Going the Distance (23 page)

Her face lit up. “You’re damn right, Purgatory.”

I was once again lost.

Nate explained to me as we walked out to the parking lot. Purgatory was an eighteen-and-over bar in downtown Dallas that was considered the best place to party for kids our age. It was an all-sexuality club, so there were a ton of straight, gay, and bi people there, and on a Friday it would be packed. I pointed out I was only sixteen, and he pointed out I looked like I was twenty-two.

“You’re coming, right?” Sam asked me as he stopped at a cherry red BMW convertible. He leaned on the trunk and gave me a grin that looked like it was ten different kinds of illegal. The Beemer had vanity plates on it that said SYMBA.

“You just can’t wait to be king?” I asked him, smiling.

“Not even a little,” he answered. “So you’re coming with us?”

I took a second to examine his car and buy myself time to think of an answer. It was tricked out with silver rims and a leather interior. If the BMW cost less than eighty grand, I would eat my hat. “This is really yours?”

He stood up, like he was still trying to joke, but I could hear the seriousness in his voice. “Don’t change the subject. Are you coming out with us or chickening out?”

“Chickening?” I asked, moving closer to him. “You think I’m Marty McFly or something and you can goad me into going?”

He got even closer to me. “I think you’re scared silly of me, and you’ll use any excuse to bolt.”

“What did Conner tell you?” I asked suddenly.

The tone of my voice must have been drastic, because the playful smile left his face. “Nothing, I was just joking.”

This was a mistake. I was just doomed to fuck this up. What did I know about flirting with a guy, much less one like this? I was better off going back to Amy’s and watching
SportsCenter
before I passed out.

“Hey.” He spoke so quietly I’m sure no one else could hear him. “Just come with us. I’m not ready to say bye to you yet.” Nearly pouting, he looked up at me, and I wondered how anyone in the world ever told this guy no.

“Fine,” I said with as much confidence as the Washington Generals had when they went up against the Globetrotters. If you were wondering how much confidence the Generals had? None at all, because they knew they were supposed to lose.

P
URGATORY
SAT
on an entire block of downtown Dallas, and it was packed from what I could see.

Nate and Amy had agreed to drive with me as we followed Sam and Conner in Sam’s car. They had both drilled me the entire time about Sam.

“Did you like him?”

“What did you guys talk about?”

“What did he say to you in the parking lot?”

It was kind of insane.

“What’s his story anyways?” I asked Amy as we circled around the block again looking for a parking spot.

“Sam? His great-grandfather found oil back when Texas was still Mexico or something, and his father sold all of it off to BP for a VP spot and more money than God. He has two older brothers and, for people who are richer than God, they all turned out really cool. The oldest, John, is like a god around town. I mean, if it turned out he was Captain America, no one would blink.”

And that feeling of throwing up suddenly came rushing back.

“And you thought it would be a good idea for us to meet?” I asked Nate.

“What?” he asked, confused. “You’re the one who said you wanted to meet him.”

“Yeah, before I knew he was like Richie Rich.”

Sam had pulled up to the valet parking spot and motioned for me to follow.

“How much does this cost?” I asked, looking for a sign that had a price.

Sam had left his car and walked over to my window. “Just leave it—they’ll park it.”

I shifted into park and started to pull out my wallet. “Do I just leave the money in here or give it to them?” I didn’t want to admit I had never used valet parking before.

“It’s cool,” he said casually. “It’s paid for already.”

The parking attendant appeared and handed Sam a credit card. I tried not to gawk at the fact he had plastic. I guess I did a crappy job, because he saw me staring and showed me the card. “Isn’t that cool?” he said, handing me the card. “They make them special order.”

I looked down and saw that it was a MasterCard with Lion King characters on the front, the picture of the monkey holding the baby lion on the rock. I shouldn’t have been, but I was shocked to see it had Sam’s name on it. “You have a credit card?” I asked stupidly, since I was obviously holding it.

He nodded and slipped it into his wallet. “Yep yep.” It was pretty obvious it wasn’t a point of pride with him.

“I’m sorry,” I said quickly. “I know you’re not supposed to ask about money. I’ve just never seen someone my age with their own card.”

