Leaving Eden

by Kelly A Walker et al.

  “Are you even listening to me?”

  I stop staring at the remaining ice in my now empty cup and glance up. Rupert and I have been best friends since kindergarten. My gift didn’t come into fruition until I reached puberty, and then it started to manifest slowly. Seeing how Rupert is gay, and other than being attracted to me in a way that makes him feel like he needs to sleep with the first guy he can reach out and touch after seeing me - hence the once a week lunches - we’ve never had a problem staying best friends. After years of loyalty, I finally told him the hard truth. Rupert knows my deepest secret, he’s met my parents, and he is always there for me, even when one of his boyfriends decided after meeting me they were miraculously straight, he’s still remained by my side.

  “I’m sorry,” I sign. “I’m just having a rough week.”

  “It sucks about Ella. I’ve told you a hundred times, Lusa, until you find him, you can’t get close to other women. You continue to try and it always ends the same way. They blame you for something you have no control over and we sit back here,” he flips his hand out to indicate Funkey’s, our favorite coffee and sandwich shop, “while you mope about it.”

  “Yeah, I know.”

  “How do you think the other six sins deal with it? I mean, you can’t be the only one that has difficulty dealing with their gift.”

  I would never admit this to my mom or dad, but I do wonder how the others are doing. Am I the only one failing? “I honestly don’t know, Rue. We aren’t allowed to ever meet each other. Could you imagine if all seven of us were in the same place at the same time?” I shiver at the thought of how much damage having all Seven Deadly Sins together could make.

  “Oh, yeah,” Rue visibly shudders. “So,” he draws out. “Are we still going out this Saturday for my birthday?”

  I groan. “You know it won’t end well.”

  Rue starts laughing and I tense up because I know exactly where this conversation is about to head. “When they were passing out the sins, someone made a huge mistake.”

  I aak, even though I know the answer. “What is that supposed to mean?”

  “Really?” Rue blinks slowly trying to gauge if I’m being serious or not. Because I’m strange and enjoy having my life made fun of, I really am serious. “You’re Lust. One of the Seven Deadly Sins.”

  “Your point?” I ask in a monotone voice. Usually when Rue laughs at my situation it’s him making fun of all the guys, and most girls, lusting after me and me running in the opposite direction.

  “Lusa,” he takes a deep breath and I narrows his eyes on me like he’s scrutinizing every inch of me. “You go to church every Sunday. You work at a preschool and love it. You carry one dollar bills in your purse so you have something to give if anyone asks for a handout. You volunteer at the homeless shelter serving dinner four nights a week. Last, but definitely not least, you are a virgin. Lust is a virgin.”

  I reach over and slap my hand over his mouth. “Could you have said it any louder?”

  There it is. My deepest, darkest secret. Hello, my name is Lusa, also known as Lust, one of the Seven, and I am a virgin. I slide my hand away from his face and lower my head to my chest.

  “I’m sorry, Lusa,” I catch him wiping the tears from his eyes and trying to calm down his breathing from laughing so hard. “It’s just so ironic. I wonder if Sloth runs marathons? Ohhh! Or maybe Gluttony is a fitness guru.”

  “Shut up,” I chuckle and throw a napkin at him.

  “Seriously, Lusa,” he reaches his hand out and covers mine. “Let’s go out Saturday. We can go to Beale Street and you can listen to all the old blues music you want.” Rupert bats his ridiculously long eyelashes at me. “I’ll only turn twenty-five once.”

  “Fine,” I bite out.

  “Really?”

  “Really,” I tell him.

  Rupert squeals and hops up from his seat. “I gotta go,” he says as he reaches into his back pocket and pulls out his wallet. He places a five on the table for the tip then looks back at me. “I need to go shopping for a new outfit.”

  “You already have more clothes than closet space,” I laugh at him.

  “Please. You can never have too many clothes.”

