[Regifortis]

Huh. Well, that seemed to earn him some brownie points. He smiled, mostly out of relief. "It's no big deal, really." He really hoped it actually wasn't. He hoped he could just keep to himself after all this and be John's 'friend' from a distance.

Steve cut into the steaks. Just about ready, just the way these three liked it. He had one for himself, but he already took it off. Medium rare was the steak for him; even rare when he was angry with someone. But today was going well, so he wanted just enough pink to sink his teeth into.

He looked to the old, European-sounding landlord. Alderman wasn't a bad sort, Steve supposed. Key word being 'supposed'. A little hard to relate to, but agreeable enough. The other two were...no, they still irritated him. They clearly cared about Alderman, but them by themselves just cramped his style. He hoped he could float his way through this cook-out by not having to talk to them too much.

"All done and ready to eat!" He took the steaks off the grill.

[michime]

Will plated his steak then set it aside before he picked up John and Murray. He walked it over to the men after he grabbed the utensils.

"This is really good," Murray yelled after he bit into the steak. "You should do this more often." He gave a little wave before he went back to his meat.

Will went inside then came out with a large bowl of potato salad and a buttery big corn on the cob for each of them. "Hope you like it." He smiled. "The guys don't eat it but I love it with steaks."

[Regifortis]

Steve tried to keep his cool. That potato salad was made with mayo...he had to keep cool and just try to forget that he was already due for new clothes soon.

"I'd love some, thank you!" He took the corn on the cob and a generous portion of potato salad. Then he shut off the grill, walked over to the empty lawn chair, and sat closest to Alderman. That was his best bet. The old man loved to make food, Steve noticed. If anything, it was too much food. But so long as it had mayo in it, he could satisfy his craving nicely and make it so Alderman didn't have to cram too many leftovers into his fridge. And Alderman seemed to always make something with mayo in it. That was the best part of this arrangement by far, which admittedly wasn't saying much...

He couldn't think of what else to say, so he just ate his steak and corn and potato salad, waiting to hear if someone dragged him into a conversation or not.

[michime]

Will watched Steve pile potato salad onto any spot not covered by the steak on his plate. It seemed that the man really liked the way he made the salad with heavy mayo, a little salt and pepper and generous helpings of pickle, egg, and of course, potato. "You can have the left overs," he smacked Steve's knee to get his attention.

"Steve you should come over tonight," Murray said after he finished his steak. "John and I pay cards and need a third. It's sorta boring playing poker."

[Regifortis]

Steve didn't say anything, but he smiled at Alderman offering the leftovers. Now he could at least comfort himself after...ugh...after a poker game with those fools.

"Uh...sure, I don't have anything else to do tonight. I'll be your third."

Steve turned back to his food and started to reflect on his life choices. A spacey child that dealt with sassy parents and a mediocre school performance. Then a lazy teenager who had no idea what he wanted out of life, except that he didn't want to be pressured into a job he didn't want. Then an adult that became a cop out of no other options being open to him, doing well enough to get detective, and dealing with suspects and witnesses who thought they deserved more than they did. And now a man who's job was in limbo, living in an apartment on a trial basis, who was entertaining three old men for the sake of hiding from the world that he was pregnant and craving mayonnaise and getting fatter.

Nothing could have made him feel better about discovering he was pregnant, or could even get pregnant. But in retrospect, he should have done better in school.

[michime]

The men had no idea about Steve's internal monologue but they enjoyed the meal and thanked him for cooking. Will and John helped Steve clean up while Murrary went inside to set up for the card game. The old man had a proverbial skip in his step because finally the card game would be interesting.

Murray opened his door to Steve at 7 o'clock with a wide smile. "We don't play for money," he explained after they sat down at the table. John was already in his seat shuffling the cards and dividing the chips. "We decided a long time ago to play for meals. Whoever loses the most games makes dinner for the winner two nights a week. Sound like okay terms to you?"

[Regifortis]

What...? Were they trying to make a butler out of him, or something? These three were really milking this trial period for all it was worth. They knew he had to agree, because if he did anything to upset them, he'd lose any chance of staying here. Once this was all done, he would just...he didn't even know anymore.

"That's fine. I'll look forward to having one of you cook for me!" He guessed they would appreciate a little competitive edge, and he did not want to cater to John and Murray anymore.

He took his hand and started planning. He had to outsmart these two, and poker faces were not his specialty. How was he going to go about this...?

[michime]

"Full house," John declared on the fifth round showing a pair of queens and three jacks. "Can you beat that?" He grinned as he took a drink. He won the first three hands, Murray the fourth, and unless Steve pulled out a victory here, he would have the fifth hand as well.

Murry laid down a pair of twos and a pair of sixes, not enough to beat a full house. He sighed before he got up to get some snacks. "You want anything?" He asked as he slid his chair out.

[Regifortis]

Steve felt his heart sink at the sight. A normal flush. He was going to have to make food for this fatass, wasn't he? God fucking...

