Chapter Twenty Seven
Ah've never thought Ah'd say it, but Ah am happy to be back at work. Not that being in the new Institute was bad, but Ah have gotten out of habit to be confined in one place, seeing the same people day in and day out. Rem was a pain of course, since he wasn't used to that either, never was, I suppose. His wounds healed in a month, but he didn't start teaching again since Lance took his place. Why break the sweat? He might've fooled everybody else, but Ah caught him several times coaching Lance. They've gotten surprisingly close over these months. They know the same pain of living on the streets, maybe now they'll have good stuff to share too.
As Ah was saying… Ah am back at the Coliseum, waitressing mah days away. Only when Ah've put on mah uniform today (black Capri pants with golden ornaments and matching backless vest like top (it is freaking hot in here not to mention we run back and forth all the time; so the state of undress is not just for sexy appeal) every restaurant has its own uniform for its staff), that Ah realized how much Ah missed the place. The girls and guys Ah work with, the people bustling around, even the atmosphere!
Ah might've given the wrong impression so far; Coliseum is not only for rich people, especially considering the fact that you can't exactly get rich looking not like, well, a human being. Mah point here is that not all restaurants are expensive, some are quite affordable for middle class and the facilities for children are very cheap.
So where am Ah? Oh yes, standing in front of one of the tables, reciting mah usual speech in mah usual enthusiastic work voice smiling from ear to ear. "Welcome to "Fortesque", Ladies and Gentlemen. Our restaurant specializes in French cuisine, but we also have a variety of Italian, Spanish, Chinese, Japanese, Cajun-"
"Cajun?" one of the guests grunts.
"Yes. Please, feel free to call meh when you are ready to order. Ah'll be your waitress for today. Mah name is-" Fuck. Mah built up professionalism stops meh from saying it out loud. The whole bloody company is here. Ah am working in two restaurants and the casino bar, the work schedule is totally irregular, Ah have about fifty tables in total, so what are the chances of Logan and Co to end up at mah table?! Zero! Somebody squeaked… And that colleague of mahne will not get anything Swamp Rat promised her for this intel. Not a chance!
But let's remain calm and professional. So what if Lance, Kitty, Kurt, Ororo and Scott are staring at meh as if Ah turned into the Dark Phoenix? Logan has the decency to stare… somewhere else. Ah'll just work with them as any other clients, that's all. Yeah, keep telling yourself, gal.
"Here are the menus, call meh when you are ready." With that Ah turn on mah heels and get out of there and to the kitchen as fast as possible. Yeah, very professional.
For the next half an hour Ah am followed by at least one pair of eyes. What's their deal? What's the point of seeing how Ah work? Still, Ah have six other tables full of hungry people, so why should Ah focus mah attention on that bunch?
Kurt finally raises his three fingered hand and Ah make a bee-line for them as any other proper waitress would. It doesn't mean that Ah want to get rid of them as soon as possible. Not at all.
"Have you decided?" Ah ask with the utmost politeness. Don't want to screw up that promotion. They keep staring at meh, Ah keep standing there like an idiot. "Should Ah come later?" Ah break the staring match. Don't they understand that Ah am for real? Haven't they been to a restaurant before?
"I will have number eleven and forty two." Have Ah mentioned that Ah love Storm?
The other orders reluctantly follow. "And for the drinks?"
"Chardonney, year 1994." Okay, now it is mah turn to gape rather unprofessionally, because how the Hell could Logan know something like that? And what's with the small smile on Ororo's lips? Someone has been tasting wine together lately, hah?
"As you wish." Keep your face straight, Marie. Just another table, another bunch of clients. "Are you here on vacation?" Ah am not being nosy, Ah am just doing mah job, meaning attempt to advertise other services of our establishment. Okay, Ah am being nosy, cause Ah need to find out what they are doing here. What if they appear at mah tables for the whole week?!
"Kinda," Kitty blurts out, before anyone can contradict her. Kurt's guilty muzzle tells meh everything – they are checking on meh. For whatever reason.
"Have a good vacation then. Don't miss the Ying Yang show. It starts at midnight." Bloody Hell, Pyro must pay meh for the publicity! Ah tell that to everybody! On autopilot.
With that Ah depart and appear again only with their dishes. No words are exchanged except for polite necessities. At least now they are eating and not following all mah movements. Next two hours they are eating, Ah am working (glancing at their table from time to time since they are mah clients), everything is going smoothly, they seem to be having a good time Logan included, at least they are having good food, cause our chief is quite a master. Here Ah go, advertising again, huh.
