"…Well, one time we tricked this dumb asshole into buying us cigars and booze from the liquor store, and Grubber just had to fake being his wife…"
"JAJAJAJAJA! And he fell for it? Gods that's so funny…"
The hours seemed to be flying by as they measured them with pizza slices and old anecdotes. A bit of videogames here and there, a bit of playing fetch with Biff (which he noted she did not like, but she hid it well), and then it was just relaxing by the floor with ten boxes of pizza at the side. He guessed it wasn't as glamorous as beauty day with the girls on a slumber party, but it would do fine.
"Yeah Grubber can make many voices!" Billy added. "See, one time he tricked the Major to leave office and we entered there, and made crank calls to the villains with the Powerpuff hotline!"
"WHAT!?"
"Yeah! It was fun!" Arturo echoed Billy's laughs.
Jordan's eyes just kept widening as the boys all chortled in unison remembering that afternoon.
"…Until Mojo came and gave us the beating of the century." Ace finished. That beating still hurt in the mornings, at times…
"Mojo…?"
"Giant green monkey. Bent on world domination. Very dangerous."
"Oh that Mojo!" Now she was the one laughing loudly. "I thought you meant Andy Mojo, famous conceptual artist."
The cheese from her slice was sliding off into the floor. At any moment Biff would enter the shack and start snacking on the leftovers, as he tended to do. He wouldn't worry about the pooch, tho. Ace was sure he had guts of steel, considering it ate anything its snout found and had never fallen ill, at least as long as he'd been with the gang.
"…Ah…You pranked Mojo Jojo, what did you expect? Some villains in this town you just don't prank."
"Well, we had fun." And sometimes, that's all that matters.
"This other time, there was a music contest and we entered as a boy band…And we won!"
"Awww, you'd all be such a cute boy band…I'd go to all your concerts…"
"No, we were aiming for the PG crowd." Keep biting, Snake, keep biting. The venom dripping from his fangs wouldn't affect her as much as he believed.
Nevertheless, Arturo continued as if he wasn't interrupted.
"…But then it was all really a secret conspiracy to brainwash people to join the navy, so it went down the flush the moment the Powerpuff Girls knew…"
"HAHAHAHAHHA! Wait, you serious? Not punking me?"
"Mad Magazine almost made a cover of us going down the toilet. "Pukegreen Gang!""
"Oh my, I wish I had seen that." She chortled. "Pukegreen Gang! That's a good one!"
"…It worked for Ace tho, years later he auditioned for this outside band and he played for a while."
"…It worked well enough…But I missed the stench of this town." He shrugged. "With the money gained I bought Vera, but you know, it went as quickly as it came."
"Ah, so youarea musician. How talented, Ace."
And they talked, more and more, until one moment, where Arturo checked his watch…
"Hey, isn't it already pretty late? Don't you have to go home?"
He widened his eyes.
"3 am!"
And then she widened her eyes.
"…You're right, I didn't remember the time…" She rose and grabbed her purse, speeding right to the door. "…But oh, I'm so far from home, going alone walking or the subway…That'd be dangerous…Maybe I should've left earlier…"
She conveniently paused her hand over the doorknob.
"But we were havin' fun! It's not just your fault…" Arturo objected. Him and Billy had followed behind her.
"Please Ace, can't she stay?" He turned at his brother with pleading eyes. He looked back, surprised.
"Yeah, boss, it gets cold at night!"
"Well, I'm really not herboss…"
"She's a big girl, she can go home by herself…" He figured Snake would be the one person to object. Besides Grubber, he had been the only one not wooed by Jordan's charm throughout the night.
But Arturo insisted.
"It can get dangerous at night…Just tonight won't hurt…And she could leave tomorrow morning."
"I promise I don't eat more than I intend, and that I occupy very little space."
Her eyes were narrowed, but he had a difficult time reading her emotions. Even her delivery was flat.
Finally, he turned to Grubber. With less emotional input than the others, he could get to the most objective decision easily.
But he just rasped nonchalantly.
"You're the boss."
Well, he was right, after all. He shouldn't hesitate for such a basic decision.
"…Alright, alright, let's give her some space, maybe on the couch."
"Aww yeah boss!"
"Good thinking Ace!"
