Another shot to dull the pain [Malus]

Pat felt raw, as if a hand had punched through his chest and torn everything that the fingers could touch out with great violence. Just thinking of anything else except the color of blood was difficult for at least a day, leaving him debilitated as he lay on his bed, curling up into a ball, as small as he could make himself with knees pulled against his chest. Eventually he came out of this, managing to roll off his bed, landing on the floor with a soft thump as his mind slowly moved towards food and how it would help with that low hollow feeling within his gut. It was small, and yet he knew starving himself would do no good. Despite how crushing this feeling was, food was something that he needed to eat. It would have been selfish to do otherwise, especially considering how his friend must feel with recent developments.

A friend was in the hospital, likely to die and then there was now blood on his hands. Just the thought of it sent a pang through him, reminding him of that empty hole that had been violently torn out. Dressed in nothing more than a pair of boxers, he lazily made his way out of his bedroom into the kitchen, hazel eyes scanning the room until they fell upon the fridge. There had to be something in there that he could eat, granted cooking was not on his schedule for the moment. Opening the dinged white door, he looked around until deciding upon eggs for his meal, taking out three and deciding scrambled eggs sounded good enough. They were easy and the only person he knew that could cook was pretty preoccupied with their being in a coma. The smell was nothing impressive, but it did look like something that he could eat.

Once cooked he scraped it all on a plate and finished it off with an admirable speed. From there his mind drew a blank on what he should do, in fact he had no idea what he should be doing beyond the plan of moping when he wasn't working. Which reminded him that tomorrow was one of those days, an annoyance but something that he had to do if he didn't want to be on the street. A part of him wondered if there was something that he could do beyond the moping, as that would have been more misery heaping upon him, a prospect that did not sound so appealing. Running his fingers through his messy medium brown hair, he ran through the things that could be done. There was of course drinking, but drinking alone invited more of what he was trying to avoid.

That was when his mind fell on a bar/ club thing that was strangely enough within walking distance. Originally he just liked the look of where his apartment was, but maybe that was a perk within itself when he thought back to it. "I wonder what Matt would say about it." He muttered to himself with a slight huff, hands rested on his hip, lips stuck out slightly in a pouting fashion while he pondered that. Unfortunately he did not have the reading abilities that his friend did when it came to understanding what someone would do. "Might tell me to go out or whatever. No harm in trying anyway." Worst thing that could happen was that he got wasted and ended up puking his guts up, or he was left dead in the gutter, which did not sound so good at all. Regardless, he would try to have a good time at any rate.

First was finding out what time it was, so he didn't end up going too early to anything. Luckily his room had a digital clock which read around 6 something in the afternoon, which explained why the sun was already beginning to go down. For clothing he picked something simple, a pair of tan looking shorts, and a baseball shirt, one with light blue sleeves and the rest a gray color. Not exactly looking fashionable, but then again not as if he was trying to impress anyone with how he looked. Well he may have been, but that wasn't exactly anything that Pat would admit openly, because that was how it worked. Maybe this night would help him forget, even if for only a few hours. If only it was that easy, and yet that was more wishful thinking on his end.

After making sure he wasn't producing any offensive odors, Pat was out into the slightly chilly night air. It was nothing uncomfortable, but it did manage to make him shiver a little. Being a cold natured person tended to make the cold itself feel more intense than usual, which made just walking around in it not his favorite thing to do. The walk time itself was around ten minutes, and there he was standing before the place. It had a nice name, something punny and slightly suggestive that didn't quite find itself committed to his memory. Stepping through, the scene itself was nice, had a certain charm to it that made him wonder why he didn't bother going here more often. Gay club it was not, but then again this night wasn't really geared towards carnal pursuits like that, unless getting plastered was considered carnal.

His drink of choice, well he didn't even bother remembering that beyond the fact that it tasted strong, enough to make him feel as if he were going to gag. Apparently acquired tastes were bullshit, or he was a pussy as his brother would so eloquently put it from time to time. Settling down at the bar itself on one of the stool, he just let his eyes survey the place, sighing to himself as he considered everything going on around him with a silent disinterest.  

Hopefully this night would get better at some point, though something told him it would only get worse.

Something about a club always held this infectious energy to it, not that he would get up and dance along yet it did get his foot tapping against the floor along to the beat. This was supposed to be a night to unwind, something that he likely desperately needed considering this week and how it seemed to be going. The bartender seemed nice, and if they kept the drinks coming he would keep the money flowing towards them. A wonderful economy they had going on there. Letting the clear drink swirl around within the glass before lifting it up, throwing the drink back as the bitter taste washed over his tongue.

No matter how much he drank, the initial reaction tended to be the same whenever he drank anything strong. Something flavorful would have been really nice, but he chose something that got the job done instead. Letting a sigh slip out, Pat let his eyes follow the bartender as they seemed to be drawn to another patron. Someone waving around what looked like a hundred dollar bill, quite the surprise when he thought about it. "Wow, that doesn't seem like something someone should just wave around." He muttered slightly interested in this person, if only through curiosity.

