"Details" 1 of 2

"Well no one told me about her. The way she lies. Well no one told me about her. How many people cried. But it's too late to say you're sorry. How would I know? Why should I care? Please don't bother to find her she's not there." - Malcolm McLaren

Standing in the men's room of a club he knows he's about five years too old to be in, Nicholas Solstice tries in vain to remove his wedding band. Scrubbing his hands in a generous amount of liquid soap he tugs at his finger and feels his ring slip slightly. He tries using his teeth forgetting the soap and gags.

"Must be some hot number" a stranger says to Nicholas as he passes on his way to the stalls. Nicholas ignores him and continues in vain to remove his ring.

"Come on" he mutters to himself as his finger pops from the effort being used. He sighs and observes his reflection in the mirror. His wife has been missing for six months. The police waited three weeks before finally giving up on the search for her. There's no Amber Alert for adults. When you go missing the closest thing you have are news reports squeezed in between stories of the next mating panda or some hot chick making another song about the presidential nominees. He spits into the sink and drags himself back into the club.

The loud, bass heavy music gives him a headache he knows he'll feel in the morning. The three vodka shots won't help either. Never one to imbibe in liquor except on special occasions, Nicholas has yet to master the art of being a good drinker. He stumbles back to the booth he believes to be his before looking to his left and seeing a very unfamiliar face.

"You lost?" a young man with greasy black hair and a lip piercing long enough to skewer passerby's with asks him.

"Oh, no, sorry" Nicholas sputters as he nearly trips leaving the booth. He looks over one booth down and sees his jacket laying half on the table. He picks it up and feels the sleeve which is now soaked with alcohol. "Perfect" he tells himself as his new friend sits down next to him.

"What's wrong, daddy?" she asks him. He hopes he is able to hide his disgust at being called "daddy" by a woman who, if his guess is correct, is actually young enough to be his daughter. "Getting sleepy?" Her name is Collette. 5'9" of sex in a tight grey dress with black three inch heels. Her long black hair hangs over half of her face as she wipes it away and tucks it behind her ears to reveal her diamond earrings. A move she's surely practiced in the mirror for hours until it became a reflex.

"No" Nicholas tells her. "I think I've had just a bit too much to drink." He yawns and rubs his neck. Collette takes this as a cue to move even closer. She begins to rub his shoulders while breathing down the back of his collar. She smells like lust.

"Do you want to head back to my place?" she asks him while planting light kisses on the back of his neck. "I do this much better in…private settings."

Six months. How long is he supposed to wait? There are no rule books on this matter. It took him over a month to work up the nerve to even come here tonight. The last thing he expected was to meet such an attractive woman like Collette, let alone have the possibility of going home with her. He knows he cannot go back to his house. Except for the lack of his wife's physical presence, the house is still arranged as if she is still there. He turns to face Collette and clears his throat.

"I'm not sure if I'm ready for that" he tells her. "My wife…"

"You're married?" she asks him. "That's just great. I sure know how to pick 'em, don't I? Why'd you even waste my time?" All of the sexiness has left her voice revealing the real Collette. A childish woman looking for a way up with the least amount of effort possible. "Loser." With that she grabs her coat, knocking her unfinished drink into Nicholas' lap. Nicholas grabs her arm and she looks at him as if he has just asked her to come home with him.

"Yes, I'm married, but not really" he manages to say to her.

"What in the hell is that even supposed to mean?" she asks him. "Either you are or you aren't."

"Not always" he tells her. Exhausted with the conversation, Collette grabs her drink and attempts to splash it into his face. Realizing that it is empty, she throws the glass at his forehead. The pierced man at the next booth over applauds as Collette walks over to the bar and begins talking to another man. Nicholas feels a trail of blood running down his brow and wipes it away.

Standing in front of the club waiting for a cab to arrive Nicholas leans against the wall to balance himself. He realizes that he is far more drunk than he originally thought. A cab arrives but before he can move towards it Collette and the new guy she met, plus two of his friends, jump in. Collette waves to him as the cab pulls away.

"Rough night?" someone asks him. He looks over and sees the pierced man standing a few feet away from him. He lights a cigarette and inhales deeply before exhaling.

"I don't want any trouble" Nicholas tells him.

"But I bet you always manage to find it, huh?" the guy asks Nicholas. "Be glad it didn't work out with Collette. She's seen more miles than a Goodyear."

"You know her?" Nicholas asks. He notices the large demon tattoo on the guys neck.

"Everyone with male genitalia knows her here" he replies. "The name's Lux." He reaches towards Nicholas to shake his hand. Nicholas reaches hesitantly. Lux suddenly grabs Nicholas by the hand and pulls him towards him. "Nice to meet you" he says an inch away from his face. "Now what are you doing here?"

