Thanks for all the revieeeews! dances about happily They inspire me to continue writing! Well, along with these weird little plotbunnies that keep popping up in my head. O.0 This chapter was so exceedingly fun to write, and it came out so loooong! I was pretty much amazed. I guess when I was planning it out in my head, I didn't realize how much writing it would actually take, lol. But it actually went quite fast, which is always a good thing. It just kinda… flooooowed. Ooooh. XD
But I shall stop boring you with this endless chatter. On to the fic!
Disclaimer: All the characters belong to Disney and Pixar, and not to me… I don't even have any original characters to call my own. ;; Lol.
The Art of Seduction
By Basil-Ovelby
Chapter 4
Chapter 4: The First Test
Once you have followed the first three chapters diligently for a few weeks, you will probably be ready for this first test. This test is designed so that you will know whether or not you are ready to continue on, or if you need to go back and spend more time on the initial steps. This test is an significent part of the process, so treat it as very important and regard the results carefully.
For this test, you will need a close friend. What you must do is try and make your love interest jealous by being very flirty, but not too flirty, with your friend. Don't go overboard with this or you will totally throw them off. Just a little bit. Hopefully, you will notice small changes in your love interest's mannerism, maybe even without them knowing it. Because of what you've been doing in the earlier chapters, it should cause some feelings to start rising up in them.
Here are some actions for you to watch out for: staring at you while you're flirting, specifically not looking at you while you're flirting, trying to get between you and your friend somehow and trying to talk to you a lot while you're with your friend. Of course, there are many others as well. You must also remember what your love interest's personality is like anyway, so that you can judge if something is rather out-of-character for them in this regard. If you see many of these responses in your love interest, then you should be ready to move on to the next chapter. If not, work your magic with the first three chapters for a while longer and try again…
Junior awoke the next morning to find Strip cuddling against his arm, still fast asleep. He panicked a bit at first, looking around the room. It wasn't quite as bright as normal in the room, and he could hear the sound of rain falling on the roof. He looked to the bathroom and saw a light on.
The movement caused Strip to stir in his sleep, slowly waking him up. He groggily opened his eyes. "Mornin', Junior…" He nuzzled his head in the other's shoulder, still sleepy.
Junior could have melted into a pile of mush right then and there. He was just so CUTE!
"M-morning, Strip."
Strip slowly sat up and rubbed his eyes, only able to keep them half-open. There was the sound of a brush being set down from the bathroom and Lynda appeared in the doorway.
"You guys up?"
Strip looked drearily over to his wife. "Mmm…" He looked about ready to fall back asleep. Lynda chuckled and walked over, giving her husband a quick kiss. Junior sat up, stretching his arms over his head.
"It doesn't look like it's gonna be a very nice day…" Lynda commented, turning her head towards the nearest window. Rain was coming down in steady torrents.
"Guess we won't be able to do anything outside today." Junior yawned and crawled forward a little bit on the bed to get out of the covers. He plopped back down at the end of the bed and stretched his legs as far as he could in front of him.
"I'll go finish up in the bathroom so you boys can shower." Lynda made her way back to the bathroom.
Junior nodded his head slightly and rested his arms back on the bed. "Hey Strip, you wanna shower first or can I?" He waited for an answer, but didn't get one. "Strip?" He turned around to find that Strip had lain back down and was now snoring contentedly. "Strip!"
------------------------
Breakfast that morning was located inside the café because of the rain. Junior had been introduced to two new people – the local sheriff and a small Italian man named Luigi. It was extremely amusing listening to the Italian man talk about a brand new shipment of tires he'd gotten in just yesterday. If there was one thing the man was, it was passionate about his work.
Junior was enjoying his bacon, idly swinging his legs back and forth under the table. He had taken the spot across from Strip and kept glancing up to take in the older man's adorable self. He was also trying to think about who he would have help him with this "test" of his.
"And so then, I tell the delivery man… 'the tires on your truck look not so good,' and he say back…"
Junior brought a piece of bacon to his mouth and watched Strip from across the table. Strip was munching on some eggs and watching Luigi talk with the Sheriff and his wife, chuckling to himself. His hair was still wet from his shower, but his hat covered most of it. Junior stared at the older man's mouth, wondering what it would be like to kiss him…
Strip looked back to his food to grab a few more forkfuls of eggs and his eyes met Junior's on their way back up. Junior immediately darted his eyes away, suddenly interested in a sign on the wall behind the table. His heart pounded loudly in his chest.
