2019-12-05 - Rent Is Due

There is a good sized crowd in the bar tonight, at least for a weekday. It still happy hour with some early diners coming. Easton is behind the bar, looking like someone dragged him out of bed a minute ago. He has a big smile plastered on his face, but they don't really distract enough from the dark circles under his eyes, even with the dimples. His beard is growing back, and he's dressed as ever in his black dress shirt and jeans. The waitresses are openly rolling their eyes at him, wondering why he's showing up and if they are going to have to take over for him again.

By all accounts, she should be avoiding the place, and yet there's Bennie waltzing into the place without so much as a hitch in her giddy-up. The fact that she doesn't quite look like the same old Bennie is the only indication that something is off in her life. Her hair has been straightened to absolutely straight instead of the carefree beach waves she normally wears it in, and she's somewhat dressed up in a grey cowl neck sweater that comes down to mid thigh, a black pair of lace leggings and knee high boots. With heels. She's also gone a little darker on the eye make up than she used to, making her dark blue eyes stand out all the more. The blonde approaches the bar, and simply waits until she's noticed by Easton. Maybe she doesn't want to interrupt him.

In the midst of listening to some customer tell him the fascinating reason that they can't drink beer anymore due to some self-diagnosed gluten-sensitivity that miraculously doesn't impact their waffle habit, Easton catches sight of her. He distractedly tries to let the cusomter finish her story but eventually has to pull himself away, "I'm sorry, I don't care."

Approaching Bennie cautiously, his brow raised and scrunched in a silent question, Easton squares himself up to her at the bar. He looks at her for a long time, taking in all the changes. After a few moments too long he says quietly (for him) "Hi." But he doesn't follow that up with any questions, just his eyes slowly roaming her face trying to guess what this means.

"This a bad time?" Bennie must know it's at least an inconvenient time, which makes the remark a little flippant. She's quite aware of the assessing eyes, after all isn't that why a woman changes her looks after a break up? For the ex to notice. "Not even going to offer me a drink?" This asked as she leans onto the bar, the added height of her heels means her bosom is resting on the cross of her forearms. She's not playing fair, and doesn't seem to care.

"Nope." There could be a million customers waiting, flames shooting from the kitchen and a serial killer doll on the loose in the bar and his answer would remain the same. His eyes continue to take in the sight of her, pretty sure that the fit of that top is just for him anyway, in the taunting way. He asks, "Would you like a drink?" Is not the question he would like to ask. In fact it's not even on the top one hundred list of questions he would like to ask, let alone in the top spot.

The waitresses know Bennie enough that they all are immediately aware of the scene. They do only a passable job of not staring and hoping that she punches him, the anticipation and glee shining in their eyes. The only good thing is that they are suddenly all to happy to swing behind the bar and take orders, there is no way they are going to be denied whatever is about to happen.

"No, thank you." Bennie says simply with a slow bat of her eye lashes. Torturing him is fun and all, at least some small part of her enjoying it, but she actually did come here with another purpose. "Rent money?" She asks as if it's her due. He did offer, after all, and it looks like the Blonde has come to collect. If others are watching, she's blatantly ignoring their lingering glances and the anticipatory gleams in their eyes. Instead she motions to the back hall with a lazy indication of one french tipped manicured nail. "We can take this private if you prefer."

Easton tries to suppress the smile at her leading him into that but fails as it was pretty darn funny. When she asks for the money, the smile fades out. "You found a place." It's not a question really. It's a realization that this is really happening and that she is not looking back. He follows her motioning and nods, a bit dumbly now. He mutters something to one of the waitresses behind the bar about covering for him and she doesn't even bother hiding her smile at his distress. He walks towards the back, his face back to neutral as he clamps down on his expression. He asks along the way, "How much do you need?" As if the figure mattered. As if that's important right now.

As Easton turns to head towards the back, Bennie quickly swallows and squares up her shoulders. No backing out now. She follows him around towards the back, making sure to keep her pace even. Of course she's taller than him now, by a good three inches of raised and pointed soles. "First, last and a pet deposit for when I have Gunner." Yes, she's also assuming joint custody of the dog. "Plus utility deposits." She's just heaping it on and so when she says a figure, it's pretty on par with what a one bedroom would cost in his own complex.

