Chpt6

“ I can’t believe you guys are making me take you here.” Melissa said as she and her two best friends Rhonda and Katrina walked into Tabu, the club that Howie owned in Orlando. Even though it had been several months since the night they had spent together, it still hurt her to think about how he had hurt her. For weeks she waited for the phone to ring, the mailman to bring her a letter, or the familiar AOL voice to proclaim that she had any news from Howie. It had now been months since she left his condo and she was beginning to deal with the fact that he had only used her for that one night.
“Oh come on Miss, it’ll be fun… it sounds like a great club…and…” Rhonda said as she smiled devilishly at Katrina. “ Well, it’s always a possibility that any one of five certain guys might show up.” The two smiled at each other as they dreamed of the other four Backstreet Boys. They had been waiting for years for any opportunity to meet them and they didn’t want to leave Orlando without going to one of their clubs. “ Plus Miss, you need to face your problem with Howie. Hopefully he won’t even be there and you don’t have to worry about seeing his sorry ass, but on the chance that he is there, you have to remember you are a wonderful person and you don’t need him. He’s stupid for not contacting you, I mean, you even gave him all your information, like ALL your info.” Rhonda said reassuringly. “ Yeah, screw him.” Katrina said. “ We are going to have a great time tonight. Plus, you live in Orlando now, you can’t hide from him forever.” “ And above all, it’s your 22nd birthday! We’re here to celebrate!” Rhonda exclaimed. Melissa knew that Katrina was right. She had been living in Orlando for months now and did need to get out and enjoy herself, especially on her birthday. Plus she only had another week with her friends who were visiting and she needed to show them a good time, no matter how scared she was of who might be inside that club. She had to admit to herself that even though she was scared, she was somewhat excited. Even though he had hurt her, she still cared about him deeply and hoped deep down that they could work it out and be together. She knew this was absurd and she shouldn’t even think it because he was such an asshole, but the thought of him, his touch, his lips, the way he made love to her, just would not leave her mind.
They entered the club, Rhonda and Katrina leading the way. The music pounded in their heads and the lights flashed in their faces as they walked through the door. The bouncer checked their ID’s and they fought their way through the crowded room to the bar. Immediately Rhonda and Katrina started to look around for any sight of a Backstreet Boy. “ I think we should go dance. I love this song and I need to find AJ!” Rhonda screamed, her voice trying to rise above “Peaches and Cream” which was playing loudly on the sound system. “Maybe I’ll just stay here, maybe have a drink…” Melissa said, her voice trailing off as she scanned the room for Howie. “ Well OK, for now.” Katrina said. “ But we’ll be back to get you later, maybe you’ll be in a better mood after you’ve had a few drinks.” “CMON!” Rhonda yelled, already dancing to the beat of the music. She took Katrina’s hand and dragged her onto the dance floor.
“ Ola, my beautiful flower, what can I get you on this marvelous night?” the bartender looked down at Melissa, who’s head was turned, still looking for Howie. She turned and almost laughed out loud at the outfit the bartender was wearing. He was handsome, with dark hair and a dark complexion, but he was wearing a purple silk shirt and tight black pants and his nametag read “ Fredrico.” “ How appropriate” Melissa thought to herself. “ A Long Island Iced Tea would be just fine, thanks.” She said before turning her head once more. He set down the drink and stared at her for a moment. “ Looking for someone?” he asked. “ Oh, I’m sorry, no I’m not. How much will that be?” she replied. “ Well, for such a beautiful lady I would normally not charge, but since the boss is here tonight, I must. It will be four dollars.” Fredrico said in his sexy Spanish accent. Melissa felt her heart drop to her stomach. “ He’s here?” she thought to herself.

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      “Baby, you aren’t paying any attention to me tonight… I even wore my tight purple leather mini skirt tonight, just for you.” Jennifer said into Howie’s ear, letting her tongue brush up against his ear as she finished her sentence. He and Jennifer had only been dating each other for a few weeks, but she had grown quite attached to Howie, especially his money and the lifestyle that came along with dating a member of the most successful pop group in the world. She knew that he would be the perfect target; he was naturally sweet and would never expect someone to only want him for his money. She did everything to hold on to him, at least until she got what she wanted.
       Howie was unaffected by her attempt to gain his attention. The club was so crowded tonight and he needed to keep an eye on it. Tabu was his baby, his first business venture that he really enjoyed. Yet something was on his mind tonight, and it wasn’t about the club, or Jennifer. Tonight was Melissa’s birthday. He couldn’t believe he allowed himself to remember it. A part of him kept reminding him that she left him, without even saying goodbye or leaving any part of her behind. She took his heart when she left that day and that same part of him was still furious at that. Yet, he also could not forget that night. It was magical and an experience that was hard to forget. He never had fell that quickly in love with someone before, nor had he ever felt that strong of a connection. He didn’t know why, but he thought that maybe tonight would be the night that she would walk into the club and walk back into his life. He hoped that she had accepted the job in Orlando and decided to go out and celebrate for her birthday. He knew that her and her friends were very close so they would probably be in town to celebrate with her, and he knew how much they loved his group. Now his mind was wondering. “ Back to the club” he thought. “She left and obviously doesn’t care, and even if she was here, what the hell would I do?” he contemplated before he jumped, feeling Jennifer’s tongue swirling around his neck. He closed his eyes and surprisingly began to dream of Melissa and how her warm tongue had felt on his skin. He leaned closer to Jennifer’s face, still thinking of Melissa and began to passionately kiss her lips.
         Melissa followed Fredrico’s eyes to the corner of the club. Tears began to fill her eyes as she saw Howie passionately making out with Jennifer. Her heart sank even lower. Fredrico saw her lose color in her face. “ Is something wrong darling?” he asked. “ I… here’s five dollars… thanks for the drink.” She said. “But wait, I didn’t upset you did I?” Fredrico asked as he grabbed onto her arm, preventing her from running away.
        Howie jumped as he felt Jennifer slide her hand into his pocket of his leather pants and remove his wallet. “ What are you doing?” he asked. “ I just need some funds for my shopping tomorrow with the girls.” She said, removing a few one hundreds from his wallet before placing it back in his pants. He turned his attention back to the crowd and realized that the person he was dreaming of and the reality of his life were quite different. His eyes wondered over to the bar where he saw Fredrico grabbing the arm of a lady. He rose from his booth in the corner and started to walk over to the bar to reprimand him. “ Howie, c’mon, I wanna dance!” Jennifer whined as Howie walked away.