19
Pacey
I took Cadence outside to relieve himself. I was already dressed for the big evening, I had been for a few hours now.
I was waiting for Adam, who generously offered to pick me up. He was late leaving the hotel after some charity event that he had to go to earlier.
I went back to my house and made sure the food and water bowls were filled up for Cadence. Then, sat on the bench of my piano while I waited for Adam to arrive. A couple walked past, leaving a fresh trail of footprints on the sidewalk.
I didn’t know what to expect before going to this party. But I was excited to see Adam and get a glimpse into his life.
There were two cones of light outside my window that lit up the falling snowflakes. A limo slowed to a stop when it reached my house.
I wasn’t expecting to be picked up in a limo at all.
I gave Cadence a scratch behind the ear and left the house.
As I approached the limo, the driver stepped out and opened the door for me.
“Thanks,” I said as I stepped in, kicking the snow off my shoes on the side of the car.
Adam was smiling when I got inside and I sat in the heated leather seats.
“You look good,” he said, eyeing my outfit.
“Do you think I overdressed? I didn’t want to be too casual. My friend Amanda told me to settle for something in between and—”
He put a finger on my lips to quiet my anxious blabbering. “You look good, bro. Besides, look what I’m wearing.”
Adam had on a plain white t-shirt. Leather pants hugged his tree-trunk thighs that tempted me with a hint of his bulge. The fabric of his shirt was so sheer that I could make out most of his tattoos on his chest, his dark nipples teased through.
“Do you need anything back there?” The driver asked, sitting next to him was Adam’s security guard.
“We’re good,” Adam said.
The driver rolled up the partition. As soon as it was just the two of us, Adam leaned in and kissed me, bringing me back to the night of my performance at the Music Hall.
He pulled his face back just a bit and looked down at my lips. “Missed ya, Pace.”
“Missed you too,” I said.
He reached next to me to grab a bottle of champagne that was sitting in a bucket of ice next to me. I closed my eyes to take in his delicious scent as he did so.
He popped open the bottle and drank straight from it, then handed the bottle to me. I took a swig from it.
“I’m going to try and not get too fucked up tonight since there are so many people there. Try to stop me if things get out of hand,” Adam said.
“Are people going to ask me who I am and what I’m doing there?” I asked.
“Maybe, do you have a story for them?”
“I mean, shouldn’t I just say I’m your friend?”
“That’s kind of boring. Most of the people there make up these elaborate stories of who they are. You should do the same, it’ll be fun.”
“You want me to create a fake identity for myself?”
“Maybe not fake, just embellish it a bit,” he winked.
We finished the bottle of champagne, and when we arrived, I was already feeling a bit tipsy.
We drove up the winding driveway. The perfectly manicured trees were decked out with Christmas lights.
When we got to the end of the driveway, I couldn’t believe that Adam’s mom was living here now...not in a million years.
One of two men wearing black vests came up to the limo and opened the door for us, Adam and I stepped out.
“Welcome Mr. Black,” the man said to Adam.
I glanced over at Adam, who looked calm and cool, obviously used to the extravagance of it all.
The house was three stories tall of grey stone and stucco. White flowers and Christmas lights were strung across everything.
We walked up the stone staircase to the double doors.
There were guests standing on the porch enjoying wine and a cigarette. People’s eyes followed Adam as he led the way.
“Looking good, Adam,” someone yelled from the end of the porch.
Adam gave him a smile and a peace sign.
Past the tall black doors, accented with gold detailing, was the foyer area. The white marble floors were so shiny that I could see my reflection.
Two spiral staircases framed the room.
Clusters of people were scattered in the main and second floor. They were dressed extravagantly in cocktail dresses with shimmering sequins. The men were in tuxedos.
I was under-dressed, and I wish I would have listened to my gut to wear a tie at least. But, Adam, who was just in a t-shirt, didn’t seem to care.
The double height ceiling had vines of white flowers dangling to the ground. The house looked like a setting in a dream.
I pushed the vines aside as I walked through them. A gentleman in a black vest approached me with a plate of hors-d'oeuvres, but I declined because it didn’t look vegan.
“Here we are, my mom’s house,” Adam said, stretching his arms out followed by a shrug.
“This is insane, man. How often does she throw parties like this?” I asked.
“Only once a year, it’s her version of a Christmas party. I just think it’s her way of showing off,” Adam said, rolling his eyes.
“I mean, do you blame her? She’s really done well for herself.”
Adam shrugged. “You should see the back,” he said, walking through an arched entryway into a candlelit corridor.
We passed by the kitchen.
White circular balloons filled with helium covered every inch of the ceiling. They were meant to look like clusters of clouds. Red flowers covered the sparkling chandeliers above.
A woman holding a tray handed me a glass of champagne, and I thanked her for it.
I looked around and saw A-list movie stars and musicians, it was almost surreal to see so many of them in one place.
An actor in one of my favorite movies came up to Adam. “Hey you,” he called out.
Adam turned and smiled. “Hey, what’s up man?”
They started talking about Adam’s upcoming projects.
The actor turned to me and asked to take a photo of him and Adam. He handed me his phone, and I took it for him, then he took his phone back without acknowledging my presence.
I left their conversation to explore the house more.
A set of double doors led to a game room where celebrities were playing pool and darts.
Then further down was a library, which was much quieter and intimate.
I thumbed through the books. Floor-to-ceiling shelves filled with books covered every wall.
I pulled out The Sun Also Rises, by Hemingway. It was brand new because when I opened the book, I heard the satisfying crack of the spine.
I opened a book next to it, and again, it was brand new. It was weird to me, that the books were merely a façade rather than a true wealth of knowledge.
