"Wait, wait, wait, guys, shut up, I think I'm buzzing!"

"You are not!"

"Lucky twat."

"Naw, false alarm.  Fuck."

The three sat in a small circle, passing a half-empty bottle, cursing frequently, and sounding absolutely desperate for something to distract them from their hunger.  Winter weighed on them visibly, there was grey under their natural pallor, they were thin, sluggish, warn.  All three were chain-smoking, none of them looked likely to survive the week.  He sighed and meandered over to them.

"Give it up, boys, you won't find your limit.  I've been trying."

"Oh yeah, guys, there's really no point in all this.  After all, if DAVID can't do it, no one can."

The three of them rolled their eyes, and Marco may or may not have flipped him the bird.  David shrugged and dropped into the place the boys opened for him in the circle, "Maybe you're right, pass it here."  

The liquor made another round, this time including the eldest.

"Whose selection?"

Paul raised his right hand, as his other snagged the bottle.

"You," and David shook a chiding finger at him, "suck.  Piss is stronger than this."

Snickers presided, and once again, David might or might not have been given the finger.

"Yeh," Marco started, and then paused to swallow, "from now on, I decide what we drink around here."

"You?  What the fuck do you know about it?"

"Well, first off, smartass, I can read.  Any idiot could tell this shit is useless.  Second, my dad was a bartender, I practically grew up fetching bottles."

"Nice."

"Then it's decided.  Marco, you're our drink man."

"Hey, man, I can read, just not proof."

"The man's right, you suck.  Any idiot can read proof.  College boy can read proof, and he chills stouts."

"Fuck you," Danyel responded, "I happen to drink like a civilized person."

"Civilized or not, you don't chill stouts."

"Shit, you're a bunch of snobs."

The three of them gave Paul the finger.  The whole group slowly slipped back into moody silence, as the search for their tolerance level, and blissful drunkenness, continued.  The winter wore on, and they perservered.