ECPM Ch. 01: The Scentless Apprentice

Experimental Cologne-PheroMoans: You smell so fucking good!

Chapter 1 The Scentless Apprentice

It was a warm summer late afternoon in Atlanta, Georgia. The outside of the apartment complex used as a dorm for art students is lively tonight as students make their way back on a Sunday for their first day of school tomorrow. Music is blaring, and the pool area is filled with students indulging in the wilds of youth. In these moments, they don't concern themselves about their future, only the moment.

One apartment of four, two boys to men, are sitting in their living room area partaking in mother nature's joys while watching Adventure Time on Cartoon Network.

Mark is a six-foot black male who you couldn't tell was physically fit because he always wore baggy clothes. A quirk he developed from years of hiding his body from being overweight. He wears a beanie to cover his often bald, sometimes uncombed, or brushed hair, a Georgia bulldog' hoody, and basketball shorts. All black is his favorite color due to its slimming effects on the body. He picked this show to watch as his friend next to him on the couch gutted a swisher sweet on the living room table.

Dave, a five-foot-ten white male with brown hair and blue eyes, made all the girls crumple at his charms. Unlike Mark, you could tell he was physically fit due to his designer-fitted shirt and black shorts, showing his hard work. He wasn't ashamed of his body and was focused on accomplishing his task to start his night off.

"Dude, you know how much I've been fiending for this; back home is like bible camp. " Dave says, shaking his head as he meticulously sprinkles the green inside the swisher.

"You know I hate dealing with that guy; he always thinks I'm the feds," Mark says, his eyes focused on the TV.

"Shit, I mean, you do dress like a drug dealer..so I guess you do look suspicious."

"What do I have to be naked." Mark says throwing his hands up in frustration.

"Pause." Dave says looking at him, then returning to roll up his blunt.

"Yeah, that was out of pocket."

"I love this stupid apartment, even if it's gonna ruin my life after I'm done with college."

"Yeah...I try not to think about it. You know like the loud assholes at the pool, but."

"This will help," Dave says, lifting his complete work. He feels around his pocket. "Fuck!"

"What's up? "

"My lighter, I left my fucking lighter on my desk at my house," Dave says, hanging his head low. The implications of this move he knows will have ramifications later when his mom goes into his room and sees his Zippo Zippo lighter model, no naked lady, on his dresser.

"Yikes, you know that's not god-like boss."

"Shut up. Can you do me a favor?"

"You want me to walk to Everyday Earth, don't you." Everyday Earth is the local grocery store in the shopping plaza next to the apartment complex. It is also where Mark has worked since the school moved them here a year ago.

"No! Hell, if you do, that might put yo ass on shift. No, I want you to go next door and talk to Bonita Applebaum."

"I."

"Ah, don't act like you don't want to."

"I hate you. What if Bonita's boyfriend is over there."

"So, ain't your fault, his girl be outta pocket."

"Can people, for once, just be in the pocket?"

"Can you just take yo ass over there and get the lighter so I can smoke this blunt."

"Alright, alright, Jesus."

"Don't use the lord's name in vain," Dave screams as Mark opens the apartment's front door.

"We are literally about to smoke the devil's lettuce." Mark retorts while walking out the door. He takes three steps down the outside hallway to the apartment next door belonging to a girl he has had a crush on since he arrived at Art University Atlanta. She was the RA for the dorms and his next-door neighbor. He stops in front of her door; before knocking, he fixes up his hoody, checks himself for stains, and then his breath. He smacks his face and then knocks on the door.

"Who is it?" A female voice scream from inside. Mark clears his throat and speaks.

"It's Mark," Mark says, trying to sound more manly by deepening his voice.

"Marky Mark." She screams from the other side of the door. A couple of seconds later, the door swings open. Bonita stood there in the opening of her apartment door.

Bonita Barnes was of multicultural heritage, but Mark couldn't quite place what it was. He just knew her skin was the color of caramel. She always smelled of something sweet like honey, and her hair was sometimes curly like it is now or pressed straight down to her shoulders. She was currently wearing her at-home clothes of a graphic tee with some extra short shorts and long socks.

"Hey handsome." She says at Mark, smiling with her nice plump lips and cheeks rising.

"Ah, hey. Well, first, how are you doing today? " Mark says nervously.

"I'm doing much better now that you are here. Come in, Bonita says. Have a seat."

