Hours felt monotonous as she quietly worked, grateful for a corner by herself, where she could just enjoy being away from the alcohol and the noisy chatter. Don't get Rose wrong; she loves her job, in the way that she's always meeting new people and befriending regular customers and sometimes when it's late and most people are too drunk to notice, she dances to whatever tune plays on the Juke Box, not always is it the latest Jagged Stone rock song or another rock band. Some nights pop music plays, other nights rap plays and bounces off of the speakers, or sometimes even jazz, which she hadn't been aware was even on the juke box before the first time that it happened. It's when the sleepiness sets in and the work night feels rather long that she falls into one of her favorite stress relief habits.
Rose doesn't mind the noise, when she can speak and listen and be the kind of sympathetic ear that few admit to wanting when they drink their sorrows away. She gets the sad customers, the party all night ones, the just looking for a cute guy or girl to go out with, and the all around lonely ones. She sees alcoholics come in, and those that wouldn't touch alcohol at all and just want to have a place to talk or play songs on the Juke Box or have a nice cold glass of pop. Rose can almost always recognize them by the way that they come in, and she, of course, has dozens of memorized orders that familiar customers really like, for when they do come in the door.
Rose knows long shifts and spare shifts and working over shifts; she knows what it's like when the place is practically empty and super quiet. Those are the nights that she finds herself writing on unused notepads that she usually has spares of just lying around. She writes lyrics to rock music that rarely is met by the sound of her voice; most of the time, it's from the awkwardness of suppressing her passion in order to not deal with some of the very routine challenges of it. It's hard to work up stage confidence even though she can talk to perfect strangers in the quiet or the noise of bar nights.
Rose is used to the stereotypes that she never really fit; she doesn't drink alcohol at all, due to the taste and since she'd initially waited until she was the legal age to follow the rules a bit more closely. While she loves rock music and thrills over the sounds of it, the tempo of the drum, the thrum of the guitar, the blatantly honest lyrics that aren't afraid to speak what others might not say. She was never what one would call a rebel, just an optimistic, cheery girl that likes rock when others don't initially see that looking at her.
"Rose, it's getting busy again." Juleka sighs, shaking her head, and Rose smiles. Her coworker hates the crowded bar, not because of the noise or the music or the alcohol, but because sometimes the people get too rowdy or customers start trying to flirt with her. Rose isn't sure why others don't bother her so much in that way, but she's more prone to listening quietly to sob stories and cheering others up, while usually lonely people flirt with Juleka. It's weird, but Rose knows that word doesn't really spread in a bar, especially since no one has figured out that Juleka has a boyfriend and would rather not be flirted with in the least by strangers that she probably won't even so much as give a second glance beyond what work allots, even if she was single.
"I'm on it." And Rose's mini-not-quite-a-break is over. The great thing about being a bartender is that you can people watch and that you also end up with all of the funny stories of drunk happenings without having to be drunk to witness them. Rose loves the funny conversations just as much as she enjoys the feeling of being able to help someone through a rough patch in his or her marriage or when someone's lonely or has recently been dumped. Rose would eagerly give anyone a listening ear.
"I'll have a Pepsi." A man that she hasn't seen before orders; his bright green eyes draw Rose's blue ones like a magnet.
"Just a Pepsi?" The question isn't really anything personal, nor does she expect him to add alcohol, since he hasn't already ordered it. She's just used to the question, just as she's used to putting an order of food back when someone orders a bite to eat as well.
"Yeah." He frowns, "I'm just not in the mood for something else."
"Rough breakup?" She guesses, knowing that that does pull people into the bar, though usually they steer towards harder liquor to forget and not avoid alcohol altogether.
"No, it's my father." He sighs, running a hand through his pretty blonde hair, messing it up.
"Tell me about it." Rose hands him his Pepsi and just prepares to listen. She's glad that he sat down by where she was, because Juleka rarely enjoyed long, heart-to-heart conversations with their customers, though any bizarre shenanigans usually ended up in one of Juleka's novels anyway.
"He's..." The man trailed off in thought, "He's a bit much sometimes, you know? I've grown up, and yet he still tries to lead me like I'm two years old. Most of the time, it isn't that bad to handle, but I get tired of not having a say in my own life."
"Oh." Rose murmured, trying to find the words to say to reassure him; she'd never heard this pain voiced before.
"Thank you, though." He smiled, and Rose felt like she melted all the way to the floor, starting at her toes.
"You're welcome." Rose returned his smile with one of her own, "You could tell him how you feel. He probably didn't realize that you're no longer his little boy, but his grown son. Parents forget sometimes." She puzzled over how to go on, "Mom still calls me her baby."
"I've tried telling him before, but I can never get that far." Just, the sadness in those piercing green eyes broke her heart.
