"I can't believe this place exists," Gus said, putting the car into park as he unbuckled his seat belt, his eyes glued to the building in front of them. Bea got out of the car as Melanie, bouncing excitedly like a child in the backseat, hopped out after her.
"Oh, I haven't been here in so long!" she squealed, "It still looks exactly the same!" "Why haven't you been here in so long if you like it so much? Gus asked, shutting his car door and tugging his jacket on. "I was banned," Melanie said, "But it's understandable, I beat one of the jesters with a turkey leg." As she rushed towards the entrance, Gus sighed and linked arms with Bea. "It's gonna be a long night," he muttered, making her chuckle. It was Melanie's birthday, and she couldn't be happier. It had been a long time since she'd actively celebrated the occasion, and even longer since she'd been at Joust Kidding, the medieval themed restaurant experience. This was where she'd spent most of her childhood birthdays, and most of her later birthdays as well - before she stopped celebrating them and before they banned her for the turkey leg incident - but she hadn't been in ages. Now, however, with the ban having been lifted, she was ready to experience the thrill again, and with her best friends no less. This couldn't be a more perfect birthday. "Who else is coming?" Gus asked. "My brother is supposed to show up, also Emma and Darren, but I don't know if they'll make it," Mel said, "And my friend Lisa said she'd come." "This place is cool," Bea said as they entered the building, taking in all the props on the walls and the costumes the employees wore; she added, "I feel like I'm at actually in King Arthurs court." "You're such a dweeb," Gus mumbled, "You're both such dweebs." "Welcome, lord and ladies, to Joust Kidding," said a teenage girl who stepped in front of them in full bard attire, her voice flat and monotone, clearly tired of her job; she continued, "Where you're the king or queen today. What is your business here at our fair kingdom?" "It's my birthday!" Melanie said loudly, unable to contain her excitement. "Hoorah," the teen replied, "Please follow me and I will lead to your roundtable, where you will partake in many fun games, a delicious feast and lots of meade." With that, she and Melanie continued further into the seating area of the restaurant, as Bea and Gus followed somewhat behind them. "Wow," Gus said, "That girl hates her life." *** "Are you about ready?" Emma asked, picking up her car keys from the key holder hung on the wall near the front door; she cleared her throat and called out to Darren a second time, "Are you about ready? I'm ready to go." "Yeah, I was just finishing wrapping this," Darren said, entering the room with a present in his hand. Emma looked at him in surprise. "I didn't know we were getting her anything." "It was a last minute decision, but don't worry, I can stick your name on it," Darren said. "Oh, well thanks, I guess," Emma replied. As they headed out the door, Emma couldn't help but feel odd. She'd been left out. Sure, he'd said it had been a last minute decision, but still...she would have her name attached to a gift while she wasn't even sure what it was. Darren got into the car as Emma sat in the drivers seat and started it up. She wanted to be angry, she wanted to say something cruel and make Darren feel bad, and for what? All because he'd decided, at the last minute, to do something nice for someone without consulting her? This wasn't a healthy way to feel in a relationship, looking for ways to make him upset for no real goddamned reason. Emma backed out of the driveway and started driving down the street, heading towards the destination Mel had provided her with. As she sat there, Darren looked out the window, watching people do yard work or play with their kids, all while she sat and stewed in her own disgust. "You know," he said, "We could stop and get something else, if you wanna get her something more personal, like, from you. You're the one who works with her after all." "No, I'm sure whatever you picked up will be fine," Emma said, trying not to sound enraged, "It's not often you get to celebrate someone's birthday, right? I mean, with us not having children, this will be sort of like a stand in, won't it?" "Whoa, ouch," Darren said, "That's, uh, kinda harsh." "I'm sorry," Emma mumbled, "You're right, it was. I'm sorry." She didn't speak the rest of the drive there. *** "And what'll you have to drink?" the teenage waitress asked as the gang got comfortable in their seats. "Uh, something non alcoholic for me, please," Gus said. "Are you sure about that? You do know where you are, right? You're gonna want alcohol," she replied, making Gus chuckle. "I appreciate your candor, but trust me, I'm trying to