The Start
Three months prior, May sat with little Junior, coloring, as she heard his parents arguing in the other room.
"I hate this, Rebecca. Why do I have to go?" said one of them.
"Maybe because I expect my husband to support me when my firm wins a big case!" replied the other.
May quickly grabbed her phone and played Junior's favorite playlist to drown out the arguing. Junior, who was only three years old, was usually a sweetheart, but his parents didn't seem to know how to use their inside voices.
She picked Junior up and started playing with him, trying to distract him from the fighting. She even got a workout from lifting him, but it was worth it to keep him happy.
Eventually, she put Junior down on the floor and cleared out the toys around him to make sure he had a safe space to play in.
"He demanded that May roll the monster too, but due to his difficulty with 'r' sounds, it came out as 'Cowa wowy monsta too.' May considered his request with pursed lips but ultimately grinned and lay down beside him on the floor.
"Are you ready?" she asked.
"Yes!" he replied.
"Okay then, let's start rolling!"
As they rolled across the expansive playroom, their laughter filled the air. Despite their family's wealth, the Winters seemed unable to find happiness. The Winters lived in a prime area of the Upper East End and could afford a live-in nanny like May.
When Junior finally reached the wall, May continued rolling until she collided with him. She then tickled him and told him he needed to escape and start rolling again, which he did while shouting for May to chase him.
While twisting into another roll, May caught sight of a figure standing in the doorway and yelped. It was Mr. Winter, Junior's father, who had decided not to go out and was holding a glass of scotch. He informed May that she could have the night off since he had decided to stay in. Despite desperately needing the job, the strange family dynamics made May uneasy.
Who was she to judge family dynamics when her and her mother were contenders for the dysfunctional family Olympics? As Junior ran up, tugging on Mr. Winter's pants leg and calling for his attention, May hesitated. He had asked her to call him Anthony , but she still preferred the more formal address. Glancing toward the door, she asked, "Are you sure it'd be okay?"
Mr. Winter noticed her hesitation and took a swig of his scotch, his expression darkening. "Go. Have a good time. You're young. You deserve a goddamned night off now and then."
May flinched at his tone, but he quickly apologized, recognizing his harshness. "Jesus, I'm sorry. Seriously. I'll put Junior to bed. You're officially off duty."
May nodded her thanks, grateful for the chance to break away from the daily routine of spending all her time with Junior. She had come to the city to live bigger and experience more of the world, to make friends and live freely. Bending down, she gave Junior a kiss on the head, promising to see him the next day.
As she hurried up the stairs to get ready, she texted Lucinda, informing her that she could come out that night after all. Lucinda replied a few minutes later, indicating that they were meeting at The Randy's Wing at 10.
May's usual bedtime was ten o'clock, but Junior, her energetic companion, often woke her up at an ungodly hour of five-thirty in the morning, and on some days, even earlier. Her thumbs clumsily tapped on her phone screen, as she was not used to having a cell phone with her all the time, unlike her peers. She was still getting acquainted with the wonders of technology, as her mother had always shielded her from the outside world, and they didn't even have a television, let alone the internet or cell phones back on their farm.
Frustrated, May shook her head and hit the send button on her message, replying that she would see her friend there. She hit the play button on her phone, and the music started playing again, this time from her Junior playlist. As Smashmouth's "All Star" began to play, May felt a sudden urge to let go of the past and embrace the present. She was no longer living on the farm but in the big city, on her own, with a job, a cell phone, and friends. Tonight, she was going out to have fun and experience life to the fullest, just the way it was meant to be.
As the music filled the room, May's head began to bop along, followed by her hips and then her whole body, as she danced around, laughing with her arms spread wide. She felt liberated and free, with the whole world in front of her, ready to be explored, and she was ready to embrace it with open arms, ready to dance and maybe even meet a cute boy.
May struggled to make sense of what had gone so horribly wrong in just three short hours. The club lights spun around her, and she felt dazed and disoriented as she stumbled through the raucous crowd. She desperately needed to find Lucinda or Elaine, the friends she was supposed to ask if she could crash on their couch for the night.
Going home was out of the question after Anthony , her stepfather, had confronted her at the foot of the stairs. It had never really been her home anyway, but now she couldn't even consider going back there. Anthony had been drunk and belligerent, blocking her way out of the house and refusing to let her leave. Despite her attempts to reason with him, he had trapped her against the wall and insisted that she stop pretending and call him by his first name.
His scotch-laden breath made her recoil as he reached for her face, but she pushed him away, exclaiming in disbelief, "Stop it! What are you doing? You have a wife and a beautiful little boy."
Despite her protests, he advanced on her, declaring his love and obsession with her tight figure, having heard her showering naked earlier. She tried to wriggle out of his grasp, but he pinned her against the wall, kissing her forcefully and attempting to force his tongue into her mouth. In response, she kneed him and fled with only her phone, some cash, and the clothes on her back.
Seeking refuge, she went to her supposed friends, but they barely paid attention, too occupied flirting with men at the bar. Despite attempting to tell them what happened, they showed little empathy, with Lucinda suggesting that May forget about it and get drunk.
Disappointed and hurt, May realized that she had built up their friendship in her head, as she had never had close friends before. She had imagined them to be monumental in her life, but to them, she was merely a negligible part of their busy lives full of friends and lovers.
Lacking confidence, she had chickened out of requesting to stay over at one of their places. She promised herself to muster the courage to ask later in the evening. Maybe Lucinda was correct - perhaps unwinding and enjoying the night was the solution. Maybe things were not as hopeless as they appeared.
So, she decided to let a man purchase her a drink, like in the books and on TV, which she had been catching up on in the last six weeks. She even attempted to dance. However, the man must have misunderstood her order for cranberry juice because she began to feel strange, really strange.
As she stumbled forward, she narrowly avoided colliding head-on with a woman who was dancing provocatively on a man like a stripper on a pole. May fumbled for her phone in the side of her bra, but she couldn't feel her fingers, and her hand seemed clumsy.
This was becoming alarming. She swore off alcohol forever.
With a frown, she finally retrieved her phone and pulled it out, her vision going in and out of focus while the bright lights made her wince.
She stumbled through the crowd and decided to text Lucinda, one of the few people she knew in the city, despite not being best friends. May needed to lie down as the day had been too long and exhausting. After three attempts, she managed to unlock her phone, but the screen kept moving, making it difficult to navigate.
Feeling frantic and drowsy, May was relieved to finally access the text app, but as she began typing, she dropped the phone in frustration.
As she searched the dark club floor for it, a man approached her, holding her phone and offering to return it to her. She was so grateful that tears filled her eyes.