He gave me a smile that could have parted the clouds on an overcast day. “No, it’s cool. I was stoked when I got it, but my dad has made sure to remind me that it’s not an invitation to just spend money whenever I want.” In a lower voice he muttered, “Even if it’s my money.”

“I’ve never seen a card with
Lion King
on it,” I offered as we walked up to the door, trying to change the subject. “It’s very cool.”

He smiled and nodded, but I could tell he was upset. He handed the doorman a wad of bills for all of us, and we were let in despite the line of people behind the velvet rope. “Um, can we just walk in?” I asked Nate, who was behind me.

He nodded. “He’s a VIP member or something—no lines.”

I walked in but couldn’t help but glance at the people who were waiting to get in.

Amy and Nate had been right; the place was packed. The music hit us like a wall as we walked into the club proper, and I winced, since I’d never been in one before. I turned to Nate and shouted, “
Is it always this loud?
”

He just shot me a grin and nodded, and we followed Sam as he walked through the crowd.

It wasn’t obvious, but people kind of moved out of his way as he walked, not like they were afraid or anything, but like they didn’t exactly believe what they were seeing. Like they had heard of him but never expected to see him in the flesh. A girl came up and threw her arms around Conner, and he hugged her back like they were friends. He began talking to her, and she glanced back at us for a second. We made our way through the mass until we reached a back room where another doorman was standing in front of another velvet rope. I could see some kind of lit-up room behind him, but a thick gauzy curtain blocked my view. It wasn’t heavy enough to stop people from getting the idea there was a room beyond it, but more than enough to prevent them from seeing what was going on inside.

The doorman nodded as Sam walked in. Sam paused and looked back at us and told the doorman something. Conner and the girl walked forward, and Conner passed through. However, the bouncer guy put a hand in front of the girl and shook his head. Conner looked at her and shrugged apologetically as we walked past. I paused to look back at her, but Amy grabbed my elbow and pushed me forward. “Don’t look back,” she ordered. “She’s a status leech, always trying to glom on to someone coming back here. Trust me, leaving her behind is a good thing.”

I wasn’t going to argue with her, but I didn’t feel any better than I had when we cut in line.

The music in the VIP lounge wasn’t as loud, and the floor wasn’t as crowded, so I could actually see about five smaller lounges with leather couches surrounding lit-up glass tables. Sam walked over to an empty one and sat in the center of the couch farthest from the dance floor. I’m not kidding, he looked like he owned the place. He motioned for us to sit down with him, and I felt like I was way, way out of my league. Everyone in there looked sophisticated and cool, and I was anything but. I was a tall gangly guy who was wearing clothes his dad bought at Walmart. I doubt the people in here had ever heard of Walmart.

As soon as we sat down, he looked at us and grinned. “Shots?”

Conner whooped in agreement, but I looked at Nate. “I can’t drink. I’m not twenty-one, and I’m driving.”

He gave me a reassuring smile and said, “You can drink in here, and you want me to drive instead? I’ll stay sober.”

I trusted Nate with my life, but I also knew if anything happened to that car and I wasn’t driving it, my dad would just take me out to the boonies and shoot me in the back of the head, mob-style. Shaking my head, I said, “I’m going to just have a Coke.”

He nodded and looked at Sam, pointing to him and Amy. Sam looked at me, and I gave him a no.

He paused for maybe half a second and then shrugged. He leaned forward and pressed the top of the table with one index finger. I realized I was looking at a computer’s touchscreen. It lit up and a menu popped up where Sam had touched it. He started tapping buttons to order drinks for all of us. He pulled his wallet out and tossed his card on the table. I watched the system identify the card and scan it superfast. I leaned in, never having seen anything like this before.

Sam leaned closer so I could hear. “It’s called a Surface,” he explained over the music. “Fucking cool, right?” I nodded, fascinated, when the screen asked him if he wanted to open a tab. When he pushed yes, it asked how much. The number he entered had three zeros after it. My mouth went dry at just the thought.

“How can you drink in here?” I asked after he placed the order. “It’s, like, illegal in Texas.”

He shook his head as he put his wallet away again. “The front of the club is an actual business. Back here is a private club that has a membership, which means it has completely different rules.”

