CHAPTER 2 - A FRIENDSHIP ESTABLISHED

DINER - SUNDAY AFTERNOON

DES

“Hey gorgeous!” Di shouts, glancing at me briefly. “So what can…” She rushes round the counter and pulls me into her arms. “Honey, what’s wrong?!” She demands as soon as she sees my face, and I sob while she holds me.

“Ju-Jules… pa-par… sis… dead!” I wail. “Need to f-find By…”

“Hey Di.... oooh, who this? Where am I taking her?” I hear a voice.

“Des, and back office!”

I find myself in the arms of a stranger, but I am too upset to care. “Oh my poor sweet girl, I am Elvis. So tell me what’s up? Why is a pretty little young thang like you sporting that sour puss?” I manage to get out what happened last night with Jules and his family. “Poor babies! Alright my darling, you stay here. I need to make a call.”

BYRON’S LOFT - 5 MINUTES LATER

BYRON

“Hey Elvis.” I pause and listen to him. “Okay, bring her here. Come to the third floor. He’s still asleep. Poor kid.” I look out the window and am thankful that the 3rd floor has special blinds; you can see out of but not in. Mika is still sitting in his car across the street. “Oh for fuck sake!... No that wasn’t for you. Mika is outside the building, so go round the back and ask Fagin to do his usual thing with the papers. That’ll at least get rid of him for awhile!”

I click the headset off and quietly enter the bedroom. Jules is crying in his sleep. I know that Fagin won't be here for at least an hour, so I shake him gently. “Jules, wake up.”

“What for?” He sobs, and my heart breaks.

“Des is coming; she’s with a friend of mine. Do you think you can eat soon?” He nods slowly and starts to get out of bed, but I stop him. “Stay there. Hot chocolate?” He lies back down and gives me another nod. “Great. I’ll get Elvis to bring some food too. Burger and fries with guac, no tomatoes extra chilies, okay?”

“Mmm…” His eyes fill with tears again.

I click the headset back on. “Call Elvis,” I say into the mic as I climb into bed and pull him into my arms. “Elvis, how far away are you from the diner? Oh great, can you bring a burger and fries with guac, extra chilies, no tomatoes. And a bottle of Beam.” I hang up and start to stroke his hair. “He won't be long. You want your chocolate now or when they come?”

“With food.” He hiccups. “Thank you. You have been so kind.”

“You’re welcome.” I kiss the top of his head and he starts to cry again.

OUTSIDE THE LOFT - 40 MINUTES LATER

MIKA

How long can it take for him to come back from the vets?! I shift in my seat. I really want to go to the bathroom, but I’m afraid that if I move from this spot, I’ll miss him. But then again, I could take a chance and drive to the diner. Surely he should be back by the time I return, right? Just as I start the car, I see Fagin walking up the street. I get out and head across the road to meet him by the doors.

FAGIN

Oh for crying out loud! Sighing, I pull out my phone and slow down, smirking. Judging by the way he’s moving about, he wants the bathroom. Shame! “Byron, hey, I’m about a minute away from the door and he’s waiting there for me. You heading up? Okay, no problem.” I paste on a smile and ignore his frantic gestures that I should hurry up by pretending to talk some more!

“Fagin!” He hisses. “Give me your keys so I can at least get in!” I hold up my finger and he is almost jumping up and down like a firecracker.

“Thanks Josiah, I will get them signed and sent in the next 30 minutes then scanned back to you.”

“FAGIN!” He all but screeches, and I have to bite my lip to stop from laughing as I slowly open the door to let him in. He elbows past me to press the button for the elevator, but apparently the wait is too long for him and he runs up the stairs. We get there the same time and then he has to wait some more as I look for the right key to open the door. He runs to the bathroom and his sigh of relief reverberates round the loft.

“Feel better?” I ask politely and take out the papers.

“Did you have to take so long? I almost pissed myself!” He grumbles, sitting down at the island. “Oh, where are the fleabags?” He asks, looking round. I raise an eyebrow. “I mean his cats.”

“I was on the phone at the time and trying to concentrate. And I should imagine that since he’s at the vets, the cats are with him.” I reply calmly.

“So where’s Byron?”

“As I have just said, he’s at the vets with the cats. Said he would meet me here; we’ve got some work to do.” His eyes flash with annoyance. “This could take a while.” I head to the living area and start to set up the VC as I normally do.

“Can I just borrow your keys for a minute?”

“Why?”

“Need to pop down to my car. It will save me from having to knock.”

“I’ll open the door for you.” I respond firmly, and again, there’s that flash of annoyance. It really burns his guts that I have keys to the hallowed domain and he doesn’t. He did, but Byron got fed up with him coming and going at will, so he changed the locks without telling him or issuing a new set. They didn’t speak for a couple of days, but inevitably Mika weakened and apologized, but still no key. And if he thinks I’m falling for that bulljive excuse, he’s dumber than we think! “Well aren’t you going then?” I prompt, and there is a distinct blush creeping up his face.

“Yeah, won’t be long.” He mumbles and stomps out. As soon as the door shuts, I burst out laughing.

