YOW everyone! I'm terribly sorry about not updating for so long – I had my yearlies 3 weeks ago and then I was just so caught up in everything else. However, I did get round to completing this, and it was extremely fun to write:D I hope you guys will take pleasure in reading it.
I'll be back on Fanfiction from now on, so this story will be officially lifted from hiatus!
Ok, I originally got the suggestion of a waiter from: Tnah, and NekoMF (I'm sorry, there's a full-stop between 'Neko' and 'MF' in the pen name, but for some reason, Doc Manager won't let me type that! I'm so terribly sorry! This is the best that I can do!)
Green waffles, anyone?
A/N: What you are about to read does happen in some real, real, extremely busy of the busiest restaurants in China, however most restaurants are more civil and calm than this, haha. I have exaggerated the conditions and atmosphere of this Yumcha restaurant quite a bit, so don't go thinking that all Chinese restaurants are like this. Really. I just couldn't resist exaggerating it, since Xanxus was working there and all^^ And for your information, Yumcha food are real, real yummyC:
Also, in this chapter, let's just say that the Arcobalenos' curse has been lifted:D
…a Yumcha waiter
BEIJING, CHINA
The Varia boss adjusted his waiter's uniform hastily – which consisted of black tailored pants and shoes, a crisp white, long-sleeved shirt, a scarlet tie, and a black waiter's vest. It was 10 minutes till opening time, and he was still filled with mixed emotions.
He cursed whilst struggling with the cuff of his shirt, and glared at the cuff once it was finally buttoned. The Mafia boss proceeded to lean against the staff lockers, before letting out an exasperated sigh.
He didn't know what to feel for this new job.
Usually, he didn't give a damn – it was just a bloody job; that was all.
However, this time, he couldn't help but feel…a little anxious. As the thought passed his mind, he brought his hands to his temples and laughed disbelievingly. Anxious? Nervous? No, that wasn't like him at all.
"Pathetic…" he spat in distaste, pushing himself off the lockers. He then tried to reason with himself.
He had been to China quite a few times before, and had often visited Beijing during his trips, as instructed by Vongola Nono. He did know the Chinese language, and wasn't too bad at it either – the Varia had to know a variety of languages, because they made frequent travels across the globe as part of their job as assassins. He actually quite liked Chinese cuisine, with the variety of dim sim [1], and some of their wine was top-class. The Varia boss made a quick mental note to purchase 'a few' bottles of wine during his stay in Beijing, before he came to the reason of his nervousness.
He had never liked the bustling, and crowded atmosphere of a Chinese yumcha. Actually, he couldn't stand it. And this was made worse for him, because the restaurant he was at, was Beijing's busiest and most popular restaurant – named the Red Phoenix Ablaze – meaning, it would be at least thrice as lively.
The ones Xanxus had gone to in China were especially for meetings or private sessions where everything was somewhat civil, and the numbers in the room would be nothing compared to what he was about to face. As stated by the head chef of the Red Phoenix Ablaze, everyone would be loud and demanding, as countless of people flood through the doors every day.
Xanxus groaned as he tried to visualise the setting of the restaurant. In his imagination, the customers were all like flies fighting for a part of a carcass, or sloppy eaters, or heavy drinkers, or- [A/N: This is just Xanxus's extremely exaggerated visualisation]
"Xanxus, it's time, hurry!" one of the employees yelled from the door, "Customers will be flooding in any minute now!"
The Varia Boss sighed deeply, and proceeded towards the door, and out into the battlefield.
Now, everything would be the exact opposite from what he had experienced in a yumcha during private conference meetings with allied Famiglia, and possibly even worse than the raucous at Headquarters.
-XXXX-
"BBQ Pork buns! Who wants BBQ Pork buns?!"
"Fried noodles, and Chinese porridge on this trolley!"
"I would like a custard bun."
"Fried rice!"
"Mummy, I want mango pudding!"
"Madam, your dim sum. Please enjoy."
"I would like a tea refill please."
Only 30 minutes had elapsed, and the yumcha restaurant was already lively with customers.
