The Wilderness Years - Disco, the epilogue

 Sadly, the story of Disco Dave did not end there... While things with Veronica and i had come to an end she was still in town, in fact she wouldn't leave town until nearly two years after things had ended and so there were occasions when we would run into each other. Things were always cordial and i usually walked away from these encounters with an ache, she still mesmerized me, honestly probably does to this day, and when we saw each other we'd talk, ask how each other were doing, i'd ask her if she was still with Franco and she'd ask if i left my girlfriend yet, the look in both our eyes was of longing, the pure folly of human existence, when what should be a beautiful thing ends up being a disaster, ends up crumbling like a dried and dead flower... and yes most, if not all of it, was my doing.... 

One day i just happened to wander into the bar she was working at... more correctly i knew she was working there and so i stopped in to have a drink and see her, it was a basement under an Indian restaurant that had DJs every Thursday through Sunday, a place near the big university...  and for the record the lunch buffet at the Indian joint was top notch... i sat down and she turned and smiled, cracked an Amstel and set it front of me, i loved how she knew what i drank, she had become an excellent bartender and i mean that as a high compliment, good bartenders are often hard to come by and i'm sure i could write a post or two on the why and the how considering i've dealt with more shit bartenders than i care to remember... it was as we talked that out of the blue she brought up Disco Dave. Disco seemed to like to frequent the place on certain nights to get his groove on, something that Veronica admitted was rather comical. She stated that Disco thought he was quite the dancer but seemed to be a bit spastic which brought a big laugh... then she stated that Disco had taken to hitting on her... relentlessly. 

It was at this point that my smile faded... did i have some right to be pissed? absolutely not, i had no claim to Veronica, i had fucked up and let her go and yet i still had this protective feeling towards her, not that she needed me, she could definitely take care of herself but this information bothered me none the less. She mentioned that he had even said something about our trip and how he was "a player" too and that she should go out with him. She said she had politely told him no the first couple of times but after the sixth she had told him to get fucked, there was no chance. Disco then said something stupid and slinked off and that seemed to be the end of it and though he did still hit the bar on certain nights he didn't really talk to her anymore and made it a point to go to the other bartender working when getting his drinks. I told her "that fucking cunt beat me for half a pound because he's a fucking moron", stated that he was persona non grata and that he would do well to steer clear of me... especially in light of the information she had just relayed to me. She smiled at me with those gorgeous eyes shining and turned to make some drinks for some customers. I sat at the bar fuming... i wanted to annihilate this fucking smarmy prick. 

Fast forward a few months and i walked into the strip club with T-bag to relax. To refresh the memory, T-bag was a the young buck who i got into the strip club underage, who then started dating a stripper, and who was a bit of a pit bull, meaning he wouldn't mind punching someone in the face. As we walked in i clocked Disco and his entourage sitting at the bar, why the fucking idiot would come here, knowing full well that i frequented the place, was beyond me... unless of course he was trying to find me. Of course he could have tried to call if he wanted to talk to me but the fact was he knew i wouldn't answer if his number came up and i didn't answer the cell for numbers i didn't know. Any message he left would be unreturned. I took my usual place at the corner of the bar and mentioned to T-bag that the fucking idiot in the duster and ugly shirt was the dipshit who got popped and bailed on a half pound... T-bag immediately wanted to go over and punch him in the face but i told him to relax but be ready just in case... Disco looked over and smiled, i nodded, the bartender walked over and said the guy at the bar had bought us a round. Great, i said, it was the least he could do, he only owes me about 400 more drinks to pay me off. The bartender, who knew me, laughed, she opened my beer and set it front of me and smiled. 