When he saw Strip turn back to the conversation, he let himself grin and focus on something other than the sign. He bit off another chunk of bacon happily.
Flo came out of the kitchen, carrying a tray. She set down a few coffee mugs in the middle of the table, followed by a large pot of coffee and a small ceramic holder containing sugar packets and creamer.
"Can I get anyone else anything? Butter? Jam?"
"I'm fine, thank you." Lynda smiled up at her, reaching forward to take one of the mugs. There was a murmur of agreement from the rest of the table. Flo went around and began to take the plates away from people who were done eating.
As she was taking the plates back into the kitchen, she turned back towards the table for a second. "Hey, Ramone and I are plannin' on eatin' out tonight. Thought you folks might like to join us seein' as you don't really know a lot of places around here."
Junior, Strip and Lynda all looked over to her. Strip raised his hat a little so he could scratch his head. "Well hey, that's mighty kind of ya." He turned to Lynda, first giving Junior a quick glance. "What do you guys think?"
Junior leaned his elbows on the table. "Sounds good to me. It's not like we had any other plans tonight."
Lynda nodded in agreement. "That would be wonderful."
Flo smiled and used her hip to start opening the kitchen door. "Great! We'll probably leave around 6:00 or so." And with that, she was back in the kitchen.
Junior reached out to take one of the coffee mugs and waited for Strip to finish pouring his coffee so he could pour his own. As he took the pot from the older man, he made sure to innocently brush past his hand. Hey, he might not be on that chapter anymore, but it didn't mean he couldn't still try.
As he began to pour his coffee, the door to the café burst open and Junior gave a slight jump. Everyone at the table turned to see who it was. He only needed a glance at the green color of the newcomer's racing jacket to know who it was and his hand immediately tightened around the handle of the pot.
"Well, well, well, if it isn't his majesty, the King. Didn't ever expect to see you out here in this dump of a town."
Strip turned to face the man, a slight frown on his face. "Chick, what'r you doin' here?"
"I could ask the same thing to you." Chick sauntered over. He picked up an apple from the center bowl on another table, polishing it on his shirt. "I kinda figured after your retirement you might crawl into a hole somewhere and die quietly." He took a large bite out of the apple.
Strip immediately stood up, his hand gripping the table tightly. Nobody at the table said a word, just watching both men wide-eyed. "You wanna say that again, buddy?"
Chick walked closer still, one hand on his hip as he took another bite of the apple. "I said you're done, loser. Your reign is over!" Apple sprayed from his mouth onto Strip's face.
Strip scowled and brought his hand up to wipe it away, but before he could, Chick had his chin firmly in his hand. He brought the older racer's face close to his own, wiping a piece away with his thumb. "But don't worry… when I rule the track, I won't forget to come thank you…" He grinned devilishly.
Junior couldn't take it anymore. Darting forward from his seat, he shoved the dark-haired man away, almost toppling him over. He stepped in front of Strip to guard him against the other man.
Chick gave a small laugh and straightened his jacket. "Ooh, someone's a little protective." He took a step towards Junior. "But don't worry, lover boy, I'm not here to steal your-"
Junior's hand quickly went to Chick's mouth and he gripped the other man's shoulder. He turned to look sheepishly at Strip and the others, forcing a laugh. "Ahaha… Chick and I need to, er, talk about something. We'll just… go over here now." He dragged Chick over a couple of tables and plopped him down in a chair. He gave a glance back to see Strip scratching his head in confusion.
"What was that all about?" Chick barked, weaseling his way away from Junior's hand. Junior sighed and settled down in the seat across from Chick.
"What do you mean 'what was that all about'? You're the one causing the commotion, you idiot." He glared at Chick, his anger coming back now that the near disaster was over.
Chick smirked, glancing at what was left of his apple and tossing it onto the table. "Aw, well, it's bound to happen, you know? Not everybody can be the best like me." Junior growled angrily. Chick merely turned his eyes to towards the younger racer, sneering. "But, as I was about to say, I'm not here for the old man. I'm here for Lightning."
Junior formed an inquisitive expression on his face. "You like Lightning?"
Chick sat back and crossed his arms. "Yes, I… what!" He lurched forward. "No! Of course not! That's not what I meant at all!"
Now it was Junior's turn to smirk. "Yeah, well, that's probably good. He pretty much belongs to Sally, now."
