We don’t talk about anything specific, the alcohol leading us everywhere, but it’s fun anyway. As we talk, he begins to open up a little more, his smile breaking once or twice to show a hint of his teeth. I’m sure if he really let himself smile, it would be amazing. For all that he does say, however, there is so much more he won’t, and I am not about to press him. How could I? I’m a stranger, one he’ll likely never see again after tonight.

That thought seems to bring me down for some reason. I like Harley, he’s nice and polite, not to mention incredibly good looking. He has fun hobbies and a cool job, too. He listens to me while I talk about my family and my part-time job. He even seems to perk up a bit when I mention that I cross stitch.

“My mom is into that,” he says. “She taught Robin how to do it and he picked it up easy.”

“Did she try to teach you?”

“Emphasis on the word ‘try,’” he grins. “I couldn’t get it to save my life. It’s fine, though, Robin made a lot of cool things over the years that I still have.” His eyes flash and he swallows. His gaze falls to his glass, now empty. He hasn’t refilled it in a while and it makes me wonder if he’s done for the night. 

Or if the bottle is empty.

I tilt my head, my own glass nearly empty. “You miss him a lot, don’t you?” I ask.

He nods. “Every fucking minute of the day,” he says hoarsely. “Life just feels…wrong…without him. I can’t sleep, I barely eat, my chest hurts when I breathe.” He reaches for the bottle and lets his hand fall. “All I do is drink, smoke, and miss him.”

That is when my phone vibrates. 

Again.

It’s been going off for several minutes but I’m having so much fun talking that I don’t care to look at it. Finally, I give up and pull it from my pocket, reluctant to tear my gaze away. The screen lights up, revealing one message after another from only one person.

Nikki.

Fuck…

I forgot all about her and why I was sent over here in the first place. No, that’s not true. I gave up on it, threw it out. She was having fun on her own, why did it matter what I did at this point, anyway?

I open the string of messages and go white, my fingers curling tightly around my phone.

What the hell are you doing, Windy? You haven’t touched him ONCE since you been there.

Shut tf up and get at him already!

Srsly? talkin dead people now?

Bitch, get him home or I will.

You got two minutes. If I don’t see contact, I’m coming for him. Test me.

I swallow hard. No…I can’t allow that. I glance over at the booth. Nikki is practically sitting on the first guy’s lap, nibbling on his ear. She glances over at me and holds up two fingers. Slowly, she folds one down.

One minute…

My heart thuds in my chest. Nikki isn’t bluffing, she’s done it before. If I didn’t make a move fast enough, she’d swoop in and take over, ultimately getting him in bed. Or the back of her car…while I waited in the club.

I won’t let her do that to Harley. Of all people, he doesn’t deserve that sort of treatment. I have two choices; tell Harley why I had been sent over to him in the first place, guaranteeing I’d hurt his feelings, or two, pretend to hit on him just to make Nikki back off. All I had to do was touch him, right? But she heard us talking about Robin…if I don’t say what she told me to say, she’d know I was faking it and swoop in anyway.

I take a deep breath and put my phone back in my pocket. My hands are shaking, my heart pounding, and I’m sure my lip is starting to bleed for how hard I’ve been chewing on it. 

Blame it on the alcohol, I wouldn’t do this sober. 

Blame it on the alcohol, I wouldn’t do this sober.

Blame it on the alcohol…

I reach out with one shaking hand, and rest it on his knee. My blood is loud in my ears. I barely hear my own words as they come out. They aren’t even mine…they can’t be.

Blame it on the alcohol, I wouldn’t do this…

“Y-you know,” I begin slowly, my voice shaking.  I swallow hard and run my hand down his leg. He tenses immediately. “I could…make you feel better…if you want…” If those words came out audible at all, I’d be surprised. 

My eyes slowly move from my hand on his leg, up his lean and toned body, to his face, his eyes hard, his grin completely gone, his expression a mask of utter fury.

“Are you fucking kidding me right now?” he says. I flinch, slowly drawing my hand back, dropping my eyes, no longer able to meet his gaze as my face heats up.

I am hating myself when I say, “I mean, I have the same holes…” My voice is so soft, it’s pathetic. “I just have one more you can play with…” I can feel the tears well up in my eyes, my shame coating me like a glove. 

