A Night with no Stars - 8. Welcome to the Jungle

“And I was thinking about white and light blue, what do you think, baby?”

‘Baby’ didn’t think anything, cause he was just pulled out of his slumber.

“What?” he said apologetically, earning himself a glare. He tried very hard not to yawn.

It got to the point that the freaking kid was depriving him of sleep. He didn’t hear from Aleks since that morning text, which was thirty four hours ago, and he’s hardly slept at all last night. He was just sitting around and fretting instead. He knew it was pointless, that him losing sleep wasn’t going to make anything better, but he couldn’t help it, so he was just stuck in this annoying insomnia, wondering what it was that Aleks had to take care of at the crack of dawn and why it prevented him from texting to let Maks know he’s alive. And sure, Aleks told him not to worry if something like this happened, but disappearing almost without a word was concerning regardless of the warning. Besides, he was supposed to stay after Wiki was gone, but of course he was unable of being in one place for too long, as if he was getting some sick pleasure from constantly keeping Maks on the verge of a heart attack.

He focused back on Ewelina. Right, the wedding. White and light blue.

“Yeah, it sounds great,” he smiled. Basically everything sounded great as long as Aleks didn’t get himself into another shitty situation. What the fuck was wrong with him?

He needed to stop. He needed to stop right now, because there was no reason to panic, he should know by now that it was a completely common behavior for Aleks. If he won’t hear from him until… let’s say Wednesday, then it’s gonna be concerning. That’s when Maks will start to panic, not a moment before.

“I’ll go to the bathroom, ok?” Ewelina said, standing up. Maks followed her with his eyes. She still had killer legs and definitely wasn’t trying to hide that fact.

They’ve finally found an evening to go out and actually spend some time together. Usually if they’ve seen each other, it was brief, cause Ewelina was always at work. They went to a romantic comedy that didn’t suck as much as Maks was expecting, and now they were having dinner. It was nice. It would be nicer if he knew where Aleks was.

“Did you hear?” Ewelina said, coming back to her seat but looking at her phone. The knowledge that she was one of people who were scrolling Facebook while sitting on the toilet was a bit disturbing. Maks grunted without much interest. “They’ve arrested someone for that murder near your parents’ place,” she explained, raising an open article on the screen of her iPhone. “That was fast, right? It’s been like a week. Still good to know that there’s another bastard behind bars…”

Maks wasn’t sure when exactly he registered her words and when he stopped listening. He started sweating and was trying very hard to look like this information didn’t bothered him at all. His internal battle took maybe a few seconds before he settled down.

“Yeah? Who?” he asked curiously. Good, his voice didn’t even shake.

They couldn’t pin it on Aleks. Aleks didn’t do it, he was innocent. For a moment Maks was tempted to actually go to the police station and tell them that Aleks was innocent, even though he knew it would be the dumbest thing he could possibly do. But… but Aleks was God knows where, and he was involved after all, and Maks really didn’t know what would happen if it turned out to be true. He literally had no idea what he would do if Aleks was gone.

All these thoughts run through his head intensified by panic while he was waiting for an answer. He was practically begging Ewelina with his eyes to say that they’ve arrested someone else. Someone Aleks’s never even seen and had nothing to do with. Some who’s never heard of Aleks at all, ideally someone from another planet.

“They’re not saying,” she shrugged, putting her phone down. “I guess they can’t reveal any details yet.”

He couldn’t remember the last time he was so disappointed in her, even though he reasonably knew that it wasn’t her fault that the police wasn’t revealing details. He just needed to blame anyone, because it still could be Aleks.

He told himself to just stay calm. It wasn’t Aleks. Aleks just went to take care of something, he said so himself. Besides, Aleks had an alibi, a fake alibi, but one that still checked. Yeah, it was easier said than done, cause who cared about alibis when they needed a scapegoat?

