D&B5

Neil&Nick Extra 3

Beep beep.

Neil's phone buzzed with a message one morning.  Neil was in the shower, so Nick, who was getting dressed, picked it up. He paused, seeing the message was from a number saved as "Pam."  Nick was sure it was Pam, Aunt Nang's niece.  Since he and Neil shared their phone passcodes, Nick opened the message.

PAMPAM >> P'Neil, don't forget our appointment today!

Nick froze. He had no idea what Neil had scheduled with this woman, and Neil had never mentioned it. Nick didn't reply, deciding to wait and talk to Neil.  Soon, Neil emerged from the bathroom and saw Nick sitting on the edge of the bed, frowning.

"What's wrong, shorty?" Neil asked.

"What did you make a date with Pam for?" Nick asked bluntly. Neil hesitated.

"Uh, I completely forgot.  Did Pam call?" Neil asked back. Nick's frown deepened.

"No, she texted. Saying not to forget today's appointment. What appointment? Why didn't I know anything about this?" Nick asked, his voice sharp.

"It's not just you who didn't know! I forgot too!  The other day, when you were buying things with your brother, Pam called. She asked me to help her look at a car she's buying from a friend – that Lamborghini she showed you a picture of – and asked me to bring you along. I said yes, intending to tell you, but I completely forgot! I forgot until today. If Pam hadn't texted, I would have forgotten completely," Neil admitted, because he really had forgotten. He'd initially planned to add it to his schedule, but got caught up in work. When customers came to the shop, he went to talk to them. Nick stared at Neil silently.

"You think I'm lying?" Neil retorted. Nick sighed softly, knowing his lover never lied to him.

"So what?  You had an appointment with her at what time?" Nick asked.

"It should be in the afternoon, if I remember correctly. You call her back and ask Pam what time it is again. Tell her I really forgot the appointment," Neil said innocently. Nick took Neil's phone, scrolled to Pam's number, and called.

("Hello, P'Neil?") Pam's voice answered.

"This is Nick," Nick said.

("Oh, Nick, is there something wrong?") Pam asked.

"P'Neil forgot he had an appointment with you today, so he asked me to call and ask what time it is," Nick explained.

("It's at one o'clock in the afternoon.  Wow, P'Neil really forgot our appointment, huh?") Pam said slowly.

"Sorry, Pam. P'Neil had a lot of work," Neil replied. Nick raised an eyebrow slightly at Neil referring to himself as P' to the woman, but he didn't say anything.

("It's okay. If I hadn't sent the message, I would have been stood up by my friend!  Nick, are you free to come along?") Pam asked Nick.

"I can," Nick replied.

("Okay. See you then! I'll send you the location.") Pam said before hanging up. Nick placed Neil's phone on the bed.

"But we're going to look at a car; it's nothing," Neil said.  He added, "Besides, I love sports cars; I want to see what kind of car Pam's buying from her friend."

"I don't mind," Nick replied in a normal tone.

"Shorty," Neil called Nick. Nick turned and smiled at him.

"I'm not saying anything. I understand that you really forgot. If you hadn't forgotten, you would have told me first, right?" Nick asked.

"Yeah, I really forgot," Neil reiterated.