Incandescent

Damian

I’m done. I’m done with the likes of Lynette Fields, I thought to myself as I pondered over my wedding ring. The unforgiving claws of depression were tearing their way through my heart. And I’m beginning to wonder why I married such a heartless woman in the first place. All for the sake of love. If Dave were to hear those words leave my lips he’d laugh his ass off and it wouldn’t be a normal laugh—no—that’s not Dave’s style. He believes it’s his God given right to let you know how stupid you sound and you can bet your sorry ass he’ll never let you live it down.

I stared at my ring with a heavy heart. This is supposed to be a symbol of our love and devotion Lynette. Maybe I was the only one that felt that way. A pang of pain blossomed in my chest as I clumsily slid the ring off my finger. I sucked in a breath when I got a glimpse of our wedding date. I had to blink away tears as I tossed the ring into my shot glass, watching it sink to the bottom like the last 6 years of my life. “For fuck sakes.” I cursed when a tear escaped my eye. Six years, Lynette. Six. That’s more than most people could ever dream of. I dedicated everything I had to that woman and for her to betray me like this is....brutal. I had planned to make today a day she’d never forget—it’s our sixth wedding anniversary after all—I’ve been planning this for months. I even took a half day to spend it with her and what I got in return was her in our bed with my business partner, Felix.....and our doorman, Roger. The memory of the whole ordeal still plagued my brain like an annoying song.

Now that I’m being honest with myself...I'm not that surprised she cheated. I mean, she did it twice in high school. But am I not good enough to be committed to, Lynette? What have I done to deserve this? Was I not up to your standards in bed? If I wasn’t, I’m your husband! Tell me! The Lord knows I’d bend over backwards to be better.

“Trouble in paradise?" Asked a deep voice from behind. I looked over my shoulder at my best friend since diapers, David Grimes. I sighed. Dave, I was hoping you’d be held up at work tonight. I’m not ready to be mocked. He sat beside me with that bright smile of his that could easily get me out of a bad mood but sadly, it wasn’t working tonight.

“You can say that,” I said with a sigh. He scanned the bar for loose women before turning his attention back to me. His deep brown eyes studied me with a smug look.

“Interesting.” He whispered. Dave could read me like a book, it’s only a matter of time before something clicks in that gigantic head. “Very interesting.”

I frowned. “What?" I questioned.

"I'm going to make one wild guess," he said, "You caught Lynette fucking another man, didn’t you?" He asked with a loud clap. I groaned at my ringing ear and bashed in self-esteem.

"Two guys," I corrected in a whisper.

"What?"

"Two guys," I repeated a little louder.

"What! Dame, quit mumbling."

"Two men! Two men! Lynette fucked two men!" I yelled and slammed my hands on the counter. “I came home early to surprise Lynette for our anniversary and what I found was her fucking Felix and the fucking doorman."

"Damn.....at the same time?" He questioned with a pitiful look that made my stomach turn. I massaged the bridge of my nose.

"Yes." I gritted through my teeth.

"You're not planning on taking her back, are you?" He asked cautiously. I shook my head as I took the ring out of my glass and threw it over my shoulder. I’m already regretting that. I should get it before someone takes it—you know what? No. It can stay there for all I care. Fuck the ring and fuck Lynette. I grabbed my drink and chugged it down.

“Ah!” I exhaled when it hit my throat. Dave placed a hand on my shoulder and gave it a small squeeze.

"Good riddance." He said. I frowned. “I never liked her anyway. Bartender, two whiskeys please!" I stared at Dave’s long face. He looked over the moon. The lights of the bar reflected against his dark skin. Dave’s an attorney and a hell of a good one. He was dressed in a black suit, maroon tie and his favourite black trench coat.

“I take it you're glad I'm finally getting her out of my life?” I asked like I didn’t already know his answer. He looked at me with a sly grin.

"What would make me happier is seeing you sign divorce papers which...I have." He announced. Oh Lord. Dave reached into his briefcase for said papers along with a pen decorated with his law firm’s information and slid them in front of me with a dumb look on his face. With a breathy sigh, I signed. He took the papers and put them back into his briefcase. “Now, I'm elated and Rosie will be too when I tell her tomorrow." He said, grinning.

Ain’t that the truth. My mother hated Lynette since the day they met and then there’s Blake, my stepfather, he swore he caught Lynette flirting with the gardener. The bartender poured two glasses of whiskey in front of us before sliding them to us. “To a happy, single and Lynette-free life," Dave said.

“Whoopee,” I said sarcastically. We raised our glasses and took a sip.