"Would you like dessert?" Professional and smiley, no fault can be found.
"What would you recommend?" Scott asks nonchalantly, looking through the menu. Ah am ready to burst. They are testing meh!
"Number three, eleven and thirteen," Ah rap out, quite near to losing mah mask of professionalism. But it won't do meh any good, since there are cameras everywhere and not to watch the inappropriately behaving guests, but also the staff and their service that must be up to the Coliseum standards, so there is no way Ah am going to snap. Maybe later, hitting the locker door, or even better: having some angry sex with Remy, since he has to pay for mah exposure anyway. Yeah, that's a good idea.
They agree for mah recommendation and Ah am already counting seconds for them asking for the check. When they do, Ah smile for real, because that means Ah am finally going to release mah breath. Fat chance.
"When does the casino open?" Lance asks unnaturally indifferent. It's obvious he has never been to one before.
"The casino is opened from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m."
"And… will, um… he, like… be there?" Kitty stutters almost cutely. Ah restrain a chuckle. Keeping of the charade is not as easy as creating it.
"Yes, from eight till four. But… Ah don't recommend this attraction on full stomach."
Obviously, mah out of the context comment brings confusion onto the five faces. As for Logan, well… He's seen it all. Even he admits he will leave Remy's table with empty pockets. Before Ah am bombarded with questions, Ah write a couple of words on a napkin and leave to meet them two hours later in the hotel entrance hall.
…
"So what's all that mystery about?" Lance demands, sounding and looking quite irritated. "And what's with that outfit?"
The outfit he is referring to is a light robe that we put on the uniform while we are in between the locker room and the actual place of work. But Ah am not going to explain that to somebody who is speaking to meh with such a tone, dammit.
"Well, you tell meh, why you dropped on meh like this! Ah doubt you all miss meh only after a couple of months."
"We brought the kids to the arcade. It's a four day field trip," Ororo explains to mah tormented self.
"Why didn't you call then? If you were planning to spy on meh and Remy then exercise some discretion! Ah am bloody working here!" Ah hiss through mah teeth, because Ah can't very well shout in the hallway, even if Ah dragged them into a niche for us not to be seen by the hotel personnel.
"We are sorry, Marie, we didn't know we were unwelcome here." Oh, and here is the reproach. Reproach for not being one of them anymore, of treating them like strangers, for not jumping from joy upon seeing them… Well, there are right to some extent, but Ah have feelings too and responsibilities.
Ah take a deep breath to get mahself and the situation under control. "This is a public place, you can go wherever you want. Ah am nobody here, so… let's forget it all. As for you lot going to the casino… You are all twenty one so Ah can't forbid you, but Ah am warning you – don't get near Remy's table. He'll work you over without blinking an eye. If you want to have money for your bill, don't even think about playing on his table. Any other table is fine, but not on his, okay?"
"But we want to see him at work! He is such a celebrity here!" Kitty weans like a little girl without a candy and not a married woman. Gosh! She'll never change.
Ah sigh with relief. "Watching and playing are two different things, people. If you only want to see him in action then Ah can arrange for you to sit in the… well, we call it 'lounge'. My shift at the casino starts at ten, we have about forty minutes. So who is in?"
Surprisingly they all are. Even Scott. His reason – he wants to know what the fuss is about. Logan has disappeared somewhere. So after informing Lucrecia of meh bringing guests to the staff quarters, we enter the maze of the inside hallways of the Coliseum.
"The room where you are going to spend, well, at least three hours, Ah suppose, is a sorta resting room for the casino personnel. It is also a place for interns."
"Interns? You also teach mutants here?" Kurt interrupts meh. There goes mah feeling of superiority.
"They are mutants, yes, but they are casino interns, future dealers mostly. The room has a screen with all casino camera feeds, so they can even zoom in at the dealers' hands. They'll show you everything you need, but don't mess with them. Ah don't know who will be present today, but Ah am warning you just in case. Some of them are very hardcore about their choice of profession."
Ah swipe mah card over the lock and push the door to the room that has different meaning to each member of the casino staff. For some, it's a place to exchange gossip, to have a cup of coffee, to rest throbbing legs, to clear one's head. For Remy and meh – it's a sanctuary, because it is the only place our ways intersect during the working hours and only two times a week.
