【R76】Pull Out the Pin

When the weather started to turn hot, they accepted a task to investigate the local smuggling syndicate. The bureau also took the city's smuggling cases very seriously. The initial investigation took a lot of time, and everyone was tense.They cut off the lead a few days ago, and Reyes said he knew some informants in the ghetto who could help.Of course Morrison knew what the informants he was talking about-those punks on the streets, lackeys of gangsters, which he had never been involved in.Morrison was both elated and nervous when Reyes told him to take him with him.Nervous as he checked the spare ammo in the holster for the last time.Reyes stood next to him and put on his coat, and when he saw his lips tightened, he asked amusedly, "What?"

"I just don't want to screw it up," Morrison said truthfully.

"If you use your brain by accident, we won't mess it up." Of course, you can't expect Reyes to say anything nice, Morrison secretly rolled his eyes; but what he didn't expect was that Reyes reached out to encourage She squeezed the back of his neck like a normal co-worker.

Reyes' palms were cold, and he shuddered when his broad palm touched Morrison's skin, not because of the cold, but because of the skin-to-skin contact for the first time.Reyes quickly retracted his hand, and the feeling of electric shock disappeared.

"Go and drive," his voice was comforting for the first time.

On the way to the slums, they did not turn on the police lights, and drove quietly along a nearly dry artificial river.Reyes kept turning his head and staring out the window, and Morrison could see that he was also preoccupied. This is how he looked when he was thinking, his brows were tightly knit together, and the line of his jaw was tense and sharp as a knife.Morrison slowed down on a gentle slope, the sunlight was filtered into spots by the branches of the short trees on the river bank, and there was a suffocating silence.

"Just stop here," Reyes said suddenly.Morrison parked his car under the bridge hole, and they were very close to the slums. Crossing the shadow under the bridge, ragged people gathered under the wall in twos and threes, staring vigilantly at the parked police car.Reyes straightened his beanie habitually, and Morrison grabbed his arm just as he was about to open the door and get out of the car.

"what?"

"Where are you going?"

"Go talk to the informant, you idiot." Reyes frowned. "You thought we were on vacation?"

"You're still wearing a police uniform, and you want to walk past like this?" Morrison asked in disbelief.

Reyes actually laughed out loud this time.His eyes wandered across Morrison's face, and finally settled meaningfully on his frighteningly white neck.

"Listen, Morrison," he said, "the only people like you are fucking cops in these people's eyes, and I'm just a partner for their deals."

"Someone like me?"

"Do you know how many people of different skin colors live under this bridge? Probably more than 70, all of them have in common that they don't trust the blond white police. Also, do you know what you look like? You fucking Like a rookie who just graduated from the police academy and doesn't seem to understand anything."

"I'm 27 years old."

"They don't know, they don't care, they just make a first-look decision on whether you can be trusted by those bastards. Do you understand?"

Morrison sighed, and then unbuckled himself.This time it was Reyes' turn to stare at him:

"Where are you going?"

"go with you."

"No," Reyes snapped, "you stay here."

"Why?" Morrison pulled the brakes and pulled out the key. "We are partners, and we have to complete the task together."

"I order you to stay here—"

"You're not my superior to order me," Morrison said stubbornly, "and I'm supposed to be involved in some of this stuff, aren't I?"

He stood with his hips akimbo in front of the police car, and Reyes had to give in. He nodded and told him not to say anything for a while.The two walked towards the crowd together. Several passers-by saw two people in uniforms approaching, got up cautiously, and got out of the way. Some ran away, and three or two people stayed where they were smoking.

It smells bad here, not like the country dirt or pens, but a rotten, dark smell that can be smelled.Morrison sniffed and out of the corner of his eye saw Reyes striding calmly beside him.He looked around, and then asked in a relaxed tone as if he was talking about the weather: "Where's Billy?"

"There's no Billy here," replied an old man with a dirty white beard.Reyes looked impatient.

