An Average, Run of the Mill Drug Deal {Matt}

[HUNTER KNOX]

Part of what Hunter loved about being a neo-nomad was the fact that, since he moved around so often, he never really established himself in an area long enough for the police to track him down and bring him in. They were always tied up with paperwork and regulations and all that codswallop and never could actually get their acts together in time to hunt down the mysterious new drug dealer in town. Now that he had been in the city for the short period of 2 weeks, he had already pretty much set claim to the local mall's food court. It was perfect, really. The old dealers that had been using the place were a bunch of pitiful teenagers who had certainly cleared out after he showed them who was boss. He had deemed the spot almost too perfect for those idiots to run all by themselves. This secluded little spot lay in the very heart of the mall, and yet it was in a wondrous blind spot which no camera was kept trained on. A Combination of half walls and lovely ornamental columns shielded the spot from all cameras and most Mall Cop's lines of vision.

Truly, it was these first few weeks of bliss that he enjoyed the best about finding a new spot. There was also a certain grace period that seemed to follow him everywhere. A time of hightened sales, when he wasn't afraid to go out on a limb and ensnare a few new customers because, hey, how else was he going to do it? It wasn't exactly like he could coast on past customers. He had to be fresh. He had to be outgoing. He had to pick out the ones who would most likely get hooked on the stuff, or find the feelings of getting high so pleasurable, so utterly wondrous that they felt the pull, the NEED to come back for more. And every single time, they would come to him, like sheep to their doting shepherd.

Today, for example, was a day that he was on the hunt for new recruits. He wanted to find at least a few more willing customers. Leaning nonchalantly against one of the wondrous columns that so obscured the camera's gaze, he flicked his eyes from face to face of the mostly dull-eyed people flitting from store to store, restaurant to restaurant. He was looking for something... someone who gave him the impression that they were wild, ready to try anything, ready to pay anything for a chance at a wild ride and great new experience.

[MATTHEW PETERSON]

All things considered, today had been atrociously uneventful. Sure, he'd struck up a conversation about the importance of a good pocket watch with some old store vendor (Matt having been on the side against the things, saying they were too bulky to be of any use to anyone wanting to enjoy themselves), met some girl by the name of Gwen who'd called him "absolutely adorable" (he'd high-tailed it out of there once she'd asked him to meet her for dinner some night), and knocked down at least three displays of jeans, but what were any of those things, really, in the grand scheme of things? None of them had been particularly exciting activates to partake in--perhaps save the last one--and consequently, Matt was finding himself at a bit of a lull as to what to do. He thought for a moment about texting Addison to join him, and had actually written the entire thing and been about to press "send" when the recollection that she was busy today swam forth in his mind. And the blunt truth was, nobody else seemed particularly appealing at the moment.

So it was with the a sort of anxious tingling in his palms that Matt made his way into the mall's food court for the first time that day; in truth, he'd hardly noticed he was hungry, despite the fact that he hadn't eaten since the heaping bowl of Fruit Loops five hours previous. Come to think of it, he was absolutely ravenous... Stomach suddenly growling with all the ferocity of some many-headed monster, Matt's eyes darted from store to store as he paced his way about the court, hardly noticing when he cut off a rather pregnant woman seemingly on her way to give birth. Or, at least, she sure looked about to pop...

Before he could contemplate exactly how far along the woman was, however, Matt's attention had shifted towards something far more interesting than the process of motherhood could ever possibly be: ice cream. The sign was blinking in all its neon glory from just across the food court, and Matt found the beast that was his stomach began to grow quieter at the thought of feeding it something so deliciously sweet. He approached it determinedly, granting some man leaning against a column naught more than a semi-apologetic glance as he bumped roughly into his shoulder. Leaning over the ice cream counter in a manner that could quite easily have been described as obnoxious, Matt ordered a twist cone with a chocolate dipping, paid the cashier with a slightly crumpled five dollar bill and took the handful of change without putting it back into his pocket, having been far too engrossed with eating his dessert to bother with such things. It seemed to be a bad decision, however, as two quarters slipped from between his fingers and rolled perilously across the floor, stopping only once they'd collided with the man he'd bumped into earlier's shoe. "Say, Mister," Matt called as he approached, still licking his ice cream. "Pick those up for me, would ya'?" he nodded down at the coins. Matt had never really been one for politeness around adults.