stay sober, so." "Fair enough," she said, "And I'll just bring you guys some menus while you figure out what you want." She turned and left, leaving the group to look around while seated. Bea couldn't help but notice that Melanie was giddy, like a child, and she found it endearing. Gus sighed and leaned back in his chair, rubbing his forehead. "She's right, I am gonna want alcohol, but I know not to have it," Gus said, "I'm gonna stick to my guns." "And we're all very proud of you," Bea said, leaning in and kissing his cheek. The lights went down and a sudden blast of fanfare filled the restaurant, trumpets swelling, deafening the patrons. Gus put his hands over his ears, but Melanie was bouncing up and down, pointing at the enclosed dirt arena in the center of the restaurant. Bea and Gus leaned over the balcony and looked down with her. This, they admitted, they hadn't expected. Live entertainment? "What is this?" Gus asked, finally uncovering his ears as the music died down. "It's jousting!" Melanie said, "Didn't you wonder why the place was called what it is?" "I...I guess it never occurred to me that it was literal," Gus said, "So...so they just have people joust?" "Anyone can joust! Not just professionals! It's fun to watch people get their aggression out towards their family members or friends, especially when they don't know exactly what they're doing, but don't worry, nobody ever winds up seriously injured." "Darn," Gus said, making Bea laugh. "Gus?" a voice asked, making them all turn and see Chiako and Jeremy standing there. Chiako smiled at him as he stood up to hug her, and shake Jeremy's hand. "What are you two doing here?" Gus asked. "Just having lunch. Jeremy came here years ago with his dad, and he wanted to show me how ridiculous it was," Chiako said, waving politely at Bea over Gus's shoulder as she spoke; she cleared her throat and crossed her arms, "And you?" "We're here for a birthday party," Gus said, jerking his thumb over his shoulder towards Melanie, "For my honorary child." "Do you mind if we join you?" Chiako asked. "No, not at all, pull up some thrones," Gus replied, making Jeremy smirk. Jeremy and Chiako pulled up some seats and huddled around the table, as Melanie and Bea continued to ignore them, watching the jousting over the railing. Gus couldn't shake this funny feeling he had in the pit of his stomach, try as he might, and sitting here beside the woman he once called his wife and the woman he now called his girlfriend, he felt pulled between two totally different worlds. He watched as Jeremy laced his fingers with Chiako's and felt an anger burn inside of him, for reasons he didn't even understand. So instead, to ignore it, Gus watched Melanie, and decided to focus on what was important today, not what was important years ago. About 10 minutes later, Emma and Darren arrived as well, and since their waitress had forgotten to take their drink orders when she came back with the menus, Emma took it upon herself to go get them drinks at the bar. As she approached, she tapped her nails on the bar top and waited for the bartender to pay her mind. She glanced beside her and noticed Shane standing there, nursing a beer. "Hey," she said, smiling, "What are you doing here?" "...it's my sisters birthday?" "Well, obviously, but I mean why aren't you, you know, up there with everyone else?" she asked. "I don't know, I'm not a very social person," Shane said, "...and it's weird, honestly, seeing my sister have friends. She's never had friends, so it's...it's kind of tough to get used to. I spent my entire adolescence after dad died protecting her, so to know that she no longer really needs me, I guess it makes me feel sort of useless." Emma smiled, touching his arm, "You're not useless, trust me." "Thanks," Shane said, forcing himself to smile back, "I appreciate that." "Come back with me, you can pretend you just got here," Emma said, "It'll be less weird than if you come alone." "Fair enough." Emma dragged Shane back to the table, to find the waitress had left a handful of appetizers for everyone. As everyone started eating, Jeremy looked at Gus and cleared his throat. "So, what do you do, exactly?" Jeremy asked. "Right now? Absolutely nothing," Gus replied, "But I'm hoping to change that soon enough." "You looking for work?" Chiako asked, and Gus nodded. "Yeah, but something not too hardcore," Gus said, "Something manageable, enjoyable, you know. Something I wouldn't have to give too much effort to. It's a shame video rental stores no longer exist, because that's the level of employment I was designed for." "What about something wherein you give something back to the community?" Jeremy asked. "Why? What has the community ever done for me?" Gus asked, making him and Bea laugh. "Seems sort of