"You're a fucking liar, Thomas, and get Billy here."

The old man named Thomas turned his eyes to Morrison, looking him up and down with eyes that made him uncomfortable. "You brought a note."

"This is my partner," Reyes said. "I have a decent job anyway, and it's no surprise to have a co-worker. He doesn't know about our 'stuff'. I just want to get something from Billy and leave here."

"'Those things'?" Morrison muttered.

Thomas held out a hand, the palm covered with dirt and grime.Reyes took a bill out of his jacket pocket and handed it over.

"That's all?"

"I'm looking for Billy, not you." Reyes huffed, "If you don't want it, take it back."

The old man thought for a while, but still stuffed the money into his pocket. "Billy didn't show up for two days," he said. "Last time seeing him was Tuesday, and he got into the car with the group."

"you sure."

"Swear on dollars."

Reyes nodded, looked around the damp bridge hole again, and glanced over the faces of every homeless man. "Let's go," he said to Morrison, and strode away without looking back.

"Who's Billy? Who's the 'bunch'? What's wrong with him?" Morrison followed closely behind him.

"Billy is one of my informants. He is a brainless idiot. He participated in a local smuggling operation a few months ago. Later, he was scammed by those profiteers and was caught by the search team. He volunteered to provide clues for a deal. "Reyes said quickly, "But the smugglers have been getting more and more rampant recently, and I guess he is also being targeted."

"They captured Billy to show that they had learned of his dealings with the police, and capturing the police informant was equivalent to provoking us."

"That's right," Reyes said, tugging on the car door. "We need to move fast. I know a place."

"What about the action team?"

"I'll apply for reinforcements, but don't expect him to arrive before us."

Morrison had never stepped on the gas pedal so hard.He roared through block after block, the horn beeping.Reyes used the communicator to seek a backup team from the headquarters while directing the direction.Ten minutes later, they went down the path and arrived at an empty factory. There were only a few cars speeding on a road dozens of meters away, and no one took a second look here.

"Where is this?"

Reyes didn't answer him. "Have you got enough bullets?"

certainly.Morrison knew, though, that he wasn't really suspecting that he wasn't properly equipped, but reminding him that this mission was no joke.The scorching sun burned the back of Morrison's neck.He took off his police cap, thinking it was in the way.Reyes took off his coat and unbuttoned two buttons of his shirt.

"How do you know it's this place?" Morrison looked up at the abandoned factory.

"Billy mentioned it to me. He said that all the smuggling strongholds in New York are here, and there is a punishment room. If they catch anyone, they will be dragged here for confinement. But I have never been here before." Reyes bent After groping under the seat, he miraculously took out two cartridges, threw one cartridge into Morrison's arms, and put the other cartridge into his holster, "Be careful, don't die. "

They peeped in through an open back door, trying to walk lightly.Reyes walked ahead, his arms steady with his gun raised; Morrison followed closely, breathing, watching their backs.He could hear someone talking, but it was difficult to tell the exact direction. Those voices surrounded them through walls and pipes.Reyes turned on the flashlight in an increasingly dark corridor, and Morrison followed the light to see a closed iron door.

"Is this the door to the brig?"

"I am not sure."

Reyes put his finger on the door and tapped twice.There was a moment of silence, and then there was a loud crash, as if something was slamming on the iron door inside.

"Let me out!" A man howled inside, banging on the door desperately, his voice was hoarse, as if he had been crying for a long time, "Please, let me out! I won't dare again! "

Reyes sighed in relief. "This is Billy. He's not dead." Then he leaned against the door and yelled, "Billy, it's me."

There was a sudden silence on the other side of the door. "Is that you, Gabriel? Thank God you're here at last—" But then panicked, "They're going to kill you too, we're not going to get away..."

"Calm down, my partner and I are here and backup is on the way," Reyes said. "How can I get you out?"

