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Chapter Twenty-Two: MYSTERIOUS ENOUGH.
THE AIR IS COLD AS they’re both getting sleepier and sleepier. Emmett still hasn’t show up.
“Bri, I’m really tired. I don’t want to walk anymore.”
“Okay.” Brian stops and wraps his arms around Justin. “Hopefully Emmett will get lost and he’ll miraculously stumble here.” He gently kisses Justin forehead.
“Psst!” They hear someone call from alley. “You two.”
Brian looks in the direction where the voice is coming from. He sees a man dressed as a drag queen with long brown hair and very much make-up on her face. She has a worn-out, glittery purple dress falling flat on her chest.
“Come here.” She doesn’t bother to feminize her voice despite her looks.
Intrigued, Brian and Justin step closer to her in the dark alley.
“What?” Brian asks.
“Follow me,” she says, waving her fake long red nails.
They look at each other and follow the stranger in the dark alley. “I don’t think…” Justin starts.
“Come on, I won’t eat you,” she barks before he can finish his sentence.
She stops in front of one of many apartment doors. It’s very dark and they can’t help but wonder why they’re here at this time of night, or rather morning, in an unfamiliar city. They wait 'til she unlocks the door and steps inside. She let’s them in and looks around to make sure no one was following or saw them coming inside her apartment before closing the door shut.
“Who are you?” Justin asks as he looks around the small place. There are curtains of different colors everywhere, clothes spread around the floor and couches, dimmed lamps on table, and many black and white pictures.
“Shh!” She throws herself in front of Justin. “I’m asking the questions here.” A small gray and black cat comes and rubs its side on Brian’s leg. He looks like it and tries to step out of its way.
“Now, come.” She brings them up the cracking stairs, into a room overly decorated with all sorts of things. There’s a table with two chairs in the middle of the room and a white glowing crystal ball centered in the middle of the table. “Sit,” she orders as she brings another chair from against the wall and places it around the table.
The only lights illuminating the room are some candles and chandeliers, the moonlight coming from a very small window and the crystal ball the in the center of the table.
“I am Mysterious Marilyn,” she introduces.
“You’re a fortune-teller?” Brian asks.
“I’m more than a fortune-teller my sweet, I see it. I know it.” She says, gesturing her hands and bracelets in every directions.
“You!” She points at Justin who had been keeping his distance since they entered the house. He looks at her with surprised and tired eyes. “There’s so much in you it tickles.”
“Tell me,” she says.
“What am I supposed to tell you?”
“How did you come here?” She asks, placing her hand on the table like she would if she’d be reading Tarot Cards.
“We drove in a car…” Justin answers clueless.
“Shush! You know what I mean.” Justin looks at her like he obviously didn’t. “How come you don’t remember your childhood?”
Justin looked at her stunned. “I don’t?-” He sits back in his chair, staring at her and her greasy make-up.
“How come you know about that?” Brian asks for Justin.
“Marilyn knows all.” She says very slowly.
“Can’t you tell him?” Brian asks, leaning a bit against the round table.
“Bien sure,” she says and rolls up her sleeves. She looks into her crystal ball as it glows all over her face. Justin looks at her.
She closes her eyes as the moves her hands around the ball. Her mouth is closed, covered by heavy red lipstick. She frowns and hums and rocks in her chair slightly. Suddenly her eyes open wide.
“I see you and another boy.” She pauses, looking straight at Justin. “He’s blond. I see your friends dancing, you’re having fun.” Justin frowns. “You got hurt, very, very hurt.” She closes her eyes again and touches a part on her forehead. “Your forehead.” Justin can’t help but touch the scar on his forehead.
“I’m afraid I can’t help you with figuring out with what happened to you,” she pauses, “but there’s a man, in Pittsburgh who can.”
“Who?” Brian asks.
“Can’t help, there’s a lot more than one man in Pittsburgh, if you hadn’t noticed. It is too hard to see who.”
“So it has to do with my scar?” Justin asks, still touching it.
“Oh yes.” She sunk back in her seat, crossing her legs.
“Tell me, do you have a bizarre sensation when something good or bad is about to happen, like you’re bothered by something.”
“Yes.”
She crooks a smile. “I knew it; I could feel it from a far distance that you had it.”
“What? What’s it?” Brian asks, leaning his head against his palm.
“It, monsieur, is the divine capacity that I was happily born with. Many people have it, including us,” she says, eying Justin.
“You!” She practically yells when the room was becoming silent. “You. I see a danger.” He eyes and points at Brian. “But you’re not the one in danger.” Brian eyes Justin as in saying what-the-fuck.
“Who is?” Brian asks.
“A friend of yours!” She yells out, surprising Brian and Justin.
“It would help to know who.”
“Alas, I can’t tell for I do not know,” she says, calming herself down.
“Emmett?” Brian says, thinking of the first friend that comes to his mind.
“You don’t know?” Justin starts to react. “I thought you knew-” He starts but gets interrupted by her.
“Yes! But there are things the lord above does not permit me to know.” She stands up. “Now, you both must leave, I’ve already helped you enough.” They stand up too and go downstairs.
She opens the door for them, but as they get out she touches Brian’s shoulder and feels it inside her beeping.
“You.” She says to Brian. “You will become a great person one day. You’ll be very important.” Brian frowns and walks away from the drag queen onto the dark alley. He wraps his arm behind Justin’s back and tries to ignore her as she stares at them with eyes very wide.
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