Unhinged

August recognized her friends as they walked through the doors, laughing quietly. He had been watching them for a few months now. This wasn’t his typical behavior. He was an intense person and it helped with his job. He obsessed over saving people. He knew how to track, how to watch for signs. He had never obsessed over another person in this way though, not when he wasn’t trying to save their life. Rennora didn’t need saving. She was perfectly content. He just needed her. He took a quick sip of his drink as the group walked towards the bar. Katie, always the first to speak up, walked straight to the bar, not giving him a second glance. She took the seat beside him and ran her hands over her cropped blue hair, wafting the smell of dark perfume and cigarettes toward him. She smiled sweetly at the bartender once she had her attention and said “Hey Claire! Can we get our normal?”. He couldn’t decide if Claire just wasn’t interested or if she was caught up in her job. He thought she would be crazy not to notice the clear attention she got from Katie. Maybe she just doesn’t swing that way. As Claire made each of the five friends their drinks, they continued conversations. His eyes trailed back over to his girl. She was standing a little awkwardly, now waiting for her friends to join her. She still hadn’t met his gaze, though he was obvious in his appraisal of her. He didn’t miss the way her gaze stayed strictly on her group. He hid a smile by taking another sip of his drink, noticing that it seemed forced. Had she noticed him already? Ivy, Rennoras best friend, turned and waved her over. In response, Rennora shook her head. She motioned to the booth she had saved for their large friend group. It was rare they were left empty. He loved that she was such a planner, always looking ahead. It was one of the first things he had noticed about her. “I want to take away some of that burden from you” he thought to himself. She deserved the world, but not to hold it on her shoulders. He knew how that felt.

He took this as his chance to introduce himself. This night had been months in the making. Slowly, he stood from his stool and smiled at Ivy, hoping she would recognize him. If not, this would be a bit more difficult. It could throw off his entire plan and that couldn’t happen. His heart was on the line and he didn’t know if he could take another hit. He had never felt that immediate recognition of another person. He didn’t even believe in that sort of thing until he had seen her. He had thought her a comfort blanket his mind had made up when he was a child. “Ivy, right? From the bookstore?” He stood well above her, and noticed the way she eyed him with suspicion. She was right to do so. He had been watching them all for a while now. It almost scared him that none of them had noticed. Who else could be watching his girl, and her friends? He had good intentions, but others may not. He stuck his hand out to help lower her hackles. He’d been faced against worse. “I’m August. We met at a book signing I think. Over at Turning The Page?”. While he enjoyed reading, he didn’t typically frequent the popular bookstore in their town. Once he found she did, he knew it would be the perfect place to show himself. He had kept his distance until the event was starting to close and just so happened to walk up to the author at the same time Ivy had. He knew he wasn’t her type so he hadn’t been worried about there being an interest shown beyond friendship. She always seemed weary of people in general. They had stayed and spoken for a while after, talking book genres. “Oh! Yeah, I remember you.” she stated, taking his hand firmly and giving it a squeeze, then letting go. Turning to her friends, she introduced them all. “This is Katie, Jake, Otto, and that’s Ren over there.” He glanced her way and noticed she was scrolling on her phone, having taken her spot in the booth. Ivy still eyed him suspiciously, though she tried to hide it behind a politicians smile. “Good to see you again.” As she started to turn around, Otto stepped in. “You’re not going to invite your new friend to come sit with us?” He asked, then turning to August: “Don’t mind her. The quote is ‘no new friends’ right? We all had to fight for a spot in her heart.” He then motioned for him to follow. She smiled warmly at her friend and shook her head slightly while letting out a soft laugh. “I guess he’s not wrong. You wanna join us?” August’s full lips curved into a small smirk, and he nodded to them both. “It’s very nice to meet you. I’m August, the guy from the bookstore, I suppose. I’d love to join you all and… Ren, you said?” He motioned toward her, still waiting at the booth. He stepped towards her, not waiting for the others. He had no patience left.

He sat on a stool in the back of the lounge. It was a cozy place, the walls painted a dark red and the lights turned low. Every accent was purposeful with floral motifs on the doorways and vibrant art on the walls. Soft flowing music could be heard throughout the establishment and out of the windows into the cold winter night. Couples could be found sitting closely together whispering to each other and sipping their drinks. There were two main rooms, separated slightly by a half wall.

Riddens was popular with the younger crowd in the city. It was attached to a small shopping center with a tattoo shop next door. Outside it was snowing and occasionally he could hear the sounds of cars pass as a song changed. It wasn't overly crowded due to the fact that it was a Thursday evening. He scanned the small crowd of guests and his dark eyes narrowed. He could see her from across the bar happily talking to her friends. Rennora's pale, unruly curls were half up in a bun which was her go to style. Her sweater hung loose over her figure but she was wearing leather leggings that hugged her curves and when she moved he could see the slight waves of them under the material. He imagined the easy weight they held, the way they might darken under his steady grip. He quickly released the tight hold he had on his drink when he realized just how deep in his thoughts he had been. Suddenly she moved, turning her attention to her phone. He shook away the thoughts he was having. Those fantasies would come to life in time but he had to do the legwork to get them.

It was months ago that he had recognized her sunshine hair and unrestrained laughter in this very place. She looked the same as she had every night he had dreamt of her. In his dreams, she had grown with him. When he was a boy, struggling with his mother’s addiction, he escaped to his dreams. The first dream he remembered with her in it he was around eight years old. She had walked right up to him and introduced herself. They played silly games together and when he awoke he would always miss the only person that understood his pain. She consoled him when his mother died, kissed tears that only existed in sleep. He couldn't explain it but he just knew it was her. Everything about her called to the darkest parts of his soul, his knowing hers so well after so many nights together. She knew him, she just didn't realize it yet. When he saw her here, alive, warm, almost glowing under the red glow of Riddens, he knew she was it. This was the woman he had grown so close to when the waking world dissolved. She was the angel of his dreams.