“That doesn’t sound legal,” I said.

He grinned. “Oh, it’s legal, just not cheap.”

Yeah, I was right; I was in way over my head.

“So why not drink?” he asked after a few minutes of silence.

“I’m driving, and it’s a new car. My dad would kill me if something happened to it.”

“So drink,” he said, not seeming the least bit concerned. “I’ll call you a cab, and you can get the car in the morning.”

“I’m good,” I said, thinking that sounded expensive too.

“You don’t drink?”

“I do,” I lied, since I’d never really gotten drunk.

He laughed. “It’s okay if you don’t. Seriously, I think it’s cool.”

I looked over at him, and he was giving me a smile that made me think of a cobra hypnotizing its prey. “I’m just paranoid about the car,” I assured him.

The waitress bought an expensive-looking bottle with something tan in it. I assumed it was tequila. There were five shot glasses around the bottle. I ignored the one for me and tried to get her attention so I could order a Coke.

“You just type it,” Sam said, seeing her walk away from me. “Just pull up the menu and scroll down to whatever you want.” I followed his hands as Nate poured a shot out for everyone else. It was at the end of the menu for drinks, and it cost seven bucks, but there it was. Coke in a glass.

“Seven bucks?” I asked, shocked. “I could go get one for a buck at Circle K.”

“Dude, I got it,” Sam assured me and pushed the order button for it.

“I don’t feel good about ordering a Coke that costs more than a movie.”

He smiled as he took his shot from Nate. “Then don’t worry. I ordered it.”

I was about to say that wasn’t the point when the waitress handed me a glass with Coke and ice in it. Once Nate saw we all had a drink, he held his shot up and said, “To new friends.”

“To getting shitfaced,” Conner announced right after.

Sam nodded. “I can drink to both of those.” And they all downed their shots while I took a sip of Coke. Seven bucks and it was still watered down. Typical.

I seemed to be the only one who wasn’t having a good time. Nate and Amy looked like they were blown away to be in a VIP area, and Conner wasn’t missing any opportunity to scope out the girls who were trying to peer in and see who was inside. Sam seemed happy, but something told me it was an act. Maybe he wasn’t as taken with this place as everyone else, or it could be there was something on his mind. Whatever it was, I seemed to be the only one who noticed.

“So you like this place?” I leaned over and asked him.

He seemed surprised by the question and gave me a half smile. “Why? Don’t you?”

Looking around, I saw a lot of drunk people trying too hard to look like they were popular, and a couple of people doing their best to act like they were bored. For a second I thought about just lying and going along with it but then thought that was a bad idea. I mean, if I don’t like something, why do I have to lie about it?

“No, not really,” I finally said.

The answer seemed to amuse him, and his smile grew larger. “Why?”

I shrugged. “Because it’s a loud place where drunk people are, and drunk people are too loud and too dangerous for my taste. What’s there to like?”

He scooted closer to me slightly. “So then what do you do for fun?” I opened my mouth to answer and he added, “Besides basketball.”

I closed my mouth and thought about it. “I like comic books,” I admitted quietly. “And I love sci-fi movies, though I don’t understand much of them, and I watch a lot of Disney movies. Which is why I think it’s cool you like
Lion King
.”

He started laughing but covered his mouth to hide the fact.

“What?” I protested, feeling like I missed a joke.

When he could talk, he looked at me, his eyes the brightest blue I had ever seen in my life. “You’re a nerd.” I felt a scowl drop over my face, but what he said dispelled it. “I mean, you’re cute as hell and look like a hot-ass jock, but inside you’re a nerd.”

He kept laughing, but I was no longer paying attention. Cute? Me?

“What about you?” I fired back jokingly. “You have
Lion King
on your credit card.”

He nodded proudly and pulled his phone out. “I don’t hide the fact I’m a nerd,” he said, putting the phone down on the table. The table lit up for a moment and then an outline of his phone appeared, flashing around the device. “Look, I have proof.” He touched the table and a menu opened up with a list of commands. He pushed one, and half a dozen folders popped up. He pushed one labeled Disney Vacation and the folder expanded, showing about fifty different pictures.