melodiesoflife | Who Needs Roses When We Have Happy Hour

Who: Saori Nakagawa and anyone else [open]
Where: Aqures Ixen - The Space Saloon
When: February 14, 2017
Summary: Thankfully there is no Date Auction this year, but it wouldn't be right to dismiss Valentine's Day outright. So why not an All Day Happy Hour? If anyone would like to use the Space Saloon as the backdrop for their date, feel free to use this log.
Warnings: None for now.

It's no surprise Valentine's Day can be rather polarizing for a holiday. However, both Saori and her moogle for once agreed they couldn't outright ignore it. After all, if Barkeep was still around, he would've gone all out. Rather than have the entire place over saturated with hearts and other decorations, she decided to keep it minimal and focused more on the menu.

For the past week, Brigid managed to tack on fliers for the Saloon all over Aqures Ixen. "All Day Valentine's Day Special!" was boldly written. It also mentioned a special menu along with reduced prices across the menu including the drinks.

As patrons entered, there were several red and pink streamers hanging from the ceiling. Saori, dressed in a traditional bartender's clothes, could be seen manning the bar. Despite the constant flow of orders, she handles them all with ease only to take a break to make sure the kitchen staff was alright. Customers might see Brigid writing in a book of some sort with much fervor either up on the highest shelf of the back bar or on the rafters. Let's just hope that bottle of ink she has doesn't fall anytime soon.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Jade was very much aware of the quiet sound of sweeping in the corner. He wasn't about to let that bother him. So Anise wanted to spy on them? Let her... if she could stomach it.

"Must you tease me so? I'm very shy about these things, you know.♥" He returned Rukia's sly smile with one of his own and, in contrast to his words, lightly touched her back in what was gradually becoming an easy gesture. It wasn't just for show, either. Although it still surprised him, Jade found himself rather pleased to have her attention all to himself and felt compelled to maintain this state of affairs.

Knowing full well he was being watched, he moved his hand from her back to play with her hair almost absentmindedly while they were being served. Normally he wouldn't go this far in public, but if a certain someone was going to watch, she'd better be prepared to see things get disgustingly sweet.

Anise hadn't been sure what to prepare for, but whatever it was, she definitely hadn't prepared enough. She could have counted the number of times she'd seen Jade display earnest emotion on one hand, and even in those cases, it had been through sarcasm. This level of cavity-inducing sweetness is far from anything she'd expected from Jade on a date. And while Rukia was a softer person, this wasn't something she'd expected from her either.

The entire thing was overwhelming, and she couldn't help but snort out a laugh in the background. Too late, she realized her mistake, and darted behind a nearby table, taking the occasional glance at the bar to see if they'd noticed her.

"'Shy' isn't quite the word I'd use to describe someone like you," Rukia chuckled, folding her hands on the counter while they waited to be served. "Besides, I'm aware that if I don't take the first shot, you will."

Just because they were dating didn't mean she was immune to his wicked sense of humor. That had become evident very quickly. Nonetheless, she enjoyed the games, as she was sure he did too.

Perhaps if there weren't so many people also in the bar, Rukia might have been more observant. Might have. But not only was there background noise competing for Rukia's attention, there was Jade's slender fingers toying with the ends of her black hair, making her scalp tingle, and goosebumps flare over her arms with each incidental brush against the nape of her neck.

She didn't move her head at all when she glanced sidelong at him, for she was shamefully enjoying the attention, but she was somewhat puzzled by his boldness in public. Another coy attempt to tease her? Or was he sincerely interested in behaving more affectionately?

Rukia cleared her throat politely against her fist, a touch of pink in her cheeks. Teasing or not, she had to admit that she liked this. "Ah...I was considering having it cut short."

"But of course. Someone has to keep you on your toes." For a dedicated soldier not to notice an obvious intruder... Dear, dear. He was going to have enough ammunition to last him for a week.

And speaking of intruders... Sloppy, Anise. Sloppy. That is not how you eavesdrop. Jade almost felt bad knowing how flustered this might make Rukia once she finally noticed.

