CHAPTER TWELVE
" you were too good to be true,
gold plated but what's inside you?
but what's inside you? "
It's been a few days since I started working at the Whyte Wyrm. I always had the same shift with Ghost. He started teaching me the more advanced stuff like handling liquors and closing up shop since we were the last shift.
I got to know more of the Serpents from working here. Toni and Livewire were into photography. Bolt and Flash were crazy into comics, they can talk about comics for hours on end:
"Tales Of Suspense was originally a classic Marvel series but they're rebooting it with issue one-hundred, Tales Of Suspense: Hawkeye & The Winter Soldier," Flash rambled. No matter how many times you tell him to stop, he won't. "Me and Bolt have been waiting all summer to get a copy but everywhere just seems sold out or-"
"-Flash, has it ever occured to you that I don't care?" I interjected.
Ghost's a huge fan a Billie Ellish, will fight you if you touch his playlist:
"Don't touch my Billie Ellish playlist," Ghost smacks away my hand as I reached for his phone, which was connected to the speakers.
"You've been playing the same damn song over and over again," I protested, trying to reach for his phone again.
"So?" he smacks my hand away again. "It's not bothering anybody."
"Well it's bothering me and probably the strippers who have been dancing to the same song for the past twenty minutes."
"They're not strippers," Ghost corrected, "and don't touch my playlist!"
He also gets annoyed when I call her "Billy Eyelash."
I enjoyed working at the Whyte Wyrm, it was a laid back job. We pretty much get to do whatever we want and get to hang out with friends at the same time.
Lzzy rarely comes to the Whyte Wyrm during a school night since she has curfew. So the only friends I had when I worked here was Ghost and his siblings.
We would usually hang out past closing time and when there were only a few of us lingering around. We would keep the bar open for a few more minutes just for the few of us. Perks of having the last shift.
The night before the drag race, we allowed a few of the Serpents to stay past closing time to hang out. The others were pretty much having fun, playing pool and hogging the arcade machines while Ghost and I were cleaning up the bar.
"Hey Ghost," I said, as I wiped the counter.
"Hm?" Ghost hummed, he was wiping the glasses.
"Where does that staircase go?" I pointed to the staircase across from us, it led up to a door. I've always been curious since the first day I got here to where it led to.
"Uh. . ." Ghost took a quick glance to where I was pointing to before going back to cleaning the glasses. "FP's Office," he replies.
"What about there?" Now I was pointing to a dark corner on the other side of the bar. I was like an inquisitive child asking a bunch of questions.
"That's where Hog Eye keeps his snakes," he says, putting the glass back onto the shelf after he was done.
My eyebrows rose in horror. "Snakes?"
"Come see," he nods over to the general direction.
I've been working here for a few days and never knew that this bar houses snakes. They took the 'Serpents' in 'Southside Serpents' literally.
I threw aside the dirty rag and followed Ghost as he led me to the dark corner. He switched on the light and the dark corner lit up, rows of aquariums filled with a variety of snakes stood before me.
"Whoa," I said in awe. I bent down to get a better look at the snakes.
"I know right," said Ghost, arms folded, "Hog Eye's very particular about his snakes."
"I dare you to stick your hand in it," someone came up from behind. I looked behind and it was Fangs and Sweet Pea coming up to us.
Fangs was a new Serpent that I had met recently. We've never had an actual conversation, just a few words exchanged between us. A mutual friend I guess.
I turned back and looked at the tank. A small cream-coloured snake slithered out of its cave and looked up at me inquisitively.
"What, are you scared?" Sweet Pea cowed with a smirk on his face, arms folded.
Give me a damn second, I cursed in my head. I reached my hand into the opening at the top of the tank. The snake stared at my hand but didn't seem bothered and continued to slither away.
"Huh," Ghost raised his brows, seemingly impressed.
I flashed a cocky grin at Sweet Pea who rolled his eyes at me.
"It's a kenyan sand boa," I explained as I took my hand out of the tank, "They're very friendly."
Sweet Pea, still unsatisfied, stepped forward, and brandished a switchblade. "Try getting this out," he said as he placed the switchblade carefully into another tank with another snake.
"I thought you lost your switchblade?" I asked, stepping forward to the tank.
"I did," explained Sweet Pea, "That's Fangs'," he pointed to the switchblade inside the tank.
I bent down to get a better look at the snake. It was different from the previous one. It was larger and had a thingy at the end of its tail.
It's a rattlesnake.
I slowly turned to Sweet Pea, "You think I'm stupid? That's a rattlesnake, they're venomous."
"It has its venom glands removed," Sweet Pea cocked his head, "You scared?"
"I'm not a pussy," I said.
I turned back to the tank and stood upright. I took in a deep breath as I braced myself. I slowly reached into the tank and withdrew the switchblade. The rattlesnake hissed but never acted upon it.
