Lost Boys

24 March

"So... I had time to think about Jack."

"I imagine so, you ignored me the better part of the evening."

I snatched up my purse and went out the door, purposely pushing it to close behind me so that it almost hit him in the face. I didn't say another word until we stared one another down over the car's roof.

"Why would I want to talk to someone who scared me half to death today?"

"It wasn't the intent."

"But it was the outcome."

"Are you going to hang on to this the remainder?"

"Not after I get totally pissed in about an hour."

"You're not."

"I sure as hell am. Well, after I disclose my plan."

"Which is?"
"You can wait."

He stood there still not getting in the car.

"You're dress is nice."

I rolled my eyes. I wasn't giving him an inch.

"Let's go."

It will come as no surprise to find out that by the time we returned to the resort I was suffering the affects of the mother of all migraines. I was grateful that the jeep ride back was mercifully short, as every bump and turn in the road delivered nauseating stabs of agony into my head. Jack finally realized that the plan he and Colin devised for the day was an unqualified failure, so he was more than solicitous in his ministrations in an effort to return me to health. He carried me up the steps of our bungalow, tucked me into bed with my medication and drew the drapes. After a two-hour nap and some dinner I was restored to fighting form and glad for it. Tonight's agenda included drinks and dancing at a local club and I had been looking very forward to it. Since, according to Diane and Colin, we were currently the winners of, "The Most Disagreeable Couple of the Year Award," I wanted to use this evening to put things right between us. As Jack was zipping up my dress I told him the first round would be on us.

"Yea, I guess that's the least we can do. We haven't been the best playmates this trip, have we?"

"Not just now, Jack, we haven't been for months. If you looked up cantankerous in the dictionary you would find our picture."

The plan was that we would meet them at the club. My headache put us a bit behind and they could go on ahead and secure a table. I was almost set to go and putting the finishing touches to my face, when... damn... where was my lipstick? A hunt through my makeup bag and purse yielded nothing, but its location would have to be discovered another time. I could hear the car keys jingling, Jack's not so subtle signal that his patience was at an end. 

We were supposed to meet them, but it hadn't passed me that the jeep was still there when we left. For where?... was once again a concern. Colin seemed to know the way so I just 'went along for the ride' until we pulled into a gravel parking lot, in front of an nondescript building, with no signs and he killed the engine.

"Shall we go in?"

"Not without them. We can wait."

"It's already ten."

"I'm aware."

"What if they've changed their minds?"

"Then we'll leave."

"How are we to know one way or the other?"

"You could call. Oh, wait, they don't answer you anymore, do they?"

I set my head back to rest and closed my eyes, but heard tires coming to a skidding halt in the gravel. I knew that parking style anywhere.

"They're here."

As we came to a screeching halt into the parking lot I shot Jack a searing look.

"Jack, the Grand Prix is in Monaco, not Malaysia."
Jack just smirked at me as he exited the car. He did, however, rush to my side, opened the door and helped me out. It was obvious that Diane and Colin had already arrived, no way could we miss the Kancil in all its lime green splendor. As we walked over to them I squeezed Jack's hand and told him to lay off the car jibes. Jack, as ever, had to make his cheekiness known as he leaned down to my ear and lowered the volume control on his voice.

"I see he dressed for the occasion. Green shirt instead of white."

"Can it, Jack."

Then, much to my chagrin, he held his hand out to Colin, but looked straight at Di.

"I see you came in Herby. How's he holding up?"

"You want to add yourself to the list of extinct species, Jack?"
I basically ignored him as I walked past him. It was my turn to drag Colin. If I was only kidding about how much I might partake of, earlier, now I was positive I wanted to get knackered. Colin held the door for me and Hilly...and Jack, as we stepped inside the most low lit place I'd even been in, in recent recall. I made out, what I assumed was, the hostess stand and was greeted by a scantily clad young woman with a too big smile.
"How many?"
"Four," came from Colin's mouth with a smile, that was quite unnecessary, as he followed her ass. Yes, her ass. I could see what those brown twinklers were focused on before I jabbed him in the side with my elbow. I kept turning back to Hilly with a scrunched face and got the same, with a shrug, back.
Before we got to sit down a young man, well he was to me, approached announcing he was the bartender and would take our first order of drinks, if we wished. Colin ordered for me as he held my chair for me to sit. Jack did the same for Hilly as we settled in.
"He didn't have a shirt on. Did you see that?"
Which got me the same reproach from Colin I had given him on the way in. Our table, I concluded, had to be at the very back of this place. I could see a wall behind us but, with the only lighting from a small round candle on our table, I could barely make out the table next to us.
"Kind of morbid if you ask me. What the hell is the ambiance of this place supposed to be?"

I looked from Colin to Jack without receiving a response.
I kept peering around the club. Even in the dim lighting something just didn't feel right. I turned back to our table.
"I don't see any bandstand or platform for a DJ. I thought there would be dancing here?"

"Later."

