CHAPTER 11: YOU'LL BE PAYING ME BACK TONIGHT

With what happened at Richard's birthday, tension came along. It had also been a while since a sweet exchange between Valerie and John took place. In fact, the last time was when Valerie gave John two tickets for the game a couple of weeks earlier. None of the three even considered what had happened with the Vigilantes, as reality. It felt like a dream. It felt like life had been put on pause right after Valerie gave John those tickets, and then it all continued from where they had left it off. But the Vigilante times they spent outside their city were not times that they considered "real".

After what seemed like an eternity, the big day finally arrived. It was the day John got to go see the game with Valerie. The hours at work seemed longer and he couldn't wait to be finished with all the tasks he had at hand.

Deep inside of him there was pressure. He wasn't sure where it was coming from, but the fact that he had been having more flashbacks about Anna recently wasn't helping much. He kept storing emotions inside, occasionally letting some of the pressure out on an innocent MX. But most of it was hidden, waiting to erupt, like a volcano.

That day the volcano finally erupted.

"Don't look at me like that!" John mentioned while walking by Richard's work desk.

"Can't a man enjoy his complete failure of a colleague?" Richard shot back at him.

John had screwed up earlier that morning, sending the wrong files to Captain Maldonado, so now everyone knew about that.

"Wipe that damn smirk off your face or I will gladly do that for you!" John was cranky like a pregnant woman. He hated messing up and no matter how many times that had happened, he was still not used to the feeling.

"Bring it on, Kenne-..." Richard's words got interrupted when John's firm hands grabbed him and pulled him up from his chair.

"Don't say I didn't warn you." John gritted his teeth, lifting Richard a few inches off the ground as if he was a doll. He didn't throw the first punch - he let Richard have that advantage, only so John could blame the fight on self-defense when the Captain would bust them. And that was inevitable.

Richard, however, was smarter than that. He kept his hands by his side without initiating a physical altercation. His words were enough to make John's blood boil.

"Impressive strength and balance for someone with just one leg." Richard knew how to hit low.

John just knew how to hit. By far, Richard was winning, even when he was hanging in the air.

John pushed him up against the nearby screen, which fell to the floor, allowing John to take a few more steps forward, pressing Richard against the brick wall.

It was then that Richard had the right to defend himself. He threw in a punch, hitting the lower part of the right side of John's chin.

Suddenly they were both on the floor, rolling around in a battle for dominance.

Or was it, maybe, a battle of pride?

The guys had barely spoken two words since the night of Richard's birthday. Like it had once ruined their friendship, it seemed to have ruined their work relationship now, too. Their inexplicable hatred for each other was evident, as each time they looked at each other it was as if they shot fireballs with their eyes. Both knew sensitive personal details about one another and the fact that they were no longer friends made them incredibly vulnerable. What none of them knew was that it wasn't anyone's priority in life to run around telling people the other one's secrets. Yet, the thought of it all coming out was too much.

"Ah, just another day on the job..." Dorian commented dreamily, walking by them as if he wasn't even fazed by the scene.

It was bound to happen anyway. Those two had unresolved issues.

"Aren't you going to break them apart?" One of the detectives asked Dorian.

"Hell no! I don't want Rudy to have to stick more glue on my parts after they cut me in pieces." Dorian smirked, enjoying the scene.

He knew John needed to do this. At the moment it didn't really matter that it was breaking every rule in the precinct. Dorian had been trying to get John to unwind for a while now, with no result. If that was John's way of releasing pressure, then be it.

"If you let me drive the car for a week, I will sucker punch him." Dorian offered to John, in regards to Richard.

"Stay out of it or there won't be enough gum to repair the damage I'm about to cause you." John replied rudely and Dorian walked off.

"Kennex! Paul! In my office. NOW!" Sandra was a hawk. She was always lurking on the cameras, but this time a different source had told her about the fight. The source went by the name of Valerie Stahl. She hated unnecessary violence, so she reported the guys the moment she saw them, on her way back to her office after she had drank her seventh coffee for the day.

After a long lecture and a series of penalties for both of them, John and Richard walked out, both looking down to the floor. They got sent back home for the rest of the day. It wasn't exactly the relax that John had been craving for, but at least he didn't have to sit around and pretend like he was okay when his hand was shaking, his eyes were malfunctioning and flashbacks were striking him every ten minutes. His medications were messing him up more than they were actually helping.

As for Richard, he wasn't exactly on the clock. Since his little emotional stunt at the rooftop, he had been suspended from his job and undergoing psych evaluations to determine if he is stable enough to be a detective again. Unfortunately, the Vigilantes stunt did not feel like a dream to Sandra, who was pissed off that Valerie had dared ask Richard to work on a case, while on probation. He was now, however, granted access to the Precinct, two weeks after his birthday. He could do paperwork, filing, evidence and anything that didn't involve him holding a gun or giving any sort of directions to his colleagues in an undergoing investigation, since he was still deemed unable to work.

