Pain Redifined

[Mothtoto.]

The sun was long gone, but Adrienne put on her sunglasses anyways. She checked herself self consciously in the mirror before getting out of her car. As she hopped out, she looked around at she hadn't been to this part of town yet. Actually, she hadn't been to most parts of town. True, she'd been to The Clinic, a gas station, and necessary things like that, but she hadn't been out or gone exploring. She took off the Aviators, thinking it looked stupid. She threw them back into the car and started walking down the street. When she reached the place, Ocean-o or something crazy like that, she paid and went inside the crowded club.

She did a 360, looking for Owen's blond smiling face. He was the reason she was here. She was his intern at the clinic, that's how they knew each other. They were actually meeting here for their first date, but it hadn't officially started, since he wasn't exactly here yet. And I thought I was running a little late, she thought to herself with a small smirk. But she quickly stopped because people were starting to stare at the girl who was smiling to herself. She quickly moved away from that area with a grimace and headed for the bar. She looked at the bartender, deciding what to get. "Just a beer, thanks," she said with a smile. "I'm gonna need your ID, ma'am," the man said boredly. After checking her purse frantically, Adrienne realized that she forgot it at her apartment. "Frick!" she muttered loudly. "Look, I'm 24. I haven't lived in Canada very long, but I'm pretty sure that's old enough to buy a drink!" The larger man just looked at her and said through his teeth, "No ID, no booze. Those are the rules."

[Waddle]

Owen was running to the bar he and Adrienne were meeting at. He was going to be late. He had spent the night working at the clinic, from just before midnight to around 3PM, then he'd over overslept by about half an hour. His hair was wild and tangled and his clothes were wrinkled, but he didn't care about his appearance. He just hoped Adrienne was still there. Pushing open the door, he caught his breath while searching for Adrienne's bright red hair. He saw her quickly, talking with the bartender, and strolled over, taking the seat beside her. He overheard the last couple of comments.

"Ah, well, then," he said casually, pulling out his wallet. "Give me two." Opening his wallet, he showed the bartender his ID. The man sighed, muttered something about strange foreigners, and went to retrieve the drinks. "I love loopholes," Owen muttered dreamily, then turned to Adrienne. "Sorry for bein' late, overslept," he explained quickly, trying self-consciously to untangle his hair by running his fingers through it. Just then, his pocket buzzed, and he pulled out his pager. "Oh, really?!" he demanded of it angrily. "They need me now?!" The bartender brought their drinks, and Owen hurriedly paid for them while standing up. "Sorry, Adrienne, but I gotta..." he trailed off, gesturing meaningfully at the door. She would understand, hopefully. "We- we can... ermmm... reschedule, sometime? I'll see you, later, sometime, er, sorry, again." He waved and rushed confusedly to the door. Then he realized he had left his wallet on the counter, turned around, went back, grabbed it - "Er, yeah, I'll be needin' this..." - and then ran out the door.

[Mothtoto.]

Adrienne was about to make a smart retort when Owen jumped out from nowhere. She nearly fell out of her seat, but recovered just in time. "God, Owen!" she yelled, "Don't jump out like that, it was like you flew from the sky or something." He really hadn't jumped out at all, but she didn't especially want him to see her being refused alcohol. She was embarrassed, but she took the second beer thankfully. Adrienne took a long gulp and watched Owen over the top of the cup. His hair was all messy and it looked as if he left his place in a rush. Strangely, it didn't bother her. She actually thought it was cute he overslept. "It's fine, it's fine. I was a little late myself."

Great. Owen was needed at work. This was just her luck. Even though on the inside she extremely disappointed, on the outside she just said, "Rotten luck... Yeah, we'll definitely have to try this another time, I guess." Adrienne stared into the cup of yellow-brown liquid, not wanting to say good-bye or turn around. She only looked away from the glass when she saw he left his wallet. She stretched, out her hand, about to grab it, when Owen came back. In her head, she thought, Go away already! But she said "Oh..." and make it look like she was just scratching her head instead of taking his wallet. After turning around to make sure he was really gone, she chugged both the beers. She had decided she was going to have fun tonight. With or without Owen.

Roughly an hour later...

Adrienne was now extremely drunk. She was out in the crowd dancing with random dudes. She'd gotten really drunk in the last hour, and when she gets drunk... Well, she pretty much looses all the control she had while sober. And she was definitely not sober now.

[Anty]

Anthony drummed his fingers on the table, trying patiently to wait for Evan. But it wasn't easy, because tonight he and Evan would decide what to do. Whether to stay friends, part their ways (which was so absurd that it shouldn't even be an option) or something more than friends. And of course, Anthony hadn't decided yet, he'd been avoiding the subject. He hadn't actually planned on choosing an answer, but just voice exactly what Evan said. Actually taking part involved way too much thinking for a slacker like Anthony, and he still agreed to that when the waitress came with his beer. He had promised himself that he would stay sober tonight, because he knew that if he got drunk he would screw everything up, Evan was finally talking to Anthony again, and Anthony knew he could take that away if he got drunk. But it was impossible for him to stay sober with all the beers around him, and he finally caved in and asked the waitress for a mug with extra foam, which he was now sipping off the top of his beer.

