Of Course: A Russie Features Short

JavaVino Café

Atlanta, GA

United States of America

May 2016

“Do you know what would be great with coffee and mildly overpriced café food?” Aether snorted into her drink upon hearing the other say this; Peters, who sat across her, gave her an amused smirk and primly sipped from his coffee. “Seriously, though. I have an idea.”

“The last time you had an idea, you nearly got on Nakagawa’s bad side for the next few weeks.” Aether cocked a brow at him and the brunet merely plastered a bullshit innocent look onto his face. “But carry on. What’s this idea of yours?”

“It’s something tame. Depending on how we take it,” Peters replied. “Have you heard of the Of Course game?” At Aether’s blank look, he assumed that she didn’t and proceeded to explain. “It’s simple, really. I ask you something and you have to reply with ‘of course’. Even if it’s bullshit, fake, or downright fucked up. The first one to lose their cool or isn’t able to say ‘of course’ loses and pays the winner. Or at least owes them a favor.”

Aether made a face. “Sounds ridiculous.”

“But it’s a good idea,” Peters argued. “And it’s a good game. A really good game – we’ll get to know each other more and shit.”

“Or we can end up causing the next war, but hey, it’s your idea so any casualty count is your fault.” She told him in a dry voice. Peters rolled his eyes.

“Come on, A. Just a round or two. Or three.”

“A round,” she repeated. “What if I win?”

“You heard me.” he leaned forward, grinning. “A favor or cash. Whichever you want to offer. I’ll be nice to you for today, since it’s our first time to play this game. Deal?” she nodded slowly and leaned back, taking her glass of iced coffee and drinking for a few seconds. Peters waited for her to speak.

“You haven’t been laid in a while, have you?”

Peters didn’t even flinch. “Of course. You think I’m attractive, don’t you?”

“Of course.” Another sip, “You’ve always been jealous of Jake.”

“That’s not even a lie,” Peters laughed. “Of course.” This stunned Aether for a moment, considering that the topic was a touchy one for him. She shook it off, though, and waited for him to shoot back. “You’re still lost.”

“Of course. And that’s not a lie.” He raised a brow but didn’t pry. That would be a topic for another time and another occasion involving alcohol and the rest of the team, if time permitted it to happen. “You want to go back home and spend time with your family. Even if things are really busy over here.”

“All the time. Of course. You’re jealous of us, aren’t you?” Aether looked confused and he elaborated further, “Myself, Mack, and Tad. They have their families – even though Mack’s parents suck and Tad’s are dead. They still have kickass siblings. You’re jealous of us for having families who we can run back to.”

Her grip on the coffee cup tightened considerably and Peters worried that he had overstepped. Finally, Aether exhaled and her grip relaxed. “…of course.”

“Aether–?”

“You’re worried about not settling down.”

“Of course. The last question hurt you.”

“Of course.” She looked at him, “You want to find the right person already.”

“Of course.” Peters thought for a moment, “You still okay?”

“Of – wait, is that part of the game?” he shook his head, “Either way, the answer is still yes. I’m alright.”

“You miss someone.”

“Of course. You’re willing to pay for the meal.” Peters looked at their table, where a few plates and such remained. He laughed.

“Of course.”

The game eventually ended with neither winning nor losing; they had agreed to stop when their questions ended up on the weirder side of the spectrum (Aether had asked: “Would you be willing to chop off your leg for a million dollars?” “Of course,” Peters answered, “But damn, I’d miss my leg.”). After paying for the bill, both of them exited the café while carrying on with their conversation, walking back to HQ slowly as they resumed their game. “You don’t want a one-night stand anymore,” she paused. “You actually want the real thing. You want the realness of a relationship and everything in between. But you’re afraid of commitment.”

“I should never have introduced you to the game,” Peters sighed. Aether smirked his way, “But rules are rules and I fucking hate losing, so of course.”

“So it’s true?”

“Unfortunately. I’ve never been the committal type,” Peters shrugged, “It’s less of a hassle and less people get hurt. Anyway, it’s my turn. Having all your makeup on helps you be more confident and self-assured.”

“Of course.” Aether resisted the urge to check on her makeup using the mirror she kept in her bag, “It’s ridiculous, but it does. Makeup does wonders for someone who’s gone without sleep lately. Next. If it weren’t for your dad working with the police, you wouldn’t be here in Atlanta, working for HQ.”

“Of course.” They stopped in front of the building and Peters glanced at Aether briefly, clearing his throat. She blinked. “Mathieu’s back, isn’t he?”

Aether’s eyes widened, and her mouth fell open. With that, she was unable to say anything else. Peters gave his trademark smirk and waited for her to collect herself, knowing on the inside that he had managed to scoop the victory. “…how did you know?”

“You did your makeup in a hurry, obviously.” He pointed out.

“How is that–?”

“And when you rush,” he continued on as if she didn’t interrupt, “You’re clumsy and leave some parts out or focus on them too much.” Peters reached out and poked lightly on a certain portion of her neck, “You’ve got a hickey right there.” Her face burned and she self-consciously touched the area.

“It could have been someone else,” she argued, but Peters shook his head and began to walk again, Aether catching up with a slight stumble in her step.

“Bullshit. Anyway,” he looked at the entrance of the doors, “I caught you by surprise there, but I’m giving you the chance to win.” Without looking at her, Peters simply stated: “You claim that the hickey’s from someone else. So you’re telling me that while lover boy was gone, you managed to find someone else and liked them so much that you let yourself be frisky with them and earned the hickey as a badge of self-congratulations in slowly beginning to move past Mathieu.” He said all of this calmly, waiting for her answer.

Aether was unable to reply.

“Adding to that, that means that you sort of ended up cheating on him even while he was gone. Do you agree?”

The Englishwoman remained silent. Peters waited for a minute and was about to open his mouth again when she strode past him, shoving something into his hands and walking on without him. The blue-eyed male blinked, opening his fist to check what she had given him before entering.

A crumpled five bill lay in his palm.

Amusedly rolling his eyes, Peters pocketed his winnings with a chuckle and rushed inside to catch up with her.