Punk and Zen

by JD Glass

  In two steps, I was there and stepped between them, facing Yvonne. “Hey hey, cool it…what’s the matter?” I asked her. She glared at me, put a hand on her hip, and shook her head, gazing silently at the floor.

  I checked on Fran. “You all right?”

  “Yeah,” she nodded, “it’s all—” Her eyes widened and she pointed behind me. “Look out!” I twisted my head to see what she meant, and as I did, a thousand points of light exploded in my head.

  I rocked on my heels a bit as the explosion faded. Fuckin’ stupid. I’d let myself get coldcocked by a fuckin’ amateur.

  Deliberately squaring my shoulders and hips, I smiled and faced Yvonne, who took a step back, breathing hard.

  Warm moisture fell in a tickling run from my nose and lip, a sensation I knew too well. I wiped my fingers across my face, looked at the blood that covered them, and considered Yvonne coolly. “First one’s free,” I told her, then sucked the blood off my fingers. I never took my eyes off her, but I glimpsed Jen coming up the walkway as I waited to see what would happen next.

  Yvonne seemed shocked, and her eyes flickered with something that might have been remorse, but I knew, in the same way I knew I wouldn’t want to be in her position, that pride was about to overtake common sense. Her face hardened. “This one will be worth the price, then,” she snarled and swung.

  Too easy, way too easy. Her swing was wide, and I caught it with a simple forearm block, while my palm went straight to her shoulder. I could have easily gone for her chin, but it wasn’t necessary—that was overkill, while a chest shot would have just pushed her farther into the bar. Besides, I already knew I’d win in a fight if it came to that—and I wasn’t going to let it come to that. The move I chose used her own motion to spin her around and helped me propel her, one arm locked behind her back, to the door.

  “Aprèz vous!” Jen said sweetly as she held the door wide open. She gave a slight bow as I shoved Yvonne through it, then she tossed the door shut. I knew Yvonne was not one of her favorite people to begin with, and she’d been longing for a reason to ban her from the bar. This must have been a pretty sweet moment for her.

  My blood sang in my ears even as it dripped down my face. Jen grinned at me. “Nice one, buddy!” she said as she clapped my shoulder.

  “Thanks,” I said shortly through the pounding in my head.

  Fran rushed over, and Dee Dee tossed her a clean bar rag that I was pretty sure had been soaked in ice water. I shivered violently when it touched ABC my face as Jen and Fran forced me to sit on the nearest bar stool.

  Jerkster came over and started singing, and I burst out laughing when Dee Dee joined him on the chorus of “Berserker.”

  “Hold still!” Fran admonished, because I’d made a bit of a mess when I’d laughed—my nose was still bleeding.

  “Hey, glad you’re on our side, kid,” Jen said, still smiling. She patted me on the shoulder again, and this time the “kid” thing didn’t bother me. She was all right, you know?

  “Ow…” I complained when Fran moved the towel. It was a mess. Dee Dee took it and replaced it with another.

  “Are you guys trying to tell me something?” I asked, my voice muffled through the cold, wet towel.

  “Ja, Nina.” Dee Dee smiled. “That was—”

  “Totally cool!” Jerkster jumped around, “you were soooo cold, dude. You were laughing!” His eyes were wide, and his arms windmilled as he mimed what he’d seen with such enthusiasm that I was afraid someone else was going to get whapped in the face.

  “I laughed? No way!” I said, looking at Fran and Dee Dee to either confirm or deny. I didn’t remember that at all.

  “Stop wiggling!” Fran exhorted as Dee Dee deftly exchanged the less-bloody-than-before rag for another one—this one full of ice. Ugh. I gently pushed Fran’s hands away.

  “I’m fine—look—it’s stopped.” I indicated the towel that was now only faintly spotted with pink.

  “C’mon…for me?” Fran wheedled.

  I sighed and rolled my eyes. “Fine,” I capitulated, but only because you never deny a lady a direct request.

  Fran gave me a self-satisfied smile and patted my shoulder. Great. Awesome. Now I was a good dog.

  Jerkster kept rehearsing that block and punch (well, technically it was a palm-strike, not a punch) with Jen, while Dee Dee stepped to the other end of the bar. She came right back with two shot glasses.

