2009-05-16: Repeat Customer

Players:

Hilary_icon.jpg Nik_icon.jpg

Summary: The British guy returns to the bar. Nik gets flirty. Poor Nik.

Date: May 16, 2009

Log Title

Rating: Log Rating.


NYC - Nowhere

Nowhere is a community bar, with a slightly old world feel. All of the tables and chairs are made of wood, though there are some couches in a slightly offset room with green fabric. The music varies, depending upon the Owner's music taste for the day. Beer and Liquor are both served, but are both carded for as well.

At the front of the bar, right as one walks in,is a large sign. "Superhuman friendly establishment. There will be no tolerance for disparaging remarks based on one's genetic status. Any fights will not be tolerated within the bar. The management holds no responsibility for where combatants are teleported."


Another morning, another day in the bar. Of course, this time of day doesn't see much use, as usual. Nik is behind the bar, wearing just a pair of pants and a leather vest. Today, he's feeling a little flashier than usual. Leaning back against the liquor-wall, he sighs a bit. "I hate slow mornings." He mutters under his breath.

In answer to Nik's dissatisfaction with the pace of the morning, his newest early customer shows up once more. And perhaps Nik shouldn't wonder that the man /still/ appears to be trailing some black slime. "Good morning," Hilary says, just cheery enough since he's had a cigarette right outside and now he's expecting some quality liquor. He spends a moment taking in Nik's getup. "Someone steal your shirt?"

This IS mutant town. Nik is used to strangeness. Thus, he's gotten a better solvent solution to attempt a cleanup… which he does immediately through portals. Yay for not having to move to do things. "Morning." He says with a bright, lopsided smile. "Nah. I'm a bartender sometimes. I get tips based on a lot of things. And showing off my body helps with some of them. Especially the tourists that wanna come in and feel the cold chest." He laughs.

Hilary lifts both brows high. "I don't know whether you're joking," he says, "But I hope you're not. I think more bars could use such attractions. And I hope you charge the doughy rubberneckers for your trouble." He scans the bottles behind the bar. "What do you recommend for this hour?"

"I'm not. We get a lot of tourist trade, wanting to see real live mutants. Of course, one of my other bartenders isn't a mutant, but they don't know any better. They see him in his rock form and just oooh and ah and want to feel him all over." Nik laughs, shaking his head. "Depends. Do you like stout flavors, sweet flavors, or what? You've only been here once. I haven't learned your tastes yet. Though, the most popular morning drink IS still a mimosa."

Hilary seems quite amused at Nik's description of the tourists, even if he's quiet about it. The discussion of his drink selection brings a tilted smile to his face. He replies, "I'm usually not so fruity. Although I /do/ make exceptions… It /would/ make me feel a bit less like an alcoholic. It's hardly even drinking, is it? Yes, all right, bring me one of those, at least to start."

"Fortunately, a mimosa's not all THAT fruity." Nik laughs. Just orange juice. Not as bad as a daquiri or a sex on the beach, really. Taking a fluted glass, he dumps a few ice cubes in it while he reaches through a pair of portals for some orange juice and champagne. He mixes the two in a different glass, over ice, and stirs. Dumping the ice out of the flute, he transfers the liquid over and offers it to the man. "Here ya go, handsome."

"No, not as bad as some, but I usually eschew fruit beverages altogether. They might be beneficial to one's health." He accepts the drink with a look of faint amusement. "Thank you," he responds. "Oh, and again, my apologies about the mess."

"It's not that bad. It's much better than when the Flaming Foot comes in here. I have to lay down thick sheets of concrete to stop him from scorching my floors. Aye… it's hell." Nik shakes his head with a chuckle. "Eh, Health isn't that big of an issue for me. I can eat anything. Most of my physical nourishment comes from another dimension."

