*Author's Note: Any and all persons engaging in any sexual activity are at least eighteen years of age.
Disclaimers: Yes, I need an editor. No. I do not want an editor. Yes it jumps around too much, yes there's too many people to keep track of, yes it's too long, yes it's too short, yes it's in the wrong category, yes this is stupid shit, and yes I suck. Just scroll down to the end, leave comments based on the disclaimers alone and have a nice day.
For everyone else, I hope you enjoy this little tale.
**.**.**
Jenny Rose showed up at the Willingness Is The Key group, left eye swollen and purplish black and tank top ripped, exposing a generous amount of her breasts.
Her short hair was bleached white but her eyebrows were a dark brown, she was missing an upper tooth, and there was a tattoo visible where her top did not meet her shorts.
It was hard to guess the woman's age because of her bleached hair but she was no teenager, even if she did dress like one.
"I uh, I called the AA Hotline," she explained as she came into the small classroom at Cabrini High School. "They said you guys had a meeting here?"
"Welcome; glad you're here," Jamie Baggett smiled. "Got coffee over here. Well, it's kind of like coffee. Carter made it."
"Hey Jamie? Bite me," Carter snapped as many in the classroom laughed.
The older woman introduced herself to the newcomer and dragged her around, introducing her to the other women in the room. By the time they'd started the meeting, Jamie had managed to find out that Jenny Rose was not Jenny Rose's real name, that the woman was fifty four years old, that she was originally from Chicago, Illinois and had just dumped her abusive boyfriend, left him in a cheap motel room in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
"Kind of finally figured it out," Jenny wailed to the group. "Every time fucked up shit happens? It's because I'm fucked up."
Jamie, normally the 'language police' of the group did not address Jenny's profanities. She pursed her lips tightly, but let Jenny continue with her tale of woe.
"And my old man? Remember him going to these meetings," Jenny continued. "So when Greyhound dumped my ass off here in, where the fuck is this place anyway?"
"DeGarde, Louisiana," Danny Lacombe said.
"Good luck finding it on a map," Grace Arceneaux joked.
"Sign says 'Welcome to DeGarde, come back soon.'" Hailee Breaux agreed.
"But its home," Danny said, giving a longing look at Hailee.
The nineteen year old girl was nearly nine months pregnant. To the terminally shy Danny Lacombe, Hailee Breaux was quite possibly the sexiest girl he'd ever seen. There was an almost elfin quality to the five foot tall girl; he found her irresistible. Her brown hair was cut into a cap that framed her slightly pudgy face and accentuated her warm brown eyes. At nineteen, she still had a few pimples mixed in with her freckles and her smile had one front tooth that was chipped.
Danny Lacombe was handsome, still possessing the roughneck physique of his younger days, a thick head of brown hair, and warm brown eyes.
"Anyway, when the buss dropped me off, I thought I might as well call the hotline," Jenny said.
Before the woman could take another breath and continue her long winded profanity laced tale, Jamie jumped in with, "Thanks for sharing. Danny, topic is the First Step; care to share?"
Whenever a newcomer straggled into their meeting, the Willingness Is The Key AA Group would make the first step the topic.
"I'm Danny and I'm an alcoholic," Danny said.
"Hi Danny," nearly everyone in the group said.
"Hi Darnell," Hailee said.
Grace slapped her best friend's leg under the table. Danny launched into his tale.
"What?" Hailee asked, turning to face her friend.
"Anyway, hadn't taken a shower in five or six days and didn't really care," Danny said a few minutes later. "Went into Early's, walked up to the liquor counter and there was that mirror? The Jack Daniel's mirror?"
Many in the room nodded, remembering the large mirror well.
"And got a good look at myself," Danny said. "Saw what alcohol was doing to me, turning me into and said 'My parents didn't raise me to be like this' and turned around and left the store and walked the seven miles to DeGarde CDU,"
"Thanks Danny," almost everyone in the group said.
"Thanks Darrel," Hailee said.
"What?" Hailee asked again when Grace slapped her leg again. "My name's Hailee and I'm an alcoholic."
"Hi Hailee," everyone said.
"My baby saved my life," Hailee admitted. "Found out I'm pregnant, don't even know the father's name, just some old guy slept with for a six pack of beer?"
"My name Demarcus and I'm an addict," an angry African-American man said, fidgeting in his wheelchair.
"Demarcus, this is an AA meeting, Danny cut the paraplegic off.
"What? Mother fucker, a drug is a drug is a drug; I got a fucking right..." Demarcus said.
"This is an Alcoholics Anonymous meeting, not a 'drug is a drug is a drug Anonymous meeting," Danny said again.
"Fuck all of y'all, that's all I got to say," Demarcus snarled as he pushed himself out of the room.
"Does that almost every meeting," Jamie explained to Jenny.
After the meeting, Danny and Carter helped Jamie clean up while Jenny stood and chatted with Grace and Hailee.
Grace Arceneaux and Hailee Breaux were living with Jamie; their parents had kicked both of the then eighteen year old girls out of their 'good Christian' homes when their pregnancies were revealed. Both girls were devastated at first, but now both regarded Jamie as not just their AA sponsor, but as their mother figure.
"Miss Jamie?" Grace said, waddling over to where the woman was standing.
"Yes, Sweetie?" Jamie smiled.
"Miss Jamie? That woman ain't got nowhere go," Grace whispered.
"Damn, Grace, shelter's already closed by now and got you and Hailee and Morgan; there's just nowhere..." Jamie mused.
The older woman turned to where Danny was drying the coffee urn.
"Danny?" she asked sweetly.
"It's a two bedroom house and Carter's already in the second bedroom," Danny protested.
"Let her crash on your couch; it's just until we can figure out where to put her," Jamie wheedled.
"Fine, fine," Danny said.
"Bye Carter, bye Donald," Hailee said as Danny led Jenny to his Dodge Ram pickup truck.
Grace slapped Hailee on her pudgy rear end.
"What?" Hailee protested.
"It's 'Danny,'" Grace snapped. "His name's 'Danny.'"
"Oh," Hailee said.
The smell of alcohol was still quite strong on the woman, but she did not seem to be in any danger of going into Delirium Tremens, seemed fairly coherent. She kept thanking Danny and Carter for the hospitality.
"No problem," Carter said. "Danny's in love with Hailee and figures sucking up to her sponsor will get her to fall in love with him."
"Hey Carter? Go fuck yourself, huh?" Danny snapped.
"Dude, I'm just kidding, huh?" Carter snapped back.
"Not funny, prick," Danny said.
