The Sweetest Kill (SAMPLE)

Four: Epiphany

"Trevor, this is Shoshanna from work. Shoshanna, this is my boyfriend, Trevor," She says with a gesture in each of our directions before smacking his shoulder, "See? I told you she was real."

He smiles and rolls his eyes before offering me his hand, "Hi. Nice to finally meet you."

I eye his hand but can't think of a polite way to avoid touching him. So, with much reluctance, I take him hand in mine, "You, as well."

I quickly take my hand back and tuck both my arms against my chest. Trevor frowns at me a little but quickly collects himself as he turns to Melanie, "Finally annoyed her enough to come and join us?"

Melanie bristles a little, "Actually, no. She was just wondering by when I spotted her. She would have caved eventually though. Right, Shoshanna?"

I nod and give a small smile. I really don't have much else to say to that and besides I'm a bit distracted. The idea that he could be here, in this very club, is making me anxious. I want to find him and just get this over with. The longer I continue this mingling façade, the quicker I want to end it. This isn't my place. These aren't my people. The urge to bolt is becoming stronger the long I stand out here so with obvious impatience, I decide to get the ball rolling.

"Its cold." I murmur quietly, "Should we head in?"

"Of course!" Melanie chirps before turning to Trevor, "This is her first time in a club."

"Really?" He asks with a kind smile in my direction, "Well, I think you'll like it. It's easy to lose yourself in a place like this."

I blink at him. Am I that obvious?

"I'm sure I will." I mumble as I move past him to follow Melanie towards the front of the line. The bouncer is a large man in his mid-thirties with short light brown hair and matching brown eyes. He has a tattoo on his neck that catches my eye. Is that a rose or a skull? It's hard to tell in this lighting.

"Thanks Pete!" Melanie yells before grabbing my hand again to lead me in with Trevor following after us.

My eyes widen at the sight before me. This place reminds me of a modern interpretation of an ancient Roman party. Half dressed people of all sexes luring each other into dancing, drinking or even hooking up in various places in the building. The lighting is sparse and the music loud enough to make my teeth rattle with every thump of the bass. Trevor was right about one thing: one could definitely lose themselves in a place like this.

"Isn't this great!" Melanie yells in my ear as she starts to sway a little to the music.

I nod, still wide eyed before swallowing thickly. To be honest, the scene is intimidating. A nearby couple momentarily grabs my attention as they passionately make out with each other. I turn away when the guy's hand disappears under the hem of her dress and feel my cheeks redden. I don't think I could ever let anyone that close to me, let alone let someone touch me like that.

"Drink?" Trevor yells over the music at me as he takes our jackets from us.

I shake my head but Melanie orders herself a drink. I continue to scan over the area looking for someone matching the description on the news but it's hard. There are a lot of dark haired, white males in the building.

"Here try this!" Melanie yells and hands me her drink. I take it from her and feel the burn of the alcohol in my throat as I swallow it along with a citrusy after taste. Making a face I pass it back to her making her laugh, "Not your thing?"

I shake my head and cough a little. That's incredibly strong.

"Do you want to dance?" She asks after a few minutes.