The doors to the court opened and several were already filing out. Fuck this woman! Seriously! Blue hues still bore furiously into the judge as he'd gotten up to take his leave. How had she won!? He really couldn't fucking fathom it other than it had to have been her new man feeding her bullshit to use!! That and admittedly Laura made a very good actress. The crying about the emotional destress and how she'd lost everything in the wake of his death. Not being included in the will causing her to go destitute. She's really plead her case in such a way it was truly convincing. And all to what? Screw his family for more money than she deserved!!! He'd GIVEN her that place! He hadn't once even made her pay rent on it! That should have been enough right!? The rest was her responsibility!! Wrong! Apparently as landlord it was his responsibility for his own homes to be safe for his tenants. Yeah, all that hogwash about marrying his brother, the murder, her losing out on any inheritance owed to Thomas and her! All of that had just been to make him look as absolutely bad as humanly possible and though his own lawyer had interrupted her and succeeded a few times they'd still managed to win over the jury enough to give her a partial win. She of course didn't get her payout for as she put emotional trauma or whatever bullshit she'd attempted to call it but for negligence of his responsibilities.... He now owed them three times the amount of her fucking doctors bills! Not twice the amount, not just the bills which he'd offered to pay BEFORE she'd pulled this. ALL OF IT!!! God he hated this fucking SkANK!!! What next!!? She'd twist her ankle in the fucking driveway and sue him next year!?
"Really Athos, I'm sorry. I didn't wanna have to do this but you didn't leave me alot of choice. Look I'll be patient if you can't send me the checks by the due date and all ... I understand.... With the bar burning down and how much they pay you it's got to be a struggle" Laura's voice was like listening to the worst sound on earth right now. You know that noise of metal scraping against metal that makes you just want to dig your own eardrum out with a fucking crochet hook? Moving to stand slowly as she spoke he didn't even look at her at first. Hand reaching to pull his leather jacket from the back of a chair his annoyed gaze soon went her way before he finally started to walk ahead of her and Gregory her new... Well whatever the hell he even was. Pompous douche bag from Italy who REALLY thought his shit didn't stink because he was some big shot lawyer. Specializing in sueing mega corporations no less! Gee wonder where she gotta such a brilliant idea to fuck him over from!?
"Athos! Please look just stop for one second and here me out I'm trying to be nice here!" The red headed female went catching his arm and finally he slowed just outside the court room doors. Blue hues slowly moving to glare at her. "Nice?! Really? Is that what's going to help you sleep better tonight? At least you apologized. Fuck you Laura!" Athos finally spoke the last bit a hint louder and angry.
"Hey don't fucking talk to her like that! She's had nothing but patients with your sorry ass!" Gregory was soon piping up moving in a bit closer himself. Jesus this tall lanky mother fucker and those crooked teeth, terrible eyebrows. Could she really not have done fucking better. The lack of amusement was clear as day on Athos's face a he looked up at Gregory for a second almost as if questioning if he was really talking to him.
"Patient? With me? You two should really fucking hear yourselves!" He sort of scoffed moving to shake his head. Honestly he might have just kept on in that moment.... Left... He was tired of arguing and frankly had a migraine from the pit of hell. Part of it definitely her, the rest? A mixture of a serious withdrawal from the pain pills he'd been more recently taking a bit to much after the head injury and at least half a hangover. Fuck today!
"Yes, Patient. We both understand you have.... Issues. We're not faulting you for those. We understand you were away at rehab when it happened so it's not your fault. But it is your responsibility to make sure....." That was as far as Gregory got before Athos suddenly turned fast hands moving to snatch the other by his shirt he slammed him hard into a nearby corner.
"You don't know shit you two faced fucking weasel!!!" He shouted. To think in the court they'd claimed to have no knowledge of those circumstances but out here?! They wanted to use it to belittle him?! God he could have punched this guy's nose so hard it would have popped back and into his fucking brain. And right about now Gregory certainly looked like he believed Athos might. It curtainly wasn't a small thing to have someone like Athos suddenly attacking you and let's be honest. Gregory only knew how to combat with words. In this situation he looked like he might just piss himself at any moment.
Sebastian and Nathaniel were chatting outside the courthouse; Sebastian was trying to offer advice on litigators and Nathaniel was rolling his eyes and talking about family connections. Fucking Perfect Plimptons. You'd think with Nate's daddy issues he'd WANT to take good advice while abroad.
"No, listen to me, Nathaniel, you reallyー" The shorter man cut himself off as they both turned their heads toward the commotion.
"Oh, crap," Nathaniel grumbled. He moved over to the guys fighting. "Okay, break it up. Not here," he suggested. Sebastian rolled his eyes and shook his head, but ultimately followed his friend.
"Nate, we should stay out of this," he complained. "It's clearly personal."
"No, to hell with that! Weren't you just saying the other day how you want new blood, new cases?"
Sebastian glowered at Nate. "I'm not an ambulance chaser," he said. Turning to the others, he added, "Sorry about my friend. He doesn't know when to mind his own."
"Athos please! You're making a fool of yourself!!" Laura piped up again.
God her and her mouth. He could have hit her, he wanted to. He definitely thought about it but in that moment he didn't even continue on Gregory. Instead with the two strangers, clearly lawyers he merely shoved Gregory one last time damn near slamming him against the door. "Fuck you! Fuck all of you!!" He snarled without so much of a second thought. Damn legal shit fucks and their fancy posh suits! Nothing but snakes dressed up! Turning he was soon stalking away ignoring Laura calling for him to wait. Not that it mattered Gregory was soon catching her arm.