  “Here,” she said, sliding them over, “this is good for you.”

  I eyed the little glass warily. Whatever was in one of them looked a lot like bloody mud with a bit of grass sprinkled on top—and I was pretty sure ABC I’d already had my daily limit of that taste. The other looked like clear glue with little things suspended in it. I glanced up at Dee Dee, who had fixed me with that firm look of hers.

  “I make special for you,” she warned me.

  Dammit. Another direct request. “Okay, all right, I’ll drink it,” I groused. I handed Fran the rag and returned my attention to Dee Dee, only to find her eyes still frying me. Damn, I thought, she would have been ideal as one of the nuns I’d known back in high school. I picked up her concoction.

  “You have to swallow it all in one go, or it’s no good,” she advised.

  Yeah, that just figured for me. I took a deep breath; I had the feeling I was going to need it. I brought the rim to my lips, and in the split second that the gloop was in the air before it hit the back of my throat and swallowed, I knew this was a bad idea.

  Oh My God! Nose? What nose? I couldn’t feel my fucking nose because my throat closed, my ears burned, and my eyes were on fire. Who the hell cared about anything else? And then there was the hot eel sliding down my chest. Jumping out of my seat, I did an impromptu little dance—it might have looked like I was praying for rain or suffering from chicken pox in my crotch.

  “Christ, what the hell is that, Dee Dee?” I gasped, choking. “Is that horseradish and cough syrup?”

  “Jagermeister,” Dee Dee nodded, “and whiskey and Tabasco with some little, little herbs for flavor.” She made a sprinkling motion with her fingers, rubbing them back and forth.

  “Flavor? Flavor?” I coughed again and hoped desperately that I wouldn’t spit out a lung or a kidney. “You should serve that with a fire extinguisher!”

  Dee Dee laughed long and loud. “After that shot you took? Nina, you shouldn’t taste anything—but you do, because you are berserker.”

  She laughed again while Fran seized the opportunity to put the ice back on my face. “C’mon, baby, your face is gonna bruise, and you have a show coming up,” she reminded me. She was right, and she knew I knew she was right, so I let her freeze my skin.

  “I am not berserk,” I said to Dee Dee with as much dignity as I could muster from under the towel and Fran’s firm hold.

  “Hey, it’s a compliment,” Jen walked over and told me, Jerkster following her.

  “Yeah, a compliment,” Jerkster seconded. “’Cuz, like, the berserkers were, like, these German-Scandi-cold-weather dudes who went totally nuts when they were in a fight. They were, like, the ultimate warriors, and you could tell who they were because they would laugh the whole time, and then, after ABC that, they were okay again.”

  We all looked at him in amazement. I’d never heard so much information about anything come from Jerkster at one time.

  “What?” he asked, looking around at us. “I used to be into heavy metal. There’s at least one song on every album all about it.”

  That was it, that was the living end, and I started laughing so hard my nose started bleeding again.

  “Well, that’s about right, anyway,” Dee Dee said, as impressed as the rest of us. “Now drink this, too,” she requested, pushing the other shot glass to me.

  “Does this one also require any special equipment or precautions?” I hadn’t totally recovered from the last one and wanted to keep the few taste buds I had left.

  “Funny, funny,” Dee Dee mocked lightly. “No, that one was
for your blood, strong for strong. This one is for you—for your spirit, that it stays fiery but sweet.”

  That was about as much reassurance as I was going to get, so I went for it. This time, instead of downing it, I sipped and was rewarded with a pleasant tingle.

  “Cinnamon?” I asked as I put it down.

  “Cinnamon schnapps,” Dee Dee corrected, “with gold flakes. The best for the best.”

  “I like it,” I commented as I took a final sip. No, really. I liked it a lot.

  “You would.” Dee Dee smiled at me. She collected the glasses from the bar and put them in the sink, then gave the bar a good wipe-down. I watched her for a bit—Dee Dee and her endless supply of spotlessly white bar rags.

  I sat there with the towel on my face while Fran stroked my hair. “You okay?” I asked her again. “What happened?”