Sandra had done an amazing job at keeping all details about Richard's situation under wraps. Nobody, except for Valerie, John and her, knew what was happening. Richard's absence was somewhat diminished by his colleagues. Overseen, even. They kind of pinned it as some sort of punishment for whatever. Richard was a troublemaker, his big mouth constantly got him into trouble, so nobody grew suspicious when he was denied SWAT team access and his usual detective privileges for two weeks straight.

Needless to mention, Valerie had begged Sandra to assist at Richard's psych evaluations. At first the answer had been a firm NO, each and every single time she had tried to even mention it. But it wasn't like Valerie to back down. She spent every free minute she had, reading books on psychology. Her field of competence was criminology and applied behavioral analysis, but she didn't feel prepared enough on topics such as suicide attempts and depression until she would read possibly every single book she could find.

After all that effort, Sandra finally granted Valerie access to Richard's meetings. The first few hours of Richard, Sandra and the therapist being in one room had been a complete fail. Richard wouldn't say a word, other than his usual snarky comments. It all changed the moment Valerie started to attend those meetings. There was an unspoken kind of connection between her and Richard, dating back to the old days in San Francisco.

Even after all these hours of therapy, Valerie knew that Richard was unstable. She didn't hesitate for a second before she reported the fight to Sandra. She also didn't want to witness any of it, so as the guys rolled on the floor, punching each other, Valerie took a little break. She knew Sandra would want to see the guys in her office and that then both of them would be asked to go home for the day. Therefore, the best strategy was to wait for Richard downstairs, at the parking lot, since she felt compelled to talk to him.

"Here to express disapproval, Stahl?" Richard rolled his eyes as he went downstairs and found Valerie leaning against his car.

He was annoyed enough as it was. He didn't need her angelic attitude on top of all.

"No. I hate it when people just assume that about me." She cringed.

Everyone had her on high pedestal. She was always supposed to be the voice of reason and it was a burden. Sometimes she needed to let loose, do something silly without knowing for a fact that everyone would judge her for it afterwards. At that moment John realized she had pent up anger too.

"I have to stay here late this evening, to finish up a case I'm working on. So, you know, I have something for you…I mean, I just wanted to give you this..." She handed him her ticket for the game that evening. "My favorite team is playing against the one I cannot stand. And I paid serious cash for this. I'd hate for it to be wasted. Go, enjoy it instead of me." Her smile was so genuine, he wouldn't dare to think she had something up her sleeve.

When she had told him about the game, a few weeks back, he had insisted that she'd keep both tickets and bring them with herself. John always lost stuff around his house and he didn't want to risk losing something as precious as a ticket for a game he'd go see with Valerie. So, she was now giving him a ticket – if they couldn't go together, he still should be able to go have fun, even on his own.

John shrugged, figuring out that Valerie meant to go to the game after work, even if she might finish late, as long as the game was still on. He'd see her, either way. That was what he wanted to believe, so that was what he made himself believe when he heard her words.

"Thanks. I'll pay you back tomorrow." He put the ticket on the passenger's seat and started his engine.

"Oh, you'll be paying me back tonight!" Valerie mumbled to herself, smirking at him so he wouldn't get suspicious.

That evening she finished work at the usual time, as she knew she would. She had lied to John about it. She clearly had the chance to catch the game, but that wouldn't make her half as happy as the scene that the stadium would be witnessing soon.

Valerie texted John, saying that she was late. She asked him to go in and find their seats and said that she would be with him in a little bit.

John obeyed like a puppy. Ten minutes later the seat next to him was getting occupied by a male figure. John didn't pay much attention to who it was, he just wanted to make it clear that the seat was occupied.

"Sorry, dude. That seat is for my girlfriend." He said firmly to the man who was now taking his jacket off and making himself comfortable.

Richard recognized John's voice immediately. That made him turn around and smirk.

"The fuck are you doing here!?" John's jaw dropped.

"Girlfriend?" Richard let out an ironic laugh.

"Forgot what happened the last time you had that smirk on your ugly face?" A threat was John's best way of covering up for his obvious lie.

Why did he even feel the need to make someone believe he was dating? The word had just rolled off his tongue.

"I only remember the sweet way my hand bounced off your chin." Richard was a tough one.

Technically, he was much more mentally stable than John. Just, maybe not at that specific moment in time. But, generally speaking, in a verbal game like this, Richard would definitely be the winner. John had a short fuse. Sometimes fists were not enough to win a battle, no matter the strength.

