Bitter Sweet

by Lennell Davis

  Alyon Alik

  Chapter 02.0

  There has always been something about the night that you can’t put a finger on. It’s just a feeling you get and nothing else can make you feel that way. Some will have a touch of fear seasoned to the taste of the unknown. Very scary monsters will play across their thoughts as they imagine what salvation the even darker shadows of the night brings to their fears. Others are caressed by excitement: the night emboldens them to go farther or love harder, unable to be seen by every eye in the light of day. As I thought this, I noticed I felt nothing as I walked the streets of New York’s Time Square. The people around me looked and thought they were excited, but they were idiots. I would, and had to change that.

  I wouldn’t buy a prime location in some upscale part of New York. The bastardization of Christmas lights and big speakers already infested the areas of any real value. To create an atmosphere to invoke the passions of the blood, I would need privacy for myself and my guest. For that, I looked to the lesser traveled areas of New York. Many of the abandoned docks and industrial areas were cheap; clearing out the squatters would be easy.

  The structure itself could not be new, however I did not wish to go through the hassle of gutting and reworking one of the old warehouses. Instead, I came across a failed circus selling off all of its assets, including their big top. I gladly bought it and found a company to do some alterations and dye it the colors I needed. At this point, my sister June was the only one I had told of my plans. Therefore, my mother knew everything...

  “Alik,” my mother called across the room one evening as we both sat reading in silence.

  “I felt this coming,” I said, marking my page mentally and putting the book down.

  “Felt what?” my mother feigned innocence.

  “Just what has June told you, or did you force it out of her?” I asked. Her fake expression of shock annoyed me to no end.

  “Okay, you caught me,” her voice got very cold and calculating. “You don’t feel guilty about opening a competing business to your own mother, your own blood?”

  “We would not be competing, you cater to a far more exclusive clientele. Where I would be dealing with…”

  “Everyone else. Yes, a far larger scope than myself.”

  “No, not everyone. I’m looking to redefine the night club.”

  “About that... I did get a name out of June. Masteria is a dangerous name, Alik.”

  “They are part of our history.”

  “How do you manage to be so selective with our past and not feel the hypocrite?”

  “Do we have to get into that now?” I asked her, not wanting to argue about what I did and did not like about who I was. Instead, I did want to know if she would allow me to raise a new Masteria.

  “No, you’re right. The real thing here is the name, Masteria. The old Masteria were places of lust, sex, bloodletting, and death. Is this what you intend to create in the middle of the city?”

  “Not at all. The old Masteria were the way they were as that is how they were built. Just walking into the smoke filled rooms was enough put you in a sexual high. Every emotion in the room screamed sex from the looks on the women’s faces to the slacked jawed smiles of the men. I will change the flavor of the emotion to inspire creativity and passion now only in music and performance, but the natural fear of the night will come alive and drive everything forward.”

  “You risk so much when death might be the only outcome for what you propose if someone were to... lose themselves in a room of such passion.”

  “Some of my guest will be heavily screened,” I said icily.

  “Well, a few overdosing teens isn’t out of the ordinary for illegal nightclubs, any loose guest of yours can be contained. Still, the risk of fail is high.”

  “I don’t fail, mother,” I said offended.

  “The only reason I will allow this is because I know you won't fail at it. Just don't presume that you don't fail, you do in many ways,” she said going back to her book. I ignored her last comment to get a fight out of me. I wouldn’t rise to her bait. “Also, you can’t have Alison, she is mine.” She smiled as if the afterthought was amusing. I had planned to go to Alison in the morning.

  “How did it go?” was the first thing my sister asked me in the morning as I got out of my car.

  “As well as to be expected,” I sighed as I watched the skeleton of the tent start to rise.

  “Lying to her is almost useless,” she said in her defense.

  “I know, she had her fun at my expense. It would have had to to happen eventually.” I sat down on the hood of my car and looked up. “Has the canvas come yet?

  “Yes, it’s in the container over there,” she pointed, “also everyone on your list except for..”

  “Alison, I know. Mother wouldn't give her up.”

  “That was more for your peace of mind, not her ability.”

  “Please don't remind me.” That got a laugh out of June. “You really should just pick one.”

  “I could say the same to you.”

  “Some on your list are older,” she said, changing the subject.

  “I want them to remember the essence of Masteria and bring it alive. Also, I have worked with them in the past, they know what’s at stake if the safety of my guest is ever placed in danger.”

