— one last cigarette

Gabi smiles at him from the bar, hoping that he'll notice she just sat down and then he'll serve her without her having to flag him down. But if another guy leaned over her and waved their hands to get his attention, she might hit someone. Her frustration was visible but she manages to nudge the nearby guy and lean forward to catch Thadd's gaze. "Can you surprise me and give me something strong? But also, if you spit in this guy's drink, that would be great." Her expression was serious until she broke into a small smile. "I'm kidding, but if there's a way to pay for that, I might reconsider."

His smile is tight at he meets the smiling face of the woman before him, a nod given in the direction of the guy next to her that seemed to be waving? At him. Did Thadd know that guy? Shit, maybe he was a fan. He grins with the thought, almost worth the fruit related injuries, but it snapped out of it by the sudden face in his direct line of sight, the woman from before.

"Oh, uh, I'm not--" a nervous glance is sent further down the bar, but the bartender there was getting slammed from all directions. "...you'd pay for that?" Shit, it'd be the easiest money he ever made. Anyone who worked at the Dog House would know his actual bartender skills were lacking--his barback skills, not that much greater, but how hard could a surprise drink be? He literally couldn't fuck it up...which had never stopped him before. "Something surprising and strong, coming right up."

Chad. Even the name left a bitter taste of disgust on her tongue. "Seems like a whole man to me. He's what, at least six foot something? Looks like he's never missed a day at the gym. If he doesn't talk, I think we'd do fine." She flashed a single look towards the wall that separated his place from the other's humble abode. How many times had Chad heard them going round for round?

Thankfully, it didn't matter. Her interested started and stopped at the brief exchange between them. He was right, again, and she hated it.

"Don't act like I don't give you just as much in return." She rolled onto her side, his shirt daring to sneak up her thighs another inch as she reached out, a hand falling atop his stomach. "But, if you're feeling used, then maybe we should think about reconsidering this arrangement? Don't sell yourself short, babe."

Thadd scoffed, "I'm six foot something, and I go to the gym!" His fingers reached to tug on the fabric of her shirt, drawing her attention back to the man in her bed (his bed, technically) and not the one on the other side of the wall. "Besides, why settle for fine when you've got better than fine right here?" He wiggles his eyebrows, fingers bunched in her shirt reaching to poke playfully at her sides.

He did not like the sound of reconsidering their arrangement...especially if it kept him from seeing her in this goddamn shirt again. Thadd's eyes couldn't help but dip briefly to the exposed patch of skin of her thighs, all too aware of the heat of her palm on his stomach through the thin t-shirt...she knew exactly what she was doing, and he knew it, too.

Fingers traveling to toy with the hem of the shirt, he offered a sheepish shrug. "I didn't say I mind." Because he certainly did not.

“I’m glad you could make it.” Anita cooed as she walked across the room, two drinks in hand to meet the younger man in the middle of the spacious, lavish hotel room that was reserved for the pair on a regular basis. They were only at the beginning of their… arrangement. It was something she’d never done before ━ acquire a younger man to sate her need for company and attention while she looked after him financially. It was the least she could do, really. She’d met Thadd at the perfect time, fresh from a break-up with the man she was in love with. Now she had the perfect distraction from that ache in her chest that rattled her more than she would care to admit.

It didn't even feel real, like one of those fake reposted stories that moms on Facebook loved that ended with and then everybody clapped, except Thadd's story would end with and then the hot older woman wanted to take care of me financially in exchange for my company. Odd, considering he was sure that if you'd asked any of his friends, they would have told you they'd pay money to get out of his company...but this was not something he planned on sharing with Anita.

It was the nicest hotel he'd ever been in. He'd already been running late, a consequence of Uber surge rates and having to take the bus instead, but his leisurely stroll through the lobby hadn't helped, taking in the ornate furnishings and high class crowd. Thadd hadn't missed the look on the concierge's face when he asked for the room key; a look that told him that Anita had already checked in, and he hadn't been the company they'd expected her to keep.

