“You all aren’t going to drop me at the bottom of the river, are you?” Victor asked nervously. He was blindfolded. “Of course not, Vic!” Chaos pats him on the shoulder, laughing. “That’s real reassuring, boss,” Victor shook his head. “Just— keep moving,” Charles was guiding Victor along. “We’ve gone pretty far, guys. When are you taking this blindfold off?” “Don’t worry, we’re here,” Charles said. Chaos removed the blindfold, and a crowd of rough-looking people yelled, “Surprise!” “My family? What are you all doing here?” Victor was astonished. “How could we miss our little Vic’s bachelor party,” a tall man pat Victor on the head. “Watch it, George. I’m still older than you,” Victor grimaced. “Can’t help it if my big brother is a whole foot shorter than me!” George laughed. “Vic!” “Uncle Larry?” “It’s about time! Grandpa would be proud,” Larry clapped Victor on the back, “He would always say, ‘A man should know peace in his home—‘“ “‘And a good woman will do that for you if she wants for nothing,’” Victor and his family finished together. “Guys, where’s Lector?” Victor looked around, confused. “So— he’s at Veronica’s Bachelorette party,” Charles replied. “Um— why?” “Because Veronica made a special request, and while we all love the hell out of Lector, I don’t think we want Veronica to get the play-by-play of today,” Charles explained as they steered him further into the venue. “Guys, I said no strip clubs,” Victor anxiously reminded them. Charles laughed, “Oh, Vic, this isn’t a strip club. This is an underground game of strip poker.” “How is that any different?” Victor asked. “It’s different because we can all have a good time,” Charles winked at a guy across the room who waved back. “You know that guy, Charles?” Chaos raised his eyebrows. “No, but I’m about to get to know him,” Charles smirked and winked. “Well, I’m glad. Aside from Veronica actually tossing me at the bottom of the ocean, I wanted to do something we all could enjoy!” Victor grinned, “You all do realize Veronica could still potentially throw me to the bottom of the ocean, though.” “That depends on whether we win or lose,” Charles shrugged. “Right,” Victor chuckled, still anxious. “Loosen up, Vic,” Chaos passed him a shot, “You’re good at poker, and the grand prize aside from seeing a bunch of people naked is—“ “A 1985 Machio Exclusive pair of solid gold knuckles!” Victor gasped as he looked at the grand prize table. “Yep! Among other items, but I knew you were looking for those,” Chaos nodded. Victor hugged Chaos, “You know us all almost too well, boss!” Victor let him go and put on his serious face, “Let’s fuck this game up.” “See! I told you the strip poker thing is a safe bet,” Charles clapped Chaos on the back, “Victor is too competitive to care about who exactly gets naked and— we still get to see people strip!” “I’m glad you didn’t listen to me when I told you to stay home,” Chaos was always amazed at exactly how clever Charles could be, “But— what do we do if he doesn’t win?” Charles squinted his eyes at Chaos, “Did you forget who we are talking about here?” “You’re right! You’re right!” “Anyway, where is this normal you when Lisa is in the room,” Charles noted Chaos’s earlier comment. Chaos sighed, “Charles, it’s simple. I’ve never lo— liked anyone as much as I do, Lisa.” “You didn’t almost just say—” Charles began. “Oh, look! A game is starting over here!” Chaos dipped out quickly. Charles sighed and said as he watched Chaos join a game across the room out of earshot, “I’m glad he listened to me. We would all fight to our last breath to make sure something good comes from this, boss, so it’s okay to feel those feelings.” Charles smiled and shook his head as he turned to play his own game with the cute guy across the room. — Lisa sneezed. “Don’t go catching a cold on me, Lisa!” Veronica declared, passing her a drink. “Are you sure about this, Veronica?” Lisa took a drink. “Of course she’s sure?” Another girl from the party scoffed, “Who even is this.” “This is Lisa,” Veronica reprimanded, “she’s a good friend of mine, so check your bitchy attitude today, Ashley.” “Whatever,” the girl flipped her hair, “Why is he here?” Lector waved. “Because I want Vic to enjoy whatever it is he is doing at that underground strip poker game, and Lector would have more fun with us anyway,” Veronica declared, “Speaking of which, what do you all have planned.” “Well, we are going to an underground rave,” another girl in the group declared as they approached an abandoned silo. Veronica jumped up and down excitedly when they entered, then turned to Lisa and Lector, “Only take drinks directly from the bartender over there, only do shots, so you don’t potentially