Xanxus twitched as a rude customer angrily gestured to him to come quicker with his trolley, which consisted of a variety of sweet dim sum. The man was a short, stout middle-aged man, whose face was all red due to the numerous empty bottles of liquor on his table, and his companions were no better. They were all jeering at nearby tables and waiters/waitresses, before Xanxus had arrived, and now, they were trying to give the latter a hard time.
"Che, gemme your- hiccup- your best sweet dim sum- hiccup- you buffalo," the man roared, before he and his friends all burst into violent laughter. Xanxus narrowed his eyes dangerously.
Him? A buffalo? he thought furiously, clenching his fists. He then faced the customers, with his crimson orbs flashing in fury. Oh, these trashes were going to get it…big time.
As the man and his friends continued hurling insults at Xanxus and customers nearby, Xanxus bent down in front of his trolley and gripped a plate of dim sum firmly, before rising to face the man with a sadistic grin.
"Well? Where –hiccup- is the damned –hiccup- food, you stinkin' pi-"
Smash.
The sound of a cracking plate was heard as the Mafia boss smashed a platter of green tea and red bean paste dim sum onto the man's face ruthlessly. Besides the cracking of the plate, the squelching sound of the paste being pressed onto his face was also audible. The other occupants of the table looked on horrified when Xanxus released his grip from the broken plate and growled.
"Know your place…you son of a bitches."
And with that, he rolled his trolley away to the next table.
"S-Someone! This man…" began one of the man's friends, but he was quickly drowned out by the loud chatter of the restaurant. And due to the hectic atmosphere of the place, no-one had noticed the commotion that had occurred either.
Xanxus smirked in triumph.
This was definitely to his advantage.
-XXXX-
At 11 o'clock, the atmosphere of the Phoenix Ablaze was even worse. The reek of sweat, the aroma of freshly cooked cuisines, and the overpowering fragrance of strong liquor consumed the atmosphere. Even Xanxus found it hard to keep up with all the hungry customers.
"Xanxus, a 30 minute break for you!" cried one of the employees nearby. The Varia boss nodded drudgingly, before passing his trolley full of sweet dim sum to another waiter. Afterwards, he strolled out to the balcony, which was located at the back of the restaurant to get some fresh air and to flex his muscles.
"Bloody hell…it's even worse than the happenings at Headquarters," he muttered, exhaling deeply. There was a strong breeze, and the atmosphere outside was definitely much more refreshing than inside. Xanxus ran a hand through his sleek, black hair in exasperation, before shivering at the thought of going back inside. But overall, it wasn't as bad as he expected it would be.
A large portion of the customers he had served were polite and respectful, and didn't make a huge mess of their food – unlike those bastards in the beginning. Just when he was about to get up and head back inside reluctantly, a small child entered the balcony.
Xanxus raised an eyebrow perplexedly. Why the hell is a small kid like him here in the balcony? he thought in annoyance, Didn't any of the staff scums see him as he was walking towards the back door? Since Xanxus already had the customers to deal with, he just wasn't in the mood to handle…a child.
"What are you doing here?" he snapped, irritation evident in his tone.
The small boy flinched and cowered in fear, before stammering, "I-I…I'm lost, mister!" He then added in a hurry, "Where is my mummy and daddy, mister? I'm lost!"
"Well I can see that you're lost trash," Xanxus growled as he glared at the boy, and when he saw that the boy was about to cry, he softened his glare and sighed. Just what a day I am having today…
The Mafia boss strode past the boy and beckoned to him to follow him into the busy restaurant.
-XXXX-
"Ching, did any trashes come looking for a small boy?"
"Eh? A small boy? Hmm…show me his face," the young Chinese man instructed, whilst he typed on his keyboard, "Ah, I see him…hmmm, let me see…Ah here! Yes, around 20 minutes ago a couple came up to this reception desk looking for the boy – they even gave me a photo."
"M-Mummy and Daddy?"
"Yes yes lil' 'un," Ching smiled reassuringly, "I'm sure they'll come for you –we'll put an announcement over the speakers now…Actually, Xanxus, you go do that –I've got to answer a voicemail now."
