China’s eyes were covered by a haze of lasciviousness. Her lips slightly spread as she ran the tips of her fingers up my spine. When our eyes met, she mischievously smirked. “China,” I whispered.

As if the sound of my voice cracked the daze China had engulfed herself within, she frowned. She ran her soft palm up my forearm and then pulled me into her embrace. Before I could pull away, she sucked my bottom lip into her mouth and moaned. Firmly cupping my bottom in her hands, she used her tongue to lick the taste of bewilderment from my taste buds. I pulled away and she cackled. “There’s little time for wariness, my dear.”

Like a prowler satisfied with its bounty, she slunk away into the hollow darkness behind us. I touched my lips and then licked her bubble gum lip gloss from my lips. A stale breeze slid up my thigh as I surveyed my dusky surroundings. When I turned to the bar, I was startled by the gaze of the bartender. His sturdy arms pressed into the bar top as he watched me. Chewing on his bottom lip, his chest rose and fell in a somber pace while the darkness in his eyes peeled over my body. I felt violated as his eyes pierced through my skin and analyzed the curves hidden beneath my fabric. Curling his finger at me, he beckoned my presence.

Although I hesitated, I felt foolish standing in the middle of the room with nowhere to go. My friends had left me and I was the emotionally wounded gazelle with Chanel No. 5 perfume, six inch heels and bold makeup. Saliva dripped down the chins’ of predators as their mouths stood agape. With their noses in the air, they inhaled my scent gorging on my fear. The longer I stood there with my arms wrapped around my waist, the easier it would be for a hungry marauder with a rumbling belly to pull me into his or her clutches and sink wet teeth into my neck.

The bartender watched me watch the room. Realizing that decisions needed to be made quickly, I took a deep breath and meandered in his direction. The small crowd slowly split to let me through. Feeling their breaths on my neck, I closed my eyes and pulled in my lips.

“Your skin looks moist,” one voice whispered.

“I could eat her without a fork or a plate. I’d devour her right on this floor,” spoke another voice.

“Don’t suck on your lips…that’s my job,” hissed yet another.

Opening my eyes, I kept my eyes locked on those of the bartender. Before words could be spoken, he pulled a tall shot glass filled with clear liquid. I didn’t touch it. I kept my eyes on him and watched as the left corner of his mouth curled upward. With his left hand, he pulled a red straw from his pocket. After a quick, yet sensuous lick, he placed the straw into the glass and then slid it in my direction.

“Drink it.”

I nudged the glass away from me and then folded my arms over my chest. “I’m not going to drink something without even knowing where it came from.”

The left corner of his lip straightened. As if his tongue could grow in a matter of seconds, his five inch tongue slithered up the straw and then curled around it. Taking a sip, the bartender chuckled and pushed the glass back to me. “Drink it. It’ll take the edge off.”

I was reluctant. I never accepted drinks from strangers and I certainly never shared drinks with snake-like bartenders. Nevertheless, I never trekked through dark woods in the middle of the night to be groped by my friends. Hence, I pulled the straw from the glass and chugged the unknown contents of the glass. It was strong and burned on the way down. I winced as I held on to the bar, waiting for the bitterness to subside. “What was that?”

Frowning, the bartender turned around and walked to the other side of the bar. As I smacked my lips, I tried to ignore the young couple dressed in black leather, armed with riding whips, making their way in my direction. When I turned around, I shrieked at the sight of the nude elderly man pleasuring himself to the mere sight of me. His corroded, beige skin hung off his limp bones as he sat hunched forward on his bar stool. His droopy eyes locked on me as he neared his climax. Feeling cornered, I let go of the edge of the bar and took two steps forward.

Suddenly, the room spun with a wicked vengeance. I reached back for the bar hoping to gather myself only to realize that the bar was more than ten feet away. I could feel my heart beating through my fingertips as the mounting sound of moaning and wails permeated my senses. The leather immersed couple still made their way to me as their smiles widened. When I noticed a small bench in the corner, I struggled to reach it only to be met by rough grabs jerking me into a different direction.

To be continued…