Who: Ryder Adams & Rhys Hunt What: A First Meeting When: Jan 29th, evening Where: Tooth & Nail Rating: Low
Rhys Hunt was a regular at Tooth and Nail, both in the ring and also outside of it, he liked to fight hard but drank harder. It didn't hurt that a member of his pack happened to tend bar at the very same place where he had gainful employment which meant he normally got good conversation and sometimes a little extra in his glass. This evening however his fellow packmate didn't appear to be anywhere in sight but that didn't deter Rhys from settling up on a stool and tending to a small cut on his cheek which by a normal person's standards would be enough to shatter the bone beneath but not for Rhys, the perks of being a werewolf.
He swept his hand through his short cropped but longer on the top hair which by this point was damp with sweat but thankfully contrary to vampire popular belief he didn't smell like wet dog and therefore he felt quite comfortable to settle up for a drink before hitting the showers. He'd had a good bout and he'd won more to the point so that was definitely worth celebrating so the sooner he got his hands on a drink the better.
Now all he had to do was catch the bartender's attention.
Catching the bartender's attention wasn't difficult. Ryder had spotted the other man more than once - watched him fighting and seen him propping up the bar, talking to one of his colleagues - Kira (the one who had a habit of hugging him). He thought maybe they were dating; they had an easy way of communicating and more often than not he was there, making her laugh and teasing her in a way that he'd only seen siblings and lovers do. And they definitely didn't look like siblings (but then again, not everyone had such strong familial resemblances as he and Colbie used to).
The two of them smelt similar, the smelt like the people that he'd run from in the hospital. He hadn't been in LA long and since he'd been isolating himself as much as possible outside of work, it was easy for him to not know who was what through scent alone. And he didn't really think it appropriate to just flat-out ask even though he knew that was the only way he'd really learn.
Today, though, Kira wasn't working which meant that the guy wasn't immediately caught up in conversation. He thought about sending someone else - the Fae that worked behind the bar who always wore low-cut tops and flirted with the fighter whenever he was around - but then realised that wouldn't work; the other servers were all busy with customers and though there was starting to be a bit of a lull as the next round of fights was about to start so people would leave, the lack of anyone else to do it meant that Ryder was rubbing the back of his head, scratching underneath his ear and moving across to the guy.
The guy who he'd been watching for a while. Not that he'd say that out loud. That was creepy.
"Beer?"
If Rhys had any idea of the thoughts going through Ryder's head he would have very quickly corrected him because Kira was pack and that might as well be more intimate than lovers but it wasn't lovers that was. Not beyond the realm of possibility in a pack but that was not the deal with him and Kira.
As Ryder approached Rhys caught his scent and tipped his head in idle curiosity because he knew another wolf when he smelt one and saw one. "Yeah, that would be good. Gotta celebrate my latest win after all." His lips tugged into a toothy grin.
"You fought well," Ryder offered, glancing at the other man and cleared his throat so that he didn't watch the way his tongue caught on the edge of his tooth as he grinned, grabbing a glass and hovering over the beers, trying to make it look like he didn't know which one was the guy's drink of choice. He was observant, after all, but he didn't want to look like he was creepy. Which he definitely wasn't, but it was easy for that to be misinterpreted.
He could feel eyes on him, so hovered his hand over the wrong lever before moving to another, and then tipping the glass underneath it, starting to pour his beer.
"I mean, it was a good fight. Got a pretty good view here and all."
Rhys tipped his head to watch the bartender as he moved around near the taps and smirked a little when he admitted that it was a good fight. It was always nice to be appreciated especially from tall dark and handsome. Rhys was after a terrible flirt and he didn't really care about the particulars provided they were of the right age and consenting, fun was simply that: fun. He hadn't met "mate" yet so he was enjoying his life as much as he could.
"Yeah? Well, that's good. I'd hate to put on a boring show."
