NxE: Take My Lips - Chapter 6

Chapter 6 – First Date


It wasn't long before Nick decided to call Ellis.  In fact, it was roughly twelve hours, since they both needed a good night's sleep – or an attempt at one.  Nick was trying so hard to not seem desperate, but at the same time he wanted this young man more than anything he could even think of at the time.  Aside from breakfast, of course, but he wanted to share that with someone this morning.

He knew Ellis was off now because it was morning, and assuming Ellis only worked at the strip club, he should just be waking up like Nick.  The gambler didn't want long-distance charges on his cell phone, so he dialed Ellis from the room phone.  After three rings, he picked up.

"Hullo?" he asked.  Nick smirked.

"Hey kid, it's me.  Nick."

"Oh hey Nick!  Whatcha doin' up so early?"  God what a sweet, somehow-innocent voice.

"Well, I was wondering if you wanted to grab some grub today?  I'm starving and I haven't found a decent place to eat since I got to this... town."  Nick hesitated to say "hick town," since Ellis's accent wasn't exactly non-hickish.

"Yeah sure!  Ah was gonna have some food with mah best buddy Keith, as a matter a fact!"

"Keith?  Who the hell's that?" Nick asked.  It would be a question he regretted for the rest of his life.

"Glad ya asked!  Mah buddy Keith is the coolest guy in the whole world!  He does all sortsa crazy stuff all the time but he never gets hurt, somehow.  Ah dunno how he does it, he manages to escape the craziest situations without a single scar.  Can ya believe it?  Man, this one time..."

"Hey, uh, Ellis.  I'm kinda hungry.  Where's this place?"

"Oh.  Uh, well, which hotel ya at?"

Nick proceeded to give him his address, and Ellis gave him the address of the restaurant, telling him the fastest way to get to there.

"Alright kiddo, I'll see you shortly."

"Aight, later!" Ellis responded.  Nick put the phone down gently onto its resting place, getting up and stretching his old muscles.  He felt like he was awakening from a year-long slumber.  His dreams kept getting weirder and weirder, too.  He would see all sorts of monsters that would spit acid or had 100 foot-long tongues, or could jump over buildings... he was a bit concerned, because he typically had dreams that had some semblance of truth to them.  Either it was symbolic or extremely close to the truth.  What on earth was awaiting him when it came to these recurring nightmares?

He took his shower briskly, dressing quickly as he got his keys and wallet out.  He then remembered his cell phone, in case he got lost on the way.  He almost jogged down the stairs with newfound energy.

He didn't get lost on the way.

He walked into the very homely-looking establishment, glancing around at the patrons, all of whom seemed to be staring at him.  He'd tried to dress business-casual for the 'date' but he'd forgotten how many people around here did not dress like that, especially in a hole-in-the-wall food joint.  It didn't take long for him to notice Ellis waving like an idiot, sitting across the table from another surprisingly attractive redneck.  The redhead was tall, slender and had probably the darkest skin he'd ever seen on a natural redhead.  His hair wasn't the typical orange-red, but rather a deep blood-red, and his eyes were another strikingly deep shade of blue.  This redheaded hick was giving him sort of a look – like a cross between a smug smirk and a sneer.  It was rather odd, but Nick understood his intentions.  He gave no indication, showing only his poker face instead.  He sat next to Ellis, making sure to scooch closer than normal.  He didn't care about the looks he got from those around him anymore.

"Hey Nick, gladju could make it!" Ellis said enthusiastically.  Nick smirked at him before letting it disappear.

"Yeah, me too.  This your buddy?" he asked, gesturing to Keith.

"Oh, yeah, pardon mah manners," Ellis began, "This is Keith.  Keith, you obviously know Nick."

"Obviously?" Nick asked.

"Yeah!  He DJs at the... place I work at," Ellis said, quieting down.  Nick cocked an eyebrow from curiosity at his silence, then figured it out.

"Well, good to meet ya, Keith," Nick said, extending his hand forward.  Keith quickly snatched it, squeezing as hard as he could.

"Pleasure's all mine," he almost hissed.  Nick squeezed back harder.

