"Another hard days work over." Alice expressed as she wiped down the remaining tables that hadn't been stacked with chairs.
It was rather late and she couldn't wait to get home to rest up, she had been working everyday for the past week.
"Well, once you put that crate downstairs in the cellar it will be." FP added with a smirk as he picked up the last remaining chair onto the table.
Rolling her eyes, she titled her head to side and an unimpressed look spread over her face as she looked over at him.
"Keys?" She asked.
He reached into his back pocket, pulling them out and throwing them her way. She caught them carefully in move.
"Thank you!" He called out as she turned around and made her way down the stairs, leaving him alone to collect tips and takings behind the bar at the till.
"You know you really wanna be careful leaving this door open."
He halted instantly at the sound of the familiar voice that appeared to laced with a sinister tone. Slowly rising his head, his eyes landed upon the cobra herself.
"You don't know what's lurking around these streets, especially this late." She added with a sly smirk before leaning up against the door.
She stood there confidently, hands in pockets and shoulders back, but with an heir of anger about her that FP seemed to sense radiate off her.
She slowly approached him, baring her pearly white teeth and flicking the corner of her mouth to the side in confidence.
"I don't have time for your bullshit Penny." He snarled, leaning over the bar with his fingers gripping onto it.
The amount of rage that surged through him in Penny's presence stunned him, she was just that much of an unpleasant person.
"Bullshit?" She repeated feigning confusion. "Nobody here is entertaining bullshit, I just came to talk." She finished before folding her arms
"Get out!" He spat pointing towards the door.
"You see, that stash you took from Toni and flushed? Lost me quite a bit of cash, diminished business a little." She informed him.
He scoffed. "Am I supposed to give a fuck? It's the least you deserve." He seethed as he angrily approached her.
"I'm sick of your shit Penny." He spat, getting directly into her face, hoping to intimidate her into leaving. "You're gonna stop using and manipulating the Serpents once and for all."
He may not have been affiliated with gang anymore, and he may have retired, but he was still a serpent at heart, and they were still his family.
"Tired of me running a respectable business-" She bragged before being interrupted
"Beating up kids and using people to smuggle your poison over the border is a business now?" He repeated before bursting out into bellyaching laughter. "Get a real job like the rest of us."
"Quit the high and might act Forsythe, at least I'm still in the gang." She added with a suggestive head tilt as she poked her tongue in her cheek and smirk at him.
"You don't deserve that damn jacket." He seethed, flapping the collar of her leather serpent jacket. The fact that she wore it with such pride all while destroying the hand and turning on her own enraged him.
"You're a traitor, as far as I'm concerned, and all you've done is cause trouble for the gang." He stated sternly, and he was right, the serpents has been getting into more trouble ever since Penny took on a more leadership role. "Now get out, before I throw you out. Some of us have families to go home to." He bluntly added before turning around.
She wasn't going to take that for an answer and followed behind him to the bar, quick on her heels. "Oh I will, when I get my money."
He turned frustration before locking eyes with the scheming blonde. "You're not getting a cent out of me, now get out before I call the cops." He hissed.
Getting more and more irritated by the minute, Penny had had enough, she was leaving this bar with her money one way or another. "Look Forsythe, we can do this the easy way, or the hard way. Your choice."
Raising his brow in surprise, he parted his lips, preparing to speak. "Is that a threat?" He smirked. Surely she couldn't have been stupid enough to threaten him on his own turf.
"More like a promise." She warned with furrowed brows.
"Count to three Forsythe." He whispered to himself before chuckling slightly, running his hand down his face to hold the smile before he stormed over to her, grabbing her shoulders and turning her around vigorously and leading, well practically pushing her to the door.
"I warned you Peabody." He reminded her as he got to the door, only to be stopped by two burly Ghoulies entering with menacing looks upon their faces.
"And I warned you." Penny repeated smugly before removing herself from his grasp and turning on her heels, moving in between her two acquaintances.
He looked on in horror. He knew she was a traitor but this surely was taking things too far.
"You're working with Ghoulies now? Seriously?" He questioned in disbelief.
"Girls gotta make a living right?" Penny taunted.
"As if betraying our own wasn't bad enough, you're working with Ghoulie scum too-" He pointed out, but wasn't unfortunately met with a sharp punch to the gut.
He hurled over in pain, making silent o's with his lips as he clutched his stomach before being pulled up by one of the Ghoulies.
They pushed him into a corner and began knocking the seven bells out of him, one hitting him the face, connecting their largely knuckled fist with his cheek, the other smashing theirs right into his nose, causing it to gush out with blood immediately.
They pushed him onto the ground before landing one last kick to his groin, wandering off and leaving Penny with him.
She crouched down to his level, placing her nimble finger onto his chin and turning his head towards her. His face was bloodied and bruised and she could see the slight fear in his eyes, despite how much he tried to hide it, and she took pride in it.