A few minutes later...

Sobriety? Yeah, right. Anthony had now chugged down two beers. Now he wasn't completely wasted, but just a little. "Hey, what time is it?" he asked the passing waitress, unable able to read the clock. She stopped and looked at her watch, "Bout 5:15," she said, turning around to leave. "Hey, wait. Can I have one a them?" Anthony asked, pointing to the tray of beers she had in her hands. She hesitated. "... Sure," she said, setting one down carefully on the table and walked off again. Anthony smiled and positioned the beer in front of him. "She said it was 5:67. Now I'm no genius... But Evan was s'posed to meet me here at 5 O'clock, and that has past already," Anthony muttered to himself. Anthony and Evan had bought a mobile phone for Anthony the first time this week, so that he could reach Evan if there was an emergency, and this seemed like a pretty big emergency. He pulled the phone out of his jacket pocket now, and flipped it open. Anthony stared down at the phone for a few minutes, trying to remember how Evan had told him to do this. "'Just punch in the numbers', is what he said," Anthony reminded himself. He put the phone up close to his face, because the numbers seemed to be moving, and he slowly punched in the numbers that he thought could be the ones that Evan had told him. "Now what?" he asked the phone, but got no answer. He punched in the numbers, but nothing was happening. He waited a few minutes, and still nothing. "Stupid technology... Must have a glitch, maybe I'll try again tomorrow," he muttered, closing the phone and putting it back in his pocket.


The time it takes Anthony to get completely wasted, which is an hour...

Anthony was pissed. The word pissed has has at least two definitions, and Anthony was both of those: angry and completely drunk. Evan still hadn't shown up, and Anthony didn't no why, and by now he didn't care. Now he didn't want to be Evan's friend, or anything else. He didn't want anything to do with that soul suckin' jerk. Just like it was stated before, he was pissed, and that was why. This is what Evan had planned on doing the whole time, it was his way of telling Anthony that he no longer wanted to be friends, wasn't it?

Well, Evan must have had shit for brains, because now he was going to pay for his cruel actions. Anthony hadn't thought of a cruel and unusual punishment yet, but he would, and when he did, Evan would not forget it. I am so drunk, ain't no way I can even stand like this, he thought. Anthony bit his lip, thinking. And as he looked around the room from behind his half empty mug of beer, he found his answer. Or at least he hoped it was his answer: Adrienne. Or he thought it was Adrienne. But if it was, that was the most drastic thing he could do to that dirty son of a bitch who ruined his life. He would surely kill Evan if he did what he planned on doing with Adrienne, and it was a much more painful death than just shooting him. This was revenge. If Anthony had remembered correctly(which is very unlikely) then Adrienne had a huge crush on him, at least enough of one to kiss him while dating Evan. "Youdohaveawaywiththewomens, Antonio," he told to himself, his words sounding like one giant word. "Butyouhavetogetherattentionwithoutstandingbecausewomensdon'liketheirmenunstable." He set his beer down. "Hey Adrienne! Remember me?" he shouted across the room, his words very slow and slurred.

[Mothtoto.]

Adrienne was now very, very drunk, like stated before. True, she'd only had a few beers, but when alcohol hits her, it hits hard. It's like she lets go of the reins and gives the alcohol in her veins complete control. And this time, she wasn't the one steering. She was dancing wildly to the crowd's delight, when she had to use the restroom from drinking all those beers. After she went, she washed her hands, but something caught her eye. Candy. Or at least she thought it was candy. It was sitting beside the sink and a little soggy, but it looked good enough for her. She picked it up, and noticed it felt strangely like soap. She thought that maybe it could actually be soap, but decided against. Who makes soap that looks like flowers? No one. It was candy, not soap. In truth... it was soap. But she didn't believe the logical part of her mind, and popped it into her mouth. It tasted a little funny, and not sweet at all, but she just shrugged it off and went back outside.

She was headed for the dancing crowd, when she got side-tracked by a lady walking around with free beers. She took one gratefully and took a small sip. It was small because she had to stop halfway through due to someone calling her from across the room. She shoved her way through the crowd, and finally made it to the bar were a dark-haired man was staring drunkenly at her. She didn't judge the man for being drunk either, since she was totally wasted. Adrienne was trying to think of who it could be when it hit her. This man was Anthony. And Anthony was... Well, she didn't remember the details exactly, but she had a faint memory of wanting to kiss him a long time ago, so she decided she still wanted to. "Hey, Antwan, wanna make out?" her words were long and drawn out and she giggled quietly after she was done talking. She looked at his messy black hair, and didn't wait for his answer. She grabbed him in a strong hold and started what she had proposed earlier. Her beer sloshed down his back, but she was too drunk to notice.

