2: Two

Two

The Previous Night - Charlottesville

 

“So are you gonna take advantage of it?”

Two men in khaki shorts, blue short-sleeved shirts, and blue, orange, and white “UVA Republicans” hats exited a blue BMW sedan in front of the five-bedroom house in the middle of a Charlottesville forest. It was 11:00pm, and they were an hour late to a party in their honor, but they paid it no mind. Being the VIPs, they knew the party wouldn’t officially begin until they arrived.

“What the f**k else do you expect, Chad,” the taller, leaner one replied, grabbing a bottle of liquor out of the car as Chad chuckled.

“Man, if my dad were your dad, I’d be raking in all the endorsements, gifts, job offers, and p***y I can.”

“If your dad were my dad, you’d have a lot more to worry about. I’m about to be under a magnifying glass. I gotta walk on a damn moral tightrope,” the other gentleman

“S**t, you’re right,” Chad replied, walking across the rocky driveway/parking lot. “So you’re not gonna be the same Barry as usual?”

“Nope,” Barry replied. “This whole year’s gonna f*****g suck.”

They walked onto the porch slowly, eavesdropping the commotion inside the house, which was pointless. Not a sound was made.

“But tonight will make up for all of that.”

Barry opened the door and lightly stepped into the completely blacked-out house. Within five seconds, the house lit up, crowded with college-aged adults in shirts adorned with the phrase “Run Kimsey Run!”, his slogan for the student organization campaign in which he was the only candidate.

As the lights turned on, in different shades of orange, yellow, and blue appeared on the walls of the hidden mansion. Bottles topped with fireworks appeared out of the blue, and six women, dressed as Playboy bunnies with bunny ears adorned on their heads and furry cotton-ball tails wrapped around their waists, walked slowly and seductively to congratulate President Barry Kimsey, the new leader of the University of Virginia Student Republicans.

“Hail to the Chief” began playing, shaking up the entire house as Barry advanced to a small gathering of friends across the living room. The group hugged him excitedly, jumping and placing a plastic crown on his head. The president was king.

The American hymn quickly faded as “My N***a” by Y.G. boomed through the speakers towards the virtually white audience. 

Barry and Chad gleefully smiled at each other as a tall, lean man in khaki shorts walked up to Barry with a “pimp cup” bearing his name. Barry drunk the vodka-filled cup, to which the crowd cheered.

The party continued for an hour as various people congratulated Barry on the victory practically handed to him. Some shook his hand, some took selfies, and some of the “bunnies” gave him pecks on the cheek. A dozen bottles of Barry’s favorite vodka were downed, and some of those who were the most lively when the party began were now laid out in a spare bedroom designated as the “Drunk Tank”. Everyone conscious was having a good time, except one girl who looked cautious as she tried to enter the party late and alone.

“I.D.?” the bouncer requested.

“Oh,” the girl said, pulling out her driver’s license. “Here.”

The bouncer reviewed the identification carefully.

“’Sophia Nguyen’. You’re 20?” He asked.

“Um, yeah,” the girl answered truthfully as the bouncer stared at her. “But I won’t drink.”

“This is a 21 and over party tonight, but since you’re being truthful,” the bouncer replied, directing his attention to the cleavage emerging from the girl’s revealing but simple crop-top and yoga pants outfit, “I’ll let it slide.”

“Thank you!” the girl replied, grabbing her ID and quickly advancing into the house to avoid further interaction, leaving the bouncer puzzled.

As the girl entered, she was visibly nervous. Couples were dancing along the walls, men in groups were taking shots, women in groups were huddled, seemingly separated from the rest of the party. The girl noticed some walking around with bunny ears and cotton-ball tails and wondered what they were dressed for. She immediately went up to a bar in the kitchen where two men were pouring drinks.

“Can I get a shot?”

“You? Yeah, definitely,” a man bearing an orange t-shirt answered, pouring her two instead. “An extra on the house.”

“Thank you,” the girl nervously replied, quickly downing one of the glasses.

“What’s your name?” The man asked.

“Um…Stacy,” the girl said, quietly and dishonestly.

“What was that?”

“Uh, Sophie. Sophie’s my name.”

“Hey Sophie, I’m Jake,” he replied, smiling.

“Hi Jake,” Sophie replied, unintrigued, before taking in her second drink.

“Oh, wow,” Jake said as Sophie downed her liquid courage. “You really like that vodka don’t you?”

“Oh, yeah,” she replied, coughing a little. “It’s my favorite,” she lied.

“So I’ve never seen you around campus before. What do you study?”

“Psychology,” Sophie replied, lying again.

“Is that like where they investigate your mind?” Jake replied.

“Yeah, it’s a very intricate course. Another shot please?”

Jake, somewhat surprised, obliged. He poured two more glasses, one for her and one for him.

“Let’s drink it together, okay?” Jake suggested.

“Okay, sure,” Sophie replied. They quickly emptied the glasses. Jake exhaled while Sophie tried to hide her reaction.

“So tell me, does the course talk about human interaction at all?” Jake asked.

“Yeah, kind of?” Sophie guessed.

