Celestial University: A Bully Romance

Chapter 29: The Bistro - Antecedent

Calypsa got up. "Now now, Benjin, we're just here for fun, nothing bad's going to happen. Pro~mise. Right?" Her eyes glared at the rest of them.

    "Whatever," Ainsley yawned.

    "Where's the Coastrosity ladies at," Taylor asked.

    "Ooh, I could definitely get some content from this," Rigal claimed.

    "Saiban has much better resources," Xia argued.

    Calypsa covered her female friend's mouth. "She's just moody."

    Madam lowered her face down to Xia. "Keep in mind I fought past the borders to ensure you kids wouldn't have to deal with the Void outbreak back at home."

Xia rose up out of her seat. "Don't you talk back to a Divine Heir!"

"Why should I listen to a brat who can't respect your own people! Daddy's not here to blow up what you don't like. All of you are already on your last strike here."

"Well almost Benjin."

"That's Madam Benjin to you Cal. Oh, who's the new face?"

"That's the son of the Obsidian King and Queen, "one of the workers whispered to her.

She looked down at Sehki. "Huh?"

Most of her workers blew breaths of dismay. "Boss, please keep up with the times."

    "Hey, I'm trying to run a business here," the beige skinned woman claimed before getting a thought. "I'll be back. Order something," handing him the menu.

    Sehki looked around at the few people that were there. Most of the workers were in loose and appealing outfits as well as some of the other customers.

"Is this like a club," he asked.

"Yeah, you've never been to one?"

He shook his head. "Clubs back home are eighteen plus," shocked they admitted they were doing this since they were fourteen. Let me not culture shame. "You all wanna order," finding options for both food and private time with some of the workers... "something to eat?"

Each of them ordered their respective food, drinks, and respective services, as he read the terms of conditions, now understanding Calypsa's warnings.

He tried talking to his peers: Ainsley's apathetic desire to just focus on artistry admiring one of the workers, Rigal setting up his equipment, Taylor's brushing of his hair for the ladies, and Xia clearly wanted Calypsa's support as his food came up.

"Ahh popcorn shrimp," fawning over it being well cooked over the supermarket ones him and Flint never had the cash for. He went in for several bites, but not before two pairs of chopsticks grazed his mouth.

"Serpent fries," Calypsa said. "Want some?"

"Fried snake?"

"Eating certain foods associated with your signs can boost your affinity and amount of magic."

Alright, why not, opening his mouth and letting her feed him while he used his fork to slide some shrimp into her mouth. Although she sent more mixed signals then a broken traffic light, he could tell she really wanted him to enjoy this together.

All the while Xia and Rigal were fighting over who could eat the most wings when their human service arrived.

Ainsley's employee took them to a section where he set up body paint, Rigal grabbed his phone to annoy his worker, and Taylor grew irate when his session lady had to leave. Xia punched him as the replacement, and a young woman from Saiban showed her some respect.

Madam Benjin eventually returned to the table.

"How kind of you. Calypsa, mind if I take him," veering at Sehki, "for a bit?"

She squinted. "Absolutely!"

"Relax, I promise, just want a bit of a chat. Sehki, did you know she-"

Calypsa jumped out of her seat and blasted Xia airborne. "Come on," pulling her away to dance to the music, calming her friend down while leering. "Remember what I said."

His rapid nod got her to turn away as Madam brought him into a separate room complete with couches, several outfits, drinks, tv, and food. Then it finally hit him.

"Oh, it's a sex club!"

She laughed. "Now you figured that out? So, do you like the vibe?"

"Nice rack," pointing to the collection of swords behind her and darting behind her. "You were in the army, right?"

"Perspective," snickering as she approached him. "I've had to use them every now and then to deal with unruly patrons, but fighting the Voids for our people was an honor."

"How come you left?"

"We've been fighting these creatures for over five hundred years, and at some point," staring at her reflection on the blade. "I asked myself: is this what I want to do with my whole life?"

He gave her a tender touch. "I don't blame you," seeing his own life through the blade. "When you fight for so long, you always wonder how much you can keep going."

"Heh, your dad, Scaldwave, and Tychonis all thought the same thing. Those two are teachers now, right?"

"My dad fought with you?"

"Well he had to get ready for coronation of course, but every now and then he'd jump in the fray alongside us whenever there was a recovery or mission to stop them from entering the breaches. He told me once he wanted to find a way to end them permanently. Hell, the funding for Cusp Central helped me make this place."

"They gave you the money to set it up? But not in Umbra...maybe they wanted to make sure there was a place for anyone in case Umbra fell," sighing.

"I don't blame him. Some of my people here don't come from the best places. They've been burned by their own homes or never had a place to embrace their sexual freedom till now."

"Do you think they were planning on betraying the world?"

"As if, it makes no sense. Plan on clearing their name?"

"Most people haven't gotten over it: hell some won't even teach me. Besides, I don't plan on staying for long, there's someone I need to go back for."

"Please, I could teach you to beat those heirs in less than a month if I were a professor. There's that whole tournament they have at Celestial. If you're able to beat them, you could earn all the Starlight possible and start rebuilding the kingdom."

"You really think I could be a good leader?"

"Why not? Your dad always said progress takes a while," pointing to a video on her phone of some people praising him from the event and switching to another one with people questioning his doubts.

"Could I really pull that off?"

"Show the world you're more than a scapegoat, make friends, even find a cute lover-there's nothing the fae can't accomplish."

"I," about to say something when the sound of a large crash interrupted them.