As soon as his eyes fell on her upon entering the room, he could understand why.

"I'm sorry I'm late." He offered sheepishly, raising his gaze from the outfit hugging her form to meet her eyes. "You look..." All he could do was shake his head, reaching to take the glass held in his direction. "You look beautiful."

Drinks, dinner, this room he was fairly certain was larger than the entirety of his and Mikayla's apartment? Yeah, that was okay with Thadd. "I like dinner." He grinned, clinking his glass against hers before raising it to his lips, knocking it back in one go. The bubbles tickled his nose, scrunched at the feeling.

She toys with the chin hair in question. It isn't that long at this point because she'd spent the last hour of her shift trying to pluck it out with her fingers but could never catch it until she finally got her fellow bartender to pull the thing behind the bar. "Maybe it holds my essence? Oh fuck, now i'm gonna stay up all night and think about what it would be like to be in her body." She'll smoke a bowl and lie in the middle of her floor wondering all the things she could get away with as an old lady.

"Don't threaten that because I will come over and leave crumbs right to your bed." She points to him and stands close in case he decides last minute that he wants to take back his offer to let her steal a plant. As for the sweater, she was still working on that one.

"The nightstand? If there's something that buzzes in here, I'm chasing you with it, Thadd." She warns him while she stands in front of the nightstand, staring at it like something would jump out of it to eat her alive.

"We've known each other for how long?! You would throw away our friendship and all we've been through for your loyalty to your old lady who didn't even give you a five dollar bill or some good snacks?" She shakes her head and leans down, pulling open the top drawer of the nightstand. "I'm not gonna forget this."

He hadn't meant to send Murphy into her existential crisis of the week, but he could see the makings of one as she stroked her lone chin hair. "If you die before me, I'll make sure to save it and maybe we can upload your consciousness to, like, a robot body or something. Wouldn't that be sick?" Definitely not how that worked, but Thadd couldn't help but grin at the thought, mind getting ahead of himself. "You could be like robot Rinaldi." His eyes lit up, "Ronaldi." Thadd snapped his fingers.

"You don't scare me, Altman." He snorted. "There's already crumbs in my bed." Jokes on her.

"Hey, there is nothing wrong with an older woman in touch with her sexuality. You're telling me you plan to hit the ripe old age of...sixty five and just, what? Wither away? Fuck no. You're too hot for that, and I'm definitely too hot for that. Use it or lose it, baby."

Did that mean he wanted to be chased with whatever could be buzzing in Rinaldi's nightstand? No, so he was glad that that wasn't what he'd found in his snooping.

"When was the last time you gave me five dollars or some good snacks?" Thadd scoffed. "I'm not throwing away our friendship, Murph! I'm trying to preserve it. If we get labeled as snoops and thieves, nobody is ever gonna trust us to snoop and thief around their apartment when they're out of town ever again. Then whose drawers would you snoop through and plants would you steal?" He was thinking about their future.

Was he bitter about the freedom that Thadd had been allowed growing up and even into his twenties? Of course. While Zeke was working his ass off to make their parents proud, Thadd was pounding on a drum set and getting the same reaction of love. It was bullshit.

"Does it make you feel better? To be such a childish ass? Truthfully, I thought you'd grow out of it, but surprise," he exhaled beneath an annoyed breath. He didn't even want to entertain the back and forth the other had started, but despite knowing better, he simply couldn't help himself.

There was an ounce of guilt that settled deep in his chest. Little did his younger brother know, he cared. It was the kind of brotherly bond that couldn't be broken by rough insults and childish jabs. It was the kind of bond that left him adamant on protecting the other, even if in the end, it had caused Thaddeus to hate him. He'd taken the role of perfect son so that the other could do whatever the hell he wanted.

"I'm sure you wouldn't want this big head of mine in any crowd of yours, right? Might take up too much room." He'd been there more times than he could count, lingering in the darkness while his brother drummed his soul away. It was a talent really, more talent than Zeke could ever muster. It was one thing to give a closing argument in front of a row full of people, but to perform with one's everything in a rotating room of strangers? It was more bravery than Ezekiel could ever imagine having.