Twelve hours later (Around 5 AM)...

The sun shone on her face from the window above, and cause Adrienne to wake up. It was the early morning sun, but it was still pretty bright in the dark bedroom. The bedroom she didn't recognize at all. She sat up, her eyelids drooping heavily. She thought she was alone, until she heard a small grinding kind of noise. She'd heard it before, but it had been a long time. She took the hand she wasn't using to sit up with, and ran her hand through her red hair, reversing it so it was out of her face. Sh rubbed her eyes and shook her head, trying to think of what the sound was she was about to roll out of bed but thought better of it. She had a terrible pounding headache from last night, but she didn't know why. Instead, she just swung her legs over the edge of the bed and stood up. She stretched her back, pushing her hands above her head and yawing loudly. She decided what she needed was her morning yoga. She walked to the door of the spacious room. She set her hand delicately on the handle, eyes wide. She just realized what the noise was.

The noise was snoring. And she used to hear it every day, because her dad has Sleep Apnea, which meant he had trouble breathing when he slept and snored terribly. She twisted slightly so she could see half of the large bed. There was a huge bundle of blankets, which she assumed was actually a man underneath it all. She didn't want to move the blankets away from him, afraid she might wake him. Also, she might not want to know who it was, if she even recognized him. So instead, she tiptoed quietly out of the room, closing the door quietly behind her. When she was outside of the room, she hurried to the bathroom. She thought it was the sun that woke her, but she soon realized it was because she had to pee like a Russian racehorse. After she went, she stared into the mirror, her hands gripping the counter. Her makeup was all messed up and smeared. Musta had a rough night..., she thought as she rummaged around in the drawers for some makeup. Actually, it didn't take her very long to find some, which was odd. Guys didn't usually have makeup... She stopped halfway through applying the eyeliner she found, What if I slept with a lesbian? But she finished putting on the cosmetics and left, trying not to think of that possibility.

She walked into the living room and looked down at the clothes she was wearing. A dress was definitely what she wanted to be wearing at the moment. She walked quietly back into the room and took some clothes out of a drawer. She had just grabbed the first thing she saw, which happened to be a white t-shirt and a pair of plaid boxers. She changes right where she was standing and just dropped her dress onto the floor without a care. AS she walked out, she averted her eyes so she couldn't look at the bed and left as quickly as possible. She went back to the living room, and started doing her yoga in front of the couch.

[Waddle]

Evan headed to the bar to meet Anthony. He was excited. It was a feeling he hadn't felt in a while, a while that was far too long. Happily half jogging, he waved to his neighbors and others who had just gotten home from work. They looked slightly confused, knowing that something had been wrong with him not a couple days ago, but just glad he was back to his normal jester, go-lucky attitude. Halfway to the bar, his pocket buzzed, and he pulled out his phone and stopped. He moaned as he saw the caller ID, labeled simply 'Work'. He considered ignoring it, but knew that he would get fired if he did. Maybe they were just checking on him. They had several times in the past couple of weeks. He opened it and squeezed his eyes closed as his boss's authoritative voice rang out, nearly deafening him. "All right, all right, sir!" Evan exclaimed over the man's shouting. "I'll be there in ten minutes." He hung up and sighed. They needed him. They 'needed' him. They needed him.

Opening the phone again, he dialed Anthony's number, hoping he hadn't forgotten how to use the phone, and that he wouldn't mind rescheduling. Right before he pressed the green call button, he glanced up to see a more than hot brunette jogging in extremely tight shorts and a sports bra. He was instantly mesmerized by her beauty, and the phone slipped out of his fingers, bounced off the sidewalk, and down into the sewers. Cursing loudly, Evan got down on his knees and tried to see the phone, see if he could reach it. But it was gone. And so was hope of telling Anthony why he wouldn't be there. Oh well. Anty would be back at his apartment by the time Evan got home, or he hoped the man would be. They'd see each other sometime soon...

Straightening, he shot the brunette a heated glare, but she was already quite a distance away and never noticed. Setting off at a jog of his own, he went to work.

5:00AM

He stumbled home. They had kept him there for twelve hours straight. Now, why in the world would a music store that closed at the time the mall closed keep anyone there all night? Because, apparently, some teenagers had trashed the place, and boss-man wanted everything back in order by the time the mall opened at eight. So Evan and two others had been called in. Thing was, boss-man let those two go home at one in the morning. He'd kept Evan so the two of them could finish up and, as boss admitted openly, so he could make sure Evan was still in his right mind, which Evan had only laughed wearily at before assuring him that things were alright. Even still, for twelve hours straight?!

