Chapter 7
Omnia
About an hour later, the girls were dolled up to the nines and Siobhan, Chloe and Natalie were ready to paint the town red. Kate, however, was hoping to paint the town more of a gentle shade of beige. She was already fairly hammered from the hours of drinking and she didn’t think she had much fuel left in her.
She wished the girls would show some more appreciation for the itinerary she had spent months putting together. They really should have been in bed by now so they could enjoy the rest of the trip, jetlag-free. She once again told herself to go with the flow, but it was just so damn difficult for her. It was her hen party, however, and she couldn’t exactly go to bed while the girls went out. A bachelorette party didn’t make much sense without a bride-to-be.
The girls sashayed through the Bellagio, following the signs towards Caesar’s Palace. They had truly pulled out all the stops for their debut on the Strip. Chloe was wearing a gorgeous blue bodycon dress with a pair of five-inch nude heels. Natalie wore a black jumpsuit with a criss-cross back, a pair of black Doc Martens and an onyx crystal around her neck. And Siobhan had on a red pleather co-ord that left very little to the imagination; just how she liked it. Around her neck was a dangly shot glass necklace that read ‘Designated Drunk’ and, under her arm, she was carrying an inflatable male sex doll who was comically well-endowed.
Kate, on the other hand, was a vision of pure class in a stunning white sheath dress and veil, although her cowboy boots and penis tiara gave a unique twist to her otherwise elegant look. Together with their bachelorette sashes, the girls certainly looked the part. They strutted through the Bellagio, turning heads as they made their cinematic entrance.
‘Is it just me or are we walking in slow motion?’ Chloe said.
‘No, we’re just very, very drunk,’ Natalie said.
‘I feel fine,’ Siobhan shrugged, still relatively sober. ‘And I look even finer.’
‘You literally look like the devil in that red pleather.’
‘That’s the point. And why are you wearing a jumpsuit? It’s going to be impossible for someone to get in your pants!’
‘It’s good to play hard to get.’
‘I prefer to get them hard,’ Siobhan smirked.
‘Good Lord,’ Natalie laughed.
‘Norman, which way is Omnia?’ Siobhan said, referring to the inflatable man on her arm.
‘Oh, his name is Norman, is it?’ Kate laughed. ‘I still can’t believe you spent an hour blowing him up.’
‘You’re just mad that I blew your fiancé.’
The girls continued walking towards Caesar’s Palace and were mesmerized by the hundreds of screens illuminating the casino floor. Natalie couldn’t help but notice that there was no natural light whatsoever.
‘Wait, why are there no windows?’ she said, looking around.
‘It’s so you become disorientated and lose track of time,’ Kate said, having learned about it when researching the trip. ‘There are no clocks either. It’s how they keep people gambling non-stop.’
Natalie looked around at the hundreds of gamblers sitting at slot machines, completely absorbed in a game that was rigged against them. ‘Jesus, I didn’t realize we were on a journey into the dark heart of late capitalism,’ she said.
‘Nat, no man is going to buy you a drink if you keep saying things like that,’ Chloe said.
‘Good thing I like girls too,’ Natalie said. ‘They’re actually capable of critical thinking.’
‘Well, I am definitely here for the men. I’m ready to take Vegas by the balls,’ Siobhan said, looking around like a hawk.
‘By the time you’re done, they’ll probably name a new STI after you,’ Chloe joked.
‘Siobhanorrhea?’ Natalie suggested.
‘Oh, that’s good. Remind me to trademark that!’ Siobhan said with pride.
When the girls arrived at Omnia, they immediately noticed there was a queue a mile long that appeared to consist entirely of men. But Siobhan bypassed the entire line and walked straight up to check in.
‘Siobhan, there’s a line!’ Kate said.
‘Not for us,’ she said before turning to the bouncer. ‘Hi there, I have a booth booked under Siobhan Murphy.’
‘No problem. I just need to see some ID,’ the bouncer said.
‘Of course,’ Siobhan said, taking out her driver’s licence.