He didn't know what Ezekiel wanted from him. Didn't know why he felt the need to take it upon himself to constantly and loudly doubt Thadd's life choices, for no other reason than because they looked different than his own.

That, and maybe because their parents refused to--had always been good about giving Thadd the room he and his creativity needed to breathe. He wasn't an idiot, despite what his brother may think. He knew that just because his parents didn't express their worry directly to him didn't mean that there weren't some concerns about his life choices...but he was doing fine. Really.

"I can tell you something I thought you'd grow into," Thadd grumbled in return, attention dropping to his phone as to not have to look at his brother's stupid face. It wasn't helping him beat the childish ass allegations, but some battles were simply not worth fighting.

It wasn't that he needed Zeke's approval. Truly, Thaddeus didn't even want it...but the fact that in eight years, his own brother couldn't be bothered to even pretend to be interested enough in what he did to bother to see one show? When Thadd had made it to every graduate, every special ceremony, listened to every goddamn boring story of whatever high profile case he was working on (or at least somewhat pretended to listen)? It was a kind of cruelty he isn't sure what he did to deserve, even while Zeke attempted to play it off as some sort of favor.

Thadd's eyes rolled. "It's not funny when you say it." There went that joke. God, he even took the fun out of making fun of him. What a dick.

"Fuck, is that what you've been waiting for this whole time? An apology for being born last? My fucking bad, man; sounds like something you should really take up with mom and dad, though. Not something I had very much say in." Another roll of his eyes, looking up at Zeke as his head shook. "I don't want you there." A lie, but would the truth have really mattered?

Unsurprisingly, what she was actually talking about was so much cooler than an animated movie about talking fish. "There's no way that's fucking real." His head shook, forehead resting against the cool glass as he tried to process the information he was being given. "But if it was...d'you think that means that, like...the astronauts are also closer to a fucking Megalodon or some shit than any other human on earth?" Sick? More like terrifying. A shudder runs through him at the thought. "You wouldn't fit in there...you're the least less developed creature I know." He turned his head to offer her a smile, a genuine, though poorly worded compliment.

He knew it the second he laid eyes on Asteroid Cow's drum kit up on the stage. The all too familiar yellow, painted lettering setting his nerves ablaze. What Rocky should have done was march his way back through the crowd, find the other first year interns he had arrived at the bar with and bid everyone a good night before returning home to his apartment.

What Rocky actually did was far different. Feet rooted firmly to the damp and sticky floor of the dive bar, he watched their entire set from start to finish. He tapped his foot along to the beat, dancing uncomfortably to the songs they performed in an attempt to better blend in with the crowd. At six foot one, he already stood out like a sore thumb amongst a crowd. Rocky didn't need to draw anymore attention to himself.

When they wrapped up their set, Rocky braced himself for impact. Thadd hadn't seemed to notice him for their entire set, but with the house lights back up and the stage lights dimmed, it was only a matter of time before he was spotted. As luck, fate or whatever higher power he might have prayed too, Thadd was otherwise preoccupied celebrating with the rest of Asteroid Cows to notice him.

That was Rocky's chance. If his legs would just co-operate.

He sighed heavily, frustrated at himself and the other interns for dragging him to this god forsaken bar. Dark brown eyes trailed over the crowd, searching for his friends. Nothing. Had they left him? Or did Rocky miss a skills lab where they all mastered the ability of invisibility.

When his gaze slides back to the stage, Thadd is no where to be seen. Shit. Where did he go? Rocky was hoping to avoid an awkward run in with his ex-boyfriend tonight, he'd rather be stuck working through a load of scut at the hospital than have to face Thadd.

When his legs finally start to work again it's no feat of his own. Somebody is pushing their way through the crowd and the crowd is pushing back. A shoulder collides with Rocky's, plastic cup hitting the floor, crushed instantly beneath someone's boot. Rocky's not certain if it's his, but he is certain he's just splashed his drink all over a random bystander.