Sirens sounded around the stadium, marking the beginning of the game. People's chatter became louder, tension started to build between the teams. Weirdly, it took the pressure off from the guys' argument.

John kept his mouth shut. Valerie had paid a lot of money for those tickets and he would disrespect her if he spent all of his time fighting with someone, especially if there was a chance that both of them could get thrown out of the stadium before the game even started.

When Valerie's team appeared on the floor, John cheered for them. Weirdly, Richard stayed quiet until the other team showed up. So, the guys were not only rivals at work, but also when it came to soccer.

John shot a glance at Richard.

"What? Never figured out why Stahl and I don't watch games together?" Richard kept on smirking, knowing how much it annoyed John.

"Never knew you even liked soccer." It took John a moment to realize something: he didn't really know much about Richard anymore.

"That's because you don't care." Richard played Valerie's game all of a sudden, being all honest. Words were his weapon of choice.

"I never cared about you, that can hardly be a surprise." John smirked back, still not getting the point.

"Truthfully, you never really cared about anyone. You treat your own partner, Dorian, like crap for most of the time. Since the day you walked back in the precinct you've been acting as if you should get everything for free. You never asked someone a single personal thing. You never gave a birthday card to someone. Hell, you weren't even invited to most of the things we've done outside of work lately." Richard kept it cool. He tried not to push it too far.

"I'm surprised you get invited instead." John was still oblivious.

"I organize some of the stuff. For detective Smith's birthday we had a trip to Mexico. Two days of beach parties and tequila. Where were you? Oh wait, Smith didn't want you there because all that he knows about you is that you're a dick." This time Richard's words made impact.

John thought for a moment. He had no idea who this Smith guy was until he remembered one of the detectives who had gotten transferred to another city a few months after John had been re-instated. He hadn't even made an effort to get to know him.

"And last month when Stahl disappeared early from work, it was because she couldn't handle saying "bye" to you without telling you she was actually going out with the guys for drinks that evening. Detective Ronk, the one whose MX you destroyed a while ago, didn't exactly want you there." Richard decided it was enough information for the moment being. If he continued speaking, he would turn into a bully. Somehow, he got the idea that his words were already sinking in.

"I don't like playing "besties" with the people I work with. Been there, done that. It bit me in the ass." John rolled his eyes, knowing that Richard would know exactly what he meant by it.

"In my free time I have more important things to do than to hang out with the same bunch of people I've seen all day." John's further reasoning came off lame.

"Oh, right. Like your girlfriend, maybe?" Richard casually looked around the field as he spoke. "Now, how is that going for you? Actually, it's a bit weird that you mentioned this seat was for her...since, you know, it was Stahl herself who gave me her own ticket."

"Okay, so I might have twisted the truth a little bit..." John's eyes were fixed on the horizon as well, trying to keep himself from blushing. He was so busted.

"A little bit!?" Richard laughed and John finally gave him a stern look.

"Look, man, I'm not enjoying your company any more than you're enjoying mine. Let's just focus on enjoying the game instead, okay?" Richard suggested. He was sick and tired of John's attitude lately.

"Fine. Whatever." For a moment there, John questioned why Richard didn't grab this chance to humiliate him about the girlfriend comment. Just days ago John seemed to have no problem saying Richard probably had seven cats and nobody else waiting for him back home. Apparently, the only way to make John Kennex feel really bad was to make him realize he was the bad guy.

Fifteen minutes into the game both guys had quietly overcome their issues and were cheering for their team of choice. Men in 2048 were just like what men used to be back in 2015: they would argue, fight and yell at each other, but in the end there was always this one thing - a common interest, that could bond them.

A dude with a tray of refreshments and some food walked by the spectators.

"You want something? Richard asked John and it took John a moment to figure out if it was a tricky question.

"You don't have to buy me stuff. It's weird." John's reply was silent. It was an awkward situation for him.

"Ah, you girls are all the same: quiet and shy." Richard laughed, cracking a small joke.

If he would be stuck with John for a couple of hours he would at least try and make an effort to enjoy his time. Again, it would be disrespectful to Valerie and all the money she had paid for the tickets if the guys got into another fight and ended up being thrown out.

Richard got them both a cold beer and some chips. When he opened his wallet a bunch of banknotes fell out of it. John noticed that, apparently, Richard was loaded with cash and he liked to carry it around with him, as if technology wasn't developed enough yet to allow them to buy refreshments at soccer gamer with a credit card or simply just by scanning their eyes with a tiny little torch-shaped gadget.

John offered some cash himself, but Richard refused it. "Next time it's on you." He said politely.