leave a drink sitting out in the open. Do not pop anything someone tries to give you without showing me first.” “Veronica, this is your bachelorette party,” Ashley rolled her eyes, “They grown. You don’t have to babysit them.” “Oh, Ashley, I don’t think you understand,” Veronica laughed then looked serious, “if anything unsavory happens to those two, I’ll paint a pretty red color across this party to add to the neon lights.” Everyone in the party felt a chill go through their body. “You don’t have to worry about Lector and me, Veronica. We will make sure to follow directions, so enjoy yourself, okay?” Lisa smiled, and Lector nodded. Veronica perked up again, “Of course! Let’s have a good time, everyone, okay!” Lisa and Lector smiled and nodded with everyone else, but they hooked arms and held onto each other tightly as they followed the group inside. “Lisa, I’m a criminal,” Lector began. “Yes, Lector! You’re a good sniper,” Lisa nodded. “Exactly, Lisa, I’m a sniper,” Lector continued as they managed to keep together in the crowd of bodies bumping to the music. “Okay,” Lisa wasn’t sure what Lector was getting at. “I watch crowds, Lisa. I don’t plunge into them,” Lector explained. “Lector, I haven’t been to a rave before, but I’ll watch your back, and I’m sure you’ll watch mine,” Lisa rubbed his arm with her other hand, “If we follow Veronica’s directions, I’m sure we will have just as much fun as everyone else, and if we aren’t we will just let Veronica know we are heading out.” Lector nodded, “Okay, Lisa. It does look like fun, and I do like drinking and dancing.” “Me too,” Lisa nodded, “Just make sure we don’t let go of each other— wait— Lector!” Someone squeezed between them, and they were pushed away from each other in the crowd. “Shit,” they both simultaneously thought as they watched each other drift away. — “How is that man still almost completely dressed?” Someone noted watching Victor continue to beat people in the game. “He’s handsome. I wish we could at least win a round to get him to take off his shirt,” another woman pouted. “Victor,” Charles reprimanded, “we know you can sweep the room but lose at least one hand, so it looks like you aren’t taking this seriously.” “Yeah, yeah,” Victor hit his joint as he stared at his hand, “I’ll raise.” “The point is that Victor and his family are having a good time,” Chaos’s teeth chattered. He was down to his briefs and socks. “You could keep playing,” Charles looked at him, “You have three articles of clothing to bid and the potential to win some of it back.” “I better quit while I’m ahead and just drink. Ah!” Chaos began before his shirt hit him in the face, “Thanks, Vic!” The room collectively pouted as Chaos put in his shirt and grabbed a bourbon on the rocks. “Least he looks like he hasn’t skipped leg day in his whole life,” someone noted, and the group nodded as they watched Chaos walk away. “I wonder what Lisa is doing right now?” Chaos thought, sipping his drink. — Lisa was dancing to blend in with the crowd. “I have to find Lector,” she thought. “Well, you look decidedly sober,” two people in fishnets approached Lisa. “I’ve had a drink or two,” Lisa insisted. “Just drinking? Do you know what kind of party this is?” “The kind where she gets to choose how she wants not to be sober,” Ben chimed. “Ben! What are you doing here?” Lisa was taken aback. He thought, “It’s damn difficult to watch you from a distance in a place like this.” “I love raves!” Ben lied. “Well, I’m glad you’re here! I need help finding Lector,” Lisa grabbed Ben’s arm. “Lector is here?” Ben raised his eyebrows. “That’s pretty out of character for a sniper, but his friend is getting married,” Ben thought. “Let’s go find him!” Ben led Lisa through the crowd. They looked through the crowd to find Veronica in a group of people dancing with each other. “Veronica! Have you seen Lector?” Lisa asked. “No, I haven’t,” Veronica wasn’t so high out of her mind that she couldn’t understand the problem, “Let’s go find him.” Veronica laced her fingers with Lisa and led her through the crowd to find Lector. “Where are you going, cutie?” Ben became separated from them. “Son of a bitch,” he thought as he smiled at the two women who were holding onto him. Lisa and Veronica swam through the crowd. “Come on, man, just one hit,” a man was soliciting Lector to take something. “No. I can’t take anything unless it’s from the bartender or Veronica approves it,” Lector was leaning against the wall, his arms crossed, “Oh hi Lisa! Hi Veronica!” “Lector, thank god!” Lisa hugged him, “Are you all right?” “Yeah! I took a couple of shots. Danced some, and then this guy came up trying to slip me something,” Lector explained. He