"You think this is bad? It will be nothing compared to what I'll do to your kids." She threatened, and he could tell by the tone of her voice she was serious. "Get me my money or my drugs, or you'll be sorry." She abruptly let go of his face before standing up, looking down at the beaten man with pride before leaving the bar sharply.
He got up onto his knees, they cracked slightly, he wasn't a young man anymore, and reached his hand out to the wall, using it as support to get himself up.
He turned around, leaning against it and holding himself up as he held his nose, stopping the blood from pouring.
"That damn cellar door keeps sticking, you need to fix-" Alice pointed out before noticing her beaten boss stood in the corner.
"FP?!" She screamed in worry, running over to him in an instant and helping him towards a table. She pulled a chair down and directed him to sit down as he still held his hand on his nose.
"What the fuck happened to you?!"
"Penny happened." He grunted, still in pain.
She ran over to the bar and grabbed the first aid kit and some ice, coming over to the table he was sat at and resting the box and glass of ice there.
She pulled down another chair and sat opposite him, preparing to clean him up and tend to his bruises.
"Why didn't you just call me for help?" She asked as she pulled out some tissues and liquid to clean him up.
"Because they would've hurt you too." He admitted, making her pause a little before shifting her eyes to him, turning a little soft.
"Can't lose my best barmaid. Don't tell Toni I said that." He joked.
She chuckled as she cleaned up his bloody nose, staring directly into his eyes as she did. He smiled back at her, despite the roaring pain he felt in that moment.
"Why did she do it?"
"She was pissed over the stash of hers that I flushed." FP revealed
Alice rolled her sharp blue orbs before tutting. "I told you you shouldn't have done it." She scolded.
He suddenly perked up a little, sitting up to look directly at her. "And where would that have left Toni? Or what else would have happened if I had just sat back and let it?!"
Alice tensed up a little, noticing he was becoming a little angrier in that moment.
He clasped his hand into a tight fist, practically squeezing them red.
"Someone needs to take a stand to her and those fucking scumbag ghoulies-" He growled
"Woah, who are the ghoulies?" Alice asks, taken by surprise at the mention of these people.
FP let loose a little, calming himself down as he realised he was going back to that dark and rage filled place he had spent many years trying to escape.
"Nobody, just nobody." He added before shifting his head down in slight embarrassment
"That was an awful lot of rage for nobodies." Alice pointed out as she finished cleaning up his nose, tending to his bruise was next.
He found himself tightening his fists once again, looking away from Alice. His eyes went dark and his jaw tightened in fury before he bared his teeth and began snarling, his breathing rapidly increasing as his anger began to rise.
"A rival gang. They been causing trouble around her for years." He revealed before taking a deep sigh to calm himself in anyway he could.
"Your hate for them sound so much deeper than gang rivalry." She whispered tensely as she prepared to put the first aid items away.
His fists began to shake, she noticed he had closed them even tighter causing them to turn bright red. His breaths were rapid and increasing and he was starting to worry her.
She rested her hand on his clenched fist. "FP? What's wrong?"
He shut his eyes tightly, frowning slightly and trying to hold back the tears that were threatening to fall down from his eyes. He shifted his head from hers, shaking it slightly. He didn't want her seeing him this way.
"They uh- They killed Gladys." He croaked out, finally laying eyes on her.
Her heart sank at hearing that revelation. She clutched her chest and her mouth fell open in shock.
"She was at a red light, she was just sat there, and out of nowhere a car slammed into her." He sniffles before looking down onto the table. "And all conveniently after I had gotten into it with the Ghoulies leader."
"FP, I'm so sorry." Alice sympathises.
"The police never caught them." He adds. "Some bullshit about not enough proof or evidence, but I know it was them." He spat before bringing his closed fist to his mouth.
She had never seen him like this before, she could tell this had been plaguing him for years and she knew first hand how holding in pain or trauma slowly damaged you.
"Do you always keep this in?" She wondered
"It's hard to talk about Al." He confessed, casually using her nickname, a clear indicator that the two were growing closer.
"Bottling up these things does more harm than good, trust me. I know from experience." She reluctantly added.
He stated directly at her, noticing the innocent but sympathetic look upon her face. "You do?"
"Yeah. I do." She repeated with a tender smile. "Look, I want you to promise me something."
He turned to her attentively, genuinely interested in her proposition.
"Whenever you're feeling down, or low or like you might explode, just come and find me and we can talk for as long or as little as you want, promise?"
His mouth curled up into a smile, followed by a proud chuckle before resting his hand upon hers. "I promise."
"Okay." When she heard what she wanted to hear, she let go and proceeded to place the ice she had on the table into a cloth, preparing to tend to his bruise.
She gently pat his injured area, being careful not to hurt him any further as she glared into his innocent brown orbs and his her ocean blues, grateful to have her.
He didn't know what it was but he felt very gravitated to this woman. And little did he know, she was beginning to feel the same way, there was something very warm and welcoming about FP, something that made her feel safe and grounded. There was definitely more to him than she thought.