Since Disco had shelled out for a beer he then thought he had earned the right to parlay with me... he hadn't and i'd have been happy if he had stayed on his side of the bar... it was early in the week and slow at the club and he and his sidekicks sauntered over. The one was a scrawny little fuck who looked like he might piss himself, the other was an African-American chap who i happened to recognize though i couldn't quite place where i knew him from.. the mystery was solved soon enough... we exchanged pleasantries, T-bag already growling in my ear to say the word and he'd punch Disco square in his mug but i said be cool. The black guy then looked at me and said, i know you... you do? i replied... yeah, he said, didn't you use to buy hash off my boys over on Chesterfield St.? I chuckled for a minute, yeah man i did, what like almost ten years ago? that was before i went back to school for a year, yeah man i remember you. How you been? i asked... pretty good, he said, except i think i broke my hand, had splatter some fuckers nose the other day, he said this as i rubbed his swollen right hand... that's good to know i said stone-faced, just in case shit kicks off. The countenance of his face quickly changed. 

Disco had been standing there like an impatient kid waiting in line to sit on Santa's lap, he was in full hood mode with his act though it came off more like a rich suburban white kid trying to be cool... he was a cartoon character. Thus began his plea... Disco wanted back in my good graces, wanted to make things right, wanted to get back on the team... i sat and listened patiently as he rambled on about how i was the man and no one had shit like me and that he wanted to get back to moving weight and blah blah fucking blah... if i had a nickel for every time some jive ass motherfucker wanted a break i'd have never had to sling a sack of weed. The part i found most interesting was that Disco didn't even have the money... at least not all of it, and was gonna put up roughly half the cash that was needed... which was both ludicrous and futile... cuz he could have offered to pay me three times the price and i'd have told him to get fucked. 

As Disco droned on i watched the dancer on stage, strolling up to tip her and smiling, they all knew me here, dancers and bartenders and patrons alike. Disco stopped yammering when i walked away a bit confused at my aloof attitude. I want to get back in your good graces, was all he kept repeating. I told him he was, that the tab was paid but that the price of that tab was there was no business to be done. It was over... and it would fucking stay that way. He hemmed and hawed some more and i explained about the snowballs chance in hell... you know how it didn't have any... the whole time T-bag sat snarling practically begging me to say the word so he could clock Disco in the mouth. I turned to Disco and smiled... oh yeah, one more thing, leave Veronica alone, understand? or there will be some hell to pay, dig? Disco developed a stutter, wh-wh-what? you fucking heard me, i shot back, you have no and never had a fucking chance with a girl like that and don't think i don't know what the fuck you said cuz she told me, yeah man, we still talk so you better get this shit straight, leave her the fuck alone. 

A slow Tuesday was suddenly getting interesting for the sad sacks at the bar... the tension in the corner where we were gathered had risen considerably and i was now standing and leaning against the bar explaining to Disco his situation... again... we were fucking done, there was no business to be done and if any wise ass thought about doing something stupid, aka dropping a dime, he would once again be the first person i came looking for... as for Veronica, i better not hear he so much as looked her way let alone talked to her or we'd have a serious fucking problem, more so than the fucking grand he still owed me, besides i laughed, she thinks you're a fucking joke... he stammered about buying me a drink and trying to be cool and i told him i didn't really give a fuck what he thought. By this time T-bag was begging for me to let him punch this asshole in his face while Disco's boys pretended to grow a pair. I told T-bag it was cool and that i wasn't much worried about any of them, that our friend here told me his right hand is broke so not much worry there and that the little guy here looks like he's been about to shit his pants since they walked over. The bartender had come over and asked for us to keep shit cool and i assured her we would, that there were no problems here, in fact there was nothing going on here at all. That my friends were just leaving. She smiled at me and then looked at Disco and his crew and said have a nice night.

Disco began mumbling shit while he gathered his jacket but i'll give him a modicum of credit, he knew better than to push it. My old acquaintance from Chesterfield stood around trying to look hard but i stood up and told him i had no problem with him, that we're cool, it's just his friend fucked up and fucked me over and in my business that means "no mas". He understood where i was coming from and we parted on good terms as they made for the door, none of them looking back except for the little guy who looked relieved that things didn't kick off. T-bag sat there gesticulating and ranting that i should have let him beat that guy's ass but i smiled, bought him a shot and a beer and said relax, it's all good, a chump's a chump and Disco knows he's a fuckin' chump so don't sweat it. I turned my attention back to the stage and began redistributing the wealth to the local dancers...