Acrasia

Rae yawned and opened her eyes. Kid was on the couch snoring like a freaking tuba, while Chris slept peacefully next to her, barely making a sound. She sat up and got out of bed ans went pee, then started the shower. Mid-rinse, she remembered what the lady had said. She squealed and finished quickly before wrapping herself in a towel and throwing the door open. Chris and Kid were still asleep.

"Wake the fuck up, guys," she half-yelled.

Chris woke up, alert immediately. "Rae, what?" he asked, climbing out of bed and reaching for his clothes.

"Two words: free breakfast. Fuck yes."

"Underage ears present," Chris grumbled, but Kid didn't seem to have heard her.

"Yes but free breakfast."

"Free?" Now Kid started listening. "Do they have chicken?"

"I dunno," Rae grinned, "but this'll be like the best breakfast we've had in, like, weeks." With a bounce in her step, she got dressed and they headed downstairs.

They were shown into a room with a short buffet table. Rae was so excited she forgot to thank the woman. She even forgot her name. She was so engrossed in her food that she didn't notice that one girl with the booty shorts and shirt that shouldn't be considered a shirt making googly eyes at Chris, her "brother".

Chris cringed and tried to focus on his food but he wasn't hungry. He looked between Rae and Kid and his food, anywhere but Dianne, but somehow he kept making accidental eye contact with her. He prayed that it wasn't giving her the wrong ideas, but with his luck it probably was. God, Rae would be pissed.

Suddenly, Kid groaned, providing a distraction. The carcass of what could be a whole chicken was on his plate. Scattered around it pieces of pancake and scrambled egg. It looked like a breakfast war scene. Chris raised his eyebrows.

"I think I'mma hurl," he moaned.

Rae clicked her tongue softly. "Poor kid. Let's go up to the room,"she offered. She would have sent him up and finished her breakfast, but she didn't want him to be alone after what had just happened the day before. She put a hand on Chris's shoulder and leaned down. "Why don't you inspect their bar wares," she smiled. "Take a break. We can leave tomorrow."

He smiled up at her and kissed her forehead, careful to avoid making it look too intimate. He stayed at the table for a few seconds, watching the door that Rae and Kid just left through, before standing and making his way over to the bar in the tiny lobby. It only had about four stools and the shelves were piled high in order to hold all the liquor. There was no one behind the bar, so he looked at their supply from afar. Not too bad, but nothing high class. And nothing like his apartment at home.

No, not home anymore. He bowed his head for a moment of silence in remembrance of almost twelve thousand dollars worth of whiskey, never to be seen or tasted by him again. He sighed, annoyed and sad.

"Why the long face?" a voice purred. Dianne was coming along around behind the bar.

Chris just shrugged, not wanting to answer. He looked at her, still sad, and thought what a shame it was that such a pretty girl felt the need to throw herself at every single, or not so single, guy who walked through her mother's door. Or maybe, he thought, it was just him. Did he really have that effect on people? He frowned harder.

"Oh come on, Gary. No one frowns that heavily when there's nothing on their mind. I'm a great listener." She smiled and leaned against the bar on her arms. He got a great view of her cleavage, but somehow that only turned him off more than the fact that he was really in love with his current girlfriend.

"All my whiskey," he said finally. "I had to leave my apartment in the East. I had a... a bunch of whiskey. But when we, uhm, ran away from that place... It's all gone now. It was all left behind. I had a whole huge collection."

"Why did you leave?" she asked, her voice and question all manner of innocent, but he couldn't help noticing how she leaned forward some more, the amount of her chest making him wonder how anything was left inside her shirt.

"It's complicated."

She smiled. "I think we have time."

"And what makes you say that?"

"You haven't even started drinking yet."

He chuckled harshly and glanced at the bar. "That is true." he said quietly. He immediately regretted the tone of voice he used; he looked up in time to see her face flush and her pupils dilate and he knew that he was in dangerous territory. He leaned back away from the bar, trying to think of something, anything to turn her off.

But "Thank you," was all he said as she set the drink down in front of him. He reached for his wallet, but realized he didn't have any money. "Shit," he muttered. "I can't pay you--"

"On the house," she smiled. This time he returned it.

Dianne soon found it took a lot of alcohol to loosen him up. Like, a lot. He held it together better than anyone she'd ever seduced via her little family establishment. But soon, his disorientation began to shine through and they had a real conversation.

"Hey, so we have this great collection in the private wing if you wanna come check it out," she winked.

"Ugh I want to," he said, his stomach a warm ball of fluff. "But my-- uhm -- sister. My sis would get pissed."

"She doesn't have to know," Dianne smirked.

"Okay," he said finally, shrugging. What could possibly go wrong. What could possibly go wrong. What could possibly go wrong.

He followed her into a back room and then a tongue was being shoved forcibly down his throat. He only looked up when he heard his name.

"Chris?"

Chris shoved Dianne off of him realizing a moment too late what was happening. Kid and Rae were looking at him. Kid's eyebrows were furrowed and he was frowning like he didn't understand what was going on. Rae's face was horrifically blank.

"Who's Chris?" Dianne asked, except she was ignored.

"Rae," Chris murmured, immediately sobered.

"Maybe we should talk," she said hoarsely.

"I'll go wait in the room," Kid said. Rae nodded at him and he scampered off.

"What's going on?" Dianne asked. She was ignored again.

"Let's go outside," Chris said quietly.

They found a quiet spot in the backyard. Neither of them said anything for a while. Chris spoke up first.

"Rae, what you saw in there--"

"Said a lot," she finished for him. "I don't know if this is gonna work, Chris. There's been just a little too much tension between us for me right now. I can't handle it. I think... I think we should part ways."

His face fell dramatically, in a way that weakened her knees and broke her heart and made the sting of held-back tears grow stronger.

"Rae, you can't-- we've been through so much together." His voice was thick and gruff.

"I know. And maybe we can, I dunno, find each other again soon. After I get Kid home safe. It isn't something that I want. It's just... it's something I need. Please understand."

"But I don't," he said, trying to refrain from yelling. It wasn't working too well.

"Well try to. If you love me, then let me go--"

"Don't you dare give me that cliche bullshit, Rachel Warrick."

"I'm leaving. Bye Chris." She turned around.

"Rae, don't."

But she was almost inside.

"Please."

And then she was gone, leaving Chris wondering if anything was really worth it.