He didn’t know how he managed to survive the rest of the dinner. He was nibbling at his salmon while Ewelina already started talking about something else. She wasn’t talking about work for a change. She was talking about the wedding. Maks was barely listening, he was too busy working out a plan. He knew what he was going to do after leaving the restaurant. He was going to tell Ewelina that he was tired and needed to prepare for the interview, cause if the second part goes well then the job was his. She will be completely understanding, so he will order her a cab and watch her off, but he won’t go home himself. He’ll go find Aleks.

He knew that looking for one person in the city of three million was like looking for a needle in a haystack, but he had to at least try.

***           

Aleks could count the times he was actually nervous on one hand and it was one of them. He had no idea how these things worked, cause he was only eighteen and he wasn’t really a delinquent, even if he liked to pretend he was.

“But you can’t say that it didn’t come together nicely,” a man in a well-cut suit asked, sitting next to him on the bar stool and waving dismissively at the waiter.

“It came together beautifully,” Aleks agreed calmly, dutifully accepting a glass of scotch and taking a small sip. “We really do appreciate it…” The guy just shrugged, as if he was trying to say that it wasn’t a big deal.

“Nonsense. You should know that I don’t blame your brother for getting rid of that piece of shit. We’re all gonna be healthier for it. You can tell him that,” he said casually, having a drink himself and visibly enjoying it without any hurry. “He can take it as an act of kindness.”

Yeah… no. Aleks didn’t believe in acts of kindness. He especially didn’t believe that someone like Partyka was ever being kind to anyone without expecting something in return. For some reason this guy made his skin crawl.

“Did he deserve it at least?” he blurted, staring at his glass. He didn’t want to specify that he just wanted to make sure that the guy who was going to get locked up instead of his brother wasn’t just some unlucky scapegoat. He didn’t want to come out as some touchy-feely pussy who cared about other people’s fate. Partyka’s smile wasn’t very warm.

“Yes,” he said curtly without elaborating. Aleks nodded absently, feeling guilty for the relief he felt when he first found out, and the relief he felt right now that the guy at least belonged in jail anyway.

He didn’t think he could ever make it without Kostek. Sure, he was a prick sometimes, but he was still like his fucking mentor. Aleks would never admit out loud that without him he would be completely lost in the world.

“So what would you like us to do in return for this act of kindness?” he asked point-blank, fidgeting with his glass. Partyka’s eyes suddenly fixed on him.

“That’s the whole idea of acts of kindness to not expect anything back. Otherwise we would be calling it a favor.”

“Well, I still feel obliged,” Aleks protested, wondering if it was a right move and in how many ways Kostek would kill him if he heard that. Partyka was watching him intently for a long moment.

“Wincent says you’re smart. I would even risk saying that he seems to like you and he doesn’t like many people. That would be enough for now, so if he vouches for you…” Aleks smiled blandly. Of course Wincent liked him, he wouldn’t fuck him if he didn’t. Or maybe his ass was the only reason he liked him. If Partyka knew that, he would probably change his opinion about him. About both of them. “I’m sure I would find something for you to do if that’s what you want,” he added, sounding almost curious. Aleks froze after that question.

He didn’t know if he wanted it. No one sane should want it. It was one thing to know people who know people, but actually jumping right in? What he wanted was to write and make rap. Maybe go to college. Be something more than he was now and one day have so much money that he won’t have to worry about anything ever again. That was the plan at least, so maybe it wouldn’t hurt to get an early start?

“I’ll think about it,” he said cautiously, cause making rush decisions was the dumbest thing he could do. “And let you know.”

