Tribulation [h.s]

02

"A little wicked
That's what he calls me
That's what I am
No one calls you honey when you're sitting on a throne"

-

The human brain loves patterns.

Through patterns, the brain creates meaning. This process is called pattern recognition. With pattern recognition, the brain works quickly to match perceived information with information already stored — more specifically — experiences that the brain has already learned from.

In clubs, everything is sporadic, patterns are consistently changing, and the music is always too loud. This environment is too unpredictable for me. It's too unorganized, and, more often than not, it smells, and the floors and walls are always sticky and gross.

When too many new things are introduced at once, such as bright lights, loud noises, or specific textures, the brain can become over-stimulated, making a person irritated, stressed, and cause an individual to have trouble focusing.

Clubs are unpredictable and therefore, outcomes are always unpredictable. When situations are unforeseeable, and I feel no longer in control, I go mad.

That's probably why I'm not too fond of clubs. Yet, here I am, standing outside of Tribulation anyway. What kind of name is that anyway?

I have to admit, though, as much as I hate clubs, this one appears nice. Really nice. It has a modern, black sleek look to it that's certainly eye catching. White and red lights light up the entrance is. One hell of a line is leading out the front doors to the sidewalk where dozens of people are impatiently waiting for their turn to get in the building.

Julie has spent all week convincing me to go to this stupid interview. She said something about wanting to come with me so she could confront Niall, who's apparently been ignoring her text for a while, and so I wouldn't be alone in a place like this. Is she crazy for showing up at the man's job to ask why he's been ignoring her text? Possibly. But, this is far from the craziest thing Julie has done.

Strange, isn't it? Julie is a sporadic girl always looking for a new, exciting story to tell while there's me who prefers books over people. Our relationship is certainly unconventional, to say the least.

"I'm gonna fuck him up..." I can't help but snort and let out a small chuckle at her remark. Julie shakes her head at me with wide eyes. Oooh. She's not joking. "I swear to god I'm gonna fuck him up," she says again. Considering she keyed my ex's car and popped his tires, I don't doubt her.

Julie takes a deep breath, adjusts her maxi royal green satin, spaghetti-strapped dress, and puffs up her strawberry blonde hair that she spent an hour curling for tonight. She even fixes her boobs, so her cleavage is more noticeable. "Alright, let's... Let's get this over with."

I perk up. "It sounds like you don't want to be here. We can leave!" Please say yes. I point over my shoulder in the direction of her car. "Yeah, let's leave; I don't want to be here either-"

"Allie, I'm not dumb. I see what you're trying to do."

"Me? I'm not doing anything."

She gives me a pointed glance before grabbing my hand and tugging me towards the entrance. "Let's go. After the interview, and after I confront Niall, I'm getting you drunk. You need to let loose a little bit, Als."