They needed me at the new bar last night. Even though I had already resolved not to work there, I figured I'd do 'em a favor this one time. It wasn't nearly as busy as they had planned; Teresa smiled apologetically as I walked into the loud and empty club.
The other waitress wasn't the seasoned veteran I was. I snatched up every order possible from that limited crowd until her frustration and dismay became blatantly apparent. I mean shit, if I got called in and went all the way down there, I was gonna work.
Finally, to break her off a lil' something, I retired to the back end of the bar and schmoozed with what old homies of mine were now working there. Up until then I had decided that the only good point of my setting foot in the place was the free and extensive cajun buffet Frankie had laid out for the consierge party that was supposed to show up but hadn't.
Okay, maybe seeing Giles again was good too, although it spawned little more than an awkward conversation that made me wish I could disappear, an effect he has always unintentionally had on me.
Suddenly the messiah of the night appeared: Dan, the trusty barback junkie. He came meandering towards me through swinging doors, behind which he had apparently been slicing lemons and popping pills. It had been years since I'd seen the boy, but I recognized his familiar swanky walk and even swankier grin as a clear indicator that he was under the influence of something fun. I wanted some.
"I love Xanax," he stated, matter-of-factly as he approached. He knew exactly what my reaction to that would be, and was already prepared to fulfill my request with a little piece he had broken off for me. "It's fun. Take it. Now."
Hey, the night was slow and I figured I'd get cut soon so I chased it with a tall glass of water right then and there. I have years of experience busing tables while high, so it was no problem at all that within 10 minutes I found myself floating elegantly through the narrow aisles, tray in hand, gathering used glasswear and crumpled napkins with a graceful sweep of my free arm, traveling in circles around the central bar, nodding a tranquil greeting to the gold-card patrons I knew so well, awaiting the time when Rufus would succumb to the desperate requests of my fellow waitress to cut me loose from working and send me on my merry way home.
"Nice, huh," Dan would say when he caught a glimpse of me gliding by. The cab ride home was delightful, despite the frost already beginning to gather on the cars and people we drove past. I was bundled up, comfortably aware of the fleece of my scarf against my neck and melting into the cab's puffy leather covered seat. When I got home, I found that my man was still out galavanting somewhere, and welcomed this time to change into my velvet pajamas and prepare for his arrival. The tranquil beats provided by DJ Crush and Toshinoro were incredibly pleasing as I gazed around our new apartment through half-closed eyes. I was enjoying myself.
When Michael did get home, he found me rolling around on the soft carpet in a pile with our two huge dogs, laughing with them. The sensual passion that followed was inexplicably nice. After hours of this bliss, a deep and pleasant sleep enveloped me I awoke amidst the warm glow of our orange lantern at 3am, warm, naked and upside down on top of the poofy down duvet, still feeling the delicious effects and smiling.
Needless to say, Xanax was, indeed, fun.