The Apollonian and Dionysian: (AR) - Complete

Chapter 1: Replacing shrink's couch with a bar stool

She sees him walking around the bar with a curvy blond and leggy redhead. The sight burns her stomach and she wonders if it's because of him or is it because of the bourbon she had managed to chug down in one giant gulp. Must be both, her cynical conscience mutters.

"Whiskey", she barks without looking over the counter.

She merely hears an "Aye" for response and in next few seconds the curve of her inner palm come in contact with something moist and icy cold. Her drink had arrived. She takes a long sip keeping her eyes on leggy and curvy and the detestable man with them. It's strange that she wasn't able to produce an iota of pity for the leggy or the curvy to be hanging around a married man. Yes, the man was married. And how would she know that?

Simple.

His wife had so kindly visited her once with pictures of her and him taken by a hired private eye. The humiliation that she had felt that day had had her depressed for weeks. The wife had given her such pitiful look that it had made her dig a hole and hide her sorry self for eons. Apparently this wasn't the first time her philandering husband had victimized a single woman. The wife had taken upon herself to notify the girls her husband was having affair with. The wife had actually done her a favor and she was kind enough to let her know that. They didn't hug and cry and promised to keep in touch. She didn't want anything to do with the wife or the husband or hell, anyone related to them by blood or water or whatever. She was through with that man.

Of course it took him two full days to return to his own philandering self after she had called upon his cheating behavior.

"Slowly, the guilt disappeared", he had said after taking a long drag from a dying cigarette.

She had thrown the glass of cola she was drinking on his face and had stared at the broken glass at his feet for next fifteen minutes trying to control her anger. It wasn't the humiliation of being played by married man which had angered her; it was the feeling of being an odd entry juxtaposed in fauvism inspired art. That's how the two of them were seen anyway.

After her affair had ended, she took that trip down the memory lane which every shrink advices not to do so. Heck, on any other day even she would have done the same since she has the basic training to do so. The feeling of being victim of an act in which she had no control in had evaded her senses and her resolute to be the Joan of Arc of all the women who were being cheated on by lying and already married boyfriends had dissolved when she had burst into million tears after retelling the whole story to her sister. The sister had given an advice which was pretty decent; get smashed, sleep and get over it.

And that's the reason why she was in that bar drowning her sorrows in alcohol when the root cause of her sorrow had sauntered all over the place with leggy and curvy. It made her want to throw up and she had gagged after seeing the way he led those two women. Her irritating conscience which surprisingly has a voice to die for, had again given a useless comment ' "you fell for those lines too".

She had yelled a loud "Shut Up" which attracted attention of many onlookers. But being in the state that she was in and the place she was at, it was naturally ignored for which she was very grateful.

"Rough day?" The bartender tries to make a conversation which she sincerely ignores. He may see dozens of people like her drinking down their bad judgment on a daily basis. It was sort of ironic how the man served liquor and listened to all the BS people would spill; with or without being assisted by liquid courage. It was bitch slap on those who sprouted Freudian language, read between lines and charged exorbitant amount on an hourly basis and try to get people to talk. And here, they talked even when the bartender ignored them to do his own work. Yeah, world was pretty much screwed up that way.

She burst out into boisterous laughter when she imagined the look on the face of her psychology professor if she were to tell him the same things. The laughter combined with alcohol acted directly upon her posture, which wasn't so great after she had polished off a quarter bottle of fine bourbon. Her elbow missed to connect with the bar table and she toppled over. She was all set to see the stars which would definitely there behind her eyes when her head would contact the floor when a strong hand steadied her.

"Easy there lady", he exclaimed as he steadied her on bar stool. She let out fresh set of giggles which made no sense in real world and was termed pretty much idiotic but in the land of intoxication and unlimited liquor supply, it was an acceptable act.

"Thank you", she managed to summon politeness for the act of chivalry displayed though there was a slight slur in her words. He simply shrugged and sat next to her.

"What happened", he asks her after his second beer.

She doesn't respond to him. She doesn't even contemplate on the question. Instead she asks for another drink. After several moments, she graces him with a reply.

"My ex boyfriend turned out to be a married man cheating on his wife with me and another woman", she responds in one single breath and finishes of her drink. He just sips his beer and doesn't acknowledge the fact that he has heard or not.

"What's your excuse for being here?" She asks him after second thoughts about striking up conversation with a total stranger.

"Life", he answers after many moments of silence. She nods in agreement. He doesn't know how much she understood from his one word answer. She doesn't know what she understood either but somehow, that one word made all the sense.

They clink glasses and continue to drink in silence.

To be continued.

Originally posted by: AbhiNikiLuver

Wow. Its really nice.

Do pm me!

Sheena 😃

This is a really interesting start. I liked your comparison of the psychological couch and the bartender's stool😆. How true it is!

Would love to know what happens next so continue soon :)

Originally posted by: Sur_Singhania

fantastic work

Im impressed

PLz add me 2 ur buddy list

nd pm me wenevr u update

great story, writing style and language:)

Love

Sur

Originally posted by: Sani_Rani

hi sweetheart!!!! wats ur name? bbz that ff is sooooooooooo rcoking. i jus simply loved it. plz add me to ur pm list. i really wanna read more. and continue soooooooooooooon plzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.

love

saniya.