[HUNTER KNOX]

Getting slammed into in the middle of a dealing spot was admittedly, a new experience. He was used to utilizing the dark alleys and docks of most major cities to get his business done, and this public spot was completely different from his usual haunts. His immediate reaction was to go show that little prick who was boss thereabouts and cut his little heart out with a plastic knife. He took a few stride toward the boy angrily, impulsively. Upon seeing the flash of a camera lens, however, his rage cooled and he collected himself. This wasn't the time to lose his temper. He needed to remain calm. Tranquil. Like the ocean. Like a shark, lying in wait for it's prey, just coolly looking over all the options it had before it finally struck.

Like that little piece of shit, for instance. Hunter didn't necessarily HAVE to see him as a motherfucking little bastard that would eventually get what was coming to him. He ought to be seeing him as a prospective buyer. A potential customer. A wondrous little cash cow that fate had just so fittingly decided to send literally crashing into Hunter. Hunter eyed him carefully as he walked to the ice cream counter. It was always a good sign to see that the guy wasn't particularly wondrous with his money keeping skills. Perhaps this really would be the perfect target.

As the money softly bounced off his shoe, Hunter plastered on his sales smile, his perfect "hey, I'm a totally trustworthy guy" smile. His "I totally am just looking out for your well-being" smile would come later, after he had sold the kid enough drugs, and it would be soon thereafter followed by the "I'm totally entitled to do this" smile after the kid couldn't come up with enough cash. It was a well documented series of facial expressions, and they each brought their own brand of pure delight to Hunter.

Plucking the coins up from the ground, Hunter happily handed them over to Mr. Ice Cream.

"Here, buddy, I'll just hold these for you while ya' finish your ice cream there. No need to hurry. I know how it is," he laughed to the kid, rubbing the coins between his thumb and forefinger. It was perfect this way. Now he had the kid at least caught there for a while, at least if he wanted to keep his money. It was now that Hunter had to get him caught up in conversation, just a nice, easy-going little chat. "It gives ya' a rush, doesn't it? All that sugar just runnin' through your veins? Makes ya' want to mess stuff up, or run around like a crazy person."

[MATTHEW PETERSON]

For a split second, Matt had actually expected the man to comply with his request and just drop the quarters right into his hand. He even had his arm outstretched, palm up, waiting for the things, but of course received no reward for his efforts. For a moment Matt considered turning around and walking away from the guy and letting him keep the fifty cents--something about that stupid mustache pissed him off--but the thought of eating ice cream alone and down two quarters seemed far too depressing a prospect to really accept. So he eyed the man warily for a moment before shrugging, taking another lick of the ice cream, and shoving the remainder of his change into his pocket.

" 'S Matt, by the way. Not 'buddy'." he remarked idly, hardly noticing that he'd interrupted the man halfway through his spiel, and just plain not bothering to thank him for holding the money. Still, he listened as the man continued. Another few licks of the ice cream, a crunch on its chocolate shell, and Matt considered the question with virtually no thought to the utter bizarreness of the situation. Addison probably wouldn't approve of this at all, his talking to a stranger in the middle of the mall, alone. Of course, it was this knowledge that solidified Matt in his decision to stay and talk to the guy once and for all. He could probably tell her about it later, make something up for it to sound more interesting.

Unless it actually did get more interesting...Contemplating for a moment with another small lick, Matt nodded. "Well, I donno about like a crazy person, but...yeah, I guess a bit. Don't think I need ice cream to do that for me, though. People've told me I do that enough on my own," there was an almost prideful tone to his voice as he said such. He grinned before biting full on into the ice cream, blinking harshly once as a brain freeze washed over him. Suddenly, his facial expression changed; he raised a brow, observing the man for a moment. "You sound like you've had a lot of ice cream," he added as an afterthought.