The quip was admittedly funny, enough so that he couldn't help but chuckle when that was said. There was something slightly interesting about them, maybe it was the way they held themselves or something along those lines. Confidence was after all an interesting thing, so it naturally drew someone as unconfident to him. Unconfident may not even be a real word. but it was something that appeared right within his own mind. Resting his elbow on the bar table, he sort of turned towards the male with a single raised brow.

Maybe this could be an excuse not to be so mopey, as that would have made the whole going out to club thing moot. However, getting himself into the whole socialization thing started was the one hurdle that he was not sure how to go about doing that. "Hey, consider that drink on me." Pat said with a small smirk and a wave, sliding a bill to the bartender.

Alright Pat, you can do this. Just deep breaths and acts as calmly as possible, don't look like some kind of dork. He thought to himself, realizing that he was rather rusty when it came to the casual flirting circuit. Honestly, he never got used to that, so this was more an attempt than guaranteed success. They then turned towards him, Pat's smirk morphed into a small smile. Looking up to the bartender, they took the bill pushed towards them and began work on that fruity drink that this unknown interesting male had ordered. Something about their expression softened, as the hand was extended towards him.

Taking the social que, he extended his own hand and shook it as he expected considering that was just an expected. As for a name, well before he could garner up the courage to ask, they took the first step. Marcus, it was a name that Pat could dig. "Marcus? Nice name you got there. I'm Patrick, but most people just call me Pat." It was shorter and Patrick just felt so painfully formal. Actually, thinking about someone calling him that made him cringe, even if only slightly. From what he could tell they were about the same height, though maybe this guy was a little taller than him. Not that he minded someone being taller than him, there was no problem with that at all.

Drawing his hands back from the shake, he took notice of how warm they were. The intensity of the heat reminded him of a friend before, they were pretty warm when he thought about it. This whole scenario was an interesting one really, or maybe an unusual one for him. In fact, something about their gaze had a certain smoldering quality to it that naturally caught his eyes. Wow Pat, you're hopeless. He berated himself internally, realizing that same squeezing sensation was present within his chest.

"Depends on why you're here." He responded, resting shifting his weight ever so slightly. "For me, just thought I should get out, maybe enjoy the nightlife a little. Get a drink, and see what happened from there." It wasn't entirely a lie, which was why it flowed so easily from his tongue. "What about you?"

"Something like that." He said with a small nod. It appeared that they had a similar opinions on that, or maybe they were more observant than he had expected. Not that he was sure what to expect in the first place, beyond the fact that they were some cute guy he met in a night club. Honestly, he didn't know them well enough to make any assumptions and so Pat would be sure to avoid making any, or at the very least try to. Those were always the things that he tended to make best.

Their reason seemed similar to his. Drinking alone was always so boring, and tended to be depressing as well, something that he would want to avoid now of all times. Just thinking about it made his stomach sink slightly. They mentioned something about not normally living in LA but something changed that rather quickly. Just thinking about the fact that someone could rob his poor little apartment just as easy as that was enough to make him shudder. Not that he had much to steal, but there was always some asshole willing to try. Considering just trying something new, he looked to the bartender.

"I'll have one of whatever he's having." As always he had a certain timidness about him. Nothing overbearing, but anyone with a keen eye could likely see it. From what he could tell, they were staying at some kind of hotel, room service sounding pretty nice when he thought about it. Beat the hell out of whatever cold thing he had waiting for him in his fridge, though more than anything that made him wish he bothered to learn how to cook. The only person he knew that could was Matt and they were sort of indisposed due to comas.

"It was robbed? Sorry to hear that." His tone was sympathetic, even if he could not relate with the feeling of being robbed. Sometimes life just seemed to give him some handouts.

He was faintly aware of the commotion going on, but for the most part it didn't feel like his business. There was that part of him that wanted to do something, however that part was small enough to ignore. It was the nudge that sort of forced him to actually look over there, a shriek and the sound of glass shattering not helping. "Not too often actually. Usually people just get drunk and do their thing, though there are the occasional fights that break out. Normally something like that gets broken up though." He mentioned keeping an eye on what was happening, while noting that the drink he ordered was here.

Taking a slightly curious sip, he found that it wasn't too bad at all. Was certainly something that he would want to try again and again. Letting the liquid swirl around in the glass, his breath came in a soft hiss through his nostrils. "You're not thinking about trying to do anything about it are ya?" A slight teasing jab, but it was something he sort of wanted to do.

A sympathetic spirit he was, even if he barely knew the person he was dishing out the sympathy for. "Some people are like that I guess." He mentioned with a shrug, and in a sense that was true. Some people didn't want to be bothered with being nice, or even decent. Sometimes they just roamed bars with one thing in mind, that not being pleasant conversation by any stretch of the imagination if he knew anything about anything.

As for the problem not so far from him, honestly Pat would have been fine having nothing to do with it. Guys in bars tended to be dicks, it was the hazard of going out to drink rather than just staying at home to do it. Not like he was some kind of hero or anything. If his ability to read people was worth anything, well this guy was likely not one of them either. Granted, he was nowhere as good at that than Matt was, so not like there would be any surprise there. Pat just thought of himself getting better at the whole thing.