“You’ve got as much time as you need,” Partyka said pleasantly, though for some reason he seemed amused. Aleks felt weird talking to him. He felt as if he already knew him, cause Wincent was mentioning him a lot and most of what he said was awful. Well, not exactly awful, just indicating that it wasn’t someone you wanted to end up on the bad side of. He wasn’t sure if he wasn’t biting more than he could chew and going to regret it one day, but on the other hand the guy kept Kostek out of prison, even when he didn’t have to. Aleks still didn’t understand why he did it. He suspected there was a story behind it that he just didn’t have clearance to know, though maybe ignorance was a bliss and he should just shut his mouth and be thankful. And he was, sure, but couldn’t help also being paranoid, cause Partyka had to want something. Everyone wanted something and Aleks didn’t consider himself worthy enough for Partyka to get out of this whole mess. Sure, he was smooth, but at the end of the day he was just a stupid high school kid and didn’t have much to offer. So even if he had Aleks’s eternal gratitude, what else could he want? It was all fucking unnerving.

“Don’t feel obliged,” Partyka said suddenly and Aleks blinked, cause he spaced out for a moment. “You said you feel obliged. You shouldn’t. This is not a quid pro quo kind of situation. I mean, if you want to have some fun while giving me a hand and making some easy money on the way, be my guest, I would love to accommodate you. But when we get to that it will be a slightly different kind of conversation. I’m sure you understand that there will be no room for any doubts. From either of us,” he warned, for the first time since the beginning of this meeting sounding strict, though still with a trace of amusement. “So think it through carefully, cause we can just leave it out and talk about your music instead.” He smirked. Aleks took a calming breath, telling himself to be brave, cause this guy was actually kind of nice and his conviction that he was up to something was just an affirmation of his paranoia.

“My music doesn’t actually exist right now,” he said more self-assuredly, though with a trace of bitterness. “And it won’t until I find someone who wants to produce it.”

“But you have a demo. I’ve heard it.”

“Yeah,” Aleks admitted, suddenly feeling much more uninhabited. “There was some whispering, but without any real publicity there is nothing to maintain it. People forget easily.” He shrugged. Partyka nodded his head in deliberation.

“You know, I’m not very well acquainted with music business. But I am very well acquainted with business in general and I’m guessing the rules are basically the same. So we’ve already got the product, now we just need to sell it. You do it all on your own? Both writing and mixing?”

“Yeah,” Aleks said, kind of offended by the idea that he might need someone to help him create. Partyka smiled.

“Excellent. Ok, we’ll ask around and try to make something out of it. You keep writing. You’re gonna need material.” Aleks knew it meant that he was going to help him break through, but for some reason it sounded almost like a threat. He smiled back half-heartedly.

Still… it was a chance he was waiting for. Maybe the first and last chance he will ever get and he’ll be damned if he won’t take it. No matter what he will need to risk and sacrifice on the way.

“Do your magic then,” he said with much more confidence. Partyka laughed quietly and Aleks realized with embarrassment that he didn’t know his name. Neither first or last name, in all storied he was always just ‘Partyka’.

“Yeah, you don’t need to worry about it,” he said with perfect ease. Aleks didn’t know if he wasn’t making the biggest mistake of his life, but this guy might have been his open sesame to better life. His escape from old, stinky, rotten Praga. He couldn't stay there forever hoping that one day things will magically turn around on their own. And let’s face it, he was never very prudent.

“In that case I think we could move on to that other conversation,” he suggested boldly. Partyka seemed surprised, but he kept smiling.

“As you wish,” he said and then fell silent, staring at Aleks in such deliberation that he started to twitch uncomfortably. “Look, I don’t know you. Wincent knows you, but I don’t,” he said eventually.

“I don’t know you either,” Aleks remarked matter-of-factly. Partyka nodded slowly.

“How strong is your attachment to Warsaw Praga?” he asked flat out. “I know you kids can be unreasonably… devoted… to all your codes and the whole ethos of being excluded and discriminated and classified as trash for the rest of your life, that I have to admit to find a bit uncanny. If it’s survival you’re after, as I know most of you are, then I have to say that living by some imaginary rules no one gives a shit about and despising elites because they’re blind to your fate isn’t the best way to go about it. What you are doing right now, now that’s surviving. But we are doing business here, and I believe there is no room for useless principles in business, so no stupid notions of sticking together with other lowlifes just because you’re sharing the same miserable fate.”