“Ah!” We exhaled. We sat in silence watching people moving to and from the bar. A pretty brunette caught my attention when she walked through the entrance. I sighed and looked at my glass. Lynette was a brunette—wait a minute. “How the hell am I going to get Lynette to sign divorce papers?” I asked and looked at David, who was gawking at the same brunette.

“I got that covered.” He said with a smile. I narrowed my eyes. Sounds dodgy.

“How?”

“You remember when I asked you and Lynette to be witnesses for Mario’s will?” He questioned. Vaguely, yes. I nodded. “Well, those were fake." He grinned. “I made the first two pages look like a will then I hid the prenup beneath and you dumbfucks signed it without hesitation.”

"Maybe because we trusted you," I stated. “Hey, isn’t that illegal?”

"Aw…don't. And yes it is but I’d gladly risk my career for you, Dame." He said, smiling. “You’re my brother.” I didn’t have the energy to hide my smile. Yes, we are. We use to tell everyone at school we were brothers but of course, no one believed us because of us being different races but we didn’t care, our explanation was that I was cooked and Dave was deep-fried. You should have seen the looks on their faces, it was hilarious.

I blinked at him and turned to my glass. I took a sip and smiled. It fell instantaneously. Now, I'm going to be stuck with an apartment filled with bitter-sweet memories. Fuck my life.

“Jeez, you're welcome!" He exclaimed.

"Th-thank you. You're a good friend." I said. A dodgy one but good.

He gave me a satisfactory smile, ruffling my hair. “Trust me, I know.” He said cockily. I slapped his hand away and we laughed it off.

It was almost 1 am and my head is spinning. I bit down on a lemon slice and shuddered. “Dame,” Dave called. I looked over my shoulder at Dave and almost fell off my stool, “this is Becca.” He said with a cute brunette under his arm. Becca is Asian with long legs and her short hair was reflecting the bar’s lights. She wore a tight red number that left nothing to the imagination.

“Damian,” I said, offering her a hand. She took it with a smile.

“So….David tells me you’re in real estate,” Becca said as she took Dave’s seat when he offered. David smiled mischievously as he slowly backed away into the crowd behind us.

“Yeah….w-would you like a drink?” I asked. She beamed at me.

“Yes please!" She replied. “Tequila Sunrise please."

"Alright," I said and gave the bartender a nod. We sat in silence while her drink was being made, neither of us knew how to start a conversation and I can’t say I was particularly bothered by the silence but I couldn’t shake the feeling I was being rude. I looked at her and she smiled at me. I flashed an awkward smile and looked at my glass. I should say something shouldn’t I? Hmph. Damn, was I always this awkward around women? Fuck, I’m a loser.

“You're quiet. What's up with you?" She asked. I looked at her coyly. She twirled her straw around her drink and took a sip.

I smiled absentmindedly, shrugging. “Thanks for the concern but I don't wanna burden you with my problems besides...I don’t know you."

"I can fix that. I am Becca Kang, I’ve been a partner at David’s firm for a few years and I'm recently divorced.” She informed. “Now spill!" She said, resting her cheek on my shoulder, pouting. I felt my body tensed under her touch.

I chugged my last shot to relax my nerves and told her about my unfaithful wife. She listened and here and there she’d rest her hand on my thigh to squeeze it. “We have cheating spouses in common. My ex-husband, Greg, cheated on me with my younger sister.” She confessed.

“Whoa. What the f—you’re joking.” I said in disbelief. She shook her head.

“I’m serious and there’s more....she’s pregnant.”

“That’s fucked up,” I told her.

“Yeah but I’m over it….they’re dead to me etc. Life goes on.” She said and drank the last of her drink. “I'm going to the bathroom, I'll be right back." She said and walked off. I watched as she disappeared into the crowd before ordering a bottle of water.

“Well, that was pitiful," David said, scaring the shit out of me. He sat beside me, shaking his head. “I don't know if you're blind—wait...you are but whatever, she wants you."

"Who Becca? No, no way she's being nice—ow!" I exclaimed when he backhanded me across my head. "What was that for!"

"Did it hurt?" He asked.

"No shit!" I exclaimed, rubbing my head.

"Good. You need to get off your sorry ass and have some fun. I lost you too early, Dame—this is the first time in years you've been single and I don’t want you moping around because of Lynette," he said, “try ‘no strings’ for a change."

"Dave, you know that's not my thing—"

"At least try.... to ease some of the pain." He said. I hate the idea of making lo—having sex with strangers but it sure as hell beats going back home to all those memories.

"Aw, what the hell? I'll try it this once." I stated, pointing at his chest.

"Yay!" He blurted out like a child. I chuckled.

"Hi, again David," Becca said from behind. David smiled at her.“I'm going to head home. It's been nice meeting you, Damian—"

"Ahem!" David exclaimed loudly, I looked at David who nodded ever so discretely at Becca.