Chick raised an eyebrow. "Sally? Ha! Funny you should say that since I just saw him snoggin' that tow trucker last night at the impound!"
"Mater?"
Chick nodded with a grin. "Yup! Goin' at it like rabbits." He scratched under his nose. "In fact, I find the two of them there more nights than I don't."
It took Junior a few minutes to get the bewildered expression off his face. He hadn't been expecting that at all. He brought his hand up to scratch his chin. "Well… I must say, that is a surprise." He eyed Chick from across the table. "But wait… why are you watching him at the impound?"
"Why do you think?"
"'Cuz you liiiiike him?"
Chick slapped his forehead in exasperation. "No! I'm spying on him, you nitwit! I'm gonna need all the information about him I can get in order to rightfully claim this year's Piston Cup!"
Junior narrowed his eyes in amusement. "And collecting this information also means watching him getting it on with another guy?"
"Yes! NO! I mean, no, I just happened upon it, ok? You kinda run into that stuff when you spy on someone all the time. Geeeez." He pushed a stray lock of hair that had gotten loose from his outburst back behind his ear.
"Ok, ok, sure. I'll take your word for it." Junior leaned back in his seat. He saw movement out of the corner of his eye and turned to see a set of blonde-haired twins come out of the kitchen and start wiping down tables. He'd seen them before, but for the life of him he could not remember their names…
"So yeah, that's why I'm here. A smart racer knows everything about his enemy."
Junior turned back to Chick. "Yeah, sure, Chick. But you don't see me spying on anyone."
"Well, kid, you've gotta have some kind of chance, first." He grinned, laughing to himself.
Junior gave him a blank stare, realizing it wasn't even worth it to get angry. He looked back to Strip and the others and saw them talking amongst themselves once again. Strip turned his eyes to glance over at Junior, but quickly turned back when he saw the younger racer looking in his direction.
Junior felt a goofy grin form on his face and turned back to see Chick ogling one of the twins.
"Heeey, there, babe." He had his hands behind his head, leaning back in his chair. "How 'bout you and me, we see the sights around here? I've got plenty for you to see back in my room…"
The pig-tailed girl turned up her nose and looked away disdainfully. "I wouldn't consider going anywhere with you even if you were the last guy on earth!"
Chick laughed and turned back to Junior. "I think she likes me."
Junior cocked and eyebrow. "Sure, Chick. I'm sure that's exactly what she's…" His eyes opened wide at a sudden thought. "Chick… CHICK!" He leaned his elbows on the table and pushed himself closer to the other man.
Chick jerked back in surprise. "Eeeyah, what?"
"I need you to flirt with me!"
Chick looked at him in disbelief, finally a very amused smile forming on his face. "Well, now, that's sorta direct, don't ya think? I mean, normally you don't ask that kinda thing…"
"No, no!" Junior let himself fall back into his chair. "I need you to just pretend to flirt with me… and then I'll pretend back."
Chick scratched his head in confusion. "Wait… what?" He looked over at Junior as if to get where he was coming from. For a split second, he saw Junior's eyes glance towards the other table. Chick felt a devilish smile form on his face as he followed Junior's eyes. "Aaahhh… so little Junior does want to get lucky with the old man."
Junior felt his face get hot. "Well, I, er…"
"Say no more, my friend. I think this is something I could have fun with." Chick gave a laugh. "Now… do you want me to be hopelessly-smitten…" With his back on the table, he slid across to Junior, his hands clasped innocently. "… or ravenously sex-hungry?" He slid himself up and situated his legs around Junior, using his collar to pull the younger man closer to him.
"Eee!" Junior pushed the older man away. "Not yet, not yet!" He quickly glanced over to the other table and was relieved to see none of them looking in their direction. He straightened his collar. Chick was giving him a very amused look from his spot on top of the table. "We need… we need a more… opportune time…" Junior explained.
He rubbed his chin in thought, staring down at the table. "When would be a good time… a time with not too many other people and where he'd definitely be close enough to see everything…?" The thought came to him suddenly. "DINNER!" He clamped his hand over his mouth in surprise at how loud that had come out. "Dinner!" He whispered through his hand. "Flo and Ramone are taking the three of us out to dinner tonight. You come along too!"
Chick rapped on Junior's head. "Uh, earth to Junior! Strip does not like me. What makes you think he or anyone else will let me come to dinner?"
Junior gave a sly smile. "Just leave that to me."