“How about mating patterns?” Jake asked suggestively, looking at Sophie’s cleavage.

“Um, where’s your bathroom?”

“Down this hallway to the right. But I think it’s full, so you may want to go upstairs.”

“Okay, thank you!” Sophie replied quickly, shuffling through the crowd towards the stairwell.

As she walked upstairs, she noticed an open room with several girls checking each other’s cotton-ball tails, and telling a woman to shut up. Sophie looked for several seconds, then walked further down the hallway towards the empty bathroom to avoid their attention.

Sophie entered the bathroom and locked the door, then focused towards the mirror. She inhaled and exhaled slowly for 30 seconds, adjusted her outfit, and checked her makeup.

“Okay,” she said to herself, pulling out her cellphone. “Gotta do this for Ducky.”

As soon as she had gotten comfortable and adjusted, a bang occurred on the bathroom door.

“Let me in!” a woman’s voice yelled, pounding on the door. Sophie immediately turned around to open the door. A long-haired brunette burst in, scurrying towards the toilet, vomiting once she arrived.

“Oh god,” Sophie reacted, backing away from the woman dressed as a playboy bunny.

The woman let off one spew of chunks into the toilet, muttering “I f*****g hate vodka” before blowing another round of vomit into the toilet. “Hold my hair!” she exclaimed as she finished. Sophie obeyed.

“Goddamn it smells so bad,” Sophie said. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah,” the woman said weakly.

“So, uh, what’s your name?”

“Melanie.”

“Melanie, you wanna lay down for a moment?”

“Yeah,” Melanie replied, spitting the last of her vomit, rising on one foot, and slipping gently into the empty bathtub.

“Um, okay,” Sophie replied. “You can relax here, if you’re comfortable.”

“Yeah,” Melanie replied, giggling. She removed the bunny ears from her head, throwing them towards the other side of the tub.

“Hey, can I ask why you’re dressed like a bunny?”

“For that guy Barry,” Melanie replied. “He likes bunnies.”

“Alright,” Sophie replied flatly. “Thanks. Can I see your tail?”

“Take it,” Melanie replied, ripping the tail from her back and throwing it across the tub. Sophie retrieved both the tail and the ears, then attached them to her outfit.

As Sophie checked the mirror, Melanie began snoring. Sophie ran the shower curtains across the tub to block Melanie’s presence. She then heard a group of men chanting. 

She opened the door slightly and slowly, peeking towards a group of men escorting a blindfolded Barry down the hall while chanting his name. About 20 seconds later, one man returned down the hallway and entered the room where the “bunnies” were congregating.

“Where’s the other one?” Sophie heard the man asking from a distance.

“She in the bathroom throwing up, f*****g lightweight,” one of the bunnies responded.

“F**k!” the man said, as his footsteps approached Sophie.

“Oh f**k.” Sophie whispered to herself, closing and locking the door. The man knocked shortly afterwards.

“Hey, you alright?” he asked. Sophie quickly contemplated whether she should open the door or keep it locked. She chose to open it.

“Hey,” Sophie nervously replied.

“Are you one of the girls?” the man asked confusedly. Then a snore. The man turned towards the covered tub, opened it, and found Melanie asleep with bits of vomit on her chest. “Oh my f*****g god,” the man said.

“She just burst in here and threw up. Then gave me this bunny s**t.”

“F**k it, you want $100?” the man said.

“For what?” Sophie asked.

“To dance for Barry,” he replied.

“Just dance?”

“That’s all we’re paying you guys for, we aren’t paying for anything else,” the man answered. “You in?”

Sophie thought for a moment, then answered affirmatively.

“Come on then,” the man said, grabbing her hand and guiding her to the room with the “bunnies”. The girls looked as confused as Sophie was when they saw her.

“Where the f**k is the other girl?” one bunny asked.

“Who gives a f**k, let’s just get this over with,” another replied.

Sophie didn’t say a word. She noticed that some of the girls appeared around her age, while others looked to be in their late 30’s. She just realized that these were prostitutes entertaining the man of honor.

“Okay, come on girls,” the man said, leading the girls in a single-file line toward the room where Barry and his entourage were staying. Barry was sitting on a bed, still blindfolded, with his pimp cup on a nightstand beside him, while three of his friends, including Chad, stood near him.

“Okay Barry, are you ready?” another man said as the girls were entering the room.

“I’m ready for something man, bring it on,” Barry replied excitedly.

“Okay, take your blindfold off!”

Barry obeyed and appeared very pleased in what he saw. Six women, all scantily-clad as bunnies within his view, smiling. Sophie smiled as well, following her fellow bunnies’ lead.

“I f*****g love you guys, man.”

“I know, I know,” his friend said. “Now you can’t have them all at once, but they’re going to come in one at a time, and dance for you.”

“Alright man, let’s get it started!” Barry happily said.

“You heard the man! Barry, which girl would you like to have first?” the man asked as Sophie became nervous.

“Um, how about…her,” Barry replied, pointing at a shorter, blonde woman with pigtails.

“Okay!” Barry’s friend exclaimed. “Everyone please exit the room and give them some privacy. Five minutes, Barry.”