"Um—can I walk you out?" I asked.

Becca smiled. “Sure." She replied. I slid off my stool and gestured her to go ahead of me. I was about to follow her out when Dave grabbed my arm and pulled me towards him.

"Rule number one: don't fall in love," he whispered. Huh? Who the hell falls in love after having a one night stand? Does that happen? Ah shit, I can't handle another heartbreak. Oh, Lynette, why did you have to be unfaithful? We could be in bed watching soap operas with your lavender-scented hair in my face. Damn it! Damian stop thinking about her! But I love her. Shut the fuck up, you backboneless baboon. Shit, David knows I'm thinking about Lynette. Think fast.

"Noted," I said.

Dave smiled as he tousled my hair and undid the top buttons of my shirt. “I love you and stay safe and I expect details in the morning.” He said.

“Ok, mom.” I teased.

“Fuck you.” He sang. We laughed. “Have fun.”

“Thanks,” I said. We did a quick version of our handshake before I ran off to catch up with Becca. I met her at the door. Once we were outside she turned to me.

“Wow, I’m just realizing how tall you are. My car is this way.” She said.

“Yeah, I have my dad to thank for that.”

“How tall was he?” She asked.

“Um...I’m 6 foot 6 and he’s two inches taller I believe.” I replied.

“Whoa. Did either of you play basketball by any chance?”

“Naw, dad loved his hockey. He played professionally until a brain tumour killed him when I was 7.” I stated. She gasped.

“I’m so sorry.”

“Don’t be,” I told her, shrugging it off.

“This is me.” She said, stopping in front of a red Hyundai.

“Nice car.”

“Thanks.” She said, looking at her car. A gush of wind blew her hair into her face. “Um...eer...would you mind joining me for coffee at my place?”

“I’d love to,” I replied. “I’ll get my car and I’ll follow you.”

“Ok.”

Her studio apartment was a 20-minute drive from the bar. Becca opened the door and let me go first before she turned on the lights and shut the door behind us. “You can make yourself at home.” She said, walking to the kitchen. The walls were bricked and the floor was engineered wood. The stainless steel kitchen is to the left and the living room is to the right. There’s a large bricked wall further down which hid the bedroom. I looked over to the closest leather couch and sat down. She has a small tv propped up on a large, wooden table surrounded by her framed degrees. “Here you go.” She said, handing me a minion mug. She placed cream and three cubes of sugar on a saucer on the glass coffee table.

“Thanks,” I said. She smiled and walked away. I watched her disappear behind the wall. Her hips had a nice swing to them. I threw a cube of sugar into my coffee and a hint of cream. She came back twenty minutes later freshly showered. She’s wearing a black oversized shirt. Her hair was dripping wet and framing her face.

She sat beside me with her legs folded beneath her. Her sweet shower gel teased my nose. She ran her hands through her hair before pulling the shirt over her exposed yellow panties. She looked over at me. “Sorry I took so long...I didn’t want to keep those clothes on.” She said and rubbed her thighs until the hem of her shirt roll to her hips. I think that’s a hint. I don’t fucking know, Lynette always grabbed my crotch when she was ready but how do I tell with Becca? I looked at her. She was staring back, playing with her hair. Fuck it, I’m taking it as a sign.

“It’s no problem,” I assured her, taking a long sip of my coffee before putting my mug down. Slowly, I leaned in and kissed her. She cupped my face, kissing back. Kissing Becca felt foreign. I felt no connection....nothing. Is this the upside of casual sex? If it is, it’s wack. Nothing beats connecting with your partner. I was about to pull away but she crawled on top of me and straddled my lap. She then took off my glasses and putting them on the coffee table.

“Wow, you have crazy beautiful eyes.” She said, running her hands through my hair.

“Thank you.... they are almost useless without my glasses,” I said jokingly.

“You can’t see?”

“I can but things far away get fuzzy,” I stated.

“Oh.”

“Yeah,” I said before pulling her to meet my lips. We kissed. I let her tongue dart around my mouth while I lightly squeezed her ass. She moaned. She pulled my jacket off my shoulders. I shrugged it off and tossed it across the room. I stood up with her in my arms. The kiss became hungry as I walked behind the wall. I laid her on the bed and she sat up to help me with my shirt. She was about to undo my belt when I stopped her.

“What’s wrong?” She asked breathlessly.

“I didn’t bring any condoms.”

“Don’t worry, there’s some on my bedside table.” She stated, kissing my chest. I shivered when she ran her fingers down my spine.

“Size?”

“All sizes.” She replied. How many guys have you—you know what—that’s none of my business. Whoopee, I guess.