Chapter Twenty-Three: The Bar
Just after 11:15, Yao Fangfang pulled Lin Yu and pushed open the bar door. The two were immediately struck by the deafening electronic music.
The air was thick with the strong scent of perfume and alcohol. On the huge screen near the dance floor, dazzling virtual beams of light flashed, sweeping across the dreamy, dazed faces of the audience like an oil brush.
The DJ stood on a raised platform in the center of the stage, raising his arms. His excited voice, filtered through the microphone and reverb, exploded into a fierce wave of sound.
Lin Yu gripped Yao Fangfang's arm tightly, afraid of being separated by the swaying crowd. Guided by the manager, they squeezed their way to their reserved booth.
The tight-fitting dress hugged Yao Fangfang's curvaceous young body. She supported herself on one leg, using the black slender high heel of her other foot to hold onto the footrest of the bar stool. Her long, slender fingers with nutmeg-colored nail polish pressed against the edge of the table. With a slight leap, she gracefully sat down on the chair.
"What would you like to drink? It's on me." She pushed the drink menu in front of Lin Yu. "But there's not much imported liquor, most of it'll be adulterated, you'll definitely have a headache tomorrow that makes you want to bang your head against the wall."
Lin Yu reached out and took the drink menu, looking at Yao Fangfang's slightly excited profile under her heavy smoky makeup, which was dazzling, alluring and eye-catching in the bar's lights and shadows.
She rarely wears makeup, only occasionally putting on light makeup when accompanying Qu Lei to dinner parties in their circle.
Today, however, she rummaged through her drawers and found her nearly expired cosmetics and her old tight-fitting short skirt. She spent two whole hours putting on heavy makeup and even dragged Lin Yu to get dressed up as well, as part of a buy-one-get-one-free deal.
Lin Yu obediently let her do as she pleased, but felt uncomfortable all over. The foundation was like a blanket covering her face, and the lipstick on her lips was so thick it was suffocating.
What's even more awkward is the short skirt she's wearing. She's shorter than Yao Fangfang, and her figure is as thin as a ping-pong paddle. Yao Fangfang's skirt doesn't fit her petite frame well, and she has to use safety pins to barely tighten it at the waist.
She clutched the neckline of her lace camisole with one hand, while the other hand nervously tugged at the hem of her skirt, which barely covered her bottom. She looked like a primary school student wearing adult clothes—more childish than sexy.
"Let's split the bill, it's not cheap here," Lin Yu suggested. Ostensibly, he was accompanying Yao Fangfang to relax, but for a well-behaved girl who had always lived under Lin Min's iron-fisted rule before college, this opportunity to indulge herself was truly rare.
Although Lin Min did not strictly control Lin Yu's monthly living expenses, every expenditure was subject to strict review and control. Going to a bar was obviously not a reasonable expense.
She cut back on other expenses as much as possible, carefully calculating and recalculating before timidly yet excitedly accepting Yao Fangfang's invitation.
In the dim light and with the intense background music, she felt a strange impulse surging through her veins. The dim light acted as a protective layer, allowing her to temporarily shed the mask of being a good girl.
Before she even tasted the alcohol, the deafening electronic music had already set her nerve endings ablaze. The seed of rebellion, dormant for years, finally broke through the hard earth's crust, quietly growing in the shadows.
"No need!" Yao Fangfang waved her hand, propped her arm on the table, leaned closer to Lin Yu, and put her arm around her shoulder.
“I sold the diamond ring Qu Lei gave me, and it’s enough to treat you to an elephant!” She spread her five fingers in front of Lin Yu’s eyes. Her slender fingers were bare, except for a faint ring mark on her middle finger that had been exposed to sunlight.
Lin Yu knew that Qu Lei had been trying to humbly visit Yao Fangfang many times over the past few months, but she had always refused to see him. He wasn't the kind of person who could lower himself forever, and after being repeatedly rejected, the two gradually lost contact.
Yao Fangfang exuded a strong, sweet rose scent, which, combined with her striking features, was as intoxicating as chocolate syrup. Lin Yu's heart softened, and he grasped her fingers. "Do you still hate him?"
This was a question they hadn't discussed when they were in Lin Yu's hometown. She rarely pried into other people's lives, but this was Yao Fangfang, and she hoped she could have a better life.
The music in the bar was so loud it made everyone's eardrums vibrate. Lin Yu had to sit next to Yao Fangfang and speak loudly into her ear. Yao Fangfang just shook her head, her black ponytail swaying from side to side with the rhythm of the music, slapping her cheeks.
"Stop being so indecisive, just call it a day!"
She snapped her fingers crisply, summoning the bar manager. "Handsome, two sets of Corona, plus these two platters." Yao Fangfang casually traced a line on the drink menu, and the manager smiled knowingly before turning and disappearing into the crowd like a fish.
Lin Yu rarely drank alcohol and had no idea how much he could drink. After a few rounds with Yao Fangfang, he was already feeling a bit tipsy, his heart rising and falling with the loud music in the bar.
Yao Fangfang was clearly just getting into the swing of things. After downing six bottles of beer, she couldn't wait for the bar manager and went to the bar to order a glass of tequila.
Lin Yu watched as Yao Fangfang sprinkled salt on the back of her hand, downed the glass of strong liquor in one gulp, and then quickly stuffed half a lemon from the plate into her mouth. The sour and spicy liquid burned her throat, and Yao Fangfang turned her head to wipe away the tears that welled up in her eyes.
Lin Yu, her cheeks flushed, was pulled by Yao Fangfang and squeezed into the center of the dance floor. She was pushed and swayed passively by the sweaty crowd, like a puppet being manipulated.
