The music's rhythm and beat reverberated into Russell's body. He jerked his arms, hands and head in seeming randomness to the favoured Eminem song. It was lie viewing a minor fit or convulsion to Jess and Dan who were watching it from the doorway leading into the dining room. Though the noise they had made coming downstairs wasn't overly loud, they were surprised that Russell had not registered their presence.

Dan saw the concern on Jess's face and placed a hand gently on her shoulder to stop her instinctive reaction to do to Russell and "help him". Dan had lived with Russell for three years, first out of guilt and pity, but now out of genuine friendship. He had grown up with Russell and had attended school with him. Even so, seeing Russell doing things like this never failed to unnerve him, irrespective of what he knew about his mate's stimming.

"Russ!", Dan called out gently, "Russ. Mate its Dan"
Russell scarcely registered the verbal intrusion. He continued stimming. Jess inhaled to call out. Again Dan motioned her not to. They stayed there quietly and motionless, both wanting desperately to turn away but finding themselves entranced by their fascination in watching him and unable to break free from their vigil.

The song stopped and Russell's stimming stopped just as abruptly. The spell was broken. Russell turned his head towards them. He had heard them after all. In turn they tried to look nonchalant and pretend that they were in no way taken aback any his display. They failed miserably and knew they failed miserably. They maintained their uncomfortable facade out of manners. That they also avoided eye contact was a useless endevour. Russell never sought out eye contact, it was too confronting for him.

"Hey guys", Russell said in his calm mono-toned voice, "What's happening?"

Dan happy to be reprieved from his discomfort announced, "Boy's are coming over for a meeting. You going to be sticking around?"

Jess quickly added she was going out shopping. This had been the arrangement for many years. She was aware her boyfriend, flatmate and "the boys" were the key members of a criminal gang which supported each of them well enough. She deliberately sought no more information on this aspect of their lives. It was easier for her to make-believe that her boyfriend was a legitimate businessman and the income he received was not born out of criminal activities. Whenever the boys had a meeting she would just leave for a few hours with "the girls" (Other girlfriends of the boys - who were in a similar position whenever a meeting was held). She unconvinced herself that the boys getting together was just like a bunch of mates getting together to play cards, watch the sports or whatever. These were of course lies that whilst she knew deep down weren't true, made life a little easier for her. So she kept telling herself them.

Dan noticed Russell seemed a little more nervous than normal and, as he was next to the fridge, offer to get him a drink.

"Can of bourbon and cola please" Russell said.

Dan took this as a particularly bad sign. It was only one o'clock in the afternoon. Russell was just stimming, which he had claim reduced stressed and now bourbon?

"Sure mate", Dan said in what he had hoped was a supportive and concerned voice. (Again he needn't have bothered Russell had virtually no chance at picking up on his tone of voice or any verbal nuances)

Dan grabbed two cans of bourbon, determined to have a drink with his mate after Jess had left and before the boys turned up to see if Russell might let him know what was wrong.

Distracted with this he absentmindedly tossed the can over to Russell. He realised his mistake the moment it left his hand. Time seemed to slow down. Russell put both of his arms out with his hands open. He moved them frantically trying to gage where the can was in space. He completely failed in his endevours to catch the can and it hit him in the face with no little force.

Russell didn't react in any way other than to look at the can roll across the floor, sporting a smile that suprisingly spoke volumes. It was a self-depreciating smile, a little sad.

Jess was over her shock a little quicker than Dan and went racing over to Russell, berating "Dan! Why did you do that for."

She looked into Russell's eyes with a serious and concern expression on her face, to see if he was alright. "Are you OK sweetie?"

Russell avoided her eye contact and sheepishly said "Its OK. I'm just useless at catching..."

"Shit your bleeding!" Jess cut him off

Russell put his hand to his nose and felt around his nostrils. Jess was astonished. She gently clasped his hand and directed it away from his nose.

"No sweetie. Down here on your lip. See can't you feel that?"

"Aren't you going shopping?", Russell asked.

