Barroom Blitz [Sada/Shouhei]

It was a Saturday evening, near midnight.  The perfect time for people to congregate and drink at a bar.  Out in Little Tokyo, the bar known as “All Night Long” happened to be one of those places.  Coincidentally, it was also the bar that Shouhei Kagawa worked part time at.  Or perhaps not so coincidentally- because one of his coworkers at his other job, Haruhiko- had heard about Shouhei’s incredibly attractive boss, Shizuka Sakakibara, and wanted to see her.  After hearing about it nonstop after a shift at their host club, Shouhei reluctantly brought Haruhiko to his workplace; in exchange for a few drinks Haruhiko would get a chance to see her.

Once the deal was struck, Shouhei knew his coworker would inevitably strike out.  Armed with a nice beverage courtesy of Haruhiko, he hovered discreetly some feet away, pretending to mingle with other bar patrons this night.  Obviously his ear was trained for the juicy conversation he expected to hear between Haruhiko and Shizuka.

*Swish*

From the way that the door opened, rather abruptly, a silent figure in semicasual clothing would make his way over to the booth.  After getting himself comfortable,  Sada would light a cigarette and place his feet up in order to get himself comfortable. In a way, Sada looked like an average delinquent with a scowl on his face, everything about him at first glance seemed to make him perceived as attractive as he is unapproachable. However, one of the hostesses managed to summon the courage to approach Sada in order to ask him what he wanted.

"Excuse me sir...can I help you?"

Today was a bit of a pain for Sada and he wanted alcohol to calm the nerves.


"Beer is fine... "

It was short and sweet, Sada didn't really bother to say anything else to her as she scurried off. But even with his rather cold exterior, she still blushed at him. Such an appearance caught the eye of a few people, especially a jealous semi-drunk patron with a few of his friends.

"Some nerve! The beautiful yuriko chan gave you the time of day and that's the attitude you take, looks like all types of filth roll in these days!  Hahahaha!!!"

They all had a  bit of a unified laugh as they egged each other on, all while Sada smoked quietly with the cigarette in his mouth. But that was before he took the cigarette out and flicked it in the direction of the outspoken drunkard, with it falling into the cup he was drinking out of.

"You!!!!"

He got up rather dramatically as Sada looked him up and down.

"Oh, must have mistaken you for the ashtray. Wasted space like you makes for great entertainment. I'd say you aren't worth it, but I can change that. "

Before he could see or hear his boss’s hand slap across Haruhiko’s cheek, she ended the show abruptly once a commotion started across the bar.  Shizuka firmly rose from her seat, her ebony eyes piercing into Shouhei.  She didn’t even need to say a word and simply flicked her head in the direction of aggression.

Wordlessly and with authority she told him to “deal with it.”

Shouhei nodded, strode over to the source of trouble, and set his drink down.  Almost gliding between the two deviants, he happened to be set equidistant to both of them.

“...If you want entertainment, you’ve come to the right place!” the brightest and widest smile came from Shouhei as he practically sang to them in words of reverence.    “For at ‘All Night Long,’ the libations will quench your thirst, and the atmosphere is perfect for your leisure!  

“For you, good sir, may I offer you and your party a complimentary appetizer, on the house!”  Shouhei bowed before the drunkard humbly.  

“Mm… yeah… that asshole’s not worth my time anyway,” he mumbled before sitting back down with his friends.  Just as expected, Shouhei would diffuse violence for kindness and the best in customer service.  If not, well… there was always his fists.  He whirled on his feet to Sada, bowing to him as well.

“And for you, our newest esteemed guest, I shall be your server instead!  I assure you, our clientele and service are far more accommodating than this!  Stay awhile and let me show you!”

It was not telegraphed, But Sada was ready for a fight at any time, the only thing he was waiting for was an aggressive indicator that can justify all of the things that he wanted to do to that man and his friends. He didn't really care about those who got in the way, but apparently, the hostess did. They moved rather quickly for the sake of squashing this, and the male in front of him was basically bending over backward for the sake of pleasing the guests.

But was it really genuine?

"Show me huh? Oi, this job of being a hostess is that precious to you? Why is that? So much that you are willing to protect people like that. "

Was it to save face?

" Fine, show me what makes you so special then."

“...Me?  I’m nothing but a humble server, for you, our magnanimous client, I am nothing special.  What is special is that you happened to choose our establishment, you graced us with your presence!   For at ‘All Night Long,’ the customer is king!” With a wide flourish and gesture Shouhei swept across the bar’s entirety, offering one final bow to the rest of the bar’s patrons.  In response a good number of them clapped and hooted in confirmation.  He knew those had to have been the generous regulars, and that they too wished no trouble tonight.

While beaming his brightest smile, Shouhei’s eyes narrowed slightly at this particularly rude customer as a subtle message.  He hoped they would take the hint.

“...In fact, I’ll get you a double of beer.  Please, have a seat and I shall be with you shortly~” With that said and another flourish, Shouhei was off to snag another drink.  He hoped his customer’s foul temperament would have toned down after the promise of a free drink.

"Quite the show... i'll play along...for now..."

Sada said this in a rather somber tone as he looked over to the drunkard he was arguing with, giving a bit of a disappointed glance. The images he had of that man was more or less being put through a table, But Sada was willing to contain himself for the sake of this dancing hostess that wanted to show to everyone how great of a host he was. But if he was willing to make such a spectacle out of it, maybe his declaration of being a great host was worth a damn?

"Hm.."

Sitting down back in his booth, Sada waited for his beer to arrive.

