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[indent][color=gray]For the better part of twenty minutes, Santiago was sulking in his car, wasting the gas in the tank and risking the risk of dying from carbon monoxide poisoning. Not that he gave a damn, though. Although the lyrics had absolutely nothing to do with what he was going through, music did make him feel better. The Xanax’s effects had kicked in now, so his mood was now slightly improved. Feeling it was about time to head inside, the young man moved his seat so he would be in a sitting position again to eventually leave his safe place. To his dismay, Diablo turned his head in the direction of the venue just in time to see April and Kavi heading inside, holding hands and looking like they were enjoying themselves. 

It took all of his self-restraint to not jump out of the vehicle and tackle Salvador. Diablo knew that if he continued to be by himself any longer, his hot head would eventually beat his reason and all hell would break loose. So in order to prevent him pulling a Marisol Castillo, the furious Diablo typed up a quick text to his boy Lucas and sent it his way. If there was a time that he badly needed his best friend, it was now.  

[indent][color=D11717][i]Where are you? Mara the Lubitch fucking ditched me. I need my wingman asap.[/i][/color][/indent]

A horn honked not too far in the distance, followed by the slam of a car door and some scuffling. The guy himself rapped his knuckles against the glass, causing Santiago to bolt upright and while Lucas gave the surprised male a rather comical grin. [color=DC143C]“Already?”[/color] He asked, his other hand showing the text history between the two of them.

[color=D11717]“[i]Puñeta[/i]!”[/color] Diablo muttered under his breath, heart still pounding a million times a minute. Shaking his head, he significantly lowered the volume of his thumping music and rolled down the driver’s side window. [color=D11717]“What the fuck, man?! You scared the crap out of me!”[/color]

Lucas grinned as he propped his elbows on the now-open window. Granted, he should have just texted him back like a normal person would, but it had been hard to resist giving him a good scare. It had been some time since he had seen his friend so pensive. [color=DC143C]“You should have seen me coming from a mile away,”[/color] He pointed out, eyeing his radio warily. [color=DC143C]“What crawled up your butt?”[/color]

[color=D11717]“I’m fine, I’m fine,”[/color] the gray-eyed male lied, waving a hand to dismiss his friend’s concern and putting up his most convincing fake smile. [color=D11717]“Now get in, Luke. I’ve got some refreshments to get us through this boring crap fest,”[/color] Diablo told his best friend, pointing at the passenger’s side glove box while suggestively wiggling his eyebrows.

The teenager was all too happy to comply, going over to the passenger’s side in record time. Sliding himself into the unoccupied seat, he got himself comfortable. [color=DC143C]“I definitely need something to help, I don’t think I’ll make it otherwise,”[/color] He whined. After popping open the glove box, he looked over at Diablo. [color=DC143C]“And you’re sure you’re fine? I just don’t want to have to hold your hand while you cry drunkenly.”[/color] 

This earned him a round of loud, rowdy laughter from Santiago. Leave it to Lucas to make a joke out of his misery and in the process lift his spirits; that’s why he was so fond of the guy.

[color=D11717]“The only time I’ve cried as a grown dude is when I lost my grandmother. I don’t plan on wasting tears on anyone that’s not immediately related to be my blood,”[/color] he stated confidently, grabbing one of the two cans of beer, popping it open and taking a long swig. His last statement was yet another lie, but he wasn’t about to admit that his eyes had stung a few times after thinking for too long about how he’d screwed up things with April.

[color=DC143C]“Uh huh,”[/color] Lucas grabbed a beer, using his keys to open it before immediately taking a gulp. There was nothing like a crisp beer before a lame-as-fuck party.

[color=D11717]“What’s that supposed to mean?”[/color] Diablo asked Lucas, playfully shoving his shoulder before taking another sip of beer.

Tapping his fingers on his knee, he decided to take a sip of his own before he would continue. [color=DC143C]“I would just like to think that after years of us bullshitting together, we would recognize one type of shit from another,”[/color] His attempt to sound wise was clunky at best, but he summed it up with: [color=DC143C]“Are you going to be okay tonight? Like, really okay?”[/color]

To say that Santiago Fernandez had never been good when it came to expressing emotions was an understatement. Even as a kid, he had a hard time trusting anybody with his issues, which ended up driving him to not-so-great coping mechanisms to deal with everything that he kept bottled up inside. But Lucas was like his own brother, and he was right in his assumption that things weren't okay with Diablo. If the roles were reversed, Santiago would want Luke to trust him with his issues. So in order to receive trust, he would have to give it forward.

[color=D11717]“Fuck, man… You know I’m not good with all this feelsy bullshit, Luke…”[/color] Diablo started, scratching the back of his head and shifting in his seat, looking visibly uncomfortable. But once he started talking, the words seemed to just stream out of him. [color=D11717]“It’s just… All the shit with April, man. All I can think about is how I screwed things up with her, and driving me fucking insane. And I know I shouldn’t really give a fuck - it’s not like we were dating or anything -, but it’s still fucking eating at me. Dude, I haven’t even touched another chick in like two months. [i]Two fucking months[/i]!”[/color] he exclaimed, making the peace sign towards Lucas as if to emphasize his point. [color=D11717]“Do you know how fucked up in the head I must be that my dick’s been limp for two fucking months?! I’m going fucking crazy here.”[/color]

Slowly nodding in understanding, Lucas put his lips to his beer again. At the risk of getting punched in the face, he knew he needed his friend to understand what was becoming glaringly obvious. [color=DC143C]“Uh...you’re not going crazy ‘cause you haven’t gotten any,”[/color] He raised an eyebrow at him. [color=DC143C]“You have the hots for [i]her[/i].”[/color] 

Diablo snorted, shaking his head with a close-lipped smile. [color=D11717]“Of course I have the hots for her. I wouldn't have fucked her for three years if I didn't have the hots for her,”[/color] he told him proudly, taking another swig of beer. 

