Chapter 4

A starless sky over an illuminated metropolis will always be my version of 'walks in the park.' It felt like the stars were beneath me, and I was so close to the atmosphere; it could hear my thoughts. Who knew what a great apartment Aries had, or how amazing drinking Don Fuego on the rooftop would be I had to admit. This was 'different.'

She left me alone for a moment, and I loved her for it. There's freedom when peering over the edge of a ten-story apartment building, slightly drunk. Or looking down on the city that enslaves you every day, it was empowering. That rush fueled my drinking, and I swigged longer than before.

My pocket buzzed. I halfway thought it was God's way of telling me I drank too much.What buzzes in a pocket anywayI threw back another swig, and I hate tequila. Lucky for me, I couldn't taste anything. You know what would go great with this My pocket continued to buzz, much to my annoyance. It severed my train of thought with the dexterity of a brain surgeon, and not the shaky ones who say 'sponge.' What time is it

I checked my watch, it read 12:35 a.m. What buzzes in a pocket Buzz…buzz…oh SHIT! I whipped out the cell phone, it displayed two numbers calling simultaneously. One from my brother, whose avatar is a close-up of his face smoking four blunts at the same time. The second from 'Unknown.' Well, Iknowmy brother already, so you can guess what I did next.

You'd think it was silly when you watch those old horror movies where the voice changer is crappy. The dialogue was even worse. "Are you home alone I'm going to kill you," etc. But listening to it at that moment, swirling in tequila, grabbed my attention and frightened me to no end. A nightmare scenario, like tea bagging a bear trap with a gun to my head.

"Hello Is this Dimitri Davenport"

"Yes," I cried back, in a tone from childhood reserved for my father, after spilling milk on the carpet.

"The voice of the resistance. The Black Horse. Invite you to the meeting of the horsemen. Details to come. Your guest is…Aries Mulligan."

CLICK!

No goodbye, au revoir, what's with the detachment these days And speaking of the devil,what if the devil spoke backShe appeared. Waltzing towards me in a small superhero t-shirt and large red boxers instead of shorts. She had a square face, with full lips, caramel-colored skin and small freckles under her eyes. Light brown curly hair and a button nose. She's always been beautiful, but I guess when you meet someone on friend terms, their attractiveness get skewed behind that lens. I'd never seen Aries with this little clothes on before. Hair down, glasses off, she continued to unravel the entire night. Layer by layer, allowing me attendance to the theatre of her.

It started to make sense. We were alike in that way. The ghosts of social media. No one was looking for us. No one cared to. We lived below the radar; getting off the grid wasn't always a choice for us. At some point, we fell off the Merry-Go-Round of life, and never got back on. Simply wandered into the unknown with the shadows. I don't think she's madly in love with me, I think she wanted to do this with anyone who would stay. Anyone who could keep a conversation. An alien amongst another alien is called comfort.

She'd been single since the day I met her. Who knows how long she waited to wear those clothes Has anyone else seen her in those boxers other than me Who else had she taken to the roof

She sat next to me, shoulder to shoulder. Even though she was feeling it, she was still solid, not a complete mush. The bottle was stolen from beneath my grip, and her lips kissed the nozzle. After the gulps, she exhaled, and two cigarettes appeared like magic. I provided the fire this time.

"What do you think" she questioned.

"This view is amazing, what's your rent here" I answered.

"Don't matter, I won't keep it if I'm unemployed," melancholy hugged her sentence. There goes that tone again, meshed with her now revealed frame, I caught myself being seduced.

"You're not hot in that Get relaxed. I thought you would've changed before we met at the subway. You feel ok in those work clothes"

I don't have many clothes, to begin with. In all actuality, my best clothes are my work clothes. But I knew what she meant, I felt overdressed, under the gun. I unbuttoned my top shirt and let my black t-shirt be free. A gust of wind summed up our thoughts at that moment, sweeping, passing. After a solemn glance over the city, she shattered the silence.

"You wanna stay over"

"Uhh, sure. Yea. I mean, it is Friday."

"I don't have any real friends here, my only family member despises me. She's the anti-me in every way. A Bizzaro-land creature that one. I know I talked a lot of shit, but that job became my safe haven, my persona. Who am I now"

I hesitated, too many words fought my tongue, and my brain wrestled with the idea that she maybe be speaking rhetorically. I placed my arm over her, and she nuzzled me. I was in shock. Just a few days ago, we roasted a young couple we caught making out in front of our building. Now, we both yearned for intimacy so deep, so distant, so out of reach. Despite the closeness, a part of me felt like we were on two far away islands. Screaming at each other across a vast ocean, the urgent message never reaching us. Her S.O.S. looking to me like a mere cloud of smoke from a bonfire.

"You can sleep in my bed if you want."

"Are we…" captain obvious in the flesh. I couldn't help it. She wasn't even my type. Although, physically, I was awestruck. Whatever feelings I had in me, it wasn't sexual, it was something else.

"We don't have to if you don't want to. We can just cuddle. I don't wanna be alone."

"Yea, I don't know why I said that."

"Geez, this took a serious turn. What the fuck, we need to drink more. I'm not sure if I want to cry or kiss you."

"Or jump off the roof," I joked. It pierced her, and she smiled.

"You first," her old tone returning, slowly killing the romance, but upping the fun.

"Bullshit, you wouldn't jump behind me."

"I swear to god I would."

"I'll do it…don't tempt me."

"I dare you."

"What That makes no sense if you're going to plunge right after me. You're daring your own suicide."

"I'd die with you," she unwillingly removed her last mask, now she was naked, true feelings pouring out.

"What"

"Wait, that was the alcohol talking, I swear I don't even say things like that. Oh my god, don't tell anybody. Shit, I didn't mean like 'I'd die with you' like I love you. I meant something different. Like 'let's die together' Is that any better Am I rambling Fuck, Dimitri, you better not tell anyone I said that. People at work…" she stopped her own rambling.

"…people at work are gonna talk," she continued, her feminine voice returning. Eyes reverting back to water mode.

I saved her with a deep hug, she responded by adding more strength to the bond. I don't know what's in Don Fuego, but a strong compulsion pushed me into kissing her when our faces met, still embraced in the hug. It was soft. No tongue, like a reunited kiss after working overtime, deep in the twenty-fifth hour. After the ice was broken, we poured each other into the romantic expression of making out. I even opened my eyes to see her face. She was immersed.Maybe she was madly in love with me. The idea lingered longer than I hoped for when Marie's face flashed before me. Aries' solved the problem by taking my hand and moving it to her waist. She paused.

"Let's go inside before it rains."

"The Black Horse exist in a realm beyond society. In essence, it is an idea, and nothing more"