"There's a guy with a mohawk, he's in charge of the brig, and he's got the key, for God's sake," Billy began to cry, "You can't beat him, they're always in packs—"

"Approximately how many people are in the factory now?"

"Four, maybe five, and the others were sent elsewhere."

"Where are they?"

"Third floor, that's where they keep their money. They've been bickering about earnings. I guess they're all there."

"You're doing well, Billy. Listen, let's go upstairs now and have a look and get the backup to get you as soon as we get the key, shall we?"

There was only sobbing on the other side of the door.Reyes' expression should be that he acquiesced.

"let's go."

They found the stairwell, which smelled musty and musty.The door to the third floor was left open, and the two of them stepped in.This floor was finally brighter than the corridors of the confinement room, and several small workshops were converted into office-like rooms.Morrison nodded to Reyes, and the two of them began to go from room to room along the hallway.The first few are empty, tables, chairs, very simple layout.Later, Morrison found a few guns in a box in an empty room. He guessed that they were samples for showing customers. He wrote down the room number in his notebook and told himself to remember to call the evidence team to collect evidence later.

Following the increasingly clear voices, they located the office where the smugglers gathered.Reyes pointed his gun at the door and glanced at Morrison, who was in sync with him: "Are you ready?"

"Of course," Morrison whispered.

Reyes kicked open the not-so-strong wooden door, and the three people sitting inside were startled. "Stay the fuck out, policeman," Reyes yelled, not bothering to reach for his badge in his pocket. "Put down your weapon!" One of them reacted rudely, grabbing a nearby gun and pulling on the safety catch.

What Morrison is most proud of is his marksmanship. During his several semesters in the police academy, he almost won the championship of moving target shooting competitions every year. His instructor jokingly said that he has a pair of eyes that can automatically locate the bull's-eye.Equally outstanding is his precise judgment and responsiveness, which makes him stand out among many students.With just a glance from the corner of his eye, he guessed the enemy's movement, moved the muzzle lightly, and hit the gun that hadn't been fully raised.The rifle fell to the ground with the screams of the opponent, and Morrison stepped on it with his foot.

Reyes seized the gap and fired quickly as well.But the three on the other side seemed to be prepared, bypassing the muzzle and pounced on the two policemen, as if they wanted to use fighting to control the few with more.It was the first time Morrison saw Reyes fight in close quarters. Every punch was clean and neat, and he didn't hesitate to kick. The speed was as fast and accurate as lightning.Morrison sprinted out the side, threw one of them on the ground, and pinned his knee to his throat.

Reyes' gun was dropped during the struggle.Morrison wanted to pick it up for him, but was hit hard by the person under him in this gap, and the pain made him lose consciousness for three seconds.

"Are you fucking okay?" Reyes yelled at him.But he wasn't much better either, and the blood near his nose was particularly obvious on his dark skin as he narrowly dealt with the two of them.Morrison stumbled to his feet, but was grabbed by the thigh by the people around him, and fell back again.

He hit the man on the back of the head with the butt of his rifle until he passed out and was out of the fight.Not far away, Reyes groaned, as if he had been hit somewhere.Morrison felt that his ribs were hurting badly, but he couldn't care less. It was hard to gain the upper hand in a fight with two fierce men in a small room. He had to help Reyes.

Morrison blinked, pushing the dizziness out of his mind.He raised the gun subconsciously, but saw that Reyes was being held in the head by the muzzle of another person's gun, and his neck was tightly restrained by the other arm.Hold.

"Let him go," Morrison yelled, pointing his gun forward. "We're the police. If you don't want to die in prison, let go."

"Do you think I care if I'm in jail or not?" The man holding Reyes - whom Morrison recognized as the Mohawk in charge of the brig - wasn't much better, his face full It's blood, he was beaten badly by Reyes, and he couldn't stand still. Morrison was worried that he would accidentally pull the trigger at any time, "Do you think I really believe that you bastards will let us go?"