Easton might miss her squaring up but she can likely see the tension in his frame and neck as he clenches his jaw. He lets her into the office and tries not to think about their usual rendezvous here. He fails. He closes his eyes as she walks in after him, getting himself back to the present. He nods as she lists out all the various things that will make up this figure. He can't help continuing to look over all of her, especially here, especially alone. "Okay. That's fine." He looks for a moment like he might say more, like he might ask her one of those more meaningful questions, but he stops short and waits.

Alone. In the office. Bennie can almost hear the echoes of their shared whispered conversations and other attempts to be quiet that inevitable would fail on occasion. Raucous laughter at the result. It's like it's seeped into the walls and she can just feel it. This must be what it's like for Alexander when he reads something, on Bennie's not using glimmer. She's using her own memories. Her face softens when the door closes and Easton looks like he's about to say something. "Look E..." But she can't quite muster any words herself of things that should be said. Instead, "I'm gonna need that in cash."

Easton's eyes stray to the bandage on her hand and his eyebrows tilt down. He would have thought that if she were to hurt her hand it would be punching him. Maybe a wall? Maybe a Dream? His eyes come back to her face when she calls him E. He silently implores her to say something about their situation, about where she is at, about anything real. But then it's just the cash. His jaw sets. He thinks of countless responses and in a tight angry tone, "Trailer park got real expensive" slips out. And he immediately regrets it. "But I said, I'd pay for a place, and I will. Cash is fine." Even if it's not going to a place. If it's going to her debts, fine. If it's going to anything really. Drugs? Sure. Clothes. Why not. He's not really in a place to deny her anything right now. Even if he is a little salty about the amount.

Bennie's arms immediately cross over her chest at his retort, her head twisting away as her own temper flares. "Yeah, well. What can I say. You got me accustomed to a certain sort of lifestyle and then pulled the rug out from underneath me. Maybe if I had a little notice you were going to screw around on me, I would have thought to save up." The words are delivered to the wall instead of Easton himself, unable to look him in the eye.

Easton's jaw flexes more when she retorts in anger. He's normally cool headed, even under pressure, but this is far too personal. "Funny how money changes things." He sneers the words at her, not apologizing now or backing off from the comment. "Would it have helped? If I said there was a problem. Or would you have just put on that big ol' smile and pretended it wasn't there? Because yea, that's really what I wanted, you play acting through our sex life. That would have been much better." God he wishes he could shut his own mouth. But sadly he doesn't seem to have that ability. The words just come out and he knows it's not helpful to anything, least of all to helping to work out any of the underlying issues. "But you're right, I didn't give you an easy out. You said you didn't need one."

"You didn't need to give me an out. You made one. You practically shoved me out of the house the second you shoved your di--" Bennie bites off her words, because she's getting up in Easton's face now and she stops just shy of pushing him in the shoulder again. Instead, the gesture softens from a blow to just a lay of her palm against his chest. "You know what, this isn't helping. Either of us. I was ugly to you before I left. And I'm sorry for that."

When she steps up and gets in his face he stares at her, willing her to hit him. And when she instead lays a hand on his chest his face twists into a pained contortion. "You're sorry? Bennie what the fuck do you have to be sorry about?" He raises his hands to shoulders and lets himself touch her ever so briefly before they come up to rub at his face, pulling down hard, trying to press something away. He shakes his head and says, "You didn't do anything wrong." Okay, he's maybe not a fan of the light extortion thing happening here, but that's not what he's referencing. He pulls his hands away to look at her his mouth half open as if he's going to keep talking but nothing more comes out.

Bennie's eyes turn plaintive as he touches her shoulders and almost more so when that contact goes away. She dips her head, trying to catch his gaze again after he rubs his face. "I should't have said those things to you, no matter the circumstances. But you hurt me, Easton. You really hurt me. And if I had stayed, and if I couldn't get past the Gohl thing fast enough for you...how patient would have been to ride this one out? It was the beginning of a cycle I had to break." Her uninjured hand reaches for his cheek, thumb brushing the scruff that's starting to grow back in. "And yet..." The words just drift off with a helpless little shrug.