Aleks almost dropped his eyes, cause that was fucking brutal, but he couldn’t exactly disagree. That was mostly what he was thinking his whole life, secretly sniffing at everything around him.

“I don’t hold Praga as a state of mind in very high regard,” he said calmly.

“Good,” Partyka drawled shortly. “You also need to know that I will expect full dedication and I don’t care about your brother or anyone else. I don’t hold anything against him, but I have no use for him either. Just keep us separated and we won’t have a problem. And remember that at the end of the day, you’re mine and you answer to me.” Aleks barely kept himself from gulping. “That being said… the next time feel the need to punch my brother in the face, please refrain,” he asked firmly. Aleks’s head jerked. Shit, he knew that he hit Adrian. That was a really bad plot twist. He opened his mouth to explain himself, but Partyka raised his hand to cut him off. “Did he had it coming at least?” Aleks cleared his throat.

“He insulted a friend of mine,” he answered dutifully. Partyka snickered and shook his head.

“Yeah, he’s being a handful lately. Gives me fucking headache. He will need to be put on leash if this keeps on,” he said, scowling to himself. “This time I can turn the blind eye, but I can’t afford any discord between you and Adrian, it’s bad for business. You can avoid each other, I don’t really give a shit, just don’t cause any fucking trouble.” His voice was still calm, but the amusement was gone.

“I can be civilized,” Aleks assured him quietly. He just wasn’t sure if the same could be said about Adrian. Partyka looked like he was thinking along the same lines, but he eventually dropped the subject and leaned in.

“Ok, listen. You know the club Bunker by the river on east side?” he asked rhetorically, cause there wasn’t a chance of Aleks not knowing that club. He bit his lip. Fuck, that was way too close to home. “I thought they might appreciate a friendly face,” he added with amusement as if he was reading Aleks’s mind. He scoffed internally. Yeah, right, he rather thought that he could demonstrate that he had his people everywhere. His emotions must have reflected on his face, cause Partyka smirked. “Don’t look so scared, it’s nothing sticky. It’s not even really a job, it’s more of a way for the two of us to get acquainted with each other’s methods of… problem solving.” Aleks didn’t feel reassured after this, not at the least, but told himself to get a grip. He was an excellent problem solver, he always had multiple plans mapped out. So what that more often than not he didn’t follow through with them and ended up just winging it. “We’ve had a… misunderstanding and I would like to clear the air. But I don’t want to have a fucking warfare by tomorrow. We’ve been getting along fine until now and this little bump is no reason to be pulling fucking cannons. So we’re coming in peace and all I need you to do is talk. Mess with them a little, make a scene, charm them or cow them into submission, or be a pain in the ass until they surrender. I was given the impression that it might be right up your alley, is that right?” Partyka asked casually. ‘No,’ Aleks thought.

“Sure,” he said easily.

“Wincent will come with you in case they’re more hostile than we think, but I can’t afford to have him as your babysitter, so consider it a trial day.” Partyka finished his whisky and slammed the glass on the bar. “Do it tomorrow, they have some kind of rave tonight, they’re probably all wasted by now.”

It was after midnight when Aleks left the establishment that was some weird combination of a gambling den and a nightclub, and was mostly serving as a playground for his new boss. Jesus. He took his earphones out, put Arctic Monkeys on and slowly headed towards the subway. He wasn’t sure what kind of deal he just made with the devil and what the outcome would be, but right now it was really impossible to worry about it. The murder case was closed, Kostek was safe and he had a prospect of some excitement that came with money ahead of him. And this whole underworld was ironclad, one would have to have a really shit luck to get caught. So it wasn’t really all that dangerous, at least from the authorities, cause he just saw how fucking helpless the authorities were in the face of that. And sure, there were always other risks, he could get randomly shot for example, but on the other hand on Praga you could get stabbed while taking out the trash for being too cheerful or talking too much, which made Aleks’s continued existence nothing short of a miracle. Looking at it like that, he was already living on a borrowed time.