"As if you'd ever put on a boring show," Ryder retorted, straightening out the glass and stopping the flow of beer, careful not to let it spill. Passing it over, he lifted a shoulder, watching the bubbles settle and the head slowly form atop the beer. Not too much but still a good half-inch. He was sort of proud of that one. "There's a reason you get such good odds."
His eyes flicked up from the beer to the other man, lips twitching up a little. Wolf, he thought, but he wasn't sure. But assumptions were dangerous. "I certainly wouldn't wanna go up against you in the ring. Not a huge fan of getting my ass kicked."
An eyebrow arched when the bartender admitted to having watched enough of Rhys' fights to know that he'd never put on a boring show. "You a fan?" He teased with a slow smile that seemed to cause his cheeks to dimple before he took the glass and lifted it to his lips to take his first pull.
"Probably wise," he admitted as he passed the back of his hand over his mouth. "I wouldn't want to kick your ass either. Wouldn't want to mess up that face of yours." He winked and took a further sip of his drink. "So, I gotta ask, how long you been working here?"
"Wouldn't call myself a fan, Hunt," Ryder replied evenly though there was a slight crinkle at the edges of his eyes which was as close to a smile as the other man was going to get out of him. He looked past Rhys to the ring where there was another fight starting, the deafening roar of the crowd making him flinch just a little, barely perceptible other than the twitch in his jaw. He swallowed, flexing his fingers from where he'd pulled his hand into a fist, pulling himself back to the here.
His eyebrow lifted, not sure how to take the comment about his face, so he ignored it, replying with, "Well, it helps me get decent tips if I don't look like I've just been punched by a dragon." Or a werewolf, which he was beginning to think Rhys was. The scent was... distracting, to say the least. Some part of him apparently keening to keep the conversation going. Normally he'd have served and moved on. He didn't understand why he was staying, but he wasn't going to argue with himself right now. He was pretty tired and that self-argument required more energy than he was willing to give to it at that moment.
"Uh, not long. Why?"
"Shame," Rhy tsked with a shake of his head. Of course, as the crowd lifted into a roar he barely spared a glance in the direction of the ring as he was far more fascinated by the bartender's reaction to the noise. Skittish thing wasn't he? Must be a turned wolf or so Rhys concluded, he'd been around natural borns and bitten to know the difference. Strange place to work if you didn't like loud noises.
He snorted quietly. "Fair point. I mean just because that's how I make my money doesn't mean it works for all jobs." He shrugged his shoulders a moment later. "Figured I'd remember seeing you around if you'd been working here long. Also I'm kinda at a disadvantage, you know my name but I don't know yours so you wanna help a guy out?"
"I think you've got more than enough of those to last you a while," Ryder pointed out when Rhys tsked at him, feeling the eyes on him as he regained his composure, narrowed his senses to the now. Focused on the humming of the refrigeration units, the smell of the drink (and not the guy in front of him), the sight of the condensation dripping down the length of the glass.
LIfting his shoulders again, Rhys resisted the urge he had to stick his hands in his pockets. "I'm pretty good at just disappearing into the background," he offered, "also never served you before since your, uh, Kira's generally here." He wet his lower lip and shook the tension out of his hand. "Ryder," he added.
"Yeah, Kira and I, we go way back," Rhys admitted as he folded his arms atop the bar. "Kinda don't see past her when she's around." But that was pack for you, the world tended to narrow down until they were all that you saw. Shame because maybe if it hadn't been that way he would have clocked Ryder sooner.
At the giving of the name he stuck his hand. "Well, Ryder, it's nice to meet you. Obviously you know I'm Rhys but seems fitting to introduce myself properly."
So girlfriend, then. Good to know. Ryder nodded once, filed it away so that he could tell one of the other regulars who had been pestering him for at least week about Kira's relationship status that she was Taken. And quite seriously, too, by the sounds of things. "I see," he replied, not that it was any of his business.
