Odd Man Out
"I'll have a glass of wine, please." Ezra Standish turned away from the bar with a smile of thanks for Inez. Out of habit, he began making his way towards the corner table. The one he and the rest of the ATF team considered "theirs". As he got closer, he realized to his dismay, that it was already occupied.
"Mr. Tanner. I thought you had plans with our fearless leader this evening." Ezra strove for a cool, amused tone.
"I do. Chris is runnin' a bit late is all. What happened to your "date of surpassin' charm and beauty in elegant surroundings that we barbaric louts would completely fail to appreciate"? The sharpshooter effortlessly quoted Ezra's own words back to him.
The southern agent felt the color rise in his cheeks. Hoping the dim light would hide the telltale sign, he forced a smile onto his face. "Yes. Well, it seems that even dates of surpassing charm and beauty are not immune to the flu that's been going around." He hoped to God the other man didn't ask him what flu. Because everything he had said so far was a complete and utter fabrication. He had never had a date for this evening. He didn't have any plans for the whole weekend, as a matter of fact. He just hadn't wanted the rest of the team to know that. Especially since they had all been full of talk about their plans. None of which included him. He didn't want them knowing how little else he had outside of work. How he was always the odd man out, no matter where he was. With them. With Maude. Hell, even the last woman he really had dated put her damn dog before him.
"Why don't ya have a seat, Ez. Unless ya got somewhere else to be?" Vin smiled up at the southern agent, blue eyes twinkling. Ezra had the uneasy feeling that the other man was aware of his out and out lies. But he sat down as bidden. Vin spoke the truth, after all. He had nowhere else to be. No one else to be with.
Both men were silent for a few minutes. Vin had never been the type to chatter or make small talk. It was one of the things Ezra most admired about the man. He didn't feel the need for a smokescreen, like Ezra did. Didn't need an endless repertoire of clever remarks and amusing anecdotes, all designed to keep people from recognizing how very alone he felt. How very alone he was. The sharpshooter simply presented himself to the world with no fanfare or fuss. Take it or leave it. And for the most part, they took it. Like ducks take to water, as Buck would have said. Ezra wondered how he could have reached the ripe old age of thirty-two, have a rolodex full of phone numbers, work closely with a group of six other men in an office building which housed hundreds of employees, and still have no one to call on Friday night.
"So, are you and Mr. Larabee still determined to take in a showing of the latest in movie mayhem?" Ezra finally asked. The silence at the table had begun to seem fraught with meaning. As if Vin were just waiting for Ezra to confess to being a pathetic misfit who felt obligated to lie about his off duty plans so that his coworkers wouldn't know what a pathetic misfit they actually had in their midst.
"They're showing the original Terminator movie at the old theater downtown. We're goin' to see that." Vin's smile held more than a trace of amusement. The whole office knew how much Chris Larabee hated that movie. Ezra felt a stab of envy. It must be nice to have someone willing to do something they hate, just for you. The southern agent knew that his fellow agents would lay down their lives in the line of duty for him, if necessary. But that was different. It was work. Not personal.
"That sounds…nice." It wasn't what Ezra had meant to say. And certainly he hadn't meant to allow that slightly wistful tone to creep into his voice. He tried to cover his momentary lapse with a flippant remark.
"And what will be the price of admission? Your firstborn? Or, considering how Mr. Larabee feels about that particular movie, perhaps a promise to do all his paperwork from now until eternity?" Ezra looked away quickly when he saw those keen blue eyes staring at him thoughtfully.
"Naw. Just made me promise that he could pick the next one." The sharpshooter leaned back in his chair. "What are your plans for the rest of the weekend?" he asked casually.
Ezra thought quickly. "I have tickets to the new art exhibit opening at the museum. I shall most likely attend that."
"You takin' anyone?" Vin raised his glass to take a drink, eyeing his companion over the rim, as he waited for an answer.
"No." Ezra sighed, suddenly not feeling up to any more deceptions. His life had been built on them. And look where it had gotten him.
"Mind if I tag along, then? I aint doin' nothin' tomorrow." Vin asked, unaware that Ezra had overheard him making plans with Buck and JD to go to the antique car show they were having at the convention center.
The southern agent opened his mouth to refuse Vin's offer then snapped it shut again when he looked at the other man's face. Understanding. Sympathy. Friendship. They were all there on display. Only he had never noticed them before. Ezra wondered if maybe these things had been there all along. His for the taking. If he wanted them. And he'd be a fool not to. Pride be damned. He was tired of being the odd man out. If Vin was willing to go to all this trouble for him, the least Ezra could do would be to meet him halfway.
"No indeed, Mr. Tanner. Vin. I do not mind in the least if you tag along. In fact, I shall look forward to it."
"Me too, Ezra. Me too."
END