"How about I get you something sweet, and we just talk over something a little cheerier? Or you could pick a song to play in the Juke Box and relax?" Rose loved helping people out, but she hated watching them suffer. She'd rather joy replace sadness any day.
"You don't have to." He held up a hand, but she was already humming a Jagged Stone song under her breath as she pulled out some Pineapple Juice and poured it for him.
"It's Pineapple Juice." She answered by way of explanation, "It's on me. Just taste the sweetness of it and think sweet thoughts." Rose smiled as she moved to help out another customer regretting that she couldn't stay and talk to him longer, but Juleka was already starting to fidget ever so slightly, as if she just couldn't wait to get out of the crowd, and Rose knew better than to leave her like this. It just wasn't the friendly thing to do.
It's another day, long in its total lack of activity, that she finds herself working alone. Tuesdays aren't really known for being crowded, especially in the early afternoon, and Rose will be working alone until at least five thirty, but it will probably be seven instead. Juleka's brother had a concert that night, and Rose had volunteered to work Juleka's shift while she worked her own. Technically, that was still one shift, but Rose didn't mind an extra hour and a half bartending by herself. Quiet days meant time to either write or to talk to usually cheerier people.
"Can I get a Pepsi?" It's pretty eyes again, who had spoken to her about his father just last weekend. Rose smiled. A familiar face was always such a joy, even when it had only been the second time that she'd seen that person.
"Sure." Rose reached down and grabbed a cup to place underneath the nozzle of the machine. "It's nice to see you again." It was even nicer to have a bit of a break from the busyness to just talk to him as well.
"You too." The man paused as if just considering the fact that they didn't know each other's names yet, "I'm Adrien."
"Oh, hi, Adrien!" Rose waved with a bright smile, "I'm Rose. The other bartender was Juleka, when you came last time."
"That busy night that we spoke?"
"Yeah. So have things gotten better with your dad yet?" She always had hope that problems could be resolved and joy be brought back, even though rarely did people come by to talk to her of their joys, though that wasn't entirely unheard of either. Rose had made quite a few friends since she'd first started working here.
"Not really." Adrien sighed, shaking his head, "But I actually came just to talk to you this time."
"Oh, then feel free to tell me whatever you need to." Rose smiled, always happy when it seemed like she'd made a new friend, even though she still found herself marveling over how cute he looked. Today he wore an oversized sweater with a big picture of a cat on it, and Rose just loved cats!
"Thank you for the Pineapple Juice a few days ago. It helped me to think sweeter thoughts." Adrien admitted, quietly.
"Oh, I'm glad!" Rose rejoiced, "Just, I'd hate for you to look sad the whole night. You needed some cheering up."
"Thank you." It was quiet, and she realized that the quieter it was, the more meaning the words held. It felt different than what she knew of Rock as sometimes the volume of the voice held certain meaning that rarely can be found without it.
"You're welcome." Rose reached over to refill his Pepsi, even though he hadn't finished half of it yet.
"How long have you worked here?" Adrien asked, and the questions within his green eyes just begged to be answered.
"A few years now, about. Long enough to be friends with the other bartenders and to meet all of the regulars here." Rose grinned, "It becomes much easier in time. It's definitely not the easiest job at first." She shook her head, remembering almost falling asleep during the later shifts that always seemed so common at first. Staying up late at night may not be her forte or at least not without practice.
"I guess I never came enough to meet you." He smiled at her, and Rose grinned despite herself, despite the slight swooning feeling in her heart.
"Probably not. I'm surprised you're not at the Juke Box." Rose let it soften to a gentle smile, "It's usually where people ordering soda go to."
"I don't imagine you have Jagged Stone's latest album on there?" He teased.
"Probably not, but it's worth a shot." She was delighted that he was a fan of Jagged Stone too, though it wasn't all that unheard of to come across another fan. He was probably the biggest rock star in Paris right now, which obviously excluded the other types of music too. Paris wasn't a terrible place to have a career in music, even if it wasn't any of the places that musicians talked about making it big at.
"Has anyone played any of them lately?" He asked her, and she was grateful that he didn't just assume since she looked as sweet as she did that she wasn't a rock fan.
"No." Rose sighed, shaking her head, "The album before this one was played in entirety a few nights ago." She giggled at the memory of the sing off that had started then. Some drunken wails amid beautiful voices and some all out screaming the lyrics; it had been pretty funny, and when it had died down, Juleka had been just tired enough to relent and sing the last song on the album with Rose. It wasn't played nearly as much on the radio, nor was it anywhere near the most popular song on the album, giving them a chance to just sing together.
"Really?" Adrien's green eyes lit up, and she wondered if he'd somehow guessed that she knew the words to all of the songs on the album and wanted to sing some with her. It was a silly idea, since she hadn't elaborated on just how well that album had went over, but Rose loved the silly ideas that left you warm and fuzzy when not much else would.