"Morrison, let's go." Reyes started talking, and he was fucking talking, and he let him get out of here.

I don't fucking do it.Morrison glared at him fiercely and told him to shut up.

He knew that Mohawk had no hope of escaping, and he just wanted to drag a policeman to be buried with him.Morrison's eyes were fixed on his finger on the trigger like a falcon. He stared so hard that he seemed to be able to count the fine prints and scattered skin spots on his fingers.His head was spinning so fast—maybe it was only a tenth of a second before he could shoot before Mohawk could strike.

"Jack." He heard Reyes calling his name.

"Shut up." He whispered.Then he shoots.The bullet whizzed out of the trajectory, which seemed to slow down a hundred times in Morrison's eyes. He stared at the bullet, watching it split a straight line like a sharp knife in the thick air, rubbing out sparks, There was crackling in his ears.Finally, the bullet lodged in the Mohawk's head's forearm, and he let out a howl of pain—and Reyes added another elbow just in time to snatch the gun away.

Morrison's temples felt like they were going to explode from the series of struggles and the high tension seconds before. "I still need to save you." He forced a smile, and now he just wants to find a place to lie down quickly, "Quickly search him for the key to the confinement room..."

Before he finished speaking, Reyes suddenly looked at him with a terrifying look. "Jack." This was the second time he called his name today, and Morrison was a little confused.

"Behind!" Reyes yelled.But it was too late, as if a fragment that had just peeled off from a meteorite hit the back of his head heavily; in the next millisecond, his back was also hit, and he clearly heard the sound of bones breaking.

Morrison heard two shots and a stream of expletives before losing consciousness.He prayed to himself that Reyes had the damned subdued.

■

At the age of seven, Morrison fell from a horse.It was just autumn, and the farm had already prepared haystacks, which were neatly laid out in the dried mud.Morrison liked the feeling of climbing on horseback and jumping into the soft hay, although he often made himself smelly.But that day, his best friend Daisy (a maroon mare with shiny fur) ran like crazy when he was about to jump off the horse, and finally Morrison could only retreat He fell on his back on the hard ground and broke several bones.This is the most painful memory in his mind.

——It’s just like that now, the broken bones seem to grow in the skull, and they are about to explode in pain before they open their eyes.Morrison felt his body shake slightly, and it took a few seconds for him to regain consciousness and realize that he was in a speeding car.Reyes was holding the steering wheel, driving for the first time in months when the two of them were alone.

"Am I dead?" Morrison said, feeling a lump in his throat. "Why are you in the driver's seat?"

Reyes cast a quick glance. "There's so much to talk about when you're hurt like that." He freed up a hand and threw a ball of fabric, Morrison shook and found that it was the T-shirt that Reyes always kept in the back seat as a spare, "Cover your Wound."

Morrison felt his cheeks wet.He rubbed his hands casually, and saw that his palms were covered in blood.

"Cover it up," Reyes said. "We're still a little away from the hospital."

"Isn't this dress expensive?"

"Morrison. Cover."

Morrison twisted his clothes and wrapped them around his head in a way that must have looked hilarious.He stared out the window, letting the memory slowly gather in his mind, and he remembered the incident in the factory.

"Did you take out that bastard who knocked on my head?"

"of course."

"Is the backup coming?"

"Here it comes. They're taking care of the rest of the chores. I don't want to wait for the medical team, they're too slow."

"Where's Billy?"

"Alive."

"I saved you, didn't I?"

Reyes turned his head and cast a complicated look. "Yes." He paused, "You saved me. Are you happy?"

Morrison grinned a goofy smile, but the sudden pain in his head made him nauseous.Reyes took him to the hospital for a quick checkup: a mild concussion, a broken rib, a stray bullet wound to his calf.Reyes also had some abrasions on his face and arms, which he simply ordered the nurse to bandage.But Morrison lay on the sidelines and laughed to himself as he watched Reyes seriously hospitalize him in the name of the police station.

