Suck-ubus : A Demon Love Story

Late Night Dive Bar

A neon sign came to life outside of a small dive bar on the outskirts of the city. The sun had just set, giving the sky a bright edge while the darkness painted over the light blue of the day. The sign's letters begin to flash, one at a time, spelling out "FRANNY'S" in bright blue lights. As the barkeep let go of the string and walked back to the bar to tend to the few customers that sat there, a figure walked towards the building, taking a slight glance at the sign as it flickered.

She was of average height, with long, dark hair that flowed straight down her narrow back and stopped at her wide-set hips; "Pear-shaped" was an understatement. The neon reflected off of her vinyl skirt, which had two thigh slits held together with matching black ribbons. As a gust of wind flew by, she pulled her dark jean jacket together over her abdomen, as she was only wearing a cut-off shirt underneath. Her dark-stained lips opened up to let out a bored sigh as her lined eyes looked down from the lights to the various alcohol advertisements that shadowed the bar's windows.  "Sure, why not?", she let out, walking towards the door, her heeled boots clicking with every step. 

She opened the door, quickly slipping in to get out of the cold of the street. The night was still young, but the small pub already had a good bit of people inside; loners sulking at the bar, old friends laughing over some drinks in the booths, as well as a group of friends hovering over the jukebox, attempting to choose a song. As the door audibly shut behind our interesting stranger, a few eyes swarmed her as she made her way to the bar. She sat, crossing her thick legs and resting her head on one hand.

The bartender poured a dark shot to a man at the other end of the bar, then making his way to his new guest. "Welcome to Franny's, how may I-", he stopped, caught off guard by the beauty of this stranger. He stammered for the rest of his sentence, then awkwardly laughing under his breath, attracting her eyes towards him. "Um, how can I help you, ma'am?" He said, slightly leaning in and making sure to keep his eyes where they should be. The girl chuckled slightly under her breath, laying her arms on the counter. "I'll have a Bloody Mary, if that's okay.", she said smoothly, a slight smile appearing on her lips at his struggling. His eyes widened at her voice, but he quickly turned and began preparing her drink.

As he began to mix ingredients together, she stood again and put her hands in the pockets of her jacket, slowly making her way over to the jukebox. Each person she passed had to take a glance at her as she swayed by, to the point where every eye in the place was on her. She walked up behind a group of guys, still trying to choose a song off the playlist. "Come on, man, that song is SO overplayed. I don't wanna hear it again!", Said the tallest of the group. "You're only mad because they don't have your dumb little indie bands in here.", the one in the ball cap stated, nudging him playfully. "Ooh guys! Let's listen to this one!", said the one with the heavy jacket, excitedly pointing at a song.

Our stranger listened to them bicker, then rolling her eyes and raising an eyebrow at them. She loudly cleared her throat behind them, causing them all to turn and look at her. She flipped her long hair, bringing her attention then back to the boys. "Do you guys mind if I pick a song?" The one in the ball cap almost began to object, but was quickly cut off by the tallest one. "Not at all, you go ahead!" He said, pulling his friends out of the way as she quickly went up to the machine and picked a song, the classic rock tones then coming over the loudspeakers in the bar.

"Thanks, boys." She said sweetly, then winking at the three, making them all laugh and blush nervously, before sauntering back to her stool. The bartender handed her her beverage, which she proceeded to sip with a satisfied "ah". "So, you've never been here before, huh?" He said, beginning to clean some glasses with a rag. "Hm?" She muttered. "What gave it away?" "Well, I would've remembered you if I'd ever seen you before." He smiled, taking a now clean class and putting it under the bar. She chuckled, grabbing her drink off the bar and sipping it. "You caught me, there." The barkeep let out a short laugh, then raising an eyebrow at her. "Tell me about yourself." He started, throwing his rag over his shoulder and setting both hands on the bar.

She was surprised at his question, but proceeded to put her drink down and face him. "I don't have a ton of interesting details I could give you but, if you must know, I'm Valerie." She smiled, her eyes glancing straight towards his. He smiled back, "Well, Valerie, my name's Lance."

They continued to talk the rest of the night, as people came and went, flirting back and forth. He even started to call her honey, which she liked. Valerie had a few more drinks, and she appeared slightly tipsy. By the end of the night, she was the last person in the bar, just admiring him as he wiped the back counter behind the bar.

He put his rag in the sink, then walking over to her. "Honey, it's nearly 1 A.M., I gotta close the shop. Would you want me to call someone to come get you or anything?" "She turned around on the stool to face him, "Actually, I would feel much better if, maybe, YOU would walk me home." She said, looking at him with a smirk. He flushed a bit red, then looking down and snickering. "If you insist, I'd be more than happy to oblige." She hoped off the stool, pressing herself up against him and tipsily giggling, before grabbing his hand and pulling him off into the night.