Love Addict's RPG Ch. 22

I wrote this and 23 together so as soon as I edit that one I'll post it, too.

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"Why didn't you try and stop me sooner...?" Oliver groaned, regretting his decisions while sprawled out across his bed like a miserable lout.

"I did!" Bradley hovered over him, smiling a smile that dared to border on 'I told you so'. "Multiple TIMES, at that! Repeatedly did I EXTOL the dangers of [Over Exerting Yourself], but ALAS!"

"You should've extolled harder."

"And YOU should've [Listened Harder]!" Bang, bang. Finger guns.

"Yeah, my bad..." Oliver admitted defeat. "I was so caught up in thinking about Mia and improving myself that I got carried away and couldn't stop. Compulsions kind of suck like that..."

They returned to Oliver's place roughly five and a half hours after setting out. The pain was noticeable two hours in, got worse at the three-hour mark, became excruciating at four, and after five, Bradley essentially had to carry him back like a wounded soldier. This was after they took several breaks along the way, too.

Traditionally, working out was best done every other day so your muscles had time to repair themselves. Oliver was too overeager to get his first stat increase and make some progress. He got like this sometimes when playing video games or performing repetitive tasks, but it'd never happened with physical activity.

He felt embarrassed and stressed about the rest of his day.

"There's ONLY a half-hour remaining until YOUR rendezvous with [Tutorial Girl Mia Rosas]. Drastic measures MUST be taken to ensure that all goes [Smooth As Silk]." Bradley gave Oliver a severe expression while looming over his bed. "Do YOU trust me, Oliver?"

"...About as much as I can trust a manservant who came out of my brain yesterday, yeah."

"Then I HUMBLY request that you [Take Off Your Pants]."

"Huh. You know, I figured this'd be yet another one of those moments where I shrug and silently wonder 'what the hell even is my life', but I wasn't expecting you to just fucking go for it."

Bradley laughed and shook his head. "YOU misunderstand!"

"And you word things very questionably."

"Perhaps, but I was ONLY offering to perform a [Deep Tissue Massage] on YOUR legs!"

"How about next time you lead with that?" Oliver sighed and offered a reluctant smile while slipping out of his pants. "Good idea, though. I'll leave this in your hands."

"Can DO!" Bradley rolled up the sleeves of his dress shirt and smiled bright enough for Oliver to see what looked like an exaggerated anime-styled twinkle next to his mouth.

For the next twenty-five minutes, Bradley performed maintenance on Oliver's legs like he was a frenzied member of a racing pit crew who only had a few seconds to change the tires. His hands were odd, still as cold and glossy as the day before, and his touch didn't get any warmer after prolonged contact with Oliver's skin. They were strong, however, which got the job done.

Bradley's fingers applied pressure wherever needed, relieving tension and restoring proper blood flow to Oliver's exhausted legs. He cried out in pain multiple times during the session, but this was the price he had to pay for his single-mindedness. Oliver knew suffering through this massage was the only way he'd make it to his hangout session with Mia, so he grit his teeth and powered through it.

It did the trick.

Oliver could get up and move around without difficulties, even if a bit of pain still festered. It was a little less bad than his exhaustion after getting off work yesterday. All they planned on doing was walking around an art store for a little while, so there was no reason this couldn't work.

Bradley offered Oliver a glass of water after he'd finished pulling his pants back on, proud of his assist. "One LAST thing before you go! [Post-massage Hydration Check]!"

"Gotta flush the toxins out, huh?" Oliver cracked a smile and chugged the glass. "Pretty sure that's just a myth."

"Perhaps, but it IS simply [Courteous and Kind] to offer a glass OF water after a MASSAGE!" Bradley winked, causing Oliver to notice he was already adapting to the uncanny expressions of his companion. Guess exposure therapy really did have some merit. "Now, THEN! Are you good to go, MY friend? Do we need to RUN through a last-minute a [Pregame Strategy]?"

