Kyle stepped up behind Phoenix and held out his open hand, the key resting in his palm in front of him.
Without turning around, Phoenix took the key and slipped it into his pocket.

Disappointed by the lack of reaction, Kyle moved around to stand in front of him.

“Thank you for letting me use your space.” His entire face was flushed red.

“Oh, you don’t have to thank me, it was my fau—”

“Kyle!” he interrupted, a little too eagerly. “My name is Kyle.”

“Uh… okay.” Phoenix hesitated for half a second. “Like I was saying, it was my fault. Have a good night.” He turned to leave, already taking a step away, when he felt a hand grab his arm.

“Wait!”

Phoenix immediately pulled his hand back as if he’d been burned.

“Do you need anything else?” he asked, putting more distance between them.

“Ah—sorry. I shouldn’t have touched you.” Kyle rubbed the back of his neck. “I just wanted to know if you’d like to grab a drink.”

“I appreciate it, but I’m still working.” Phoenix crossed his arms. “And you said you had someone waiting for you. And yes, I’d appreciate it if you didn’t touch me again without my consent. I know I did the same, but that’s basically my job — and even then, you knew you could push me away whenever you wanted.”

His tone was sharper than before. Ruder. He started to walk away.

“You owe me a favor!”

Phoenix stopped. Slowly, he turned back, clearly offended, waiting for Kyle to explain himself.

“You asked me to help you during your show so you wouldn’t get devoured. I helped. Now you owe me something in return.”

“I let you use my dressing room,” Phoenix shot back, irritation written all over his face.

“Because of a problem you caused,” Kyle replied timidly, barely meeting his eyes.

Phoenix sighed, dragging a hand down his face.

“Okay, but not now. My boss already has his eye on me, and I’m not about to get another warning on my birthday because of you.”

“Birthday?”

Phoenix froze — then quickly slapped a hand over Kyle’s mouth.

“Fuck. Don’t say anything or I’ll get fired on the spot.” Realizing what he was doing, that he was touching Kyle again, he immediately pulled away. “Sorry. I shouldn’t have done that.”

Kyle smiled. “You don’t need to worry. So… when can I cash in my favor?”

“Argh…” Phoenix groaned, clearly annoyed with himself. “In three hours I’m done working, and I’ll be allowed to enjoy the party. If you manage to find me, you get your favor.”
He turned and walked away — smiling.

Hmm… three hours?
All I have to do is convince Yanick to leave before then so I can be free to stay with him.

Challenge accepted.

For him.