  Excitement like I had not felt in a long time kept me at Masteria day and night as soon as the canvas was up. Modifications to the interior left much of the main space opened to hold the dance floor: all audio equipment was held in the skeleton of the structure, hidden by folds in the canvas just as my office was. As I looked down on everyone moving about the interior, my excitement was laced with worry. As my mother said, the old Masteria were places of sex, lust, and death. The new Masteria would embody the thrill of the night and the lights and sounds of music. “It had to,” I told myself.

  “What do you think?” June asked me a week before opening as we walked the interior of the structure.

  “It’s what I imagined,” I said looking around.

  The single original crest of the tent had been altered into three more graceful curves. The original height of almost three stories, not including the crest, was shortened to two, allowing the canvas to be moved around and let the tent sit lower and wider than before. Inside, a lattice of metal work created a bar; office spaces and elevated dance and performance platforms were linked by bridges of metal chain and rope. I couldn't help but smile as I looked around as my creation came to life. I could already sense the excitement of everyone finishing up the last touches before we opened in two days.

  “Have you given the sound system a test run yet?” I asked.

  “Just for levels,” June explained.

  “Mix something, I want to hear what we have created.”

  “I thought you’d never ask,” she smiled.

  The instant June moved to her turntables, the sounds of work died. Whenever June put those headphones on, she became a different being. Before I could hear anything, she started to sway to a rhythm that I soon heard as a low click that was clear and crisp over the speakers. I closed my eyes and felt the music and the bass begin to fill in the spectrum. I felt the hand of a woman slide around my waist as she circled me. The house music came in full force and we were all swaying to the beat, having paired off on the dance floor. It was the first time in months I had felt anything close to this and as the bass dropped all my worries faded. I could only imagine what it would feel like for a human.

  Vanessa Stanton

  Chapter 03.0

  A boy stood in a casual black on black suit with a black tie. His long bleach blonde, almost silver hair draped around his head, making it look like he had just woken up. His skin was even fairer than mine. He was only bathed in the dim colored light coming from the inside, but his presence was like that of the north star, a beacon in the night, even when his face had an expression of boredom. His head was tilted up, looking at the stars, managing to make themselves known. This w
as probably one of the few places you could see stars in the city. Words ran through my mind, but nothing was strong enough to describe him. There was something more to it than just his physical appearance. It made me mad that I couldn’t place whatever I was missing, it made me not care I was being more than rude, staring as I gazed at my reflection in his blacked out glasses. Then I got a hold on my senses and blinked.

  "Good evening ladies," he said in a voice that wasn't very deep, but was smoother than thick cream. I saw a flash of gold in his eyes beneath his glasses as he took his eyes off the stars to greet us; a lazed smile grew on his face.

  "Hi," said Sam, a little breathless. It was the first time I had ever seen her stunned by someone’s appearance, but I was glad it wasn’t just me. She recovered faster than I did and flashed her eyes at him.

  "Can I see your IDs please?" he asked, and when his head turned to me, his smile faltered and returned as fast as it had faded, but it was different, now lacking the good will and completely indifferent.

  "Of course. Here you go," Sam replied, reaching into her bag and pulling out a card, sounding a little bit sad. This was probably the first time her eyes didn’t get a response out of a boy and I’m sure she wanted his attention.

  "Samantha M. Castillo; nice to meet you. How about your friend?"

  "Here," I said, handing him my ID, still watching my reflection in his glasses.

  "Vanessa Stanton. Nice to meet you as well." He handed our ID’s back, rotating them in his fingers with a flourish to reveal two glow sticks on strings. "It’s a little dark in there." He smiled, standing to the side. "Well ladies, welcome to Masteria," he said in a grand fashion, making a show of sweeping back the door.

  There was a small room lit by black light as we entered, mirrors on two walls showed the white in my shoes and bag, glowing a haunting blue. Our glow sticks lit the way as we walked into the club where everyone was jumping to the music as something was going on in the center of the dance floor. Sam led me around the group, smiling. We made it around the crowd to stand on a set of stairs overlooking the dance floor. The house music beat the air as about eight people were dancing, using the glow sticks to create patterns in the air that seemed to stick for seconds at a time. Then they all began to move outward and two guys got into the center, seeming to wave their hands in synchronized motions. They brought their hands down hard and the glow sticks burst to life, encasing them in spheres of light. They moved around each other as if this was some kind of fight and I was amazed by what I saw. Sam saw the look on my face and gave me a nudge like "see, I told you this would be cool". The two then began to end their routine and the other eight made an entrance, jumping and flipping into the center of the circle. The group did a pose as the music ended and all light in the tent died and they were spotlit. The crowd roared cheers and the lights came up and they rushed in to meet the performers and dance to the music.