He waved to the new desk man who had the night and early morning shifts every other day, switching around with Rubin and some other old lady. Pushing open the door into his apartment, he didn't realize that it was unlocked, his sub-conscience assuming he had left it that way by accident. Closing it, he sighed and murmured, "Home sweet home my ass." Then he noticed movement in the living room and started violently. It was Adrienne. "Adrienne!" he hissed. "What are you doing in my apartment?!"

[Anty]

Anthony looked over his shoulder at the crowd, waiting for Adrienne to appear, but it seemed that she never did. Actually, it probably wasn't Adrienne, but instead another girl with bright red hair that he had mistaken for her. He turned to face away from the crowd, discouraged. "Guess you'll hafta find 'nother way to get yer revenge, you ass," he muttered to himself as he stared down his beer. A shadow cast over him as he was taking another gulp of beer and he cocked his head a little to see Adrienne standing over him. Adrienne. Perfect Adrienne, the one who had seduced him when he was younger, the same way she was doing right now, with her fiery hair and seemingly perfect skin. Beer spilled down his chin as he smiled stupidly, spilling the liquid down his front, but he didn't even notice, because right now he was almost in a trance, but he was no longer staring at Adrienne's face. Clumsily his hand wiped the beer off his chin as he stared You're being rude, staring like an idiot! he told himself, and he would have slapped himself if Adrienne hadn't been there.

"Hey, Antwan, wanna make out?"

"No sh-" but she pulled him close before he had to finish. Anthony was surprised by how strong Adrienne was as she grabbed a fistful of his shirt. He had to stand slightly because Adrienne was much taller than him while he was sitting, so he balanced his weight against the edge of the table, because he still didn't believe he could stand and kiss at the same time. The kiss had lots of tongue and was very wet, partly due to the beer that Adrienne spilled down his back, but he didn't mind.

Later that same night...

Anthony had asked Adrienne to Evan's apartment, though it wasn't exactly in those words. And, of course Adrienne had said yes. It was right after their kiss, actually. So Anthony took her to the apartment, now having his own key. Here Adrienne was, in Evan's apartment, a true betrayal. Anthony and Adrienne sat on the couch for a while, catching up, though Anthony stayed away from the truth as much as possible. But soon Anthony couldn't think of anything else to do, "I'm going to bed, you can sleep on the couch, or you can leave. Whatever, " he ended, exasperated, walking to what Adrienne thought was his bedroom, because of course he hadn't told Adrienne where they really were. "Wait! I don't wanna sleep on the couch!" Adrienne whined. "Fine, you can have the bed, I'll sleep on the couch," Anthony sighed. Adrienne got to her feet, smiling, "Actually I had something different in mind... "

[Mothtoto.]

Adrienne's eyes flew open as a voice sounded from the front of the apartment. She was surprised, she had expected nobody to walk in on her. And if they did it would be from in front, plus it would be that of the unknown creature in the bedroom. But, this voice... It was very familiar. Very familiar, indeed. And this time, she knew exactly who it was who was speaking to her. It was Evan, her ex. They had been dating for eight years before she broke up with him. She didn't really know why she broke up with him, it just seemed like the right thing to do at the time. True, she occasionally regretted it, but as she turned around to face her ex, she decided that she did the right thing. He looked much better off with some time away from her. He was so dependent while they were dating... Or at least she hoped he wasn't seeing anybody, or all of her efforts would be pointless.

She it her lip in thought, trying to think of the right thing to say. "Miss me?" Miss me?? Seriously, could you get any cockier?? she thought angrily to herself. After mentally kicking herself, Adrienne struggled for more words. Something that was sentimental, but didn't say she was desperate to have him back. She was about to form the words, "I mess everything about you," but changed her mind because it sounded it too much like some sappy love song. Her next choice was, "I really didn't miss you that much, Evan," but that was too mean-spirited. After several more failed attempts she just went with something different all together. She walked closer to him and said, "I like what you've done with your hair. It looks... nice." Before the last word she plucked up a lock of his hair and dropped it back onto his face for extra emphasis. "So this is your place, huh? I thought a lesbian lived here," she laughed at her own ignorance but soon stopped it when she finally noticed Evan did not look happy to be here. Here with her, to be correct. "So..." she said awkwardly. "So, if that's a guy in the bedroom then you're gay, but if it's a chick I'm a lesbian. And I'm pretty sure I'm not a lesbian, Ev."

[Waddle]

Evan could only stare at her. Yes, he had missed her. But he couldn't force himself to say it. After she had left, he had realized how dependent he had been, and he swore to never let himself to be that dependent ever again. Hence, why he had never gotten into a serious relationship. Only playful dates to amuse himself and the girl. He was always upfront that no, he didn't want to get serious. And that was OK with some girls. Some girls only wanted a friend for the afternoon, or a friend for the night. One wanted sex, the other wanted help with a problem at work, with her own real boyfriend, or with the dryer whacking out. Only then did Evan realize that he didn't regret being alone. And, for some reason, his shock faded, replaced by something near happiness. He couldn't tell why or how, but he smiled.