Anyway, he saved Reyes' life from the smuggler's gun.If he hadn't shot decisively, it would probably be his turn to send Reyes to the morgue now.It made him kind of happy, even kind of mischievously proud; he wanted to be recognized, wanted to use his powers to protect those around him, and he did—even if he was a pompous jerk, but still a good partner.If Reyes was in trouble again, he would not hesitate to rescue him.

Reyes stayed with him in the hospital for a while, essentially standing by as the doctor performed various tests on Morrison, telling him when to call the nurse and when to take his medicine.Morrison remained groggy, nodding wildly.Finally everyone else left before Reyes made his way to the hospital bed.He leaned over to watch Morrison.

"Did you hear what the doctor said?"

"No." Morrison answered honestly.

"He said you'd be off work for a few weeks."

"but--"

"You can't go anywhere now," Reyes said sternly. "I'll go back to the Bureau and finish the report and deal with this case, and you will be responsible for lying here. When your head is more or less healed, we will Let’s discuss business again.”

"My head is fine!" Morrison exclaimed, grinning in pain as if someone had cut him in the back of the head.

"Who is lying in the hospital bed now." Reyes rolled his eyes. "I have to go. Someone else will come with you later."

"Come to me at night, I want to get to the bottom of this case—"

"You need sleep."

"I'm your partner, and I need as much information as you do."

"Okay," Reyes thought for a moment, "I'll come over tomorrow. Rest your mind so that you won't be confused the next day."

Morrison fell asleep in the ward all night, and it wasn't just Reyes who came to visit the next day, almost everyone in the office came.But when Lena and Hana started talking loudly, his head was about to explode again, and in the end Winston could only throw them all out.A few minutes later, only Reyes and Winston remained. When Morrison asked about the case, both of them had sullen faces. Winston took off his glasses and rubbed his eyes tiredly, which meant that nothing was wrong. information.

"Billy provided another clue. The smuggling group started to make a big noise out of desperation, hoping to escape from the police," Winston said. Got caught, owed Talon an emergency order—thousands of guns."

"It must have delayed some arrangement of Talon." Morrison guessed.

"It's not just a delay, because there is no weapon, the Talon in New Jersey is caught by the police and has no resistance. They will definitely turn to the Talon in New York." Reyes said, "But the loss is too much. People, they are still reorganizing, and they will not take risks for a while."

"Should we set up a team to investigate Talon?"

"I'll discuss it with the General Directorate, and we'll do it when the time is right," Winston told him. "Now all you can do is stay in bed."

Must have seen Morrison's look of despair, if I'm not mistaken - Reyes even smiled.

■

Morrison was somewhat surprised that Reyes picked him up the day he was discharged from the hospital.He sat in the co-pilot of Reyes for the second time. Although his head no longer hurts, the feeling of smelling the familiar car aroma and chatting with his partner is still a bit subtle.During the recuperation period, the two met quite often, and most of what they talked about was work. Morrison would always ask questions like a cannonball, while Reyes only briefly answered what he thought was important.I don't know if it was an illusion, but he always felt that Reyes was hiding something.But Reyes was Reyes, and he had many secrets that Morrison never knew.

Reyes helped carry Morrison's hospital supplies into his apartment. "Thank you," Morrison asked as he twisted the key in the sticky keyhole. "Would you like to come in?"

"Okay." Reyes agreed without even thinking about it.

The apartment was always empty except for his friend Angela who came to bring him something while he was in the hospital.As soon as the door was opened, the house that had been empty for a few weeks was full of dust and had an old musty smell.Morrison hurried to open the window and draw the curtains, and turned to find Reyes standing at the dining table with a disgusted expression on his face, dumping all the contents of several plates into the trash can.

"Uh...throw it all away," Morrison said with some embarrassment, "and some things in the refrigerator, I guess they are all broken."

