Kalifa was having the most fun she'd had in ages.

"And that's another strike!" she cried, running up and down the aisle with her hand out. Most of her partners slapped her hand. Kaku slapped it twice for Lucci, seeing as he was still in rotten shape. But Jabra crossed his arms and glared at her.

"Absolutely not! You're cheating!"

Kalifa giggled.

"It's called using your resources to your advantage," she stated, and slapped Jabra's cheek instead.

"Well I say it's not fair!" responded Jabra, rubbing his cheek, "How come the manager isn't noticing all the soap bubbles everywhere?"

"Oh I'm sure he's noticing," said Kaku, unwrapping Lucci's bandages, "he's just too scared to ask."

Lucci began swatting at Kaku.

"I told you, I can do that myself," he snarled.

"Oh really?" said Kaku, raising an eyebrow and stepped aside, "Alright then, kitty-cat. Go ahead."

Lucci sniffed and began fumbling with the bandages.

"Oh come on, Jabra!" said Kalifa, tightening up her shoelaces, "Lighten up a bit! It's my birthday after all! I haven't celebrated like this is forever!"

"Fine," Jabra grunted, "but I'll have you know that next time, you won't get any special treatment from me!"

Fukuro laughed, but after a quick glare from Kalifa, he zipped his mouth shut.

"For the birthday girl," said Blueno, setting down a margarita on Kalifa's table.

"Thank you, Blueno!" said Kalifa, sipping from the drink. It tasted divine. CP9 wasn't allowed to drink for the fear of intoxication perventing them from engaging in their missions. But Kalifa had tried a margarita once at one of the big Galley-La parties, and hadn't forgotten them since.

"For the rest of you, scotch, and for Lucci, water."

Lucci groaned. His face was covered in shreds of bandage, and he felt humiliated. That damned Straw Hat…

"Here," said Kaku, sighing exasperatedly. He plucked off bits of bandage and unrolled a new strip. Applying some rubbing alcohol, he then wrapped the strip around Lucci's head several times before fastening it with a clip.

"Better," said Luci begrudgingly.

Kalifa's turn came once more, and she stepped up to the lane. Aiming carefully, she reached her arm back before shooting the ball forward. As soon as the ball left her fingertips, she realised she'd used a bit too much force. The ball slammed into the pins, but it didn't stop there. It dug into the back wall and exploded the machinery, leaving a large cloud of smoke in it's place. Kalifa turned around sheepishly to the sound of her partner's laughter.

"I don't even know what I should record that as!" cackles Kaku, his pencil hovering over the score sheet. Kumadori nearly dropped a ball on his foot, he was laughing so hard. Fukuro tried to resist it, but he unzipped his mouth and began howling. Even Lucci cracked a smile.

A small spindly man walked up to the group nervously.

"Umm… I'm very sorry," he stuttered, "but I'm going to have to ask you to leave." He finished, gulping.

"Sorry about the mess!" said Kalifa, "Is there anything we can do to help clean up?"

"No, nothing at all. Please, just go."

"Alright then," said Kalifa, picking up her margarita glass, "Can we take these with us?"

"Sure, sure…" said the man, eager to get rid of the group.

"Thank you!" said Kalifa, taking another sip. "Let's get going, guys."

The men continued to laugh, until Kalifa punched each one (save for Lucci) and dragged them out the door by their heels.

A.N.: Have I mentioned yet how much I love CP9? This story actually originated from the title page of Chapter 508 of the manga. I really loved the idea, and wanted to give it a backstory. Reviews, Favourites, Subscriptions, and Requests are welcomed and much appreciated! But that's it! That completes the month of April! It was a fun ride, but now it's off to May. So I'll see you on May 1st for the May List of Birthdays!