Folded Fondant ~ Sebastian

Paradise Lost *Part 32*

A/N: This scene takes place after Part 31 and right before Part 32. This was the separation period of those five days. 

Soundtrack "Where's My Love" by Syml.

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I threw back the shot almost immediately after the bartender set it down. "Look at you," Blake sat down next to me. "I didn't even have to hold your hand that time."

I sniffed and signaled for another. Blake eyed me, the corner of his mouth twitching. A tick that he developed long ago to show his displeasure. "Trouble in paradise?"

"There is no, and never was, any paradise." I pushed the glass away, tapping my index against the bar-top.

"Someone's in a mood." Blake tried to joke. I closed my eyes, cursing the bartender for not moving fast enough. Finally, he gave me another shot. No sooner had the glass hit the table, the liquid went down to join its brethren. I hadn't even winced and signaled for another. "If you don't slow down, you'll drain the watering hole."

"Impossible, I'd be dead before then." I flexed my fist on my knee, my foot bouncing against the bar front. I didn't much feel like being here, but I didn't want to leave either. What a cluster fuck. "I'd buy you your celebratory drink but it appears that I was the one who won."

"There's time yet, my friend." He leaned against the bar. Watching me like a hawk.

I laughed, the sound as bitter as the tequila on my tongue. "Now that is something I don't have."

"How morose of you, Ariel." He took a sip of his water. I envied him. "Your future kin would certainly not approve."

"Sorry, Blake, but that kin you envision is nothing more than a blimp in your imagination." And a shard in mine. I stumbled over the revelation of how the hell I got here and that future I hadn't known I wanted so badly.

He stared at me. "What is this about, Ian?"

"Nothing. Just wanted to see my friend," I sighed. It wasn't a lie. I found myself in a situation that only Blake could really talk me out of. Blake also wouldn't judge me for slamming back shot after shot. And I did actually miss my friend. Lia's presence has helped me re-appreciate the people I care about.

See I wasn't mad at her. I was mad at myself. For one, not listening to her. To not take her warnings like the fucking gospel that they were. I couldn't find it in me to regret the last couple of months, I just couldn't be grateful for the subsequent pain either. Two, was that tomorrow was our day off and I hated that I had nowhere to be for once, because having to spend time in the same place with her, currently wasn't something I could stomach.

To be in the moment with Lia meant another reminder of when it would all be over. I had prepared myself for simply being the friend. I hadn't prepared myself for the void she had been planning to leave behind. When the third shot came I barely took a breath before inhaling the burning liquid down.

Blake whistled. "That's three for three." He was smiling but the expression didn't quite meet his eyes. There's a familiar face. What had he said before? To simply look in the mirror? It's a shame that it felt like I currently was. I waited somberly for my fourth round.

"Three for three." I agreed. I felt the subtle grip of a buzz just around the edge. It wasn't completely there but I wouldn't be surprised if it slammed me all at once.

There was a calculating glint in his stare. He was trying to analyze. Let him analyze away. "Not that I'm not pleased to see the Ocean Princess, but I am curious as to why at this hour, you aren't canoodling with your Pretty Bird?"