‘Perfect. Follow me.’
‘Aren’t you going to ask for my ID?’ Natalie asked, offended. She was the youngest of the group, after all.
‘No, I’m good.’
‘Nurse, she’s out again,’ Siobhan said, slagging her. ‘Come on, Grandma, let’s get you back to bed.’
After they all got their stamps, the girls followed the bouncer towards the main club floor. But the term ‘club’ didn’t even do it justice.
Omnia was on a whole other level, a surreal symphony of sights, sounds and sensations.
It felt more like the Colosseum than a club. That’s when Kate realized they were in Caesar’s Palace, and its aesthetic was based on that of Rome’s. It literally was a Colosseum. The difference was, people came here to dance instead of watch battles – although Siobhan was surely on the lookout for some gladiators. Under the shimmering lights, bodies swirled in rhythmic ecstasy as the sultry scent of perfume and sweat mingled with the sweet taste of cocktails. The music was blasting at full volume and the bass was like a bullet in Kate’s chest every time it hit.
‘Holy Mary mother of God,’ she said, in pure shock. ‘This club is bigger than the entire city of Dublin!’
‘Now, aren’t you glad we decided to come out?’ Siobhan said.
They followed the bouncer upstairs to the seating areas overlooking the main stage. From up there, they had the perfect view of the dance floor and the stage below. There was a DJ on the decks and thousands of sweaty people on the dance floor. As much as Kate liked to dance, she was glad she was up high and not down in the Colosseum pit. It looked a little too intense for her.
‘Here you are, ladies,’ the bouncer said. ‘Booth number twenty-two is all yours.’
‘I put in a special request that our drinks be here on arrival,’ Siobhan said, seeing the table was empty.
‘The waitress will be right up with that,’ he said. ‘Enjoy your night.’
The girls stepped into their VIP booth and were absolutely shocked at how fabulous it was. But Kate was riddled with guilt. She knew a booth like this wasn’t cheap.
‘Siobhan, this is too much,’ she said. ‘How did you even organize this?’
‘Nothing is too much for my girls,’ Siobhan smiled. ‘And I found a Vegas promoter on Instagram and negotiated a discount.’
‘How did you get the dis—’
‘Don’t ever ask me what I did for that discount,’ Siobhan said, only half-joking. She threw the inflatable doll on the couch and began scanning the room for men. She was immediately impressed with the talent. ‘Jesus, girls, the lads here are so fucking hot.’
‘Define hot,’ Natalie said, unimpressed.
‘Oh come on, Nat, look at the muscles on some of these lads!’
‘Ew, I hate muscles on a guy.’
‘Really?’ Kate said. ‘Sometimes I wish Norman would hit the gym now and again.’
‘I thought he was perfect?’ Chloe said, raising an eyebrow.
‘He is . . . but a good, strong frame never hurts.’
Natalie grabbed the inflatable sex doll off the couch. ‘Are you telling me this isn’t the perfect male body?’
‘I would have blown him some more.’
‘KATE, you dirty bitch!’ Chloe laughed.
‘Oh my God, I didn’t mean it like that!’ Kate said, mortified.
‘I was encouraging you. It’s good to see you finally loosening up.’
A cocktail waitress came up to their booth, holding a large ice bucket. ‘Here you are, ladies,’ she said. ‘Your special drink request.’
‘Aww, you ordered champagne too?’ Kate said, chuffed. Although, she was so tipsy she didn’t know if she could handle another glass.
‘Not exactly . . .’ Siobhan said, with a devious smirk.
When the waitress placed the ice bucket down on the table, Kate almost lost her life in shock.
It was not champagne at all.
It was so much worse.
Because sitting in the bucket of ice were four large cans of Four Loko.
‘Surprise!’ Siobhan announced.
‘NO, NO, NO, NO, NO,’ Kate said, in shock. She refused to even entertain the idea. Four Loko was a recipe for disaster. Every single time they had drunk it in the past, they had completely blacked out with no clue of what had happened the night before.
There was no way in hell Kate was drinking it.