"Come in, don't be shy." No, that's not meh. These are four gorgeous girls in their full sexy casino gear.
And indeed, when Ah turn around, mah guests are just standing there, expressions of shock (on Kitty and Ororo) and another kind of shock on the guys' faces. Ah doubt any of them saw so many beautiful girls at once. Well, Coliseum's casino is famous for that too. Sometimes, Ah don't understand what Ah am doing in the same batch as them.
Ah discard mah robe, earning another dose of shocked glances (as if Ah care, complain to the management if you don't like mah uniform) and leave the still dazed guests in the care of three interns who are already actively discussing the going ons in the casino.
…..
Ah come back to the lounge a bit before midnight – it's dinner time. The Colisuem's guests are all watching Pyro and Quing's show, so the majority of the staff can take a long break. And that includes Lucky Bastard too, otherwise Burgess would make him work non-stop, that's for sure. Upon mah arrival the company is engaged in an active debate about something. Not that Ah mind, but bloody Hell can they be not so loud?
"Merde, why are you so loud, people?"
The room turns silent in an instant. Remy does have that effect on people. Well, Lucky Bastard has that effect on casino staff. It can be easily assumed that with him being so popular, even being named one of the attractions of the Coliseum, other dealers will seethe with jealousy. Well, they do, but they also know how much he works to get that attention, and they are not jealous of that in the slightest. Obviously, the females are all over him, the interns… treat him like a Gud. That's why when Lucky Bastard says to shut up, no noise will be made until he permits it. And Remy, being the screwed up egoist he is, uses this to the fullest. This time, Ah have to agree however. They all were too damn loud.
"So we have company today, heh," Remy remarks, stretching out on his couch. Not that he owns the piece of furniture or anything, but it just became his through means Ah don't want to know about.
"As if you didn't know," Ah snap, deliberately sitting down onto his legs, which is not comfortable at all after he stood for three hours. Cajun grunts in pain, but doesn't push meh off, must be feeling guilty for sprouting them on meh like that.
"Calm down, child, this all is a big misunderstanding," Ororo takes the word in her soothing voice. Sometimes… she makes meh wonder… what does such a woman sees in Logan? "The children demanded to get out of mountains after the long winter. The only trip that could be arranged fast and with less casualties, was to this place."
"Casualties?" Remy chuckles. He looks asleep, but Hell he is, he listens to every word.
"Imagine thirty crazy teens barricaded inside the kitchen, the only source of food at the whole range."
"Speaking of food… Jacque, mon ami," Remy contacts one of the waiters assigned to staff via his ear-bud. "We are ready for the fabulous dinner from your not less fabulous chief. So there will be Remy, Marie, Tracey, Orlando, Isaac… You guys wanna eat?" he addresses our guests but only Lance and Kurt nod in affirmation. "And two more, put them on Remy's tab."
"Take arms off the table," Tracey whispers right into Kitty's ear, making the latter jump and remove her arm from the table lid as if it was burning iron.
"You like scared me like half to death," Kitty whispers back with clear annoyance in her tone. "Why are you whispering anyway?"
"He is sleeping."
If it wasn't for Remy sleeping, Ah would've laughed out loud at Kitty and others' lost expressions. Even Scott looks as if he is in the wrong place. The silence is… seriously funny. The interns sit like statues because they know the routine or unwritten rules, however you like to look at it. First rule is that the sound from the video feed must be turned off the moment Remy enters the lounge. They even put it on timer now, midnight – sound is off. Second – Remy likes to sleep before dinner. Not that he likes to sleep at midnight per se, but he just knocks himself out for ten-fifteen minutes. Recharges, Ah suppose. Newbies always wake him up with their screams, seeing only his tattooed eye open.
"Is it normal to sleep at work here?" Kurt asks Tracey in a hushed tone. Thank you, Kurt, you are always so understanding.
"Personnel are allowed to do anything they want during resting time," Tracey recites. She will never be a dealer with such attitude, but she is actually more into casino architecture and stuff.
"Anything?" Lance, you perv.
"Everything is recorded by Lucrecia. All indiscretions will be reported and then nothing good comes out of that."
Even if everybody who is not part of the Coliseum's staff are dying to know who Lucrecia is, the questions are postponed by the appearance of red electrical sparks around the table and then 'poof': the trays with our dinner have arrived.
"Mein God!" Of course Kurt can't hold his amazement and expresses it in quite a loud way. "Who is this Jacque?"
