Seven Tears

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Ten to two, that magical time of night where those wallflowers left without a date would have the dance of desperation with another sad, lonely wallflower just so the night didn’t feel like a complete waste of time. Karen was there again. Every week she went down to Fantasia in the hope that she’d leave with the man of her dreams and every week she ended up having the last smooch with some loser who would think one dance meant he had the right to cop a feel and maybe take her home.

Karen had seen him looking at her for the last twenty minutes, lining her up as his ten to two. And now, right on time, he was coming over. To be fair he wasn’t that bad looking. He had a bit of the Nick Heywood about him, only a tiny bit, but that tiny bit had been magnified by booze and desperation.

“Hi, I’m Jim,” Jim yelled, “wanna dance?”

Karen nodded and allowed Jim to take her hand and lead her to the dance floor. The DJ was playing Woman by John Lennon and couples swayed gently like trees on a summer's day. Men were testing the waters with roaming hands, women were marking boundaries; some allowing freedom of movement, others with strict border controls.

Jim clamped Karen to him and started swaying in time with the music, while dry ice and cigarette smoke circled around their bodies. His chin was on her shoulder and his warm breath on her neck.   

Karen soon realised that it might have been better to remain a wallflower this week. It wasn’t because Jim’s cheap aftershave and tobacco smell were mixing with the vodka she’d drunk and making her think she might puke any minute. She was a little perturbed that it wasn’t his cigarette packet that she could feel bulging through his trousers, and she didn’t really like the fact that Jim seemed to be moving his hands rather too close to her bum for comfort, but they weren’t the worst of his problems either.

The DJ had changed songs and Jim had stopped trying to nibble her neck, instead he was singing along. He was about an inch away from her ear and terribly out of tune. But what was really upsetting Karen was that he knew all the lyrics, every single one of them. Not just the chorus, everyone knew the chorus, but Jim knew the verses as well. The song faded out and the lights came up. The DJ was promising an even bigger and better night next week and saliva was being shared all around the club. Jim released Karen from his vice-like grip.

“Can I walk you home?” he asked.

Karen looked at him. In the light he was quite cute, but no, there was no way she could say yes. How could she even consider starting a relationship with someone who knew all the words to SevenTears by the Goombay Dance Band?