"Yeah." He got up, leaving his Pepsi in front of Rose as he scrolled through in search of Jagged Stone and paid just enough to play the whole album before returning to the barstool.
"So are you a big fan of Jagged Stone too?" Adrien asked, and Rose found herself nodding along to the beat of the first song, starting as "slow" as it seemed to right now.
"One of the biggest. Juleka, her brother, Nathanael, and I just went to the Parisian concert of his about a month ago. It was really cool!" Rose smiled.
"Are you..." He trailed off, and she realized belatedly that he might think it was a double date or something.
"No, no. I'm single. We went as a whole friend group. Nathanael's Juleka's boyfriend, and Luka's older than me. Besides Luka's really good friends with a designer that he met sometime ago; I'm surprised they aren't dating yet. He really seems to like her. She was going to the concert with some friends of hers. I haven't met her yet." Rose admitted, wondering if rambling was more a sign of nerves or an awkward correction of the facts.
"Oh." Adrien looked at her so surprised that she just managed to offer him an Appetizer though he just finished his Pepsi, paid, and left. Today wouldn't be a long day just talking to Adrien then. Jagged's voice from the Juke Box was the only thing to really comfort her as she waited for either Juleka's arrival or for the busyness that night sometimes brought. She couldn't think of even a word to write down for a song right now.
"I'll try a Whiskey with a side of Pepsi." He looked tired as he sat down at the barstool, and suddenly, Rose knew what bad looked like. Adrien had bags under his eyes, and he looked more asleep than not as he sat there, head half-buried in his arms in under a half a second.
"Okay, on it!" Rose chirped, immediately pulling it out, brushing stray blonde hairs back behind her ears; she might be overdue for her next haircut.
"You're working today?" He looks up at her, and once bright green eyes just look so dull, tired, and worn.
"Yeah, I usually am." Rose shook her head, placing three glasses by him with the hope that the Pineapple Juice might calm him down, though the aching, foreboding feeling in her stomach did not make that an absolute assurance for her.
"What do you drink, when you're like this?" Rose isn't sure why it makes her feel so human and so acknowledged for just the fact that she wasn't always cheery.
"I drink water." Rose sighed, "I don't like alcohol or I drink black coffee. Mom used to give me bitter teas or even herbal teas when I was sad back at home." She leaned over the counter, catching his tired eyes in her own, more energetic but still slightly worn down eyes.
"Why? Alcohol makes people forget." He answers, and she wonders if it's more a memorized line than anything else.
"For a bit." Rose shrugged, "Water reminds me that I don't need the great things in life or at least not all of the bright flavors, and black coffee does the same. Plus, water's pretty healthy too. Mom gave me tea as 'you must feed your body good things to get through the bad.' It makes you feel better and more alive." She lays her head on her tired hands.
"Oh, can you help me then?" He asked, and Rose knew somehow that this was important, and that she couldn't just leave it behind.
"Tell me your worst memory." He flinched away from her, "Then, tell me your best one."
He gave her a funny look, but she waited patiently anyway.
"Father, a few months ago, and I fought over everything. I have to take over the family business." Those last three words were mumbled, and Rose almost couldn't hear them, "And, he's trying to train more for that, and so he was coaching me on the business. We fought, worse yet, he'd been writing me off lately and ignoring me, and now, it's like we can't stop fighting, but he told me his plans for me, what classes I'd take, how many hours I'd work, what I'd study, and I told him that I'd rather be a teacher and a dad than a fashion business CEO. I want to be a dad, not a father, not like my father." Adrien sighed, and the tears in his eyes made Rose almost reach out for him to comfort him. "I felt like such a disappointment, since I can't even design a decent outfit, let alone an Agreste original."
Rose barely kept herself from speaking after this as seconds turned to minutes, and she didn't move. Her mother had taught her to wait for the final part after all.
"Okay, okay. It was back when Mom was still alive, and we actually felt like a family, and I'd come to the kitchen of our smaller house back before Father made it big and had our mansion made. Mom likes trying to bake and cook and the fun, little things of life, and I had walked into Mom teaching Father how to dance. It wasn't anything fancy, and I think Father already knew the steps, but she was taking him through it. Mom was laughing, and when she saw me, she waved me over. I walked to them, and she wrapped her arms around me, and smushed between Mom and Father I felt so loved. Have you ever been hugged like that before? Held completely together between two people that love you so much." Already, his green eyes were beginning to look brighter.
Rose waited anyway; the story wasn't over, just beginning. This was only the beginning and maybe the middle.
"And after they let go, they didn't really let go, and Mom was teaching us how to sway together, holding hands, and I've never danced like that with anyone since. It's too 'informal,' but with Mom and Father, it was the best." The soft smile blooming at the edges of Adrien's mouth reminded Rose why she loved working here all over again.