  The lights flashed around us to the beat of the music. People on the dance floor swayed back and forth with some girls running their hands over each other, and others running their hands through the air as guys would approach with an arm outstretched. It looked like they were asking for acceptance. It was more surprising when one girl turned her back on a guy and he slumped away, disappointed, into a group of his laughing friends. However, if the girl was inviting, the guy would put their hands around the girl’s waist and it was like the two would become one, moving around each other as if her on gravitational pull was keeping them from getting too far apart. Sam took my hand and led me over to the bar and got us some strawberry juice.

  "What is this place?" I asked her over the music.

  "It's club Masteria, it’s not like other places where the guys just grope you, only for you to turn to see some ugly ass guy and not the cute and shy guy you hoped for because that's just a contradiction. Here, it’s the girl’s choice. That makes the guys who come here look and behave differently," she explained and I looked around and there were very few people I would say I wouldn't find attractive.

  "If a guy sees a girl he likes, he will ask to join her," she continued. "Look over there." Sam pointed to a girl who was moving her hips like a wave and had her hands in the air, swaying like leaves in the wind. A guy made his way over to her, his hand outstretched towards her, and she noticed, giving him a wink. She spun and he caught her in a low dip. Holding her hand, he began to circle her, spinning her, and I could see the joy on her face. They drew even closer. He moved and placed his hands on her hips, She placed a hand on his cheek, and they began to dance as if they had been partners for years.

  "When I found this place online, people always said that the connections you made with people here were really strange at times," she said a little awestruck. "But yeah, it’s all about her choice though. If the girl doesn't accept, but the guy is pushy... see the guys floating around the edge? They will pull him out and allow the girl to keep looking. Here, it’s about attraction and the chase." Sam smiled, she knew attraction, but had never chased anyone, she didn't need to. "I'm going to try it," she said, pushing off the little bar and making her way onto the dance floor.

  She shook her hips and swayed left and right as she walked onto the crowded dance floor, any guy would have described her as breathtaking when she moved. I didn’t know she was capable of moving like she did. I saw several of the guys around the club look up at her and I could feel a shift in the room as some were trying to decide if the public rejection was worth the risk of a dance with her. A year ago for her birthday, her mother had given Sam belly dancing lessons as a gift after Sam swore it was strictly to tone her stomach. However, it had a greater purpose tonight, at least in Sam’s opinion. The short skirt she wore would flutter and rise just a bit every time she spun or moved extra passionately, just enough to show a little more leg and nothing more. She spent maybe two or three minutes alone on the dance floor until I saw the guy move in and she stopped mid-dance, posing to stare at him with her hands raised and a sly look on her face. The guy stretched out a hand in a gesture to see if she would accept, and she took a step towards him, and he towards her. They were dancing before they even touched and by now, they had caught the attention of nearly everyone. The music then shifted to a more Latin feel as well, still very techno/house style, but you could feel more passion than technology in it.

  The mood in the club was like nothing I had ever felt before because as quickly as the Latin feel had possessed everyone around them, changing how they danced, the hard techno had come back and the crowd was back to the black lights and rave feel, which was now even stronger than before. Sam and her new friend no longer were the focus of everyone; they were just another couple now swaying to the beat. I finished my drink and felt flushed from the heat the dancers were putting out, so I headed for the door to get some fresh air.

  "Have you gotten lost?" asked the boy at the door, returning ID’s to two teens who walked in past me. At first, I just looked at him, then my senses smacked me and I saw he was talking to me.

  "I wish I knew," I muttered to myself, not liking how he was affecting me.

  "Lost and confused then; worse than I thought," he said with a hint of humor.

  "You heard that?" I asked, astonished. Then the night air blew in over the cargo containers and I shivered, rubbing my arms.

  "Here," he said, taking his jacket off.

  "Oh no, it’s..." I started, but he had already draped the jacket around my shoulders. I smelt a nice earthy scent on it, but it wasn't very warm.

  "It’s fine. You are supposed to comfort the lost, and warmth is always comforting." He smiled.

  "Can I know the name of the one coming to my aid?" I asked, playing along, and there was a shift in his expression that he quickly hid.

  "Alik," he said hesitantly.

  "How about a last name?" I pried as I caught a glimpse of his golden eyes. I had to know more for some reason.

  "That is my last name; I don't like my first name very much."

  "Oh," was all I
said and I just waited, he sighed.

  "It’s Alyon."

  "That’s a nice name," I said, and he gave me a small smile like I paid him a great compliment.

  "I never liked the Alyon, so please just use Alik," he insisted..

  "Alyon is unique, like you," I said and instantly blushed and was glad it was dark enough to hide it.

  "I... well..." He sounded lost for words then changed the subject. "Do you at least know why you made your way out here, lost?"