"No, I insist," he replied, gritting his teeth.  The tension was practically pushing others away.  One short white woman next to them started to slowly slide to her left as she stared at their ridiculously harsh handshake.  However, Ellis, ever-oblivious, chuckled and scratched his head.

"Gladju two met!" he said happily.  They both let go at the same time, still glaring at one-another.  Luckily, the waitress was already stopping by, since Ellis had told her that it was a party of three.  She was a petite older lady, who apparently liked pink, judging by her light pink dress underneath her apron.

"Well hello, gentlemen!" she chimed as she sauntered up to their table.

"Hey Sarah!" Ellis responded back, equally as happy.  Keith nodded and Nick did nothing.

"What can Ah getchu fer drinks this mornin'?" she asked kindly.  Ellis ordered an orange juice, Keith ordered an iced tea and Nick ordered black coffee.

"Comin' right up!" she said as she walked off.

"Looks like someone's gotta get coffee to wake up in the mornin'.  Ah thought that was only fer old people," Keith taunted with a smirk.

"Yeah, some of us mature sooner than others," Nick shot back.  Keith bit his lip and glared, but quickly gathered himself.  Before he could say anything, however, Ellis interrupted him.

"So Mr. City Slicker!  What brings ya down here?"  Nick cocked his eyebrow.

"Savannah's a city, too."

"Yeah, but it ain't all tall buildin's!  Not like New York or somethin'," Ellis pointed out.

"Yeah, I guess.  Well, I was just going through a rough patch in life and I decided to take the next flight out, so here I am."  Holy crap, did I really just say that?

"Oh!  Problems with money?"  Nick shook his head.

"I never have problems with money."

"Yeah, jus' with everythin' else," Keith muttered to himself.

"What was that?" Nick asked.  Keith shook his head and smiled smugly.

"Nothin'," he responded.

"So whatcha down here for?" Ellis asked.  Shit.

"Well, I..."

Before he could respond, the waitress had returned in record time – less than a minute – with all three of their drinks.

"Didja fellas want the usual?" she asked as she put them down.  Nick glanced over at Ellis awkwardly.

"Oh, uh, it looks like our new friend hasn't had time to look at the menu yet," Ellis told Sarah.

"Okay hun, I'll be back soon," she said with a brilliant smile.

Nick perused while Ellis and Keith chatted about various things.  He finally settled upon eggs benedict.  Just as he'd decided, Sarah walked back up again.

I'm gonna leave her a hell of a tip for letting me avoid talking to Redhead Redneck.

The three of them ordered, Keith ordering a breakfast burrito, Ellis getting pancakes and sausage, and Nick getting his precious eggs benedict.  Sarah took their menus and walked away once again.

"So what're ya down here for?" Ellis asked, ever-curious.

"Enough about me – what about you two?  How long have you lived here?"  Keith's expression notably changed to one of relaxation, since now he could talk about himself.

"Well Ah've been here mah whole life," Ellis responded.

"Yeah?"

"Yeah!  Ah love it here, though Ah'm ready for somethin' else, if ya know what Ah mean," he said nudging Nick.  Nick didn't know what he meant, but nodded anyway.

"Ah moved here when Ah was five.  Ah'm originally from Louisiana," Keith responded.  Nick nodded.

"You two known each other for a while?"

"Shit yeah!" Ellis almost shouted, covering his mouth as soon as he'd said it.

"Ah mean, yeah, we've known each other pretty much since he moved here," Ellis continued, "Been buddies for almost 15 years now."

"We've seen the works and we're ready to get outta this town, onto bigger 'n better things," Keith said, folding his arms.

"Like what?" Nick asked.

"Like college n' tech schools n' stuff.  We both wanna become mechanics and we're jus' savin' up money fer now," Ellis explained.

"Got enough yet?"

"Since you been here, Ah think Ah'll be juuuus' fine," Ellis responded.

"Yeah, I've been dropping hundreds on you a whole lot lately, huh?" Nick said with a smirk.  He was rather proud when he could throw his money around like that, and especially proud to have incited an 'appreciation' dance from Ellis.

"Yeah, heh heh," Ellis said, blushing and scratching his head.

