AN: Hi, everybody! This is just a oneshot I made for Shironek0 as a part of our trade. She gave me this awesome picture of Goten and Rei on an elevator. Check it out on Deviantart! For this story I borrowed the characterization for Nappa and Raditz as MegaKat would write them. Hope you all enjoy!
The glasses were set on the counter without a clink and with grace. He prepared his next wave of drinks to serve. It was a slow night so he was working hard to make everyone happy. The bar was a new establishment and he had just started two days ago but he had a feeling customers will be pouring in by the end of the week. Come next week and the Double Sunday Bar will be the spot for ladies' night.
Raditz took a moment to check his reflection in the mirror - still sexy in his black tank top. He knew the ladies enjoyed watching his bulging arm muscles sway to the movement of the cocktail shaker in his hands. He even caught one swooning at him as he popped a bottle of champagne for a small group celebrating an engagement. The tips were rolling in for him.
Hours ticked away, and he started to wipe down after most of the customers had left. Raditz could hear the thunder from outside and sighed. Luckily, he had rented the room upstairs from the owner so he didn't have to risk getting electrocuted mid-flight.
Another roll of thunder came and the door swung open. A soaked woman with an upturned umbrella hurried in. She shut the door behind her, and muttered a stream of choice curse words while busting it back into shape.
"You might want to sit here and wait it out." Raditz let out an amused chuckle.
The woman parted her black, drenched hair to give him a scowl. Judging from her piercing violet eyes, he was being given the 'do-not-fuck-with-me' glare.
Raditz held up his hands to show her that he came in peace. "Just making a suggestion, miss." With his eyes, he gestured to the bar stool. "Have a seat and I'll pour you a shot. It's ladies' night, half off all drinks."
The woman narrowed her eyes, but made the decision to take him up on his offer. Once she was seated, Raditz flashed her his moneymaking smile. "What'll it be?"
"Rock lobster," she grumbled.
"Can do," he nodded. "I'd like to see some I.D. first." Knowing exactly what she wanted right away showed she was no stranger to a bar. However, she looked like she could be a high schooler or first year college student.
She rolled her eyes and sighed, then opened her clutch purse to fish out her license.
As the woman rifled through her bag, his eyes wandered to her hand that rested on the outside of her purse. Raditz's eyes locked on her freshly bloodied knuckles; they were starting to swell from the looks of it.
"And what have you been up to all night," he asked calmly.
She glared at him, then tossed her I.D. on the counter in a silent command to get back to his job.
"Okay," Raditz looked down and read the card. She was legal; she just looked young. "Miss Hino Rei, one Rock Lobster it is." As he began to make her shooter he glanced back at her. "I could also get you some ice for that, free of charge."
"I might have to take you up on that," she muttered as he set down her drink. Raditz filled a small plastic bag with ice cubes, then sealed it and wrapped it with a clean rag.
"Here you go," he handed the pack to Rei; she downed her drink right before accepting the pack.
"Thank you." She cringed as she set the bag as gently as she could on her hand.
"You want another drink?"
"Keep 'em coming," she nodded.
"So, what happened? Bad date," Raditz asked while he prepared another beverage for his new customer.
"Nope," Rei exhaled as she kept the ice on her sore hand.
"Somebody try to jump you?" Raditz said in a concerned tone and set the drink down in front of her.
"Not exactly." Rei picked up her beverage with her free hand, and downed it as easily as the first one.
Raditz leaned closer and spoke in a soft voice. "Listen, I've got some very beautiful ladies for regulars and you are just as stunning. If there's anything going on out there that could possibly put a gorgeous woman like you in harm's way, I would like to be filled in."
Rei looked into his eyes, and a blush began to spread over her cheeks. She broke eye contact and let out an exhale in defeat. "I was on the Tokyo Metro today," she began. "I heard there was a pervert who was groping schoolgirls. The police haven't done any investigations, so I took matters into my own hands."
"That's terrible. I take it you got on and planted yourself as bait?"
"Yup." She passed him the two empty shot glasses. "More, please."
Raditz nodded and poured her more, now enthralled by her story. "So I take it he fell for it."
When he slid the glass to her, Rei downed the liquid slower than she did the last two but finished it. "More like they fell for it."
"There was more than one?" He furrowed his brow, and felt disturbed that there was more than one predator taking advantage of young girls.
"Mm hmm." She tapped the glass to indicate she needed another refill.
"How many?" His curiosity got the better of him.
"Four. I might have badly messed up my hand, but you should see the other guys."
The corner of Raditz's lips curled upward into a bloodthirsty smirk. "I take it they won't do that again."
"Not with broken hands, jaws, and balls kicked far back up into the cavity they dropped from." She returned his smirk.
Never in his life had Raditz felt so close to swooning than right at that moment. His heart fluttered at how lovely she looked with just a smile on her face.
"Refill, please," she spoke, snapping him out of his trance.
"Right." He shook his head clear and went back to working on her drink.
"I don't usually drink this much, but the aspirin I popped earlier is doing nothing for the throbbing pain in my hand." Rei sighed and eyed her aching appendage.