"Ooooh, thank you thank you thank you!" And she threw herself into his arms, wrapping him in another hug.
Clever fox.Even amidst her hugs, he noticed her narrowed, sultry eyes observing him with that calling expression; the same one of the night they met. Were all of them so easily fooled by a pair of pretty eyes?
Ex-nay on Sedusa, Ace. Think on the now.
But on the other hand, what did she gain from staying one night in a dinky shack? What was the alternative? Walking alone on the streets at 4 am? Oh yeah, her only benefits were not dying. How greedy.
"Good, I'm gonna call Randy to tell him where I am."
"Randy?"
"My boss."
"Oh." He felt stupid. "Yeah yeah, do as you must. Boys," -he called-, "give her some privacy."
She smiled as she ventured outside, her phone already on her palm. As she began ringing the number, Snake slithered onto his left.
"I can't believe you let her fool you so easily."
"You know what happens to girls like her walking alone at 4 am, no?"
"All the better!" He fumed. "Do you believe this whole "saint hooker" schtick? What if she's planning to rob us while we're asleep?"
"Oh yeah, she's gonna gain so much by our moldy couch, or the pizza crust…"
"I'm referring to the guns and-"
"Don't be a douchebag, okay?" His voice slightly raised. "She works, she has her own income, I've paid her so far, and once she arrived she almost gagged at the sight. She didn't even know who I was the first time we met. If she wanted to rob me she would've done so already."
Snake didn't reply afterwards, but Ace swore he heard some abandoned mutterings under his breath. Your cashand droolingamong the few choice words.
Once she returned, she carried a song on her lips and a bounce on her step.
"Boys boys boys, we like boys in cars, buying strings in bars…"She paused at the boys' sight. "Good news, Randy is ok with it. He thinks I also need a slumber party every once in a while."
So they cheered, for more hours of pizza, drinking and weed came ahead. More hours of laughter, dumb pranks, quoting song lyrics, remembering crap no one had else had recalled for years…
The next morning, even getting up was a chore. Something had glued him to the floor, and it felt like nails to even move an inch of his arm.
He first took hold of his glasses, though. Anything else could go, but the glasses were a must.
Based on the nearby sound of barking, it seemed Billy was already up, tending to Biff's needs. When the dog eats more than us…
But somebody else seemed already up. Jordan was singing as she seemed to be searching for something at their improvised kitchen. Well, if they could call it "kitchen"…
"I wanna just dance but he took me home instead…""Don't sing so early…" Snake's early words echoed throughout the shack. Soon enough, Arturo and Grubber also woke up.
"Sorry." She then turned to Ace, giving him a lazy smile. "Good morning, boss."
"I'm not your…"
" You got a shower around here? A hose? I know maybe you guys find it cute to be covered in dirt, but I need to shower."
"I know of a hose…"
Ssh, Snake.
"On the back, outside, there's a small shower. We'll give you some privacy."
"Much needed, thank you…"
He wondered if a shower was much needed, considering she would still dress with the sweaty clothes of last night. Ah well, her logic, her decisions.
After changing clothes and a few choice words, once the gang said their goodbyes and see-you-soons; Ace accompanied her towards the entrance to the dump.
Once alone, she lit another cigarette.
"Hey, you guys are not that bad. The stuff they tell about you is overblown."
"Stuff?"
"Yeah, nasty gossip. People say you're like these mega terrorists that wanna blow up the city hall…Pfft, you only play prank calls…You're punks. The number of punks I've thrown out of my bed…!"
"Well…" Could he say it? Their activities were not as innocent as she figured. But, knowing the people she hung around it, maybe she wouldn't be that shocked either way.
"We've also…Uh…"
"Robbed liquor stores?"
"…Yeah."
"Beaten other gangs?"
"Yup."
"Hijacked cars?"
"Obviously." At this point she was basically reading their resume.
And yet she calmly shrugged at all of that.
"That's just normal where I live. Frankly I'd wonder what'd be wrong with you guys, knowing where you live, if you had no arms."
"Well, we have bad press." And they weren't entirely innocent, either. Sure, not on the levels of criminal activity as Mojo Jojo or Fuzzy Lumpkins when enraged, but they weren't just a bunch of innocent slackers either.
"I figured."