"Well, lucky for you," Hilary says dryly, sipping at the mimosa. It meets or exceeds his standards, apparently. "Flaming Foot? Yes, I think I've seen him on television in a commercial for some sort of medicated spray…"

Nik can't help but laugh. "If it weren't for the fact that I don't like fire, I'd say that to him. But…I try to avoid him. I let the other bartenders deal with him." Nik grins broadly, returning that lopsided smile he likes to use. "So, you must be an all-nighter. Coming in in the mornings to drink."

Hilary smiles, sipping again before I answer. "Well, sometimes I come in before bed, and sometimes I come in before work. I keep odd hours." He looks Nik over thoughtfully, thinking back to the day before. "You're cold," he recalls. "So the fire bothers you?"

"Nah, I just don't like fire. I can deal with it." Nik explains. Truthful or not? He's not saying. "It's like how some people don't like spiders, but aren't deathly afraid of them." He shrugs a bit. "Ah, drinkin' before work. Now there's something -I- can get behind." He laughs. He is usually sipping on something AT work, anyway.

"Hm," Hilary answers, letting the cold matter drop. "Yes, to be honest, it's not always an advantage to show up sober. Of course there are certain times when I have to, but I certainly /prefer/ not to."

"Sobriety is overrated." Nik says with a firm nod as he considers things outright. "So, you're not a teacher… what DO you do?" He asks, tilting his head.

"Oh," Hilary says, as if surprised he hadn't told Nik, "I'm a theatrical director. And yes, I think it's /highly/ overrated. You're lucky, working for yourself and drinking your fill."

"Well, I only sip at work. That, and I have to maintain enough sobriety to balance the books every night. I usually sleep through midday, depending on what I'm in the mood for." Nik shrugs a bit as he looks over the theatrical director with a chuckle. "Before my mutation, I did a little bit of school-acting. Of course, that doesn't compare to the real thing."

"I don't know," Hilary argues lightly, "It's certainly a start at any rate. Did you give it up when you mutated?" Hilary often seems a bit distant during conversation, but at the moment he's quite engaged.

There's a nod from Nik. "It's somewhat hard to get into a play when you can't do anything like… change your hair color… cover your eyes. When you're an obvious mutant and can't change that fact." He thinks things over. "Even in the Big Easy, people don't care for some obvious mutants. Me, I got away with it, because I was an attraction on Bourbon Street. It brought in some folks. Especially when I worked in the gay bars."

Hilary sips his drink and smiles. "Really? Was it an especially big draw to the gay crowd?" he wonders. "Just how long /have/ people been paying to touch that cold chest of yours?" Another sip serves as a segue for his next remark. "I've often thought there ought to be a mutant theater."

"Of course it was. Gay men, as a whole, are freaks, they like things different. I can say it. I like it." He laughs a bit. "I'm going to leave it at more than ten years, but I was an adult." Nik says with a grin. "But I don't charge some people." He laughs softly, rubbing a finger over his nose. "There should be. I mean, sure there are lots of non-obvious mutants, or those that aren't completely obvious… but then those of us like myself…"

Hilary just smiles at the first part of Nik's remarks, briefly hiding the smile with the glass. However, the last of it makes Hilary look thoughtful. "If you had a group, I would direct you," he says. "Free of charge. I've been in the theatre 20 years and I've never seen anything like it. It would be a worthwhile experiment."

"The problem would be finding people who want to go public instead of hiding int he background, and then finding people that can do the roles." Nik says with a shrug. "If we got a location around here, I'll bet we could put up signs for auditions around Mutant Town… huh." He's actually considering this. A portal appears below his feet and he falls into it, landing in a seated position ON the bar, next to where Hil is.

Hilary pulls back a little, startled by the move, but then he settles, looking up at Nik. "Well, hello," he greets, and then gets back to business. "It wouldn't have to be so public, at least at first. It could start out underground and then if people felt comfortable, it could become public. All we'd need would be an empty space. And time." He finishes his drink.