"You don't have to apologize for being angry. Or sad. Or anything. Ever." Easton tries to convince her again that he doesn't need her to always be positive. He nods at the fact that he wasn't patient. That he didn't see it through. He says quietly, actually quietly for once, "I understand." She had to do this for her. That's actually kind of good in his mind? At least she's not pretending this was okay. That would kill him. He stays stock still when she reaches for her cheek, fighting every natural urge to curl into her hand and press his face against her hand, and then all of his body against hers. He swallows hard and just closes his eyes, not letting himself fill in what they yet proceeds. He whispers into her hand "I'm sorry." as he can't quite help himself from savoring that small amount of contact, rubbing his cheek against her fingers ever so slightly.

There is a long exhale from Bennie's nose, not quite a sigh but there's a certain note of resignation in it. "I know." It gets murmured quietly, as if to say it any louder would discredit it.

Now she remembers why she stopped wearing heels around him. Bennie has to angle her face downward to catch his lips when his eyes are closed. She means for it just to be a quick thing of closure but yet she finds herself lingering against the subtle taste of his breath.

The press of her lips against his surprises him. He steadies himself for just a passing brush against each other, worried that might be harder to take than no contact at all. But then she lingers there and he wishes desperately that he didn't have the scent of beer on his breath. That he had been different for her, for this. But there is nothing he can do about that now. He allows himself to press back against her lips, to return the kiss but with a mere fraction of the intensity he would like. His hands raise again and hover at her sides, barely touching her, his mind woefully aware now that she hasn't removed the hand from his chest. And when the kiss breaks he doesn't open his eyes, they are screwed tightly shut wanting to capture whatever that was for even a second or two longer before whatever comes next.

When she breaks the kiss, Bennie's forehead leans for a moment against his, pulling her lips into her mouth to savor the note of comfort in the familiar. It was unfair for them both to have kissed him, but her only regret seems to be the telltale transfer of pink gloss to his mouth. Her thumb shifts over from his cheek to his bottom lip, starting to smear it away. "I should go."

I should go

Easton opens his eyes as her forehead pulls away from him. He nods and says, "I will drop off the cash tomorrow." His voice sounds like he's in a daze, barely focused on what he's saying. "Are you still at Alexanders?" He shakes his head, "You don't.. you don't have to say, if you don't want to." He has very specifically not asked where the place is that she's renting. "I can always give it to Sutton if she breaks in again."

Bennie swallows thickly and suddenly seems nervous, perhaps because she's afraid he'll show up at Alexander's or ask Sutton where she's going to be when he makes the hand off. Either way, she starts toying with his shirt, "Don't you have enough in the safe? I can wait until closing for count out of the registers? Or a check, you can just make out a check to cash so I can go to the bank first thing." Realizing she's perhaps being a little too eager, she adds. "It's just the last unit, and they only put a twenty four hour hold on it. I don't want to lose it."

Damn she is very, very good at distractions. Easton looks down at his shirt, and her hand and he says, "Yea. I can write a check." Messing with the safe for something like this is not a can he wants to open, but she keeps touching him he'd probably agree to that and a heck of a lot more. He doesn't quite catch the over-eagerness until she tries to explain. But he doesn't react, just nods and says, "Sure. I understand." Mmm-hmm. He keeps the skepticism out of his voice. There are really only two options that he can think of that would make her push like this, heck even show up in person like this. One he can run down easily. The other would take some more time.

He breaks away from her playing with his shirt, fishes out a checkbook, writes it out and hands it to her. He looks at her, specifically at her lips when he says, "Okay. I'll .. see you?" his eyes managing to make it back up to hers at the end of that statement turned question.

And those lips flash in a grateful smile when he hands off the check, a note of relief in Bennie's voice as she starts to fold it up and shove it into her purse. "Thanks, Easton." Her smile wobbles into something a shade more melancholy. "Yeah, I'll see you." At least in a month when she needs more rent money, right? With one last glance over her shoulder, she slips out the door.

The door swings shut with a click.

There's a bottle of whiskey in the bottom drawer of the desk. As Easton's putting the checkbook back in the desk, he remembers it. And before he can think too much about it, he pulls open the drawer, opens the bottle and takes a big gulp. So much for only keeping to beer only when working.