Of Course

"Ok, I trust you." Alice says, biting her bottom lip and looking up with innocence in her eyes. "But you can't let my dad find out, he'd never let me comeback over here. He thinks you're a gentlemen." Malcolm laughs "No, I'm pretty sure he sees me as something a little different than that. Something a lot less threatening." she wrinkles her nose, "Huh?"

He laughs, "A black boy with decent skin who goes to France to learn how to cook for the rich folk? He thinks I'm a fruit-loop, I'll bet anything." She gasps, "NO HE DOES NOT! He saw you with girls." she puts her fists on her hips and spins back to him. "Like who, I've only dated one girl, Alice."

She racked her mind, before pulling a memory from her brain, "FATTY PATTI! HE SAW YOU WITH FATTY PATTI!" he gives her a look of resentment. "I've told you to never call her that. She's a total sweetheart who lives in constant fear people say that stuff behind her back." She considers the glass she's clearly walking on before doubling down "But she smells like poo all the time, how can you like a girl who smells like poo?"

He exhales deeply, "Because that's manure you dummy. She mucks the horse stalls at 4AM before she goes to school. Meanwhile, little miss sunshine is fast asleep in her big house and her frilly nightie dreaming of sparkly vampires and shirtless werewolves." He prances around mocking her."Try doing some hard-work for once in your life and you'll see the world a lot different."

Awkward silence follows before he breaks it, "I think we could both use a drink." He fishes two shot-glasses from his suitcase, but realizes that one didn't make it intact. "Knew I needed a box for these." He pouts before exclaiming "We can make this work." He pushes her lightly onto his bed after tossing the suitcase onto the floor. "We'll play truth or dare" He opens the bottle and swirls it a bit before pouring a small amount into the glass and handing it to her.

She smells it, it smells like pears and apples with a slight burn to her nostrils. "Are you sure, this seems like some really strong stuff?" He fobs her off. "You'll be fine, a few drinks isn't going to kill you." She swallows her doubt, and the drink. It burns enough to make her eyes water, but the fruity cider-like taste is refreshing and sweet. It's good. He takes the glass and pours himself a shot. "AHHHHH, that's the stuff."

He looks over to see her wiping her eyes. He laughs deeply, "Not done any drinking since I was away, huh?" She waves her head dramatically. "You'll get used to it after a couple of drinks. Don't worry?" He shifts so he's further away before call out "You go first." She thinks for a second "Truth or Dare?"

"Truth" he calls back. The words fly out of her mouth before he can even finish. "Did you boink Patti McCormick?" He's taken aback at the forwardness. "Jeez, going right for the jugular here." She laughs "You so did!" He looks at her with a defeated look. "Yeah, we did, a couple times." He says meekly, "OMG! YOU DID IT WITH FATTY PATTI!" she practically tumbles off the bed in feint shock. "She's a wonderful woman, and I'm happy to say I did, the only thing I regret is that I was too young to understand myself physically and emotionally."

Annie stops and senses a bit of pain in his eyes. "What's that supposed to mean?" He forces a smile back. "Keep playing, and maybe you'll find out." He pauses "Truth or Dare?"

"Truth" She says back quickly, he looks over "Since I've been gone, have you been with anybody?" She smiles back "Nope." and he counters "Why?" she pauses, "That's cheating, you only get one question." he replies back, annoyed "It was a two-parter" she thinks about pushing this but relents, "Because my parents mean a lot to me, and they're proud I'm pure."

Malcolm scoffs, "Your parents can't keep you in the plastic wrap forever. You're 18, a grown ass woman, you make your own way now. Don't let them keep you shrink wrapped so they can pick out a good boy at church for you." he looks into her eyes, "You'll wake up my pops age never having known what passion was, and never having made a single decision for yourself. That'd be sad." She considers his words but is too uncomforted by them to reply. "Truth or Dare."

"Truth" he calls back pouring himself another shot, and swallowing it. He offers the glass to her and she accepts it, drinking it again in a single gulp. Her throat burns a bit, but her eyes stay clear enough.

"What was Paris like? And did you hook-up with anybody?" He looks back at her knowingly, but doesn't push it. "Paris is wild. At night, it's a culture built on unfettered liberty, raw milk, under-cooked meat served on bloody cutting boards, with wine and spirits. Then it's a stuffy culture of tradition and heritage during the day. Beautiful bikini babes, stunning art, and then you see a girl in a burka wrestling with cops who are trying to rip it off her. Too busy to see the 40 African refugees running up the beach, past the babes, away from their deflated dinghies. Hoping to find a place in that world."

He looks distantly away. "Something's gonna break over there, and I'm just happy I got to see it while they all still existed, intact. Because eventually, either the tradition will win, and everything will be cracked down on, or it'll all crumble and it'll become something beautifully unknowable."

He pauses "Oh, and I banged a girl with a pink Mohawk who had Hitler tattoos." Her brain needs a full minute to process what he said. "Wait, what!" she says in a total stupor. "Details?"

"Cheater!" he says grabbing her in a headlock, rubbing his knuckles across her skull roughly, "You're asking three questions!" He swings her around effortlessly as she giggles, the **** having a clear effect. Eventually he tosses her down under him. "Truth or Dare?"