"I just came for a date" Nicholas says, his eyes wide with fear.

"And…?" Lux asks, smiling wide enough that it looks painful.

"I don't know" Nicholas says as he pulls free from Lux. "It was nice to meet you, Lux. I need to go home now."

"Okay, Nicholas" he says as a cab arrives. Nicholas does not wait for the cab to come to a complete stop before climbing in. As the cab turns the corner Nicholas sinks into the seat as he sees Lux waving to him. A wave of nausea hit Nicholas as he realized something.

How did Lux know his name?

"You try to tell her what to do and all she does is stare at you. Her stare is louder than your voice because truth doesn't make a noise." - The White Stripes.

The urge to get home had never been so strong. Afraid to enter through the front of the house Nicholas ran through the side causing his neighbors dog to bark at him. Stumbling over an old lawn gnome he crashes to the ground. Slowly rising to his feet he listens for the sound of any approaching footsteps.

"This is insane" he mumbles to himself as he makes his way to his back entrance.

While fumbling for his keys he notices that the door is already slightly open. He pushes it open and sticks just his head into the kitchen. The smell of cinnamon greets him. His wife loved the smell and made sure that all candles, incense, and room deodorizers were cinnamon. For some reason the smell made him uneasy. Closing the door behind him as quietly as possible he eases into the breakfast nook.

"Welcome home" she said to him. He jumps and slips on the area rug near the doorway. Landing hard on his back he loses consciousness as the image of a woman drifts into his line of sight.

"Nattie…?" he says before slipping away.

"Solstice, wake up!" Mr. Flanger shouts into Nicholas' ear. He almost falls from his chair. He begins shuffling papers and placing loose pens into its appropriate holder.

"Sorry, sir" he says as Mr. Flanger shakes his head in disgust.

"I wanna see you in my office in two minutes" he says before leaving.

Nicholas is so concerned with what he has done to upset his boss that a few important details have slipped his mind. He opens the door and straightens his tie. Mr. Flanger sits with his arms folded. His secretary Diane sits in a chair placed in the corner. The office is uncomfortably small. Diane is less than two feet to his rear and his face is perhaps a foot and a half from Mr. Flanger. Clearing his throat and scratching his chin, Mr. Flanger begins to speak.

"Care to explain yourself?" he asks Nicholas.

"Sir?" Nicholas asks confused.

"Nicholas. We understand that you are under a lot of stress what with your wife being dead and all." Nicholas flinches at the mention of his wife Natalie being dead.

"She isn't dead, sir" he says. "She's missing."

Mr. Flanger looks at Diane who only responds with a shrug. Nicholas looks over his shoulder at Diane and she quickly averts her gaze to an interesting spot on the floor.

"Okay now, Solstice" Mr. Flanger says, looking uncomfortable. "We allowed you almost a month to recover from her funeral…"

"Funeral…?"

"…and we hoped that you would come back better. But your little display this morning was too much. We're gonna have to ask you to clear your desk."

"Funeral? What the hell are you talking about?!" Nicholas shouted. "I didn't take a month off. I was just at home and…"

Pieces began to collect in Nicholas' mind. The last clear thought he had was of himself laying on the floor of his kitchen. Suddenly it was as if the world was closing in around him. He had trouble breathing and could barely make out what Mr. Flanger and Diane were saying.

"…soon…some air! Give him some…hold his arms down…no…well where is security…"

Nicholas jumped to his feet and hit his head on a low hanging chandelier. A group of young people surrounded him at a table in what appeared to be the same club he was at the other night. Or according to Mr. Flanger over a month ago. They laughed at his pain which made him angry.

"Who are you people?" Nicholas asked which only caused more laughter. "I'm serious! Who the hell are you people?!"

"Calm down, Nicky" Lux says as he places another drink in front of him. Nicholas slaps the drink from the table silencing everyone. Even the music stops. "Now that wasn't very nice."

"Who the hell are you?" he asks Lux. "Ever since I met you nothing's been right!"

"Don't blame me for your shitty life" Lux says which makes everyone laugh. "I'm just trying to help you out."

"Help me out?"

"Sure!" Lux says as a young blond throws her leg over Nicholas' thigh. "Nicky! What would Natalie say about this behavior?"

"She's dead" Nicholas moaned which drew an exaggerated "Aww…" from the table. "Fuck off."

"Who told you she was dead?' Lux asks. Nicholas looks at him and shakes his head. "Natalie isn't dead, man. She's missing."

"No, she's dead" Nicholas replied. His head was beginning to hurt and it wasn't just from the chandelier. "What are you doing to me?"

"Trying to enjoy your company but you're making it very difficult."