Intermission - Get together (part 4).

It couldn’t be helped. The sound was loud enough that it made everyone turn to look. Eric was mid-drink and almost choked, but he set his glass down and coughed twice before looking.

“I told you to stop looking at my girl.”

“And I told you you’re too fucking paranoid. I’m not looking.”

Two men, both sitting at different tables with their own partner, were standing up. One of them, a man in his 30s wearing a brown leather jacket, had apparently been the one to throw his glass at the older man in the dark blue suit, given that the shattered remains were at his feet.

“Oh, then you’re looking at me, huh? You want to suck my dick so badly!?” The man in the leather jacket pushed his chair away, starting his own date as he aggressively stepped forward. It was a little hard to tell in the dim lighting, but it seemed like his cheeks were a little red. Not just that, but he seemed to stumble for a moment there.

“Dear, don’t…”

“Let me settle this, honey,” the man in the suit told his date, smiling reassuringly at her before he reached into his pocket.

“Shit…!” Oliver cursed under his breath and moved immediately. Diana was about to step in, but he stopped her by placing his hand on her shoulder and stepped in himself.

“Gentlemen, please.”

“Stay the fuck out, kid,” the man in the jacket said aggressively. “None of your business.”

“Of course it’s my business,” Oliver said, stepping between the two men who were already within each other’s reach. “If you two decide to get violent here, we’ll be **** to call the police, and wouldn’t that be an awful way to spend a Friday night?”

“...”

“I’m sure both of you gentlemen have been looking forward to tonight, and we want nothing more than to provide you with the means to have a splendid time. The last thing we want is for your precious night to be ruined. If I may be so bold as to make a suggestion, why not move to the restaurant for now? The chef is serving a special dish of A5 wagyu beef tonight.”

“...Wagyu?” the man in the jacket muttered.

“Oh! Babe, let’s go! I’ve always wanted to try wagyu beef!” his date said, eyes shining brightly as if none of what was happening even mattered.

“...” The man in the jacket sighed, then groaned. “We’ll move.”

“Of course, sir,” Oliver bowed as the man and his date walked out of the bar, everyone’s eyes following them.

“...I didn’t know they were serving wagyu,” the other woman said, grimacing. “I want to have some, too, but I don’t want to be in the same room as that man…”

Oliver turned around to face the woman. “Ma’am, if you’d like, your dinner can be delivered to your room, where you’ll be able to spend your evening in peace. I can arrange that, if you’d like.”

The man in the suit and his date shared a look and a smile.

“Don’t worry,” the man said. “We’ll be retiring for the night and make the call from our room. Thank you, young man.”

“It’s no trouble, sir. Please, enjoy your night, and call us if there’s anything we can do for you.”

The couple also left and the atmosphere in the bar began to ease again. Eric hadn’t even noticed he was barely breathing and let out a sigh along with his classmates.

Oliver approached Diana and whispered something along the lines of “I’ll go give the kitchen a heads-up about that man. Can you clean that up?”

“Yes, go. And warn security, too.”

Oliver nodded and went out through a door behind the counter. Diana grabbed a broom and a dustpan to clean up that broken glass.

“Holy shit…” Luna muttered. “I really thought they were gonna go at it.”

“Did you see the guy in the suit put his hand in his pocket?” Ruby said. “Was he gonna pull out a knife?”

“Maybe,” Steven said. “They both seemed to have had a bit too much to drink.”

“Wasn’t that just the guy in the leather jacket?” Eric asked.

“I think I saw Oliver pouring the guy like three glasses of scotch.”

“Speaking of… That was damn smooth, wasn’t it?” Luna said, smirking. “He stopped them before they could do anything.”

“I guess you need to know how to stop stuff like that if you’re gonna work at a bar,” Ruby said. “Still…” She sighed. “My hands are still shaking.”

“Yeah. Full disclosure, I would’ve been afraid to step in,” Steven said. “I would’ve called security immediately.”

“It’s probably what he should’ve done,” Diana said, walking up to them after throwing away the glass shards. “But that would’ve gotten them all kicked out.”

“And… isn’t that better for everyone?” Eric asked.

Diana smiled wryly. “Not for the four involved. What Oliver said about us wanting to provide people the service to have a good time? That’s our boss’ philosophy and he acted accordingly.” She sighed. “I’m very sorry we made you go through that.”

“No, no, this stuff happens. I’ve seen worse,” Luna said, shaking her head.

“Good thing things didn’t escalate,” Steven said. “Does this… happen often here?”

Diana shook her head. “Barely, if at all.

When she moved to pick up one of the glasses in the sink, Eric noticed her hand shaking. Her face was immutable, but it was clear that it had affected her. And of course it did, it had affected everyone. Eric himself was scared, and looking around all the other customers still seemed a little restless.

And yet Oliver stepped up and diffused the situation like it was nothing. Was this really the nervous mess of a guy he’d gone to school with? Was it really possible for someone to change so much?

Apparently so.

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