--------------------------
Back at the motel, Strip had taken to reading a book on the bed and Junior decided to get out of his wet clothes after being in the rain. Lynda had gone to check out Lizzie's store since she loved little knick-knacks and collectibles.
Junior looked at himself in the mirror in the bathroom. He'd hung his clothes over the shower rack and was now wearing a towel around his waist. "You can do this!" He told himself, trying to look as confident as possible.
With an abrupt turn, he started for the door. He held his breath and turned the knob, opening the door a crack. He saw Strip on the bed. He had turned the bedside lamp on in order to get enough light to read. Summoning all his courage, he opened the door the rest of the way and stepped out into the room.
He yawned and stretched his arms above his head innocently. "It feels good to get out of those clothes! It was raining pretty hard, huh?"
Strip turned his head to look at him and gave a little nod, then returning to his book. Junior nonchalantly sauntered over to the bed, crawling up onto it.
"Whatcha readin'?" He did his best to look sweetly inquisitive.
Strip turned the book so that Junior could see the cover.
"A Home at the End of the World…?" Strip nodded and positioned the book so he could read again. "Never heard of it…"
He watched Strip read for a few seconds. "Must be pretty good, huh?" Strip nodded again.
After waiting a few more seconds, Junior leaned his head over as if he wanted to see what Strip was reading. He let his head gently rest on the older man's shoulder as he looked up at the book. By now he had his arms wrapped around Strip's arm.
He read a few random lines. "Doesn't look all that good to me." He turned his head to look at Strip.
"It is." Strip kept staring straight at the book.
Junior watched the other man continue to read. "Hey Strip?" I, uh, wanted to talk to you about something."
His eyes didn't leave the book. "Mm?"
"Well, it's about Chick…"
Strip stopped reading, turning to look at Junior. "What about Chick?"
"Well, uh…" Junior made light circles on Strip's arm with his finger. "I was talking to him this morning, you know… and well, he really, uh, really wants to say that he's sorry."
"Does he now?"
Junior nodded his head. "Mmhmm." He brought his legs forward and lightly felt one of his feet touch Strip's leg. "He said, he said… that… he's just had a bad, er, couple of weeks, and that he doesn't really mean what he said…" He walked his hand across Strip's chest and moved up to straighten out the other man's collar.
"Oh… oh really?"
Junior put on a sort of pouty face. "And… I felt kinda sorry for him, you know? It made me feel kinda bad. So… I invited him to come to dinner with us tonight, to… make up and all." He slid his foot to the inside of Strip's leg and slowly began traveling upwards. "Is that ok with you?"
An audible gulp came from Strip's throat as he just stared wide-eyed at Junior. Junior smiled back innocently.
"Well… well, I, uh… I guess that would be ok. I mean… he is sorry, right?"
"Mmhmm."
"Sure then, yeah… w-why not?"
Junior smiled happily. "Thanks, Strip!" With that, he bounded off the bed and over to his suitcase, grabbing the clothes he'd set out earlier. With a little twist on his foot, he then made his way back into the bathroom to change. This was turning out perfect. Just perfect.
-------------------------
Junior fidgeted nervously during the car ride to the restaurant they were going to. He gave a side-glance to Chick, sitting next to him. He wasn't really sure what he was worried about, but he just couldn't get that nervous, uneasy feeling out of his stomach.
He'd told Chick to wait until they were in the restaurant. He wasn't sure why he did this either, except that he figured it would be really awkward to start in the car. He idly bounced his leg up and down, clenching and unclenching his hands.
Strip looked over to him and set his hand on his leg, forcing the bouncing to stop. "What's got you so jittered up?"
Junior faked a little laugh. "Jittered? Haha, nothing's got me jittered up. I'm just excited is all."
Strip gave him a cock-eyed look but didn't say anything. Junior felt the car come to a stop, and Ramone shifted it into park. "Come on, everyone, let's get us some food!" Flo exclaimed happily, getting out of the car.
Chick, being on the end, opened the back door and hopped out. He turned back around to see Junior coming to the door after him. "Here, let me help you." He took Junior's wrist and guided him towards the door, letting his hand rest on Junior's back. He glanced up to see Strip watching as he waited, and with a silent snicker, let his hand slide to rest on Junior's rear. He grinned devilishly up at Strip as the older man stared back wide-eyed.
"Thanks, Chick." Junior straightened out his jacket as he stood up straight outside of the car, oblivious to what had just happened. Chick followed him closely as he began to walk after Flo and Ramone, Strip and Lynda getting out of the car. With quite a bit more show than necessary, he threw his around Junior's shoulder and pulled the younger man closer to him as they walked. This was going to be even more fun than he had initially thought.
