It's a rainy afternoon. The time is 5:57 pm. Sergei just received his luggage in the airplane station and now walks in a hurry towards the exit. It has been a long journey from his homeland, Romania, but he had been waiting patiently for it. The last months were tough on him after all the mess in his personal life back home, so he needed this change, this new start. After all, he would get to stay with his best pal - Logan - whom he had met in Bucharest. Logan was on a trip around Europe at the time, and in this short visit of his, he and Sergei had great hangouts together. It was not the bars and the poker nights that bound them together, though, but the fact that Logan's company actually turned Sergei's conservative and introvert lifestyle into something much more positive. At good and bad times (and there were a lot of bad times) Logan was always there. "So... time to move on with that shit," he thought. And what place is best that Bridgeport? His pal lived there, and the city seemed to promise great opportunities for jobs... and other stuff.

His phone rang. He picked it up. From the other end of the line, Logan's cheerful voice sounded.

"Heyyyy, Sergio, 'sup man? You here already?"
"I told you not to call me that. Yes, I'm just getting in a cab and I'll be heading at your place soon."
"Aw, come on SER-GEE-OH! You just arrived! Why so serious? You know, I've been bustin' my ass all day JUST to prepare the apartment for you!"
"Well, ain't that an honour." He gave the address to the driver. "I will be there in half an hour, if I'm lucky. The weather here sucks."
"Suits your mood!"

Logan hung up the phone before Sergei had the chance to respond. The cab driver took a glimpse of him through the car's mirror. "Bad day?" he asked. Sergei answered with a short mumbling and remained silent for the rest of the course, watching the rain drops hitting the glass of the window beside him.

After about 50 minutes, the cab pulled over outside the building that Logan resided in. Sergei paid the driver and got quickly out of the car, hurryingly taking his luggage and swearing at himself for not thinking of bringing an umbrella along. Logan was waiting for him by the entrance, bearing a mischievous face at the sight of his grumpy friend having a hard time with the rain. "Having fun, aren't we?" said Sergei in an intensively sarcastic tone.

"Let me help you with these," replied Logan, and picked up the one bag, out of his friend's hand. "How was the journey?" he asked, as they walked towards the elevator. Sergei answered: "Cheerful as hell. The old man next to me almost had a heart attack and the flight attendants were all over him. Apparently, he didn't take his pills and there was a fuss in the whole seat class about it."

They got in the elevator. Logan:

"What did you do?"
"I was bored."

Logan stayed still for a couple of seconds, staring at him, then he looked frontwards.

"Man, what happened to you..."
"What happened to me?"
"You were always the... serious kinda guy, but now you're lame! And bitter!"

Sergei pierced him for a moment with his grey-blue eyes. Then looked down and spoke in a low tone. "I guess you are right..."
They reached the fifth floor. The elevator door opened and Logan led his friend to his apartment. "Don't worry, buddy. You're here to change that!" Sergei responded with a smile. Entering the apartment, Logan took both bags from his friend's hands and placed them in a corner. "We'll have plenty of time for... makeovers. Now you go get your soaked clothes off before you destroy my floor." He paused. "That sounded weird."

Ignoring his friend's mood for humor, Sergei said "thanks" and headed to the bathroom. He looked at himself in the mirror and noticed the black circles under his eyes. He had not managed to sleep well in the last days, nor in the plane. For some reason, though, he didn't feel like it. "Must be the stress," he thought. "It will be alright..."
He took off his dark, soaked clothes and entered the shower.

After the shower and taking care of some things to settle in, he finally got himself comfortable in the living room, almost collapsing on the couch, next to his friend. He remained there still, staring at the ceiling. All the stress and exhaustion were now taking their toll on him, his shoulders hurt by the luggage carrying and he felt like sinking in the nice (and mostly, DRY) soft, comfortable couch pillow. Logan had been ravaging a bowl of chips, placed on his lap and now was looking at his friend with a smirk on his face. "And the fortress fell," he said. Sergei snorted in sarcasm. He blindly dug his hand in Logan's bowl, grabbing a handful of chips, and brought it to his mouth. He devoured most of it in one clumsy attempt and some chips fell on him and on the couch. Logan, still with the smirk on his face, nodded in a silly way, saying "that's my man".

