The Night At his Place - Duskwood

05 - Self-Invitation

At Aurora, due to Jake's insistence, we went straight to the counter, where Phil was hastily cleaning a shelf, his back turned to us.

"Can we stay a little longer or are you already closing, Phil?" I asked, struggling against the loud music.

"We'll stay while the moon stays, cutie..." He replied and turned around, quickly noticing Jake beside me. "Well, well. You must be the boyfriend."

"Yep," Jake replied. They shook hands and I almost couldn't hold back my laughter. Both of their voices became slightly deeper as they exchanged superficial greetings, and I could feel the overly strong handshake.

"So, what'll it be?" Phil asked.

"Beer?" Jake replied to Phil, while asking me, all in a one-word sentence.

"Sure, perfect," I replied, knowing I was too full and would only take a few sips of the beer, just to accompany Jake.

"So, beer it is. And... Are you serving any food?" Jake asked.

"At this hour, no," Phil replied, checking the watch on his tattooed wrist.

"Okay, then that's it."

Phil quickly served us the beers, but instead of leaving the bottle, he spent a lot of time pouring Jake's glass, even when I thought he was too busy to notice us. I wondered if he was trying to get him drunk. Jake handled it all very well, but after a while, he stopped drinking altogether, and our glasses remained full on the counter.

Jake and I mostly talked about me, with him asking questions about my stay in Duskwood, news about the trip, and my opinions on generic subjects... I felt he was trying hard to keep the conversation flowing, unable to talk about himself. I also didn't know what kind of questions to ask there, in a public place. How suspicious should we be in a crowded bar full of strangers?

Trying not to overthink, I pushed my chair closer to him and wrapped my arm around his, resting my head on his shoulder.

"I'm really happy right now, but I think it can get better," I said.

"How?" Jake immediately asked.

I looked at his hand holding mine and started playing with his fingers. Gathering all my courage, I asked:

"Can't we go somewhere else?" From afar, while serving other customers, Phil still paid attention to us. He seemed to know exactly what I was trying to say without me needing to elaborate further, and certainly before Jake could understand me.

"Sure. Where to?" Jake asked, placing his glass on the table and already gesturing for Phil to bring the bill.

"To your place," I said.

Jake froze for a moment, then stared at me. I returned the gaze with a smile, searching for any hint of doubt, trust, or any clue at all in his eyes. Was I going too fast? Wasn't it the right time? Then he let out a cute, curious smile.

"Caught you off guard, didn't I?" I said, still trying to understand what he was thinking about the situation, while my own insecurity screamed that I had made the wrong choice.

"You sure did," Jake said, nodding. Seeking to look me in the eyes, he asked: "Are you sure?"

Phil, who had been holding the bill for us all this time with an irritated expression, shook his head slightly with disdain.

"Yes, sure," I replied proudly, trying to appear more confident than I actually was.

"In that case..." Jake said, lowering his voice as he leaned closer to me; "I think you should know that I'm staying in a very, very cheap apartment downtown and I'll probably have to leave early in the morning."

Having to say goodbye early in the morning was indeed a bummer, but I didn't know when we could see each other again, so I was willing to make the most of the little time we had.

"I don't mind, I don't wanna miss the opportunity," I said as I studied his reaction. Jake smiled in a special way, seeming more genuine. So I concluded that I had made the right choice. He then looked at Phil and paid the bill, asking:

"I heard you have a motorcycle."

"How did you..." Phil began to ask.

"Doesn't matter. Can you lend a helmet to MC?" Jake asked.

"Um... I don't have any extra helmets here with me," Phil said, taking the money and putting it in the front pocket of his shirt. I knew right away he was lying. Phil was ALWAYS prepared to 'take someone home'.

"Seriously, Phil?" I said before Jake could respond. "I could swear you had two here, under the counter." I asked.

Okay, I wasn't so sure about the exact location of the helmets, but I decided to take a risk. Phil looked at Jake, then at me.

"Alright, if you want a helmet, I'll give you one." He said, pulling the helmet from under the counter and handing it to me.

"Thanks, Phil, I'll return it as soon as I can," I said, unable to hide my gratitude.

"Behave yourselves, you two," Phil said as if he had some authority over me. In response, Jake put his arm around my shoulders as he thanked Phil, promising that he would return the helmet himself.

On the way out, Jake seemed somewhat bitter.

"He was pretty confident he'd take someone home tonight," Jake said, more to himself than to me.

"That's just how he is. Not that he's malicious, he's just a bit... I don't know," I said, intertwining my hand with his. After thinking for a moment, I added: "Sometimes I even think you two are alike."

Jake looked at me indignantly, saying:

"No need to offend."

"But it's true; you both prefer motorcycles and have that bad boy vibe," I said laughing, knowing Jake hated the comparison.

"I don't have a bad boy vibe," He protested with a disgusted look.

"You are literally a criminal," I whispered.

Jake let out a discreet smile and asked:

"Can I ask how you knew the helmets were under the counter?"

"I didn't know, I just guessed. And how did you know he had a motorcycle?" I asked.

"I checked every aspect of his life that I could find, before suggesting we meet here."

"Ah, of course."

All aspects? I had to wonder.

"You forgot to mention another thing Phil and I have in common," Jake said, looking around, avoiding my gaze.

"Any tattoos?" I asked, ignoring what he was trying to make me admit.

"I'll pretend you didn't understand." He replied, kissing my hand and opening the door to Aurora for me.