Southern Comfort: Chapter 11

Southern Comfort

Chapter Eleven

We are sitting in City Diner. It's a dingy, old, hole in the wall that's open twenty-four hours and the floor is never mopped, yet it manages to pass the health inspectors every time. As you enter the diner, your feet make disgusting sticky sounds from spilt syrup or a glass of juice that wasn't cleaned up properly and yet the diner is always busy. People love their food and the place has sentimental value to me.

"What are you thinking about, beautiful?" Edward asks, taking my hand in his across the table.

"About the morning after we met," I blush.

"Oh lord," he chuckles.

FLASHBACK

The bathroom door slams shut and I manage to wade through the used paper towels towards the stained sink and disgusting mirror that seems to be covered with lipstick smears and other fluids. Even through the hazy streak covered reflection, I can tell I'm definitely shit faced.

My cheeks are blood red, my eyes lidded from the alcohol.

The door swings open, revealing my brother's girlfriend, Rosalie, holding a cocktail glass. She walks up to me, not caring that she's standing on other people's garbage, and hands me the cup.

"Here you go, birthday girl."

"Uh, I probably shouldn't," I slur, leaning against the sink heavily.

"Don't even think about it. A girl's twenty-first birthday is way too important. Your brother and I aren't resting until you're hurling, so hop to it, Sweets." She practically force feeds the tasty cocktail down my throat. "Now, let's go back out there. I wanna teach you how to line dance."

"Oh no." I lean against her side as we exit the bathroom. "I'm not carbonated."

"Huh?"

"Coordinated," I correct with a hiccup.

"Well I'm not letting you get out of this, Sweets." She pinches my arm. "You promised. I'm covering your tab tonight, therefore you have to line dance with me."

"I need another drink." My giggle is cut off by yet another hiccup; it causes the cowboy hat on my head to fall slightly askew, but I'm far beyond caring at this point.

The country music is pounding through the small barn like structure that is The Crazy Horse. My brother insisted that instead of the boring family dinner I requested for my birthday, I needed to go out with a bang. He and Rosalie had dragged me out to The Crazy Horse and told me to have at it.

And I did.

Tequila, vodka, an embarrassing drink that made my crass older brother blush when his girlfriend ordered it. Southern Comfort was my friend though. I liked the way the whiskey burned as it slid down my throat.

"What'll it be, darlin'?" Emmett's big head asked before popping up on my left. "How 'bout you let me order you somethin'?"

"Alright. I gotta sit down real fast," I plead with Rose until she leads me over to a wall that's lined with bench seats.

She realizes that she's stepped in gum and asks if I will be okay for a few minutes until Emmett makes it back from the bar. I wave her off. Once she's taken off for the bathroom, I decide to rest my eyes for just a moment.

"Rough night?" a smooth voice asks from my left.

"Is my birthday," I slur without opening my eyes or even turning towards the person asking the question.

"Ah, twenty-first?"

"Is it that obvious?" I hiccup, earning a chuckle from my company. I turn my head and will my eyes to open.

He's blurry at first, but I finally manage to take a good look at him. Dark topaz eyes, a straight nose and wild copper hair trying to escape the black suede cowboy hat on his head. He's handsome and the smirk on his face shows that he knows it.

"Just a little. You here with friends?" He lifts a Bud Light bottle up to his lips and takes a sip.

"My brother and his girlfriend." I look around the bar and try to find them, but the room spins and I give up. "He's getting me a drink and she's in the bathroom."

"Ah. I'm here with my little sister." He points to the end of the bar, at a short brunette wearing a bright yellow flannel shirt and wranglers. Her boots match her shirt and the headband holding her long hair back. She's talking to the bartender that sold me my first official alcoholic beverage. "She's got the hots for the bartender and dragged me out of my dorm so that I could come play bodyguard for her."

"You're in school, too?" I'm really thirsty and he keeps taking a sip out of his beer.

Where the hell is Emmett?

"Yeah."

"What are you going for?"

"Equine Veterinarian."

"What's that?" I blurt out.

"In short terms, it's a horse vet."

"Aw, I like horses." I mumble. Turning towards the bar in search for my brother yet again.

"What are you going for?"

"Web design and business. I'm looking to freelance."

"Sounds nerdy," he snorts, pulling my hat off of my head.

"Well... I don't even know your name." I stand on wobbly legs. "If you're going to insult a girl on her birthday over her career choice, no wonder you're alone, sitting in the dark corner of a club while your sister gets her flirt on with the hot bartender."

By the time I'm in the middle of my rant, I've forgotten what my initial point was about, so I turn and walk towards the bar, ignoring the ignorant male behind me. I check my phone to find that it's nearly three in the morning. Thank God my birthday fell on a Friday; I'll have a day and a half to recover from tonight.

I find Emmett and Rosalie at the bar gathering up a few shots on a corkboard tray. My brother hands me what will be the last drink of the night because my body can't handle any more.

"It's sparkly," I comment, holding it up to the light.

"It's Goldschläger," Emmett beams and lifts my hand up to my mouth.

The cinnamon burns worse. I remind myself that come morning, if I haven't sworn off all alcohol, I'll stick with Southern Comfort.

We end up leaving the club soon after. Emmett's starving to death so we stop at City Diner and take up a table in the back because I'm inebriated to the point of delirium and we don't want to cause a scene. I've just gotten my biscuits and gravy when someone sits in the empty chair next to me and places something on my head.

"You forgot your hat, birthday girl. And my name is Edward."

END FLASHBACK

"Thinking back to that day, did you ever think we'd be here today?" he asks, stealing a piece of my bacon.

"Well I was annoyed with you at first, especially when you stole half my food." I poke his hand with my fork as he tries to steal a bite of my biscuits and gravy.

"Hmm. Well I loved you from the second I saw you at The Crazy Horse. When did you change your mind about me?" he asks, his head cocked to the side.

"When you invited me back to your dorm room for a Shaun of the Dead marathon."

"Really, Bella?" Edward snorts. "Zombies?"

"I love zombies! You're the only one that understands my sick infatuation with the living dead." I grab his hand and kiss where I've stabbed him. "I don't really know when. I remember you calling me that night to make sure I got in safely and then we stayed on the phone until you passed out. I told you I loved you before I hung up."

"You did?"

"Yep. Now eat your food. I don't want to be late for my appointment with Maggie," I wink, spearing a piece of melon from his fruit bowl and pop it into my mouth.

"You're cute," he smirks.

"And you eat like a turtle. Hurry up."