acquired several glow stick necklaces. Lisa hugged him, “I’m glad you’re okay.” “Yeah! Are you okay, Lisa?” Lector asked, hugging her back. “I am now that I know you’re okay!” Lisa nodded. “Yeah! I’m sorry I made you worry. Let’s go have fun!” Lector took Lisa by the hand, and they went dancing. “I told you I didn’t have to worry about those two,” Veronica looked at Ashley smugly, “Now let’s go. My high is wearing off.” “Yeah, yeah,” Ashley rolled her eyes. It was all going well until someone kissed Lisa randomly in the middle of the dance floor. Before she could pull away, he slipped her something that she swallowed accidentally. “Oh! My bad. I thought you were my girl,” the guy said, obviously tripping out of his mind. “Well, she’s not! She’s the boss’s girl! You apologize,” Lector stood up to the man. “Dude, chill. I’m sorry, okay!” The guy held up his hand and walked off. “L-Lector,” Lisa reached for him but missed somehow and stumbled. “Lisa!” Lector caught her before she fell. Lisa knew Lector was talking to her, but he sounded far away. “Lisa!” Lector grabbed her face and looked her in the eye, “Shit… hey! What did you slip her?” The guy turned around and tossed a baggie at him, “I think you need one of these, too, man. So uptight.” Lector caught the bag and examined it. He couldn’t place what it was. He hoisted Lisa onto his back to find Veronica. Veronica sighed in relief, “Fortunately, this is a strain of an LSD/Molly blend that’s impossible to slip date rape drugs into.” “How do you figure?” Lector asked as Lisa was ‘whoo-hoo’-ing from Lector’s back. “This is a cheap knock-off of one of the boss’s recipes. The chemicals used create a reaction that negates the effects of— I don’t know. The boss is the brains,” Veronica shrugged, popping one herself, “It’s sweet how he’s not even here, and yet he saved her. Want one?” “No, it’s okay. You and Lisa enjoy them. I’ll just stick to drinking,” Lector held onto Lisa’s shirt as she danced with some people in eyeshot of himself and Ben, whom he made eye contact with from across the room. Lector didn’t know Ben, personally, but he was glad to have an extra set of eyes on Lisa. “The boy next door is going to be salty he missed this,” Ben grimaced as Veronica joined the group where Lisa was dancing and groping with other people. — “This is the best gift I’ve ever gotten!” Victor tried on the gold knuckles and threw a few punches, “And I managed to win some vintage suits that fit me. Thanks, guys!” “No problem!” They all waved practically naked. Victor’s phone pinged, “Huh, it’s from V-V-Veronica,” Victor blushed and slammed the phone face down on the table. “What did she send, Vic?” Chaos asked, concerned. “Ah— Well— you see,” Victor began to explain when Chaos’s phone pinged. “Huh, Veronica rarely messages me directly,” Chaos went to open the message. “Boss, wait!” Victor managed to catch him before he did. “What’s wrong? Now I’m worried,” Chaos was trying to wrestle away from Victor. “I just,” Victor grabbed Chaos’s shoulders, “I just want you to mentally prepare yourself before you open that.” “If it made Victor blush, I gotta see,” Charles was amused. “Lisa’s in it,” Victor managed. “Lisa? Is she okay! Victor!” Chaos managed to get out of Victor’s grasp. The volume was on Chaos’s phone, so they heard the thumping of rave music. “What is this?” Chaos was watching the video, “Is this— a rave?” “Now, boss,” Victor said slowly, holding his hands up, “don’t lose it.” “I can’t make that promise depending on what I see n—ext,” Chaos turned bright red. Ashley took the video on Veronica’s phone. Lisa and Veronica were down to their underwear dancing together. They somehow managed to get glowing body paint put on them. “Huh, that’s very artfully done considering everyone is probably high out of their minds or tripping balls,” Charles nodded, impressed. As the video went on, Lector was trying to get them to put their pants back on and ended up pressed between them. “How is it that Lector gets this lucky,” Victor pouted. They could hear Lector say, “C’mon, Lisa! Veronica! The boss and Vic are going to kill me.” Victor sighed, “Now, boss. We can’t be mad at Lector. He’s obviously the sober one trying to get our girls decent.” Chaos sighed in frustration, simultaneously feeling bad for Lector and jealous, “We should probably figure out where they are and go save Lector.” They followed the signal from Veronica’s phone to the abandoned Silo. Fortunately for everyone at the rave, Chaos Corps phones scramble their signal so that only the organization knows where their people are at any one given point in time. When they stepped in, the three men looked across the sea of people