"No thanks, I'm done. It's my first night back," I told the bartender when he asked if I wanted another. Two drinks were enough, all I wanted was to get out of this hell and get back to my motel. It was karaoke night at this little joint in Burbank and the woman I was with wanted to dance. First of all, I hate to dance because I'm no good at it. Second of all, who can dance when the singing is so God-awful bad? I didn't want to go there at all but it was the only place open late on a Sunday night and I had no place to dump this woman.
Anna and I had been working on a mutual friend's documentary film and had just finished following a NASCAR driver all over hell and back for two months. I had given up my apartment to take the job thinking I could save two months rent and get something new when I came back. In the meantime, I was staying in this little motel close to where we'd be editing the film. Anna on the other hand, was from New York and had only one other friend in L.A., this idiot-girl named Vicky whom I knew from another project and whom she was supposed to be staying with.
Anna had made numerous attempts to reach Vicky throughout the day to no avail. I suggested she get a room for the night but she insisted Vicky was solid and that she would follow through on her promise to put her up. "Let's go get a drink while we wait," she suggested innocently enough. I had given her a ride back from Phoenix and was, unfortunately, her only transportation until idiot-girl picked her up. I couldn't just dump her somewhere, I felt like I needed to at least make sure she met up with her friend. So there I sat, wishing for either a phone call from idiot-girl or a quick death.
Two things I need to mention about, Anna. First, she had a husband back in New York and second, she was apparently a raging alcoholic. I'd seen her put away a few while we were on the road. She never went back to her room without a bottle of wine. I never much cared, though, since she always made it to the shoots on time and hadn't made any costly fuck-ups. But now she was on my time and damn, she was sucking them down. She'd had at least three martinis and four shots of something that smelled pretty fucking nasty. Then when she could hardly stand, much less walk, she tried to drag me out to dance. "Okay, that's it, we're going to have to go," I said when she fell onto the dance floor.
"Oh come on, one more drink," she pleaded.
"I don't think so." I lifted her off the dance floor and pulled her toward the door.
"What about, Vicky? She's supposed to come pick me up."
"I can't wait any longer, I gotta work in the morning," I said.
"So where am I gonna sleep?"
"My room I guess."
"Oh really. Thinking of making a move, are you?" She was slurring her words and her eyes were barely open. "I wonder what my husband would think about that," she said in a voice loud enough for everyone to hear. They always mentioned their husbands or boyfriends whenever they wanted the other people in the room to know they weren't "with" you.
"I think he'd just want to know you were safe," I said. I wished that poor, dumb bastard was there. This should be his problem, not mine. God I hated drunks.
"I'm just fucking with you," she slurred as she tried to slap me playfully upside my head.
"Okay," I said. I caught her arm just before she made contact with my noggin. "Let's just go."
****
Anna was barely conscious by the time we reached the motel. I carried her from the car to the room and flopped her down on the bed - the only bed. I was going to have to either sleep on the floor or in a chair. First night back and I couldn't even sleep in a bed. It's not that I couldn't, I just didn't want to have to explain an awkward situation in the morning. I was better off elsewhere.
I went to the closet and pulled the extra pillow and blanket off the shelf. I turned around and saw that Anna was now standing next to the bed fiddling with the button on her jeans. "What are you doing?" I asked.
"I have to poop," she said.
That's information I could have done without. "Umm... bathroom's thataway," I said, pointing the correct direction.
"Okay," she said, and dropped her jeans before I could say anything else.