[HUNTER KNOX]

Hunter ignored the name the kid offered. He didn't want to know the name, he HATED names, why did they always insist on giving him their names? Did they think it was customary? Did they just have a tough time not being polite? Names made everything so much more personal and when things got personal it was always a bit harder to move on if someone had a rough trip and didn't make it through the night, or that they were forcibly rehabilitated. Plus, names made people so much mor elikely to act as informants on him if they ever got fed up with the lifestyle. It had happened to other infamous men in the business, he had seen it. One litte slip of a first name even and somehow the police were able to track you down and find out where you were from, where you got your goods from and how much you freaking weighed at birth. It was unnerving, really, to know that a little prick like this ice cream eating idiot could be the source of his downfall, and yet he honestly didn't doubt it for even a second. It was dumbasses who took everything so frivolously that did it. They were ones that got all perky and shit while high, instead of the vetted addicts who knew better than to blab if they ever wanted another hit.

But....he was getting ahead of himself. In order for this little fuckwad to blab on him, he had to at least manage to sell some product. That was what he was here for. That was what Hunter was being such a kissass to this whiny little fuck for anyway. He just had to sell him literally anything. Weed, tobacco, hell, even crack if the kid was down for it. Just something to get him on the stuff and coming back for more, and telling ALL his friends about the "super cool, super awesome dude who hung out in the food court and could totally score some weed n' shit for anyone."

He laughed, perhaps a bit too loud or long, at the stupid little comment about how Hunter had probably had too much ice cream. It honestly wasn't the least bit humorous, but being personable was a very important trait in this business, at least in the inital stages of developing a loyal customer base. After they were hooked, all this funny man front would melt away, and those sorry fucks that came to him for their fixes would be his bitches.

"Well, I suppose you could say that about me," he laughed, " but you know, I discovered a long time ago that there's something even better than ice cream, my friend. Oh yes, something a whoooole lot better."

He looked around conspiratorily, as if to make sure that only the two of them could hear what he was about to say. "Now, I don't offer this to a lot of people, but y'know what? I like you. I could give you a try if you're interested. Trust me, it's worth it." Hunter added in a wink, for extra vaudville effect. He figured he might as well pull out all the stops if he wanted to hook this one.

[MATTHEW PETERSON]

Better...than ice cream...? Matt's face grew wary as he stared at the man standing in front of him as he prodded about his own mind for a food that was even the slightest bit better than what he held in his hand. As predicted, the mental search came up empty. So either this guy, whoever he was, was an exotic foods vendor of some sort, or trying to sell him something that wasn't edible. In the middle of the food court. Maybe there should have been an alarm or two going off in Matt's head, but seeing as he'd learned to both mute and tune out such things long ago, there was nothing stopping him for continuing his conversation with the guy. Besides, he was curious. And he had Matt's fifty cents.

Crunching down on the top of his cone, Matt chewed over the offer for all of the ten seconds it took to swallow his food before replying. "You think so?" his brows shot upward at the phrase "a long time ago." He'd never liked it much; something about the idea of people rubbing their knowledge in his face irked him almost as much as cheating. Curiosity took hold of him again before he could be really bothered by the statement, however, and so before he could act as if he knew exactly what sort of miraculous delicacy this man was talking about, Matt blurted out "What is it?"

He probably shouldn't have trusted the guy. In fact, he probably should] have just left the fifty cents at his feet and walked away the first chance he got. But that hardly sounded as if it would have made for an interesting day. No. This man, whoever he was, however creeped out Matt should have been by him, was offering him something new. Exciting. Different. And probably--if he was lucky--dangerous. It was then, at the thought of doing something potentially forbidden, that Addison's voice rang loudly in his ear, barking something about how taking things from strangers wasn't safe, particularly if said things were edible. Matt smirked a bit to himself and straightened up, taking another small bite of the ice cream. "Alright. I'll take some of your...well, whatever the hell it is." he held out his hand expectantly, still completely unsure of what the guy was even talking about.

[HUNTER KNOX]

Hook, line and sinker.