"So how much for last night?"
"Just for the date, some 150$. I won't charge you for keeping me at night."
"No?"
Her eyes lit up.
"That was sweet, actually. You could've just sent me off but you didn't." Even her smile seemed earnest.
Yeah, you never would've allowed it.But again, what could he again out of shaming her for staying the night over? He played with people before for pettier reasons.
"By the way, I think I forgot. Here's my number." She passed him a little ripped off note. "In case I'm not at Tom's."
He memorized the number as he told the paper between his fingers.
"Where else could you be?"
"Here, there, everywhere…"
"Ah, a born rebel. My type."
She smirked softly.
"I don't think it'd be too much if I asked you to drop me by in Vera? She's so, so gorgeous, to bring downtown…Plus bikers…They're just…"
"Noted."
The morning breeze would be a good wakeup call, he figured. And to have her arms wrapped around him again…
Once he returned, as he predicted, Snake was the one who greeted him. With his arms crossed over his chest, and his lips pursed; he began what he probably had been holding back since last night.
"And now you're bringing your sluts home."
"Jealous?"
"Yeah, because we all have to know how much better you are in bed than us." He rolled his eyes.
He had gotten bold over the years, Ace realized. The meeker Snake of 15 years would've never snapped that much. But eh, about time he polished his fangs.
"I also need to have fun, you know that well."
"You do you with your life, but don't be surprised the day she ditches you." He hissed. "She goes where the money flows."
"You ever get tired of spoutin' shit?"
"You're entering into the wolf's mouth and you're not even flinching. Don't cry once you get bitten."
"Ironic comin' from you."
"You know what she is, don't be naïve."
"Hence why I pay her. I have fun this way, you have it your way."
It was pathetic, really, his little jealous tantrum. Things finished with them, rather messily, and if he thought Ace was gonna lounge and whimper around like he did…
"Besides, thought you hated people judging us before knowing us? Or what, sluts don't count in that logic?"
No, he wasn't in the mood to get into a brainless argument with Snake. He needed a smoke… He turned towards Biff's box and took the lighter out, leaving his reptile friend alone. He could say whatever he wanted, but Ace was free to listen or not…
The next time they met, she took him by surprise. With the long, cascading blonde hair, and the purple jacket and black pencil skirt, for a moment he thought he had mistaken another miss for her. But the hoop earrings gave her away.
"Why blonde? It clashes with your skin tone."
"I have different wigs. I better use them. I have to look hot in every form."
"To attract clients? But right now…"
She arched an eyebrow.
"Well, don't you find it hot?"
"…Yeah, kind-"
"-So it served its purpose. Checkmate." She smirked . "Of course, I wanna try different options. Blonde, brunette, redhead…But I also wanna try more fantastical options. How about green, in your honor? Or maybe a soft deep blue sea, I always wanted to travel the ocean, of course, I remember as a girl I was told I could be a mermaid, so nothing's off the table…Of course, Iris would object, since she's the artist of the group, but as far as I know, she doesn't copyright her wigs, so…If she complains she has no leg to send me to court."
He got a little lost in her diatribe.
"Court? There's a whore court?"
She giggled.
There wasn't a set plan for today, just walk downtown and see a few shops here and there, talk…The night would be busy for him so he'd like a soft afternoon to not feel exhausted. Even she seemed to enjoy the calmer stuff sometimes over going to the disco every other night.
It was starting to get cold, too. He hoped she managed to buy clothes for the winter with all his cash, otherwise…
"You know, you can always come with us, visit us every now and then…" He began. "Billy asks for you and Arturo wants to see I skin You Part 3with you at the shack. Like…We don't even need to pay these dates, if there isn't gonna be…"
The smile she delivered him would poison his dreams for the next week.
"Ace, my sweet, you're kind but…I'm not your girlfriend."
"But-"
"Never fall in love with your clients, my sweet. It brings nothing but trouble." She sighed, but her smile never left her lips. "Love usually does."
"Tell me about it."
"What?"
"I mean…What you said. Still, wev'se had fun the other night. I'm sure you can allow yourself to take a day off, hang out with the boys…"
"…It's sweet, but I got my own life…And remember all of this is paid. I'm not sure if it could be genuine."