He eyed the hand that was stretched out over the bar before he took a breath and reached out, shaking it firmly. Ryder's hand was a little calloused from all the fight training and whatever else it was that he did. He felt something inside him jump a little, spark up as his fingers closed around Rhys' hand.
"Then, I guess, nice to meet you?" he offered, clearing his throat before he spoke to get rid of the strange hitch he could feel there.
Unfortunately Rhys was not a mind reader so he had no idea what Ryder was thinking because if he had he would have hurriedly assured him that he and Kira were not romantically involved. They were pack and that transcended pretty much any other relationship but they were not sleeping together.
He curled his fingers around Ryder's hand and smiled when he noted the reaction from Ryder at the contact, difficult to miss given that his heartbeat had just sped up. Not that it probably meant anything more than two wolves coming together but still it was better than nothing.
"Yeah, you too," he returned with a genuine smile. "Definitely a pleasure."
Ryder snorted, "You only get your winner's drink on the house, man." When the handshake was over, his hand felt weirdly cold and he picked up his dish cloth so that he had something to do with his hands that had become absolutely useless lumps of flesh attached to his arms. "But at least you know whose name to call if your girl isn't in."
Before Rhys could respond, someone was hollering for a drink and Ryder lifted a long finger, excusing himself for a moment to go and serve the obnoxious human who was banging his fist on the bar. Ryder spoke to him low and firm, warning him to quit being a jerk or he'd find himself out on his ass in a heartbeat and that he was officially cut off from drinking anything more after this 'last drink' as he was sweating alcohol by this point.
Giving the guy a glass of lemonade which he swore blind had alcohol in (and charged him for it, but gave him the correct amount of change so he only paid for the soda), Ryder watched him carefully before he moved back towards Rhys.
"You up again tonight or was that you done for today?"
Rhys had his mouth open to retort with something witty and devastatingly flirtatious but then stopped when he clocked the fact that Ryder had just referred to Kira as his girl. Wait, what? Honestly it felt like he'd just been slapped upside the head because that was not a thing. Not at all.
"You think Kira's my girl?" He queried when Ryder returned to his side of the bar. "Because she isn't, my girl, that is. We're like family." And that wasn't a lie, pack was family, regardless of whose blood ran in your veins. Rhys' just happened to be pure one hundred percent Hunt blood. "I mean I won't lie she is my favourite bartender but you're running a close second." He grinned before just shook his head. "I am done for today, but I'll be back tomorrow.
"Hey," Ryder lifted his hand, "you guys do you. I'm not gonna judge." Because they didn't interact like family. Or maybe they did, God only knew, He felt that ache in his chest again as his mind briefly jumped to think about Colbie, and his mom and dad. Even though he'd been an absolute asshole, he was still Ryder's family, and now he didn't have that he really was alone and it hurt. He hadn't realised loneliness could cause physical pain, but it did.
He hated it.
He snorted and shook his head, raking his hand through his hair and rubbing the back of his neck. "I'm good losing first place out to her, she's pretty cool. Don't tell her I said that."
Frowning slightly, he asked, "Do you fight every day then? Isn't that..." boring? Painful? "- I mean doesn't it get tiresome?"
"Secret's safe with me," Rhys assured him with a further grin though he did nod his head. "Mhm, every day." Did it get tiresome? Rhys hadn't really noticed but that could be because he actively enjoyed fighting and it was a good way of working off his energy and whatever frustration were plaguing him.
He rolled his shoulders into a shrug. "Not really, helps that I heal quick."
Ryder's eyebrow lifted. "You must be raking it in," he mused before he nodded, looking at Rhys' cheek which had been cut, but was stitching itself together nicely as they were talking. It wasn't fully healed, but it wasn't freshly bleeding anymore either and would probably be gone by the morning. That was one bonus to being a werewolf that Ryder had found pretty helpful.
"Mm, I guess that's one bonus."
Rhys ducked his head and scrubbed his fingers through his hair before they closed around the back of his neck. "Yeah, something like that. Definitely makes up for all the pain." No point lying about it, some folk hit really fucking hard in the ring, just the facts.
