Kale pulled a pillow over his head, trying to avoid the incessantly cheerful voice that roused him from his slumber. And he was having such a nice dream too! He was back with Ryan and the two were in love again. He was jolted back to reality as Laura pulled the covers off of him.
Kale buried his face under the pillow. "Go away," he mumbled.
Ignoring his protests, Laura pulled the pillow from his grip and rolled him over to face her. Laura�s shoulder-length strawberry blonde hair formed a halo around her face as it was lit from behind by his desk lamp. Her ice blue eyes looked down at him, determined in their set but with a gentleness softening their edge. �Absolutely not. It�s been over a week since you broke up with Ryan. We all understand you�re upset and everything, but it�s time to go back to the real world, darling.� Laura sat on the edge of his bed, reaching out to push few stray strands of hair out of his face.
Kale sighed. He knew Laura was right, that he had to move on with his life if he wanted to get over Ryan. Sitting in bed feeling sorry for himself wasn�t helping him any. Instead, it made matters worse by giving him time to brood. The only problem was that Kale was afraid. What if all his relationships turned out the same? What if he saw Ryan again? he didn�t think he had the strength to face the other, not after Ryan had broke his heart that night not so long ago.
Laura�s hand on his face drew his attention away from his morbid thoughts. She smiled down at him, full of the strength and confidence that he didn�t have. �Don�t look so sad. It�s not like you�re doing this alone, right? We�ll be here to help you if you need us.�
Kale smiled slightly at her words. He knew that Laura would help him, just like she had when they were children. She had always been there to protect him when he needed it, even when the two were children. �Thank you. I don�t know what I would have done without you guys.� Kale tried to express in his words the bottomless gratitude he felt for all his friends� help the past week.
�Hey, no problem.� Laura stood up abruptly in one of the sudden and swift mood changes she was known for. Glaring down at him if mock fierceness, she tugged on his pajama top. �Enough chit-chat, get out of bed.�
Laughing, Kale sat up. He tried to hide the wince of pain the movement caused him. Kale�s hope that Laura had missed the look of pain that crossed his face, but his hopes were dashed with her next words.
�Still in pain?� The concern in her voice was evident even without looking at her.
Kale stood, not looking Laura in the face as he spoke. �Just a little sore, that�s all. Nothing big.� He crossed the room to his dresser as he spoke. Pulling clothes haphazardly from the drawers, he prepared to dress.
�If you�re not out in ten minutes, I�ll drag you out no matter what you�re wearing.� Laura tossed the words over her shoulder as she stalked out of the room.
�Yes, Mother.� He managed to get the words out before she closed the door, grinning as she stuck her tongue out at him before closing the door.
Kale dressed carefully. Despite his assurances to Laura, it still pained him to move. His sprained ankle had healed well. It only caused him a little pain now and then whenever he stepped wrong. Most of the cuts and bruises had faded, but a few still marked his body in various place. He felt stiff and sore all over. Kale reached up to lightly touch his left eye. Though not as swollen as before, it was still a dark black and blue. Pulling a loose t-shirt over his head, he finished dressing. Lightly combing his hair into order he prepared to face the world again. Hiding any traces of pain behind a carefully crafted mask, Kale left his room to try and return his life to some semblance of normalcy.
Kale entered the large nightclub cautiously. Laura had called to tell the owner Richard Haze that she was sending over an applicant to fill in for the bartender who had quit a few days ago. Kale was unsure of his chances of getting hired, but his friends had been determined that he at least try. The door had been unlocked when he had arrived, so he knew Rich was waiting for him.
Taking a look around, Kale noticed how much the club had changed since he had last worked at the Void. This early in the afternoon, the club wasn�t technically open and was just beginning to set up for the night. Kale stood on the raised metal platform that served as the entrance to the classy nightclub. Metal steps descended in a slant along the wall to his right, leading to a carpeted area set up with tables and chairs that rimmed the dance floor. The bar was set into the wall on his left on the same level as the tables. More metal steps led down to the sunken dance floor on three of the four sides. The fourth side held a small stage where live bands performed each night. Descending to the second level, Kale threaded his way around the tables. He headed for the bar, knowing he would find Rich in the Manager�s Office behind the bar.
Since he had been here four years ago, the look of the place had changed. Rich had obviously updated it to stay abreast of the times. The club sported a modern, mechanical feel reminiscent of the technology that gripped society. Most of the furnishings were metal, though the chairs were padded to provide some comfort. TV screens hung at random intervals above the tables, probably to provide those seated above a better view of the stage. The walls were painted black with green-tinged lights giving the illusion of being suspended in the technological void that connected the computers of the world. Kale was the only living things visible in the club as he knocked hesitantly on the manager�s door.
�Coming, coming. Hold on a second.� Kale smiled as he recognized the voice of the club�s owner, an old friend of his.