"Oh, yeah, okay," Mark says, walking behind her and closing the door. He sits on the couch and looks around the room. Mark sees her laptop set up on a table near the kitchen. She walks over from the kitchen to stand next to the couch he is sitting on.

"Do you mind if I have a seat?" She asks

"Oh no, not at all." He says as she seconds later sits on his lap and wraps her arms around his neck.

"Best sit in the house." She laughs. "So, what can I do for you, handsome." She says, pressing her cheek up close to his face. Mark was at a loss for words at the attention. This act would be his dream if not for the elephant in the room. Her not being single.

"I was just wondering." Mark was searching for his words as he can't help but smell her a scent of honey and something else, he could quite place. Whatever it was, it was intoxicating him more than any alcohol could ever. "A lighter. Do you have a lighter?"

"Of course, lighting some candles, I hope." She says, smiling at him.

"Of course," Mark replies, smiling back.

"God, you have such a beautiful smile. I could eat you up, you know that." She says, pressing her hand into his chest. "Oh, somebody has been hitting the gym. You better be careful, Mark. Some of these new freshmen might come in and snatch you up, and then I won't be able to have my seat anymore."

"Heh, I dope it," Mark says

"I do," she says, rubbing her hand on his face and looking into his eyes. Her hazel eyes are something Mark could get lost in. "The lighter is on the table next to my candle. You can grab it; make sure you bring it back when you're done, please."

"Of... Of course." Mark says, shaking his head and smiling.

"Good, I have to finish this portfolio before starting class tomorrow. So, I will see you when I see you." She says, kissing his cheek and then pinching it like an auntie at a cookout. Mark grabs the lighter, looking at the candle on the ottoman table that is almost completely gone.

"Right, uh, thank you, Bonita."

"You welcome, handsome." She says from the kitchen as Mark leaves the apartment and walks back to his. He opens the door, smiling ear to ear.

"Jesus, what took you so damn long, dude."

"don't use the lord's name in vain."

"Shut up! Did she play with your balls?"

"No."

"Please don't involve yourself in any cuck activities, especially not with the RA chick next door who dates a dude in a gang."

"I'm not. You sent me over there! Bonita is the one who sat in my lap."

"What the hell is her problem leading you on like that just to scream her boyfriend's name in the middle of the night while I'm trying to sleep." Mark's smile instantly fades from that comment.

"Don't remind me."

"Come on, sit down lets blaze this thang up to start our junior year in style."

"Can't argue with that one," Mark says, sitting on the couch next to Dave, handing him the lighter to spark up to them being juniors. Dave takes a big toke and passes it to Mark.

"So, what did you do while I was gone," Dave says, leaning back on the couch. Mark takes a toke and passes back to Dave.

"Emma and I just chilled before she leaves for junior year."

"That's right, Ems is going to Japan for a year. Lucky bastard, I could be all sweet and sour right now." Dave says before puffing and passing.

"That's racist and Chinese. But yeah, I'm gonna miss Ems." He takes a puff and then passes.

"No doubt she is your second..." Dave says, looking at the blunt than Mark. "Okay, first best friend." He says, taking a small puff and blowing some smoke out. "How long have you all known each other for now?"

"Almost our whole lives."

"So.." Dave hovers over anticipation while holding out the blunt to Mark like passing the baton in a race.

"So, what," Mark says, grabbing the blunt and looking back at Dave.

"Did you to do the do?"

"What...na no."

"Why the hell not!? That was your only mission for this break, and it was literally just you, too alone for the most part. Maybe Will was around some days but we just ignore him."

"Em's don't see me that way, dude."

"Bullshit! Ughh, all this hard work I put into you these last two years. This was your moment to own it, but you let it go." Dave says, placing the blunt on the ashtray on the table.

"Alright, Eminem."

"Don't alright me. You lost so much weight and got fit, but you are still sitting here, a virgin. I'm trying to get you over the hump, man. Your 22 years old, man, this shit gotta stop."

"I know, okay."

"Look when I was your age."

"I'm older than you."

"Sexually your age."

"What the fuck does that even mean."

"Look, I think what you're missing here is the look...I can't do anything about the confidence."

"My look, what's wrong with my look."

"You dress like a drug dealer."

"I do not."

"Also, your hygiene."

"I fucking wash!"

"I'm not saying you don't. You wash too much for my liking."

"What is going on here right now? It's calming for me, okay."