Once they were all inside the restaurant, it didn't take long for them to get their table. They followed the waiter to a table with three chairs on each side. Junior looked around as he walked, taking in the scenery of the restaurant. It was fairly dark inside, but it was lit up by sconces on the wall and hanging light-fixtures centered over every table. About half the other tables were taken with other customers.
"Here you are, sirs." The waiter put menus down in front of every chair.
"Hey, Junior. Here, sit here." Chick pulled out one of the chairs on an end and gestured down to it. When Junior sat down, Chick took the seat right next to him. Lynda walked over to take the seat next to Chick. Flo and Ramone sat on the opposite side, with Strip taking the only seat left – the one across from Junior.
"Mm, I'm excited! I haven't had food like this in tooo long." Flo happily opened her menu.
"You're tellin' me, man." Ramone brushed a few hairs out of his eyes and picked up his own menu.
Chick gave a huge yawn and stretched his arm up. When he saw Strip glance up at him from across the table, he let it fall down to rest on the back of Junior's chair. "So Junior, what are you having?"
"Uhhh…" Junior was perusing the menu. "I'm not sure yet…"
Chick leaned closer. "I would suggest the, uh…" he glanced down at the menu. "Stone Soup Deluxe." He had lowered his voice so only Junior could hear him.
"Do you even know what that is?" Junior narrowed his eyes in amusement.
"Ahaha, er, no." They both gave a little chuckle. From across the table, Strip couldn't hear what they were saying. He just saw Chick lean over and whisper something to the younger man, resulting in them both laughing. He narrowed his eyes slightly.
Over the course of the meal, Chick continued to flirt ostentatiously with Junior, always making sure that Strip was looking at them. From seductively placing Junior's napkin on his lap, to playfully feeding him his first bite, to lovingly wiping his face after the meal, Chick had every angle covered. This was his playing field. He didn't do anything directly to Strip until the meal was nearing its end.
Continually glancing over at the older racer, he finally caught the other's eye. Strip raised his eyebrow in a rather bemused look. Slowly, making sure Strip knew exactly what he was doing, he lowered his eyes to focus on his hand, resting innocently on the table. Strip's eyes followed. Ever so subtly, he let his hand move off the table and make its way over to the gap between Junior's legs.
The sudden sound of someone coughing violently stirred Junior from his spacing out. He looked across the table to see Strip with his fist at his mouth, covering his cough. "I'll… I'll be right back," he made out through his fits, then standing up and quickly making his way to the restroom.
Junior stared after him worriedly. "Poor guy, musta had somethin' stuck in his throat." Flo murmured from across the table. Junior turned to look at Chick, who just gave him an innocent shrug.
After they had paid and were ready to go, they began to gather up their belongings and make their way to the door. Junior noticed that Strip kept giving him glances out of the corner of his eye. He wondered if the plan had worked. He hadn't really noticed anything during dinner, but now Strip was definitely paying more attention to him.
As they walked outside, Junior felt a slight tug at the end of his jacket sleeve and turned around to find Strip's hand latched onto his sleeve. While inside his head he was gushing about how adorably cute Strip looked and frantically wondering what he was going to do next, outside, he put on his best befuddled face. "What is it, Strip?"
"H-hey, would you… would you sit by me on the way home? I wanted to talk with ya about somethin'."
"Sure. It's fine by me." Junior felt like screaming for joy.
When Strip had said "sit by me," he had really meant it. He had Junior get in the car first, so that he sat on the end. Strip then took the spot next to Junior, not letting anyone else sit by the younger racer. Lynda climbed in to sit next to Strip. When Chick got into the car, Junior saw him make a fishing pole motion with his hands, mouthing the words "reel him in".
Once everyone was in, Ramone started the car, and they began the drive back to Radiator Springs. Junior sat in silence, his hands between his knees, as he watched out the darkened window. The only things he could make out were the stars in the sky.
"Well, that was fun, huh?" Flo looked back to the four people in the back seat. "Thanks for comin' with us."
"Thanks for treatin' us!" Lynda smiled.
"It was no problem. It's more fun with a bigger group anytime!" Ramone clicked a button to turn on the cruise-control.
Junior turned just enough so that he could see Strip. The older man didn't say anything or look at him. Junior idly wondered if the other man had just said the first thing he could think of that would result in him not sitting next to Chick. He didn't really have anything he needed to talk about.
