"Are you sure you do not mind? I feel bad asking you to do this,"
"No, don't worry about it, it's really no trouble at all."
Luke was standing behind the bar counter, dressed in the bartenders uniform—all black. He wore his old black jeans that he hadn't worn since Michael had built the VIP bar. Michael had told him if they were going to cater to the rich and classy, he had to look classy, which meant Luke wasn't allowed to wear his comfy clothes anymore. His band tees were replaced with polos and button-ups and the ripped jeans became slacks. He liked those clothes well enough, but there was something refreshing about being able to slip back into the outfit he really liked that made him feel warm inside.
With the black jeans, he also wore a long sleeve black shirt—long sleeves because Michael had created some bruises on his upper arm when he grabbed him the other day—so Luke was going to be wearing long shirts for the next few days to cover the marks. A bruise could be from anything, but these fingerprint marks were very obvious, and Luke was embarrassed to tell anyone about the situation. He was worried they would think the same thing about him that Michael did. Michael knew him the best out of everyone and he thought Luke was a little slut. What would someone who didn't know anything about his character think? It was his own fault anyway.
"Well, just know that I really appreciate you for this," Naba told him.
Tonight was Harry's night off, he had a family thing in New Jersey to attend to, so he wasn't able to come in and the two guys who were subbing for him got sick. Luke and Michael were at the bar getting things ready when Naba told them about the situation. Luke immediately offered to help, because there wasn't much else they could do and he wanted to prove he was still useful. He wasn't just a burden. He wasn't.
He and Naba cut up lemons, limes, and oranges for the different cocktails while Luke filled her in on what was happening at the theater. Michael sat at the end of the bar on hold with one of their suppliers who hadn't brought the latest shipment of dry goods yet. It was supposed to be delivered yesterday, but they hadn't heard anything about it yet. Luke caught Michael's eye as he walked past and Michael gave him a tense nod. He knew his boyfriend was stressed, but at least he didn't seem too angry at the moment.
The bar opened and slowly but surely, people started flowing in. Michael had to step out for a little bit, telling Naba, not Luke, and not giving a reason. Luke didn't mind, because there was less pressure when he wasn't around. He knew it wasn't good, but he felt like he could relax without being under his scrutiny.
It was slow for the first couple hours, but around 7 it started picking up and Luke realized how involved bartending actually was. He figured it would be pretty easy, but remembering what everyone wanted, putting it in the system, making the drinks, having someone take his attention away when he was about to do something but making sure he didn't forget what he'd previously been doing... it was an endless, tiring cycle, but he kind of was enjoying himself. He and Naba were able to laugh with the customers who told funny stories, and he felt like he was doing something to actually help. While being on Broadway was his dream, it wasn't useful to anyone aside from entertainment. At least while he was filling drink orders, he was helping out Naba and Michael. It was a win-win.
Around 9, a couple people had left and it was a bit slower. Luke decided to wipe down the counter while there were no orders he needed to fill.
"So, how's your night going?" One of the customers he'd served earlier asked. Luke looked up at the man. He seemed to be about 40, maybe a bit older. He had ginger hair, a round face, and green eyes. He smiled at Luke like they'd been friends for a while, which put Luke at ease. He just seemed like a nice guy, and had acted kindly when Luke was taking his order earlier. Some people were rude, but this man didn't put off any bad vibes.
YOU ARE READING
Hey Bartender, Hit Me
Fanfic(Muke/Lashton) Luke Hemmings is a struggling actor. Michael Clifford is Luke's boyfriend, and successful owner of a swanky new bar downtown NYC. When Michael's longtime friend comes back from a 5 year hiatus, how will Luke deal with his flirting a...