"How long have you been working at the Savannah Sau-"

"Sauce Store?" Keith interjected.  Nick turned to him, no longer pissed off, but merely bewildered.  Ellis tapped his shoulder, causing Nick to turn his head back.  Ellis spoke with a low voice.

"Ah'm kinda on the down-low about where Ah work.  Pretty much only Keith and Ah know it."  Nick was curious.

"Why?"

"Well, Ah dunno aboutchu, but down here, anyone who works in an establishment where there's lotsa gays... people tend to think they're gay, too."  Nick nodded slowly.  Does that mean you're not?

"And it don't matter whether or not ya are, they're still gonna hate yew if they know," Keith added.  Nick nodded once more.

"So even Sarah?"  Both simultaneously shook their heads.

"We been comin' here fer years and she still don't know," Ellis said.

"Where... does she think you work?" he asked.  At this, both of their eyes lit up.

"Parts store," they said together.

"Parts?  Auto parts?"  Nick asked.

"Yeah!  Like what we always wanted to do," Ellis stated.

"You've always wanted to work with car parts?"

"Ever since we was young," Keith added.

"But you can't work there because you haven't gone to tech school," Nick concluded.

"Naw.  They won't hire anyone who doesn't have a certificate or degree," Ellis stated bluntly.

"So you're taking this job so you can pay it yourselves?" Nick asked.  Keith nodded.

"Ellis is makin' his way there faster n' me, but I'm doin' alright with it," he said.

"How far away are you from making your goal?" Nick asked.  Both of them counted.

"Well, we're also getting enough money fer rent and food and everythin' else," Ellis said, counting on his fingers and looking up.

"Ah'm about $5000 away," Keith said.

"And since you came in, Ah'm only about $2000 away!" Ellis said happily.

"I could easily loan you two some money," Nick started.  Keith immediately shook his head.

"We don't want yer loans," he said, his anger renewing itself.

"Shit, Ah gotta go to the bathroom," Ellis stated bluntly, standing up and excusing himself.  As soon as he was out of earshot, Nick turned back to Keith.

"What in the hell is your problem?" he asked, his eyes narrow.

"Yew sure don't waste time-"

"Out with it.  Why do you not like me?"  Keith raised his chin, trying to look down at the man.

"Ah seen yer type before.  Ah know what yer up to," Keith said, leaning in closer.

"Really?  My 'type?'  And what do you think I'm up to?" Nick asked, glaring coldly.

"Yer tryin' to take advantage of Ellis," he said.  Nick scoffed.  No duh.

"Look, just 'cause I gave him a lot of money doesn't mean-"

"That yer tryin' to scam him?  Ah think so."  Nick didn't let his poker face crack, but inside he was confused.  Scam?

"Scam him?  Really?"

"Like Ah said.  Some new guy once came into town, gave Ellis a few bucks and then befriended 'im.  Later, he said he needed some money bad, that he'd pay it back.  Poor Ellis listened and gave him the money without tellin' me, and never saw the guy again.  Lost two thousand bucks that way."  Nick stared with a startled look, then shook his head.

"Look, I'm not giving him money because I expect money in return.  And besides, I've given him over $3000 in the past 5 days.  I've more than made up for what that asshole did to him."

"Asshole?  Yer one to talk," Keith shot at him.

"Yeah, I'm an asshole.  So what?" he asked.  Keith shook his head.

"If yer not expecting money back from him, then what do you want?"

"Isn't it obvious?" Nick asked.  The gears in Keith's head quickly turned and his eyebrows matched it.

"Yew wanna date Ellis or somethin'?" he asked.  Nick shrugged.

"Yew gonna answer me?"

"If I feel like it," Nick responded coldly.

"Ellis never dated anybody.  He's justa innocent little kid at heart, and Ah'll be damned if his firs' one is some asshole who threw a lot of money at him."

"Well it's looking like it might just be like that," Nick responded smartly.

"Yew got a long ways to go if Ellis is even gonna like yew," Keith started, but Ellis was now returning from the restroom.

"Hey guys!  Man, Ah sure am glad you two could get acquainted while Ah left.  Mah best buddy and mah favorite new person – Nick!"

Nick did his best to hide a smirk from a glaring, red-faced Keith.

So I'm a smug bastard.  Sue me.