"Do you want to stay after my shift today?" Rose finally spoke after a pause, having let him relish that memory.
"Okay." He spoke softly as he sipped the Whiskey, winced at the bitterness, and instead starting drinking the Pineapple Juice. Rose smiled; sweetness always won over bitterness, even when people weren't ready to admit it.
"It's three hours from now." Rose murmured, "It's soon, don't worry about it."
He watched her closely, startled. "Are you sure I should stay that long?"
"Yep! The Pineapple Juice and Pepsi are on me, alright?" Rose nodded, moving towards the other end, "I'll be right back. Regulars are over there, and Juleka's never served them before."
"You like her, don't you?" Adrien startles when he sees a dark haired woman stop before him, looking more awake than tired, even though she was as relaxed as someone tired might be.
"Umm..." Adrien isn't sure that there's words for the pretty blonde haired bartender who stops to remind him of sweetness and joy and yet still tells him that she's seen Jagged Stone live and loves his music. The little details somehow make up a woman, unlike any he's ever known.
"You do." Juleka shook her head, "Rose is probably the sweetest person that I've ever met."
Adrien smiled, "She is to me too. I-I mean, I do like her a little bit, but I don't know her all that well, and I come here like most people come here."
"You've barely touched your Whiskey, and that Pineapple Juice is more than half gone." Juleka shook her head, "That's her favorite too." She nodded towards his half-empty glass. "She enjoys something sweet rather than anything all that bitter, or at the very least, she endures bitterness when she has to."
"Do you think that she sees me as more than just another customer?" Adrien mumbled, half embarrassed that he was asking this of a bartender about another bartender, but he's aware that Rose is somehow different than just any other bartender.
"Rose sees everyone as someone far more than a customer. Everyone's important in her eyes." Juleka paused, "But to answer your question, I do think she has a soft spot for you. Don't ruin it." She turned around to go serve customers as Adrien watched Rose work at the other end, chattering away with three girls that had soda pops in front of them and couldn't be any older than teenagers. It was such an odd thing to watch as Rose looked like their best friend, even when she obviously wasn't a teenager.
Adrien still couldn't believe that a girl like her or more particularly that Rose worked here; it didn't seem like a job that he'd have picked for her, and yet she seemed to thrive on working here, happy as she was to serve everyone.
Rose looked sleepy as she cleaned up and packed away what little she had with her that day, and she hurried out of the bar area with a bright smile. "Adrien, come here." She waved him over to the Juke Box, tossing a dollar in without bothering to worry about spending money on a machine at her workplace as she searched for what she wanted, picking a Jagged Stone song, and guiding him to where the tables were pushed further to the side.
"What is it?" Adrien isn't sure what to do as he fidgets and looks at a woman that for as little as he'd come to known her was absolutely beautiful, inside and out.
"Dance with me." And, Adrien isn't sure why the proposal strikes such a chord with his heart as he accepts her hand, and they just sway. Rose leans close enough that he can smell the faintest perfume on her, and close enough that she can rest her head between his shoulder and his neck.
He'd be immobilized, if he wasn't following her by pure instinct. It felt far different to be in her arms than it ever had to dance with a girl at one of his father's fancy galas, and somehow it felt different than the one time that he'd danced with the youngest fashion designer at his father's company, Marinette, who wsa his age.
Rose guided him, but her steps were gentle and sure; they were not formal or awkward, just something that's so simple and it's own that he just follows her. It reminds him of his mom, even though she died when he was thirteen. Rose doesn't even let go of him, just squeezes him tighter as if she can sense the heartache that he isn't speaking of right now.
As the song ends, Rose leans up to pull her head off of his shoulder, "Make good memories. The bad ones are in the past." She pauses, "It's what Mom always tells me when I don't know what to do and really, really hurt. I can't see the good, when I am focusing on the bad. So focus on the good, Adrien, so that the bad doesn't cloud your vision any longer." She smiled.
Adrien isn't sure if he finally found good luck to have met her, or if he was just blessed to come across her or if Santa thought he'd done really good this year and gave him his Christmas gift early this year, a chance at being listened to so intently and feeling love even though it came from an almost stranger, who was loving since she first met him and even now, after talking with him for a bit.
Adrien doesn't think he deserves meeting someone like her that just leaves the world a little bit brighter than it had been before.
Maybe one day, he'd work up the confidence to tell her that she'd shown him that love wasn't impossible and that somehow he'd fallen in love with such a sweet woman that he couldn't wait to see everyday, though he knew that his father probably thought he was becoming a drunkard, if he ever saw that Adrien came to this bar so often.
Adrien just wasn't sure if there was a sweeter place than here after all, and Rose, true to her word, worked most nights. One day, he'd tell her how he felt, but right now, he just wanted to cherish every moment of right now, where things were as they were, before the next step and things might be very different and yet completely the same.