The group of us, minus the Waster and boytoy, walked together from the CCD to the subway in the drizzle, and I thought about how desolate the area was. For a world that's packed to the brim with screaming souls, I always seemed to find myself in deserted areas without any sign of life beyond rats and roaches. Behind me, Angus kept chattering along like a bipolar tour guide, commenting on everything he saw. This time Obie was the one who had his attention and could feign being interested. On second thought, maybe he was. I was still a little pissed off at the Frother for starting the crap with Casper and couldn't understand why she had gone off so easily. I also didn't really care as much as getting out of the rain.
We had decided to eat together at the restaurant courtyard in the 560 Block Intermezzo. The service is passable and the food is cheap, so it's a daily haunt for Angus. I've been there twice and the best that I can say about it is that it's not crowded. Since the patrons are usually low rung ops and general scum, someone like Gael would have to watch themselves but a mob of us was safe. As we came through the door, I saw that most of the tables weren’t occupied and there was a short line at the four restaurants along the one wall.
The I-Mez was designed as an open-air style café in the center of a fake green garden, but the planners blundered when they built it next to the El. The decorative open awning was great against Mort's vertical downpours, but on opening day, the passing gauss trains pushed the rain horizontal and soaked the patrons and floor. There's nothing like a high velocity black rain bath to kill a business and the owners quickly walled in the stucco facades. The damage to the place's rep had already been done and now it's only popular with the hardcore bargain hunters or those on really tight budgets. In other words, Angus.
There was a minor scuffle between Obie and Angus to see who went first and the Chagrin won as usual. This was another good example of Angus taking on more than he could handle and he was hopping on one foot because of it. He saw the look on my face and sneered as he massaged the toes of his boot. Together, they're mostly harmless and make for an interesting floorshow.
"Oi! Real funny innit? Let 'em stomp your toes and see 'ow funny it is!"
"No thanks. One op on these feet is plenty." I said and nudged him off balance. He stumbled, but recovered in time to bump me then give his order.
It's a selling point that this place had generic enough food that everyone in our multi-racial squad could find something to eat, but finding table space was something different. After a little rearranging, everyone was mostly together with the 714 and the Frother at their own place away from the adults. They were back to acting like children and trying to shove each other's trays off the table. God couldn't help Angus if he won that one since Obie could eat the Frother and both their meals in one sitting.
"Boys," Gael began. "Are we going to have to separate you?"
I shook my head and concentrated on trying to get a flavor into the bland pita sandwich I had ordered. It's a little like chemistry, because you have to put in enough to matter, but the wrong combination makes it blow up in your face. Just as I had it the way I wanted and was ready to eat, I saw that Nix was staring.
"What?" I asked. Her eyes met mine, flitted back to my meal, then back to my face.
"Ok, fine." I said and traded meals. She's got the mentality that whatever I'm eating probably tastes better than hers. At least she did me the favor of picking something that I didn't mind this time and carefully set a roast beef sandwich on my plate. Once she convinced me to trade for a s'pth lizard fricassee and my digestive system has never recovered. This time, the sandwich was even spiced up the way I like, so this was more than just simple premeditation. After I ate, I felt a lot better food in my stomach and rose to go wash my hands. Angus patted me on the shoulder and followed.
"Hey Cole, could we speak for a minute??" he asked. He was grinning and I nodded, even though I wanted a break from the constant chatter.
I nodded and he followed me to the restroom where I tried to get the grease off my hands. He relieved himself and went to the sink next to me to wash off, but came back with the grin, only wider. His eyes were still challenging which meant he was up to something again.
"I was thinking," he started and I subconsciously winced. Usually when he starts like that, he has some grand plan that he wants help on. I cupped my hands and pulled in a mouthful of water to wipe out the remnants of the meal.
"I was thinkin' bout askin' Gael out for dinner, "he started. " Think it's a good idea?"
I gagged and ended up spitting the water onto the counter and mirror. It was better than swallowing and there was no way I could hide my surprise. He ignored it and kept talking.
"I think we'd make a sweet couple, don't you?" he asked. He might have been baiting me, but I didn't see a way out of this without tipping my hand. On the other hand, he might be serious, which would be a very bad thing. I was feeling oddly territorial and I wasn't sure it was justified.
"I don't think she's your type," I said in as flat of a voice as possible.
"Maybe she's your type though, eh?" he asked. He had been smiling, but now it had grown into a full ear-to-ear grin. There was no doubt what he was up to and I downplayed it, trying to take the wind out of his enthusiasm.
"I've never dated an Ebon."
"Until now, right?" he said and leaned closer. He had passed the enthusiasm stage and driven right into pure gloating.
"Eh? Eh? Eh?" he asked, nudging me with a forearm in the ribs. I had avoided meeting his eyes in the mirror, but he had me and he knew it. Besides, the elbowing was starting to hurt and I knew I'd feel bad if I clocked him and stuffed him in a toilet.
"Alright, you son of a bitch, you got me. Happy?" I asked and tossed my hands. He did his gleeful two-step again and stopped to look proud of himself in the mirror. This probably made his entire week – he figured out something that I didn't want him to know. I guess she and I were dating, or at least starting to. I wouldn't really know until we had a chance to talk again.
"I KNEW IT! I JUST KNEW IT!" he laughed and slapped my shoulder. "All those cute little looks, and blushes! HAH!"
"Look Angus, I want your WORD that you'll keep this to yourself, okay?" I asked. There was no way in Hell that I wanted Casper to have another shot at me, especially on something that mattered. If anyone were going to ruin this, it would be me.
"What, you think I'd do that?" he said backing up like he'd stolen a toy from a kid.
"Yeah, I think you might if I didn't make it clear," I said as I followed him. "I want your promise."
"What if I don't wanna promise? Kinda gives me leverage, eh?"
"I thought we were friends," I said flatly. He loved to kid around, but this was serious to me and I wasn't willing to gamble. My voice was a stark contrast to his, but he ignored it.
"Yeah, we're friends but I gotta get my digs every chance I get!" he said then his face changed and he cocked his head. "So, how much is it worth to ya?"
"You owe me for saving your ass a few dozen times. That should matter."
"That was yesterday and today's a new day! What else ya gonna offer?" he asked. I thought he was joking, but he loved to create trouble and might "let it slip" if it looked like it could set someone off.
"I'm asking you not to tell Casper or anyone else in the squad, ok?"
He looked around sheepishly but didn't respond.
"Ok?" I asked again and he nodded then punched me lightly in the shoulder.
"Just fuckin' with you. You should know that I wouldn't go blabbing something like that around. Friends gotta stick together! Right?"
"Right," I said and nodded.
With another stinging good-natured punch into my shoulder, he turned and we began to head back to the rest of the squad. If he wasn't telling the truth, this would seriously jeopardize our friendship and I hoped he knew it. I didn't have that many friends to be able to afford losing one.
From around the corner, I heard several other people coming into the restroom and held back to let them through. Suddenly there was a pop, Angus stumbled backwards into me with a bloody mouth, but I caught him before he hit the floor. He shook it off with a curse and pushed himself to his feet to face the attacker. I saw that he was clutching at his injector and trying to pop the cap.
"Aw fuck," he mumbled as he spat out a tooth.
I cursed when I saw who it was. The MacLeod giant and his five little brothers had come to one of Angus's favorite places and we were cornered in the john. When the big guy saw me, an ugly grin crept across his face and he nudged one of the others. The ugly redheaded wiseass cackled and came forward, raising a heavy pistol.
"Told you it wasn't over!" he said with a sneer.
No shit.
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