"But you'd know all about that, wouldn't you?" He asked, locking Ryder into that unique gaze of his.
Ryder felt the world freeze a little when he accidentally made eye contact with Rhys and the man took full advantage of the moment, his different coloured eyes (heterochromia, so cool his sister's voice said somewhere in the back of his head) locking him in. He didn't - couldn't - respond for a second before he cleared his throat and mimicked the move Rhys just had, squeezing the back of his neck and breaking that eye contact, looking at the bar and brushing something that didn't exist off it.
Invisible crumbs. So annoying.
"Hm? Yeah, I guess so." Because if they were playing the vague game, he as the master at it. "Not all about it."
Rhys bit back the urge to smirk as he'd been with enough people to know when he'd had an effect on them but focused on the vague back and forth between them. "I know another werewolf when I see and smell one."
Not vague but not outright stating what he was.
Ryder drew in a slow breath and wiped down the bar again. "Didn't figure everyone was so frank," he replied evenly, willing the blood to stop rushing in his ears, "about what species they are."
Though it was good, a bit of validation that actually he was right. He'd thought that Rhys was a werewolf, which meant that Kira was too. Something in him felt at ease with that knowledge.
Rhys bit out a warm laugh and he sat back a little on his stool to sweep his arms out in gesture towards their surroundings. "Have you seen where we are, Ryder? This is Tooth and Nail." He grinned and leaned in closer before smirking. "Now if you were in a regular bar being a regular bartender then we'd be having a very different conversation."
"Well, I don't think regular bars here prevent us from walking through the door," Ryder responded, leaning across the bar as Rhys did, uncharacteristically not backing down as he added with his lips twitched up, "And I try and avoid making assumptions about people's species but there's a lot of humans in here." He didn't know enough to differentiate between the species easily by scent. He could tell when someone wasn't human, but there was where his skills ended at the moment. He'd learn the more he was exposed to it.
"And?" Rhys challenged as he angled his head in a way that was not too dissimilar from how he regarded prey when in wolf form. "They all know what's in here and why we're all here." He wasn't about to hide what he was or not be proud of it because he'd been born what he was and raised to have pride in that fact.
"I didn't when I first came to work here," Ryder confessed, collecting empty glasses from the bartop beside Rhys and turning away to put them in the dishwasher, knocking it shut with his foot. "That was a shock, to put it mildly. But the pay's good." And he learned a lot about the city through eavesdropping.
Rhys' eyebrows lifted so high that it did look like they were trying to make a break for freedom in those blonde locks. "Wait wait, lemme get this straight, you took a job here not knowing what you were getting into?" He shook his head. "Man, you should be more careful." It had worked out well this time but next time?
Not that Rhys cared because you know he didn't. Yeah. Not at all.
He just didn't want the world to be bereft of one very handsome bartender or something.
"Well," Ryder countered, "the money's really good and you'd know just as well as I do that we're pretty hardy." His eyebrow quirked in a move that was far more flirtatious than it had any right to be. "I worked it out pretty quick, though. And since I'm not going into the ring at any point... I figure I'll be safe enough back here."
He chuckled, "No one's climbed over the bar yet."
Rhys’ lips pulled into a grin which barred teeth as he noted the flirtatious movement of those impressive eyebrows. That was progress, definite progress.
“Yet,” Rhys remarked with a chuckle accompanied by a wink. “Isn’t there a saying about counting your chickens or something?”
“That’s why I said yet,” Ryder responded with a wink, indicating Rhys’ glass with a jerk of his chin. “You want another one?” The beer, after all, was almost gone.
As tempting as that offer was and it was very tempting Rhys actually had somewhere he needed to be. Pack things to take care of. “As much as I would like to stick around and chat I have to get going.”
Rhys finished off what was left of his beer and planted both hands on the bar before pushing himself to his feet.
“It was good chatting to you Ryder and I know I’ll be seeing you around.”