Ah, that was his fault. [color=DC143C]”No, I mean, you want her and only her,”[/color] He clarified. [color=DC143C]”With commitment and all that shit.”[/color]

The next thing either of them knew, Diablo had spit out his mouthful of beer, liqueur suddenly covering the dashboard of the vehicle. The small amount that was left in his mouth had gone down the wrong side of his pharynx, causing him to go off on a rather comical coughing fit.

[color=D11717]“What?!”[/color] he croaked in between his fits, looking at Lucas through the cough-induced tears.

Taking out some napkins, Lucas put himself to clean up once he finished his beer. [color=DC143C]”Your reaction says everything,”[/color] He noted, placing another napkin on Diablo’s lap as he made sure to get everything else. [color=DC143C]”Don’t try to tell me I’m wrong, either.”[/color]

[color=D11717]“How does me spitting out my beer at your fucking craziness says anything other than I think you're insane?”[/color] Diablo replied, grabbing the napkin and making a half-assed attempt at cleaning himself up. His suit was now stained and he would smell like beer. [I]Great.[/i]

[color=DC143C]”So, if April actually gets together with Kavi tonight, you wouldn’t care?”[/color] He asked, not believing him for a second.

There was no hiding the look of pure rage that overcame Santiago at just the mere thought of Kavi’s nasty hands all over [i]his[/i] girl, and the way he would most definitely rub it in his face. The boy's knuckles turned white as he gripped the steering wheel. [color=D11717]“You'd have to hold me back so I don't fucking clock the guy,”[/color] he grumbled, now directing his ugly glare at the spot where he'd last seen April and Kavi walking into the party together.

[color=DC143C]”Of course you would. ‘Cause she’s [i]your[/i] girl,”[/color] Lucas replied, as if reading his thoughts. [color=DC143C]”And Kavi’s a real ass, but that’s beside the point. My point is that you’re in love and don’t know what to do, so you get all pissed off at everything.”[/color]

At the sound of the word ‘love’, Diablo choked again, staring at his best friend as if he'd just grown an extra head. [color=D11717]“Whoa, hold the fuck up!”[/color] he cried out, gray eyes wide. [color=D11717]“That's a pretty big word you're throwing out there, my man! I understand I can be pretty fucking possessive, but [i]love[/i]?! Seriously?!”[/color]

[color=DC143C]”Do I look like I’m kidding?”[/color] He said, shaking his head. [color=DC143C]”You’re so in denial that you’ve made yourself miserable because of it. News flash, D, you’re allowed to be happy.”[/color]

Santiago was thoughtful for a long while, silently pondering over Lucas' words on repeat. It wasn't that he was afraid to be happy - not when he lived to do things that brought him pleasure and satisfaction.The reality of it all was that Diablo’s true fear was of not only opening up to someone, but becoming vulnerable by giving himself up fully to one person only to end up getting his heart and his ego fucking destroyed. [I]That[/i] was the true fear that had kept him up at night more times than he would ever dare to admit. 

Finally, the young man let out a long, deep sigh. [color=D11717]“Okay, so let's pretend for a second that I entertain this idea that I'm suddenly ‘in love’ with Lils,”[/color] Diablo began to say, pausing to chug the rest of his beer and throw the now-empty can back into the glove box. [color=D11717]“What am I supposed to do about it?”[/color]

My God, he would take a bullet for this guy, but he was as stupid as a pile of rocks. Was this how his sister felt when he said dumb stuff? After making a mental note to apologize later, Lucas shrugged. [color=DC143C]”Tell her. And you tell her the [i]truth[/i]--you don’t play it off, you don’t half-ass it, you don’t downplay it. And then you’ll both finally stop beating around the bush and be together in your whirlwind of drama and intrigue.”[/color] He said, cracking open another beer.

[color=D11717]“You mean like tell her [i]now[/i]? [I]Today[/i]?”[/color] Santiago asked in disbelief, grabbing one of the small bottles of rum from the glove compartment and downing half of it in one gulp. 

[color=DC143C]”Doesn’t have to be now. Just has to be before Kavi sinks his claws into her,”[/color] Lucas pointed out.

Diablo scoffed, shaking his head. [color=D11717]“So basically now, then,”[/color] he muttered angrily, finishing up the miniature bottle of liquor and also putting it back inside the compartment. [color=D11717]“If I know anything about Salvador is that the piece of shit's probably already got Lils half tangled up in his web of lies. I just hope my girl's still being her smartass self and keeping him in check like she always does.”[/color]

Lucas grinned, tilting his head back and chugging his beer, not stopping until he was finished. Letting out a burp, he slapped Diablo’s arm. [color=DC143C]”That’s the spirit!”[/color] He cheered, fumbling with the car door until he managed to open it. [color=DC143C]”Let’s go wreck shit!”[/color]

Now that he was feeling significantly better about this whole thing, Santiago shut off the engine, opened his own door and exited the car. The full effects of the alcohol he'd consumed hit him like a pound of bricks, causing the young man to stumble a little at his first few steps. Diablo chuckled at his lack of balance, taking a moment to steady off his spinning head by leaning against the Lambo for a few minutes. When he had finally gained control over his body, the young man stood up straight and began to walk.

[color=D11717]“Let's go get ‘em, man,”[/color] he finally responded, throwing his broad arm around Lucas’ shoulders as the pair stomped and stumbled into the venue. [/color][/indent]