selfish to exist without doing something in return, is all," Jeremy said. Gus furrowed his brow and stood up, excusing himself to go to the bathroom. Jeremy quietly followed. Bea watched them walk off, but turned to face Melanie instead, trying to focus on the positive. Melanie felt a tap on her shoulder, and turned to Darren, who handed her a small gift wrapped package. "This is from Emma and I," he said, "Happy birthday." "Thank you," Melanie said happily, taking the box and setting it in her lap, turning her attention back to the jousters as Darren scooted his seat up beside hers and watched with her. "So is jousting dangerous?" he asked. "Extremely," Bea said. "You know?" "I do it, yes," Bea said, "I play The Black Knight at the local ren faire every year, and let me tell you, it's....it's not the safest sport in the world." "You guys, shut up, we're missing the carnage!" Melanie said, making them both laugh. Gus, meanwhile, was exiting the bathroom only to find Jeremy waiting for him. Gus sighed and rolled his eyes as he adjusted his glasses and kept on walking, heading back to the table, Jeremy now on his heels. "So I overheard Leaf talking with her mom about the conversation you two had," Jeremy said, "About whether she's happy or not." "I'm not allowed to ask after my own ex-wife's happiness?" Gus asked. "Nothing against that, no, it's nice," Jeremy said, "But both ladies think you still care about her." "I'm always going to care about her, in one way or another, she's the mother of my child." "Fair, sure, nobody would blame you for that." "The hell's your problem with me?" Gus asked, startling Jeremy with his abrasiveness, adding, "I've gone out of my way to be polite to you, where's this coming from? What, you feel threatened or something? You know I have a girlfriend, right? I'm not interested in getting back together with Chiako, and I think she's made it more than clear that she's not interested either." "...you say that, but your tone doesn't match your words. Prove yourself. Beat me and I'll let it go. If you can beat me, then I'll believe you're really over her." "Beat you at what?" Gus asked, confused, making Jeremy point to the jousting ring. Back at the table, Shane scratched the back of his head as Emma sighed, elbow posted up on the table, chin resting on her fist. He scooted closer to her and tapped her knee, catching her attention. "Your boyfriend and my sister are pretty chummy," Shane said. "He's a nice guy, and he cares about her," Emma said, "I think he kind of sees her as a surrogate daughter. He wants to have kids, I don't, so he takes his blessings where he can get them." "You don't want kids? I don't either. I don't think I'd be a very good dad," Shane said, "Losing your own father makes you kind of question your abilities to child rear. I mean, how can I know if I'm doing a good job if I had nobody to really set an example for me when I was a child myself, you know? I mean, dad didn't die when I was super young or anything, but even still." "The thing is, Darren and I have been together for a very long time, and...and I'm just starting to worry that perhaps this...isn't supposed to last. We seem to want different things." "That happens, sad but true," Shane replied, "Some couples who start out super strong, who you'd think would survive anything and everything, just drift apart because what they want from their future differs too greatly from what their partner wants. At least you can acknowledge it. My ex girlfriend refused to. Stalked me for months. Wreaked so much havoc in my personal life, all because I didn't want what she wanted. At least you two seem amicable." "...I guess we kind of are, yeah," Emma said, realizing she hadn't noticed just how open she and Darren really were with one another until just now, "Like, even at my angriest, we still talk, and we try not to have it devolve into outright fighting. We try and approach everything as adults, but..." Shane cocked his head, waiting for her to finish. Emma's voice quivered, as tears formed in her eyes. "...I spend so much time around children, that even the adults I surround myself with start to seem like kids," she whispered, "I just miss feeling like a young adult, and not feeling like an old woman already." "You're not an old woman, Em," Shane said, chuckling, "Trust me." She smiled at him as he wiped her tears away, just as Gus and Jeremy approached the table. "Alright, get ready for a rumble in medieval times!" Gus shouted, picking up his soda and finishing it in one fell swoop, slamming the glass back down on the table, "Jeremy and I are jousting!" "I put my cigarette butts in that mug," Bea said, as Gus pointed at her. "Indeed you did," he said, sounding pained. Melanie and Gus stood up and walked with Gus, as they