Not quite bad enough to refrain from adding fuel to the fire, though.

"Hm..." Jade turned towards her more fully and brushed some of her hair back from where it framed her face, as though picturing what it would look like with a shorter cut. He had to bend down a bit, tilting his head, to get a good look. "Yes, I think I'd like to see that. Short hair would certainly suit you."

His red eyes warmed with mischievous -- though not insincere -- tenderness. "Of course, it's entirely your choice. You're always lovely to behold regardless."

His grin was an obvious clue that he knew exactly how thick he was laying it on, and that he was very much enjoying it.

"Oh, please."

Anise rolled her eyes. There was sweet, there was saccharine, and then there was this level of cavity inducing that Jade was putting on right now. Part of her felt that she was in a parallel world, as even as she was hearing them there was no way she could imagine the Jade she knew every saying something like this.

The other part of her was beginning to catch on. It had taken her longer than she'd admit, but everything about the way the Colonel was speaking was oozing with the same sincerity as "I'm crying on the inside, wracked with guilt."

This present a new dilemma, however. She was watching them, Jade knew she was watching them, but getting up would be admitting defeat. She wasn't ready to do that quite yet, so she continued to hide behind her table, taking the occasional glance over at Jade and Rukia and praying no one tried to set over here.

She was about to say that it would be more suitable for combat as well, as shorter hair meant it wouldn't get in her face so easily. It was a practical comment from a practical shinigami.

Jade being a flirtatious troll, however, made it more difficult to be practical. Her eyes were just a little bit bigger, and there was definitely a pink rush of heat in her cheeks. She really should have realized what he was doing, given that he'd never been particularly hung up on the appearance of others before.

And yet...

"Er...thank you." She blinked, and remembered to breathe. Then her brow furrowed. "But why do I get the sense that you're only saying that to tease me."

Her senses were completely off, as she'd soon realize. Thanks, Jade.

"Perhaps a little." Jade chuckled. "But it's not the only reason."

His hand moved to cradle the side of her face and suddenly came to a halt, fingers tensing ever so slightly. With the way his eyes locked intently on hers, for one fleeting moment it looked as though, just maybe, he was going to lean forward--

"It's also to draw out one nosy little girl who can't mind her own business." The moment passed as quickly as it had come, and now Jade was looking past Rukia, right in the direction of the guilty party. "Your stealth needs work, Anise."

Expecting to get smacked in 3, 2, 1...

A very loud thud echoed out from a distant corner of the room. Even if she'd known that he knew she was there, she hadn't expected to get called out so abruptly. Thankfully there wasn't anybody nearby, but the staff wasn't going to be happy when they were cleaning up tonight.

Defeated, she got up from under the table. Did she look apologetic? Not really. Did she look pouty? Definitely.

"Booooooo, that was really mean! You shouldn't tease Rukia like that." Maybe if she changed the subject, she could get away from the fact that she was actually the one at fault here.

Smacking was too good for Jade. He'd left Rukia still staring at the spot where his eyes had been locked with hers, and he'd only been doing it for the sake of trolling a teenager. She'd been red before. She was almost neon now.

Rukia's foot shot out, not for Jade, but for the barstool upon which he was perched with the full intention of knocking it over and taking her date out with it. Romance was dead.

"Oh, Anise, how lovely to see you!" Regardless of whether she toppled Jade or not, Rukia swiveled fully around to turn her back to him, all rainbows and sparkles as she laid a hand to her cheek and greeted Anise with all of the pleasant sweetness she could muster. "Would you care to join us for something to eat?" They could make Jade foot the bill.

She really wanted that kiss too...

Alas, Jade stood up and leaned casually against the bar in one smooth movement as though he had meant to do so from the start. It might have been smarter to take the fall and at least allow her the satisfaction of revenge, but that wouldn't be fun.

Uh oh. She was mad.

Speaking up probably wasn't wise right now, so he settled for leveling a look that said 'look at what you've done' at Anise. Because this was clearly all her fault.

Who Needs Roses When We Have Happy Hour

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