I got the switchblade out.
Ghost chuckled, "Congrats. You completed the third task of the Serpent initiation."
"I thought all girls had to do was dance?" I asked as I turned to Sweet Pea to return his switchblade. He seemed more impressed now then vexed.
"This is the guy's initiation," explained Ghost.
"Sexist," I mumbled, almost like a snigger. I don't think any of them heard me, except Sweet Pea whom I made eye contact with for like a split second. "So what's the first task?" I continued to ask.
"You have to take care of the beast," said Fangs.
I furrowed my brows and looked at him strangely. "What's the beast?" I asked.
"Hot Dog," said Ghost.
"Oh!" I said surprised. Hot Dog was the Serpent's dog. I've seen him around a few times, even petted him. The guy's Serpent initiation is surprisingly easy.
"What's the second," I continued to ask.
"You gotta know the laws of the Serpents," said Sweet Pea.
"The fourth?" I asked.
Sweet Pea flashed a grin, "I think you already got that covered."
I didn't really understand what that meant at first then I did.
"Alright!" Out of nowhere, Ghost screamed at the top of his lungs, which made me jump, "Lights out! Everybody get out!"
"Aw," Toni whined. She was at the lounge with her girlfriend and a few others. "Can't we stay for-"
"-No. Get out," Ghost said sternly.
The Serpents groaned, a few rolled their eyes. "What a killjoy," I heard one of therm utter as they collectively stood up and started heading for the exit.
"Out," Ghost demanded before turning to me and speaking softly, "Hey, can you take care of closing up tonight, I have to to head back home."
"Yeah, sure," I agreed even though I was so damn tired but I knew Ghost needed the rest more than me. "You're picking me up tomorrow, right?" I continued to ask.
"Mhm," Ghost hummed. "By the way, those," he pointed to a pile of cans of beers stacked on top of each other next to the bar, "are for tomorrow, don't touch it."
Ghost continued to urge the other Serpents to leave so that I could close up the bar. Sweet Pea and a few of his friends still loitered in the bar even after Ghost had left.
I grumpily ordered them, "Guys, you gotta go." It took little convincing, they got up and started heading for the exit.
"Let me piss first," says Sweet Pea as he rushes past me to the restroom.
"I didn't need to know that," I said. I took a seat behind the bar as I waited for Sweet Pea to leave.
A few minutes go by and Sweet Pea appears again but instead of leaving the place he took a seat on the barstool across from me.
I groaned, "You gotta go."
"Can I not?" he tried to bargained, "I mean, what are you going to do about it anyways?" He took out his phone and started playing with it.
I glared at him, "I'll leave you alone in this bar."
"That's fine by me," he replies. I groaned. It was as if he took pleasure in annoying me. "Why do you even wanna work here?" he continues to ask.
"To piss you off," I replied almost immediately. He rolls his eyes. "Ha! Just did it again!"
Questions kept bouncing off of him, "What's for the beers?" He nodded to the pile of beer next to the bar.
"It's for tomorrow's drag race," I answered, "You sure do ask a lot of questions, huh?"
"I'm bored."
"Go home."
"Let's play twenty questions."
I frowned at him. "What are we twelve?"
He seemed unaffected.
"I'll do you one better," I got off the stool and headed for the fridge behind me, "We make assumptions about each other," I opened the fridge and drew out two cans of soda, "If I make a correct assumption about you, you drink. But if I'm wrong, I drink," I slammed the cans on the countertop, "We have to take turns, by the way."
"So like twenty questions?" Sweet Pea brought the cans closer to him and popped open the can.
"Eh, not really," I popped open my can as well.
Sweet Pea took a sip and furrowed his brows. "Really?" he holds up the can, the label facing me. In bubbly letters it says "orange soda." Probably thought he was was gonna get alcohol.
"I'm a responsible person," I replied. "Now shut up and drink up, sweetheart."
"I'll go first," I continued to say. My mouth opened slightly however I had nothing to say. I didn't know anything about him. "-I don't know. . ." I uttered.
He chuckled, "I'll go first then. You've never dated before."
"Incorrect. I have dated before," I admitted, he groaned in defeat, "Drink!"
I thought long and hard. "You've never had a girlfriend before," I assumed.
"I have-"
"-Like an actual one. Not a fling. The type where you would introduce to others as your girlfriend," I continued.
His mouth gaped from when I cut him off, "That's oddly specific." He drank the orange soda.
"Ha!" I cheered.
"How d'you know?" he asked.
"You look like the type."
"Seriously?"
"I mean, I'm not wrong."
I clinked his can and continued on.
AUTHOR'S NOTE
This chapter was a stupid filler that I regret putting in. So, sorry for the shitty writing and also for ending abruptly. Maybe in the future I'll edit it? Idk.