‘She means yes,’ Siobhan said to the waitress, who then headed back towards the bar.
‘Absolutely not! Drinking that stuff is asking for trouble. It always sends us over the edge!’
‘Well, yeah, that’s where all the fun is.’
‘It’s literally a blackout in a bottle!’
‘That’s not true,’ Siobhan said. ‘It’s in a can.’
‘Girls, I really don’t feel comfortable doing this.’ Kate panicked. ‘I promised Norman I wouldn’t do anything crazy, and this is the very definition of crazy. We were supposed to be in bed by now so we could wake up fresh in the morning and do everything on the itinerary!’
‘THAT’S IT,’ Siobhan said, at her wits’ end. ‘Kate, it’s time for an intervention!’
‘An intervention where you’re forcing me to drink?’
‘Exactly! The old Kate would be having the time of her life in a VIP booth in Vegas, drinking Four Lokos with her best friends. Instead, you’re worried about what your fiancé might think, even though he’s thousands of miles away. Norman has turned you into a boring shell of your fabulous self. Well, I know the real you is still in there somewhere, and I won’t rest until she’s brought back to life. You might be obsessed with planning, Kate, but as maid of honour, it’s my job to ensure you have the night of your life. Because you forgot to schedule one tiny little thing on your itinerary, Kate. Having some actual fun.’
Kate had never been confronted like this before.
She knew she could be a bit of a control freak at times, but she never realized she was such a bore. When had this happened? When had she become so obsessed with planning? Had Norman truly made her boring? She got more enjoyment out of planning an event than she did the event itself. She was always living in the future, excited for fun times to come. But there was fun to be had right here in the present, if she could just learn to live in the moment.
The way she had on their J-1 summer in New York.
Maybe it was time for the new Kate to meet the old Kate. Wasn’t the whole purpose of a bachelorette party for a woman to let loose before the big day? This could be her last chance to be her wildest self, without any consequences. It was quite literally now or never.
What was the worst that could happen?
‘Give me the fucking can,’ Kate smiled.
‘WOOHOO!!!’ the girls screamed.
They each grabbed their favourite flavour of their signature drink. Kate took Electric Lemonade. Siobhan took Black Cherry. Chloe took Blue Razz-berry and Natalie took Sour Apple.
‘The Four Lokos are back, baby!’ Siobhan said, as they clinked their cans together and started sipping.
‘Back with a bang!’ Kate said. ‘And Norman doesn’t need to know!’
‘Well, in that case, our blow-up friend here is no longer named Norman,’ Natalie said. ‘What should his new name be?’
‘Well, with that big inflated dick, he looks like a Trevor to me,’ Siobhan said.
‘Siobhan!’ Chloe said, shooting her a look. ‘We’re not allowed to say the T-word, remember?’
‘No, it’s okay,’ Kate said. ‘I actually like the idea of calling him Trevor. Because I have a few things I want to say to that prick!’
‘Okay, I’m literally obsessed with the new Kate!’ Natalie said.
‘Not the new Kate, this is the REAL Kate! She’s back for the weekend. And Trevor Rush, I have a bone to pick with you!’ Kate said, turning to confront the inflatable sex doll.
‘YAAAASSSS,’ the girls cheered her on.
Kate began to address the doll as if she was speaking to Trevor directly. She was fairly plastered at this stage, and she was ready to tell it like it was. She had repressed her feelings for Trevor for too long and they were finally bubbling to the surface.
It was time to let it all out.
‘Listen here, you,’ Kate began, pointing at him dramatically. ‘You and I could have had it all. We were perfect for each other until you decided to be a slimy snake in the grass and cheat on me three months after I left. I was going to come back to you as soon as I finished my degree so we could make music together like we always planned. But I guess one year is just too long for a man to be loyal. And it wouldn’t have hurt so much seeing you kiss that woman if you didn’t give me that stupid locket. A locket I can’t seem to throw away, no matter how hard I try. If you had just told me you were a fuckboy from day one, I would have been fine with it. But you had to go and pretend you were some romantic dream, knowing damn well I would fall in love with you. I believed all of your lies while you were making a fool of me behind my back. Telling me I was beautiful, telling me I was talented, telling me you loved me. I wonder how many other women fell for your act. You promised me you would never hurt me and I was dumb enough to believe you. Well, guess what, Trevor? I don’t even care any more. I’m erasing you from my life story. You are no longer welcome in my thoughts. So cheers to me finally forgetting you ever existed!’