Came from Jack as I caught a wink he gave Colin that didn't sit right with me.
"How late, is later?"
"Di, relax."
The, "young enough to be my son but who cares he's nice eye candy", bartender arrived with our drinks and things were looking up.
I was about to relax as the bare-chested, bowtie laden, bartender set our drinks down and I grabbed his arm.
"Bring my round two."
"Now?"
"If not sooner."
"I'll put it on your tab and send it with your waitress. She'll be right over."
I was getting the evil eye from my partner and concern from my neighbors.
"I told you."
I practically sucked that drink down and good thing I had because when our waitress arrived I was starting to feel a little woozy or I would have killed.... somebody. Lucky for them she had brought a whole second round.
The ambience may have been lacking and I was still trying to figure out where the dance floor was, but I had to say the wait staff were aces. I had not finished my first drink yet, but I saw Diane's second round order being delivered by our waitress. See now, she was carrying the tray in front of her and we had ordered drinks that required tall glasses. Colin's lager, Diane's Strawberry Daiquiri and Jack's and my red wines. See? All tall glasses. So it was not until she set the tray down on our table and began to distribute our drinks that I choked and spit wine across the table. It seemed our smiling waitress, with the most friendly disposition, had forgotten to wear her... shirt. I turned toward Diane who sat in stunned silence and then to Jack and Colin who had a look about them akin to two middle school boys, who had never seen a pair, evidenced by the idiotic grins on their faces.
If I was in to drinking a lot and often tonight, I now saw Colin swill back two pints in record time, then he just peered at me. Likely because he felt those same flame filled eyes ready to cauterize him as this afternoon. Only this was worse.

"Gee, can I guess how we found this place with no signs and no...road? Who did this? And don't look so fucking happy."
I imagine that wasn't setting well with our overly endowed semi-nude waitress. Did I care? No, I sat back in my chair and all I could think wish was that it was the alcohol, but I knew it wasn't.
"I need a drink."
And what came out of the man's mouth next... it was untenable.
"Calm down, Diane. This is all out of proportion."
"Oh, I think she's proportioned just fine, as I'm sure you've already discovered."
"Look, I'm going to go to the loo. Then I'm going to come back. And then we're going to be civil."
He didn't leave me time to say anything as he got up, but as he walked away.
"Oh, Christ! Now he's Mark Darcy. Just what I wanted to hear..... not!"
He turned back for a second and I could see the scowl on his face.
"As if!"

Diane rose from her seat and I knew where she was heading. I was more than willing to follow as she grabbed Colin's jacket and found his keys. With great ceremony she threw it,crumpled, onto his chair and nodded to me. Without a word or look in Jack's direction I downed my wine, grabbed my purse and followed her out the door.
As I returned to the table it was clear the ladies had gone off, but I assumed they had gone to find the ladies. Diane had already consumed two of her favored Daiquiris and it appeared I had a third pint in front of my empty seat. However, when I got up close and saw the look on Jack's face, which was resting in his hands, I knew differently.
"Oh, Christ, what now?"
I saw my jacket in a state of disarray and stared at Jack, waiting.
"Park it Colin. Have a drink on me. Hilly and Diane have left and we are screwed."
"What about the dancing?"
"Oh there's not gonna be any dancing, Dude. I suspect there's not gonna be any dancing for a very long time.
I waited more as I started in on my next pint and sat back trying to gauge the situation.
"So you're saying, they left? As in the building? Where would they go?"
I started to answer my own question when I tried to swing my jacket back to its perch on my chair.
"My keys?"
"Gone with the girls"
"I don't see the point of their making such a fuss. I mean really, it's a perfectly normal state, isn't it? Just window shopping. Where's the harm?"
I polished off Hilly's untouched second glass of Merlot and pulled my third round closer. I took a healthy gulp and turned to Colin.
"No harm... fuck it... no harm at all. Hilly and Diane just went off the deep end as usual."
The last drops of my third lager hit the pit of my stomach with a thud and it all came into perspective. Now I got it. Now I was...stuck. What was I going to say, or do? I wanted to defend wanting to go grovel against wanting to stay here and be defiant about our choice of venue, simultaneously.
"Right. Drink up. Let's have another."
I saw Jack's eyes, clearer than one would think. I could only imagine he was having the same struggle.
"If we leave now we can beat them back to the bungalows. You know they are going to be out a while commiserating with each other on what bastards we are."
Was I to say no, let them stew? My twin sides of logic were fighting one another. Nothing we had done today had pleased her. Looking back, were they bad choices? I had been convinced she'd be ecstatic over the mountain and its views and all I got was horror. She wanted to go dancing yet hadn't stayed long enough to do so. Was this my fault?
"Perhaps you're right."
I knew what he was thinking. I knew because I was thinking the same thing. But right now it didn't matter. Who was right, who was wrong, who misunderstood who... all of it was crap. What mattered right now was Hilly and Diane were seriously displeased and Colin and I were the cause.
"Dude, you know I am. Finish up and let's get the hell out of here."

Colin had been working on his fourth lager when we left so I wasn't about to give him the keys. He already tripped on his way out of the place and I wasn't about to let him near the driver's side. I did take my time going back, basically because I needed time to think. It appeared Colin was on the same wave length. He didn't say word one all the way to the parking lot. Now was crunch time. Fortunately, we didn't see the Kancil, nor any signs of the girls. Hopefully my assessment of them going off somewhere to let off steam was right. We both got out and met at the back of the jeep. Both of us stood, hands in pockets, rocking back and forth, unable to figure out a strategy. We shook hands and he started towards the path as I made my way towards our steps, but I stopped and yelled after him.
"What do we do Colin? Any clues?"
He turned around and yelled back.
"Shakespeare."
What the fuck did that mean!? I didn't think quoting lines from the Bard's sonnets was going to get me out of this mess. I went up two steps and stopped again.
"What?"
I heard him as he disappeared into the trees.
"The Taming of the Shrew."