  I watch my best friend sashay between the tables and out the front door of Funkee’s. I drop my forehead to the table then immediately pull it back up when it touches something sticky. Great, all I need is sticky latte in my hair. Rolling my eyes, I stand and begin to make me way to the door. I ignore the stares and whispers as I pass each table. It isn’t until I’m back in the safety of my own apartment in downtown Eden that I can finally breathe. Once I do I let out a low growl. “Dang it, Lusa. What were you thinking? Agreeing to go out with Rue is not a good idea.” I can only hope that nothing bad happens Saturday night.

  3

  LUSA

  It’s Saturday night and I’m trying to get ready for Rupert’s birthday party. I look myself over one last time in the mirror hanging on the back of my bedroom door. My little black dress is a sleeveless Calvin Klein with pleats running down the front. The hem comes up to just above my knees, not showing too much, but not causing me to look like a prude either. On my feet are my favorite red Tiek ballerina flats. Comfort is a protrity, especially when I know I;ll be spending most of my night dancing. That is, unless Rupert finds a guy and lets me off the hook. My hair has been curled to mimic the popular beach waves and my make-up, while minimal, is tastefully done. Even Rupert, the biggest fashion diva I know shouldn’t be able to find fault in me tonight.

  I grab my small red clutch and head out the door. It doesn't take me long to reach the club on Beale Street that I’m meeting Rupert at. When I arrive at the club, the air is thick and something is making the hairs on my arms stand at attention. I begin to look around, trying to find the reason for such a strange vibe when my eyes land on Rupert and a guy. Rolling my eyes I make my way over to them.

  “Lusa!” Rupert yells my name over the music then pulls me to him and hugs me tightly. Once he pulls back, I watch him look past my shoulder and his smile lights up his entire face. I turn my head to see the brown headed guy I saw earlier. “Lusa, this is Devon. Devon, my best friend Lusa,” he introduces us.

  I turn my body around to face Devon and let out a squeal when he crushes me to him. “It’s so nice to finally meet you,” he says into my ear. He must have noticed my confusion because he looks at Rupert and winks before looking back at me. “Didn’t he tell you? We met the other day and he invited me out tonight to help celebrate and to meet you.”

  I glance back to my best friend and give him my best, “seriously,” look. I count to ten then turn back to Devon. He didn’t do anything wrong. He just got wrapped up in the whirlwind that is Rupert. “It’s nice to meet you,” I say as I take his outstretched hand. I see the moment it happens. His gaze was already lingering a little too long, but once our hands touched, it started. The feelings he can’t control. The question of why he is suddenly feeling this way about a girl. The confusion and probably a little anger. I quickly release his hand and some of the spell breaks. Not all. There will always be a lingering desire there, but as long as I keep my distance and don’t touch him, it should be fine.

  I use my thumb to point to the bar behind me. “I’m going to go order a drink. Can I get either of you something?” I ask both of them but I’m only looking at Rupert now.

  “Nah,” he shakes his head. We just did a few shots. I think we’re going to hit the dance floor for a bit.”

  Rupert winks at me before grabbing Devon’s hand and making their way into the throng of dancers. I sigh and turn to head toward the bar. The tension in the air picks back up and rolls down my body. An uneasiness comes over me and I attempt to shake it off, but it’s almost like a cloud had landed above me and is refusing to move on. At the bar I try to get the bartender's attention to no avail. Huh. That is odd. Usually I only have to make eye contact with them and I have their full attention, and a lot of free drinks, the rest of the nig
ht. Something is definitely going on.

  The bartender finally sees me and barks out, “What can I get you?” Too stunned to speak, I can only stare at him. He narrows his eyes and repeats the question. “What can I get you?” This time he says it a little less brassy.

  I finally snap out of it and place my order. “I’ll have a white wine, please.”

  The bartender rolls his eyes and turns to grab a bottle of wine from the shelf behind him. I watch as he reaches down under the bar then pulls out a wine glass and begins to fill it. Once he’s done, he places the glass on a napkin in front of me and looks at me expectantly. The man beside me leans over, getting in my face. “I’ll buy your drink for you, baby,” he slurs.

  I lean back, trying to push away the reek of cheap tequila from the air and shake my head. “No, thanks. I can get my own.”

