Chapter 44: Crackheads want to eat swan meat

6 days to live.

"Well, last night was a wash." Ben said to Antonio. They were eating dinner at a nearby restaurant. "Sorry about that."

Antonio replied, "It's all good, cuz. We got away from that bouncer. It'd be best if we stayed away from that bar though. Also, maybe you shouldn't drink from now on. You went full Palpatine..." His eyes showed a tinge of fear.

Ben nodded. "Yea, I can tell drinking isn't my thing. Only two beers Hasselhoffed me...Only, everyone else in those bars is drinking. Isn't it weird to be the only person without a drink?"

Antonio stroked his chin. "You can buy a ginger ale or soda and carry it around in a glass. That way you'll fit in."

"...It's a good idea. Kind of weird though."

Antonio shrugged. "Fake it till you make it."

Ben pinched his eyebrows. 'What am I making? An alcoholic?'

After the bar debacle last night, Ben was in no shape for any more openers, so Antonio helped him get back to his dorm without someone arresting him. He woke up with a hangover and spent most of the day nursing himself back to health, only getting a gym workout in. He couldn't afford to rest though, so they planned to go out again tonight.

Antonio said, "You know, we don't have to go out every night..."

It's true it wasn't a healthy lifestyle and torched Ben's sleep schedule, but he'd have plenty of time to dirt nap next week. Also, all he needed to do tomorrow was a date with Miyuki at nighttime.

Ben stared hard into Antonio's eyes and his voice became grave. "I do...I've got to get a nut off...you hear me? If I don't glue-gun a woman this week, I'll die..."

By reflex, Antonio leaned back and frowned. 'I ain't no expert in thirstology, but this guy's vampin' out!'

***

After dinner, the two of them went back to the nightlife area they'd frequented these last few days. The name of this neighborhood was the West Village and it was always busy at night. As they approached Domina, Ben was eager to verify if there would be any fresh changes when he entered this bar dungeon, but he didn't have the opportunity.

"It's closed?" Ben knitted his eyebrows.

Antonio said, "New York may be the city that never sleeps, but it sure takes a lot of siestas. Even though there's somethin' happenin' every night, that's not the case for every place. Most venues are only packed a couple of nights per week, and those are the popular ones. It's not cheap keeping a spot open and paying staff."

Ben recalled that Lia, the promoter, mentioned Domina was only good a few nights. It disappointed him but the two continued walking. There was no shortage of venues here.

"Wooo!" Down the block, a woman's party howl caught Ben's attention. She was dancing with a few girlfriends in the street outside a bar.

Even from this distance, Ben and Antonio could see they wore very little clothing and were attractive. A second later, the women entered the bar next to them.

Ben and Antonio looked at each other and muttered, "The legendary s.l.u.ts..."

Then...they broke into sprints!

When they reached the bar, they almost tripped over themselves. Catching their balance, they saw there was no line because it was still early, so they approached the bouncer.

The bouncer watched two panting junkies with bloodshot eyes hobbling towards him in a menacing fashion. "...Stay back crackheads!"

Ben had to leverage his charisma in a 5 minute conversation with the bouncer to convince him they weren't junkies. Whether or not that was true was debatable...but they managed to gain entrance into the venue.

80s music and sparse laughter floated into their ears. They looked around and saw the place wasn't full yet. At the edge of the bar, Antonio spotted the group of women from outside earlier and pointed them out to Ben. The women were ordering drinks.

Now that they were closer, Ben could see these women were even more attractive than he expected. 8s or 9s at least! As Ben prepared to open them, Antonio grabbed his arm to stop him.

"Wait! If you go now, you'll get rejected," Antonio warned.

"What do you mean?"

"Those girls are too hot, we need a more delicate approach..."

Ben blinked. "Such as?"

Antonio smirked. "I'll show you..." They grabbed a place at the bar and ordered ginger-ales. "Cuz, while it's a good habit to not hesitate to open, it can also be short-sighted. Once you get rejected once, trying to reopen the same chick will be much harder. So with quality targets, consider bein' a bit more patient. You shouldn't auto-open 9s bro...Let me show you the right move here."

Ben was eager to learn these advanced tactics.

Antonio winked at him before opening two other girls sitting at a table. He stuck into the set and soon called Ben over to join him.

Ben watched and analyzed. "So his advanced tactic is...to settle for fatties?!?"