"Only sometimes," he whispered. He went cross-eyed, watching his own hair fall back onto his nose before brushing it back with a chuckle. "Why, thank you." A lesbian? He chuckled. "No, no lesbian, just me and... well, just me." He had to stop himself from saying 'just me and Ant'. Nope, Ant wasn't here anymore. Now, that, Evan did miss. Somewhat. He could easily remember the good times and the bad ones. One might think that living with someone like Anthony Wade Sanderson would have more of the bad times, but it was even. He had been pondering this and hadn't heard Adrienne's words very well. "Huh? Oh, what... WHAT?!" Now, Adrienne randomly showing up in his house at 5 AM was extremely strange. Adrienne showing up in his house sometime during the night and having a good time with someone only meant one thing: either Evan's house had become a brothel or Anthony was here.

Smile being replaced by a grim frown, Evan strode to the door of his bedroom and threw it open. He didn't see anyone underneath the pile of blankets, so he came closer and pulled them up just enough to reveal the person's head. He slapped his forehead with exasperation and shouted to Adrienne, "No worries, Addy, you're not a lesbian and he is not supposed to be here." He almost wanted to say 'and I am not gay', but then remembered that kiss that had ruined his and Anty's friendship. OK, he was gay only for Anthony. Was that so wrong? Evan let go of the blankets and picked up the clothes that must have been Anthony's off the floor and threw them at him. "Get dressed." He left the room, closing the door most of the way behind him. He faced Adrienne and crossed his arms, brow furrowed severely. "So, you and Anthony undoubted get drunk, find each other at the bar, and come here, here of all the damn places in the world to have a little fun." It wasn't a question. He knew it was only partially his own fault, a very, very small part at that. He had gotten distracted by the chick and dropped his phone. Why in the world would he have ever expected Anthony to NOT get drunk at a bar? Because, as usually, he always expected the best of a man who only liked the worse.

"I have spent the last 19 of 22 hours at work, and I'm not in the most pleasant of moods, Adrienne." He was angry, just tired, and it showed in his voice. He could stay up a full day or two easily, but most of that day spent at work wore him out. Now, if it was normal, meeting people wanting to buy both good and bad music, it would be easier. But cleaning up was not a good skill of his. But what could he say to her.. and Anthony? 'Get out'? 'Adrienne, you need to leave, Anthony we need to talk'? The last seemed a good option. He would say it when Anthony came out. Evan plopped himself down on the couch, closed and rubbed his eyes, and waved uncaringly. "Make yourself at home, do that weird stretching thing you always do."

[Anty]

Anthony was wrapped tightly inside of the blankets, which were trying to suffocate him, when Evan ripped the blankets off of him, letting him breathe again. Unconscious, he took in a long gust of air, glad to breathe normally again, but he ended up swallowing the spit he already had in his mouth. That sent him into a fit of coughing, which woke him. He sat up. He hadn't even opened his eyes when a pair of clothes was thrown at his face. Where was he and why was he holding a thong?! He pulled the clothes off of his face and opened his eyes. It took a while for his eyes to adjust to the painfully bright light of the early morning sun, but when they did, he realized that he was in Evan's apartment. Evan's bedroom. Why was he here? Wasn't Evan still mad at him? Anthony came to the revelation that he had gotten drunk, which explained the headache and the thong, which he now sent flying across the bedroom.

Anthony wrestled around with the blankets and swung his legs over the bed, but he was weak and he had to stop and take a breather. "Alright, Anty, you're not that old, you can do it... " he said, but by the end of his pep talk he had forgotten what he was doing. "If only this dumb headache would go away then maybe I could think straight!" he exclaimed. "Alright, enough sissy talk, on the count of three... One, two, three!" he said, pushing himself up onto the floorboards with his hands. "See? That wasn't so bad... " he tried convincing himself as he grabbed the clothes at the end of his bed and began hopping around, trying to put his pants on. "Oh, shit! Shit, I forgot underwear! How do you forget underwear?" he exclaimed so loud that the rooms next to him could hear. So he kicked the pants off and looked around the room, bare-naked once again. Yes, he was alone, but that didn't mean he wasn't embarrassed. This was Evan's room, not his, and it's that's always awkward. Anthony found a pair of underwear in the corner and picked them up, but he couldn't tell if they were Evan's or his own, were they clean or not? They looked familiar, but Anthony never wore tighty-whiteys, not that he could remember. He put them on anyways.

