Jet Pack
Continued from Glory Glory (Part 5)
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It had been another late Saturday night- well, really, another early Sunday morning. When it came to four o’clock Joe, Matt and Nina had been the only ones still around, so they’d headed back to Matt’s to crash.
It had been a crazier night than usual- tequila shots had made their way into the rounds that evening, not just the usual bourbon for Nina and beer for the boys.
As a wise man had once told Joe, “Tequila. Still a bad idea.”
The night was blurry, as had been the vision of their ‘sober’ driver. Joe remembered Nina laughing hysterically as Nick did 140 down the motorway after he’d picked them up.
“I’ve gotta get to this girl!” Nick had yelled when his driving speed had been questioned.
He’d thrown them all out of the car the second he could, and just about hit a cat as he completed the world’s fastest U-turn to make his way to this mystery girl.
Matt and Joe had clamoured their way through bushes to make the walk home “more exciting” while Nina had strode the normal way to Matt’s and managed to beat them by about five minutes.
She looked them up and down and laughed as Matt and Joe walked up the steps, dripping and muddy from their “adventure.”
It was at about this time that Matt’s stomach had decided it didn’t agree with the peculiar mix of toxins in his body. While he threw up in the bushes outside, Nina called sweetly out the window and asked if he wanted any bacon. She took the gagging sound as a no.
Joe drunkenly poured two bourbons as Nina served up their bacon.
“Drunk bacon is the best kind of bacon,” she slurred between bites.
Joe laughed and nodded. He tried to keep his head relatively still while he looked at her.
He liked Nina’s eyes. When she smiled, her smile reached them. She was smiling at him now and saying something about tequila.
Her laugh was loud, but not shrill. He laughed with her, too drunk to comprehend what she was saying.
They finished their drinks and went their separate ways to bed.
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Matt jumped out of Joe’s car and headed to work, looking a little worse for wear.
“Thanks for the ride, man.” He kissed Nina before she took his place in the passenger seat.
“What time are you heading into town?” she asked Joe once she’d closed the door.
Joe glanced out the window at Matt crossing the road and tried to reply as casually as possible.
“Oh, well if you wanna go, we could just go now and I could take you home after.”
For the first time, Nina noticed that he wasn’t looking at her when he was speaking to her. More importantly, she felt her heart skip a beat.
“Yeah, sounds good. But only if that’s all right with you, of course.”
“Yeah, yeah, that’s fine.”
As the car pulled away from the kerb, Joe was all too aware of the fact that Matt thought Joe was dropping Nina straight home.
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As Nina flicked through the CDs in the alternative section, she glanced up to look at Joe who was sifting through the rock section. Their eyes briefly met and she looked down again. She kept her eyes down, fingers still flicking through the albums, trying to look intensely interested.
For a long time she’d thought Joe was incredibly attractive. Not that Matt wasn’t, of course. But Joe was so- masculine. Not that Matt wasn’t. Maybe she didn’t really know what it was that drew her to Joe. All she knew was that when she was under the influence and sitting next to Joe, her leg would often rest against his and he would make no motion to move it.
Joe looked down quickly and kept searching through the rows of CDs in front of him. He kept thinking of that night when he’d got out of bed and found Nina in his kitchen. Drinking a glass of water in her boxers and a tight shirt. That shirt fit her so well.
She’d jumped when he’d cleared his throat.
“Did I wake you?” she’d asked quietly. He shook his head.
“Nah, just needed some water.”
She’d nodded in reply and they had talked for about twenty minutes before she wandered back to the spare room where Matt was sleeping. He’d walked behind her and saw her little smile and wave as she shut the door.
Joe walked slowly over to where Nina was standing now. She was leaning over, still flicking through the rows of CDs. He half wished she wasn’t wearing tight jeans.
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Joe had managed to last many months without slipping up. No flirtatious remarks to Nina, excepting a few far-fetched jokes about running away without Matt. No unnecessary touching except when she initiated it- congratulatory hugs when they won in pool, her leaning on him when she sat next to him. But when she turned the situation around, things started to move, slowly but surely, towards a certain level of chaos.
Joe had texted Nina early in the evening. She’d replied quickly and soon joined him at a bar- without Matt. Matt was insistent on a night in, but Joe happened to know that Nina had wanted to go out.
When didn’t she?
So she joined Nick and Joe for a few casual drinks at their local. They went through a few rounds, mainly talking and watching sport- Nick keeping his eye on the local ‘talent’ in the bar, Joe and Nina laughing about previous weekends out.
But when Nick had to call it a night due to an early start the next morning, Joe and Nina were beyond intoxicated.
After Nina has collapsed on the floor from laughter when Joe missed an easy shot in pool, the well-built bouncers ushered them out.
Nina walked balancing on the edge of the sidewalk the way a child would, one foot carefully after the other, swaying from side to side. Joe moved beside her and offered his shoulder for her to rest her hand on.
“You’re hot, Joe.”
Joe’s heart stopped. If he hadn’t been so drunk, he would have felt the hairs on his arms and neck stand up.
She laughed when she saw the dubious look he gave her.
“Joe! I’m not hitting on you! I’m just saying, you deserve a nice woman. You’re damn hot, and you’ll get a hot girl,” she grinned genuinely, showing all her teeth as she said it.
Joe smiled at this point, and shook his head as he spoke, “You have no idea how glad I am that we’re drunk!”
Joe walked her to the taxi and she waved and laughed as he tripped onto the kerb after walking backward without taking his eyes off her.
He turned and strolled down the dimly-lit street toward his house, the streetlights casting amber shadows on the footpath.
She thought he was hot.
