Quid Pro Quo

Just then, however, Nick's phone rang out.

Brrr~ Brrr~

Nick saw the caller, answered the call, and put the phone up to his ear. 

"Kurt?"

There was a brief silence before a voice came from the other end.

"Yo, Nick. What's good?"

Nick sighed. "Nothing much. Why did you call me?"

Kurt let out a short laugh due to Nick's straightforwardness and replied:

"Just some good news. A child's birthday party starts soon, but the clown they hired canceled for some reason. Can you fill in?"

Nick wouldn't say he had plans today, and getting some quick cash on the side was always a good thing; however, due to his higher intelligence, he picked up on something in Kurt's tone. So he answered, "I'm not sure."

Kurt sounded taken aback. "What? The pay this time is really good, 150 bucks an hour."

Nick sneered inwardly, having confirmed his suspicion. 'He needs me to do this particular gig.'

He shrugged. "But that party will be a max of what? Three hours? Kurt, these gigs won't solve my problems. Can't you offer something more?"

"Dammit, Nick. We can talk about that another day. This kid's birthday is very important. Didn't you call me yesterday for a gig? Now I've got you one."

Nick chuckled and sat on his bed.

"I don't know. Sounds like you need my help this time. Since we're friends, I'm willing to 'consider' your offer, so make it good."

"Come on, man. Just do me this favor. The pay is good; nothing bad about making easy cash, right?"

Nick's left brow perked up. 

"Easy? Why don't you paint your face and jump around like a fool in front of kids quarter your age instead?"

There was silence from the other side for a few seconds before Kurt finally sighed and asked, "Okay, how about I add 50 bucks for every hour? 

Nick's eyes widened slightly; he didn't expect his probing to bear such fruit, getting someone like Kurt to increase the pay from his own pocket.

'Seems like I am more needed than I initially thought…' He smiled and hummed in response, "Mmm…"

"Okay, fine. What do you want?" Kurt asked, sounding a bit fed up.

Nick knew this was the limit he could push Kurt. 

"I'll take the 50 bucks, and… you owe me one too." 

He expected Kurt to increase the pay, not throw the ball in his court. Hence, Nick had no idea what he wanted and just sought to call the favor in on another day.

Kurt simply let out a long, playful sigh. 

"Alright. You know, you don't have to be an arse every time. Weren't you the one who said friends should help each other out?"

Nick laughed. "Now I'm helping you, am I not?"

"Anyway, try not to be late."

"Yeah, yeah."

With that, the call ended and Kurt sent the address of the birthday party along with the start time of the event.

Nick took a few seconds to think and went to have his breakfast.

Sometime later, he was fully dressed in his clown getup.

'They will most likely serve me lunch there,' he thought with a smile. It was always good to cut costs wherever possible.

Nick left the apartment building and took the local commute bus to the nearest subway station.

Thirty minutes later, he arrived at Tom Street, Greensly, got off the bus, and scanned the environment.

In this middle-class neighborhood, the houses here were compact duplexes with a garage, a small porch, an open front yard, and short white fences demarcating the houses from each other.

Nick looked at his phone, taking note of the address Kurt sent him. Soon, he spotted a house just ahead with more vehicles parked in front and by the roadsides and went over.

Donning a clown costume, and sporting a painted whiteface, exaggerated red lips, a red ball on his nose, along with a bag of tricks, Nick walked to the door of the house and rang the bell at the side.

Gring~

Just a few seconds later, the door opened to a bespectacled, middle-aged, fair-skinned lady with short blonde hair. She wore a simple white long-sleeve blouse, and blue skinny jeans, and also had some makeup on.

"Good day, I'm Nick, the clown Kurt sent," Nick greeted with a calm smile.

"Hi, I'm Clarice," the lady said. "Please come in…" 

Nick followed her as instructed and entered the house. 

'I wonder though, is she just a normal customer? Knowing Kurt, it wouldn't be far-fetched to say something could be going on behind the scenes. For him to ask me for a favor on her behalf, hmm…' He lampooned.

On the left, there were rugged stairs leading up, and on the right, was the parlor. Four men were sitting on the furniture, chatting and drinking beer with the television displaying some sport.

Just as Nick entered, they erupted in a hearty laughter. 

"Crazy dude. He literally took himself hostage," Nick heard one of the men comment.

"That's Gordon, Frank, Greene, and Dave, my husband," Clarice introduced the four men by name.

'What the? She's married? Kurt, what did you get yourself into? My goodness…'

Nick greeted them, and they reciprocated the gesture. However, Dave glared at Nick for a few more seconds.

'I know that look. He must hate clowns.' Nick laughed in his heart.

Clarice closed the entrance door behind him and continued, "I'm extremely thankful you could make it. The clown we had booked called this morning to cancel due to health issues."

"That's sad. I'm glad I came…"

Nick and Clarice discussed his performance time and the payment, coming to an easy agreement.

Soon after, the party commenced, and Nick spotted the birthday celebrant, who stood among the other kids. 

The birthday boy, Oliver, had extra long blonde hair and a softened out squaric face, much similar to Kurt's, making Nick's breathing stop briefly.

'This resemblance is too uncanny!' he thought with an awkward smile. He felt his chest tinge on Dave's behalf. 'I never thought Kurt would be this way.'

…

By 2:45 p.m., the clown performance had drawn to an end, however, the party was still going to go on till past four or five.

"Thank you so much, you were amazing," Clarice complimented Nick before paying him and sending him off.

Nick boarded a local commuter bus once again, headed for the nearest subway station to get back to Orlande.

Neapolis provided a monthly pass fee of $300 to access all public transportation services provided by the government for 100 total free rides per month, including the subway and local commute buses. In such a way, working individuals wouldn't find it too hard or tasking to move around the city or get to work every day.

On the bus, Nick dialed Kurt's number to inform him that he was done with the job.

During the phone call, Kurt expressed his gratitude before Nick lowered the tone of his voice and shifted his mouth closer to the phone.

"And I want to ask you something, Kurt…"

"What?" Kurt sounded slightly apprehensive, noticing the conversation had taken a suspicious turn.

Nick spoke hushedly, "What's the deal with you and Mrs. Clarice? Dude, she's a married woman! And her son, Oliver, is a spitting image of you! I noticed she was important to you, but I didn't expect such a thing was going on behind—"

Just then, Kurt cut in, "What the fuck are you on about? She's my sister!"

Nick awkwardly ended the phone call after reminding Kurt about his 150 bucks. 

'So that's how it is. Why didn't he tell me that she was his sister beforehand?' he asked inwardly, sporting a sheepish smile.

Nick leaned back on his bus seat, thinking back to what one of the four men said about someone taking themself hostage.

"It really is a crazy thing to do," Nick muttered under his breath, watching the changing scenery running past the bus window.

Inspiration had struck.