The Tables Have Turned

"Boyfriend?" he said, wrinkling his nose. "Never figured Florence was that kinda guy...you think you know a person. I guess you'll just have to make do with me in the mean time, right?" He chuckled.

"Say...do you wanna do something fun after we ditch this party?"

"Something fun? Unless you have something in mind, I was planning on heading home and sleeping early myself," Addock admitted. "I'm not a very exciting guy."

Stephen snorted.

"Come on, man! The night is young. We could hit the clubs, the casino, the bar--anywhere you like, really. Let's paint the town red."

"Does it really look like I'm the type to gamble? Besides, I've yet to visit a casino with braille on the machines," he reminded Stephen with a slight chuckle. "Though, I'm sure they could certainly make a lot of money if they did that. But I digress. You seem to be bored at your new job; I can humor you if you'd like. What does Stephen like to do in his free time?"

Addock was only partially sure he'd regret asking that.

"If we're talking in the third person, Stephen likes to party. But not at a lame-ass place like this--there's no music, and you can't get drunk off of punch that weak. Come on, let's go somewhere better."

"Well..." Addock mulled over his options. He didn't particularly enjoy partying, and he wasn't entirely sure he trusted Stephen enough to go out with him. On the other hand, he'd already had one drink and it had been a rather rough week. Finally, he gave in. "I'll trust your judgement on where you take us. If you're ready, I am."

"How much partying are you up for?" he asked, leading him back to the car by the arm. "I could find my old dealer if you wanna get really serious, even."

Addock laughed, although mainly because he hoped Stephen was joking. Somehow, he had the feeling he wasn't.

"Why don't we just go to a nice bar?" he suggested.

"You want nice, you got nice," he laughed, practically shoving him into his black Mercedes-Benz. "I'll show you the nicest night any date ever has."

Addock laughed again. "Don't be ridiculous; the nicest night a date has ever shown me is something you're not up for."

"Oh yeah?" he asked, raising his brow and scowling. "And what exactly was it?"

Addock chuckled. "You don't want to know."

"Tell me. This car goes nowhere until I know exactly what I'm up against."

He scoffed. "Don't be ridiculous, Stephen, we're not actually going on a date. If you wanted to give me the nicest night of my entire life, you'd have to be willing to do things that I know you aren't willing to do. Which is fine, in fact I much prefer it that way. That said...aside from things you can't give me, I'm really more of a romantic restaurant kind of man than anything else, but..." Addock shrugged. "A bar sounds nice right now."

"What can't I give you?" he demanded. Actual frustration creeped into his voice, replacing his earlier joking competitiveness. "It's not as though I went bankrupt the moment I came here--I have money, connections, resources! I can give you whatever the fuck you want, so do me a favor and just tell me what I'm up against."

Addock hesitated in answering. He should have realized teasing Stephen in such a way was bound to bring about a response like this. Although, he had never seen Stephen like this, so it wasn't entirely his fault. Even so, he took a short pause before he finally answered him.

"I meant sex, Stephen," he replied bluntly. "It was just a joke."

"Sex," he repeated, still frowning. Then he laughed, suddenly cool and collected once more. "Buddy, if that's all it takes for you to have a good time, I can guarantee the best night of your life, easy." He started the car and pulled out of the parking lot, humming along with the Christmas music on the radio.

"What?" he replied, still trying to piece together what had just happened. Stephen was certainly hard to read. "I was just joking, you know."

"The best date of your life didn't even have sex? That's pretty lame, fella--we can fix that tonight." He gave him a hearty pat on the shoulder. "Party City tonight--population, you and me."

Addock laughed somewhat nervously. Maybe he should've just kept his mouth shut. Well, too late for that now, he supposed. Might as well enjoy the ride Stephen had planned for him.

"So, Stephen, do you have plans for Christmas?" he asked, deciding to change the subject for now.

"No; should I?" he asked, raising his brow. "Working, maybe--I don't know."

"Working?" he asked incredulously. "I...well, I don't mean to pry, but don't you spend Christmas with a girlfriend or family?"

"I haven't had a girlfriend in years, and I haven't spoken to my mother in longer," he replied bluntly.

"Yeah? Bad family situation? I'm guessing it's the same with your father...?" he ventured cautiously. This was probably none of his business but he couldn't help but want to know more about one of the few men who'd ever beaten him in court.

Stephen almost swerved into the next lane, barely correcting the car's path in time.

"...What did you just say?" he asked in a very low voice, one he had never used in front of Addock before.