headed down to the floor level, where people signed up for their chance to joust. "You don't know what you're doing," Melanie said, "You could get hurt!" "I've done this once before, thank you," Gus replied. "Yeah, and look how that turned out," Bea said, "I mean sure, now you sleep with me, but I impaled your arm." "Totally worth it, by the way," Gus said, making her laugh. "Why are you doing this?!" Melanie cried, sounding scared now, "Why would you risk yourself on my birthday?" "I..." Gus started, and stopped, then opened his mouth and whispered to her, "...I need to prove something to myself, and to that asshole my ex wife is dating." Bea had turned to light another cigarette, and was not listening to their hushed conversation. Melanie turned and looked at her, then looked back at Gus as he wrote his name down on the pad, along with Jeremy's name, for their battle. "Are you still in love with your ex?" Melanie asked. "No, of course not, but I'd like him to leave me alone," Gus said. "And fighting him will prove that?" "I...I don't know." "Gus-" "Mel, listen to me, okay, I love Bea, but I think someone needs to hand this guy his ass on a platter. He seems...very...controlling. I just...I need to make sure that he knows that if he ever does anything to hurt her, he'll have to face me," Gus said. "Admirable," Melanie said, nodding, "But you're not a very good athlete, no offense." "None taken. Thankfully the horse does most of the work," Gus said. As Melanie and Bea took their seats back at the table, Gus and Jeremy were standing in the hall to the arena, awaiting their horses and weapons. Gus, though he wouldn't admit it outright, was terrified. Why exactly was he doing this? Sure, his reasoning was true, he wanted to protect his ex from anyone who might do her harm, partially because he himself had done her harm and he felt awful about it, but was that the only reason? Was there some truth to what Jeremy had said? As Gus glanced up through the grate and saw Bea leaning over the rail, looking for him, he couldn't help but think that he was past his ex, and that he had someone new now. But this decision to fight Jeremy in the arena was only making that assumption all the more transparent. "Look, I don't want to hurt you," Jeremy said. "Could've fooled me." "But I want you to know that I'm the one she's with now, and that it's your turn to move on," Jeremy said. "I already moved on, asshole," Gus muttered. The doors opened, and the men walked into the arena towards their respective horses. Bea put her fingers in her mouth and whistled for Gus, making him cheer up just a bit. Melanie too hooted and hollered for her best friend. As Gus climbed onto his horse, he felt himself shaking, nervous, until the waitress from before handed him his lance. "You do too much around here," he said. "You don't know the half of it," she remarked, "Good luck." "Don't need it, never had it," Gus said. "That's the spirit," she replied, heading back to the restaurant proper. A voice came over the loudspeaker, announcing the next challengers, and a cheer erupted from the crowd. Everyone from the table gathered around the rail to watch, except Chiako, who was in utter disbelief that this was happening at all. Gus shut his eyes and then remembered that was his biggest folly the last time he did this, so he forced himself to keep them open, despite the fear and adrenaline rushing through his body. "What if he dies?" Melanie whispered, and Bea shrugged. "Then I guess we should've gotten married so I'd get his insurance payout," she said, smirking and tapping her shoulder, "He's gonna be fine, girl. Don't worry." A gunshot rang out in the air and the horses were off, hurdling themselves towards one another, and it was only on the drive home, as Gus appreciated his victory, did it begin to dawn on Bea that perhaps what she'd said about marriage hadn't in fact been a joke after all. *** Standing outside the restaurant as the night wound down, while Gus was celebrating his victory with Bea inside, and Chiako and Jeremy had left in embarrassment, Melanie couldn't help but feel annoyed. She'd been texting Lisa all day, and still had no response. She heard the doors swing open, and could feel the heat emenating from indoors as Shane came out beside her. "Wow," he said, "It gets wild in there." "Yeah," Mel said, smiling, "Thanks for coming." "Yeah, it was no problem. Sorry I didn't have a gift, I did buy you something but I forgot it as I was leaving. I'll bring it to you sometime tomorrow." "It's okay," Melanie said, as she sat down on a bench near the front, "...can I ask you a question?" "Of course." "...you'd love me no matter what, right?" "I think that's been proven," Shane said, making her laugh. "Yeah but, I mean, even if I...eve if I were