"I left with them and we went to a pretty famous nightclub where we went dancing. It was really fun, I mean, at least for awhile. My old nemesis and I, alcohol, got together and we had a great time together that night, heh." She gave a small chuckle and shared a knowing look with Justin."A few of my cousin Tatiana"s, who is Robert"s younger sister, friends came and met us there bringing.. things with them." Chang trailed off losing herself in the memories of that night.
"I should have realized the warning signs about them long before then, and when they overly pressured me to snort a line of cocaïne. I should have left, and not just left the table for awhile to dance.."
"Hey Shar! Shar! Sha~ar... Hey, earth to Chang, oh sorry I mean Shar." Justin saw her getting a rather lost look and tried to bring her back to the present. He had to call out to her several times, in his worry he accidently slipped and called her by her old name. When he did though she stirred back to reality and looked at him like she wasn"t quite sure where she was.
With a soft voice wondering if he was tearing into an old wound and if he should stop Justin hesitantly asked her a few more questions. "What kind of things, was it drugs or something?"
".. Yeah..c.o.ke, lsd, and I dont remember what else." Chang"s voice started to become lighter and more distant sounding.
"Oh, well did you take some as well? No judgment we"re all human, just asking."
Yeah.. but not of my own volition, I was given an overdosage. My cousins wanted to make me a public spectacle and have me embarra.s.s grandfather, by getting me high and sloppy in public. Later they were planning to pa.s.s me around through some of their friends se of whom had some sicker tastes and leave me in a public s.p.a.ce to further shame me."
"Ugh! Seriously are they even human?! Huh, I bet that creepy cousin of yours planned to do a little something too..So wait you said "planned," what happened in the end?"
"Well..they partially succeeded.. Chang started twisting a napkin that Justin had brought and stared into the distance.
" Hey." Covering one of her restless hands with one of his own. "You dont have to tell me if you dont want to." Seeing the placid but cold mask that had slipped over Shar"s face as she talked, Justin felt a chill go down his body. The woman sitting by him seemed like a stranger now, and not the person he"d grown to love and care for.
Chang watched his lips move but didn"t hear him over the sound of the pulsing music from her memories, closing her eyes she held tight to the hand over hers while she drifted.
The pulsing lights and sounds of the club had been incredibly exotic and hypnotic that night to her. At the time Chang couldn"t help but be lost on the dance floor with everyone else, oblivious to anything else but the feeling of movement and the beat that resounded deep in her bones.
Even after her long hair had become plastered to her back from sweat and her feet ached she kept moving, trying to shake off the heavy feelings she had carried for so long.
Chang stayed until Tatiana came and dragged her off the dance floor to their booth. At the table Robert as well as Tatiana"s friends sat and were enjoying different drinks. Chang looked but with all the alcohol muddling her system it was hard to tell if there was that white powder still on the table.
"Ah good you caught her! We have to give her a birthday toast before her birthday is officially over!" Raising a gla.s.s Robert flashed her a beaming smile.
Tatiana smiled as well with her perfect white teeth and handed her a small gla.s.s filled with dark liquid.
"Sorry about earlier, we just got so excited, plus we got some extra good stuff."
"That"s fine, you all may partake and enjoy, but I don"t want any of that." Chang took the gla.s.s and looked at each of her cousins individually.
"Then we will do just that, you don"t need to! Just more for us in the end! Cheers! Joyeux anniversaire!" Good naturedly Robert raised his gla.s.s and kicked off the toast.
Unawares Chang tilted back her drink and began her descent into h.e.l.l.