He says nothing. He doesn’t move. He doesn’t even breathe. He hates me…he’s known me all of an hour and I’ve just become the most revolting person in his world.

Blame it…

“You sadistic bitch,” he growls. 

I feel my chin tremble. “Harley—”

He stands up so fast, the stool drops to the floor with a loud clatter. “Did you forget where you are, Windy?” he shouts. I curl into myself, my arms wrapped around my middle, my hair curtaining my face. “I’m fucking gay, you asshole! My fiance, who was a man, is dead, and you have the fucking audacity to try and get me to fuck you?!”

There is dead silence throughout the club. The only sound, outside of the now muffled music, is Harley’s angry voice screaming at me. 

“M-my friend…” I say, my voice barely above a whisper. “S-she said all men want a woman, so…I…”

He clenches his fists at his sides. That’s all I can see…I can’t look up…I can’t bear the hate I know that’s blazing in those brown eyes. “So this was just a game to you, is that it? Listen to some poor queer’s sob story, get him so fucked up he can’t see straight, then fuck him?”

I’m shaking so bad, my muscles hurt as I slowly turn my head in Nikki’s direction. Her eyes are empty, emotionless. She doesn’t move, doesn’t make any sign she’s going to help me. She brought me here, sent me to Harley’s side, told me what to say, and now she’s leaving me to hang.

Again.

“That’s your friend?” Harley bellows. I see his arm shoot out, pointing at Nikki. My stomach roils as I see her lips turn up slightly and she sips slowly on her drink. “Oh my god,” he laughs sardonically. “Of course. How did I not notice earlier?”

“Harley, please, I can explain,” I say, the tears beginning to fall.

“The fuck you will,” he snarls. He grabs for his jacket, slams some cash on the bar, and stomps up to the booth where Nikki and her new friends are sitting, staring at him in terrified fascination. “I told you not to come back here, you fucking fag hag, but you just don’t listen, do you?”

My eyes go wide in shock and my mouth drops open. “You…what?” I squeak out.

Nikki meets his glare with her own, completely unfazed. 

“Not only did you not listen,” he growls, his finger stabbing in my direction, “you brought in another girl to play your game!”

She snorts. An ugly sound, one I’ve rarely heard. “Is she not pretty enough for you, Harley?” she says, her tone dripping with sickeningly sweet honey. “I’ll try harder next time.”

He slams his fist down so hard into the table, it cracks. I let out a small shriek and cover my mouth with both hands. The rest of the men at the table jump, but Nikki doesn’t even blink.

“Harley,” Brandon broke in from behind the bar. He puts his hand on my shoulder but keeps his eyes on Harley. “You need to leave, bud. Go home and sleep it off.”

Harley shoots Nikki one last look, one more hateful than the one he gave me. He grabs my coat and flings it at me. I catch it, clutching it to my chest. 

He storms out, the door slamming shut behind him. 

I stare at Nikki who doesn’t bother to look my way, shaking her head and laughing like it was no big deal. Two of the men slide out of the booth, no longer interested in having anything to do with her. The one she had been making out with grins at her, joining in on her nasty laughter. It doesn’t take another ten seconds before the atmosphere in the club returns to normal.

I can’t move. I’m stunned, frozen to my seat. 

Nikki used me. She used me to get to Harley. Why? Had she tried seducing him before and failed? That was the only explanation, it had to be. And he thought I was in on it. That’s not true at all, though! I had no clue! She’d planned this, she knew I would fail. She waited until she thought he’d be too drunk to know any better, step in, and take him from me. 

No…she didn’t take him from me. He isn’t mine to steal from. He belongs to Robin and no one else.

“Windy,” Brandon’s soft voice cuts through my haze. I look at him, his kind eyes warm on my face. “Harley needs a friend right now.”

“But, I…”

“You’ve done more for him in the last hour than anyone has in months. Hurry up and go after him. Please. For me, yeah?” He gives me a small smile and squeezes my upper arm. 

Slowly I nod and move off the stool, using the bar as a balance while I clumsily put my coat on. My arm isn’t even all the way through before I’m hurrying for the door. Once outside, I look both ways, spot Harley halfway down the block, and run after him, calling his name.