Episode 86: Dusk (Part 1/3)
Tension
After dinner, Gobias said goodbye to the Altos and was about to head home. But Boyd stopped him in the hallway for a moment. “Wait a minute.” /“What is it?”/ “I just wanted to know… if you're really okay, Gobias. Since you're no longer living with us… It's different.”/ “For whom… For you or for Susan?”
“More for me than for Susan. She still makes snide remarks now and then about how great it is to finally have some peace and quiet, but you know her… I've been reading more since you left. I miss our evening conversations…” / “Okay… but I can't change it now… And yes, I'm fine.” / “I'm glad. I…”
“Boyd, you don't have to say anything else, okay?” / "Please... It's important to me to get this off my chest. I always had the feeling that something might be different about you. Otherwise, you might already be married, have children...“ Gobias rolled his eyes a little and took a deep breath. ”That's true. But it's okay the way it is now. Like I said, I'm fine!"
Boyd nodded briefly. “I just want you to know that I... have no problem with that and would like us to get closer professionally again. We need someone like you for the projects that have come up in recent weeks. And I won't tell anyone...” Suddenly, Gobias noticed that they were no longer alone in the room. “Let's talk about this another time, okay? I just want to go home.”
Boyd said nothing more. Instead, he just nodded again and gestured with his hand that he could leave the conversation and go home. Gobias was glad to finally be back in the fresh, cold air. It had become stuffy in the house after so many hours. He walked a little way… But after a few seconds, he heard a voice behind him… “Hey, wait…”.
The voice calling him was not unfamiliar to Gobias since that afternoon, so he stopped and turned around. “Yes?” Ben slowed down and walked slowly toward him. “Sorry, I didn't mean to eavesdrop earlier… Is that a friend of yours?”/ “A colleague…”/ “Hmm… but your relationship isn't the best anymore, is it?” Ben asked cautiously.
Gobias looked at him silently for a moment. He remembered the brief moment when Ben came out of the bathroom and wasn't sure how much he had actually heard of his conversation with Boyd. “Let's just say we're no longer compatible as friends,” he said calmly and somewhat indifferently. “I see… Well, in any relationship, people can grow apart…”/ “Yes. Sorry, but I don't want to talk about him anymore. I…” /“Would you like something to drink? I live nearby… And I promise we won't talk about your… colleague.”
Gobias took a moment to think. No one was home; Ace was spending Christmas Eve with a friend's family. And even though Gobias was already quite tired, the urge to have a little alcoholic drink had been quite strong over the last few hours. “I only drink beer.”/ “Hn, okay…”
The distance was indeed not very far, as Gobias quickly realized when he followed Ben's footsteps. The many voices that had been murmuring in the Altos' living room just a few hours earlier were still echoing in his head. The cold also made him feel a little dizzy. When they arrived, he hesitated for a moment; the area was remote, somewhere near the harbor…
“Do you live here?” asked Gobias, while Ben fiddled with the garage door. "Well, let's say it's something like a second home… Because of my work as a craftsman and caretaker, I have to move around from time to time… .“ Sound of a garage door opening… ”Come on in, it might be a little dark… or do you want to freeze your ass off out here?"
Gobias took a few steps inside and looked around. The temperature difference to outside wasn't really noticeable, and the garage wasn't particularly well lit. “Okay, so where's the beer?” he asked wearily, stretching a little. “It's back there. Sorry about the mess, haha…” There was a bit nervousness in Ben's voice…
When he reached the back of the garage, Gobias was not particularly surprised. He found what he expected. A few beer bottles standing in the corner, a shabby old brass bed where Ben would occasionally lie down when he couldn't make it home… And a table with a chair. The rest was just junk and scrap that had been stored there.
After Gobias sat down and opened the bottle, he sniffed it briefly to make sure the beer was still fresh. Then he took a sip, two, three… He drank almost half the bottle in one go. “Mmm, that's really good.” Ben looked at him and grinned a little. “When was the last time you had such a good beer, huh?” “It's been a really long time. At home, I don't drink anything but water or coffee.”
“I see. Is it not welcome at home to enjoy a bottle now and then?” Gobias took another sip to moisten his throat. “No, I just don't always need it… What about you?” Ben looked at him and shook his head questioningly. “What do you mean?” Gobias set the bottle down on the table for a moment. “When you came to the party, you weren't in a good mood.” “Oh, that… I've already forgotten about it. I just had a not-so-nice encounter with an old friend.” Gobias ran his thumb over the bottle and nodded expressionlessly. “Seems like our lives aren't too different,” he said without thinking about his words.
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