Kneel

Case 8

  "You said 'drinks with a few friends'." Chloe laughed as she set the bottle she had on the bar.

  "Well, you know, things got out of hand. Just the way I like it."

  "We brought you a gift." Dan smiled while raising the jar he had.

  "Is that the royal we?"

  "Whiskey with a pickle juice chaser. It's our station's birthday tradition." Chloe popped the top off the bottle and waved her hand to me. "Misha got you the glasses."

  "Lovely! How can I refuse? Can I refuse?"

  "Of course, you can. And we'll always think less of you."

  "Wait until you see the glasses." Chloe chuckled, and I set the box I had on the bar. Opening it up, I pulled out the shot glasses while grinning, and Chloe poured the whiskey into one before handing it to Lucifer.

  "Oh, how funny. You know I don't look anything like that, you imp." He seemed amused while holding the shot glass with a little cartoon demon with the words 'Horny Devil' on it. Chloe handed him another shot with pickle juice.

  "Here's to another trip around the sun."

  "Cheers." We each downed a shot and the pickle juice, and I cringed while shaking my head since I wasn't a fan of pickle juice.

  "Not bad, is it?"

  "Briny. Let's find Maze. She needs to try this bizarre concoction. She loves a salty aftertaste."

  "No. We're just stopping by. We have a department thing to go to." Chloe explained.

  "Some of us work for a living." Dan added.

  "Well, that's your bad luck, isn't it? Come on, the party's barely started."

  "Aw, Happy Birthday, Lucifer." Chloe pulled him into a hug, and the club owner awkwardly reciprocated it.

  "Don't look at me, I'm not a hugger."

  "Oh, thank goodness. I think I'd break out into hives coming into contact with you." Lucifer popped off. "Hold on, I think I'm already having a reaction just being in such close proximity-"

  "Shut up." I scoffed while watching him start itching at his neck and chin. "Happy Birthday, you pompous dork."

~

  "You sure you want to be here?" Dan asked as we were walking into the bar.

  "We can't be the only ones missing Malcolm's welcome back party."

  "Okay, but why am I here? I don't even know the guy."

  "Misha, you don't even know half the precinct."

  "Your point?"

  "They're your coworkers. You know, the people you work with?"

  "And?"

  "And you're so much of a loner that you know hardly anyone."

  "Oh, I'm sorry that due to me being genderfluid, most of the people I encounter call me a freak and blatantly disregard my gender, turning me into an outcast because they don't 'believe' there's more than cis male and cis female. Sorry that even in this century, people within the LGBT+ community are still ostracized." I looked at Dan with a flat expression, and he shifted uncomfortably on his feet. "Yeah. Remember that."

  "Misha, he didn't mean any harm." Chloe spoke up, and I shrugged.

  "I know, but with me being open about not being cis, a lot of folks take issue with it. Including within the precinct- That's why I didn't really have a partner until you."