  Fran sighed. “Nothing. She was just a little drunk and a little disappointed, I think,” she answered. “And it looks like you’ve cemented her disappointment.”

  I put the rag down to gaze at her directly. “Did I, now?” I asked dryly.

  Twining my arms around her waist, I gazed into her almond eyes, then down at those lips that curved into the slightest of smiles.

  “Can I kiss you hello?” I asked her, the heat of her body wrapping around me like a fog.

  “Please do,” she pressed against me, “my hero.”

  “Whatever it takes.” I was instantly rewarded with the feel of that incredible mouth against mine, followed moments later by the warmth within it.

  “Careful, careful,” Fran cautioned, pulling away. “Your lip is cut, too.”

  I ran my tongue carefully around. She was right—I could taste the blood. “I don’t feel a thing,” I told her, and pulled her closer.

  “Good, because your lips are way too far away from mine,” she purred, then proved it. Her fingertips dug strong lines along my neck and shoulders as mine outlined her shoulder blades. I would have loved to have done the natural thing and reached for her amazing ass, but I wouldn’t do that in a public place—that wasn’t something I felt a need to share with the world.

  “Harumph.” Dee Dee coughed none-too-subtly behind us. Yeah. I was supposed to be working, not making out. “So I was saying…I think I should send you home tonight.”

  I whirled to face her. “No, Dee Dee, I’m fine, there’s no need—”

  Dee Dee held a hand up. “No, you should get some rest, and besides, it’s quiet tonight. Francesca, you’ll take good care of her, no?” She looked at her directly.

  “Absolutely,” she smiled, “she’s in good hands.” She took mine in hers to prove it.

  “I thought so,” Dee Dee nodded, “so here,” she gave me my bag from behind the counter, “and here,” she pushed some money at me, “so you can get a car home—you shouldn’t be riding around on trains and ferries.”

  I stared at the money, then tried to give it back. “Dee Dee, I usually walk to the boat. Besides, I’ve got money.”

  “You got hurt at work, no?” she asked rhetorically. “So work pays to send you home. Now go,” she shooed me away, “and let Francesca nurse you!”

  I watched as her lips quirked just the slightest bit at her last words. Uh-huh. There was a faint whiff of something in the air, and it wasn’t cinnamon schnapps.

  But you know what? I didn’t want to argue. “All right then, thank you,” I told her. “’Night, Jerkster!” I called as Fran dragged me to the door.

  “Hey yeah, see you tomorrow!” He looked up from his intense study of the jukebox and waved.

  Jen was already outside in the street hailing us a ABC cab.

  “Thanks, thanks a lot.” I grinned at her when a yellow car stopped.

  “Yeah, you’re welcome, kid,” she said, “get some rest. And you,” she nodded to Francesca, “don’t let her fall asleep too early—she might have a concussion.”

  “No worries,” Fran answered as I opened the door to the car. “I’ll take good care of her.” She got into the car and slid along the seat.

  I gave Jen a sharp glance. She was being way too nice, and her lips had the same slight quirk Dee Dee’s had. Uh-huh. Weird.

  I got in the car and stuck my head out the window. “I’ll see you tomorrow?” I asked, giving her the this-is-way-too-weird eyebrow raise.

  “When the sun’s up, kid,” she promised with a smile, “when the sun’s up.”

  “Cool,” I answered, and waved good-bye. I settled into my seat, and after we told the driver where we were going, off we lurched into traffic.

  “Come, put your head down,” Fran smilingly invited, patting her lap, and I complied.

  “You know,” she commented thoughtfully, “that’s the second time you’ve shed blood for me.”

  I shrugged in response as I settled against her. What could I say?

  She threw her peacoat over me. “Got to keep you warm.”

  I brought her face to mine. “You do that well enough.” I grinned and kissed her softly. “And I promise, the third time will be interesting.”

  “As long as it doesn’t involve your head,” and she kissed my forehead, “or this beautiful face,” and she kissed my cheeks, “or these lips,” and this kiss was delicate and tender and worked its way into something much more intense. I was so deeply into the consummate sensuality that was her kiss that when her hand slid down my stomach and into my waistband, I thought nothing of it—until the car stopped short.