Still chewing, Sergei asked in his usual semi-serious tone: "So, what's the deal with this city?"
"It's a madhouse. That Hemlock chick has been a pain in the ass for good."
Sergei raised one eyebrow. "Who?"
"You will get to know her, sooner or later. Can't really help it. It's a small madhouse."
"Alright... I was referring to the jobs thing but whatever."

Logan patted his friend on the shoulder. "You will find some hole to crawl in."

He tossed a beer can to Sergei. The tired young man caught it unwillingly. Logan continued:

"You might find some people here weird... pretty weird, I would say. Don't get me wrong, they are friendly and stuff, but creepy as hell. Maybe it's in the way they look at you. Stare at you. As if you were some kind of Hogan's Deep-Fried Diner meal."
"Oooh. I'm scared," said Sergei mockingly, looking at the TV. A chip was immediately thrown at him, struck his left cheek and fell. He looked at the mischievous blond. Logan changed his sitting position so he could face the poker-faced man better.

"For real, man. Well, most of the people here are, you know... kinda normal. But some fellas are creeps. And you can never meet up for coffee or something, they always have something to do in the day... good thing is, this city has tones of choices for an awesome night-out. It's as if the city comes alive at night."
"Well, I'm not surprised you live here," said Sergei, bringing the beer can closer to his lips with a half smile.
"I should show you around, man. It's evening already and you can't miss tonight's hotspots! If you know what I mean!" he winks at Sergei. The latter held the beer can with both hands between his knees, looking at it. "I don't know. I am not really in the mood."
"How's that different from your... normal mood? Come on, man, just like the good old times! You don't have to tire yourself, we'll just go out and see the place together, maybe introduce you to some people... what do you say?"
"I... I don't-" Logan interrupted: "Who knows, you may find an employer too! Or some nice company. It's nothing bad, man. Instead of sitting on our asses in here, let's have this beer outside! Just you and me, if you want it that way. Eugi's is a small and nice place, just around the corner."
Sergei spoke in a low tone but seemed that a part of him needed that. "Humm... alright."
"SERGEI DRACULA, THAT'S MY MAN!" shouted Logan, jumping off the couch, nearly dropping his bowl of chips.

A few minutes later, they were getting ready. Sergei was dressed in his usual dark coloured style. A plain soft bluish black long-sleeved top, covered by a more intensive black coloured blazer, black jeans and black shoes of semi-casual style. He has putting on some perfume when he noticed Logan waiting for him at the doorstep. "Done already, princess?" with that smirk on his face. "Oh, shut up." Logan giggled. His dressing was simpler and more casual than his friend's, though he had that charmness of "the neat guy" (and his rich blond hair, sky-blue eyes and fine characteristics added much to that). While they were waiting for the elevator, some distant sounds of people talking had caught Sergei's attention. Logan commented: "There are some teens living next to us. Might get pretty loud at night." Sergei nodded and they got in the elevator.

When they got out of the building, Sergei felt the night's breeze brushing his face and hair, as if welcoming him in the new place. The rain had stopped about an hour and a half ago, and he could smell the humidity in the most refreshing way. Moisture didn't flatter the concrete city, it made it look kinda messy. For some strange reason though, in Sergei's mind it felt like it was the time that the place and the people woke up. There was a slight cheerfulness travelling in the wind, almost felt like the city was inviting him to explore it. The smell, the sounds, the people, seemed as if everything was waiting for nightfall, to start functioning as a most hospitable source of emotions. "I like this place" he said, with a peaceful smile. Logan responded impatiently: "And we're not even at the bar, yet!"