At the climax of the dance music, the huge black canopy suddenly sprayed out countless colorful sequins, and the crowd erupted in uncontrollable screams.
Lin Yu was dazzled by the sprayed glitter and lost her sense of direction. In a daze, a rough, large hand silently slid towards her waist. The tension from the library restroom stall instantly returned, and Lin Yu turned around sharply, pushing away the man who was pressing against her, only to be met with a strange smiling face.
The man was around forty years old, dressed in a suit and tie, with slicked-back hair, looking like a respectable businessman. "Alone?" the man asked, leaning closer to Lin Yu, his breath reeking of alcohol.
Lin Yu stood frozen in place, her mind blank. Everything she had been taught at school was useless now; she was as if she had been frozen in place, unable to even utter the simplest thing like "walk away."
"Get out of my way." Yao Fangfang appeared beside Lin Yu and shoved the man away. The music had just switched to a softer section, and her words carried clearly across the dance floor. Several people nearby were drawn by the sound and turned to look.
"Easy! Easy! I just accidentally bumped into her." The man spread his hands, making an innocent expression, but his eyes, taking advantage of the dim light, roamed brazenly over the two girls.
"Accidentally? Bullshit!" Yao Fangfang sneered, grabbing Lin Yu's arm and pulling her away from the dance floor. "Let's go." She tidied her messy hair and led Lin Yu back to their seats. Lin Yu sat down in the booth and realized her hands were trembling.
"It's alright now." Yao Fangfang handed her a glass of water and patted her shoulder reassuringly. "I'm here for you."
Lin Yu took the water glass, still feeling lingering fear. Like a fledgling bird leaving its nest, after experiencing novelty and excitement, she now only felt tired and vaguely panicked. The decay and dampness transformed into invisible tentacles, slippery and creeping up Lin Yu's calves.
She glanced at her watch and said softly, "Let's go."
Yao Fangfang nodded. She usually had an exceptionally high alcohol tolerance, but today she was not in good condition and had mixed two kinds of alcohol. She was worried that she would soon fall into a less clear state, so she waved to the waiter to settle the bill.
At the same time, Lin Yu felt a strange heat surge through her body, and acid reflux kept rising in her stomach. She tried to take deep breaths to suppress this unbearable feeling, but the perfume smell in the bar mixed with sweat, which intensified Lin Yu's new round of stomach acid churning.
A persistent throbbing pain shot through her temples, as if someone were repeatedly striking her with a hammer. The alcohol, seemingly amplified by her anxiety, was rapidly taking effect in her body.
Yao Fangfang was looking down, rummaging through her wallet, her phone casually resting on the bar counter. Lin Yu pulled out his phone, which was almost out of battery, to call a taxi. The screen flickered twice as if in a final burst of light, then went completely dark after a final "ding" sound.
Out of the corner of his eye, Lin Yu caught a glimpse of Yao Fangfang's lit-up phone screen; a WeChat message popped up on the lock screen. "I'll leave as soon as I get it to you!" It was Zhang Yunzhou. The message was disjointed, leading Lin Yu to guess they'd been chatting for a while.
At two in the morning, the message seemed extremely abrupt. Her mind was in a mess, unable to make sense of the reason behind it. Before she could think about it, the caller ID suddenly popped up on the screen, and Zhang Yunzhou's name vibrated and buzzed on the bar.
......
When Lin Yu and Yao Fangfang left the bar, Zhang Yunzhou was still on her way. But she really couldn't stay in such a noisy and chaotic environment any longer; she needed plenty of fresh air to alleviate the uncontrollable effects of alcohol on her body.
Yao Fangfang was queuing at the entrance to retrieve her stored belongings, while Lin Yu waited alone under a streetlamp, arms crossed. A cold wind blew by, and she had to hold onto the streetlamp for support to barely alleviate her inexplicable dizziness.
In that brief moment of isolation, a large, slick hand suddenly climbed up from behind Lin Yu, sliding up her back towards her shoulder. She jolted and turned her head to look at her shoulder.
The fat, greasy hand was tightly encircling her. As she looked to the other side, she reflexively took two steps back. The man pressed his advantage, pressing close to Lin Yu and taking three steps forward.
Lin Yu lost her footing and almost collided with the burly man. She suppressed her nausea and instinctively tried to push him away, but the man's hand clung to her like a suction cup, unmoved.
"Miss, I noticed you inside. Didn't you like what happened just now? How about this, brother?" The man's tone was lewd, and his foul-smelling breath blew onto Lin Yu's face.
Lin Yu turned her face away, resisting and trying to pry the man's hand away. "None of your business, let go, I'm calling security!"
"Don't be such a spoilsport, little sister. Name your price. I'm in a good mood today, I'll take you to do something exciting!"
Lin Yu blushed crimson with anger and frustration at his vague and vulgar words. Trembling, she reached out and slapped the man's fat face.
Because of the alcohol, the man used more force than usual, and was knocked back two steps by the sudden slap, releasing Lin Yu as he did so.
But in the next second, enraged, she rushed forward to tear at Lin Yu's collar. All the alcohol rushed to her head, and her heart seemed to become an external organ, causing her to pound violently and rapidly.
As soon as Yao Fangfang pushed open the bar door, she saw the chaotic scene before her. Her blood rushed to her head, and the little alcohol left in her body due to her bad mood quickly evaporated. She was completely sobered up by this sudden incident.
She rushed to Lin Yu, slammed her handbag over his head, and kicked him in the stomach.
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