Chapter 25
A/N Kind of like Chapter 24 part deux, I just couldn't seem to wind Alex's night up. Thanks for staying up late with her!
Alex and Christian continued to tend bar as the night gave way to the early morning. Last call was coming up quickly and the crowd was starting to thin out. Alex had watched the Z-Boyz in action with a mixture of admiration and amazement.
Tony had eventually made his way to bar after seemingly talking to every pretty girl in the place. "Hey Alex, I like your place, great scenery," he smiled happily. "Could I get another beer?" he asked pulling cash and with it two or three pieces of paper with phone numbers on them from his pocket.
"Sure, Tony, but you don't need the cash and I'm guessing Blanca didn't join you tonight or you wouldn't need those numbers," she winked at Tony.
"For sure, chica, when the Boyz take a road trip from Dogtown we check our baggage," he said downing half his beer in a gulp. "Blanca got a ride home with Skip."
"Ooh you're mean, did you have to tie her up or drug her to get her in Skip's car?" Alex teased.
"Who's being mean now? And can I have another beer?" having completely drained his first. Pointing at the empty and then his head he said, "Don't worry, one way or the other I be paying tomorrow."
Jay pushed his way urgently into the circle of skaters Stacy was talking to, arm still around the Malibu girl, either supporting her or preventing her escape, hard to tell which. "Stacy, man, give me the keys to your car."
"No way Jay"
"No, come on really. Me and umm….her want to go out and get to know each other better," Jay pleaded, arching his eyebrows for emphasis.
"No really, no way Jay"
"Cold bro, cold," Jay said shaking his head sadly. He turned to Alex with his latest revelation; "We can all go back to your house and continue the party!"
"Still working here Jay, and really, just no way," Alex turned him down with a smile.
Christian heard the conversation and mused aloud, "There's that coat room on the left near the front door that really doesn't get a lot of use."
Jay pointed at Christian and saluted; "You are a great bartender," as he steered the girl in that direction.
"You shouldn't encourage him," Peggy said wagging her finger at Christian.
"Well if it buys me some more time to talk to you then it's worth it," Christian turned on the charm as Stacy and Alex exchanged 'how about that pair' glances.
By now the bar had officially closed and people were being encouraged to finish their drinks and leave, or as Mick would say while escorting lingering patrons towards the exit, "You don't have to go home, luv, but you can't stay here". A further enticement for leaving was bringing up the house lights. It was always amazing how the cute person you were drinking with in the dimly lit bar went down a few pegs on the 1 to 10 scale as the lights came up. Alex and Christian and the other employees busied themselves counting up the registers and locking down bars.
"Mick, would it be ok if a couple of my friends stayed for the post mortem? I didn't have a chance to introduce you to the skaters we were talking about before," Alex asked. She was referring to the private drinks the employees would unwind with after the bar closed.
Jay chose that moment to sashay back into the room, solo this time. "Sent home another satisfied customer," he grinned, "what's next dudes?"
"Well I guess if they're sending them home happy, they can stay," Mick said in Jay's direction.
"Jay, meet Mick, my boss," Alex said hopefully conveying a warning in her voice for Jay to please behave himself.
"Hi Mick, nice to meet ya; cool place you got here, dug the music and the chicks." Jay answered very reasonably, shaking his hand.
Tony pried his arm from around a very pretty girl and introduced himself. "Yeah dude the music was bitchin', why don't you turn it back up if we're gonna hang?"
"Pleasure's all mine gents," Mick said, "If you want music Tony, go up to the booth and DJ. The staff and I are on to our nightcaps."
Jay's roving eye zeroed in on a series of ramps towards the back of the dance floor that were used to wheel equipment and supplies to the stage and kitchen. "Stacy, check those out, they would be fine to carve."
Stacy's eyes lit up at the prospect. Nothing brought him out of his shell like the chance to skate. "Hi Mick, I'm Stacy, Alex has told me lots of great things about you and, ah working here. She didn't mention how great this space would be to skate though. So, your son skates? Has he tried out these ramps?"
Mick was leaning back against the bar, looking amusedly at Stacy vigorously shaking his hand, "so you are the beloved blonde, eh? Alex has told us lots of great things about you too. Holds you in high esteem, she does. Brilliant watching you blokes skate today, by the way. So, you fancy a run at our equipment ramp?"
"Oh yeah" Stacy and Jay said in unison.
"Well have at it then!" Mick settled in atop the bar in anticipation of a little entertainment.
In the days of my youth, I was told what it means to be a man,…
Good times, bad times
You know I've had my share.
