Bucky's

Chapter 17: Drinks at the Bar

Ronny was beginning to despair of ever finding a woman to love. His options were rapidly drying up as he swiped through the dating app on his phone, taking rejection after rejection, getting blocked, finding he was not compatible with most of the Giantesses on there. He was frustrated. He could only conclude that most of the women were stuck-up hoes not worth his time. It probably didn't help matters that he was so picky with his selections.

One particularly lonely night, he was feeling hungry and restless. He didn't want to stay holed up in his apartment, alone, gorging himself on frozen TV dinners. He wanted some comfort food, to fill both his heart and his belly. He didn't have a date to go out with, so he decided to eat out at his new favorite restaurant, Bucky's, by himself. It was drizzling outside, so he grabbed a raincoat before heading out into the stormy weather.

He trudged through the gray streets, hood up to keep his head dry, the rain tricking down his huge back. The sun, hidden behind a thick layer of clouds, was setting, making the gray sky grow darker. The downtown area was less busy than usual on account of the weather, but still brightly colored with neon lights that reflected off the shiny puddles on the pavement. Passersby were huddled under umbrellas or bundled up in colorless waterproof coats just like Ronny. The world looked as gloomy as Ronny felt inside.

Before long, the bright blinking red of Bucky's neon sign came into view, mirrored in the road below. Ronny entered and shed his wet coat. The seating hostess flashed him a friendly smile, in spite of his serious demeanor. "Table or bar?"

"Bar," Ronny growled. He would feel weird sitting at a table by himself. She led him over to the bar section where he sat down and ordered a beer. "Just keep 'em coming," he instructed the bartender.

Bucky's was slow, on account of the rain, so Ronny was able to sip on his drinks in peace. After downing a few beers, he felt a pleasant buzz inside his skull and decided to placate his whining stomach and order some food. After perusing the menu, he requested a burger and a hearty plate of cheese fries, with a human entrée to accompany the fries.

"Hey, there's a specific human I want in my dish. Her name's Patty, if she's available." The Giant taking his order wrote down the name with a nod and walked away. For some reason, Ronny felt a touch of warm blush creep into his cheeks, and an excited electricity in his gut. He didn't entirely understand these feelings. Perhaps it was just anticipation to feed his hunger with her exquisite taste. He licked his lips and swallowed the pool of drool forming in his mouth. Definitely hunger. Nothing more than that.

In the human tank, Patty was dismayed to find a giant hand grabbing her up to take her to the kitchen. She was handed off to Chef Gore, who stuffed a pill in her face, slapped her into a mound of fries with melted cheese, and loaded the plate up with toppings. Patty wasn't restricted at all, but she knew running would be futile. She didn't want to lose any more toes. She schemed every day to escape, but she was out of ideas for now. She needed to find some way to get the tracker off her wrist. The only way she could think of was cutting her hand off, hardly a desirable option. Bucky did not allow the humans any weapons, like saws or knives, so Patty's morbid idea would likely not come to fruition. Besides, she doubted she'd be in any condition to run pouring out blood with a severed hand.

Patty sat listlessly in the mountain of fries, cheese, sour cream, bacon bits, and chives as a waitress stopped to pick up the massive plate. The human groaned inwardly when she saw she was heading for the bar. Her last experience at the bar involved being thrown up in a trash can by a drunk Giant, and she wasn't eager to relive that incident. Her attitude changed, however, when she recognized the handsome Giant Ronny waiting for her. He was one of the few Giants she had met, other than Leon, who had actually been nice to her and treated her like a sentient person, even if he did still eat her in the end.