About five minutes later, Anthony was almost done, now struggling with his belt, but he kept missing the holes! "Oh. Well, I don't give a shit anyways!" he yelled at his belt and put it on likewise, still missing a few holes but no longer caring. At last, he was done. "I have my pants on, my shirt, and I think the underwear are clean... " he checked everything off from the list mentally, and decided it was close enough. He walked to the door and opened it slowly, not sure if Evan was here or he was home alone. And... yep, there was Evan, Anthony saw as he closed the door behind him. He was about to greet Evan, but, wait... Was he supposed to be mad at Evan? Was Evan mad at him. He didn't even remember coming to Evan's house. Maybe he was friends with Evan... Anthony didn't know what to do, so he tried reading Evan's expressions. Normally Evan's expressions were like an open book, a book even Anty could read, but not this time. All of his emotions seemed to be masked by one: exhaustion. Anthony couldn't help but begin to wonder curiously at what Evan had been doing lately and why he wasn't sleeping.

Anthony realized that he had been staring for some time now, and he looked over to the other person in the room. He couldn't see their face, because they were currently bent over the opposite direction, doing some form of yoga or another, but Anthony could tell it was a woman. A very familiar woman, if only he could see her face...

Anthony's stomach growled and he remember that he was hungry. When was the last time he had eaten? He didn't know nor did he care, he just knew that he had to eat. "I'm starving!" he told no one in particular and yet everyone at the same time. The kitchen... must find kitchen... he thought, his stomach growls growing louder. His feet took him to the kitchen, but as he passed the woman, who was still bent over, he couldn't control himself. That's what got him into trouble, his lack of self control. Always the self control. So.. Irresistible... His headache seemed completely forgotten, if just for a second, as he grabbed the woman's rear end as he passed. He looked over his shoulder as walked passed, and just then he could have slapped himself. That was Adrienne. He had slept with Adrienne?! No. This was all wrong! But it wasn't. Just act natural and maybe Evan won't notice... he tried convincing himself, but he still felt sick.

Anthony stepped into the kitchen. his hunger returned. He opened the fridge and bent down, searching it for anything to eat, but he didn't have the appetite for any of it, except that... He grabbed a bowl of egg salad wrapped in saran wrap and a fork. He carefully unwrapped it, he was about to go to living room, but Evan was probably really angry so instead he sat his bowl down on the kitchen table. And then he noticed that his throat was completely parched. He sighed and went back to the fridge, desperate. He was repulsed by the sight of beer, and instead got a carton of milk. Once again, Anty sat down at the kitchen table. He unscrewed the milk carton and chugged most of it straight from the carton. Mmm... Breakfast he thought as he began working on his egg salad.

[Mothtoto.]

Adrienne bit her bottom lip as she stared into Evan's sharp, blue eyes. Her insides felt like they were melting so she dropped eyes back to the ground. Even though she had broken up with him little over a year ago, happiness still flooded over her at the thought of him missing her. She quickly brought herself back to the present, though, not wanting to miss what he said. "Oh, okay." She furrowed her brow. If it wasn't Evan's girlfriend, then who else would have the key to his apartment? Maybe it was a friend, but the only friend of Evan's that she could think of was... Anthony. That's it was! She remembered everything now. How she had met him on her supposed date with Owen and he brought her here. Here. Why here? She really couldn't answer that question, so she just listened to Evan's blabbing. When realization dawned on him, he looked pretty pissed... or something. She backed away quickly, but followed close behind him to the bedroom.

"Odd. He brought me here. He was drunk, so he probably thought it was his place or something," she said with a quick laugh, trying to make up a believable excuse. It sounded good to Adrienne, anyways. And she was extremely glad she wasn't a lesbian, because she still liked guys. She thought, anyways. She was about to forget the whole lesbian/gay idea, when she realized Evan never made an excuse for himself. "And you're not gay!" she stated happily for him as she watched over his shoulder. When he left, she stayed to watch Anthony for a moment. As soon as he opened his eyes, she waved happily at him and mouthed the word "hi". He got up, naked. She stared at him for a few seconds before realizing it was very rude. So she skipped after Evan, suddenly giddy at being with such... interesting men. She mocked Evan as he spoke, mouthing his words with an ugly expression on her face. "Nag, nag, nag. Is that all you do these days? I guess that's what happens when you suddenly lose something as awesome as moi," she said to him with a smug smile. "Or you're just tired, I guess." She walked behind the couch and started doing a little yoga, as Evan had suggested. She didn't here Anthony come up behind her, and had a big surprise when she suddenly was smacked in the back end. She suddenly straightened up and her eyes were wide with shock. "Hey! Lemme have a little dignity here people!"

Surely Evan couldn't have, and wouldn't, done that since he was still sitting on the couch tiredly. But then she remembered something. When she had been slapped, there had been a strange smell. It wasn't like Evan's, peppermint and manliness. Or at least what she considered manly, since he was her first serious boyfriend. The smell was like... alcohol and something pleasantly sweet. Add oddly, she liked. And she liked it that afternoon so many weeks ago. The afternoon when she made out with Anthony for the first time. The smell had seemed so inviting that she just kinda leaned in and it happened. After her little flashback, she followed the smell into the kitchen. "Anthony..." she muttered as she glared at him. She walked up to the table and picked up his food. "Looks yummy," and threw it onto his head. "Don't touch my ass! It's mine, not yours," she said and walked calmly back into the living room. She sat down right next to Evan on the couch.