Jess was angry. She stormed past Dan who was looking at Russell in sympathy. He knew Russell hated being fussed over, had a pain threshold that absolutely boggled him and wondered, with such social skills, how he had ever survived juvenile detention for the nine months he had gone away.

Jess was back very quickly with some tea tree oil and tissues.

"This is going to sting OK?" she stated angrily. His lip was split nastily and even though she was angry with him she was dreading seeing him squirm or cry out from the pain of tea tree oil on an uncovered wound. Even the toughest blokes would squirm. She tentatively dabbed it on. There was no reaction - none at all. It was not an act of being tough in front of a woman. It completely unnerved her.
"Are you...are you ok?" Her anger dissipated

"Yeah..." Russell dug some money out of a very fat wallet whilst she was ministering him and hand her a couple of hundred dollar bills "If you are shopping, here is some money for some earrings"

It was a clumsy attempt at an apology of which he had no idea what he was apologising for.
"Wha..oh thank you sweetie!" Jess gave him a big hug and kiss on the cheek. Both of which Russell, looking very embarrassed and uncomfortable tried to avoid. Guiltily she then looked over at Dan to see if it was OK. Dan smiled approvingly.

Dan thought it funny that any other man getting shown this type of affection by Jess would have caused no end of fury, little lone giving her money to buy jewelry, but it was different with Russell. He had never seen him with a girlfriend, he had a times wondered if he might be homosexual, but then he seemed to have no attraction to men either. He was sort of sex-less or asexual in Dan's estimation, in Jess's - harmless.

Jess walked over too Dan and gave him a quick kiss on the cheek and whispered quietly in Dan's ear "Is he going to be OK?"
Dan nodded and smiled at her reassuringly. He watched her make her way across the marbled floor of the hallway and out the wooden door.
He turned around to face his mate.
"Up for another bourbon mate?"
Russell walked to the fridge and grabbed three. Russell walked quietly to the backyard veranda without looking back. Dan shrugged and walked behind his mate. Russell left the glass sliding door open for Dan. Russell placed the can in the centre of the table and put two of the four chairs of the outdoor setting next to each other. He pulled the empty ashtray from the middle of the table away from the bourbons, next to himself and without acknowledging Dan coming through or closing the door proceeded to roll himself a cigarette.

Dan sat alongside Russell.
"Can you roll one for me too?"
Nothing was spoke on the obvious subject that Dan had given up two years prior or that it was an occassional indulgence which happened to coincided only with similar "bonding sessions".
Russell expertly rolled two cigarettes and lit them both. After a long drag Dan waited for Russell to take a long guzzle of his bourbon and cola before asking.
"What the fuck is up big fella?"
Russell didn't look beside him towards his friend but seemed relaxed and answered straight away.
"Bill is fucking us all. I am going to have to bring it up and everyone is going to go weird about it."
Dan shifted in his seat uncomfortably. Bill was one of the seven key personnell. He was one of "the boys" and this wouldn't go down at all well being "put out there" in a meeting.
"Come on Russ! You don't need to do that. It's alright he has just been a bit down lately...profit-wise. We aren't doing that badly we can cover things. Don't start shit. Remember last time you bought up personal stuff"
"Yes I can", Russell replied.
The three words said in the same mono-toned manner made Dan think that Russell had thought it through at legnth and was reluctantly, but with much forethought going to mention it any way.

Dan remembered early on in their "incorporation", at one of the first meetings Chris had asked, in his arrogance and detriiment whether Russell was retarded. Russell had surged across the table in a fury Dan had never seen the like of. Though Chris was taller and heavier than Russell he had no answer to the beating and domination that Russell gave him. Russell landed on top of Chris and in pinning Chris smashed his fists randomly and repeatedly into Chris in a display of brutish rage rather than technique. It was this that both saved Chris from serious damage and yet scare hell out of Chris at the same time.
No-one ever called Russell retarded after that, around Russell at least,and Chris though he would very pointedly belittle Russell it was only ever behind his back.