"Might as well join me for a drink if you can't speak freely around your friends. I'd rather the female if you're confusing professionalism with fakeness. "

Sada said that with a bit of a motion towards the owner of the bar that was with his associate. He could tell that she had some pull from the way she carried herself.

Shizuka looked at her newest customer for but a moment with an expressionless face, then slowly turned her head in the other direction.  Clearly she had both seen and heard him; her response should have told him more than enough however.  Somehow the weak flirtations of Haruhiko were a better use of her time.

Not giving Sada much time to give his own response, Shouhei swiftly returned and acknowledged Shizuka’s wordless command.  Two ice cold beers were served underneath paper coasters.   That same wide smile stretched across Shouhei’s face as he calmly asked Sada, “...Is something the matter, sir?  I’d hate to know if I’ve somehow displeased you.”

Sada met her gaze with his own, she obviously seemed like he wasn't worth the time. But to be quite frank, it was the other way around. People could have beauty, looks, and even a title to their name. But if they had no sort of talents, Sada didn't think that they had much to brag about. The idea was for her to bend over backward for the "small" chance of Sada changing his mindset about this place, but she obviously thought that Sada wasn't a big deal.

It was understandable, the only thing that Sada cared about was his own desires and the things he thought was important to him, nothing else.

"......"

Taking a sip of the beer, Sada would give a small huff as he looked at Shouhei.

"You can either sit down and have that other beer with me or get lost, the choice is yours. I'm sure you want to go mingle with your friend over there so..."

Sada basically fanned him away if he wasn't going to sit. Sada was either willing to share the space on his terms, or wanted the whole thing to himself.

So which was it?  Stay or go?  The mixed signals this customer was giving perplexed Shouhei.  The way he interpreted it was that while the customer had an air of rudeness, the offer meant that he was actually lonely and wanted some company.  Otherwise why go to a bar alone?  

Then again this surly guy could have also wanted to pick a fight, which he did within moments of stepping foot inside the establishment.  Either way Shouhei would oblige his customer’s wishes and serve a beaming grin while he did so.  He pushed one of the beers closer to himself as he sat across Sada in the booth.

“...Thank you for graciously giving me your beer.  Your attention, the customer’s company, is my main concern right now.  I'm Shouhei Kagawa.  And you are…?”

"Me? What's the name of this bill?"

Sada would take out a few 50's and flash it in the direction of Shouhei.

"As long as I have money to cover the bill, it seems like less of a waste of time for you right? I mean, that is the most precious thing for a business like this, revenue. So you don't care about my name, I'd rather you ask the real questions. "

Taking another sip of the beer, Sada gave some time for the man to think about what he said. He didn't necessarily care about how he came across.

" So let me get this straight, you are whoring yourself for tips to people who feel privileged enough to not to be nice to you or even show you common respect? Because judging by facial reactions, no motter how good they look, I think your skill is making that face around people you dislike. Right? That drunkard from earlier, probably would of kicked him out, literally...but i'm not you Shouhei,"

“...You’re absolutely correct!” Chirped Shouhei enthusiastically, as he still carried the same shit-eating grin that Sada accused him of having.  With that said he took several gulps of beer.  “Even if the customer happens to be the cruelest piece of shit to walk this planet- it’s still my job to serve them. So long as they’re paying, I’m still obligated to serve them.  While you and my boss share the same opinion on this subject… I don’t.  A friend of mine taught me long ago that serving people is selfless.  I’d like to be that type of server, if possible.”

Shouhei began cracking his knuckles in a horrid cacophony of snapping and popping.  While he still carried that same smile, it was easy to tell the hint of malice behind it now.

“...If you insist to keep insulting my way of working, remember you can be served in other ways.   I’m quite happy to oblige.”

"Serving people is selfless? That doesn't make any sense, it seems a bit foolish to not look out for yourself in the end. Was there anyone in the womb with you when you were being birthed? Seeing anyone else's point of view is hypothetical......it's not an actual science that you're capable of doing...."



"I only see the world through my eyes, nothing else matters. And in the world that I see through these eyes, I don't see myself losing to you either.  "


It was a warning, but Sada did have an air of confidence. It was in his eyes, no matter what... no matter what happened, his eyes said "You can't beat me", or "I refuse to be beaten". Those that were talentless, those that were powerless, they were incapable of gathering, holding on to, and protecting those things that were precious to them. It wasn't Sada's job to make people of that nature realize how inevitable that kind of struggle is without power, he could be no judge to them.

"That selfless nature of yours, I think I finally figured it out. That's your precious thing, isn't it? Holding on to that idea of being selfless. How much do you think it'll take you to abandon it, when the chips are down for even a minute or so?"

Those words and that look in his customer’s eyes told Shouhei everything he needed to know.  That smile of his didn’t fade, but changed itself as he folded his hands together.  Meanwhile the air grew thick with increasing tension between the two, a testament to their wills.

"I don't start fights.......

Sada said this as he then suddenly finished his beer with a few continuous gulps.

But I do finish them....I'd say feel free to throw the first swing. But then again, that reputation that you worked so hard to maintain with all of these people watching you, quite easy to watch you self destruct because of my words huh? Easy, very easy, very selfish if you don't care and do it anyway. But that's more of my fun... what about you? You want to abandon all of the consequences?"

“...I believe this is where you’re mistaken, my dear customer.”  The gravity between them lessened, yet Shouhei still bore his smile, as he paused to drink his beer in return.  “My reputation wouldn’t falter- in fact, it’d grow.  I wouldn’t be abandoning my beliefs either.  I told you there are other ways to serve customers.  The regulars here know that I will not hesitate to escort and serve unruly customers outside these premises… but that’s only if they insist on being unruly.  Thankfully you are not that type."