Welcome To The Bourbon Room [Rock Of Ages]

Welcome To The Bourbon Room

"Boss? There's one guy left. Seems like he might fit in a bit better than the others, though." Chico called into the adjacent room, his thick accent rolling off his tongue, receiving only a nod in reply from the man seated at his desk.

The man's name was Dennis.
Dennis Dupree.
A "rock god" as said by the inhabitants of the Sunset Strip in the late 70's, Dennis had a reputation and fulfilled it with each night he ran his famous club - The Bourbon Room.

But Dennis needed help running this club, as it was getting more and more hectic as the years went on and he booked larger acts, and Arsenal always enjoyed playing at his bar. Dennis had employees, yes, but not a manager. He had yet to find someone he truly wished to run the bar with. It would take a while for someone to reach that status to him, but he needed to locate someone worthy of a chance.

And today, he was opening up his search to the public.

So far, there had been quite a few people, milling in, speaking for a few moments, handing over an application and leaving, but none of them struck Dennis as the right type for The Bourbon Room.

"A'ight, Chico, thank you." Dennis called back, a minute or so too late. Chico had already gone, taking his break. Light footsteps entering the room caught his attention, and he glanced up, pushing some of his brown hair out of his eye.

"Hello, Mr. Dupree."
The smooth voice came, heavy with a British accent, yet appealing. Dennis caught the eyes of the man now sitting across from him, smiling softly.

"Hello. Call me Dennis, please."

The man grinned, almost teasingly, twirling a piece of his long, curly black hair around his first finger.
"The name's Lonny Barnett. It's nice to meet you."

Lonny slid a piece of paper over to Dennis, his eyes widening slightly as the other man's fingers brushed over his own.

Dennis let his hand stay there, buying his time.
Lonny was downright gorgeous.
These weren't the times for those thoughts, though, and Dennis gently wiggled the paper out from under Lonny's delicate fingers, pretending he hadn't noticed the other man's blush (or Dennis's own).

Dennis looked over the application, reading it more carefully than he had the others.
Lonny leaned forward a tad, resting his chin on his hands.
Dennis took the opportunity to glance up and study Lonny's features every time it showed itself.

Lonny was confident with himself, even with Dennis's eyes obviously scanning over him. Lonny had a mullet of sorts, it was a bit grown out and hadn't been cut in a while, but he intended to fix it up soon. His out-of-control hair matched his attitude, which he hid from Dennis in case it threatened his chance to join The Bourbon's crew. Lonny couldn't help but stare back at Dennis, biting his lip discreetly as his eyes started to wander along the room.

Dennis was a bit older than Lonny, but didn't show it very much. His eyes were sharp, intelligent, and they read over the paper about three times before laying it on top of all the others.

"You seem perfect for what I'm looking for, Lonny. You don't mind loud music, drunk people and prostitutes surrounding you every night?"

"Nothing I haven't run into before, Dennis." Lonny grinned again, blowing out the last of his fears in a shaky breath.

"Good." Dennis went to shake Lonny's hand, then paused. He gingerly picked up Lonny's application and placed it to the side before shoving every other application off the table with one quick movement.
"You're hired. You start tomorrow, so be here at five so we can go over some things."

Lonny stood, smiling broadly as he shook Dennis's hand.
"Thank you, Dennis. Really! Thank you!"

Dennis chuckled, stepping around his desk to stand closer to his new employee.
It struck him then how Lonny was an inch or two taller than him, even a little more with his hair. Dennis took the time to observe the beautiful man in front of him.
Tall and lanky, but still strong. He had no tattoos that Dennis could see, and wore black jeans and a plain white t-shirt, but he knew there was something hiding with Lonny. Dennis smiled to himself. He knew a party animal when he saw one.

Lonny was a new element to add to The Bourbon - perhaps something it had been missing for far too long. Dennis decided he would see what Lonny was honestly like the next day.

"Wear anything you like tomorrow, but you've gotta be able to move around, and if someone spills a drink on you, well, not my problem. Just remember to have fun, a'ight? I'll see you then." Dennis smiled genuinely, shaking Lonny's hand once more before reclaiming his chair before his desk.

Lonny thanked him again, smiling widely all the way out. Pausing outside Dennis's office, he tugged his plain shirt over his head, revealing the Def Leppard shirt and suspenders hidden underneath. Lonny rolled his shoulders back, running his fingers through his hair and sighing softly. He tossed the white shirt in the trash on the way out - he had only bought it just before arriving to show something a little more "mature".
Typically, Lonny thought Def Leppard was very mature. But with an opportunity for a dream job after his drumming career flunked, he found no reason to mess it up over stupid things.

As he strolled towards the main entrance/exit of The Bourbon Room, a sudden call of his name from behind made him pause. Lonny turned, sprinting back inside.

"Is someone calling me?" Lonny projected back, unsure of where the noise came from.

Dennis revealed himself from his office, trotting down the stairs rather quickly.

"I just wanted to say something. Welcome to The Bourbon Room, Lonny." Dennis smiled, pulling Lonny into a bone-crushing hug. Lonny giggled, wrapping his arms around Dennis.
It was a bit warm for the first day they met, but Dennis liked it that way.
And so did Lonny.