And he was sick of it. He didn’t want to spend the rest of his life dealing with dumb thugs scuffling over scrap metal and whose tracksuit is more shiny. And sure, they all went on pretending that Praga was their homeland and birthright and that’s where they’re always going to belong, but deep inside every one of them just wanted to get to the other side of the river, to the promise land, where real life was happening, real money was made and real power was held. The petty offences they were used to seemed like a child’s play in comparison. It was no wonder that Partyka and his people weren’t interested in being neither friends nor foes, why would they bother with east side savages when there was money to make and suits to fit and a hierarchy to maintain. Overall, they seemed like a much better company.

And he was kind of in whether he wanted it or not. Shit's already happened. He wasn’t supposed to be there with Kostek that night, but he was and happened to witness his first hit, which still troubled him deeply. So since he seemed to be staying firmly on the path to becoming a criminal, why not do it with style?

He took out his phone for the first time since he walked into the club, cause he was too nervous before and preferred to just cut the outside world out and focus on surviving the upcoming meeting. He smiled broadly, but it didn’t feel like enough, so he started to chuckle quietly. It’s not that he wasn’t happy that Maks was obviously a little obsessed with him. Of course he was, it was awesome. He just couldn’t figure him out. Sometimes it all felt completely platonic, or at least Maks didn’t do anything that would suggest otherwise, but other times he was just looking at him in a way that raised questions. Those looks made Aleks feel both transfixed and wired-up. It wasn’t even a ‘I wanna fuck you’ look, Aleks was relatively familiar with that one, it was… it was something else. No one has ever looked at him like that, with so much attentiveness and adoration, like there was nothing more important in the whole world and like... like Maks got actual pleasure just from looking at him. And that’s why Aleks didn’t believe him. He could pretend all he wanted, but he knew better, because an uninterested, heterosexual man wouldn’t behave that way or look at him like that. That was a completely different kind of dynamic between two people. So if Aleks felt this chemistry practically from the moment they’ve met and stronger with every passing day, there was no way that Maks was unaware of its existence, right? He would have to be fucking blind.

Yeah, he was blind, that was already established.

Back at the beginning Aleks was inclined to believe that it was his imagination acting up. He was always prone to exaggeration and liked to overplay things in his head. He knew that, that’s why he was ready to accept that nothing will ever happen between him and Maks and leave it at that. But now, after the pretend date that was actually a real date, after the racing and these few days they’ve spent with Wiki… no one would fucking convince him that it wasn’t real. This pull he felt towards Maks was so strong it was filling his guts with anticipation that needed any kind of outlet or otherwise he was going to fucking combust. So if he’s noticed all these tiny signals that Maks has been sending him, either consciously or not, how was it even possible that Maks haven’t noticed very unsubtle signals from Aleks?

He didn’t know what to do anymore. He was scared to make a move, because if he was to choose, he would rather have Maks as a friend than not at all. So he waited for Maks to do something that will leave him with no doubts, but he was tired of waiting. Waiting sucked.

He would love to go to Maks now and he actually could, cause eleven unanswered calls from him strongly indicated that he wanted to see him too, but… this meeting threw him off balance and Maks finding out about it would be the last thing he needed, he already knew enough about his dodgy business. And he tended to get sloppy when he was off balance. At any moment adrenaline will start draining from him and it's gonna make him want to cuddle and share feelings. No, bad idea.

00:55 am. To: Maks. I’m fine. I’ll come over tomorrow.

He sent it hesitantly, fighting the temptation to curl on his couch and talk the night away with Maks, surrounded only by silence. But Maks was still going to be there tomorrow and Aleks could actually go home now that police wasn’t sniffing anymore and check if everyone was still alive.