"I'm trying to help you. What do you notice about Bonita that makes you like her."

"Bonita. I mean that ass."

"Besides her nice ass."

"Oh well." Mark thinks to himself. "Well, she always smells so fucking good."

"There it is."

"Her smell?"

"Yeah, her smell has left a mark on you. You need a signature scent that makes girls think of you like you think of Bonita."

"I mean, I've always liked the smell of cologne. It's just really expensive, you know."

"Tell me about it. I spend my check on them thangs, but it's worth it. I got signature scent for every girl I smash."

"That's a lot of scents."

"I know, right."

"You ever mixed them up."

"A couple of times, but who cares? I already smashed."

"If you like it, I love it. So, do you have any suggestions?"

"I could suggest some stuff, but it's up to you. You know. How about this? What time is it?"

"It's 434 pm."

"Cool, the next bus should be here at 5 p.m. How about we go to the mall before it closes and look at some cologne."

"Right now?"

"Yes, you are on a deadline. You need to get with Emma before she leaves."

"I."

"Stop, Goddammit, Mark, I know you like her, and she likes you. You, too, would make the perfect couple man. I would be proud to be your kid's Godfather. But you got to seal the deal, my man. Maybe you don't need it to get her, but dammit, with it, you will not fail."

"Do you think this will work?"

"When does she leave again."

"Wednesday."

"Are you really okay with leaving it this way, man." Mark stares into space for a second, then gets up from the couch.

"No! I fucking..no, okay."

"Then let's fucking do this shit," Daves says, walking outside the apartment. Mark takes off his hoody and grabs his wallet. He meets Dave outside as he walks. An expensive-looking car rides off as a girl they have never seen before walks into her apartment. "Oh, a new student and she looks Latin. You know I love them."

"Them, oh Dave," Mark says as they walk towards the bus stop across from the apartment complex. A short bus ride and Marta train ride to Lenox, and they were at the Lenox mall. Dave took Mark to all his usual spots, trying to find something that fits his style. Mark was watching his check disappear before his eyes. After a two-hour shopping tour, they were done, returning to the apartment close to 9 p.m.

"Man, we need a fucking car," Dave says, sitting down on the couch.

"You need a car; I love taking the train. It is peaceful, outside of the crackheads."

"Uh-huh, what do you think of the stuff we bought?"

"I don't know if it's me, but I want to try something new. I mean, you're right. I wanna get laid. Not saying Emma is just a lay, but."

"I get you, man; I'm going head to Dexter's. You wanna come." Dexter was another friend who lived across the parking lot. He was slightly older than Mark and had a kid with a girl from back in his hometown.

"I'm good. I'm gonna look at the stuff we brought and try some things out."

"Alright, man, don't hurt yourself."

"Ah hah." Mark mocks as Dave leaves the apartment. Mark grabs his phone and headphones and puts on some music. He goes into their room, placing his bags on his bed. He started with the shampoo and body wash. He bought some brands he never heard of before, and they must be good because the prices were more expensive than anything he had ever bought before in his life. The colognes were the really expensive stuff, and he didn't even get the really, really good ones Dave said to get, but in his eyes, whatever he got was an improvement to what he previously had. Nothing.

He grabs the bottle of Nautica Voyage, Dave's favorite out of the affordable ones. He sprays some on himself for a second, and then he remembers what Dave said about applying cologne correctly. He walks into the bathroom and looks at himself in the mirror. Mark wasn't currently covering his body with a baggy hoody or sweater. He removes his beanie, brushes his head, and brushes his teeth. He smiles and tries to look confident, shaking his head in agreement.

"Let's do this shit." He says to himself as he walks into the living room, grabs the lighter on the table, and walks out the door and down the hall to his neighbor's door. She hovers his knuckles on the door as the confidence quickly drains from his body. He looks down at the metaphorical puddle of it as it glides away on the ground into the darkness of the night. He shakes his head and knocks on the door.

"Who is it?" Bonita screams from behind the door.

"Mark, I'm returning you." The doors open before he can finish, and she smiles at him just as early.

"Thank you handsome." She says, smiling and pulling him into a hug. "Oh, you smell..." Mark's face pauses, waiting for her to say the words good or anything at this point. "I'm trying to place it." His mind now wonders what she could be remembering. It could either be good, fantastic, amazing, or Ass. God, I hope it's not bad, he thought as she let's go of the hug. "Now I know what you smell like."