Raditz could feel his lower half respond as the word 'throbbing' left her lips. He stiffened up top, then poured her a shot before he closed his eyes and tried to think of things that would bring him down. Luckily, he was able to calm himself by thinking of Nappa naked.
The woman of his dreams seemed to be too busy downing her fourth drink to notice.
"So, are you some kind of private investigator?" He cleared his throat.
"No," Rei closed her eyes. She could feel the booze starting affect her. "I overheard all of the frightened girls talking after they bought protection charms. I sell them at my shrine. They were scared to ride home without one."
His coal colored eyes went as wide as golf balls. "Shrine? You're a…are you a priestess?"
Rei gave a firm nod. Well, now he wasn't so sure if he could hope to have a shot with the ravishing shrine maiden.
"That's surprising, never heard of a priestess delivering divine justice in such a violent manner," he chuckled.
"Well, I'm just full of surprises." She shrugged.
"Want one more drink?"
"No, I'm good, the pain is now bearable." Rei lifted up the bag of ice and wiped the moisture off her wound. It was now bleeding lightly.
"Here." Raditz reached under the counter, pulled out a small first aid kit, and opened it. "May I?"
Her small hand slowly moved across the counter until it rested on his large warm palm. Raditz wasted no time in dressing it properly.
Rei's breath caught while staring intently at how gentle he was with her hand. It was fascinating to see such scarred and calloused hands move against her smooth skin. She was almost amazed at how trusting she was being. He hadn't even told her his name yet, and here he was patching her up like it was such a natural thing for him. The fiery woman was so used to people being intimidated by her, and yet this man seemed to have some respect for her.
"So, what do I call you?"
Raditz looked up at her and smiled. "Honestly, you can call me whatever you want."
After eyeing him a good long while with her tipsy gaze, she took a guess. "Rapunzel."
Raditz cocked his head back, and he laughed at how unexpected her answer was. "Never been called that before, but that's just cute."
"Why is that?"
"It implies my hair is pretty and I'm worth climbing a tower for." He snickered.
Rei saw the way he proudly accepted the name and shook her head. Not once in her life had she witnessed a man with such unshakable confidence; it seemed to rival her own.
"How about your actual name?"
"Raditz, but friends call me Raddy." He grinned.
"I like that. So you patch up friends all the time, Raddy?" She cracked a smile then flipped her hair behind her shoulder.
"Beautiful, you don't really know my friends but they usually need it," the bartender joked.
"Ladies must be really taken with you." Rei rested her chin on her uninjured palm.
"Comes with the job, the hair, the body…" He waggled his eyebrows.
"The man with everything," Rei giggled.
"Not everything," he added and finished up the dressing on her hand. Despite not needing to hold it upright anymore, he still continued to do so.
"What could you be missing?" She gave him a skeptical look.
"Since you asked," he began, "my bouncer called in sick. So, I need someone tough-as-nails to stay with me until I close up, because I'm Rapunzel and I need saving tonight." He grasped her hand lightly with both of his in dramatic effect.
"Are you for real?" Her brow cocked upward.
"Had to give it a try." He offered a shrug then set her hand down.
"So, your bouncer?" Rei inquired.
"Actually out sick. I did not make that up," he clarified.
"That's a shame, but I really like it at my shrine. I'll have to pass on that offer." She gave Raditz a smile and looked over her wrapped hand.
"You would have been a good fit," he sighed.
"What do I owe you for the drinks?" Rei picked up her clutch once more, and then reached in for her wallet.
"Don't worry about it." He waved her off. "It's the least I could do for the lady who made our city a safer place."
"Well, since I can't offer you my protective services, this will have to do." The priestess reached into her bag and pulled out an item to give to him.
Raditz put his hand under hers to accept what looked like a small amulet. "Is this what I think it is?"
"Protection charm," Rei confirmed.
The corners of Raditz's lips tugged upward into a large grin. "Thanks."
"I'll see you next ladies' night." Rei gathered her things and went back out with her umbrella.
The bartender cleaned, locked up, and headed upstairs. When he fell back on his bed, he let out an exhale that could only come out of a man that was smitten.
"Uh oh, I know the love bug when I hear it." Nappa spoke as he poked his head out of the bathroom.
"Shit, Nappa!" Raditz scrambled to sit upwards. "What are you doing here? I thought you were taking a personal day." He was rather surprised by how distracted he was; he couldn't sense Nappa in the apartment.
"Oh, I was really making the most of it. Everything was going explosively, until a pipe burst at Ami's apartment. Now I'm showering and crashing here for the night. Hope that's cool with you, buddy." The taller gentleman explained while he pulled on a shirt.
"You only call me 'buddy' when Vegeta kicks you out." Raditz's eye twitched and he crossed his arms.
"Irrelevant. Just drop the scowl and tell me her name," Nappa demanded.
"Hino Rei," Raditz sighed. "That woman was the closest thing to a Saiyan I've ever met."
"You got her number?"
"No." He shook his head with a frown. Raditz then looked over the amulet and admired the calligraphy for the blessing. Out of curiosity, he turned it around and saw her name along with the title of the shrine. "But now I know her place of work." He grinned wolfishly. "I know I said this before I opened, but working ladies' night is going to be unforgettable."