[Waddle]

Evan didn't look up as Anthony walked past. He only stared at the opposite wall, listening, but refusing to look up. He didn't want to see Anthony. He couldn't trust himself right then. Inside, he wanted to punch Anthony. Again. For probably the hundredth time in the past four minutes. No, not exactly four minutes. That was stretching it a bit. Just since they had met up again. When Anthony grabbed Adrienne's bottom, Evan started to rise from his seat and punch him, but stopped himself halfway there. Why should he defend Adrienne? She could take care of herself, better than most girls. Settling back down, Evan watched Anthony claim he was starving and go to the kitchen. Shutting his blue eyes tightly, he rubbed his pounding temples and wished he hadn't come home. Maybe if he'd stayed out until the afternoon they'd be gone. Maybe just Adrienne. Then he and Anthony could talk.

If only, if only... It was always 'if only' with Anthony. So many regrets, so many mistakes, so much guilt Evan felt that he knew he shouldn't. Why should he honestly care anymore? Because you need to know someone is your best friend, said a voice in his head that sounded like the caring-but-painfully-truthful teacher. The one that you never thought knew anything about what you were going through, but, as it turns out, went through the exact same thing themselves. First it was Adrienne, and then Anthony. Since you couldn't lean on Anthony, it tore you up. And you're still trying to chase his coat tails and wishing he was that friend. But it's someone he can never be.

Evan shoved the thoughts down as he turned to watch Adrienne. He couldn't help but to burst out laughing as she dumped egg salad (he couldn't quite remember if it was even still in date, because he couldn't remember buying it) on Anthony's head. He quickly subsided, one hand covering his mouth. "Good job, Addy. I've been wanting to do that for a long time." He smiled at her as she came to sit beside him. He was too tired to care that he felt both a wariness and a giddiness at her being so close to him. Right then, she was just being very amusing. He loved it when she was mad, as long as she wasn't mad at him. He patted her on the shoulder and looked back at Anthony. "Please don't drop all that on the floor. At least have the decency to drop it in the garbage can." He was still grinning, because it was his natural facial expression. It was hard to be any other way. His eyelids drooped until they were fully closed. He would just stay like that and listen to what was going on. It was so much better to have his eyes closed. The eyes he once took pride in. The eyes that, after he had met Tomo, he'd lost that pride, and began to resent them. As the thoughts faded, he fell asleep.

[Anty]

Anthony was halfway through shoveling down the bowl of egg salad when he noted something odd. He stopped eating, his fork halfway to his open mouth. What it was, well, he didn't know. Something was different. It could have been the egg salad, but no, judging by the mold that was forming on top of it, he already knew that it was old. So what was it? And then it hit him. A shadow. Nothing more, nothing less. But that was enough. The shadow became more ominous as Adrienne approached him. Oh no, he thought. Surely this can't be good. He built up the courage to look her in the eye, but then he looked back down. She looks angry. Don't make eye contact, he warned himself.

"Yummy? You talkin' 'bout my- Oh." Anthony watched as the egg salad was whisked away. He didn't even have time to fully understand how angry she was when it was dumped on his head. Normally, his first reaction would be to strike Adrienne, but, for once Anthony was sober, and that's not normal. That and the egg salad was starting to make him feel sick. "C'mon guys, I'm sober. I'm not gonna do anything rash," he sighed. But no one would believe that. Despite his efforts, the egg salad simply wouldn't fall into the bowl. Anthony walked to the bathroom, holding onto handfuls of his greasy blond hair. One look in the mirror and he turned on the shower. It must have been quite a while since he had last showered, for he was a mess and his black colored liner was everywhere. By the looks of it he had completely forgotten about shaving, too, because his chin was covered in whiskers.

Anthony stepped into the shower, which was a mistake, because he hadn't even undressed yet. "Oh, damn! Why? Ah! Hot!" he whined, struggling to adjust the water. He wrestled his shirt over his head, throwing it out of the shower. That was followed by shouting, because he still had his phone in his pocket. He through that, along with his pants, belt, and boxers into a wet pile with his shirt. Finally he could shower. "What the hell?!" he shouted halfway through shaving his whiskers. There was something on his tongue. At first he thought that he had lost a tooth, but no... Now he tried to grab at with his hand and realized it was a ring. On his tongue. Now he had no idea what kind of mischief he had gotten into.