Led Zeppelin's Good Times, Bad Times came crashing out of the speakers, courtesy of Tony's DJ efforts. Stacy and Jay ran out to get the skateboards and in no time they were skating over the stage, down the ramp and out onto the dance floor with ever more daring maneuvers. Peggy joined in and finally TA appeared out of the DJ booth saying, "Yeah let's do it!" He led the pack on grinding the bar's brass foot rail and popping back up onto the stage.
The assembled bar staff sat atop the bar cheering them on and saluting them with various libations. Stacy finally slid to stop in front of Alex as she held a beer out towards him. "Incredible!" he opined leaning back between Alex's knees as she sat up on the bar. "We should get the lights going again, that'd be far out to skate to."
"Come on, I know how to turn them on," Alex said giving his torso a squeeze between her thighs. "I'll show you."
"It's not just the lights you can turn on," Stacy whispered into her ear, leaning his head back onto her shoulder.
"You're no slouch yourself, skater boy. Come on with me," she instructed pushing herself off the bar and basically onto his back. He piggy backed her down off the bar and they headed across the dance floor to the DJ booth. They got into the darkened confines of the booth and Alex started flipping switches to bring up the dance floor lights and strobes as Stacy wrapped his arms around her from behind and held her tightly. "Boy, you must really like to skate with a light show," she quipped, able to feel every bump and bulge in his contour in this uncharacteristically passionate embrace in a semi-public place.
Stacy nibbled on her neck and answered slowly, "Yeah, but what I really liked was watching you all day. It was cool watching guys watching you behind the bar and knowing you were mine." He spun her towards him and slid his hands into the back pockets of her jeans, pressing his hips into hers.
"Oh yeah, every body loves the girl who controls the booze," she said lightly, torn between the uncertain professional behavior of making out in a dark back room at her job and the delicious sensation of being pressed up against the light board with Stacy whispering in her ear.
"And then there was the movie, that was pretty hot too," Stacy breathed, pushing her further back on the light board so her legs crept up around his thighs.
"What about the movie?" Alex said suddenly brought back to earth, "What happened in the moo..."
Stacy silenced her query with a deep kiss that made her head, followed by her whole body, swim as Stacy leaned her back and hovered over her on the light board.
There it was again, that overly familiar sound of skateboard wheels, immediately punctuated by Jay bursting through the door, "What the hell are you doing with the lights? It's impossible to skate to. They go up, they go down. Oh, I got it!" he said starting to laugh as he caught sight of them. "Get a room, dudes, or at least get Alex's ass off the light switch!"
Stacy breathed a deep sigh and turned around, just a little unsteadily, to face Jay with a death stare.
But Jay just spread his hands and said; "Don't let me interrupt, just telling you that TA and I are not gonna be able to ride home with you lovebirds, Tony's chick has a friend that needs my company at her stately Malibu mansion." And with that he skated back out of the room.
Alex eased herself off the light board and smiled at Stacy, "Far out, may I request your company at my Dogtown domicile?"
"We still gotta drive Peggy home, and honestly I think I should spend some time with a cup of coffee before we head out. Thought it was just you making me light headed, but I'm thinking the beer might be catching up with me," Stacy said leaning his head against hers.
"Sure babe, come on, we'll check out the kitchen, grab some coffee and see if we can find something to snack on. And with Peggy, I bet if I asked Christian he would give her a ride home, he seemed pretty into her." Alex was starting to come up with a plan.
"Yeah, he did seem pretty into her. But, ah, is that how he operates with chicks? I mean would it be ok to let him drive Peggy home? Stacy asked, some concern creeping into his voice. "I mean, Christian seemed cool enough, but Peggy's a teammate and a friend, I don't want to look like we're abandoning her." Stacy took a sudden interest in looking at his Vans.
Alex couldn't help smiling at the bowed blonde head in front of her; "Why don't we run it by Peggy? Christian's no player like Tony, don't worry." She raised Stacy's chin with one finger and planted a soft kiss on his cheek, "then again he's not nearly as sweet as you are."
"That's me, so sweet I'm good enough to eat," he said cocking one eyebrow suggestively and pulling her into another kiss. The lights in the room popped on startling them apart. "Dammit, I leaned on another switch," blurted Stacy. "Let's go back down before we embarrass our selves any further."
Following Stacy hand in hand Alex mentioned, "if everything works out with getting Peggy home safely, maybe we could stay here tonight. The studio that's attached to the Jolly Roger has an apartment all set up, you know, so bands can crash there. Mick always says any of the staff can stay if no one's recording. Just a thought, then you wouldn't have to drive tonight at all."
"Really? That wouldn't be a problem for you?" Stacy asked.
"No, it would be fun, I think," she squeezed his hand, "oh, and it has a round water bed."
"Let's go say good night to that lovely couple, Peggy and Christian." Stacy replied without hesitation.