He loved the feeling he got whenever he got some kids to follow him down the rabbit hole to the magical worlds of illicit narcotics. He didn't know what to actually classify it as, but the best way to describe it was a feeling of....validation. It felt like the fact that he lived such a counter-productive lifestyle in a culture that was at constant war against drugs was justified. For every little naive lamb he led to the dark side he was that much more exonerated for all his heinous crimes.

Sure, it was a weird as fuck way to look at things, but it wasn't exactly a surprise to anyone that there was something seriously wrong with the messed up little mind locked inside Hunter Knox's skull. The violent takeover by a supposedly nonexistent character should have been the first clue.

Grinning like a croco-.... an alligator, Hunter motioned to the kid, taking a few steps back so that he could be sure that they were both afforded the maximum security provided by the poorly planned food court columns. He couldn't have those mall cameras catching the kid start popping pills. That simply would ruin his near perfect dealing location, and he was sure it would be more than a bit of a sticky job trying to get out of something so damned ironclad as video proof. Plus, this kid looked like a squealer and Hunter felt like he could safely assume that if worse came to worse the little fucker would dish out each and every last detail about the entire arrangement. No, it would be MUCH better if he could get him where those cameras couldn't see.

"Step into my office and I'll see what I can scrounge up for you."

With deft hands, he reached inside his trusty bag to find what he was looking for. A small Ziploc bag filled with multi-colored pills. Hell, they might as well have been childrens vitamins with the retarded look they came packaged in, but he knew that those little tablets of Ecstasy were his hottest seller. Something about E made it fly off the shelves. Plucking one out of the bag, he walked over and dropped it in the remains of the ice cream cone, grinning his favorite "what are you going to about it" smirk.

"Trust me, it's good," he reassured the kid, cocking his head slightly to the side as he waited for him to take the pill and the wonderful first trip to start.

[MATTHEW PETERSON]

Eyebrow still cocked questioningly, Matt looked around before following the man in his steps backwards, quite unsure as to why they were doing it but delighting in the feeling of danger nonetheless. He watched eagerly as the man dug around in his bag for something, eyes alighting as a hand withdrew, holding something. As his eyes fell on the Ziploc baggie and its contents, Matt couldn't help but let his face fall slightly. He cursed himself silently for being so stupid. Drugs. Obviously the man was giving him drugs. And what exactly kind of drug they were, Matt had no idea, but he couldn't deny that they looked rather appealing, colored the way they were...He shook the thought suddenly, glancing up from the pills and to the man's face, which was suddenly a heck of a lot closer to his than he remembered.

Matt's eyes widened in shock as he watched the little pill fall into the ice cream cone; he looked up at the man silently, seriously considering telling him he was being unfair. Glancing back at the cone and then the man once more, contemplating whether or not to actually fish around for the pill and hand it back. It was what Addison would've done. Then again, Addison probably never would've talked to the guy in the first place...He was being really stupid about all this, wasn't he? Of course, what most called stupidity usually translated to excitement....It was with that thought in mind that Matt looked up at the man--apparently a drug dealer--again, this time with a mischevious sort of grin on his face. His heart, of course, was beating a mile a minute. Addison was going to kill him if she found out. But she wouldn't. He decided instantly never to tell her, sure there was no possible way she could find out.

"I guess I'll find out," Matt shrugged carelessly as he took a large bite of the ice cream cone, which was getting down the bottom anyway. He didn't even feel himself swallowing the pill admist all the dessert. Everything was normal for the next few minutes; Matt licked the remains of the cone silently, waiting for...well, whatever was supposed to happen. He couldn't help but give the man a sort of "Now what?" look, for he was entirely unsure of what to expect. Crunching into the cone for one last time, Matt finally began to feel...well, he felt fantastic.

