone’s hands. Don’t worry, you’ve only been out for about four hours and you have a mild concussion,” Brian answered. He was leaning against the back wall with his arms crossed over his chest. “Kale, if you could excuse us for a few minutes. We have some business that needs to be dealt with.” He added in a flat tone, our eyes were locked the entire time.

Kale kissed my forehead. “I’m going to get some breakfast from the cafeteria. I’ll see you in a bit,” He whispered before leaving.

Brian shoved off the wall and stood next to the end of my bed. “You’re welcome,” he said gruffly.

“What did I thank you for?”

He shrugged. “Many things. Let’s see, I: took you out of that dirty bar; I dressed you to the nines; I proposed to you-”

“You cheated on me.”

He gave me a look before continuing on. “I gave you a job, let you scream at me, let you perform with me, embarrass yourself on national TV, almost win you a VMA…and let’s not forget that I called the ambulance for you that saved your life.”

I scoffed. “I would have been better off without you.”

He shrugged again. “Maybe. Maybe you would be better off still strutting your stuff in that hole in the wall bar that looks as if it is condemned. Maybe you would still be going home after every shift to your druggie parents that would steal every cent you ever made to pay for their habit. Yea, you would be so much better off,” he replied sarcastically, leaning heavily on the back rail of the hospital bed.

I turned my head to the right in an attempt to ignore him. I knew that once he was inside my head, he would never get out. I needed to completely erase him from my mind.

“Danni, Danni, Danni…” he said softly, coming over to the side where I was facing. He sat down in the seat and pushed a lock of hair out of my face.

“What do you want, Brian? I have nothing that you could possibly want. You made sure of that seven years ago.”

Shifting forward in his seat, he laid his head on his left arm and gently stroked my cheek with his left hand. “I want the only thing I have ever wanted. You: mind, body, and heart.”

I sucked in air and tried to face away from him again, but he gently turned my head to face him again. His eyes were deep and loving and had a tenderness about them. A combination that I have seen only twice before. “But…”

“But nothing. The bottom line is, is that I’m still in love with you.” He smiled softly and twirled my rebellious lock of hair around his finger. “Not a day goes by where you haven’t crossed my mind. And during the video shoot, I couldn’t take my eyes off you. It pained me to look in your eyes, knowing that I had lost the best thing that had ever happened to me. And last night? Don’t get me started. If we weren’t in a public place, then I would have taken you right then and there.”

My face hardened as I ripped my head out of his hands. “So, what? You love me just for the sex? Fuck you, Haner.” I ripped my IV out and quickly got out of the bed, intent on finding Kale so that he could get me the fuck out of there. I was almost to the door when Brian grabbed my wrist and spun me around to face him. He quickly pressed me against the wall and kissed me tenderly on the lips, making me melt almost instantly.

“No,” he breathed. “I love everything about you. I love how your nose scrunches whenever you wake up. I love how we used to talk on the phone for hours on end about absolutely nothing and everything. I love how your eyes light up whenever you hear a Metallica song. I love the way you pick fights and call me out. I love how you laugh about some of the most random things… How your smile lights up a room. Seriously, what’s not to love about you? You’re beautiful, smart, funny, and strong, yet you.”

I pushed him back a step and looked into his eyes. “How about the fact I’ve been a whore since I was born? Or that I’ve worked at the same barn since I was thirteen? What about all the drugs, booze, and parties, huh? Or the multiple suicide attempts?!”

“M-multiple?” He stuttered, his eyes wide in shock.

“Yes, multiple.” I confirmed, my eyes brimming with tears from all of my frustrations pouring out at once.

He wiped away the tears with his thumb and kissed my forehead before bringing me into a comforting hug. “I’m so sorry, Danni. Sorry for everything I’ve done- all the pain that I’ve caused. I was such a douchebag back then.” I didn’t realize that he had picked me up and carried me until he set me down on the bed.

“You still are one. In fact, I think you now qualify for major jack-ass status.”

He smiled at my lame attempt to brighten the mood. “Well, it could be worse.”

“Yea, you were demoted a few years back. You used to be an inconsiderate bastard.”

“Thank you, I can now sleep at night.”

His eyes were so captivating. I could get lost in them forever and not give a damn. The light and laughter in them transported me back in time to when I was head over heels in love with him. Back then, he was all I needed to survive. Whenever I was around him, I was the most beautiful woman around. I was devoid of my emotional scars and marks from my nonexistent childhood. His breath grew hot on my skin as he inched his face closer to mine. Our eyes were still locked on each other, silently asking the other how far this would actually go.

“Hey, Danni.” He flew from where he was at to the wall. Breathing heavily, I looked over at Kale.

“Yea?”

“I came to bring you a change of clothes. You’re getting discharged.” He said warily, placing the bag of clothes on the end of my bed. He looked utterly confused.

“Thanks.” All three of us looked between each other the entire time. “Er, can you two get out so I can change?”I asked, breaking he awkward silence. Quickly, Brian left the room. Kale gave me a confused look. “I’ll tell you later, Kale.”

Apprehensively, he made his way to the door. “Ok, but I just want you to remember what he did to you all those years ago.”