Halfway across the room with a full pitcher of beer, Original Cindy spotted them. Not that it was hard. As a matter of fact, Original Cindy would place money that half the bar was giving their attention solely to Max and Alec, which was saying something at this time of night.
Sighing, Original Cindy began to maneuver towards the front of the room to rescue her friends from themselves, ignoring Sketchy's protests about the beer pitcher taking a side trip. His opinion didn't matter since she was paying, what Max and Alec were doing to get into trouble, did. The gathering crowd worried her.
For their part, the two transgenics were oblivious to the worry they were causing their friend. Fresh out of a one-hundred-and-two hour Jerry Springer marathon, and then a subsequent full day of sleep, the X5s were at the mercy of more energy than either knew they possessed.
They had brought their bicycles, to the joy of the crowd and dismay of the management, who felt that their large 'no more bike tricks' poster was pretty effective. To make matters worse, they were doing bicycle tricks to the tune of a mock Jerry Springer episode, complete with typical insults that, thankfully, couldn't be heard clearly over the ruckus of the crowd, and the throwing of beer pitchers.
Seeing the management rallying to kick them out, Max took stock of the thrown money on the floor, bets on who would kill themselves first, and screamed out, "Hey, barkeep, let's have a round for all these fine people," waving a handful of the lost bets to prove that she was serious.
As the accompanying roars of excitement screamed out, Max and Alec gradually stopped their tricks and hurried their bikes back outside, before reemerging in an attempt at nonchalance. They almost made it back through the crowd when they turned to find Original Cindy shaking her head at them and motioning towards the table where Sketchy sat. "You two, get yo fine asses in those seats, so that OC can get a decent explanation out of you away from this damn commotion."
Shrugging sheepishly, Max and Alec followed Original Cindy's directions. Unable to keep quiet until they reached the table, and wildly gesticulating Sketchy, Alec jumped in, "It was a dare."
Smirking at him, as if to say 'you're gonna get it now,' Max elaborated, "One that Alec dared. All his fault-"
Cutting in smoothly, Alec pointed out, "Hey, it was your suggestion, I just polished it."
As Original Cindy raised an eyebrow at their metaphorical finger pointing, Max hurriedly continued, "We were watching Jerry Springer, this pre-pulse show."
The two transgenics shuddered at the thought, and Alec finished, "A lot of Jerry Springer. It was the marathon that never ended."
"And then, we were kinda tired and zoned out from the TV, so we took a cat nap-" Even Max winced at the bad pun.
Not missing his cue in the slightest, Alec teased, "For a day-"
Flashing her partner in crime a stony glare, Max continued on as though she hadn't been interrupted. "And then we thought, what the hell, a reenactment would be fun-"
"But not any reenactment, something with," Alec paused dramatically, "flare-"
Rolling her eyes, Max concluded, "And that's how we came up with this."
As they reached the table that Sketchy was all but jumping on in his excitement, Original Cindy let out a long-suffering sigh and demanded, "Boos, you two done yet?"
"My God, man, next time you two are planning a bike-in against the rules, call me! You know I've got mad skills!" Sketchy was righteously indignant; both incredibly mad and thrilled that this random event had occurred.
Seeing Max and Alec about to launch into further details of their recent exploit, Original Cindy cut them all off, motioning to Sketchy with one perfectly manicured fingernail, "Boy, sit down and be quiet, don't you encourage them."
True to form, Sketchy gulped, reigned in his excitement, and sat back down. He wasn't stupid enough to piss off Original Cindy when she was so obviously irritated. He gave one last, "Wicked cool," and then closed his mouth firmly.
Allowing a slight smile to her face, as she finally set down the beer pitcher, Original Cindy admitted, "That was fun, hell'a stupid, but funny…"
Before she could continue, Max and Alec had jumped up, sharing twin grins that couldn't mean anything good. Max pouted, "Ahh c'mon now, OC, it wasn't that damaging. Look, they didn't even throw us out."
Straightening his jacket and pouring a glass of beer, Alec added with a wink, "And now, we'll retire to the pool tables to take advantage of our new popularity and beat someone other than Sketchy."
Sharing a confused look, Original Cindy and Sketchy watched the other two members of the table leave quickly. After a moment to pour more beer, Sketchy asked, "You think something's up with those two? They've been acting awfully weird."
Nodding, Original Cindy watched the loud pool game that was just starting, with the obvious winners laughing and leaning on one another. "I'd say so, Sketchy. Boy, if I didn't know better, I'd say our old carefree Max is back," she squinted at the scene before her, "and she's flirting with Golden Boy."
Sketchy nodded slightly, examining their friends more closely. There was a contemplative silence, as they watched Max and Alec easily tag-team and defeat several pool opponents.
When the fifth win came, Alec laughed and spun Max up into his arms, proclaiming cheekily, "Ladies and gentlemen, my trophy."
As expected, Max cuffed the back of his head, muttering, "Smart-Alec!" and demanding to be let down.
Putting up a mock hurt look, Alec did as asked and released Max back to the ground, obviously whining. The crowd around them had mostly dispersed with complaints about lost money. Laughing, Max stood on her tiptoes and gave Alec a quick peck on the lips, murmuring, "There, I kissed it better, now stop being a baby."
From their rather inebriated spots at the corner table, Original Cindy and Sketchy shared a glance. With a only slightly slurred voice, Sketchy declared decisively, "Original Cindy, my friend, I'd say they are more than flirting."
Laughing, Original Cindy nodded, noting that their friends were now involved in a quiet discussion, seemingly oblivious to their observers. "About damn time, Sketchy, about damn time."
Author's Note: I'm considering upping the rating to R, for the obvious reasons. (You all are gonna love the next couple of scenes.) Any suggestions/complaints, or are you all up for the ride?