Rachael grabbed another another cluster of empty beer bottles and tossed them in the trash can. To tell the truth, she really didn't like the new guy. She prided herself on being the manliest of the group, even beating Lou in arm wrestles. But after Jack had hoisted a woman over his head, much to the excitement of the crowd, Rachael felt almost a little deflated. Besides, the guy was a suck-up, volunteering to help Lil mop the floor once the bar had closed. No one ever wanted to do that job. Who knows what had been spilt on there. Rachael came back to reality to realise Jack was saying something. "Rachael? Hey, you all right?" Rachael shook her head a little and gave him a stare that made grown men cower. Jack didn't even blink. "I'm fine. Why, What's it to you?" Jack shrugged. "Nothing. You just had this look on your face, like you've gone ten rounds with a boomer." Cammie stood up from behind the counter, curious. "What's a boomer?"
"A boomer's a male kangaroo, a big one. Toughest fighters I've ever seen. You get both barrels of their legs, and you're done. The claws on their feet will rip you right open."
"Oh" Rachael had seen that look in Cammie's eyes before, whenever she was absolutely smitten by a guy. Rachael snorted. Jack glanced over at her. "What?"
"You. Acting like such a tough guy."
"I was only answering her question. Besides, I'm not really even that tough."
"Could've fooled me." Rachael winced as soon as she said it. Why'd she say that? It made her sound like she liked this guy. Jack grinned. "Thanks, Rachael."
"That wasn't a compliment. I hate guys who pretend to be tough." Jack made to reply, but Cammie called him over and whispered something in his ear. Jack's eyebrows rose. "Is that so?" he turned to face Rachael again. "Cammie tells me you're the undisputed arm wrestling champion of the bar."
"Yeah, so?"
"Well, you're not the undisputed champion if you haven't beat me, are you?" Rachael strode over to the bar and thumped her arm on it. "Alright, let's do this."
"Hold on, let's say the loser has to buy the winner a beer."
"Fine."
"Excellent." Jack placed his arm on the bar and took hold of Rachael's hand. "Ready? Go." Rachael pushed on his hand with all her strength, but it didn't budge. She kept pushing, but his hand still didn't move an inch. Rachael glanced up at Jack's face to see him grinning broadly. The bastard was toying with her. He wasn't even trying to win, just keep their hands in the same spot. Eventually, he pushed, and the back of Rachael's hand slammed into the bar. Jack started laughing. Rachael glared at him. "What's so damn funny, huh?"
"Oh, just the look on your face when you realised you'd lost!" Rachael swore at him and stood up. Jack stopped laughing, but the smile stayed on his face. "Hey, calm down. That was one of the best arm wrestles I've ever had! Come on, let's have a beer. I'll pay." Rachael scowled, but sat back down. "I thought I was supposed to pay."
"Nah, it's alright. I've got it. Cheers." He held up his beer and Rachael begrudgingly clinked hers against it. He's still a suck-up, she thought.