"Leave it. For now. He's simply sour he lost. Some are such sore losers are they not?" Gregory added almost smartly sort l casting a twisted smile at Nathaniel and Sebastian.
By now Athos was to far away to have heard. Probably a good thing to running on the short fuse he was on now. He'd had enough court rooms to last him a life time and to think! Occasionally they came with the job as well. He'd even seen Sebastian at least once when he'd been in to testify against someone the man was defending. Sow went the job of hunting down the worst of the wort right? Now that wasn't that he remembered everyone from every court case. Lawyers were just easier to recognize considering they usually held the room for a good portion of trials.
Pushing through the double doors and out to the front of the court house he was soon slowing to sit on a bench outside. Unfortunately, he wasn't done here. A friend needed a ride here soon and his own court would adjourn for the day. Judging by the time on his phone he had at least thirty minutes to wait. Not enough time to simply drive home, it wouldn't have even been worth it at that point.
That woman's tone surely made Sebastian want to punch her, too. Who the hell was she to tell someone he was making a fool of himself?
"That's not what I meant," Nathaniel objected. "I just think if you're going to fight, it shouldn't be somewhere security can get involved."
Meanwhile Sebastian had to bite his tongue from going, "Ooh, gladly!" when Athos cursed at him. Sometimes being a natural flirt caused more harm than good, especially when a guy was clearly already infuriated.
"Wouldn't know," Sebastian said casually to the other man. "I--"
"This isn't the time," Nathaniel cut across his smug friend. "It's probably just small claims, and yes, I get it. I'm not in the habit of losing cases, but things do happen."
"'Things happen' is such a real estate lawyer thing to say," Sebastian scoffed. "The wrong 'things happen', you lose too many times, and it affects your reputation. I happen to know your family is all about reputation."
"Maybe you should ask them to adopt you," Nathaniel shot back. It was a low blow, considering Sebastian had been raised by their friend Trent's parents when his own parents had been too hung up in their own little world to care for him.
Sebastian's face clouded and he stalked out, pushing the double doors open with both hands and walking out right down the middle. He came to sit next to Athos.
"You okay?" he asked.
He'd caught the blonde appearing out of the corner of his eye. Well, he definitely didn't seem in a fair mood either. Perhaps the shit luck was going around. Yeah no he always had fairly shitty luck. On a good day he'd have likely still lost to her just with less of profit loss. On a better day Treville wouldn't have been in need of a ride due to the truck taking a shit for the second time this week. Moving to lean back and take a drag of the cigarette his gaze soon moved over to the blonde for a moment as if in thought before back out at the street that was fairly busy with people walking past and to the park a ways down or the shopping strips just the other way.
"Kind of a silly question isn't that? Sure you saw enough to come to a conclusion without asking" He remarked blowing some of the smoke from his lips for a moment and briefly pausing. "You? Looked like you and your friend were in, quite the discussion of your own. Sorry we interrupted" He sort of teased a bit with a dry chuckle. Part of how his brain worked, he noticed alot that went on around him all the time. Even if it had been briefly before his own altercation had started he'd noticed them just outside the doors for a moment there.
"Nah. We argue all the time." Sebastian waved away the guy's apology. "I've seen you around a few times. Sebastian Morningstar. My friend back there is Nathaniel Plimpton III. Cocky bastard." But his smile was somewhat fond. They were friends, after all, and occasionally lovers. "How about you? That looked almost interesting back there."
"Ah, yeah .... Your names familiar" He replied with a faint smile before moving to take another drag of the cigarette in his hand. Though his expression briefly turned sour at the mention of what had just happened. "If I had a nickel for every time I wanted to smash that man's teeth in... I'd be alot more rich" He remarked smartly before sort of shaking his head. "Yeah interesting is a way of putting it I guess. That chick used to be married to my brother. Her standards have vastly dropped" He added moving to take another drag of the cigarette in his hand and letting out the smoke slowly.
Sebastian scoffed. "Yeah. I know what that's like," he said bitterly. "On both counts. So what do you say we both fuck off and drown our sorrows somewhere?" he asked bluntly. Friendly drink between two people who'd just met couldn't hurt, and if Sebastian spent one more minute with Nathaniel that didn't include being pounded into a mattress, he was liable to knock Nathaniel's teeth in.
Hearing the others proposal Athos rose a brow. Well he did know a spot open just up the road. Actually he frequented it quite often so the offer was VERY tempting. Chewing his lower lip for a moment he finally nodded "You know what that's a brilliant idea... Or else I'm libel to still try and rearrange that man's face when he comes out" He admitted a bit blandly before moving to stand. Taking one last drag of the cigarette he went flicking it before looking back to the blonde. "You been to Dukes? Laid back enough, close enough I can make my friend come find me whenever he's done here" He added with a bit of a chuckle. Yeah , even if he didn't pick up the other would probably know where to look.
"Good choice on both counts," Sebastian answered. "When Nate's done being a pain in the ass he can come find me, too." Switching to French, he added, "Provincial little fuck." He and Nate were both American, but Sebastian had French ancestry and felt much less like a fish out of water than Nathaniel clearly acted.
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