***

He was literally everywhere. First he went to Mazowiecka to check Aleks’s favorite shot-bar. It wasn’t very big, so he just stepped inside, looked around, glared at the bartender when he sent him a quizzical glance and left. He swung by every club on the other side of the street, paying fucking twenty zloty for entrance in each of them. A few people spilled drinks on him. No Aleks anywhere. He started towards New World Street with his head dropped and full of dark thoughts. He checked every dive he was passing. Still no Aleks.

Since he was nearby, he headed to the river. He practically run through the boulevard, empty at this time of year. He felt like it took him hours to cross Poniatowski Bridge. He had no idea if anything was happening on the National Stadium, but it was worth a shot.

Yeah, things were happening. The engines were roaring again and people were pressing against the railings, screaming and smashing bottles. Maks scowled, trying to navigate through it and looking around desperately. Fuck, if he won’t find him here, his last chance will be Praga and he never liked to stray there. He always felt like it was a completely different world, that on the west side of the river everyone was all fit and hip, sipping smoothies and working in corps, and on the east side there were just bums and broken windows, and people who wanted to steal your bike. He knew it wasn’t fair, he also knew it wasn’t necessarily true, but the association was there.

It looked that he had to overcome his aversion to Praga after all, cause Aleks wasn’t here. He took a short break to watch curiously two cars racing, trying to judge which one was going to win, but he had no idea, so he gave up. He’s got harassed by a guy selling suspicious stuff, but not the same as last time. He refused politely and kept moving forward until he suddenly stopped.

He knew that guy on the stairs. He’s seen him before. Aleks claimed he was his brother.

His natural instinct kept him from approaching people like him and talking to them if he didn’t have to. Aleks was different, he didn’t really look like some hoodie, he dressed too well and cared about his looks too much, but if there was an embodiment of Praga, it would be his brother. His whole exterior literally screamed it, besides, he was standing in a group of similarly attired people and talking to a mountain of a man. The big one looked pretty at ease, sipping beer and saying something to Aleks’s brother – Kostek? – and it looked quite suspicious. Maks knew that technically they could be having a casual chat about cars, but they could also be planning murder. He didn’t know and would rather not know.

He was deprived of a choice after all, because Kostek looked up while listening and his eyes fixed on Maks. He frowned at first, as if he was trying to remember something, but then his eyes widened and he weaved at Maks briefly, encouraging him to approach. Maks raised his eyebrows questioningly, as if he was making sure that he meant him and not someone else. Kostek took a few steps forward.

“What are you looking for?” he snarled when he got close enough. Maks thought sarcastically that he was really lucky that Aleks’s brother had such a pleasant personality. How was Aleks such a kind-hearted soul while his brother was such a dick? Did he get all the good genes? The bruiser followed him and Maks felt extremely uneasy, but bravely endured both unfriendly looks fixed on him. He even managed not to gulp.

“Aleks, actually,” he said, having enough common sense to keep his voice down. He tried to focus on Kostek instead of the other guy, cause between the two of them he was much less terrifying. “Do you know where he is?” he asked good-naturedly.

“What do you want from him?” the other guy growled, looking at Maks with some combination of disdain and suspicion, as if he didn’t really consider him a threat, but would rather not risk it. Maks blinked at the nervous reaction. Kostek raised a hand placidly.

“Chill out. He’s a friend,” he said calmly and smirked, as if there was something extremely amusing about it. “This is Wincent,” he said, pointing at the big guy. “And that’s…” he broke off enquiringly.

“Maks,” he introduced himself blandly.

“Maks,” Kostek repeated. Maks couldn’t tell based on his voice whether he was mocking him or was it the way he always talked. He decided to let it go. He glanced at the other guy, who was staring at him sternly, while Kostek seemed to relax. “You have to forgive him, he’s Aleks’s private pit bull,” he quipped. ‘That he replaced with me,’ Maks added in his head, suddenly remembering his words from the last time, that Aleks’s last pit bull was much more impressive. Well, there was no denying it. “I’ll be right back,” he murmured to Wincent, who grimaced. “Don’t fucking bitch, you think I don’t know why you’re here? We’ll get to that,” he warned menacingly. Wincent just smirked, completely unconcerned by the threat. Kostek indicated for Maks to move away.

