Huskniss Oneshots

Broken Hearts Club - Angst

[Drinks?]

Arackniss had spent enough time around Husk to know, that was never a good sign. When he sent one of those texts, Husk not only was miserable, but to the point where he didn't even want to drink alone. It was rare, yet it seemed to happen more often than not nowadays. Still, that knowledge didn't make it any less important. Niss immediately jumped up from his bed and rushed to his closet, sorting through a few different silk and satin jackets to find the perfect one. Glancing in a mirror, he make sure the golden necklace was straight before rushing out the door and downstairs.

He'd been hesitant during the first few weeks staying at the Hotel. Angel had said something about the break from work being good for him, and as bullshit as that was, Arackniss had at least decided to give it a try. And try he did, though he stayed far from the redemption side of things. In fact, most nights were spent at the bar, too drunk to remember where he was half the time. During the other half, he still went down to the bar, but at least then he was coherent to have a conversation with the bartender. Husk, of course, had been there since opening, and could tell Niss just about anything he wanted to know, how patrons were treated, if any of it actually worked. Analyzing whether it was worth spending more than a week here.

After the first few days, topics drifted off the hotel, to the customers, to hell in general, and finally to each other. Niss could still remember every word Husk told him on those nights, the only memories left despite the nasty hangovers. It was Angel that pointed out how Arackniss's fur seemed to fluff up every time Husk showed an interest in his past, or his hobbies, or him in general. Another week later, he'd accepted things for better or worse: Husk had actually managed to break past his walls, and to make him feel something.

That was partially contributing to Arackniss trying to smooth down down his clothes as he sped downstairs, only to see the same sight as always when Husk texted him. A bottle of whiskey and a bottle of red wine already set out for them, as Husk stared to the corner of the room. Niss didn't have to look in that direction to know exactly what Husk was looking at, he could hear it from here.

"Would you mind not acting so… Flirtatious when there are other people present?"

"Aw, you getting flustered, babe? Would you rather we take this somewhere private~?"

Arackniss took the seat in between Husk and those two, grabbing his own wine bottle. Normally, bartenders listened to everyone else's problems. Most of the time, Husk was able to do that exact thing, without even caring about their story. On nights like this, Niss was the bartender, and the story took a personal hit.

"It just ain't fuckin' fair…" Husk made sure to talk in a hushed enough voice where the happy couple in the back couldn't hear. "How many fuckin' years have I been Al's friend? A fuckin' long time. And he just… Goes off and fucking… Look, no disrespect to your brother, but he's a fucking moron, it doesn't make any goddamn sense, how Al goes on fucking drunk rants about him."

Niss just shrugged in response to that. Technically Husk wasn't wrong, his brother wasn't the smartest, and on his best days he was frustrating. But the familial relation wasn't what made this personal. Arackniss was grateful that on these nights, alcohol was always provided, because he needed it to drown the painful thumping of his heart. He'd agreed to stay at the hotel six months, at least, otherwise he might have left. But four months ago, he still believed he had a chance. As much as this killed him, Husk was the first real friend he'd made in a long time, romantic shit aside. He wasn't about to lose that over this.

"Maybe he's just got a thing for flirts?"

Husk scoffed at that and popped open the whiskey with his claw, downing about a quarter of the bottle in one go. "Not a fucking chance. Anyone else tried to go after him, he'd slice their head off. I've seen it happen, it's just… Doesn’t fucking make sense, no matter how much I try to fucking understand, he makes no goddamn sense in anything he does. I thought that fucker used 'logic' in these situations, well he sure ain't doing that now."

At that moment, Angel was already dragging a very red and flustered Alastor out of the room. If he wanted to get away, he was stronger, he could teleport.

Niss glanced down at his own bottle that was already empty. When Husk started his longer rants, it wasn't smart to ask him for another one until he finished.

This was going to be a long fucking night.