  The stranger lifts his eyebrows and turns back to the woman sitting on the opposite side of him. I groan to myself and look back at the bartender. “That’ll be eight bucks,” he tells me.

  I reach into my clutch, pulling out my credit card and passing it over. He takes it, looks at it then spins on his heels and walks to the end of the bar where the register is sitting. It doesn't take long for him to finish before he’s walking back to me. He passes me my card and then turns to go check on other patrons.

  Not once does he look back at me. He never smiled at me. Never asked for my number. He never once tried to flirt or come on to me.

  Oh hell.

  Could this man, this bartender, be my one?

  4

  ELI

  There is just something about that girl. A pull, but not. It’s hard to explain, and I honestly don’t have time. My regular bartender is currently on stage with his band while I sling drinks like I did when the guys and I first opened the place. I’m happy for Randy, but his set needs to hurry up and be over because I am one more flirty girl, ordering a fruity cocktail, away from jumping over the bar and running out of here.

  “What’s got you in such a mood?” Gabe, one of my two best friends and one-third owner of the bar comes up behind me. “You look like you would be happy maiming some poor schmuck tonight.”

  My eyes find the drunk schmuck that offered to buy her a drink. I wanted to punch him, but when she turned him down I decided to let him live. For the time being. “I’m just tired, man,” the lie falling easily from my lips. “I haven’t slung drinks like this since we opened the place.”

  “I hear you,” he grunts out. “Is it me, or is it extra crowded in here tonight?”

  We both look around and I notice he’s right. It’s always busy, but tonight is crazy. I know nothing special is going on downtown where we’re located, but something must be up. “I don’t know what’s going on,” I tell him. “There isn’t anything on the cities calendar so who knows. Maybe everyone just decided to get out and have some fun?” I shrug my shoulders, giving him my best thought on the matter.

  “Eh, it doesn't matter. As long as they keep on coming in and spending money, I don’t care where they came from.”

  “You bastards need some help back here?” Zac, my second best friend and the other one-third owner of the bar jogs up to us, slapping both Gabe and myself on the back.

  “Yeah,” I nod at him. “Start pouring.”

  The three of us divy up the bar and we start pouring drinks as fast as the orders are coming in. Out of the corner of my eye I see Zac make his way to her. He leans over, probably asking her what she wants to drink. When he pulls back, her eyes are huge and she just nods her head at him. He looks at me, smurks, then pours her a new glass of wite wine. I notice her hand trembling when she accepts the glass and lifts it to her lips. She must be shy, or very new to the club scene. She doesn't look like she belongs here.

  A hand falls over her shoulder and I see her look over and a smile lights up her face. A man leans down and whispers into her ear and she throws her head back in laughter. “Dude, who is she?” Gabe aks while I stare at her.

  “I have no idea,” I tell him.

  “There’s something about her,” Zac chimes in.

  Gabe grunts his agreement but I don’t say anything. I just watch her. She must sense us, because her head whips back and when she sees the three of us staring, her mouth makes a small ‘o’ shape. I narrow my eyes at her and watch as she sets her glass down then quickly hops off the barstool and disappears into the crowd.

  “That was really weird.”

  I have to agree with Zac. That was really weird.

  5

  LUSA

  The music is pumping and couples are swaging back and forth on the dance floor. I lost sight of Rupert and Devon and hour ago. If I know my best friend, and I do, then he probably pulled Devon to a corner to remind him that he’s still here and he isn’t really interested in me.

  Sitting back in the booth, I sigh and sip on my beer. I could use a refill, but my nerves won’t allow me to get up and head back to the bar. I don’t want to see them. Not now. My mind is all over the place. Could they be the answer to my prayers? I know how it’s supposed to happen. When I meet him, we’ll feel a pull, but not the overwhelming demand of lust. More like a need to know each other. That I was expecting What I wasn’t expecting was to have this happen with more than one.

  Definitely not with three different men.