Xanxus groaned and gestured for the boy to follow him into the back of the reception counter. After taking the large microphone speaker and holding it near his mouth, he spoke indifferently, "We've got a small boy at the reception – take him now, trashes."
"Hmm, clear and concise…I like that," grinned Ching after turning to Xanxus. A few minutes later, the Chinese man noticed the anxious couple rushing towards the reception, and spoke to the small boy. "Your mummy and daddy are here now little one, go on."
Xanxus rubbed his temples as the boy was reunited with his parents. This is finally over, he thought in slight relief. It was then that the boy's parents walked towards him and thanked him with happiness from looking after their son.
"Thank you, Mister!" cried the small boy in glee, whilst in his mother's arms.
Xanxus exhaled deeply once again, and waved them away.
-XXXX-
There were only 2 more hours till closing, and the restaurant was still as lively as ever. Xanxus was assigned to clean the table for the next round of people in the VIP room, as well as be their waiter for the duration of their stay. When he walked outside to gather more tea cups for the table, he couldn't help but notice the number of customers still flooding in
"Screw this shit…is this ever going to end, dammit?" he cursed, as he strode back in the room and placed disinfected tea cups onto the cream white, crisp table cloth.
"Xanxus, here are some more plates," spoke a young girl at the door. Xanxus nodded emotionlessly and took the plates off her, before he examined them and smirked. If only he had his X-guns…he could have blasted these damned plates with the satisfactory pull of a trigger.
Just when he had finished placing the last plate on the table, the door opened and a female receptionist's voice sounded in the room.
"Here is your room, sir. If you need anything, please tell the waiter. Well then, enjoy yourself."
"Thank you, we will," replied the customer politely, followed by excited giggles from the children near the entrance.
That voice was just all too familiar.
"Hmm, who do we have here?" the Chinese man said, pulling out a chair, "The Ninth did tell me that you were working here, but I didn't expect you to be our waiter, Xanxus. What good timing."
Xanxus looked up from what he was doing, and his eyes met the man's black ones in surprise and fury.
Fong only stared back with an amused smile.
-XXXX-
Xanxus took a few seconds to regain his composure. He hardened his gaze and growled coldly, "What the shit are you doing here?" Unconditional wrath consumed his physique, which led him to crush a tea-cup in rage – he had already enough of the customers at the sweat-reeked restaurant outside, he had already enough serving dim sum in such a crowded atmosphere, and now…this.
"Please don't use colourful language in front of the children, Xanxus," Fong replied calmly, whilst skilfully pouring tea into Fuuta's, I-Pin's and Lambo's tea cups. The Chinese man then turned to the children and smiled gently, "Tell the man what you would you like to eat."
Xanxus's breath came out in a hiss when the children's eyes were directed at him in a curious manner.
"Master, we see this man before?" I-Pin questioned interestedly at her master, after staring at Xanxus.
"Guppaa! Lambo-san wants grape jelly!" the cow-child cried excitedly, holding one chopstick in each hand hungrily. He then faced I-Pin with a perplexed expression, "What man?"
"Ah! We have seen him!" exclaimed Fuuta triumphantly, with an imaginary light bulb flashing above his head, "He's the Va-"
"Fuuta, let's leave that aside for now and order the food, otherwise we won't have enough time to eat," Fong interrupted civilly, gesturing towards Xanxus.
Fuuta closed his mouth and nodded obligingly, before giving the Varia boss his order. "BBQ pork buns and custard tarts sir!"
"Lambo-san wants grape jelly, green pear jelly and raspberry cake!" Lambo declared, standing on his chair, "Oi you, gimme some candy too. Lambo-san wants candy!"
"Lambo, so rude! No raspberry cake and candy at yumcha!" his friend reprimanded him, before turning to Xanxus and giving her order politely.
"I-Pin want Chinese porridge with wonton, rice noodle and prawn dim sum," she said, "Master, what you going to eat?"