and lights. “According to her signal, they are this way,” Victor led them through the crowd. They looked dangerous enough that the crowd parted for them as they moved along. They finally found them. Lector was now missing his shirt covered in body paint, “Boss, thank god!” Lector hugged him, looking like he’s seen some shit. “It’s okay, Lector. We aren’t mad at you. Where is the little flower and Veronica?” Chaos asked. Lector pointed to a corner where Lisa and Veronica were giggling and cuddling each other. The other people in their group were dispersed through the rave. Chaos and Victor stood stiff when they laid eyes on this sight. “Lector— what did they take?” Victor asked nervously. Lector handed him the bag. “Tch, knock-offs. At least we know they haven’t been roofied,” Charles grimaced. When the two women finally noticed Charles, Chaos, and Victor, they pressed each other cheek and smirked at them. “Boss, what do we do?” Lector asked. “Well,” Victor began, “We could pull them apart. Personally, I’d let Veronica do whatever it is she feels like doing to me because this is hot. The boss, however…” “Shut up, Vic,” Chaos snapped beet red. “All we have to do is pull them apart and take them home,” Charles put a hand on Chaos’s shoulder, “Lisa doesn’t bite too hard, I’m sure.” “Why are you enjoying this,” Chaos glared at Charles, who had been amused since Chaos opened the video. “I have no clue what you’re talking about, boss!” Charles shrugged. Chaos gulped and followed Victor to the corner. “Victor, my love!” Veronica jumped into his arms and kissed him passionately. “Fuck, maybe I won’t be able to handle it,” Victor thought as she pulled his hair and wrapped her legs around his waist. Lisa stepped up to Chaos, pressing her body to his, but she ran her finger over his lips, “I won’t take these until you give them to me first.” She leaned up and kissed him on the cheek instead. “How is that so erotic for something so tame?” Ben and Charles thought. “L-Little flower?” Chaos stammered as she touched her forehead to his thumbing his lips. “You make it so damn hard to hold this level of restraint,” Lisa confessed in a smoldering tone. “You’re tripping, little flower,” Chaos laughed nervously, “let’s get you home.” “We should definitely at least get those two a room,” Charles said flatly, indicating Victor and Veronica. Lector was covering his eyes, “And possibly a safe word.” — Chaos entrusted Charles and Lector to get Victor home safely before Veronica devoured him as Chaos took Lisa home. Even though she managed to lose her clothes, Lisa kept her keys in her bra. Chaos carried Lisa upstairs after locking the door behind them. She had her arms wrapped around his neck, leaning her head on his shoulder. Chaos paused outside her bedroom door. “It’s okay for you to go in,” she yawned. Chaos nodded, opening the door. It was a pretty standard room with a queen-sized bed. He wasn’t sure what he expected to see that made him so nervous. Chaos went to lay Lisa in bed, but she didn’t let go as he expected, so Chaos lost balance and landed on top of her. “Are you okay?” He asked, concerned. Lisa nodded as they stared into each other’s eyes. “She’s still tripping,” Chaos noted, examining her face. “I should go, little flower,” Chaos said softly. “Please, don’t go,” Lisa asked. “Little flower, I’m sober, but you aren’t— I don’t think I should,” he began. “I won’t do anything inappropriate, Spencer,” Lisa vowed, still holding onto him. “You’re holding onto me pretty tight. Are you sure you’re okay?” Chaos touched a hand to her face. “I’m— not sure. I—“ Lisa squeezed her eyes shut, burying her face into his shoulder, “You’re really here, right?” “Yes, I’m really here, little flower,” Chaos was starting to worry. “Is— is Bosco really here also?” “Shit— of course, she’d have a bad trip on her way down,” Chaos thought. “No, Bosco is not here, but if it will make you feel better for me to stay, let me at least take off my shoes and get us into bed right,” Chaos said calmly but was spazzing on the inside. Lisa nodded, standing up so the covers could be pulled back. Chaos helped her back into bed and climbed in after taking off his shoes. He wrapped his arms around Lisa, who clung to him. He stroked her hair until he felt her relax. Chaos sighed, “She finally fell asleep.” Assessing the situation, he realized that he wouldn’t be slipping out without waking her. “I’m in bed with her— in her bed,” Chaos’s heart started pounding when that dawned on him, “she’s sleeping— we’re just sleeping. Sleep. I should go to sleep.” Chaos tried getting comfortable, but he couldn’t seem to relax. This was before he remembered Ben was probably watching.