"There won't be a next time. Don't even dream of it! I'm only staying here because of Valerie, who gave me the ticket." John shifted in his seat, feeling uncomfortable.

At this moment he started to realize what she meant when she had told him that he will pay, that same evening. Has it been her plan all along? Why would she skip a game she would otherwise enjoy, just to put two enemies together?

"Right. Well, maybe next time I'll go to the game with your girlfriend…Valerie." Richard was smart, he saw a chance to confront John about it once again and he did rightfully so.

"What? No! I was referring to someone else. Not Valerie." It was unusual for John to stutter like that.

"Whatever, man." Richard took a sip of his beer, knowing the silence that followed would make John curious enough to continue the topic. And he was right.

John spent a few minutes being bugged by the fact that Richard was calling Valerie by her name. Wasn't he supposed to call her Detective Stahl?

"Since when are you calling her simply just Valerie?" John's curiosity finally won over his common sense, or rather - the lack there of.

"Uh, since the day we met and she told me her name was Valerie." Richard snapped a glance at his newly found soccer buddy. "Didn't think that would be a problem with you, Kennex!" He added teasingly.

"Not at all. I was just thinking...it's you who is always so close with her. Maybe you should be the one getting teased. She can turn out to be your girlfriend." Kennex cleared his throat, his awkwardness had no limits.

"Me? And Valerie!? Hahaha!" Richard burst out in laughter as if that was the most ridiculous statement he had ever heard.

"Why not? She's smart, stunning, adventurous, single, human being-..." John had a list ready, of all the things that Valerie was. However, Richard interrupted him once again.

"Oh..." Surprise could be heard in Richard's gasp.

"What? She's not single?" John had this silly tendency to pick up the most irrelevant fact and to focus only on it, forgetting all about the other little facts. For him, the "single" part of the statement stood out. For Richard, however, another one of the adjectives created a moment of doubt.

"How would I know if she's single or not!?" Richard eyed him weirdly. This sudden interest was highly unlikely behavior for John. "Why don't you ask Dorian?" He suggested.

"What? Dorian is dating Valerie?" John's body bounced off the seat just an inch, but it was visible enough.

"Dude, I gave you a beer, not a Jagger bomb. What is wrong with you?" The only thing that could excuse John's behavior was if he was completely wasted. Common sense had flown out of his head, apparently. "I think she's single, anyway."

"Sweet!" John felt like a five year old after his outburst. "Oh, sorry, false alarm. I thought my team was about to score."

"Has anyone, apart from Dorian, ever told you that you're insanely awkward?" Richard raised his eyebrow.

"Yes, but coming from you it sounds rather like a compliment." John once again tensed up, grabbing the seat, seeing an actual possibility for his team to score this time.

"Don't get used to that!" Richard replied to John's words.

Finally, John's team did score. "Ha! Get used to that, sucker!" He said cheerfully.

As much as Richard hated to admit this to himself, it was kind of nice to see Detective Kennex being just John again, outside of work…like the old times.

The game ended with a big advantage for Valerie's team, which was now also John's team of choice. He jumped at the opportunity to rub his victory in Richard's face. However, Richard turned out to be the bigger man, shaking hands to congratulate John. It was completely unexpected. In fact, once again, John started thinking about his own behavior. Maybe it was true, maybe he had been walking around and taking things for granted. He had been so busy dwelling on his own past troubles that he must have overlooked the troubles everyone else was going through.

Mostly, he started to regret being so awful to Richard earlier that morning, after what he had been through on his birthday. John knew that it was as much of a tough time for Richard as it was for him lately. And yeah, Richard was right – John hadn't really been a good colleague since he had come back after his coma. He was so busy dwelling in his own problems, with all the painful flashbacks and the puzzle pieces that he couldn't figure out, that he never actually cared enough to listen to anyone else's problems, for a change. He disregarded anyone and anything that was not connected to his own shitty situation and that, naturally, made him be a shitty human being in the eyes of his colleagues. No wonder he hadn't been invited to Mexico and to who knows how many other functions! Reflecting on his own behavior, he wouldn't want to be around himself either.

One of the things John liked the most about Valerie was her humanity and the fact that she always cared about people. At that moment, sitting next to a very emotionally screwed up Richard, who was acting much saner than him anyway, John realized the reason why he liked Valerie's humanity, was because she was balancing off his own inability to care, to connect.

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

Hi everyone :)!

If you're still interested to read, let me know. I have 6 more chapters already written and...stuff happens :P I'd love to upload those, but I'm wondering if there is still an audience, since I haven't updated in a while. Also, I was inspired to move my bum-bum and edit&upload this chapter, by a reader from Australia who just said my story is his favorite Stannex story and that was so nice :)!