‘WOOHOO!’ the girls applauded.
‘How do you feel?’ Chloe asked.
‘Like I’m finally free of Trevor Rush,’ Kate smiled as she held her head up high. ‘Bottoms up, bitches!’
The girls all clinked their drinks one last time before throwing back their entire cans of Four Loko. Kate almost choked as she finished the drink in one go.
‘Jesus, I forgot how strong this stuff is,’ she winced.
‘It literally tastes like ass,’ Siobhan said. ‘Let’s order some more!’
‘You girls doing okay over here?’ the waitress said, as she passed by them.
‘Actually, would you mind taking our photo?’ Chloe said. ‘Girls, we all have a can of Four Loko – we can recreate our first ever photo together!’
‘Chloe, that’s brilliant!’ Kate said, thrilled by the idea. She reached into her handbag and took out her Polaroid camera. ‘Here you go. Flash is on.’
The waitress took the camera and the girls all got into the same poses as the photo from nine years before. ‘Alright, say Vegas!’
‘VEGAS!’ the girls said as the camera captured the moment for ever. The Polaroid immediately began to print, and Kate just knew it would be perfect for her hen party scrap book.
‘Thank you so much,’ Kate said, taking the camera and the photo from the waitress.
‘By the way,’ Siobhan said to her. ‘A guy told us about something called a champagne shower. How does that work exactly?’
‘So, in between DJ sets, you can go up on stage and have the new DJ pop a bottle of champagne all over you,’ the waitress said. ‘There’s normally a fee but because you already paid for a booth, I can comp the shower for the bride.’
‘Now that’s what I call a bridal shower!’ Siobhan said. ‘She’ll take it!’
‘Oh I don’t know, girls,’ Kate panicked. She had hoped the girls had forgotten about that idea. ‘It could ruin my dress and hair. I’ll be a mess.’
‘Say yes to the mess, Kate,’ Natalie said, egging her on.
‘Please Kate, you have to!’ Chloe begged.
Kate felt her anxiety begin to creep back in. She really didn’t like the idea of champagne being sprayed all over her, but she had already promised the girls that the real Kate was back. She couldn’t exactly go back on her word now. And she had made the decision to at least try and live in the moment.
Fuck it.
‘Okay, I’ll do it!’ she conceded.
‘Cool,’ the waitress said. ‘What’s your name? The MC will call you up when it’s time.’
‘Soon-to-be Kate Cox, visiting from Ireland.’
‘Okay, perfect.’ The waitress began to speak into her headset. ‘Hey Dave, I have a last-minute champagne shower request. Yeah, it’s for bride-to-be Kate Cox from Ireland. You got that? After this song? Cool, I’ll let her know.’
‘It’s probably too last minute, isn’t it?’ Kate said, still secretly hoping to get out of it.
‘No, you got in just in time. The MC is coming on right after this song. Make sure you’re ready,’ the waitress said before walking away.
‘Oh God,’ Kate said, getting flustered. ‘I’ve no time to prepare! I have no idea what to expect.’
‘I’m guessing they’re going to shower you in champagne. Just a hunch,’ Natalie said, sarcastically.
‘I’ll take a video from here. It’ll be such a funny memory to have!’ Chloe said, taking out her phone.
‘Speaking of which,’ Kate said, looking down at the developed Polaroid in her hand. It was just like the one from nine years ago, and she absolutely adored it. ‘Our photo is fab, girls!’
‘I swear we get hotter every year,’ Siobhan said, confident as ever.
