Too Old for Platonic Dates
It wasn’t very often Joel was the one to indulge in social calls. Something about hangouts had never really interested the lawyer too much, so he never actively sought out any interactions that weren’t purely business.
Unless there was alcohol involved. Always a good way of relaxing him enough to actually talk with others like he was a real human being, instead of the amazing machine persona he kept up to remain at the top of his line of business.
But when he’d received the text from Geoff, he hadn’t even hesitated before agreeing. Maybe it was the fact that he’d finished his workload for the evening early; maybe it was the fact that he’d already been through a couple of shots of whiskey in the past hour. It probably mostly boiled down to Geoff being a good buddy of his; probably the only person he was always comfortable with. Alcohol or not, he would’ve agreed to an evening in.
Hell--- he didn’t even like watching movies.
By the time the lawyer had sent off the final text, he’d already left his office (after picking up another unopened bottle of whiskey) and was heading for his car. Ditched his jacket on the passenger seat--the evening was surprisingly warm--and he was off. Luckily, a couple of shots never affected his driving ability; so he could easily navigate the hills and turns between his place and Geoff’s.
It only took about fifteen minutes to make it to Geoff’s. He parked out front since he didn’t have the slightest idea when he’d leave (depended on the alcohol intake really), so it felt like the best bet option. Keep out of the way and everything.
Before heading for the door, he slackened his tie a bit (business casual, right?) and grabbed the bottle he’d brought. The whole area was pretty dark aside from the tall lights in the street, but he managed to navigate the way to the door. No real point in buzzing since Geoff had been the one to invite him, but after making his way to his actual apartment he still gave the door a couple of knocks to let him know he’d arrived. Far more polite than his usual enter-without-making-himself-known.