  “Kitt, baby, what are you doing?” I whispered to her as her fingers tickled even lower and the car moved on.

  Her fingers stroked lightly against my pussy, teasing me, caressing me with promise. “I’m not supposed to let you fall asleep, so,” she explained as her fingers slipped between my lips, “I’m taking care of you.”

  I felt the moan that was trying to make its way out and reached up for her head to bring her lips to mine. “You are evil,” I whispered before I let that moan out into her mouth.

  Her tongue mimicked her fingers as she slowly stroked the length of my swollen cunt. “God, you are so fuckin’ hard,” she breathed into my mouth.

  “Francesca…” I murmured in half-hearted protest, “we’re in a cab.”

  “Then you’re going to have to lie still and be quiet,” she answered as she rapidly fingered my clit. Damn, but she felt good. Fine. I’d be quiet. It wasn’t going to be easy.

  Her hand stilled on my pussy as she shifted positions. “Did you know,” she whispered throatily, “that I can place one, two, three fingertips,” and she paused as she did it, “along your clit when you’re this hard?”

  Between the words and the actions she had me ready to explode in my pants, and when I felt her hand move again, the sensation was so fuckin’ intense as it bolted through me that I stretched my head back against her.

  “God, baby, what are you doing to me?” I groaned. Fuck the driver—if he didn’t know what had been going on before, I was pretty sure he did now, and I didn’t fuckin’ care.

  She nibbled along the line of my neck, and I rolled against the added sensation before she answered. “I’m jerking you off.” She smiled into my eyes, then kissed me again. When the steady pull on my clit became that cunt throb that lets you know the edge is getting close, all I could think of was her pussy descending on mine, swallowing my clit. I wanted to do that so badly, I thrust my cunt against her hands as she pumped me good and fast.

  “Yeah, baby, just like that,” I groaned out. “God, I want to be inside you.”

  I heard her breath catch. “You’re making me so fucking wet, God,” she growled. “Whatever you want, do that when we get back.”

  She was jerking me off so good, nice and hard and tight around my clit, and that combined with the thought of her wet pussy waiting for me—I couldn’t even answer her as I thrust hard and came into her hand, my face pressed into her chest and my fingers rapidly playing her hard nipple.

  I kissed her chest and climbed my way up her neck to her lips, straddlin
g her thigh. “We’re not done yet,” I told her, and slid my tongue between her welcoming lips. I tongued her mouth exactly the way I planned to taste her pussy as soon as we got to her place, but I was going to have her right then and there because her kiss told me how bad she needed it.

  I undid the top button of her jeans and slid my hand down, knowing I’d find her wet and waiting. I wasn’t disappointed. Her cunt was an ever-thrilling combination of hard clit and soft open pussy, and I tickled ABC through her slick lips for a second before I found her clit with my thumb and thrust two fingers into her hungry cunt.

  She gasped and bit my shoulder. “Shh,” I cautioned with a little smile of my own, “you’re gonna have to be quiet.”

  “I didn’t know,” she licked my throat, “you were such a bitch.” She bit my neck—God, I loved that.

  “Right now?” I said as I pressed against her solid clit and did her pussy hard. “I’m your fuckin’ hero.”

  She sucked on my skin in response and spread her legs a bit on the bench. I pressed up, deeper inside her, and her hand came down on mine. That move got me, got me so good it made me want to come again, and I made no protest when her other hand moved into my pants again, then moved around to my ass. When her fingers quietly made their way to my cunt, sliding between the folds and tweaking my clit, my hips jerked in response, and she had me where she wanted me.

  “Oh, yeah, baby,” she hissed as her thumb slid inside me.

  “Kitt, are you insane?” I gasped with the rare sensation—rare because I seldom had her inside me. It really wasn’t my thing. Besides, at the moment, my mind was still aware that we had company, even though my hands and cunt weren’t caring.

  “It’s been three days,” she answered, leaning her head back against the rear dash, “three whole fucking days.”

  The reality of her words swelled in me as I leaned down to kiss that irresistible mouth that sighed as we made up for lost time.

  Come to think of it? I don’t remember paying for that cab ride. I still don’t know how I feel about that.