Kale smiled as the door opened to present him with Rich�s startled visage. His old employer hadn�t changed at all since Kale had last seen him. His shaved head shone faintly in the dim lighting of the club. His green eyes twinkled merrily as Rich regarded the man before him. Rich stood nearly a head taller than Kale, with burly muscles showing through Rich�s thin shirt. Kale was aware of how bad he must look to his former employer, with his left eye bruised and a healing cut over his other eye. Kale spook hesitantly, suddenly unsure of himself. �I don�t know if you remember me, I�m...�
�Kale Matthews.� Rich finished Kale�s sentence for him. Rich frowned as he noticed the obvious injuries on the other�s face. �You don�t look so good. What happened?�
�Let�s just say I parted with my last boyfriend under rather unpleasant circumstances.�
�Ah.� Rich nodded knowingly, not pressing the matter in his usual calm manner. He guided Kale to a nearby table, turning a chair around backwards to sit facing Kale. �I take it you�re the bartender Laura had in mind?� His voice carried Rich�s obvious amusement.
�Yeah, though I wasn�t sure if you�re still hiring.�
Rich�s booming laugh took him by surprise. �Well, that girl wasted no time finding me a replacement. I haven�t even had a chance to put an ad in the newspaper yet. At least she saved me money, now that I don�t have to pay for the ad.� Rich smiled widely as he reached over to clasp Kale�s upper arm lightly. �It�s good to have you back, Kale.�
Kale looked back in partial shock. He hadn�t expected getting his old job back to be this easy. �Don�t you even want to see if any of the other applicants are more qualified,� Kale protested weakly.
�Nope. You were the best bartender I�ve had around here in a long while. I never did figure out why you went into languages instead of cooking, you have real talent in that. It�ll be a pleasure working with you again.�
Kale tried a second time to protest his friend�s generosity but was cut off before he could get a word out. �No buts. Now, when can you start?�
Kale looked up from wiping a bit of spilled beverage off the bar as he heard his friend Laura calling him. She approached the bar, dragging behind her a guy he had never seen before. A rather cute guy, he let himself think. Pausing to gaze at the other man he took in the other�s tall, muscular form. Short black hair framed a round face set with two soft yet deep green eyes. He smiled slightly to himself. If he didn�t know with complete certainty that Laura was a lesbian, he would have thought the other was her reluctant date. As it was, Kale suspected that this was an attempt by Laura to set him up with a date. It suited Laura�s style perfectly, blindly shoving him back into work and dating in the same week. Unfortunately, Kale knew he wasn�t ready to start dating again, at least not yet. The wounds Ryan had left on his heart hadn�t fully faded yet, though Kale suspected they would with time.
His long-time friend cheerfully bounced up to the bar, seating herself and the other man directly in front of him. �Hiya Kale! How are you feeling?� Laura smiled cheerfully at him, full of her normal fiery spirit.
�I�m alright, thanks.� Kale spoke politely in his normal, quiet voice. Inwardly, he wondered who the man with Laura was, the one who had been regarding him with silent scrutiny since he had sat down.
�That�s good. By the way, I�d like you to meet my cousin David Ross. Dave, this is a old friend of mine, Kale Matthews.� Kale murmured a polite response as he shook the other�s hand. His gaze was caught and held as he looked into glimmering emerald pools before looking away.
�Can I get you anything?�
Kale fetched their drinks quickly before being summoned to the other end of the bar by a customer. He returned to find Laura chatting happily with her relative about the club. he listened quietly, not wishing to interrupt.
�Are you new here? I don�t remember seeing you here before.�
It took Kale a moment to realize that David�s question was directed at him. �I just started here today, though I used to work here about four years ago.�
�Ah.� Silence reigned for a moment before Laura jumped out of her seat. �I�m going to go find Cheryl. You boys have fun.� With a backward wink at Kale, Laura quickly threaded her way through the swaying mass on the dance floor below them.
Kale looked awkwardly at Laura�s vacant seat before attempting conversation. �Are you new to the city? I don�t remember Laura mentioning having any relatives living here.�
David smiled cheerfully, still gazing at him with intent green eyes. �I�m relatively new. I move here about eight months ago.�
Eight months... the time he had been living with Ryan. No wonder Laura hadn�t mentioned David. The two hadn�t been on good speaking terms since Kale had started dating Ryan. Laura had simply never liked his ex-boyfriend, sensing from the very beginning how wrong Ryan was for Kale. In retrospect, Kale wished he had listened to Laura�s advice a little earlier.
"What do you do for a living?" Kale asked, trying to keep the conversation going.
"I'm a cop."
"Ah."
The two fell into silence for a few moments before Dave spoke again, the concern in his voice surprising Kale. �What happened to your face?�
Kale smiled weakly in reassurance. �It�s nothing really, just the result of a bad break-up with my ex-boyfriend.� Kale noticed with puzzlement the anger that flashed through Ryan�s eyes. Why was David angry over what Ryan did?
�The guy must have been a real bastard to hit you like that.� Kale looked at David in shock at the vehemence in the other�s voice.
Before he could think about what he was saying, Kale found himself responding. Something in the way David acted lead him to believe that he could trust the other, that he would find a sympathetic ear to listen to him. Despite what his mind told him he should be doing, he opened up to the other. Kale was called away several times during the night to get drinks for other customers, but he always ended up back with David. The two talked long into the night about anything that came to mind, in the first of many late night talks.
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