This was wonderful, whatever it was. The grin on his face spread almost ear-to-ear as he wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. Truthfully, Matt didn't think he'd ever felt better; it was as if he was standing in the middle of everything and on top of the world at the same time. He turned on the spot, delighting childishly in the way the food court looked when one was spinning. Stopping once he'd done that twice, Matt turned again to look at the man who'd given him the stuff, still grinning wildly, and laughed. " 'S not good....this is fantastic. Feels like flying," he remarked suddenly, not entirely sure why he'd said it but glad all the same. It probably fit; and even if it didn't, what did it matter? He felt wonderful, and nothing could stop that. Not even being wrong. "Definitely better than ice cream," he nodded decisively after another turn of his hand in the air. It hardly even occurred to him that he hadn't the slightest clue what it was he'd taken.

ooc: So umm...I sincerely apologize for the complete and utter crap that is this post, and the last paragraph in particular. o.O

[HUNTER KNOX]

Watching as the kid lapped up the ice cream embedded pills (that was actually a pretty good idea. He would totally have to remember that little trick. He was sure there were plenty of prepubescent little mongrels running around with ice cream in their hands who would be all to happy to steal some money from Mommy or Daddy's wallet if it meant that the pirate man would give them more of the magic ice cream flavors that made everything such pretty colors. Yeaaah, he could reuse this helpful little strategy for later.), Hunter couldn't help but feel a certain level of pride swell up in him. Damn, he was fucking AMAZING at his job. This was what he had really deserved to be doing after all those years stranded on that blasted island. He found it JUST retribution to spend his days in the modern era corrupting the youth and leading them down the dangerous paths of illegal addiction after he had been tormented so by that bastard Pan. For every child brought to the dark side, Hunter felt like he was paying that little fucker back all the more.

Oh, justice was by far the best feeling in all the world. He adored feeling retribution ever so much. It almost beat the contact high Hunter got from watching the poor little idiots have their very first trip. He had to admit, the entertainment value alone often made up for the fact that he had to associate with the little fuckers in the first place. As the kid spun around like some kind of weird ass maniac, Hunter had to work hard to stifle his laughter. He had to remain cool. Collected. Composed. It would ruin the entire effect if the badass drug dealer were to suddenly burst out laughing at the poor little bastard.

" 'S not good....this is fantastic. Feels like flying,"

Hunter stopped dead in his mirth. That little comment about flying was certainly not what he wanted to hear. Hook had never really forgotten the fact that just because he was already calling the shots in the mortal body he had been reborn inside, that didn't mean his enemies had. There were always bound to be those blasted lost boys, or the little British brats he had brought with him, or even the damned Pan himself.

But no... it couldn't be, could it? He should just ignore the comment. He couldn't afford to bristle now when he had just come to the city. He needed to get this kid's money. Flying was a popular term. It probably didn't mean anything.

"Oh I'm sure it IS better than just measly old ice cream. Who would really want that blasted stuff when what I've got is the alternative. Now tell me, and be honest with yourself, don't you want more?"

[wendy]

Dress shopping had been a success! Addison couldn’t help but to skip a little as she made her way through the mall. She’d gotten along well enough with Charity; there hadn’t been any bickering and the small blonde was considering woodshop. Addison had the perfect dress, currently draped over her arm in a dress bag, and she was very excited to wear it.

Her mother was to pick her up from the mall in fifteen minutes or so. Addison had decided that lunch at the food court couldn’t hurt. It really just depended on what she felt like. It sometimes bewildered her, how many food places there were. They had Taco Bell, McDonalds, Arby’s, and Panda Express to name a few and then there were the places that must’ve been exclusive to New York for she’d never heard of them until moving here.

A milkshake sounded rather good right now and she was sure at least one of the places must have them. Addison considered texting Matthew now that she was no longer busy to see if he wanted to do anything. She decided that could wait until she’d taken a seat at one of the tables, when her hands would be less full. It was strange to hear Matthew’s voice suddenly, though, as she’d just been thinking about him. And it certainly had been his voice; Addison would always know that as they’d been friends for so long.

At first, she couldn’t see him. Addison thought maybe she’d been hearing things but there it was again, a comment about ice cream again. As if she needed any more proof. Addison stepped around, peeking behind the column that had been her way. And there he was! With… Addison narrowed her eyes, wondering who the shady-looking guy was and why her Matthew was standing there with him. “Uhm. Matt?”

