Johnny’s feet felt cold against the street beneath him and
realizing Marabelle was no longer chasing him he paused. In the distance he saw a payphone but
he didn’t have any money not even change. Johnny then realized he really had no
one to call except the woman. Only she could save him from this predicament
without further trouble. But calling her had its own dangers attached
especially with Rooskie hanging around.
Johnny decided to head west towards Santa Monica since it was
late enough for him to make some dough prostituting himself to get a taxi back
to Tara’s place. He really didn’t
feel like sex after the Marabelle incident but he thought he could handle a
blowjob if he was the one giving it. For Johnny finding that gig was always
easy as that’s what most men who sought out male prostitutes wanted. A quick blowjob and $60 bucks and he
would be out of this mess and back to Tara’s. He could hear his bare footsteps
along the boardwalk as he looked ahead into the darkness of strangers .He felt
confident that it was just a matter of time before he was finally back at
Tara’s warm, safe and secure. Johnny thought briefly about his father and
longed to be back within his lavish home with every need taken care of. But as
soon as he had the thought he erased it with anger and contempt for his father
for leaving him to fend for himself when he had so much wealth.
The boardwalk still had life on it and as Johnny passed a
bar he relished the thought of getting a drink and some food. By now that mash
potato gruel he was fed by Marabelle had well expired. Johnny felt enticed into
the bar until he finally convinced himself that he could probably swindle a
meal and a drink out of someone so he walked in. As soon as he was in the bar he
realized this was a domination crowd and he quickly decided to walk out again.
Johnny couldn’t take anymore of sadistic sex for now. Resigned to the long walk
to the streets of Santa Monica’s where male prostitutes earned their money he
left.
Eventually and just before dawn Johnny had the money he
needed to get back to Tara’s. He was so tired he could barely hail a taxi down
but finally one cab driver stopped and agreed to take him after he showed him
he had the cash to pay. Johnny fell asleep in the cab as it drove him back to
Tara’s. He felt his side jabbed and it rocked him out of his peaceful slumber
and he then realized he had finally arrived home. He paid the cab and dragged
himself upstairs with the sun rising.
Just as Johnny was about to put the key in the door he saw Rooskie’s
hand laid over his own hand until his hand disappeared. He could tell it was
Rooskie’s hand without even looking back at him. It was extra large with thick fingers and had scars that left
no doubt that Rooskie led a violent life. “Tatiana told me to pick you up. You must come with me now.” Rooskie said low but deliberate as if trying to extricate his
foreign accent. Johnny was grateful he had slept for a bit in the cab ride over
but was disappointed to not be headed to his bed in Tara’s apartment. But he
already knew that resisting Rooskie was not a wise choice to make especially
without any witnesses around. He also convinced himself the woman was still
protecting him and thus turned to leave with Rooskie willingly and without
responding. He thought it was safer not to speak to Rooskie at all at this
point.
As they drove Johnny didn’t ask where they were going but
was hoping all the while they were not going back to Venice beach; the woman’s
apparent favorite meeting spot.
Eventually they turned in a direction that Johnny knew they were not
going to Venice beach or the woman’s house but into the Beverly Hills. Johnny
loved Beverly Hills it was so clean it looked like it didn’t exist as part of
Los Angeles at all. Up the turning
hilly roads the van went until finally arriving at an estate with a large steel
black gate and hedges guarding the entrance. At that point Johnny could no longer hold in his curiosity
and he felt himself whisper, “ What is this place about Rooskie? What are we
doing here?” Rooskie said nothing in reply but hung his head out to speak into
the black box that acted as the sentry to this entrance, “We are here.”
Suddenly the gates opened and the van drove in towards a grand mansion that
Johnny recalled his days of wealth and felt excited to return to it today. As they got closer he could see the
woman already at the entrance door and next to her stood a man that the closer
they drove looked more and more like Johnny’s’ father.
Johnny felt panicky but at the same time he felt
exhilaration. He began realizing that this might be his chance to get his wealthy
privileged life back again. He
imagined his father running to greet him throwing his arms around him and
welcoming him home for good and extending his deepest apologies for cutting him
off. The closer the van approached
the more his dreams turned against reality as he saw his father’s face
consternated and clearly not welcoming. When the van stopped and he saw Johnny
his father’s face turned red with rage. “Are you kidding me?! What have you
become just a piece of trash like your mother here?! Wow am I glad I got rid of
you! You absolutely sicken me!” His father’s words cut Johnny deep until even
Rooskie seemed like a nicer person than his father. Johnny looked over at the
woman and she stared at him with a look Johnny had not seen in the woman
before. It was strange as she kept her stare on him until Johnny felt
uncomfortable. “Why did you bring me here?” he shouted at her. Just as the last
word left Johnny’s lips the woman was getting into the van instructing Rooskie
to leave immediately. They all sat
quietly no one saying a word for sometime and until Johnny saw Rooskie was
headed back to Venice beach. ‘No please take me back to Tara’s!” he said with
desperation noted in his voice. Johnny felt completely defeated now but he knew
he needed to rest and afterwards he could sort this all out and get back on
track to becoming the rock god he knew he deserved to be, was born to be.
When Johnny finally entered Tara’s apartment it appeared to
Johnny that she had not been there for at least a few days. But Johnny just
wanted to get into bed and sleep and couldn’t think about much of anything
else; he was exhausted.