  I pull out my phone, my fingers getting ready to send Rupert a text letting him know I’m headed home when a shadow falls over me. Looking up, I let out a girly squeak when I come face to face with the first bartender. Eli, I heard one of the other guys call him. I clear my throat twice before speaking. “Yes?” Good one, Lusa. Way to sound like a rude jerk.

  Eli lifts one eyebrow in my direction then lifts his chin in the direction of my forgotten beer. “Can I get you another one?”

  “Umm, I was actually getting ready to head home for the night.”

  He narrows his eyes at me and I get the feeling this man is trying to look deep into my soul. “Why do I get the feeling I know you? I’ve never seen you before, but it’s almost like I know you.”

  His deep voice calls out to me and I have to force myself to sit still and not lean in and get closer to him. “I have no idea,” I breathe out.

  “Huh,” he says, tilting his head to the side. “Funny, because after you left the bar, Zac said the same thing. Even Gabe agreed with him.”

  “Who?” I ask, confused now.

  Eli nods in the direction of the bar. “Zac and Gabe owns the bar with me. They were up there earlier.”

  Zac, Gabe and Eli. I repeat their names in my head, liking how they sound floating around in my mind. “I haven't met the two of them either.”

  “Then explain to me what is going on.” Eli raises his hand to cut off my reply. “Don’t tell me nothing because I know better. Something is going on and I don’t like it.”

  “Damn it,” I mutter under my breath. I look up and into Eli’s eyes. “Can we do this some place else?”

  Eli glances over his shoulder then back to me. “Yeah,” he says curtly. “Tomorrow. We don’t close down for a few more hours and something tells me we’re going to need to be wide awake and alert for this conversation.”

  “That would probably be best.”

  Eli holds his hand out. “Let me see your phone.”

  “My phone?”

  “So I can put my number in it. You need to be able to reach me for tomorrow.”

  “Oh, yeah, sure,” I flush in embarrassment. Handing over my phone, I watch Eli punch in his number before handing it back to me. “What time should I call you?”

  “We’re usually up and going by noon.”

  “Okay,” I say softly. “I’ll call tomorrow at twelve then.”

  Eli blows out a breath then nods his head before turning and walking back to the bar. I hold my phone close to my chest then open up the text I started early to Rupert and hit send. Grabbing my bag, I make my way to the exit, never turning around to look at the bar or the three sets of
eyes I feel burning a hole into my back.

  Tomorrow is going to be interesting. How am I supposed to tell these three strangers who I am and what they potentially mean to me?

  6

  LUSA

  I agreed to meet the guys, Eli, Gabe, and Zac back at their bar at one. I wasn’t about to ask them to come to my home, nor was I willing to meet them at theirs. Maybe I’m a little naive, but meeting at the bar, even though it will only be the four of us, makes me feel safer.

  I arrive at Beale Street Bar at exactly one. Taking a deep breath, I climb out of my car and head to the front where Eli is waiting on me with the door open.

  “I was afraid you weren’t going to show,” she tells me as I pass by.

  “I seriously considered it,” I tell him honestly. “You sure the three of you want to talk?

  “Lusa,” he whispers my name, “that is about the only thing the three of us are sure of right now.”

  I follow Eli to a booth where Gabe and Zac are already seated with glasses of water in front of them. Neither one gets up to greet me, not that I expected them to. Instead, both eye me wearily as I sit, followed by Eli. I pearch my hands on top of the table and wait for one of them to start. It doesn't take long before Zac speaks up.

  “So, Eli said you could explain why we feel like we know you. Why, no matter what we did last night, we couldn’t seem to get you out of our heads. You some kind of witch or voodoo lady?”

  I snort at that idea. He isn’t far off, but he isn’t right either. “No, I’m no witch and I don’t do the voodoo.”

  “Then what the hell are you?” This comes from Gabe. “You did something to us. Hell, I had a willing woman last night and I couldn’t muster up anything.”

  I feel a blush come across my cheeks in embarrassment from thinking about gage mustering up his thing, and from anger at him having a willing female that wasn’t me. “You have to keep an open mind about what I’m about to tell you,” I look them in the eye. “I’m not crazy, but I am different.”