"No thanks, I'm good." He laid out his hand and just sighed in defeat. "I'm more of a Blackjack guy myself, but you won fair and square."

What was this going to lead to...? The more he thought about it, the more he didn't like the idea. But this was a 'code of honor' apartment building, and he couldn't back out. So be it...and he thanked God for that punching bag and the bowl of potato salad waiting for him.

[michime]

"We could play a couple of rounds of black jack," Murray suggested as he brought a bowl of pretzels and a bowl of peanuts to the table. "I haven't played black jack in years."

John laughed as he leaned back in his seat. "You should hear some of Murray's stories. You know he was some big shot casino guy in the 50s?" He turned his attention to Steve and narrowed his eyes just a bit. The young man looked really pissed off and it didn't seem like it was because he lost the game. He glanced up to Murray with a raised eyebrow. "Murray where was that thing you wanted to show me?" He got up quickly. "Let me help you find it."

[Regifortis]

Steve almost agreed to some blackjack out the gate, but then he remembered the kinds of stakes that these two liked to place. Maybe he could just play some with Alderman later. Maybe not. Maybe he could just enjoy the fact that John left him alone for a while and relax just a little bit.

He started to get the impression that Alderman gave him the least desirable room in the building. Not that what he got was bad by any stretch, but both of the rooms Murray and John had seemed to have more...'polish'. The wood on the cabinets and furniture was nicer; the floors looked easier to clean; they had nice views outside from their windows; they didn't have an adjoining door with the landlord that didn't have a lock on it; little extra touches like that. He wondered how he could broach the topic of putting a lock on the door...

Maybe he shouldn't have cared, but he wondered just what John and Murray were talking about. Probably reminiscing about getting high in the 60s or some shit. Who even knew?

[michime]

"I don't see why Will thought he would be a good tenant," John's voice came through the thin walls. "His face always has this 'I'm so much better than you' expression. If he thinks he's hot shit, why does he want to live here?" The man sounded angry and annoyed like he didn't want Steve around him at all.

"He's young," Murray's voice seemed a little less annoyed, "but you're right. It seems like he doesn't want to live here. Or if he does, he doesn't want us around." There was a hint of sadness in the old man's voice. "I liked that he had a barbecue but he didn't even talk to me. I am a vet. It would be nice for someone to listen."

"I'm not voting for him to stay. Let him find another place with some hot, young women that fawn over his every word," John spat out the words. "It's like he wants us to be impressed that he blessed us with his presence. How big of a dick can he be?"

"He'll have to do something major in the next hour for me to vote for him to stay," Murray agreed. "Will was too nice. He was late; he acted like we didn't exist and now...I miss the days when everyone treated people with respect. You might have hated them but you didn't treat them like dirt."

[Regifortis]

The words floated over to him through the thin walls, now that he was listening. Oh, shit. No. No, he couldn't let this stand. He could not lose this chance; too much depended on it. Those...THOSE FUCKING HYPOCRITES, as if they would listen to anything he had to say! As if they would take him seriously, or give him the benefit of the doubt! They already said they didn't trust him as a cop, even because he was a cop, so why would he reward their bad behavior? And the entire notion of this 'test week' was inane: he was allowed to not get along with people! He was trying to impress them anyway, and look where it got him!

...It got him an inch away from getting kicked out. He had to do something. Anything. He had to...ugh, it was the interrogation room all over again.

He came into the next room. "Wait. I heard it all, and...you got me. I'm the worst. I've tried to make you like me, but it looks like that's not happening. So look...I'll do anything. You name it, I'll do it, just please don't try to kick me out. I mean it. Just say the word." He wanted to fall into the earth and die. Maybe he did have a self-impressed look of superiority when he talked to them, he had no idea, but all he wanted to think now was that he would get out of this room unscathed.

[michime]

John crossed his arms over his chest while Murray sat down on a step stool. Both men just looked at Steve like he typically looked at them.

"We get it. You think you're too good for this place and you're much better than us. Don't see the point in you denying it now," Murray accused with a great deal of fire for an old man. "Look, I might have been born at night but I wasn't born last night. We wanted to like you but you just kept looking down your nose at us. Didn't matter if we tried to include you or not, you just didn't want to make it work." He picked up box with a medal in it. "World War 2 vet. Fought Nazis for this country."

"You don't just get to say you're sorry and it all goes away," John continued, "you don't even mean it." He pointed to Steve's shoulders. "Like when you said you wanted to go to the game. You really don't want to go. Looked like you sucked a lemon covered in poo when you agreed. You're too proud, too used to getting your way. Unless you drop to your knees and lick our feet, there's no way we'll believe a word out of your mouth."

[Regifortis]

...He couldn't. Steve couldn't do anything he thought he could in a situation like this. He couldn't believe these two thought shit like this mattered; he couldn't understand why Murray waving a medal in his face would change anything; he couldn't just wait for them to stop talking and walk away; he couldn't let his face show whatever he thought, although apparently he was shit at that anyway; he couldn't fathom just what the hell John asked him to do; and, most soul-crushingly of all, he couldn't argue with them.