"Easy," Rocky said, voice soft and easy. He steadies the person who had shoulder checked him, hand sliding under their triceps for support. "You slip on this floor you might not get back—"

Oh.

His eyes meet the strangers. Only he isn't a stranger.

"Thadd," Rocky sighed, deflated. "I'm here with some of the other interns from my program. We heard there was a live-band playing tonight." He hadn't had the forethought to ask who the live-band was when the plans had been made, of course. If he had then he might have been able to avoid this whole awkward run in.

Thadd did not consider himself to be claustrophobic, but the walls of the small club suddenly begin to feel as if they're closing in on him. His chest is tight with it, heart sat heavy inside of it, just taking up useless space, only reminding him of its existence at the sound of his name leaving Rocky's lips and the sting of heartbreak that followed.

He'd grown used to the sigh that'd accompanied it, especially towards the end of their relationship. It'd seemed that anytime Rocky had said his name, it'd been in that tone. Exasperation, disappointment...both notions that Thadd knew well when it came to himself, but neither what he'd ever wanted to hear from Rocky.

"Yeah?" He doesn't recognize the sound of his own voice, hitting his ears as if from outside of himself, witnessing the interaction from above his body. "They any good?" It's the kind of joke that feels too lighthearted for the situation, the kind of joke that would be funnier if the weight of the chain Rocky had gifted him didn't weigh heavy against his neck and the weight of the hand on his arm didn't feel as if it were still gripped around his heart.

It's clear that Rocky hadn't known that the live band that night had been Asteroid Cows. They'd gone the last six months without any awkward run ins--a feat, considering their mutual friends--and while he couldn't say for certain that the other wouldn't have just decided to say fuck it and go along with what his group had wanted, it's clear that he's just as surprised to see Thadd as Thadd is to see him.

"I, uh...I'm sorry. About your drink." He was sorry for a lot more than that, but the drunk seemed the best place to start. The cup is long gone, crushed beneath moving feet, but the puddle on the floor remains, destined to stick to the bottoms of some lucky patron's shoes. He dared to lean in closer, to be heard over the sound of the music, vibration practically crawling up through the floor, nipping at their ankles. "I can get you another one, if you want."

"Honestly, the more shit you throw in it, the crazier they go. I don't think there's a thing as too much when it comes to the slime life." Thadd's lips pursed as he perused the aisle of mix ins, finger tapping in thought against his chin. "Oh, and obviously it's gotta smell good." He thought it went hand in hand with giving off edible but actually toxic to consume vibes.

FREYA RIDINGS / FACE IN THE CROWD

"I don't know, it's been awhile? I out grew frat boys about ten years ago. Which now that I'm thinking about it... why am I here again?" Not once had she casted judgement upon his place, even if it was a bit of a stretch from what she preferred. In a weird, boyish sense, it was comfortable. Less put together than her own place, but in a way she gravitated towards with every chance she got.

She'd tuned out after his first point, but by point number three, or in his mislabeled rant, point c, she'd circled back to the rasp in his voice. "If you're so grossed out by the thought, maybe I should pay that neighbor of yours a visit. What's his name? You know, the one who always tells me I'm going to the wrong place?" She gave a mocking look of thought, her thumb falling against her bottom lip before it clicked. "I guess names don't matter. I'm sure I can think of other things to call him."

Aksel flashed a hearty smile towards the man and offered a shrug down at him. "You know how to pick them, Tandy." She'd plotted worse for less, but seeing as she was getting what she wanted... she'd spare him. "And this is why I came back. See, this works out for the both of us."

He wouldn't beg her to stay. They both knew he wouldn't need to. Aksel talked a big game for someone who they both knew would not be there if she didn't want to be.