"Anything different you want this time?" Nik asks, noticing the drink as he considers things. "Possibly. But, I pretty much only know my regulars. I've been here for just a few months and have been working most of that time."

"Another of the same," Hilary decides. "I can't get too drunk. I have a meeting with the technical director and he'll already be annoyed with my tracking 'paint' over everything." Hilary frowns thoughtfully. "Well. I don't really know anyone in /this/ part of town, but it's an idea, anyway."

"I wish I could help with that, but there's not really much -I- can do about that." Nik makes a nod to the floor. "I'm only really any good for helping people relax." He leaves it at that with agrin. He reaches through a portal for things, letting it come to him as he mixes a new drink.

"I wouldn't downplay that ability too much," Hilary replies. "Most people only serve to make others more tense. I'll think about it. I'm generally not the world's best at organizing, but it /is/ an interesting thought."

"Alright." Nik nods with a grin as the normal daytime bartender makes his way in and moves behind the counter. "Oh thank god." He says with a chuckle, grinning over at Hil. "Off duty. I'm better just being management." He's good, but he prefers to be behind the scenes here.

"You know, it's a relief to talk to an adult," Hilary says. "Everyone in the bar scene these days looks about sixteen years old to me. I suppose I may just be getting old." He lifts his brows at Nik. "Not leaving, though, are you?"

"Not if you want the company." Nik waggles his blue brows with a chuckle. "Well, we DO card here, but I'm sure some get through from time to time. Especially amongst the foreign who are used to drinking at young ages in their homes." He says with a soft nod.

"I do," Hilary answers, looking up at Nik for a moment before he starts paying attention to that drink. "I suppose I'm lucky I look old enough not to be carded. I only have identification on me about half the time." He doesn't seem entirely happy to be to old to be mistaken for twenty any longer.

"It's not such a bad thing, handsome. At our ages, we're more like the colloquial fine wine. We only get better." Nik says with a firm nod as he grins at Hil, remaining seated. "These kids don't know what they have or what they're missing when they complain about getting older. I relish it."

"Do you?" Hilary wonders, as if this were a quite novel viewpoint and possibly insane, though intriguing. "I used to be /quite/ good-looking," he mildly laments.

"I don't know what you're talking about. You ARE quite good looking." Nik says with a roll of his eyes. "You shouldn't be wary of getting older. IT's natural and normal. Embrace it. Though, I WILL admit, I'm getting to that age where my paternal desires are stepping in, but hey, I'll go without."

Hilary lifts a brow at Nik. Maybe he likes the flattery, but he at least appears somewhat skeptical. And on the subject of paternal instinct, he looks rather pained. "Oh, /no/. Not /really/?"

"Oh, I don't need kids of my own. I do have a few barbacks that are minors. That satisfies me." Nik laughs softly, shaking his head. "Don't worry. I wouldn't burden someone I date with a kid. Some women like a man with a child, some don't… and the same can be said for men."

Hilary sips his champagne again. "I just can't imagine /volunteering/ for such a duty as /child-rearing/," Hilary reponds. "But yes, one can always start teaching or mentoring if child-fever kicks in."

Laughing, Nik nods. "Some people like it. SOme are more geared towards it than others of us." He slides down the bar to land in the seat next to Hil, instead of on the bar.

"So who aren't you burdening with a child at the moment?" Hilary inquires, continuing to drink.

"Just myself." Nik says with a shrug. "Considering my body temperature makes it hard for things, unless someone has a cold fetish… I'm single. As I have been since before my mutation kicked in."

Hilary clicks his tongue thoughtfully. "Ah. I see," he answers. "Just how cold /are/ you?" he sips once more at the mimosa, then puts it down to look at Nik, as if he could determine this visually.

"If I SIT in water for a while, it'll freeze around me, but it's not immediate. So, I'm just a little above freezing." Nik admits with a sigh. "Gotta love it. Natural body temperatures and all. Though, I can deal with warmth."