Their response to his question more than anything amused him.A large grin split his lips as they gave the hell no response, a small chuckle following as he rested a single elbow on the bar. "Fair enough." He said, chuckling pettering out, clink of his drink being set down catching his eyes. They won points with the Mario reference, if anything that was something he could give the guy. Picking up his drink, he swirled the liquid around before taking a sip of it. Tasted pretty nice, enough so that he wouldn't mind having another one of them if that was what the night had in store. Honestly, he had poor expectations but things were going really well.

While he may have not thought of himself to be a princess, that would have been reading too much into the statement. Pat wanted to think of a clever response, but he found his brain failing him in that regard, leaving him chewing on his lower, looking rather awkward considering normally this was the time one made a sly comment. That was his own personal opinion anyway, as that could not always be the case. "With the promise of cake I hear." Was that coming on too strong? Did he sound like a weird. He thought about that and he nearly choked on his drink. "Wow, that sounded much better in my head." He laughed, his tone likely conveying the awkwardness.

His little unintentional double entendre didn't go as badly as his mind made it seem, so he was pleased with the result anyway. Regardless, the tension that came along with it was not exactly something that faded away at the drop of a hat, as much as Pat wanted that to be the case. In an attempt to do so, his mind jumped to the commotion that had died down thanks to the handy dandy bouncers that made sure the rowdy man had been thrown out. That was when his mind returned to the male, and then it leapt to other thing entirely, leaving him slightly awkward.

Hopefully they weren't some kind of telepath, as that would have been...well something anyway. Something about them was sensual in a way he couldn't quite describe, in an almost alien fashion considering his friends. That was when the question about one night stands came up, leaving him surprised more than anything. being in the middle of his drink made it all the more awful when he nearly choke him once again. For a few moments he felt the burn at the back of his throat as he contemplated how he would exactly answer that.

"I...i'm not exactly one for them either actually." He admitted, wondering if that made him lame or something else entirely, granted the guy also wasn't one for them. It might have just been smooth wordplay, afterall he just met him anyway. The fact they thought there was Chemistry was something that made all of this easier, though he couldn't exactly spot any kind of chemistry if there was any. "Though as fun as sitting around and drinking is, I guess we could um...bounce or whatever." Playing suave wasn't exactly his thing, looked more like this guys so he would leave that to Marcus.

Taking one last gulp of his drink, he set the glass down and mentally assessed his own sobriety. A few years of drinking had hardened him enough that he could probably function right now, which was all he needed. "So is the next question your place or mine?"

His question was more due to the fact he had no idea what to do, if only because this situation was a whole new one. That being said he was not quite expecting what the male said, which was something along the lines of getting ice cream instead of whatever his mind had imagined. It would be nice to spend some time with a pretty attractive guy, nothing that he would really be against. They could talk, eat ice cream and just talk about things for a while, which beat the hell out of a soulless hook up like what many people would expect right about now. Divergences from expectations were things that he enjoyed, so he would go along with it. "Ya know what? That sounds like a pretty cool idea to me." He said, standing up and making note of the fact they were about the same height.

That ended up being something that went through his mind and was quickly forgotten about. Next came actually thinking of a place that was still open where one could get quality ice cream, or  not shitty ice cream anyway. His mind ran over all of the places he knew, and in fact there was one not too far from here. When he wasn't working, drinking or whatever it was he did, that was one of the places he liked to go to. They would stand up, and lead the way out for him to follow, hands buried into his pockets. Something about venturing into the unknown always filled him with a sort of tension, one that put a sort of weight upon his chest. His eyes darted about, taking in everything as they stepped out of the club. His fingers glided over his cellphone as he removed it and  checked the time.

"Well if you're feeling ice cream, I know this place a few blocks away. Should be in walking distance if you want to do that." He offered looking to Malus to see what they would want to do. "They have a lot of flavors too, so there's probably something for you. If not....well I dunno what to say then." Pat said with a chuckle near the end.

Something about their wide grin caused his own lips to split into a grin, as if it were infectious. That brought to mind yawning for some strange reason, but Pat didn't put too much thought into it beyond the fact that it passed through his mind. While a cab would have been nice, he preferred walking as a partial gauge to be sure he wasn't by any means tipsy. There was also that and he was just enjoying himself too much. Having someone to talk to was enough to keep him walking, even if he barely knew anything about them. "Walking...yeah walking's good." He said with a small chuckle, just noting that they weren't by any means being sarcastic about their statement, though he did find himself jarred by their sudden shift to favorite flavors.

While they could easily think up a name for flavors, Pat found himself hard pressed to actually come up with anything. "Favorite flavors? Bubble gum I guess, anything with cookie dough and chocolate. I reeeaaallly love chocolate." He admitted, managing to come up with some flavors so he didn't sound rude in their little game. Their answers came almost at the same time, but Malus' was a little before his. Maybe he was just a little more energetic about this whole thing than Pat was but that wasn't anything that he could complain about. Just as they were walking, his eyes fell upon what looked to be the place.

It was small but had a pretty nice selection, and his eyes fell upon the person behind the counter. "And here we are. It's not really big but it's got a sweet selection, probably anything you would want."