"What is it?"

"You smell exactly like my little brother." She says, smiling, Mark smiles on the outside, but his soul is crushed on the inside.

"Right," Mark says, shaking his head, waving at her, and walking away from the door.

"Oh, Well, good night, handsome." She says, shutting the door. Mark makes it back into the apartment. Will, his other roommate, was on the couch with his girlfriend Wanda.

"Oh, hey, Mark. You good had a tough night? You look distraught my man."

"Something like that." Mark says, looking at them on the couch as Will pulls his arm away from Wanda and looks back at her, annoyed. She smiles, apologizes, and asks if he wants anything from the kitchen. He shakes his head at her, annoyed.

Mark chooses to walk away from the situation and back into his room. He reflects how Will is an asshole, but he always manages to get the girl and even get laid. Mark looks into the mirror. He usually isn't one to judge but questions how he got a girl and gets girls constantly, but he has no luck. Mark grabs the cologne bottle and thinks about throwing it away. The last thing he wants to project is little brother vibes. But Mark doesn't, he then hears a knock outside his door. He opens it, and it's Will once again.

"Hey man, uh, Wanda said you smelled outstanding. What cologne are you wearing?" Without a second thought, Mark grabs the Nautica cologne and hands it to Will.

"You can have it, and it's not my style."

"Really, man, my man, the best roommate a man can ask for."

"Yup, no problem, bro," Mark says, shutting the door again and lying in bed. "Of fucking course, she likes it. Maybe that's it, though I need to find something different that fits me. He lays on his bed with his headphones on, pulls out his phone, and starts to look up how to find the best cologne for you online. Several links pop up on Google, broken down into astrology, body type, and personality tests, and he goes through multiple websites. Weird, he thinks, all these tests are sponsored by Vector Productions. Hours go by. Dave comes back to their room and passes out on his bed. As Mark is still searching and drifting off to sleep, his phone drops, slipping from his hands onto his face and waking him up. He quickly puts it on the nightstand beside his bed and falls asleep.

The next day, he awakes, rubbing his face in the same spot it hit him last night. He grabs his phone and enters the bathroom to prepare for school. Dave is already in the kitchen making breakfast and arguing with Will about God knows what, a common occurrence in their dorm room. Mark takes his shower using his new body wash. Afterward, he looks at the two colognes he brought yesterday. The two that survived after he excommunicated one to Will last night. A big blue bottle of Davidoff Cool Water was on sale. Dave said it was a great summer cologne.

"We are currently in summertime," Mark says to himself while picking the bottle up. The other bottle of cologne was a smaller one, a Dolce and Gabbana light blue Intense. It is another summer scent, but Mark decides to try it later and go with the Cool ater. He applies it on his wrist, neck, and nape and calls it a day.

"That should be enough, God. I hope it's not too much." Mark says Dave got him to buy while opening the door and getting dressed in some of the new clothes. It's nothing too crazy, just a simple cool blue shirt to get him out of wearing black all the time, especially in this hot weather. Mark gets fully dressed and looks at himself in the mirror once again. "I'm such a little brother." He says with his eyes closed, still annoyed at the comment. Mark was, in fact, an only child. Emma is the closest person he could ever consider a sibling, but he would not do that. He has a goal, after all.

"Yo, you done in there. The bus is about to come?" Dave screams from the kitchen.

"Yup, coming out now," Mark says, opening the door and walking out. Hey, is it an off day for you? Dave asks, making sure Mark sticks with his meal plan.

"Yeah, it is," Mark says, remembering he needs to eat.

"Good, I made you some eggs, bro," Dave says, presenting him with some eggs on a plate. "But you better hurry up. The bus will be here in 15 minutes, and it can be finicky sometimes.

"True, thanks, man."

"Sure, you bought the eggs anyway, lol." Mark had been following a meal plan that Dave usually goes by. Meal plans usually are on a case-by-case basis, but this one has been working for Mark for a while, helping him get in shape. "We can probably hit up the Bodega Bob's spot during lunchtime."

"Bet," Mark says, quickly eating his eggs.

"Don't choke; remember to swallow."

"I hate you," Mark says, placing the bowl in the sink. "Let's ride."

"Broncos Country," Dave says with a smile as they both walk out the door to the bus stop.

"God, today gonna be a busy day, man."

"Oh yeah, you gotta work tonight."