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It had been another late Saturday night- well, really, another early Sunday morning. When it came to four o’clock Joe, Matt and Nina had been the only ones still around, so they’d headed back to Matt’s to crash.
It had been a crazier night than usual- tequila shots had made their way into the rounds that evening, not just the usual bourbon for Nina and beer for the boys.
As a wise man had once told Joe, “Tequila. Still a bad idea.”
The night was blurry, as had been the vision of their ‘sober’ driver. Joe remembered Nina laughing hysterically as Nick did 140 down the motorway after he’d picked them up.
“I’ve gotta get to this girl!” Nick had yelled when his driving speed had been questioned.
He’d thrown them all out of the car the second he could, and just about hit a cat as he completed the world’s fastest U-turn to make his way to this mystery girl.
Matt and Joe had clamoured their way through bushes to make the walk home “more exciting” while Nina had strode the normal way to Matt’s and managed to beat them by about five minutes.
She looked them up and down and laughed as Matt and Joe walked up the steps, dripping and muddy from their “adventure.”
It was at about this time that Matt’s stomach had decided it didn’t agree with the peculiar mix of toxins in his body. While he threw up in the bushes outside, Nina called sweetly out the window and asked if he wanted any bacon. She took the gagging sound as a no.
Joe drunkenly poured two bourbons as Nina served up their bacon.
“Drunk bacon is the best kind of bacon,” she slurred between bites.
Joe laughed and nodded. He tried to keep his head relatively still while he looked at her.
He liked Nina’s eyes. When she smiled, her smile reached them. She was smiling at him now and saying something about tequila.
Her laugh was loud, but not shrill. He laughed with her, too drunk to comprehend what she was saying.
They finished their drinks and went their separate ways to bed.
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Matt jumped out of Joe’s car and headed to work, looking a little worse for wear.
“Thanks for the ride, man.” He kissed Nina before she took his place in the passenger seat.
“What time are you heading into town?” she asked Joe once she’d closed the door.
Joe glanced out the window at Matt crossing the road and tried to reply as casually as possible.
“Oh, well if you wanna go, we could just go now and I could take you home after.”
For the first time, Nina noticed that he wasn’t looking at her when he was speaking to her. More importantly, she felt her heart skip a beat.
“Yeah, sounds good. But only if that’s all right with you, of course.”
“Yeah, yeah, that’s fine.”
As the car pulled away from the kerb, Joe was all too aware of the fact that Matt thought Joe was dropping Nina straight home.
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As Nina flicked through the CDs in the alternative section, she glanced up to look at Joe who was sifting through the rock section. Their eyes briefly met and she looked down again. She kept her eyes down, fingers still flicking through the albums, trying to look intensely interested.
For a long time she’d thought Joe was incredibly attractive. Not that Matt wasn’t, of course. But Joe was so- masculine. Not that Matt wasn’t. Maybe she didn’t really know what it was that drew her to Joe. All she knew was that when she was under the influence and sitting next to Joe, her leg would often rest against his and he would make no motion to move it.
Joe looked down quickly and kept searching through the rows of CDs in front of him. He kept thinking of that night when he’d got out of bed and found Nina in his kitchen. Drinking a glass of water in her boxers and a tight shirt. That shirt fit her so well.
She’d jumped when he’d cleared his throat.
“Did I wake you?” she’d asked quietly. He shook his head.
“Nah, just needed some water.”
She’d nodded in reply and they had talked for about twenty minutes before she wandered back to the spare room where Matt was sleeping. He’d walked behind her and saw her little smile and wave as she shut the door.
Joe walked slowly over to where Nina was standing now. She was leaning over, still flicking through the rows of CDs. He half wished she wasn’t wearing tight jeans.
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Joe had managed to last many months without slipping up. No flirtatious remarks to Nina, excepting a few far-fetched jokes about running away without Matt. No unnecessary touching except when she initiated it- congratulatory hugs when they won in pool, her leaning on him when she sat next to him. But when she turned the situation around, things started to move, slowly but surely, towards a certain level of chaos.
Joe had texted Nina early in the evening. She’d replied quickly and soon joined him at a bar- without Matt. Matt was insistent on a night in, but Joe happened to know that Nina had wanted to go out.
When didn’t she?
So she joined Nick and Joe for a few casual drinks at their local. They went through a few rounds, mainly talking and watching sport- Nick keeping his eye on the local ‘talent’ in the bar, Joe and Nina laughing about previous weekends out.
But when Nick had to call it a night due to an early start the next morning, Joe and Nina were beyond intoxicated.
After Nina has collapsed on the floor from laughter when Joe missed an easy shot in pool, the well-built bouncers ushered them out.
Nina walked balancing on the edge of the sidewalk the way a child would, one foot carefully after the other, swaying from side to side. Joe moved beside her and offered his shoulder for her to rest her hand on.
“You’re hot, Joe.”
Joe’s heart stopped. If he hadn’t been so drunk, he would have felt the hairs on his arms and neck stand up.
She laughed when she saw the dubious look he gave her.
“Joe! I’m not hitting on you! I’m just saying, you deserve a nice woman. You’re damn hot, and you’ll get a hot girl,” she grinned genuinely, showing all her teeth as she said it.
Joe smiled at this point, and shook his head as he spoke, “You have no idea how glad I am that we’re drunk!”
Joe walked her to the taxi and she waved and laughed as he tripped onto the kerb after walking backward without taking his eyes off her.
He turned and strolled down the dimly-lit street toward his house, the streetlights casting amber shadows on the footpath.
She thought he was hot.
Comments
And detail, detail... in the music shop (while it becomes obvious that they're in a music shop), it might not hurt to let us know they're in a music shop.
Ah, poor Joe...