Page 99 of Back Room Host

“No … I don’t want to …” I mumbled.

“Oh, if you don’t want to, then I’m sorry.” Thomas was clearly having way too much fun with this. “Why don’t you try to get into it? You can’t go anywhere anyway. Can you?”

“Please …”

One of the guys delivered a hard slap across my face. My head jerked to the side, and the whole room spun.

Fuck! What the hell!

Then he yanked my head back by the hair, sat on my chest, and shoved his huge cock in my face. “Come on, you slut, you know what to do.”

That voice …

Thomas chuckled and started undressing. He was the only one I would recognize for sure. I could stare at the other two as long as I wanted, but my brain was no longer capable of remembering their faces. But I was certain I knew one of them. I just had to concentrate.

“Come on!” the guy above me growled, pulling harder on my hair.

I felt the other guy behind him lift my legs and pull down my pants. Shortly after, he started assaulting me.

“Fuck … No …”

This time, the guy punched me in the face. “Come on, get on with it!”

I had absolutely no control over my body, but I still took it all in, maybe due to the cocaine I had snorted earlier. It felt like I was in a fog, but I was still there. At times, I lost consciousness when one of the guys kept hitting me. And even then, as they fucked me three at a time, like I was some kind of doll.

Since I couldn’t help myself, I tried to escape by getting lost in my thoughts. But that too was difficult. With all my strength, I clung to the memory of Luca’s face, but it kept getting pushed away. By brutal thrusts, loud moans, or blows. Time stood still,and I was trapped in a whirlwind of heart palpitations, panic, and powerlessness. I couldn’t even scream.

***

My body felt numb as I staggered through the neighborhood. Despite the way I walked, I didn’t seem to attract any attention, as there were plenty of partygoers heading to the nearby clubs. One more drunk person didn’t stand out; except, damn it, I wasn’t drunk at all.

On the other hand, I was secretly relieved that the damn drug was still having an effect, because I sensed something ominous. Once that crap was out of my system, I’d likely fall apart for sure.

When I slowly came to my senses, the three had been discussing another round, but when Thomas saw he had run out of roofies, they dressed me, and he brought me back onto the street. By the time my brain had grasped that I had just survived horror, Thomas was already gone.

Judging by the activity on the street and my knowledge of how long such drugs could last, I estimated it wasn’t yet midnight. Glancing at my phone confirmed nothing. Everything was blurry, and the bright light burned like a laser beam into my eyes.

I reached the Hardbrücke and managed to orient myself. My head was still shrouded in dense fog, and my limbs were far from doing what they should, but I had a goal in mind.

A burning sensation spread across my face. Another sign that the drug was gradually wearing off. I touched my nose and noticed my fingers were covered in blood.

Shit. My head’s gonna feel like it’s been run over by a steamroller soon.

I moved on with difficulty and finally reached the cinema. The Hyde, the club where Noé played with his band, was on the fifth floor above it. With blurred vision, I glance at my phoneagain. This time I recognized the time. It was shortly after half past eleven.

How much I would have loved to go up to the club to see Noé play, but I barely managed to sit down on a wall. Sharp pains shot through my back, and the whole world spun, forcing me to slide down to the ground. Leaning against the wall, I pulled my legs up and rested my head on my knees, consumed by misery. I sat there, waiting for time to pass, foolishly hoping I’d feel better soon. With every minute that ticked by, the pain intensified. The bloody nose and busted lip seemed to sear deeper into my skull, threatening to make it explode.

At some point, the idea of lighting a cigarette occurred to me. Just the movements I had to make to get it out of my coat pocket sent pain shooting through my entire body, making me feel sick. The cigarette was already in my mouth, and I fumbled with shaky hands for the lighter when the door to the club opened. Through the warped veil, I thought I recognized a familiar face, but everything remained blurry, and the world around me moved in slow motion.

“Damn it! Juri-Rock!” Noé called out and rushed over to me. “What happened?”

He sank down beside me and gently pushed some strands of hair out of my face. Even though it was Noé, my body reacted, flinching involuntarily. I couldn’t muster a word and took the unlit cigarette out of my mouth. As I hung my head down, everything began to spin again.

“Fuck,” Noé said, turning to his companion. “Help me out.”

“What are you planning?”

Alex?

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