Lather, rinse, repeat. You know the routine. Anthony stepped out of the shower, grabbing a towel off the rack. He patted himself dry, more or less, and tied the towel around his waist. Not thinking of Adrienne and Evan, he grabbed an eyeliner pencil and, well, used it. To be honest, he got a little carried away, forgetting the time and place. He set it down, now staring at the soppy pile of clothing on the floor. "Not my problem," he shrugged.

Anthony left the small bathroom. Finally. He couldn't help sticking his hand in his mouth, playing with the ring in his tongue. A ring was in his tongue! That had to make kissing awkward... He shrugged, twisting it as he stepped into the living room. "Hey," he said around his fist to no one in particular. Everyone's mad at me, aren't they? Well I've really got no reason to blame them... I guess. Maybe it was the hangover, or maybe the egg salad, but something wasn't right. He knew that because just then he puked. All over Evan.

[Mothtoto.]

Adrienne watched Anthony walk through the living room. At first, the lines on her face were etched with anger, scowling, eyebrows furrowed, you know the drill. But soon the anger was replaced with pure amusement. She just couldn't stay mad for long. Well, she could. But not with Anthony. He was just too... amusing. And right now, he was pathetically sober, completely out of character. She had sympathy on him, too. He probably had a terrible hangover, the poor thing. She, herself, only remembered snippets of last night. She remembered it was wild, they were drunk. And those two things combined could lead to some pretty crazy stuff. And some pounding headaches the next morning. She watched his figure head for the bathroom, and still watched him walk in, as he forgot to shut the door behind him. Fortunately, he remembered to close the shower curtain even though he unsurprisingly forgot to take off his clothes before he got in. Adrienne could still his silhouette as he showered, shouting outbursts of pain and stupidity.

She was getting quite bored of his long shower. She was about to get up and find something to entertain herself, when she jumped nearly out of her skin from fright. At first, she wasn't quite sure what happened. That was, until she felt something heavy leaning against her shoulder. Oh, it was just Evan's head. She looked at the peaceful, sleeping figure. He would never disregard his dignity so much if he was awake, but she didn't blame him. Figuratively speaking, she did break his heart after all. She was just going to shove his head away, or simply scoot to the opposite side of the sofa. But the tenderness of the moment and the look of serenity on his face got the better of her. She put her arm around him, resting her elbow on his shoulder. Adrienne gently stroked black hair with her fingers, reminiscing on old memories similar to this. Except it would probably be vice versa. She could have just kept on stroking his hair, except for the fact that puke was splattered all over him from above. Above being Anthony. She quickly jumped up into a standing position and yelled, "Anthony, you sober ass!" Her cheeks were red with embarrassment, but she quickly calmed by lighting a cigarette, not caring if the apartment was non-smoking or not. She sat on the arm of the couch farthest away from Evan, and left the rest to the others.

[Waddle]

Evan woke up only a fraction as he felt something warm against his cheek. His subconscious told him it must have been Adrienne, and he smiled somewhat. It sounded like water was running. The sink, maybe? The shower? He forced himself to stop thinking so he wouldn't wake up. He didn't want to wake up. Not when she was petting his head as gently as she was. Not when her arm was around him. And not when he was too out of it to realize that he shouldn't have fallen over on her. Forcing himself to stop thinking about it, he fell back asleep.

The running water had stopped. He took note of that half a second before something warm and icky splattered over him, Adrienne moved and his upper body fell onto the couch. Jerking into an upright position, he looked down at himself, then up at Anthony, face blank. Then his eyes narrowed angrily and he stood up, glowering at the blond man. "Dammit, Anthony Wade! Couldn't you have found a better place to puke?!" Good thing I don't have a queasy stomach, he though. If I did, I'd be puking too and making this worse. Why had Anthony even come here in the first place? To shove Adrienne in his face? Surely even Anthony wasn't as hurtful as that. Surely he wouldn't--

No. Of course Anthony would. The man had no self-control. Even when he was sober, he had no self-control. If it was possible, he was even less reasonable when he was sober. And Evan wasn't very rational when he had puke on him that wasn't his own and lack of sleep. He punched Anthony, straight on his left cheek. Without pause, he stepped over the couch and went to the kitchen sink, grabbing a towel along the way. He wiped his face and neck and hair off as best he could, then peeled off his shirt and tossed it in the sink, turning the water on fully hot. He considered pulling his pants off, then thought it was bad enough he just took off his shirt in front of his ex girlfriend and the man he had been in love with.

Rubbing the towel up and down his arms, he wetted it in the water, refusing to look up at them. The next time he tried to wet it, the water was so hot that it scalded his hand. "GOD DAMMIT!" he screamed, dropping the towel and jerking his hand away. My luck, he reflected negatively, is just not running well. At all. But it was his fault; he had let it get that hot. Turning to the fridge, he opened it and stuck his burned hand in the icebox, a sharp hiss of breath escaping his lips as he did so. Then he glared at Anthony, not able to find the proper arrangement of curse words to satisfy his wish to insult the hell out of the blond.