totally unstable and...and I..." But she couldn't bring herself to say it. Shane rubbed her back, and she just rested her head on his shoulders. "I haven't been taking my medication the last few weeks, and I think that's a bad decision. I'm going to start again," she said, "I stopped because this girl I met in group therapy told me that the way I perceived the world wasn't wrong, but...even if that's true, which I do believe it is somewhat, I can't help but feel like I need some assistance, and that assistance is what the medication provides me with." "I'm proud you, you know that right? You've come so far. Dad would be so proud of you too," Shane said. "Hey," a voice said, as they both looked to see Lisa standing in front of them. "Where have you been?" Mel asked, sounding annoyed, "I've been texting you ALL day." "You know this woman?" Shane asked, standing up and putting himself between the two of them, as he added, "What are you doing here?" "I came to see you," Lisa said, "Both of you. To apologize, for one, to Melanie, for leading her on, but I had to get back in touch with you one way or another. You wouldn't answer my calls, my e-mails, nothing. I need to talk to you." "We have nothing to talk about," Shane said through gritted teeth, "And the fact that you'd stoop so low as to stalk my sister and pretend to befriend her is just downright disgusting." "What...what's going on? What are you talking about?" Melanie asked. "This is my ex girlfriend," Shane said, "She's been stalking me for months. I guess it only makes sense that she'd eventually find another way in via someone else related to me." "You told me you cared about me," Mel said, standing up now, pushing herself in front of Shane, adding, "You told me....that...that I wasn't crazy. You made me think someone could love me. And it was all so you could get back in touch with my brother?" "It was underhanded, I recognize that, but-" "No. You're banished from our kingdom," Melanie said, a rage building inside of her, "Now get out of here before I call my friends. I never want to see you again, and I'm certain Shane feels the same way." Lisa stood, glaring at them both, before turning and exiting. Shane put his hand on Melanie's shoulder and patted it. "Are you okay?" he asked softly. "...take me home." *** Bea entered the bedroom to see Gus sitting against the headboard, reading a book, eating a bag of chips with dip. She toweled off her hair and walked across the room, seating herself on the end of the bed, looking at him. "Interesting night," Gus said, mouthful of chips and dip, "And now you get to sleep with the winner." "Hah, yeah," Bea replied, "...why did you do what you did?" "Because I don't like the guy, and the guy clearly doesn't like me, and even if we're not married anymore I have to protect the woman who birthed my daughter," Gus said, "Why do you ask?" "You don't still love her, do you?" "We slept together one time, but that was before you and I really started dating, but even then it was...it wasn't anything special. It was just something familiar and comforting. Yes, I still love her, in the way you love an estranged aunt or a cousin twice removed. She'll always have a place in my heart and my life because of the person we created together, but romantically? No." "Are you sure of that?" "What's with you?" "I just...I was cheated on, before I met you, and...and I guess I'm just scared it might happen again. I can't go through that kind of pain again, I just can't, so I need to make sure that-" Gus crawled across the bed, grabbed her shoulders and kissed her, taking her by surprise. "You don't have anything to worry about," he said, "Seriously." Bea smiled and rested her head on his chest, her mind at ease. *** In the car on the way home, Mel was fidgeting with the gift Darren had given her while Shane drove. He glanced over and watched her undo the bow and ribbons that wrapped around it, until she opened the box proper and pulled out a snowglobe with a castle inside of it. "Who's that from?" he asked. "My friend Darren," she said, reading the card, "He's a good guy." She couldn't help but notice that Emma's name was absent from the card. After saying goodnight to her brother, Melanie headed upstairs to her apartment and unlocked the door, walking inside. She turned the lights on, and turned around only to see Lisa standing in her living room. "What are you doing in here?!" she asked, "How did you even get in?!" "You're gonna wanna sit down, your highness," Lisa said, pulling a small flip knife from her pocket, "We need to have a long talk."
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
About
Royally Screwed follows 24 year old Melanie Irres, an average young woman...who legitimately believes she's a princess. Archives
July 2023
|