Date: Mon, 4 Aug 2003 18:40:19 -0700 (PDT) From: Robyn Subject: Lives Intertwined (Chapter 6) Lives Intertwined (Chapter 6) By The WhiteWolf This is the final character that I will reveal to you. In this section the character is not in his natural surroundings, which are basically composed of himself and a bottle of red wine. This section also contains some of the previous characters. Alex glanced at the orange that had just been handed back to him, and then at the man. He had a 30-something Christian Slater appearance to him. As Alex was in a hurry, he didn't dwell on it, and the man was soon forgotten. Alex is an author and writes for various companies. Most of his books have not reached the best seller's list, but he lives well. Mostly, he keeps to himself so he can concentrate on his work. Tonight, however, he has decided to involve himself at a party. He picked up the bag of ice that he had planned to get in the first place. He has the tendency to get sidetracked. After paying for the ice he got to his car and began to drive. The party wasn't even a mile away but taking the scenic route seemed to extend the journey. Minutes later he arrived at the apartment. "Hey, what took so long," Johnny spoke as Alex entered the door. Alex put down the keys and headed towards the kitchen, "The line was long. Cut me some slack." Alex put the bag of ice in the sink and began to make himself a drink. Before he could mix the vodka with the orange juice he heard a voice. "Hi, you're Alex, right?" The sound came from behind him. Alex turned around to find a man smiling at him. "Yes, I am," he shook the mans hand, "And you are^Å?" "Jim." Jim walked over near the sink to Alex to pick up a glass. "I've read some of your books." Alex looked Jim over and responded, "It's always a pleasure to meet a fan." Before Jim could say another word Johnny walked in and interrupted the conversation, "We're out of chips." "So," Alex asked. Johnny sighed and looked inpatient, "So it's your responsibility." "You know, it seems like this whole party is my responsibility. What exactly do you do," Alex countered. He glanced back at Jim who seemed to be uncomfortable with the situation. "Fine, I'll take care of it." Alex grudgingly grabbed a bag of chips as Johnny left with his arrogant attitude. "Sorry about that, he's just^Å" "That's fine^Å really, but I'm with someone right now. Nice talking to you." Jim left the room quickly. "Sure, blow me off," Alex thought to himself. Alex filled the bowl up with potato chips and looked over at the punch bowl, which was almost full. "Johnny really knows how to get people to drink^Å add some alcohol for once! Jesus." Suddenly Alex remembered his own drink and headed toward the kitchen again. Without looking where he was going he ran into a partygoer. "Excuse me," Alex apologized as he looked up and saw a woman in a black skin- tight leather dress. "Quite all right, I wasn't watching where I was going," she spoke while lightly touching Alex's arm. She removed her hand from his arm so as not to seem to be coming on too strong. Alex, who doesn't let much deter him, continued on into the kitchen. He could hear the woman sigh as he moved away. "Not my cup of tea," he mumbled to himself as he tried to chuckle. He picked up his glass and started to drink. Soon he realized that he still had not poured the vodka yet. Alex doesn't usually drink screwdrivers, and there wasn't much on hand to make drinks. As he glanced into the next room he saw Jim talk to the woman. "Entirely futile attempt by me- I suppose." Alex noted that she employed the same tactic on Jim as she had on him. He turned away wishing everyone would leave so he could relax. He exited the kitchen and walked to the den, which was the only unoccupied room. His "Fortress of Solitude", as he liked to call it. After sitting down he turned on the computer monitor and picked up the phone. After punched a few numbers and leaned back in the chair. There was click on the phone. "Hello, "Alex spoke. A sigh on the other end came, "You know it's customary for the person on the receiving end to say hello first, Alex." "Sue me, Rhonda." "Sue you? But you're still paying me for one hotel on Baltic Avenue. So what do I owe the pleasure of this phone call?" "Is it possible to come over tonight. I'm having a terrible time here." "Let me guess: Johnny's on your case?" "When isn't he, besides he's not going to help me clean up the apartment^Åmaybe you can^Å" "What am I ^× your maid?" "Oh come on, help me. Help, help me Rhonda." "You know that was funny the first five times." A small pause. "Ok, two hours max, then I'm out." "You're a doll." "And you're manipulative. I'll be there soon." Another click sounded as Rhonda hung up the phone. Alex put the phone back on the hook and continued to lean back. Alex removed his thin wire frame glasses and closed his eyes. Rhonda would be here soon and perhaps even liven the party, she had that uncanny ability. As for Alex, he knew that it was not his style to socialize. He'd much rather stay at home in front of the warm glow of a monitor writing a story. Alex can alter his state of reality as he interweaves the words on the screen into his life. It's a much more pleasurable life if he doesn't have to face it. "Time to return to hell," he opened the door again and found a chair to sit down on. He heard a familiar voice behind him. "Hey, do you know where the woman that was here earlier is," Jim asked Alex. Alex was quite annoyed that everything was starting the move downhill, "No." "Well if you see her, tell her she left her purse near the punchbowl." Without looking up and keeping a nondescript demeanor he held out his arm, "I'll put it somewhere safe." Jim, noticing something different about Alex hesitated, "That's ok, I'll give it back to her when I see her." Alex really didn't care one way or the other, and didn't give any sign of acknowledgment, save retracting his arm. Alex could still feel the man's presence. "So what are you doing after the party," Jim asked. TBC