Hilary lifts his brows. "Huh," he responds. "That's awfully cold. Something like going to bed with an attractive glacier," he sums up. "Do you like warmth, or only 'deal' with it?"

"It depends. I like it to an extent. I like feeling some warmth. I enjoy warm baths, warm arms… warm showers. But, heat I just deal with." Nik grins, shrugging a bit. "It's my lot in life. IT's not a lot, but it's my life."

Hilary almost laughs at the cutesy turn of phrase. At any rate he smiles and snorts air through his nose. "Yes, I suppose a lot of people have troublesome mutations. My next-door-neighbor, for example, is chronically single due to the fact that she…is green. I myself am occasionally poisonous."

"There's a cop in town that's got green hair, now. NAturally green hair. The city's finally putting mutants on their payroll apparently." Nik offers, suddenly remembering that. "Poison. Fun. Hmmm… is there any cure to your poison? Any antidote?" Nik says, unable to resist a quick flirt and an eyebrow waggle.

Hilary laughs quietly. "Not necessarily for the person infected," he says, "But there are a few things I can do to not /be/ poisonous, if I don't let it get too far. As I say, it's not…constant, but I wouldn't touch what you cleaned off the floor. If I were you, that is."

"That's the good thing about gloves and teleportals." Nik says with a grin. He ponders saving some of the things he's cleaned for future use in that case. He grins, "Well, if there's anything you can do to prevent some of the poison, or anything I can do to… help…" He grins. "Sorry, I can't help it. I'm a voracious flirt."

Hilary sips his drink. "You ought to save your apologies for when someone objects," Hilary advises. He lifts a brow. "How much do you charge the tourists?"

"Oh, they never know it. I tack it onto their drinks." Nik laughs. "IT's a tourism fee." He snorts. Yeah, that's technically not legal. But, who's going to tell anyone? It's like his liquor budget. It's a LOT lower than it should be. "But you're no tourist, are you?"

"Well, if I am one, I forgot to go home a long time ago," Hilary responds, turning slightly on his stool.

"Then there's no charge. Unless you want me to be a body-whore." Nik says with a laugh, leaning back against the bar, teasingly, and letting his vest fall back.

Hilary lifts a brow. It's one of his favorite expressions, evidently. Never one to rush into things, he reaches out to pinch the material of the vest gingerly between finger and thumb and pull it aside slightly. This is repeated on the other side despite the fact that the vest isn't much in the way at all. Hilary just won't be rushed.

Most of the places that would be pink have a slight blue cast to them on Nik's body. "You're more than welcome, handsome." He says, leaving it at that. Instead, he just watches Hil enjoy himself for now. The bartender shakes his head and gives a slight laugh as he moves back to cleaning.

Hilary does not look at the bartender, whether because he doesn't care or because he won't acknowledge being embarrassed. He finally lifts a hand to put it flat in the middle of Nik's chest. It's an odd thing, getting to cop a feel with no strings in a bar. The owner, no less.

Though, where Hilary touches, the skin glows a soft blue underneath and becomes almost as hard as a rock. Energylines seem to crackle beneath the skin. Nik gives a soft purr of pleasure. The temperature remains fairly constant, though. Just a little above freezing as he's active.

Hilary jumps a little at the change, pulling his hand back slightly. He hadn't expected that. He blinks once or twice but, not about to be accused of being easily startled, he moves his hand slightly and puts it down a bit to the left of where he had it a moment ago.

Anywhere Hil's hand goes, the same effect happens. It's just a part of Nik's powers. "Sorry. I forgot to warn you." He says with a soft smile. He's not reaching out yet, because he doesn't know if that's acceptable. He's a hedonist though. He doesn't mind being touched.

Hilary glances up when Nik speaks. "That's so interesting," he says. "Is it like armor? What does it feel like?" He tries moving his hand, now, from one side of the chest to the other, watching the skin change under his hand.

