Aditus' prompts and circumstances - 8. Wouldn't you like to know?

“I can’t believe you asked him that!“ Ralph slapped Andre upside his head before he passed him a wad of paper napkins.

“Yeah, me neither.” He took the tissue and dabbed it at his face and chest. “I’m such an idiot.”

“That and you stink of beer.” Ralph sniffed at him.

“I would never have thought—“

“--yeah that’s obvious.” Ralph shook his head and turned around on his barstool, hopping down on the far side, making sure he didn’t land in the puddle of beer around his friend. “Thinking really isn’t your forte.”

“Hey!”

They both heard a loud clang and looked up when a bucket half-filled with water and a towel appeared near them on the top of the bar.

“Start mopping.” Ben, one of the bartenders, waved his hand at Andre.

“What? Why me? It was Max who dumped his beer all over me!”

“You had to ask, eh?” Ben shrugged. “Now you mop.”

“But that’s not fair.”

“Tough. Get moving or you’re no longer welcome here.”

Andre touched his wet shirt, where it clung to his chest, before he grabbed the hem and pulled it over his head, balled it together and threw it in the bucket. “Fine.”

Someone whistled. “What’s about the pants?”

Andre gave them his finger only to hear their guffaw. He grabbed the towel and wiped down the stool he’d sat on.

“There’s something on the bar too.” Ben pointed at a spot where the beer was running down the wall.

“Yeah, yeah. You’re really enjoying this, aren’t you?”

“Yep.”

Andre looked at his friend. “You could help me.”

Ralph shook his head. “Nope. I warned you, you didn’t listen. This is all on you.”

Andre kneeled on the floor and wrung out the towel before he mopped up the last of the beer. He grabbed the handle of the bucket, lifted it up, and asked Ben, “Where do you want this?”

“Just dump it in the sink outside. Make sure not to drip the beer from your pants on the floor, though, otherwise you mop that up too.”

Andre looked down his body and indeed, there was already a small puddle around his feet again. “Shit! How can—“

Ben grinned. “Drop the pants?”

The room went silent. Andre looked around, but it seemed nobody wanted to help him. He looked at Ben. “You’re not serious, are you?”

Ben tapped his finger against the top of the bar. “Now would be good.”

“Ben,” he pleaded, but Ben only crossed his arms in front of his chest.

Ralph whispered in his ear, “You know that they know you’re not wearing any underwear? These pants are just too tight.”

Then Max stood beside him, a bath towel in his hand. “You can always wrap this around you.”

“You!” Andre dropped the bucket he was still holding onto the floor causing water to splash around and against Max’s legs. “You know what? Fuck you!” He stormed out of the bar.

Max yelled after him, “The answer is yes.”

A guest leaned against the bar and asked Ben, “What did he ask Max?”

Ben smiled. “Wouldn’t you like to know?”