[MATTHEW PETERSON]

He did want more. He wanted more of this stuff than he'd ever wanted more of anything before--even Addison's stories couldn't compare to what he was feeling right now. And speaking of Addie...well, he should really tell her about this, because it was downright amazing. These must've been the kind of adults she was talking about when she tried to defend them; ones that gave you wonderful ice cream and made even the mall food court seem like exactly the sort of place that was full of adventure and fun and excitement and danger. "Well yeah," he nodded at the guy, still grinning ear to ear as he blinked once, hard. "So would Addie, I bet. She likes ice cream too, but I bet not half as much as she'd like--"

Matt stopped dead in his rant as a familar voice pierced the veil of wonderful lights and uncontainable happiness he was experiencing. His eyes widened. So did his smile; fairly soon, he face would probably break. "Hey Addie!" he laughed at the way she was peeking out from behind the pillar, as if they were playing hide-and-go-seek or something. "I was just telling--" brow furrowing, he stole a glance at the man whose name he just now realized he didn't know. Oh well. It didn't matter, really. "I was just talking about you. Guess what I did! I--" no, that was too boring. Better she just try the stuff for herself and then she would know just how great he felt.

Matt grabbed Addison's hand and pulled (that felt cool. Different. Did it always feel that neat when he touched things?) to yank her out of her hiding place, turning to face Hunter. "This is Addison. Can she have some of that stuff too? Plleeeeaaassseee?" feeling as if this was far too happy a day for the puppy dog eyes, Matt instead opted for use of his most charming smile. Even with the constant glint of cockiness, the never ending spark of mischief hiding in the plain site of his eyes, this look never failed. Addie would thank him for it later, he was sure.


ooc: so umm random, but this is definitely how I imagine Matt's smile right now. You know, just felt like sharing that useless bit of info. XD

[HUNTER KNOX]

All was going perfectly according to plan. Hunter had obviously gotten the kid hooked, or at the very least incredibly stoked about the prospects of ecstacy and its magical properties, and he could practically hear that ca-CHING noise from all the money he'd be raking in from this fine young fellow. It was a multi-stepped process, to be sure. Get the kid high, sell the kid the first of his pills, repeat until death or rehab, but Hunter was sure that there would be some repeat business from his chump.

Hunter had to admit, he never particularly cared for listening to the super high ramblings of his customers. It wasn't that they weren't absolutely enthralling, but really, Hunter didn't care whether or not the floor looked "SO SICK RIGHT NOW DUDE" or whatever other nonsense he'd heard over the years. He kind of zoned out as the little idiot went into his excited nonsense. He gave the ocassional "uh-huh" or grunt of approval as he went through his bag, replacing the ziploc baggie exactly where it belonged. Say what you would about the drug dealer, you had to admit that he was organized.

It felt like he'd only been distracted for a half a minute when suddenly his little wannabe druggie had sprouted a friend. Shit, this was NOT how things were supposed to happen. People were supposed to come into Hunter's secluded little den of drug deals only when and if Hunter approved them. Now, he wasn't generally one to judge, but the dumb little shit that had just gotten dragged in by her strung out friend had that deer in the headlights look that just SCREAMED "OHMYGOSH, I AM TOTALLY TELLING MY PARENTS ABOUT THIS!" Hunter could smell who would bitch squeal on him a mile away.

At the prospect of having to dish out ANOTHER pill of ecstacy, which he assumed would also be expected as free, Hunter shook his head calmly. It wouldn't do to yell at this little idiot just quite yet. "What, do you think this shit grows on trees? Not happening. I'm sure she'll be happy with just your thrilling description of it, buddy."

[wendy]

Addison knew the shady-looking guy knew she was suspicious. What was Matthew even doing at the mall? It definitely didn’t seem like his scene. He almost seemed out of place; Addison was so used to seeing him in trees. Wait, wait. That hardly mattered right now. She stepped out from behind the column a little bit, confused by his behavior. Even his smile. She’d never seen anybody smile so widely. That was saying something as this was Matthew and she was used to his big smiles, but this… Well, it was kind of scary. He grabbed her hand and pulled her closer; her stomach flipped and she nibbled on her lower lip, telling herself to calm down. This guy couldn’t be that shady if he was hanging around in the mall. If he were that bad, he probably would’ve chosen some sketchy alleyway somewhere.