Adam had snuck up on me when I wasn’t noticing, and I felt his hands massaging my shoulders.
I leaned against his body, as his strong hands loosened up my muscles. There wasn’t anyone else in the room.
“Why did you leave me there?” He asked.
“Oh, I thought you wanted to talk to him, so I left to explore the house,” I said.
“Well, I got trapped in a conversation with him and I didn’t know how to escape it.”
“You didn’t actually want to talk to him?”
“No, I barely knew the guy.”
“Really, you guys were talking like you were best friends.”
“It’s like that,” Adam said. “We kind of have to pretend that we’ve known people my whole life. When really, neither of us gives a shit—at least I don’t anyways.”
“That’s…kinda depressing.”
“Well, now you understand why I hate going to things like these.”
“Now, can we head to the backyard? I want you to see it.”
I nodded, and closed the book in my hands and slid it back on the shelf.
We walked out through a different corridor, and into the living area.
A modern wall of glass doors were left open to the back terrace. The curtains blew gently in the mid-December wind.
Outside, a swimming pool glowed with tea lights floating on the surface. I ran my fingers in the water and I realized that it was warm enough to actually swim in it.
On the perimeter were elegant white tents that housed wicker chairs with a heater in front of each tent. There was an empty one and we decided to chill in it.
We sat down onto the chairs and looked at the beautiful people mingling by the pool.
Among the groups of people, I saw someone walk through the crowd. She was wearing a champagne colored dress, with black cropped hair, and dark eye makeup. Her gown sparkled and glowed against the backdrop of the house. She was wearing a string of diamonds that were on the crown of her head and draped down her back.
People smiled at her as she passed, her hips rocked side to side as she strutted elegantly around the pool. As she walked past, she rested a gentle hand on the shoulder of the guests, and they’d turn and give her a smile.
Then, she looked across the pool right into the white tent that Adam and I were in, and she gave a gentle wave. As she slowly walked around, I wondered if it was Adam’s mom. As she approached, I recognized her blue eyes, but I still wasn’t sure.
“Is that…your mom?” I whispered to Adam.
“Sure is,” he said without showing any emotion.
“She looks...so different.”
“Yep,” he said, lighting up a cigarette.
Her cheeks glowed and were round and plump, unlike the sullen, hollow ones I’d seen when I was as a teenager. She waved a second time to Adam from a distance, and Adam gave her a head nod.
When she talked to everyone around the pool, she finally came up to us.
“Adam, what are you doing all the way out here? You should be inside mingling,” she said.
“I am, I’m mingling with Pacey.”
She looked over at me, then back at Adam. “And who might he be?” She asked, as if I wasn’t there.
“Pacey. Mom, you know him…” Adam said.
She stared blankly at me, and her smile was tight and forced.
“Pacey from high school…” Adam said.
Still, there was no reaction from her.
“Adam and I were friends in high school, we had music class together,” I said, trying to refresh her memory.
She looked me up and down as if she was judging my outfit. “I’m so sorry, I’m getting so old that I must have forgotten. Of course, Pacey. Are you having a good time?”
“Yeah, this party is incredible, it’s the most stunning party I’ve ever been to,” I said.
“I’m sure it is,” she said, her smile still as tight. “I’m glad you’re able to experience it, sometimes we need normal people here so the stars can feel special.”
I nearly choked on my tongue when she said that, and I was at a loss for words. But before I could answer, I sensed Adam tense up next to me.
“Mom, Pacey’s in the Symphony Orchestra now, he’s the youngest member there.”
“That’s great hun, congratulations,” She smiled. “Like I said, we need normal folks here to make the stars feel special. You finished your glass of champagne, Pacey. Let me tell someone to get you another one.”
She walked up to Adam, and kissed him on the forehead, leaving a red lipstick print on him. Then, she sashayed away, the rhinestones on her dress made the ground sparkle.
“I’m sorry about that, bro,” Adam said. “She’s fucking rude, I know.”
“Don’t worry,” I said. “It’s cool seeing her like this actually. It’s like a complete one-eighty from six years ago. I’m glad she’s doing well.”
“It’s not any better than the past. Sure, she was a drug addict before, but now she’s just this money hungry shell of someone I don’t even recognize anymore. I don’t see my mom in her, it’s like she sold her soul.”
“You think she really doesn’t recognize me?” I asked.
“I think she’s scared that you know who she actually is. She’s acting like she doesn’t know you because she doesn’t want to confront how much you and your family have done for me in the past.”
“I don’t know...when she looked at me, it felt like she was looking right through me.”
Adam put his hand on my leg, and it surprised me how warm his hand was.
“Look,” he said. “Don’t let her get in your head like she’s already done to me. She’s manipulative like that. Just don’t overthink things with her. It’ll save you your sanity.”
I looked down at his rugged hands as he stroked my leg.
“I shouldn’t have brought you here tonight, man. It was my mistake,” Adam said.
“Why would you say that?” I asked.
“Because it’s a bad environment to be in. This fame thing is all fake, it kills your soul and you get consumed by it all. The glamour, the pride, the gluttony. It’s a lot to take in.”
“You don’t have to worry about me, Adam. I can handle it. I’m fine. It’s just a party. I don’t know why you’re getting so worked up over it.”
“It’s because I’ve seen so much more of it. This only scratches the surface of how bad it gets sometimes.”
I realized that this wasn’t really about me. It was Adam’s cry for help.
I put my hand on top of his, and I ran fingers on his tattoos on the back of his hand. “I’m here for you, man.”
Adam withdrew his hand when someone was walking over. The server was holding a tray of champagne.
“This is from Mrs. Black,” he said.