Fong shook his head slightly, smiled and patted her on the head, "I won't have anything – I'm not very hungry at the moment, but I would like some Oolong tea. It's my treat today, so you 3 eat all you want." The 3 children nodded happily and cheered in response.
After writing all their orders down in a small notepad, Xanxus strode out of the room gruffly and proceeded towards the kitchen. He tore out the order note and pinned it next to the other orders along the order string. The Mafia boss then grabbed a teapot of hot Oolong tea carefully into the VIP room, and set it down neatly on the table, which earned him a word of 'Thanks' in Chinese from Fong.
A few minutes later, the door opened and a woman brought in the dishes in a trolley before handing it over to Xanxus.
"Yay! Food is here!" cried I-Pin cheerfully, along with Lambo and Fuuta.
Xanxus brought the orders over and placed them on the spinning wheel [2] in front of the children, who began digging in happily. Afterwards, he turned on the television, much to the trio's delight and began to busy himself by collecting the spare utensils from the table.
While the children were engrossed in devouring the dim sum, Fong turned to Xanxus, "Xanxus, in response to your first question, I'm just here on a sales trade with an overseas company," he explained, then gingerly sipped his tea before continuing, "The children are here with Sawada Nana and her son, the Poison Scorpion and Reborn because they won a raffle ticket concerning a trip to Beijing."
Xanxus once again glowered dangerously, and his hand gripped the plate tightly. Sawada Tsunayoshi…that bastard.
Fong's eyes twinkled with amusement at the latter's expression. "And so we've just met up - Sawada Nana asked me to take the children to a yumcha because she had something to take care of with her son, while the Poison Scorpion took Reborn on shopping."
"Tch, I couldn't care less," Xanxus replied icily, walking away. He checked the clock on the wall and grimaced.
30 more minutes until closing time…
-XXXX-
"Master, where we go now?"
"We're going to go to an amusement park now," the Chinese man replied as he walked beside the children towards the reception. Xanxus followed behind curtly in the same direction to find Ching. And as if right on cue, Ching came out and yelped in surprise, then came round the front of the reception to greet Fong.
[Dialogue is in Chinese]
"Fong, long time no see, my friend!" cried Ching, clasping his friend's hands tightly and shaking them up and down, "Did you have a good time here?"
"It's nice to see you again, Ching," Fong replied beaming, "It's great to see that you're doing well, and we had a wonderful time."
"Ah the children!" Ching exclaimed, letting go of Fong's hands to pat Fuuta, I-Pin and Lambo on the head whilst crouching down. He then caught sight of a slightly surprised Xanxus, who had absolutely no idea that they were good friends. "Ah! Fong, was Xanxus your waiter? He's a new recruit you see – how was he?"
At the question, Fong turned to Xanxus and smiled mysteriously, before facing Ching once again.
"Ah yes, he was...a very amusing waiter."
-XXXX-
NAME: Xanxus
OCCUPATION: Yumcha waiter
STATUS: EMPLOYED TEMPORARILY AT THE RESTAURANT
[1] For those who don't know, dim sum are a range of Asian morning tea dishes that are served during a yumcha. They may be steamed or fried, and can be savoury or sweet. There are a range of dim sum and most of them are real delicious!~
[2] If you haven't seen one before on a restaurant table, a spinning wheel is a large glass/wood/any other material wheel, in which food are placed on top of, so that they can be rotated around the table by spinning the wheel. (Usually present on large tables)
Whao, finally he's employed for more than one day at the same place!:D
Also, many thanks to the person who suggested that Fong should appear during Xanxus's Yumcha occupation! My sincerest apologies -I've been trying to find in all my PMs and reviews as to your name, but I've had no luck in doing so. My apologies, but thank you very much for the suggestion!
Hey guys, I would love some feedback on this chapter, and also what Xanxus should do in the next chapter as part of his continuation in his occupation in the Red Phoenix Ablaze!
Please include your views in a review, or you can PM me! I'm looking forward to seeing your ideas! Make them funny!
Actually, I just had an idea – relate them to Christmas! Xanxus being a Santa Claus in the restaurant as an attraction! Ahaha!
Thanks guys!
-TUGB