"Energy. I channel energy from another dimension. It flows through my body. When someone touches me, it makes me feel strong. Powerful. Like something's making my body harder and tougher." Nik whispers as he leans down a bit to press a hand over the one on his own skin with a grin before he moves it away.

Hilary seems impressed by that explanation. "Well," is his reply, pressing harder when Nik puts a hand over his. And then he looks up to ask, only half-jokingly, "It's not going to freeze to you like to a block of ice, is it?"

"No. You generate heat. I generate cold. We balance out." Nik explains with a grin. "And it's my entire body." He offers, with a waggle of his eyebrows. Hey, he's enjoying the fun of it.

"Doesn't balance out with an ice cube," Hilary quietly grouses. He moves his hand down slightly, but complains, "My hand's getting cold." He glances up at Nik. "You've been single all that long?"

"More than a decade." Nik nods slightly. "That's the problem with my powers. Unless I find someone who can deal with it…" HE offers a shrug, "That's just the way of life." He runs his hands through his hair. "I make do."

Hilary takes his hand off, flexing his fingers to dispell the stiffness of cold. "Hm," is all he really answers. But he looks thoughtful.

There's alight nod from Nik. "Yeah. But thanks." He says. After all, it did feel good to him and make him feel better.

"You ought to bag an Eskimo," Hilary jokes. "I doubt they'd even notice."

"They aren't that attractive in general." Nik says with a bit of a wrinkle to his nose. "Just not my type."

Hilary clicks his tongue. "Pity," he chides, finishing off his drink. "I'll bet you'd liven up the frozen north."

"I know. But there wouldn't be a lot of people there. I like to be surrounded by humanity." Nik grins, blushing… or rather… BLUEshing on his cheeks a little.

Hilary gives a low sort of chuckle. "Like that, do you? Well, I suppose you can't help it if you worked in the New Orleans clubs."

"Exactly. Still don't know how I teleported there when I got kicked out, but hey." Nik grins. "So, where exactly are you from?" He changes the subject a little… subtley? Nah. Not at all.

Hilary smiles and then has a quick drink, nearing the bottom of the glass. "London," he answers, elaborating no further right away.

Without thinking about it, Nik fixes another drink and places it on the bar next to Hil. He's just doing it to be doing it right now. "Nice. NEver been there. I should go sometime, so I have another spot to visit when I want."

"I haven't been there in a few years," Hilary says, "But it was an interesting place." He accepts the new drink. "You have to travel someplace before you can…use that, ah…portal?"

"Something like that. I haven't quite figured it out. But I know that's definitely true. There may be more to it." Nik says with a shrug. "But I've been able to go anywhere I've ever been before, so, I'm assuming that's all it is."

Hilary makes a face that shows that's quite reasonable. Respectable, too. "What would you do if you could go to London right now?" he wonders, trying to keep a curious smile off his face.

"Hmm. I haven't thought about it. It'd be later there. I'd probably go for food, admittedly. I love to try new things. I actually want to go to Japan first, for true sushi." Nik snickers, "But I'd accept there, too. I'd want to go all over to try various things. I love taste. Taste of drinks, taste of food, taste in general."

"Lord, everyone I speak to wants to go to Japan," Hilary complains. "Americans usually deride English food. But my advice: if you go to London, try the gin." He looks at his watch. Which makes him suddenly growl, "Bloody hell. I'm late. Damn it." he drinks down that third drink right away and then pulls out his wallet. "How much?"

Nik states the number and leans in to plop a teasing kiss on the man's cheek with a laugh. "Only for the food. NOT for the culture. I prefer the culture of my own background. Native American and Irish." He laughs.

Hilary is surprised by that, too. Everyone's taking such liberties with him these days! He counts out a few bills to do for his drinks and a big tip for the floor-cleaning. "Right. I'm off. Sorry about the mess." He hurries out.

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