3RD FLOOR LOFT

BYRON

I smirk as I read the text from Fagin. I look up as Elvis comes in with Des. “He’s in there.” I point to the bedroom. “Just woken up, but make sure he eats that.” She nods tearfully and goes to join him.

“You go do your thang. I’ll keep an eye on them.” Elvis sighs sadly and follows her to the bedroom.

I grab Fizz and Pop, and this time without bitching, they get in their basket. I decide to wait for Mika to go back up to the loft. I roll my eyes as he calls me again and I let it go to voicemail. I snicker as he jabs his phone off and stomps into the building. I hold out hope that once he sees me alive and well, he’ll go find his own life! I could certainly do without my fucking fanclub of one.

4TH FLOOR LOFT

MIKA

I’m about to knock when I hear the elevator door clang shut, so decide to wait to see if it is Byron. Finally it arrives and he steps out. “There you are!” I smile, and he frowns. “What’s wrong?”

BYRON

“Just got a lot of work to do. Could do without the VC right now!” He follows me inside and inwardly I seethe. Just get the fucking hint, already! Damn!  “Mika, Fagin and I have to work for a couple of hours, can you let us get on with it? I’ll see you later.”

“I can…” He begins, but I shake my head and let the cats out. Immediately, Fizz hisses at Mika… they are not friends!

“This is Kinnetic business, which you are not privy to and…”

“But I’m your best friend! I know everything about…”

“This is business. I don’t interfere in your comic book store, which incidentally is where you should be camping out, not here. You need to actually open your store if you ever intend to make a profit. Nor is your pers...”

“But…”

“Mika!” He flinches, but sometimes that’s the only way. “You need to leave so I can get this done! The sooner I finish the sooner we can meet up!”

“Alright then.” He pouts, and makes his way slowly to the door. After one more reproachful look, he finally leaves. We wait for him to cross the road and get into the car.

“For the love of God!” Fagin sighs. “He tried the lend me your key so I don’t have to knock thing again.” I squeeze my eyes shut to allow the annoyance to dissipate. “So what happened that we were needed?”

I explain what happened to Jules and he shakes his head. “Jesus and only 17. Why don’t you call Di and see if she can help?”

“Great idea. I’m going to check on him now. Elvis and Des, who is his best friend, are with him. Hopefully he’s managed to eat something.” I head to the bookshelf and pull the IRS Manual and the bookcase slides aside and we head downstairs.

LS DINER - HALF AN HOUR LATER

DI

Mika is pouting in the booth by the window. He’s been twirling his phone for the last half hour. He wanted to hang with Byron, but he’s busy with work. I sigh as he continues to stare mournfully out of the window. So I carry over a cup of coffee.

“You know that Byron is a busy man and he can’t come out and play because you want him to. If you put half as much effort into what you should, like your store, instead of chasing him around, perhaps you would be busy too.”

“I’m not…” He starts to moan as usual, but I am saved from hearing it once more by my phone ringing. “Hi there... yeah... never got a chance to ask.... Oh fuck me, that’s awful! Sure no problem, bring them round to the house this evening and we’ll have a talk... No problem, leave it with me.”

“Who was that?” By God’s own nose, this kid is nosy!

“PFLAG member. Kid’s just been orphaned and she wants some help.” I lie smoothly. If I told him it was Byron, he would’ve ripped my phone out of my hands.

“Oh.” He sighs.

“Hey Di, was that what the kid was crying about earlier? The one that went in the back with Elvis?” Kira asks.

“Yeah.” I watch Mika carefully. Not a jot of sympathy. How did he grow up to be like this?!

He swallows down the rest of his coffee and gets up. “Might as well open the store, at least I can read there while I wait.”

“Yeah, you do that.”

He heads out and bumps into Faye at the same time, but doesn’t stop to talk.

“Excuse you, Mika!” She says as she comes in. She sighs. “Let me guess... Byron is busy.” She grins at me. Like some members of the Street, she has no truck with Mika and his mistaken sense of ownership of Byron.

“Yeah. Listen, you around tonight? Got a kid that’s just been orphaned and not sure if he’s got anything, attorney wise. It’s going to be bad enough going through this without having legal shit to deal with as well.”

“Sure, I’ll be around, just give me a call.”

“Thanks honey.”

REAL ESCAPE COMIC STORE - AN HOUR LATER

MIKA

Still nothing from Byron! I go back to reading when the door chimes. I do a double take, this man is gorgeous! Surely, he can’t be a geek!

“Hi, I wonder if you can help me. My name is Bailey, and you’re Mika, right?”

“Y-yes.”

“Best friend of Byron Kent?”

“Yes. I have known him for over 15 years.” I boast. “What do you want to know?”

“How to get to first base with him or preferably, how to bottom for him?”

“Ah, he’s very selective. You might not be his type.” I smirk. Who am I kidding? Byron would jump him in a heartbeat! Well not if I have anything to say about it, unless...

He laughs and leans on the counter. “Do you think you could put in a good word for me?”

“What’s in it for me?” I lean closer.

“I get you for the night. I’m not as good as he is. He is legendary, but I’m pretty close.”