“Talking about me, hmm?” She was trying to distract him, hopefully enough to get him away from this guy. Matthew didn’t even know his name! Definitely shady. Addison gave the guy a forced smile before looking at Matthew, wondering what in the world was going on with him. Stuff. “What stuff?” She asked, her curiosity somehow beating out the worry. That wouldn’t do. Addison shot the man a sharp glare, “Never mind. I don’t want any.” Addison tugged on Matthew’s hand, shifting her dress on the other arm, giving him a stern look. Uck. Even the way he said buddy freaked her out. No, this certainly would not do. It was time to go. If she could even get Matthew to go. He seemed awful excited about whatever this guy had given him. Oh God, what if he’d given him drugs? And what if Matthew had actually…

Addison glared at Matthew this time, wondering if he’d even considered how she’d react if she found out about this. Probably. But then again, she wouldn’t be surprised if he’d done this, figuring that she’d never find out. Addison uttered a frustrated sound, tugging again on Matthew’s hand, this time with an actual purpose to get him away. “Let’s go to the park.” Addison gave him a sweet smile, hoping she was making it very obvious that she wanted to leave now. With him, of course. She had no intention of leaving him here now.

[MATTHEW PETERSON]

Matt nodded eagerly to Addison, his head moving up and down quite a few more times than could possibly be considered normal. " 'Course I am! You're my best friend, Addie!" he chirped with another tug on her arm, wondering why she was acting so strangely. Didn't she see just how wonderful this guy was? Or how fantastic today seemed? Or...well, Addison clearly just wasn't getting it. Matt turned to look at her suddenly, incredulity overtaking his features. "Whatcha mean you don't want any? But Addie, this stuff is...it's like...Well, you've just gotta try it." He shook his head vigirously, overly excited about the way such a movement made his head feel.

Matt laughed as he turned to look at Hunter. This guy really was funny. "I donno. Does it?" he tilted his head as he said each word, the effect being overly childish, yet cocky at the same time; it was Matt, but amplified by about about one hundred degrees. As Addison tugged on his arm, he jumped, but made no move to leave the spot where he stood. In fact, he wrenched his hands out of her grip, placing them on his hips as he spread his feet about shoulder-width apart. He shook his head. "Well, I will not go to the park. You cannot make me!" Matt held his head high, puffing his chest out a bit more than was necessary so as to look down on Addison from over his nose. He was a tad disappointed to find that the wonderful ice cream-making man still had a good inch or so on him, but made up for this trivial fault by sending him the sort of cocky smirk all adults hated. There. That settled things for sure.

[HUNTER KNOX]

Okay, well, this had certainly been a cute little adventure into the horribly idiotic mindset of children, but Hunter had just about had enough. The introduction of that little bitch had started a scene that Hunter had no intention of playing out while he was in his sacred dealing location. If she wanted to confront him about the "evils of drugs" and how he was certainly going to die or whatever then she would do it on her own time when they were both a safe distance from his pillars and bag. So help him, he would NOT be responsible for what happened to these two little idiots should a mall cop decide it was time to intervene into this lovers quarrel or whatever the hell it was.

As things began to escalate and the strung out little fuckwad got more and more cocky and emotional, Hunter could practically feel his empire of drugs and cash crumbling down all around him. he would have to start over. He would have to get out of jail. He would have bee CAUGHT by a goddamned mall cop! This was not acceptable. If these two were hellbent on going at it with each other then he would be all too happy to let the power of ecstacy bring them to a fight, just so long as it was far FAR away from anywhere he could be incriminated.

"Listen, Missy, how about you run along to that park and do whatever it is you want. Obviously he won't be going anywhere." Hunter put his hand on her shoulder, trying to get her to see reason and just leave Hunter and his new customer the fuck alone. "As you can see, we're a little busy, and while I'm usually all for having more people join the fun, it's a little cramped back here. Besides, you don't wanna stick around with us for too long. Things could turn a bit ugly. YOU know how it is, don't you, honey?"