Reyes cleans out the refrigerator roughly—he just sniffs it before slamming it into the trash.In the end, he found an unopened deodorant in the cabinet, tore open the package and threw it into the freezer.

"There's beer, if you want."

"No, I have to drive back in a while."

"Oh, yes." Morrison replied.Then the two fell into an awkward silence.Reyes walked around his small apartment, curiously examining the murals on the walls and the ornaments on the cabinets.He stopped by the CD cabinet for a long time, still picking and choosing in it, and picked out one at random.

"Chili Peppers?" he asked. "I didn't know you were a big fan of them. I thought you liked more country tunes."

"I actually don't have any special preference for 80s rock, except for them." Morrison shrugged, "You like it too?"

"Unexpectedly," said the dark-skinned man, "you and I have the same hobbies. You play the guitar?"

He pointed to an acoustic guitar hanging on the wall.Morrison didn't expect him to ask this. "I'm just an entry-level player, and I haven't played it in a long time. It's covered in dust." He asked, "Can you play it too?"

"I play when I'm in a good mood," Reyes said, "but I haven't been in a good mood for a long time."

"it's a pity."

Morrison took off his shoes and coat and curled up on the narrow sofa.Reyes, still with his icy back turned to him, whispered as he passed Morrison's row of polished medals:

"Thank you for saving me. Even if your choice is stupid, it will kill yourself."

Morrison opened his mouth in surprise.

"You're welcome," he said. "We're partners after all. Even if you always talk like a jerk."

"You're right," Reyes said.Morris didn't know whether he was referring to the first half of his sentence or the second half.

■

"We're having a party at the pub tonight to celebrate Jack's return from recovery. No one's late at seven o'clock - wow, look, who's coming, Jack!"

On Morrison's first day back in the office, before he could sit down at his desk, which he had been thinking about for a long time, he saw Lena standing on a wide table with her arms outstretched like a preacher to attract everyone's attention.Before she could yell enough, she was knocked down from above by the owner of the table, Reinhardt.

In fact, it was McRae who first proposed going to the bar to celebrate Morrison's return—always McRae, and he was the one who expressed his opinion on anything related to cigarettes and alcohol.Morrison hadn't planned on making it so grand, and he seriously suspected McCree was just looking for an excuse to drink too much.

"Maybe Reyes won't be going," Morrison said awkwardly, sneaking a glance up at his partner sitting across from him.The other side was indifferent and seemed not to care about their conversation at all.

"Bullshit," McCree snuffed out his cigarette and threw it in Reyes' trash can, telling the curmudgeon, "he's gotta come."

"Get the hell out of me," Reyes whispered.

In the end, Morrison was still surprised when he saw Reyes sitting alone at the bar in the gap between the crowd.Reinhardt knows the boss here, which is why they always come here to party.However, there is another saying that a two-meter tall man can drink all the self-service beer in the city, and only here will he not be blacklisted by the boss.He waved his broad palm and told the bartender to give everyone a glass of the special beer here.

"I hope you're all ready to walk home." He grinned as he handed out the cups.Morrison looked back and saw that Reyes was still sitting in the distance drinking by himself, but there were a few more girls around him who came to strike up a conversation.The girls all sported cascading golden waves, protruding from the front and back, as if some model team had come out hunting together.Morrison took a sip of his beer, wondering how hard it was for them to talk to Reyes.

"Should we call him over?" Morrison asked.

"Forget it, he will come when he wants to." Reinhardt dismissed his thoughts.

When Morrison turned to peek over there again, Reyes was biting the ears of the tallest girl, who made the girl giggle and tremble with laughter.Morrison turned his head to look at Angela next to him, the alcohol was starting to erode his brain - he even wondered if Reyes would be interested in Angela, who was also blond, she seemed to be exactly his kind .

The rest gathered around the small table and played a few rounds of games, craps, fine wine, and the truth or dare that young people like to play.Then they decided to spin the bottle, and after a few times it pointed at Morrison, unbiased.