"Nope. Just gonna play it by ear and make sure I ask Mia about getting dinner before we're done." Oliver clenched his fists and took a deep breath through his nose, staring at the door while raring to go. His nervousness and excitement were battling to a complete stalemate inside his heart. Though conflicted, the critical part was that nervousness wasn't winning out.

"That's the SPIRIT!" Bradley clasped him on the shoulder and then opened the door for Oliver. "Now go, my friend! Go and experience your [Not-a-date] with [Destiny]!"

Oliver thanked his strange friend, telling him to enjoy whatever the hell he planned on doing in the meantime. He rushed down the apartment stairs, each one sending a stinging sensation throughout his thoroughly massaged legs, gunning for his car. Opening the door, he clicked the button on the map display that popped up and fast-traveled to Payless Foods.

It was 5:00 PM precisely.

Mia would need a few minutes to clock out and finish things up, so Oliver got out and approached from the right side of the building where his car spawned. He realized he might've made a grave mistake a few seconds later.

Somber piano music began to play.

Tessa was outside the door, leaning against the building as she looked off with a distant look in her steely eyes. A cigarette was held between her fingers. Occasionally, she would move it to her lips and take a drag. It didn't look like she was enjoying it, more so that she was begrudgingly tolerating the habit.

Oliver hoped that the shroud of smog in front of her face would obscure him while he slipped around to the front entrance, but Lucky Bastard didn't have his back on this occasion.

"Change your mind?" Tessa asked without making eye contact. "You've never done a four-hour shift before, but I'm not about to say no if you want to work closing."

"Tessa. Hey. No... I..." Oliver rubbed the back of his neck and looked around awkwardly now that she'd called him out. "Sorry to get your hopes up. Just here to pick up Mia."

"That so?" Another begrudging drag.

"Yeah. We, um... we had some plans to hang out together tonight." It wasn't any of Tessa's business. Oliver was just put on the spot, causing the truth to spill right out of him. He hoped this wouldn't lead to some unasked-for lecture on employee dating policies.

All she did was take another drag and blow the smoke through her lips without a word. Oliver didn't like smokers as a rule of thumb, but Tessa did so with an elegance that was almost transfixing to him. It drew attention to how full and plump her lips were. Hard not to stare. Very hard.

She gave a small laugh, but there wasn't any joy behind it. "How fickle. I thought you said it 'wasn't like that'."

"It's not. I mean, maybe it might be, but... look, I'm trying to figure this out, okay?" Oliver blurted out, then realized that snappy tone he took with his boss and panicked.

"Good," Tessa nodded her head. "Better to think things through before jumping into anything. If something happens, I only ask that you keep it out of the workplace."

Oliver thought that was a reasonable enough position to have as his employer, especially compared to the other stances she could've taken. "Doubt that's going to be a problem."

"Too soon to tell," the older woman shrugged. "You're young, Oliver. Things don't always work out the way you think they will. You're both at a time in your life where you're stupid. Prone to making poor decisions, and I say that as someone who made more than her fair share."

Oliver couldn't tell if she was trying to advise him because it mostly sounded like backhanded insults masquerading behind a thick layer of cynicism. He didn't want to stir the pot, but he didn't like her accusations. "Why are you automatically assuming we'll make poor decisions?"

"Same reason the scorpion stung the frog," Tessa flicked some ash. "I don't mean it as an insult, mind. Just pointing out the way things work."

"It sounds more like you're projecting your personal experiences onto others."

Tessa regarded him for a few moments in utter silence, making Oliver overly conscious of the spine he'd shown. "Can't argue with you there," another drag, another dark laugh. "Experiences color the way we see the world, creating strong biases that are nearly impossible to break. After a certain point, you can't see things any other way than the way you already do."

"...Is that where you're currently at?

"No," Tessa finished smoking and tossed it in a nearby cigarette bin on the curb. "It's where I've been."

She turned back toward the store's side entrance. "Good luck tonight, kid."

