Page 26 of Embriagado

“Why the rush?” Ace snarled.

I glanced at his hand that was placed on my brother’s shoulder, my jaw going rigid before I moved over there, not giving a shit about the whispering around the table. Pushing Ace’s hand away, I then clenched Nacio’s shirt in my fist and forced him up. The plastic chair he sat on fell back to the sound of Ace clicking his tongue.

“You should have told me you were out sooner,” he said, reaching for a new bottle of booze. “If I knew, I’d’ve invited you to hang, yeah?”

Ignoring him, I nudged Nacio to move.

“Let’s go⁠—”

“Not so fast,” Ace said as he got up and stretched his lanky body.

My eyes locked with his, pure rage steaming through my veins.

“The fuck you want, Ace?”

He flashed me a big smile that showed off his rotten teeth.

Everyone knows he’s an addict.

“Is that the way you treat your friend?”

“You wanna get beat up again? Was one time not enough?” I challenged him, voice low.

He walked closer, pulling up his shirt to reveal the gun tucked in his pants before covering it again. “I’d be careful with my words if I were you.”

I bit my lip, trying hard not to bust his head open.

“So, Nacio, give me a call, yeah?” Ace winked in my brother’s direction. “I’ll hook you up with some easy gigs.”

My blood was just about to boil.

“Call him, and I’ll fucking kill you,” I hissed through gritted teeth, meaning every word.

Ace’s eyes widened before they zoomed in on me.

“Hey now, we’re all friends here, aren’t we?”

I didn’t bother to reply. Pushing Nacio, I forced him to move his stupid ass faster.

“The fuck’s your problem, Santi?” my brother whined the second we were out of that nasty place.

In return, I smacked the back of his head.

“You’re my fucking problem,” I barked while he rubbed the spot I hit him. “Now, keep on walking. I wanna get home and take a fucking shower.”

“Fuck you, Santi. You can’t tell me what to fuckin’ do.”

I stopped and turned to face him.

“What didja say to me?”

His jaw tensed. “I said, fuck you. I’m not a kid. I don’t need you babysittin’ me.”

“Oh, really?” Grabbing his jaw, I squeezed it tight. “’Cause you sure act like one.”

“You’re the one who told me to earn my own money!” he shouted as he tried to free himself. “F-fuck.”

I gripped him tighter until he winced, then pulled him close so we were an inch apart. “Sometimes I wonder if you’re that stupid or just pretending to be.” I shoved him away, and he stumbled back.