“Sure thing!” Barry replied as everyone else but the pigtailed blonde left the room. 

Barry’s friend closed the door and had the girls line up along the hallway prepared to enter the room one after the other. Sophie could hear music playing inside.

“Okay girls, when one girl leaves, I want the other to go in there right after. You’re getting paid $100 for a few minutes, so make it worth the money,” Barry’s friend said sternly.

“Okay, like one question?” a redheaded bunny asked in a valley-girl voice. “So all we have to do is take our clothes off and dance? Like nothing else?”

Sophie almost gagged as her heart started pounding.

“Yeah, that’s it, unless he wants to do more and you can name your price for that,” the man asked. “If he’s with a girl for a long time, it doesn’t matter, I want each of you outside this door. Anyone need a drink?”

Three of the six girls raised their hands, excluding Sophie.

“Okay, I’ll be back,” the man said, hurrying down the hallway and down the stairs. There was a quietness that took over the hallway for the next minute and a half, except for the muffled shrieking and laughing from inside Barry’s private dace room.

Before the man returned with three drinks, Sophie had concocted a plan: she would attempt to dance for two minutes, then use the last three in trying to convince him to take her out on a date.

She was second in line. Then first. Then suddenly, she was entering the room to a disheveled, makeup-smeared Barry, president of the UVA Student Republicans, publicly pro-family values, privately pro-prostitution. The music was already playing, but Sophie stood still as the door closed.

“You look shy,” Barry sarcastically said, thinking it was an act. “What’s your name?”

“Sophie.”

“Well Sophie, can you come over?”

Sophie obliged, walking until she was slightly outside of Barry’s reach.

“That’s better. Now start dancing for the president.”

Sophie got to a nervous start, but after closing her eyes and turning around, she began to find her groove. She danced for almost a minute with her back turned to Barry, then Barry grabbed her waist and guided her towards his lap. Sophie, surprised, stopped dancing until Barry asked her to resume while in his lap.

She began to glide herself along Barry’s lap slowly, front, back, and side to side, for nearly a minute. Barry held her hips, then slid his hands toward Sophie’s breasts. Sophie hesitated for a moment, but continued as Barry held her busty figure as if it was his property.

“You’re not like those other girls, are you?” Barry wondered.

“Nope,” Sophie replied, smiling, holding the back of Barry’s head as she gave him a lap dance. “There’s something I need to tell you, Barry.”

“What’s that?” he replied.

“I want you. Nobody paid for me to be here. I’ve seen you around campus and I think you’re cute. We should meet up sometime this week, see a movie or something at my place. There I can show you what it’s like to give you my full, undivided attention.”

“Oh no, f**k that,” Barry replied. “We can get down to it right now, I can kick the other girls away.”

“No, we need to be in a place more private,” Sophie suggested.

“I’ll clear the whole floor for you, babe.”

“We can wait.”

“I don’t know if you can feel it,” Barry started, “but I’m not letting you leave without giving you something you might like.”

Barry threw Sophie onto the bed and climbed over her. Sophie laid still, surprised and somewhat startled. As Barry glided his hands across Sophie’s body, Sophie began to speak.

“I don’t want to have you alone, I want another girl with us,” Sophie said, trying to buy some time.

“That’s alright, we can try that later,” Barry stated.

“Wait, I just want to talk to you,” Sophie said.

“No, there’s no time for talking, I’m a busy man,” Barry replied, slowly lifting Sophie’s shirt as she began to move back toward the headboard.

“Barry?” Sophie asked to no response. “Barry?”

Barry began to bury has face into Sophie’s breasts. She halted him.

“Barry, stop,” Sophie exclaimed.

“What the hell is wrong?”

“Look, I don’t want to do that,” Sophie explained.

“Then what the f**k is this all about?”

“I just want to do this in a more private place, is all.”

“We can do it now, the door’s locked and I can clear the whole floor if I want to. Why are you being such a dick tease?”

“Barry,” Sophie began.

“Don’t f*****g ‘Barry’ me, okay?” he responded, visibly angered. “Just shut up and be a good little bunny, alright?”

Sophie looked at Barry, still on top of her, like he had gone insane. As Barry resumed lowering his face into Sophie’s chest, she pushed him aside and slapped him.

“Who the f**k do you think you’re talking to?” Sophie exclaimed.

“What the f**k?” Barry yelled. Sophie rose off the bed and onto her feet, taking off the bunny ears and cotton-ball tail.

“Nobody talks to me like that!”

“Look, what’s your problem?” Barry rose off the bed as well, walking towards Sophie who was advancing toward the door. As he tried to turn her around gently, Sophie deflected Barry’s hand and kicked him in the groin, knocking the wind out of him.

“I’m gonna get my brothers to f**k you up!” Sophie said as Barry rolled on the floor in pain. She opened and slammed the door, pushing the bunnies aside as she exited the house, ignoring the people giving her dirty looks. She passed the bouncer and entered a black sedan waiting on the main road a short walk from the house that contained two intense-looking women wearing all black.

“Let’s go.” Sophie said, and they left.