"It's finally Jack's turn!" Lena said cheerfully, "Who wants to ask a question?"

"Let's go with that," Hana said, giving McCree an odd look.

"Really?" McCree asked back.

"why not?"

"I'm afraid Jack will be angry."

"What the hell are you talking about?" Morrison interrupted.

"You two, don't say code words by yourself, just say what you think." Lina stopped the two people who were making eye contact in time.McCree put down his glass and cleared his throat:

"Jack, I made a bet with Hannah—I don't think Reyes would mind kissing you."

"I bet he won't." Hana said firmly.

"Impossible to succeed." Morrison also said.

"Please—"

"Two-thirds of the time we've been together we've been bickering and calling each other," Morrison said, swishing his glass. "He wouldn't like being with me, let alone kissing. Jesse, you Already lost."

"How do you know if you don't try it?" McCree looked bitter. "I bet 50 yuan, Jack, 50 yuan! Please, for my sake, do me this favor—"

"Okay," Morrison said.Maybe it's the alcohol - isn't that what humans are all about?All the guts and mistakes will eventually be blamed on the alcohol-making him throw down the glass resolutely, "You wait."

He stood up amidst the booing.Someone changed the music with a stronger sense of rhythm. The drum beats were connected to the loudspeaker and came from all directions, but Morrison could still hear his heart beating clearly.He crosses the dance floor and touches a few shoulders; Reyes is still sitting there, the girls have long since left, and he's alone again.He tossed aside the beanie that never came off his body. From behind, Reyes's short hair grew longer. He kept saying that he didn't have time to go to the barber shop, and even said angrily that he would shave it all off.The blue and purple dancing lights are intertwined, and the chasing light quickly sweeps across everyone's faces.Morrison squinted, realizing that Reyes had noticed him.

"Bring me a drink." Morrison sat down beside him.

Reyes looked him up and down, out of habit. "If you're here for truth or dare, sorry, I don't take your taunts." Still, he held up his hand and asked Morrison for a glass.

"I just want to know what my partner is doing here," Morrison watched as the bartender poured him a drink, which smelled so strong that he didn't know how much Reyes had drunk, "so as not to be called me snubbed partner."

"Not easy."

"But I found that you have not been left out at all," Morrison said boldly, taking a big sip of wine, letting the hot liquid burn in his esophagus, "Have you been eyeing a girl for a long time, smelling you Myself, it's all perfume. I'm curious, you seem to enjoy chatting with Goldilocks, wondering if you're not really that into the type—"

The accompanist ended the piece with a loud drumbeat, and the surroundings suddenly fell silent, and Reyes finally got his attention, staring thoughtfully at Morrison, frowning at the bitter taste of the wine.

"Are you trying to get drunk, Morrison? Or are you already drunk on a few beers?"

"I want you to take care of it?"

"If you want to die here so much, maybe I can help you."

"roll."

"You took the initiative to come here."

"I just want to chat."

"Chat?"

"Like all my co-workers who are supposed to be chatting casually at parties." He didn't know what to do to be less obnoxious in Reyes' eyes.It was really hot in here, and Morrison parched and unbuttoned two shirt buttons to let himself breathe.

But Reyes said: "Morrison, we'll never be able to chat like normal colleagues."

"Why?" Morrison yelled over the blaring music. "What did I do to make you look down on me so much?"

Reyes just looked at him expressionlessly, tapping the cup with his slender and strong fingers, Morrison could only look away awkwardly, staring at his pale fingertips through the transparent cup.Damn.Morrison felt that he had been seen through:

"What's your big adventure anyway?"

Morrison burps. "Let you kiss me."

"You're being honest," Reyes said.

Reyes leaned forward and pressed his lips to Morrison's.Fuck, he does it so naturally, it's like... like he does it every day, or practices it.Maybe it's because the distance between them has long been unknowingly narrowed or even disappeared.Reyes' lips were as cold as his skin, but Morrison