"Fun doesn't have a price…"
"Sometimes it does, tho. When the bread on the table depends on daily work, it does."
He got that, he really did. He rather thought he was lucky he couldn't be enamored by guns, then.
"…How does a girl like you end up in a dump like this anyways?"
"…Well, how does a boy like you end up living in an actual dump?"
"I'm not a boy."
"But you're still sleeping in a dump…" She titled her head ever so slightly, the wig's curls falling forwards.
They paused, her eyes locking with his. He was starting to hate staring deep into her eyes, but it was addictive…
"…I was out of options."
Her lips were pursed, but her eyes held a glint of mischief all the same.
"…Well, there's your answer too. I was out of options."
A sudden breeze began to blow.
"…That's too tragic. We're supposed to be having fun…"
As long as the money flows.
"No, you're right. We should be having fun." Her eyes darkened for a few seconds, but then they lightened up as quickly as a firecracker came off. "Come on, let's go to a bar, let's drink! We need to forget."
It was early to drink, but he also preferred that over analyzing vague words at the moment. He let her take his hand, and followed wherever she went.
The next night, after work, he decided he wouldn't sleep. Maybe he had finished one too many cigarettes, but the night was too harsh for him to properly rest. The world was widening, opening for him, and it limited him to just sit down and rest. That night saw him tending to Vera and Biff outside of the shack.
I was out of options.The words seemed to pierce the moon, as it looked back on him. How much of truth was it there, that the world had given its back on them, that they had to sleep by the scraps of the barrel? Then again, maybe she was lying to get sympathy points.
But, again, no girl dreams of growing up into a whore.
And sometimes, life was like that. Whores could get thrown out into the street as easily as the Gang did. There was no need for green skin or a mutation; they could even be pretty. But just the wrong words, the one angry parent…That'd be enough for them to wonder that same night where would they find their next meal.
But would it had been better for them if they didn't have the skin condition? He doubted it; the night him and Arturito ran up the river they had faced the same suspicion and loathing without the need for the mutation to pop up. He shuddered; even if he tried his damnest, he always went back to that night, to the dogs howling, the lights flashing, the ice cold water holding him back, pushing him into the abyss…
Rather, he welcomed once the green began infecting him. Arturito never wanted to forget their dad, Papi, nor their old house; but Ace saw the green as a new chance, a new life, away from fleeing, away from small racist remarks, away from suspicion. He'd take it, even if it meant new problems coming with his newfound goblin appearance, of course. But playing up the monster role is much easier.
"You're up again."
He didn't need to turn to know who that was.
"Very observant."
"You know you hate bad nights. Then you're mouthing off in the morning for coffee and to run to the nearest donut place to get some."
"So what's your deal? Worried I'm not sleeping my hours or brushin' my teeth? I'll get to it, okay mom?"
Snake crossed his arms, exhausted more than annoyed this time.
"You're not thinking of her and her delicious pussy, right?"
"Please, I have a life outside of sex."
"Doesn't seem like it."
He paused. He wasn't in the mood to get into another fight at that point.
"You sometimes think we didn't try hard enough?"
"Try in what?"
"Life, I mean." He licked his lips. "We could get a job, move to a nicer place…Do we really have to go back to stealing to get things? Get into arm trafficking? Is that the highest we'll reach, selling weed and guns to dumb teenagers and other gangs?"
Snake seemed to struggle to find a proper answer. Could there be one, one in which they could say something else aside from "too bad" or "we had no other choice"?
"Life gave up on us before we even had a chance." He hissed, then turned to look to the side. "They already beat us before we even started robbing."
And again, that was the idea. Why try, if the world would spit on them for even daring to take a step? One look at their skin and that would send most people running in the opposite direction.
But of course, the one time things were different, it did work out for him. Rather, the rest of the boys didn't know how to play any instruments, but that could be easily solvable. It was much of a gamble to enter into the music business, but if he played his cards right, then perhaps…
"We don't choose our lives, but we must do what we can with what we have, no? Great or small, we all must."
"I don't need ethics coming from you at 5 in the morning."
"Go to sleep, it's late already and I don't want you taking it out on us tomorrow."
He turned, thinking back on the bass, that was resting in one corner of the shack. Perhaps, if he still had their phone number…