BEAUTY MARKS

2. DRINKS

Kaede's words remained; Dominque analyzed them even while he drank with the other dance class members.

"So Dominque, what do you do in life?" Janis, who had not stopped beating lashes at him, wanted to know more about the newcomer.

"Eh, I'mㅡ."

"Pass, my brother doesn't like to talk about his job."

Dominque thanked his sister with a wink, which she returned by raising her glass of Pineapple juice.

"Okay, then how old are you?"

"Thirty."

"Got a girlfriend?"

"Janis," yelled Tequilla, who also lent an ear to hear the answer.

Dominque slid his glass of Lemonade from one hand to the other, "nope."

"Damn, no, you are lying. A fine man like to can't be single," Patricia placed a hand on her mouth, "did I say that out loud?"

Dominque smiled and licked his bottom lip, "yep, and I'm available."

"Woohoo," the girls said in unison. They laughed and toasted to the statement while the guys drank their shots and made faces at the comments and questions the women asked.

"It's a shame Kaede didn't come. Didn't you girls invite her?" Nathan asked.

Tequila threw a few peanuts in her mouth, "we did, but she bailed out."

Janis pulled on Nathan's cheek, "oh, don't be sad. If she comes next time, we'll keep a seat next to her for you."

Micheal chuckled like a drunken hyena.

"What's funny?" Nathan asked.

"Man, that girl won't ever notice you even if you are the most visible guy here."

Nathan was the flabby-tabby couch potato gone country fries hefty like Dwayne Johnson. From day one, Nathan got warped in by Kaede's mysterious girl aura. Too shy, all the man did was watch her dance and smile like an idiot in her presence.

Dominque listened; any information about Kaede was useful, especially if it allowed him to find out why she distanced herself from people.

"Tequilla, you talk to her all the time; what do you know about Kaede?" Micheal asked in Nathan's stead.

"Well, I've already told you guys, Kaede doesn't talk much. I know she's single because every time I ask her what she'll do when once at home, she either says play video games or Netflix. She used to work for Total, but now she works in some apparel store. She never evokes friends, family, and she has zero social media life."

"If she ain't got a man, why did she run off like she had a romantic dinner waiting for her?"

Dominque noted that Janis was curious about anyone.

Patricia sipped on her Mojito before answering, "I think she lives far."

"Nah, she lives at Bastille."

Dominque soaked in the information. Concerning Kaede's media life, Dominque was aware there was nothing. He, too, got twitchy fingers and stalked her a little. All the man found was a Linkedin account. His interest in the woman went from fickle infatuation to an authentic mystery case. Kaede seemed like an open book, but the closer one got, the more one realized how little they knew her.

It became essential for Dominque to discover the woman and the things that made her jump for joy, smile, or rant.

"So Dominque, what's your star sign?" The inquiry warped the man out of his reflection.

"Girls, please, you're talking to your instructor here," Dyan said.

Janis snapped her fingers and winked at Dominque, " oh, please instruct me. I'll do a split for you anytime, Hunny."

"Janis," Tequila scolded.

Everyone laughed; Janis was the type of woman who frightened the prude but got along with everyone. People could tell she was everyone's best friend but no one's lover just by looking at her. Janis qualified for that spot most hate, aka the friend zone.

Her questions didn't bother Dominque, who answered, "I'm an Aries."

The man's reply got all the women around the bar's table doing the maths.

Patricia took out her phone," well, according to this, you are most compatible with Leo, Gemini, Aquarius, and Sagittarius, anyone here of the lot?"

Tequilla, Emma, and Pauline raised their hands.

Dyan gave them all a dark eye, "none of you match, do you hear me? I'd rather die than let any of you touch my beloved brother."

Patricia shivered, "Dyan, tell me you're teasing because you look like Cathy Bates in Misery right now."

Once more, laughter and banters of all genres filled the table. For the first time since Dominque's return to Paris, he didn't feel out of place. The knot in his stomach unraveled with the dance class members. Discussing other things than parties, likes on social media, or other superficial subjects distressed the man whose new lifestyle no longer suited the trend.

Of course, Dominque's thoughts were subjective. The man was conscious that the notion of what was futile depended on each person's opinion and state of mind. His reflection appeared to be in another time zone, not to say another dimension from his buddies.

The group drank and chatted, and at 11:45 PM, they parted in front of the bar.

Dyan waited for everyone to leave before facing her brother, "so what do you think of them?"

"They're cool."

"Thanks for taking over the class. The daytime beginners' classes are okay, but I can't handle them anymore," Dyan said as she unlocked her black Peugeot 208.

"I'll drive."

Dyan gave Dominque the keys and went to the passenger's side.

"By the way, thanks for the job description," Dominque's strapped his seat belt. It was the first time in months that he sat in a driver's seat. Anxious about having an episode as he did in the taxi after leaving Lee Han's house, the man avoided driving when alone.

"You're a spy; I won't tell anyone."

"Don't say that someone might believe you."

"Why are you so ashamed to say you are part of the FI Unit?"

Dominque started the engine, released the hand brake, switched the gears, and began to turn the steering wheel, "because people get the wrong idea. They think I spend my time killing people."

Dyan shifted, cocked an eyebrow, "well, that's what you do."

Dominque shook his head in disapproval, "no, my unit tries to arrest people alive. We intervene in any situation where civilian lives are in danger."

Like many people, Dominque didn't know what he wanted to do in life. His natural talent for footfall traced his future path, but after his injury, the man didn't know what he wanted to do. His breakup only gave him the desire to flee as far as possible, and so he enrolled without giving his decision much thought.