LÍO

DORADO

Tonight's the big night.

He's spent the past hour and a half getting ready to head out to Club Catalunya's Latin themed night; the last bastion of escapism from the cruel world, and the choice of all the local misfits.

Grabbing a pair of shades, he finishes off his look before walking out into the club looking like a rejected Reggaeton musician roaming trashcans in the streets of San Juan, but he doesn't care.

He's here to have a good time...

... And laugh at outfits worse than his:

"You look like a Bad Bunny rip off." Adnan the Matador jokes, ruffling his hands through Adam's freshy cut hair.

"Ad Bunny." Adam adds, playfully pushing him back. "I would have had more time to get a costume ready if someone had of told me sooner."

"Whoever cut your hair did a good job though. Who was it?"

"My new barber, Rehan."

"Rehan?" Adnan scratches his chin. "Do I know him?"

"Yeah, I used to date her."

"Is that the crazy tomboy chic who hated her Mama?"

Adam nods. "I wouldn't say she hated her, but she didn't like living under her roof. Her uncle, Younes was a bit crazy too."

"Younes Al Habib?"

"Yeah, him."

"That's my Dad's psychiatrist we're taking about here." Adnan fake glares, then bursts out laughing. "Again, he'd probably be worse off without him. He's a bit of a loose canon—"

"—Like me, I know." Adam sighs, scooping up some punch in his glass. He takes a sip. "This stuff's good. Who made it?"

Adnan shrugs. "Probably Daniel, or that guy Oscar. No idea."

"Who's Daniel?"

"The owner I know—"

"—Is there ANY club owner you DON'T know?"

"I dunno. My Dad knows a lot of people."

"Fair enough." Adam nods, watching a hot version of Diego Rivera walk over to him.  He laughs at the costume. "Where's your Frida?"

"Not here, sadly." David adds with a sigh, fixing the hat on his head. "And who are you meant to be, Adam?"

"Ad Bunny. Adnan thinks I'm some cheap knockoff of Bad Bunny. I wasn't trying for that, though." Adam laughs. "I was trying to channel the aesthetic but got lost somewhere in between trashy and a cheap cosplayer."

David laughs. "We've all been there, Cariño."

"Cariño." Adam laughs back. "Why are you calling me that?"

"How about Habibi then?"

"Habibi sounds even more feminine." Adam smiles. "Cariño is it is then—"

"—He's already called me it twice today." Adnan adds with a chuckle.

David nods back. "It's a bad habit. I use it as a term of affection for my friends and their families and the people I like."

Adam raises an eyebrow. "But we barely know each other."

"At the moment."

"Fair enough."

David hands him a sachet of pink crystals. "These are on me. Do whatever you want with them."

Adam laughs. "Is this your bad attempt at trying to flirt with me?"

"Well... you need to loosen up a bit. You seem really uptight. What's up?"

"My aunt told me that I needed Jesus and she gave me a New Testament bible with Spanish, English and Arabic translations alongside each other because she didn't know which language I was the most fluent in." Adam sits down at a table. "She said it was also from Morocco. And she said I need to try harder. But she complimented my hair and said it was tidy."

"You got complimented and are depressed?" David jokes sitting down beside him. "No, you're mixed up right? I know how you feel."

"You do?"

"Honestly? I can relate. I grew up unconventionally as well. My parents were from different religions, they broke up when I was younger, my Mama re-married and his family have had a hard time accepting me for me."

"You seem pretty easy to get on with from what I've seen of you so far."

"Easy to say when you're not being judged for basically existing as who you are—"

"—I know. That's why I'm here tonight. To escape all of this."

David nods. "Well, do you want to come into the VIP section with us? It's a bit quieter. You seem annoyed by the noise."

Adam shrugs. "I would but I'm waiting on some friends."

"The Marco kid?"

"Him and Georgia but I think Georgia's away on a date. She said she going to try and come later. Marco's unusually late. He's usually the first one here and higher than a kite."

David shrugs. "Maybe he's recovering from last night. Adnan told me he smuggled two bottles of champagne and a quarter bottle of whiskey from your Uncle's secret stash."

Adam laughs. "Sounds about right. He did look a bit steamed at two this morning. He walked in with Zara to say hi to me and he didn't know where the bathroom was."

"Maybe he's still sleeping it off. The last time I got super drunk, it took me a day and a half to recover. But again, I'm more into drugs than drink. I like the experience better."

"The last time I got high, I hallucinated a sloth called Steve and asked him for life advice. It was the most slowest and long winded TED talk ever and a waste."

"These things will pump your adrenaline through the roof. I assure you, things will be far from boring. If you don't want them, each pill can reach a hundred euros. You have six in there."

Adam takes two out of the bag. "I'll do it if you do it and guide me through this."