“Ok, what?” he asked rudely when they were out of earshot, glancing cautiously at Wincent. Maks pressed his lips.

“I just wanted to see if he was here,” he said quietly. “I didn’t hear from here for a few days and…”

“And what?” Kostek scoffed impatiently. “Aleks is a big boy, if he’s not calling, he probably has a reason. He’ll contact you when he wants to contact you,” he sneered in the tone that suggested this conversation was over.

“Yeah, I know, I was just worried…” Maks broke off, because it’s not like there was officially any reason for concern. Kostek’s look suddenly got much more intent.

“Yeah, why were you worried?” he asked curiously, but there was a trace of warning there. Maks tried to keep his face neutral.

“Just cause he’s mostly around,” he said calmly, hoping that the lie wasn’t visible on his face. Kostek was watching him with narrowed eyes for a long moment, but finally his hard face softened enough for Maks to ask: “Do you know where he is?” Kostek was silent for a long moment.

“He’ll contact you when he wants to contact you,” he repeated stiffly, then clicked his tongue with exasperation and leaned in. “Listen, my brother has some things going on right now,” he said so quietly that Maks had to almost read his lips. His eyebrows were knitted and his eyes were full of trepidation that alarmed Maks instantly. Fuck, if Kostek was worried then it couldn’t be good. But if Aleks was taken in, he wouldn’t just hang out here drinking beer, right? “He will get in touch with you when he’s done with it, but for now just fuck off. There’s no reason for you to worry.” Maks didn’t believe him for a second. “And listen…” he added warily, lowering his voice even more. “I don’t give a shit what you and my brother do in your free time, ok? It’s a free country and it’s none of my business.” He raised his hands to show that he was staying out of it. “But that one,” he pointed his chin to Wincent who was still eyeing them suspiciously. “Is a fucking ticking bomb. Just don’t do anything for him to go off.” Surprisingly it sounded more like a request than an order, and at the same time Kostek was giving him some kind of meaningful look. Maks felt he should know what it meant, but he didn’t. Before he had time to analyze it, Kostek already turned around. “Get out of here,” he grumbled with a smirk. It made him look a little bit like Aleks. “It’s not safe for fellows like you to hang around here on your own.” That said he went back to Wincent who leaned in.

“Who the fuck was that guy?” he asked, following Maks’s back with narrowed eyes. When he disappeared in the crowd, Kostek shrugged.

“Just some fucking yuppie,” he scoffed, hoping that Wincent will let it go.

“What does he want from Aleks?” he drilled down. Kostek wanted to wince. That’s exactly what he was afraid of. It was all going to head straight to shit because of his little faggot brother and his fucking playing a gangster and his fucking men juggling.

“I dunno, they’re friends or something,” he muttered, picking up another six-pack from his backpack. Wincent accepted the can, but wasn’t going to yield. He pulled a face.

“Aleks’s not friends with schmucks like that,” he said with full conviction, then seemed to consider it for a minute. “We will have to look into him,” he muttered. Kostek looked at him sharply.

“What, you’re gonna do a fucking background check on every one of his friends now?” he asked in outrage. Wincent shook his head in amusement.

“Yup, no hidden friends. Safety measures,” he said casually. Kostek was staring at him for a few long seconds, his eyes full of despair.

“How the fuck could you let that happen?” he asked quietly, his voice full of accusation. Wincent raised his eyebrows uncomprehendingly.

“You would rather he stayed in this dumpster forever?” he asked rhetorically with a grimace. “Come on, we both know that he’s too fucking good for it.”

