To say Nicely was very worried about Benny was an understatement. Benny had been drinking to the point where he couldn't stand which freaked Nicely out because Benny never, ever drunk alcohol instead he would always opt for something like Coca Cola and brush off offers of beer like it was nothing.

On Friday night when Nicely had tucked his friend into bed he had been concerned for his friend but had figured that Benny's business was Benny's own and had tried not to demanded answers off him but had gone a little too far when he tried to make sure that his friend was alright. His friend was not alright and Nicely knew because Benny yelled at him to stop bothering him. Benny rarely yelled at anyone and not ever at Nicely. His harsh words had cut Nicely like a knife and so Nicely knew he had gone too far, he realized that he shouldn't of asked Benny so many questions and that he should have just left him alone. Nicely thought it was probably his fault that that night Benny went again.

Nicely decided to stay up that night for him and wait for him to come home. When Benny didn't come home before 12 he got very worried and at 1 in the morning decided enough was enough and went out to find Benny. As Nicely put on his coat and shoes he began to imagine all the situations Benny could be in, he could still be out, he could've decided to stay at someone else's house, he could be having a romp at some dolls house, or he could be lost, or he could have passed out somewhere, or he could be in a ditch half dead somewhere. Nicely began to panic then. Benny had already been attacked on the street once before, who said he couldn't have been attacked again. Nicely nearly ran out of the door and was surprised when he opened it inwards because a sleeping Benny fell into the apartment.

Nicely jumped but then realized that Benny must have fallen asleep outside the apartment leaning against the door. He was much relieved as he picked up the sleeping form bridal style and carried him in, kicking the door closed behind him. He was glad that Benny was safe and sound but alarmed that he had been sleeping in the cold; he hoped that his friend wouldn't get sick because of it. Nicely carried him down the corridor and into Benny's room on the right side of the hallway, he carried him to the bed and took of his shoes, jacket and tie and tucked him before standing up and rubbing his poor sore back. He always forgot that Benny was heavier than he looked; it was all that muscle he supposed. Nicely looked down at his sleeping friend whose hair was tousled adorably and lips slightly parted in his sleep, he was even good looking in his sleep and it wasn't fair.

Over the year that they had known each other Nicely had grown quite fond of Benny, He was someone who could watch his back and look out for him. He was also someone who was humble and expected nothing in return so Nicely didn't feel substandard when he offered awkward thank yous in return for favors.

Now Nicely needed to know why Benny had started coming home this drunk, sure it was only two days so far but it was annoyingly sudden and he just wanted to make sure his friend was okay and that his friend was not in danger. He went over reasons in his in head. Could it be his fault that Benny's behavior had suddenly changed? Nicely thought back to what he could have recently said and done that could've offended or upset Benny but he could not think of anything.

"Benny, tell me why" he sighed to his sleeping friend as he gently stroked Benny's forehead before leaning over his and placing a gentle kiss on his forehead.

Nicely wasn't sure why he had done that but at the time it had felt right to do so and wrong to leave the room without having done so. Twenty minutes later when Nicely went to his own bed he still felt that the intimate action had been right. He didn't worry about why it was right and whether it really was right but instead slept peacefully.

The next morning Nicely woke up late and only got up in time to see Benny putting on his jacket and walking down the hallway to the front door.

"Hey Benny" he called brightly.

He turned around to look at him. "Hey Nicely" he greeted him with a much less bright tone.

"Are you okay? I'm a bit worried about you"

Benny looked at him blankly for a moment and then realized he had been asked a question "hmm? Oh um…yeah, yeah I'm fine, just sorting through some stuff." He turned back to the door, opened it walked through and failed to close it properly behind him.

Nicely went to the door and looked out. "Benny where are you going?" he called. Benny didn't respond. "Benny!" he called a bit louder. There was still no response from him. Nicely decided that no matter how loud he yelled he wouldn't get through to him "Stay safe benny" he called instead.

Nicely went back inside and made a slightly burnt breakfast and stayed at home all day. When evening came he attempted cooking dinner in time for Benny to stumble through the door. The two ate in silence, Several times Nicely made to speak but was met with a horrible look from Benny's heavy eyes which seemed to speak a warning:

Don't you dare ask me what's going on, I am not going to tell you.

Nicely accepted that and was silent through the entire meal time which was not at all normal for him. The silence boomed around him, the ticking clock and the sound of eating filled his senses and made him feel sick. He rushed to finish eating his half cooked bean failure and when he had finished he stood up and picked up his dishes to fast so that the cutlery fell off his plate and on to the ground.

After he put his plate back down on the table and then he bent down to pick up his cutlery but there was already a hand holding them, Benny had got there first. Nicely met Benny's eyes and was met with the most intense stare he had seen, eyes boring into his brain and holding him there pinned and feeling chills down his spine. Benny pretty much shoved the cutlery into his hand and sat up rigidly.

"Thanks" managed Nicely's dry throat before he put his cutlery back on his plate and walked with his dishes to the kitchen sink.

Rather confused and a little frightened he ran the water into the sink until it was so hot that it hurt to touch and started scrubbing his plate more harshly than it deserved. In the background he could hear Benny clearing his dishes and bringing them to him at the kitchen sink.

Nicely turned around to take the plates off Benny who he thought was standing a reasonable distance behind him but found him to be a lot closer than he had thought. He turned and found himself standing so close that he was pretty much touching Benny. Even though Nicely was about the same height as Benny he felt like Benny was currently towering over him. Their closeness felt so right yet how could it be? Nicely felt he needed to be even closer but he didn't know why. He found himself staring back into the intense gaze as if he was daring Benny to come even closer. Strangely it worked and their noses touched building tension which Nicely needed to break, his lips were suddenly dry and his breath faster and shallower. Nicely knew that now would be the time to go in for the kiss but he knew that he just couldn't do it.

Hang on… the KISS!? He thought to himself.

Well it did feel as though a kiss would be appropriate as Benny was…Snaking an arm around his waist?

Benny was reaching around Nicely to put his plates into the sink behind him. The dishes clattered into the sink behind him and Benny moved away, turned and left the room. Nicely just stood there trying to get his breath back to normal. He held the bench so tight that his knuckles went white because he was scared he would fall from the sudden weakness in his knees.

What was Benny playing at, was he tired or still a bit drunk? Nicely didn't know and that frustrated him.

What was he playing at? Why did he feel that he should've kissed Benny? He felt like he had done the wrong thing by not kissing Benny and missed the closeness of their bodies touching.

Nicely decided that he felt he way he did because he hadn't been seeing any dolls recently… recently? He thought about the last time he taken a doll out. Her name had been Alice, she was from Brooklyn, he had taken her dancing. That was early last October, now it was the 19th February. Five months he had been out of the dating game, to preoccupied with the crap game he supposed. It was Funny what a ...year? of gambling could do to someone's priorities. A year, a year, a year! In one week it was whole year since he had first walked into Nathan's crap game. A year since he and Benny met. He and Benny needed to have a one year celebration, you could even call it a anniversary.