"The delivery waiter in the main restaurant," Ah supply the explanation. "His power is teleportation of other objects by setting two points 'from' and 'to'. Haven't you been to the main restaurant? There are signs on every table there: 'Please, don't touch the table until your food is served' The shock is pretty severe. But he can teleport anything anywhere if the arrival point is set beforehand. Wake up already, Rem!" Ah smack mah beloved. In quote marks or not, it's for you to decide. Beloved, not smacked of course. "The food is getting cold."
And so Lucky Bastard bestows us with his awakened presence. "Orlando, show us what you've learned after dinner."
The Italian boy becomes as white as a Swed. Performing not only in front of his Mightiness, but guests as well? Ah seriously don't want to be in his shoes right now.
"But, Mister Dealer…" Orlando weans, which earns him a detraction glare from the said mister. Here Ah have to comment. There was a long discussion among interns about how to call Remy, since they cannot address him by his real last name. Calling him by his first name is disrespectful. Mister Bastard sounds… well, even more disrespectful. So Tracey – the brains of the group of interns came up with a neutral form of address. "Okay," the boy squeaks in agreement. And what else can he do? If he wants to be a dealer here, he must prove his abilities every day, every hour if needed.
The conversation is dead. Well, it is hard to talk with full mouths. Orlando throws panicking glances at his bag every other second. Ah bet his practicing deck is in there.
Out of blue, Remy stand up and heads to the intercom. "Possible cheater. Table two. Red shirt, light jacket. Possible x-ray vision. Moi deu, they never learn," he adds in the end with dismay, releasing the intercom button. "That sneaky bastard has been hanging in the casino for two hours and sat down behind the Black Jack table the moment Remy started to leave. Thought he would not be spotted that way. And what have you three been doing? You are sitting here to watch the game! Three pair of eyes and you haven't spotted him! How can you be dealers if the casino can't rely on you in this simple task?!" And Remy could've raved for quite some time, but the food is getting cold and he knows he should eat otherwise he won't be able to work. So Remy returns to his coach, staffs himself and leaves without another word.
Orlando is not relieved that his skill or the lack there of was not put on display. Because all three of them failed big time.
"Ah am sorry, guys, Ah shouldn't have brought anyone here to distract you."
"What nonsense are you like talking about, Marie? Remy can be popular, but it doesn't give him right to treat these kids like that!"
Before Ah can defend mah husband and colleague, Tracey bits meh to it. "You are wrong, Mrs. Lance. Mister Dealer has all the right to scold us for not fulfilling our duties." She may be stuck up, but she is honest and is not scared to show it.
"And what like gives him this right, I wonder?"
"50 000 dollars of pure profit a week."
And everybody deadpan, except for meh and Tracey. Orlando and Isaac must not have known the exact number.
"A thousand per hour," Ah add, but only Ah know the real price of that thousand. He doesn't talk much at home, because he is simply tired from moving his tongue during work hours, he doesn't even cook as much as he did before; we just go to Antonio's if we are home together. Putting up a fake smile is turning harder and harder every night.
"Fifty hours a week, poor boy." Ororo has sympathy for anyone, but in this case Remy deserves it. All present agree with meh too, even if they don't express it verbally.
"Oh, the flying cards trick!" Isaac suddenly exclaims.
We all turn to the screen to watch Remy doing tricks with charged cards. He went down earlier so his table is not ready for the new game yet (he deals four different games during the night) so Remy has some time to spare. Ah have no idea how he throws these sparkling cards around without them blowing up. They do 'poof' in the end, but that's another matter. Yet another trick up Lucky Bastard's sleeve.
"Ah need to go back to the bar. Should Ah lead you out now or are you going to wait till four?" Scott's rising indicates they are ready to go. "And you three," Ah turn to the ashamed youngsters, "Ah am letting you know that there is a poll running about who from all the interns will be officially hired and the winner will share the money with the fresh dealer. So do your best!"
"Who are you betting on?" Lance asks the moment we are out of the interns' earshot.
"That's a complicated matter. What's important who Remy is betting on. He knows much more about everything connected to the situation. That's why everybody else will also bet on Remy's favorite. If Ah bet against his favorite, Ah'll have a lot of cash." Nice little scheme, isn't it?
"But what if his favorite wins?" Scott, the clueless about gambling, asks.
"There is no way, we will lose this poll, guys. We are one, we will do everything for the other to win. In any undertaking."