They didn't understand this, did they? It didn't matter whether they were wrong or not; Steve had to go along with them. Didn't he make that clear with how he begged for the apartment? Or did they just believe whatever they wanted to believe? He knew he wasn't that good of a person, but he shouldn't be punished for trying his damnedest to please people that didn't even try to see this from his perspective. Or maybe that was all the 'too proud' shit was about: THAT was their idea of 'empathy'. Well, so be it. And now...now he had to lower himself even more than negotiating with a college student to help him give birth.

"As you wish." Like he had to do all damned week. He got down on his knees, bent over to Murray's feet first, and started to lick the old and foul-smelling skin. The only pleasure that came from doing this was sanctity. He was better than John and Murray. It didn't matter how bad of a person he was: he had nothing on these parasitic, sadistic freaks who would even think of asking someone to do something like this.

[michime]

"The hell?" Murray exclaimed at the feel of Steve's tongue moving against his foot. "What the hell are you doing?" The old man shouted as he kicked his feet. "Stop that!"

"I didn't think you would actually do it," John whistled at the sight of the young cop on his knees in front of his friend. "Murray, he's actually licking your foot!"

[Regifortis]

Steve had to suppress the urge to laugh. What even mattered? Apparently his dignity wasn't worth jack shit to these people. They didn't step back and realize how sincere Steve was about this, and how the jokes they were making were in severe distaste. They just marveled at how far Steve would actually go to secure his apartment. Even though he had already made himself clear.

He stood back up and allowed the disgust on his tongue to contort his face as much as he wanted to. "I said I would do anything. I meant it. Hit me with your best shot, now. Come on! I'm sure it's a dream come true to do whatever you want to the 'too proud, thinks he's better than everyone' cop who you have to debase yourselves to live next to. I'm sure you'd love to rip me a new one for trying as hard as I could to be friendly, when you both know damned well that some people just aren't meant to get along. Hell, bring in the landlord so he can watch! I don't care anymore! You can insult my profession, mock me for being desperate, guilt me into doing things you know I don't want to do, and say things like 'lick my feet' without even flinching, and I'm the asshole?! Fine. Have it your way. Like you've had the whole fucking week."

He got back down on the floor and put his face next to John's feet. "None of this is normal. I shouldn't have to go through any of this to get an apartment, yet you two and Alderman are just fine with it. But I'll put up with it. You say it, I'll do it. What are you waiting for?"

[michime]

John let his hand go into Steve's hair and ever so roughly pulled the man's face up to him. He wasn't a mean man at all but he wasn't about to put up with someone looking down on him. He never thought anyone would actually get down on their knees in front of him and service him like that. "You know, all you had to do was not be such a dick and none of these would have happened. We know what it's like to be at the end of your rope. All we wanted was a genuine smile and interest in what we liked."

Murray stood up behind the kneeling man and unzipped his pants. "Now you're going to be our little bitch for the night. If you want us to vote yes, you're going to use your mouth and ass to service us. We'll take turns using you then we'll force you to take both of us at the same night." He paused before he pulled down his pants. "You wouldn't have to go through this if you had a bit of humility. Now you're going to beg us to fuck you, use you. And you're going to smile while doing it."

[Regifortis]

Steve did smile. Look at the true colors of these perverts showing at last! They wanted this from the beginning, didn't they? They wanted to crank up Steve's anger and indignity so it would feel the best when they tried to break him. 'Humility', 'genuine interest'; it was so clear to see that they were trumped-up on past glories and bored by anything that didn't fit into their tiny, tiny world view. It felt amazing...all that pretense, shattered with just a bit of the truth. And he had a sure-fire way to get that apartment. He didn't give an eighth of a shit what they did to him. He could let his relief and conviction fuel all the smiles and pretty pleas for being raped that they liked. He would gargle their cocks and let them think they were taking his virginity, when God had already taken it the night he inconceivably conceived a child.

All his helplessness built up from this week was his shield. He could play the part perfectly.

"...Okay. I-I understand." Steve put a hand over his stomach. He had no special feelings for whatever was inside him, except that he hoped they never had to go through anything like this. "I need to be humbled. I don't really get it, but I'm sure you'll show me." He crawled over to Murray's half-chub, and he smiled up at him. He smiled at his reason for never having to talk to them again. "May I please service you, sir? I want to do my part for my country."

[michime]

"You know what John?" Murray cleared his throat with a smirk. "I don't think it's worth it. Let's just vote him out and be done with it. Saw men like him in the military, always had to get the last word, always had to be right. I'm done with him. Let's go tell Will how we vote. He'll be out of here before the 11 o'clock news."

He pulled up his pants then slapped the back of Steve's head. "You're not living here, not with us."