Ben understood the pain that Thanos felt when he sacrificed Gamora…

Sometimes you have to give up something you love for the greater good. For Thanos, it was bringing balance to the universe. For Benos, it was splooging on Lia’s face and/or chest area…

Whether soul stone or hole zone...Benos needed to attain it. His face almost turned purple in grief as he fought to hold back the tears…

With great pain adding sympathetic depth to his previously unscrupulous character profile…Benos handed another cigarette to the heartless guardian demanding the bloody toll.

Benos’ hazy eyes clouded his sight, making the DJ look like some sort of red-skulled demon… With clenched jaw, Benos wondered, ‘Why did he even make a cameo here?’

...

The DJ smelled the clove again, nodding with satisfaction…

For Ben, the worst part of it all…was that when he turned back to Lia, she was gone! She was talking to a girl on the other side of the smoking section, leaving him with this war criminal.

That’s when the DJ said, “Yooo, I saw that banana peel move…”

Ben put on his best poker face and remained silent. He was about to feign ignorance when the DJ followed up, “I liked it…That was pretty…slickkk…”

Ben blinked in succession. “It can’t be…A kindred spirit?”

“Yea. I’ve seen that fat pig Karla around the nightlife scene. Always acting like a diva. You did nice there…”

Ben nodded as his muscles relaxed. His impression of the DJ improved. Noone had ever shown him appreciation for his philanthropy as an agent of karmic retribution… It was difficult to meet someone with a proper sense of justice in this crapsack world...

Ben felt like he encountered a rare friend with similar tastes. He wanted to say, “Look buddy, I don’t make fun of girls for being fat…unless you do! Know what I mean?” ...Instead, he took the safe route. “Thanks. We’re of the same mind.”

“...Yea man. You’ve been doing good work out there, making it real easy for me to ‘set the mood’ with my mixes.”

Ben took a second look at the DJ, finding him much more relatable now. ‘I just met this guy, but he seems all right. Should I ask him to become sworn blood brothers?’

“...The name’s Theodore.”

‘What a proper name,’ Ben thought.

“But people around here know me as DJ SpinBalls…”

…

Ben gave him a side-glance. ‘Bruh, did you name yourself that just to set up this joke?’

Theodore held his hand out for a shake.

“I’m Ben, nice to meet you…” He shook his hand.

[Detected Hidden Saint. Known Mastery: DJing, Trolling, ???]

...

Ben should have been excited about discovering something new, but he was instead disgusted...not only by the guy’s masteries but also something else. Releasing the handshake, Ben glanced at his palm. It was covered with what he hoped was chocolate...

Theodore also glanced at his own palm. A moment later, he shrugged and raised his hands in a helpless pose. “My bad. Snickers…why wait right?”

…

Then, as the girl Lia was speaking with walked past them to go inside, Theo turned and walked in with her. He wiped his chocolate-covered palm on her back as he greeted, “Hey Sarah! Long time!”

…

Ben watched all this with his mouth hanging open. A few seconds later, he realized something and gnashed his teeth. ‘He didn’t even smoke the lucky cloves! He just took them with him! Maybe that bastard doesn’t even smoke!’

[Congratulations! You’ve unlocked the Achievement: Butt Buddies(rare) - Befriend a Hidden Saint]

[Distributing reward: PUA Points + 1000]

Ben didn’t care about the trolling title. Instead, he focused on the rank. ‘I got a rare for that?!?’ Rare was the highest category of achievement he’d received and he only earned a couple of them for doing insane things. ‘How rare are Hidden Saints?’ He also noticed something else; That was the first non-seduction related achievement he earned…

However, Ben didn’t spend too much time meditating on it because there was a more important situation afoot; he was alone with Lia now!

Besides for the two of them, the smoking section was empty. He glanced at Lia who seemed distracted, staring off into space with an annoyed expression. Ben strolled up to her. “Hey, you seem upset…”

She turned to him and responded with a slight slur. “Tch…I had a fight with my boyfriend.”

‘That must be why she’s drinking…’ Ben’s eyes gleamed. ‘If I go Little Finger, I may be able to give her my Big Finger…’

He put on a sympathetic expression. “I heard about his accident…”

Her eyebrows rose in response. “How’d you know?”

“I’m the one who summoned truck-ku—I mean, I was there when the truck hit him.”

Lia snorted. “So you must’ve seen him talking to other girls there…”

Despite it being his enemy, Ben didn’t confirm nor deny on account of article 37G of the Universal Bro Code: no snitching…

Yet, Ben could see she was upset so he tried to console her. “Don’t let him control your emotions. You should move on. You know, the best revenge…is revenge…”

She chuckled and bit her lip as she gazed at him.

“And I don’t mean revenge on the truck…”

She laughed even louder and slapped Ben’s chest in a playful manner. “Shut up…” Their heads weren’t too distant now. She looked at Ben’s lips…

‘That’s the signal. Turbo time...’ No longer hesitating, Ben went in for the kiss…