Though, that did not keep Thadd from snorting at the thought of her and his neighbor. "Chad? Please. You think this is a frat house? Talk about a dude who peaked in high school." His eyes rolled. "You can go and knock yourself out...which is what you're going to want to do after he's told you about his winning touchdown back in 2011 for the tenth time." The walls were thin. Thadd had heard it enough times to tell it himself.

"Is this what being used feels like?" It certainly seemed like it was working out more in her favor than in his...but Thaddeus Tandy had always been a man who would take what he could get.

And then there was his little brother, unamused by successful ad chasing a dream of his own. It wasn't that Ezekiel didn't believe he was capable, it was that he envied the fact that he could. He hadn't been inadvertently pushed in one direction or another. It was the freedom of choice that Zeke loathed him for th emost.

"You know we look alike, right? If I've got big ass ears, there's probable cause to believe your ears are just as big. Besides, if you're tired of hearing about the highlights of my career, perhaps you should consider getting your own, Thaddeus."

The avoidance of the other's gaze was finally broken with the slip of the other's formal name. A name that he knew better than to use, but did without thought each and every time out of sheer spite. "What are you doing these days? Beating a drum on open mic nights and hoping for tips?"

Thaddeus. His given name, though rarely anybody who didn't share the Tandy last name called him by it. He'd never had any problem with his name until Zeke had begun using it to punctuate his every disapproval. When are you going to get a real job, Thaddeus? You can't chase this pipe dream forever, Thaddeus. Mom and dad won't say it to your face, but they're worried about this path you're walking on, Thaddeus.

If changing his name wouldn't run him a couple hundred bucks...

"You know what, Ezekiel, it is actually really impressive that those ears can still manage to look so big on such a huge ass head." Thadd's own head shook, already beginning to fray around the edges; record timing when it came to the other.

Their relationship, as it stood, was a culmination of many things: Zeke's air of superiority, his inability to keep his opinion to himself, the fact that in the eight years Thadd had been playing with Asteroid Cows, he had not made it to one show to see them play, or ever asked a question about them that wasn't drowning in condescension and his general douchery.

Thadd snorted, checking his phone to see if anybody had texted him back yet. Still nothing. "Yeah, man, you got me. Just me and a drum, banging away at some open mic night for a quick few bucks." Maybe it wasn't too far off, but if Zeke couldn't be bothered to come see it for himself, then what room did he have to judge?

None, as far as Thadd was concerned.

The poignant display of emotions at the mention of her little dark secret in the form of a old and used keurig machine was amusing but she knew he wouldn't hold it against her. Especially since they were both responsible for it now and would reap the benefits of drinkable coffee in the morning. Not amazing but consumable. "Stop," she moves her hand to her chin. "Maybe i'll lend one of her tweezers."

Moving into the hall and towards the door, she looks back over at him. "I wouldn't lose any sleep over killing his dream as long as he doesn't come back to seek revenge. But he's with you where he belongs." Maybe Thadd was nicer and trying to catch it to release it but Murph was not that person. She went in for the kill and then had someone else get rid of the body.

"Succulents are boring." She says as she walks in, hoping to find some big like a fiddle tree or maybe a monstera that she could drag home and put in the corner of her apartment that was now empty.

"Did you go through her cupboard and drawers for anything good?" If he had the key for a while, she assumed he'd rummaged through it and could pinpoint the areas for her to go hunting. "Think she'd notice if I took one of her sweaters?" Picking up a spray bottle, she begins to mist the plants.

Except maybe the Keurig...though that probably had less to do with his good looks and more to do with his access to free (re: steal-able) houseplants: a small price to pay in the name of decent coffee. He'd take what he could get.

"No, don't. I think it adds to your charm. What if all that makes you Smurf is in that one chin hair, and you pluck it with Rinaldi's tweezers, and you two, like, Freaky Friday that shit?" Thadd couldn't even confidently say who it was that he'd continue to hang out with if that were to happen: Murphy in Mrs. Rinaldi's body, or Rinaldi in Murph's.