The rest of the ride home was pretty uneventful, and soon the four of them were clambering their way out of the back seat again, stepping out in front of the Cozy Cone.
"We'll see you guys tomorrow, then." Flo gave them a little wave out the window.
"See ya, thanks again!" Junior waved back. There were a few more goodbye's, and then the car drove off a little ways to park inside Ramone's body art shop.
A little awkwardly, Junior looked around at the other three. He wasn't sure what to do. He knew that he wanted to talk to Chick – he had probably seen more of what happened at the restaurant, and he wanted to get his opinion on everything. The four of them took a few steps towards the door to their room.
"Hey, uh… I'll be in in a little bit, ok? I need to talk to Chick." Junior scratched the back of his neck, feeling a bit embarrassed.
Strip's eyes got a little wider and he looked at Chick and then back to Junior. "Ok. We'll leave the door unlocked." He turned around to the motel room a tad bit dejectedly and watched as Lynda unlocked the door.
Junior motioned for Chick to follow him and they set off walking in the other direction. When they were far enough away, Chick turned to him. "Maaan, you've got him, like, hook, line and sinker!"
Junior's face lit up. "Really? I mean, yeah, he did look kinda bummed and all…"
"Are you kiddin' me? That guy's seriously got somethin' for you. You didn't even see the half of what happened tonight."
Junior felt like he could float away he was so happy. He had hoped for good news, but this was like… too good to be true!
"I would be careful though… it looks more to me like he hasn't really acknowledged the fact that he likes you. He just kinda knows it and acts on instinct. Otherwise he probably would have been a bit more forward." Chick rubbed his chin thoughtfully.
"What do you think I should do then?" Junior stuck his hands in his jacket pockets.
"Hmmm… well… I'd say… take him out, go do something… just the two of you. I really doubt that he'd ever make the first move… but just see if he does anything else. Eventually you're just gonna have to tell him yourself."
"Yeah… I figured." Junior was never good with that kind of stuff. The two of them stood in silence for a minute or so, Junior thinking back on the night. "Well, thanks for everything, Chick. I really owe ya one."
"Aww, don't worry about it. Just call me the love doctor, ahaha." He shuffled his feet a bit. "'Sides, it was pretty fun." He reached out to pat Junior on the shoulder. "Oh, hey, and if you ever want to have a go I'm always avai-hey!" He stopped in mid-sentence, staring off a little ways down the road.
Junior looked towards where Chick was looking and saw a figure walking towards them.
"It's Lightning!" Chick whispered harshly. "Stay here, stay here." And with that, he was off, walking quickly to meet the other man.
Junior watched him in amusement, leaning back on the building behind him. He saw Chick pretend to act surprised at seeing him, then proceed to jeer a bit, standing back with his arms crossed. Lightning didn't look too happy. Junior wondered if Chick would ever get over his childish ways and stupid grudges. He just needed to lighten… up… a little… Ok, now THAT was unexpected.
Chick had Lightning up against the wall, kissing him roughly. Lightning looked extremely shocked at first, but then gave in, kissing back with equal fervor. Junior watched wide-eyed as Chick began to slide off Lightning's jacket, pushing him over and back so that they disappeared around the side of the building.
Junior just stood there, staring at the spot where they'd once stood. "Ooook." He reached up to push back his hair. "You don't like him, my ass." He smirked.
Rubbing his eyes, he turned around and started to head back to the motel. When he opened his eyes again, he saw Strip standing on the sidewalk in front of him. "Oh! Strip!" He stopped walking. "What are you doing?"
Strip cocked his head a little to the side. "I was… worried about you. Came out to check and make sure you were ok."
Junior practically melted at the adorable expression on the older man's face. "Ahaha, thanks…" He rubbed the back of his neck. "I'm comin' back in now, though."
Strip glanced around. "Where's Chick?"
"Oh, he's screwing Lightn-SCREWING! Screwing… in a… light-bulb! Yeah, a light-bulb! One of the lights went out at the fire station." His panic died down.
"Oh."
"Yeah… that's what, er, that's what he wanted to tell me…?" Junior could have slapped his forehead. Could he ever sound stupider?
"I see."
Junior scratched a little under his chin and looked at Strip. "Come on… let's head back over to the room. If I don't get in bed soon you'll have to carry me back!"
Strip gave him a small smile. "Ok."
The two walked back in companionable silence.