Now would've been the perfect time to say goodbye and wrap up this awkward run-in, but something was bugging Oliver. Tessa seemed more somber and less angry than he was accustomed to. It didn't sit right with him, so he stepped forward and called out to his boss despite the nagging voice in his head telling him to let it slide.

"Hey, hold on, sec."

She looked back at him, confused. "Is this important? I've been out here long enough, and we both have better things to do."

"Just wanted to make sure everything's alright. You seem a little off today."

"Do I?" Tessa sounded genuinely curious.

"A little. Worked here for two years and I've never seen you step outside like this before. Hell, I didn't even know you smoked."

Tessa made a tense expression and folded her arms. "Usually, I don't. Nasty habit. One that pokes its head back up every few months, stress depending."

"So things aren't okay?"

"Funny you should ask," there was suddenly a hint of wry amusement in her voice. "One of my employees decided not to come in today, then swung by to pick up his coworker for a date. Rubbed me the wrong way."

That got a small smile out of Oliver. He could tell Tessa was joking, even if it was a bit dry. It was rare for her to act like this. He wondered if their talk yesterday was still fresh on her mind.

"It's not a date," he laughed awkwardly. "We're just hanging out."

Tessa rolled her eyes. "Christ, you're going to make me want another cigarette with this shit..."

"Seriously, Tessa. Is everything good?" Oliver pushed harder, much more than he ever had with her. "Not trying to make a big deal out of it, but if you need someone to talk to..."

She looked at him funny. There wasn't really a better way to put it other than that. He couldn't tell if she was looking down on him, trying not to laugh or genuinely appraising his offer. Tessa had an air of mystery around her that scared Oliver more often than not because it usually masked another one of her temperamental outbursts before he could tell it was coming.

Then, her expression softened, and she closed her eyes. "Nothing you can help with. One of my 'sister's' cats got sick yesterday while she was at work, and now she's worried about whether or not it will spread to all the others."

Oliver recalled how Tessa smiled in that picture he'd accidentally glimpsed. How at ease and happy she looked. It was so different from how he usually saw her that she seemed like another person entirely. He wasn't on the best terms with Tessa, but he empathized with anyone suffering over concern for their 'sister's' pet.

"Shit. Is it serious?"

"No," relief washed over Tessa's face. "Just a slight cold. Still. I had to deal with emergency veterinary services last night, and the stress from that has been hanging over my head the entire day."

"Damn. Glad to hear it's gonna be okay, but that still sounds like a huge mess." Oliver thought about what to say momentarily, then made the uncharacteristic decision to sneak in a little teasing jab. "I just hope that sister of yours knows how lucky she is to have you, boss."

Silence, followed by a half-amused smirk. "She has an inkling, you little shit."

--Tessa Gained 1 Affection---

Oliver's heart sped up at the sudden, unexpected increase in Tessa's outlook toward him. The 'number go up' phenomenon struck again, and God, was he weak to it. Had her dark and lonely smile always been so pretty? He shook his head, ashamed of how suddenly these thoughts overtook him.

He briefly remembered what Bradley said about his 'polygamous inclinations' and wondered if he had a point. It was either that or Oliver was so starved for affection that all it took was a smirk from a beautiful woman to get his heart fluttering. Both options said many uncomfortable things about him that he tried to push out of his mind.

"Good luck on your 'hangout', kid," Tessa turned to the side entrance and walked towards it for real this time. She opened it and hovered at the doorway, regarding him over her shoulder with her tired, gray eyes. "Remember that your employee discount extends towards anything in the pharmacy section- condoms included."

"T-That's... um... thanks, but I don't think I'll need any..." he said, fumbling at the out-of-left-field suggestion.

Tessa gave him a once over and then smiled at him almost as widely as she was smiling in that picture with her cats. "On second thought, you're probably right."

Oliver recoiled, savagely burnt to a crisp. He was flustered, embarrassed, and red in the face. Fuck, that was brutal. If he didn't have somewhere to be, he would've locked up entirely and stood there like an idiot. Instead, Oliver hurried along and hung his head in shame, dragging himself to the front of the store.