“He’s dead, that’s what he is,” Kostek said, sounding a little strangled. Wincent rolled his eyes.

“Overdramatic as always, I see.”

…

Maks was lucky to miss this entire conversation. He was dragging his feet back towards Washington’s roundabout, brooding. Kostek looked anxious, but he said loud and clear that there was no reason for concern. What could be these ‘things’ that Aleks had going on? And what the fuck the deal was with this Wincent guy? It sounded like he was going to be pissed off with Maks. Why would his mere existence piss that hulk off? He hasn’t done anything, he’s never even seen him before. Maybe he had a problem with Aleks, maybe Aleks knowing other people besides him didn’t sit well with him. It seemed awfully territorial as far as Maks was concered.

He replayed Kostek’s words in his head and suddenly came to a halt. They’ve kind of indicated jealousy. There was just something in his face when he said it that indicated the whole fucking lot. Was there a thing between Aleks and this guy? The same kind of thing that’s between Aleks and Maks, or… a thing?

If he was going to play ‘gay or nay’, he would buy that Aleks might be. That Wincent guy… no. Just no. He was fucking six feet three and broad as two of Maks. Ok, that was pretty stereotypical, but still accurate. Aleks though… Aleks could be. Maks still wasn’t sure whether he liked Wiki or not, but now that he thought about it he realized that Aleks didn’t mention girls a lot, not with too much enthusiasm anyway. But Maks didn’t mention girls either, he didn’t even talk with him about his own fiancée. They simply didn’t talk about girls. Why would they when they had each other?

His phone pinged in his pocket, so he took it out. Jesus, it was him. Thank fucking God.

00:55 am. From: Aleks. I’m fine. I’ll come over tomorrow.

He exhaled heavily, feeling as if he was holding his breath constantly from the moment he found out that someone was taken in. He kept repeating in his mind that everything was ok. Not that he didn’t know that before, because otherwise Kostek wouldn’t be so calm, but now he knew for sure.

He resumed both walking and his internal freak out. He tried to convince himself that even if Aleks was gay, then he just was, no reason to dwell on it. But then he thought that if Aleks was gay, he might be fucking someone. Actually he might be fucking someone if he was straight either. Yeah, he was definitely fucking someone, why wouldn’t he? After all he was so passionate and fierce, and wicked, and magnetic, he was probably fucking plenty. Maybe he liked both, why limit yourself? Maybe he was fucking that Wincent guy? Nah, he couldn’t even picture it. That guy was so bulky and rough, and Aleks was so petite and boyish. They wouldn’t work together at all, besides he wouldn’t choose a guy like him, he would want someone who was clever, and could bring him back to earth if needed, and had a witty repartee to all his stupid jokes. And who would give him enough attention, cause Aleks needed hell lot of attention. Someone more like him.

He blinked, immediately alarmed and trying to get rid of the idea, but it was already imprinted in his brain. Cause from the very beginning things were kind of intense between them. If Aleks was someone more… feasible and allowable (‘if he was a woman,’ his mind supplied helpfully), then he would definitely consider it. But if Aleks was a woman, he wouldn’t be Aleks, so that point wasn’t applicable in this case. He wasn’t a would-be anything, but he wasn’t a friend either, he was something in-between. Maks had no idea how to label him, what he knew was that he was already a little bit his, or at least at some point he started to think about him that way. And now he was freaking out, because there was a good chance that he belonged to someone else way more than to him. The mere thought made his fists tighten, but he wasn’t sure what he was supposed to do about it. It’s not like he wanted to fuck Aleks. He wasn’t all that much into fucking anyone, let alone men, he always thought of himself as a little sexually repressed, it probably had something to do with his anxiety and twenty five years of suppressing his feelings. He’s already had one fiancée too many. And even if he had Aleks, what the hell would he do with him?

Great, now he was having a headache. He said he will come over tomorrow, so Maks will just have to watch them both closely and see if it was on or off, cause it was getting really insane.