“Well give me your number and I will see what I can do.” He slides over his card and smiles at me. “I’m only here until the 14 February, so you’ve got a month. “Ciao bello.” He purrs and starts to saunter out.

“Wait, let me take a picture of you so he can see what you’re like.”

“Of course.” He leans against the shelving unit and I take a couple. “Want a close up of my face or my...?”

“Yeah.” He starts to unbutton his pants. “Just the face for now!” I squeak. Smooth! Definitely going into my spank bank when Byron is through with it, and him.

“So can I take your number, too?” I write it down hastily and watch my future fuck walk away with a smile.

BAILEY’S APARTMENT - AN HOUR LATER

BAILEY

Well that went better than I hoped. That’s the problem with humans. They are so susceptible to outside appearances. I have been trying unsuccessfully to get close to Byron by way of Faye, but he has constantly refused to give me the baby I crave! But no matter... as this incarnation, I can get his seed and that’s that.

“Revertere ad me, pulchritudo!” (Return to me, beauty) I chant and smile at my reflection. It was fun being Bailey, but I much prefer being Calista or to give me my full title Ice-Tina the Snow Queen.

DI’S HOUSE LOUNGE- EARLY EVENING

ELVIS

Di is making them eat some soup; the poor things are still so traumatized. I dropped in the diner to get the keys, since, as it turned out, Fagin and Byron really did need to work. So of course I spotted Mika sulking hard as he didn’t get his fix! I honestly didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. No, not in sympathy for him, but in shame of him. Why can’t he see that there is more out there than just being ‘Life’s Chewtoy’? Byron will never be more than a friend; Mika still could not handle him if he was more than that. So why not just accept that and find a way to live happy with what you have? I shake myself out of my thoughts about the little fool who can’t, and concentrate on what I can do for my charges right now. I brought them here and made them some hot chocolate, Di said she wouldn't be long and she wasn't.

I tense up as the door opens and then heave a sigh of relief as it’s Faye. “Hey gorgeous girl!”

“Hey.” She leans down to kiss me on the cheek and flops down next to me. “As much as I love working for Byron, he gives me some fuck-ass things to work on.”

“Like what? Or is that CAP’d?”

“Capped?” She frowns.

“Yeah, Client, Attorney, Privileged...CAP’d”

“Oh… very good… yeah.” She looks across at Jules and Des. “How did they end up with Byron?”

“He saved him from Badlands.” I laugh quietly. “Can you help him?”

“Absolutely. I just need his permission to access his parents estate and I’ll handle it.” She looks across again and then frowns before pulling out her phone. She quickly scrolls through before gasping then standing and rushing to the dining room. I smell gossip and follow!

FAYE

Holy fuck! I dial Byron. “Hey B, listen, did you do anything with this kid? Oh, thank God! No, wait, putting you on speaker! Byron, can you hear me?”

“Yes of course I can, what is going on?”

“Jules.” He looks up at me. “Can you tell us who your father… was?”

“Craig Martin Thomas.” He sniffs. “He owns… owned Thomas Electronics Inc.”

“Oh Christ!” Byron groans, and I can hear Fagin, swearing and demanding that Byron confirms he did nothing with Jules.

“Byron… okay… Byron doesn’t like homophobes and makes his mission to buy as many of their businesses as possible and your father was…” I trail off.

“A homophobe. I know that. He made that so clear.”

“The thing is that Byron owns almost 50% of the company you now stand to inherit.”

“So?” He shrugs, and I ignore the warning glance from Di.

“Well that means that you are going to be working very closely with Byron and that could cause an issue.”

“Why?”

I know I’m overwhelming him, but he has to know what he’s about to come up against!

“Oh fuck!” Di breathes.

“Shit!” Elvis gripes.

“Can someone tell me what this means?!” Jules sobs. “I’m so tired and I just want… I want…”

“Jules. Jules, I know you are tired and it’s been a fucking shit day. But I need you to listen to what Faye is saying, okay?”

“Okay.” He takes a deep breath and looks at me.

“B, are you going to come over?” I ask.

“Yeah, we’ll be an hour, tops.”

“Great. You guys go and I’ll handle the rest of this…”

“Byron, you’ve got another call coming through.” Jules tells him, somewhat distractedly.

“How the… look I’ve got to take this. Later.”

“Later.” We all chorus.

“So what is going on? I’m Des by the way.”

“Faye. Would’ve preferred better circumstances. And Jules, I am so sorry for your loss.” He gives me a small nod. “When Byron and Fagin get here. You do not know them, okay? Either of you. Put the word out, Di.” I order.

“Why?” Des demands.

“Because if his best friend knows you know him personally, he will make it his mission to get rid of you. But if it’s business then…”

“He won’t be allowed to interfere.” Elvis smirks. “Oh, well done, and for once, it’s not a lie!”

DI

I head to the kitchen to get Jules some more bread. But I can’t shift the discomfort I feel in my psyche. There is just something about the boy! I take a chance and pull out an ice cube and flick it gently. He turns to look at me and smiles tiredly. Now, I know that nobody else heard that! That boy, like Byron, is part Magi! Of course… he is ice to Byron’s fire! I hope and pray that nobody else knows this!