A Calm Night, Eventually

Celeste tugged on his suit. He’d been to plenty of social functions before, so this shouldn’t be too hard. Entering the Black Cat, he frowned. The place was beautiful and Victorian-looking. His outfit of a three-piece tuxedo was not out of place, ensuring that everyone upheld a formal ambiance. However, the amount of people were staggering and Celeste found his chest constricting from an inexplicable reason. Almost every seat was taken by someone talking to another person. The bar was swamped, some people with drinks and chatting, and others shouting their orders over others’ heads.

Smoothing his expression, Celeste pushed further into the crowd. Perhaps he could find a less populated area and get a seat. He would feel better with a seat. Then he would have a place, and he could watch others. If he fancied a conversation, all it would take is a little wait before someone inevitably approached him. Almost immediately Celeste spotted a seat directly ahead of him. In his tunnel vision, he didn’t notice the person sitting on the opposite side of the table. He froze when he saw them, not two steps away. In his hesitation, another person swooped in and took the seat. Celeste paused for a beat, wondering if the two knew each other before the pressure in his chest felt like it would burst and he turned around, plunging back into the crowd. He felt his cheeks heating and ducked into a side room. He hadn’t spotted it earlier and it was completely devoid of people. Separated from the entrance hallway by a curtain, it had two sofas and a bookshelf on the far glass wall. Collapsing in one of the sofas, Celeste turned his head to study the titles. It was mostly non-fiction, stuff about interior decorating and design. There were also a few books about the time period the club was modeled after.

Although the little room was isolated, it did not help dissipate the pressure in Celeste’s chest. A soft summer breeze brushed through the room and he glanced at the open sliding door leading to an alleyway. Some fresh air ought to do him some good, he figured, so he got up and followed the path. It led him around the side of the building and spat him out on the road. A man with a wide-brimmed hat passed him, his eyes darkened, untrusting. They landed on Celeste for a moment before darting back to the ground. Unnerved, Celeste continued to search for a place to be alone. Unfortunately, the sheer amount of people inside had spilled outside. People milled about, chatting in groups or simply standing by themselves. Many held the crystal glasses from the Black Cat.

Right across the street was a clothes store, stylish maniquins standing frozen in the darkness. Stairs led up to a door on the second floor, the landing empty.

Glancing both ways Celeste crossed the cobbled street, the heels on his shoes making more noise than he intended. He hoped nobody noticed.

Up on the landing Celeste felt safer. Above the people below him he was less likely to be noticed. There were also less people around this end of the street. From his elevated perch he could see into the Black Cat through the giant window that made up nearly all of the side wall. The light hovered inside like a cloud, illuminating faces and spilling out onto the street. Turning around Celeste studied the clothes store. All of the buildings in this area were brick with large glass windows on the lower floors. As far as Celeste could tell, this one was alone in the second floor door. The door had a long, vertical, rectangular window that didn't show much. Whatever room it led to had the lights off, preventing him from seeing anything but inky blackness. The door itself had had a wide red sign reading RESTRICTED--Employee Only Access--Keep Out. Running his fingers along the seam where the sign met the door, Celeste concluded that it was a sticker. He took a moment to wonder how they got it so straight. As an afterthought he took the handle and pushed. No luck. He pulled. It didn't budge.

Giving the door a nod of respect, Celeste turned back to the street. He exhaled for as long as he could, feeling the knot of tension start to ease. Bracing his hands on the railing, he continued to breathe manually until the knot completely dissipated. He rolled his neck and relaxed his shoulders, leaning against the railing on his elbows. He looked down, to the sides. He watched the people enjoying the company of people and felt content. He could just stand here, a person watching the people with people.

And so he stood, watching as the summer wind tousled his hair and played with the hem of his slacks. Nobody bothered him and he didn't bother anyone.

This is also based on a game, where I’ve been drawing my inspiration lately. This one is called The Black Cat 1984. The developer goes by the same name. It is a social hangout sort of game. After throughly interrogating another introvert I wrote this story. Again, until this gets edited all this filler text remains. Maybe I should copy and paste some lorium ipsum text. Actually...Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Cras placerat dui sed suscipit bibendum. Maecenas ac sem dignissim, tempus sem id, ornare urna. Etiam rhoncus ligula sapien, non interdum ipsum fermentum nec. Fusce sodales nisl nulla, eu auctor leo rutrum vitae. Phasellus sapien est, malesuada vitae eros ac, suscipit molestie magna. Sed elementum neque at enim elementum, eget commodo sem varius. Vestibulum fermentum ac urna non posuere. Quisque odio nulla, dignissim sed eros a, pharetra mattis urna. Duis justo nisi, sodales ut velit at, maximus scelerisque felis. Donec et fermentum quam, non faucibus odio. Proin consequat, velit ac aliquet molestie, quam leo condimentum purus, rutrum sagittis urna erat at libero. Vivamus lobortis aliquam justo, quis sagittis mauris ullamcorper ac. Donec consequat, mauris vitae pulvinar cursus, metus orci condimentum purus, et gravida massa enim id quam.