The club MC suddenly swaggered onto the stage holding a microphone. ‘MAKE SOME NOISE FOR DJ HARDCORE!’ he screamed.
The crowd began to roar.
‘We got another one of the sickest DJs coming up for y’all. But first, what’s it time for?’ the MC shouted into the mic.
‘CHAMPAGNE SHOWERS!’ the entire crowd shouted back.
‘Now, we got a crazy chick from IRELAND out here celebrating her BACHELORETTE PARTY, is that right?’ the MC said, looking into the crowd.
‘Oh Jesus, girls, this is so embarrassing!’ Kate said, mortified.
‘SHE’S OVER HERE!’ Siobhan shouted down to the MC as she flailed her arms over the balcony.
A spotlight came on and shone directly into Kate’s eyes, practically blinding her.
‘People of Omnia, make some noise for the soon-to-be MRS KATE COX!’
The crowd began to roar again.
‘GET UP THERE, SKANK!’ Siobhan insisted.
Kate felt like a deer in headlights. She hated all the attention. But there was no getting out of it now. There were literally thousands of people cheering for her. As she walked down the stairs, she felt the Four Loko hit her like a ton of bricks. The room was spinning and her vision was blurring. She wasn’t sure if she was even going to make it to the stage.
When she got to the lower level, Kate felt like Bambi on ice. She walked up to the stage as the crowd screamed for her. You’d swear she was after winning an Oscar with the volume of the supporting screams. A part of her did like the adulation. She only wished they were applauding her for something other than getting drenched in champagne.
She arrived on stage and stood beside the MC.
‘Kate, are you ready for your CHAMPAGNE SHOWER?’ the MC yelled.
‘Bring it on,’ Kate said awkwardly into the mic. Her voice lacked any semblance of charisma and she cringed when she heard her own words reverberate around the massive room.
‘I think you can do a little BETTER than that, Kate!’ the MC said, signalling the crowd to cheer.
‘BRING IT ON!!!’ Kate shouted, this time with vigour.
‘That’s more like it! Omnia, are you ready for our next DJ?’ he shouted.
The crowd began to scream even louder than they had for Kate.
‘I SAID, ARE YOU READY FOR ONE OF VEGAS’S BIGGEST DJS?!’ the MC roared again.
The crowd went berserk. It was enough to burst one’s eardrums, but Kate just stood there smiling.
‘Omnia, are you ready to . . . FEEL THE RUSH?’
Kate felt time come to a standstill.
She looked up at the girls. Their eyes were like bullets.
Surely it was just a coincidence.
It had to be.
‘Then make some noise for the one and only TREVOR RUSH!’
Kate looked back at the girls once again. Their hands were covering their mouths in pure shock.
It wasn’t a coincidence. It was a catastrophe.
A dramatic EDM remix of ‘Toxic’ by Britney Spears began blasting through the speakers. The track had an epic string arrangement and pulsing beat that made it sound like the music used in action movie trailers. Yet, Kate felt she was currently starring in her own personal horror film. A wild light show of technicolour lasers illuminated the room as fog began to fill the stage. Kate tried to breathe but she was engulfed in a cloud of smoke. She was breathless.
That’s when she saw a shadowy figure rise up from beneath the stage.
He was posing with one hand in the air and shaking a bottle of champagne in the other. The crowd was screaming for him. They knew who he was.
The platform seemed to be rising up in slow motion and Kate had no idea what to do. She felt herself transition from drunk to hammered. The Four Loko was warping her perception of reality. This couldn’t really be happening. It had to be a fever dream. Some kind of alcohol-induced hallucination.
It was a nightmare. It had to be a nightmare. She had to wake up!
The platform finally rose up fully and the fog cleared between them. She was in his direct line of sight. Standing right in front of her before a crowd of thousands.
The man she had first loved.
The man who broke her heart.
The one and only.
Trevor Fucking Rush.
‘KATE?’ Trevor said as he locked eyes with her.
The champagne popped of its own accord.
And that was the last thing Kate would ever remember from that fateful night.