Thadd's head shook as they reached the apartment. "Where he belongs?" Inserting the key into the lock (and finding it already to be unlocked, whoops), the door is opened and Murphy is ushered inside with a dramatic wave of Thadd's hand. "Better be nice to me, Altman, or I'm going to start leaving cubes of cheese around your apartment and lure Stewart Little back to your place."

Much to Thadd's initial disappointed, there wasn't much out of the ordinary in Rinaldi's home. He wasn't sure what he'd been hoping for--taxidermied cats, or a teeth collection, or hell, maybe even a Mr. Rinaldi..but no. Nothing beyond out of date furniture and a slightly under-watered plant collection.

"This poor woman entrusted me with the responsibility of coming in here and making sure that her plants were properly cared for, Murph. The fact that you think I would take advantage of such a thing is, honestly, a little appalling." A beat passed before he added, "of course I went through her drawers. Check out the nightstand."

Opening her fridge to nab the creamer (Caramel Macchiato, that bougie little lady), Thadd got to work on making a pot of coffee, opening the various kitchen cupboards to search for the grounds. "Dude, you can't take a sweater and a plant." Now that was crossing a line.

Rocky had been mingling amongst the crowd, striking up a conversation with another guy who seemed as out of his element as he was, when the lights inside the dive bar dimmed and the stage lights glowed back to life. The stranger quickly excused himself, disappearing through the crowd. Rocky assumed he was re-joining his friends stood around a table or crowded inside one of the booths. He probably should have been doing the same, but he'd lost track of the other interns he had come out with tonight over an hour ago and the band was about to take to the stage.

He gently pushed his way through the crowd towards the front of the stage, picking up bits and pieces of different conversations—one couple was celebrating a night away from the kids, another guy was trying his best pick-up line on some unsuspecting woman and three girls were glancing at somebody nearer the bar and giggling amongst themselves. The one that had caught his interest the most, however, raising the hairs on the back of his neck as he passed by was a girl and a guy discussing the band who were almost finished setting up, a band that Rocky knew all too well—Asteroid Cows.

His ex-boyfriends band.

"Son of a bitch!"

Thadd's head shook as if to chase off the burn of the shot, the glass clinking as it's set hastily back down atop the table. "Did we just totally kill that shit or did we just totally. Fucking. Kill. That. Shit?!"

His heart was beating wildly in his ears, or maybe that was just the thump of the bass from the music that'd resumed blaring overhead (music that only paled in comparison to the set they'd just finished playing, of course).

They weren't completely off the hook for the night. Their equipment still needed breaking down, loading in the back of the van, but considering their only payment of the night was being delivered via these free shots, Thadd was allowing himself to divulge in their earnings before getting back to it.

"Yeah, man, I think we did." Asteroid Cows' guitarist laughed, letting their own empty glass find the table alongside the others.

Thadd's grin was nearly face splitting. "You think?" Another shake of his head, taking his friend's face gently between his hands, "well, I think that you're being way too fucking modest for how great we played, and there's only one cure for that." Pressing a wet kiss to an equally as wet forehead, Thaddeus shoved his way back dramatically, two thumbs motioning behind him towards the rest of the bar floor. "More shots. I'll be back."

It was no cooler on the floor than it had been under the makeshift stage's lighting. Thadd's shirt was completely soaked through, and the humidity from the sea of bodies certainly didn't help the way it clung to him. As he worked his way through them, he managed to catch snippets of praise from the show, and God, did he wish he could kiss each and every one of their foreheads.

He doesn't know if he'll ever get over it. The thrill of putting something out there, something important, and other people receiving it, enjoying it.

He doesn't know if he'll ever get over it, but God, he hopes he never does.

He'd just about made it through the throng of people successfully when an attempt to push through was met with a push back. The resulting shove sent his shoulder colliding into another, and the sudden splash at his feet didn't exactly feel promising.

"Dude, don't you even fucking worry about that, I'm about to get another--" The offer died on his lips when he finally managed a look over at who he'd accidentally shoulder checked, suddenly feeling as if he'd just been elbowed himself. Right in the gut.