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+---- Thread: whiskey, smoke and aces high (/showthread.php?tid=5405)
RE: whiskey, smoke and aces high - Ronin - 08-19-2021
[say]"Yeah, you know."[/say] Swish. Ronin tries to demonstrate again by holding a pretend cup of tea and sticking his pinky finger out. But of course then Remi is blundering into something that they will both be replaying in their heads for the rest of the night, if not for vastly different reasons. [say]"Yeah? I can keep a mean beat,"[/say] he says, like that might be a good way in to joining the band. Ronin on the triangle - he'd be fucking spectacular.
[say]"I thought I'd better put in an effort, given how different this place is to Kickback,"[/say] he murmurs, following Bandcamp through to the green green-room. And as he steps in, finding it empty but for Remi and the catering, he can't help but grin as he looks around. [say]"Catered soundcheck - I like it,"[/say] he decides, smiling and moving to sink down onto the couch.
[say]"Oh, it was bullshit,"[/say] he says of work, scrunching his nose. [say]"I got a few good projects on the go, but some asshole called who wanted his vIntaGe cOLLeCtiOn serviced. Lots of bikes, no time."[/say]
RE: whiskey, smoke and aces high - Remi - 08-19-2021
[say]"Can you? Well, I'll keep that in mind if we ever need a tambourine."[/say] That's right; triangle had to be earned.
Biting the inside of his cheek to try and keep the smile that was threatening to spread like a weed under control, Remi just shrugs as they make their way. [say]"Honestly, I'm surprised you even own anything that isn't grease or paint-stained. Although..."[/say] Turning to glance at Irish intending to feign checking him out, Remi inadvertently actually checks him out, which brings on the strangest feeling of nausea. [say]"Maybe the black is hiding it."[/say]
Thank fuck for Ronin's motor mouth just now. As he blabs on, Remi finds his anxiety easing enough that he's able to grab a slice of sausage and parmesan pizza. [say]'You need an apprentice.'[/say] He suggests around a chunk of tomato. [say]"Maybe two of them. One who is a good worker but whose potential is squandered by drug problems. And one you fall in love with but who's actually stealing from you. I think that's how it would go in a movie."[/say]
He's rambling and he knows he's rambling but gli dei mi aiutino he couldn't stop himself. [say]"Sorry I get...weird...before shows."[/say] Remi mutters apologetically, though what he really means is I get high before shows.
RE: whiskey, smoke and aces high - Ronin - 08-19-2021
[say]"I'll be careful to give my wrists a good workout, keep 'em limber just in case,"[/say] Ronin says, and it's absolutely an innuendo. He checks Remi out right the fuck back as the other man's eyes run over him, but it's certainly not nausea that twists low in his belly as he takes him in, carelessly tousled and wearing the sort of shit that reminds him of pouring rain and a studio apartment with scribbles on the walls.
[say]"You'll see when I get up off the couch I guess,"[/say] he says of whether his t-shirt is hiding the oil and grease - and when he does get up to snag a slice of pizza, Bandcamp will find the couch as pristine (comparatively) as when he sat down. [say]"Oh, got my life all planned out have you?"[/say] he asks around the pizza, turning to lean against one of the tucked in chairs and raising his eyebrows as if curious as to what makes Remi thinks this is weird compared to the usual.
[say]"How so?"[/say] he asks. [say]"You get stage fright?"[/say]
RE: whiskey, smoke and aces high - Remi - 08-19-2021
Remi isn't looking at the couch but the man leaving it. Maybe the stains are underneath your clothes, he wants to say, but doesn't. [say]'Writing songs is basically just writing stories.'[/say] Remi says with a shrug. [say]"So yeah, I've thought about what your story might be like a time or two."[/say] He adds, failing to mention how many of those stories were ones he told himself in bed.
[say]'Not...stage fright so much as..."[/say] He absolutely knew the word for what it was, but currently it was stuck in the back of his throat. Clearing it (his throat), Remi turns around to grab a glass of water with lemon and honey. A boring pre-show drink to be sure, but one that wouldn't interfere with his vocal chords later. [say]"...imposter syndrome?"[/say] He says it almost like it's a question, which is about par for the course for how he feels. [say]"It, uh...it means...well I guess just how it sounds. Like I'm going to go out there and everyone will realize that behind the stylist-approved hair and clothes and without the lights, that I'm just a poser."[/say] Unable to believe he's actually just told Irish this, Remi turns back to the table, frowning hard enough to distort his vision while pretending to open a container holding various cheeses.
RE: whiskey, smoke and aces high - Ronin - 08-19-2021
[say]"Hopefully I can shoot a little higher than falling in love with an apprentice who steals from me,"[/say] he quips around another large bite of pizza, though the playfulness in his blue eyes suggests that he's still charmed to find that Bandcamp is thinking about his story at all. Tilting his head, he listens thoughtfully at the explanation of imposter syndrome - never having experienced it himself, Ronin appreciates Remi spelling it out, even if it's accompanied by opening a container of cheese.
[say]"Surprised you can see anything at all with those lights,"[/say] he remarks as he finishes his pizza and wipes off his face and hands with a napkin. [say]"I'd try to give you a bunch of twee bullshit about how you just gotta believe, but not only would it be crap, you've probably already tried it."[/say] He shrugs. It's true he hasn't expected Bandcamp to suffer from this sort of thing, but it's kind of nice to know he's still mortal.
[say]"Anything I can do to help?"[/say]
RE: whiskey, smoke and aces high - Remi - 08-19-2021
[say]'Well you don't know they're stealing from you at first.'[/say] Remi is quick to point out. [say]'The real question is: when you find out and they say they really did love you all along, they just needed the money to pay off their mafia debts...do you take them back?'[/say]
With fingers softly shaking such that the plastic container groans noisily at his clumsy efforts to force it open, Remi smiles sadly. [say]"I don't need to see them. It's probably worse that I can't. I just imagine their disappointed faces. Imagine them getting up and walking out. Demanding refunds. Saying I was a one-hit-wonder."[/say] He elaborates in a low voice, perhaps just meant for the cheese.
👋 🍆 and 💊 🚬 flash behind his eyes as Remi turns, momentarily stunned to see Hallway standing at the table next to him. You could fuck me right here and now. It might not help, but I wouldn't mind trying. [say]'No, that's alright. I've got my pre-show ritual. That usually helps calm me down.'[/say] Running a hand through his curls and then wrapping it around one arm, Remi smirks to himself. [say]"Hey so, just in case you decide to start another fight tonight, did you...want to plan on meeting up after?"[/say]
RE: whiskey, smoke and aces high - Ronin - 08-19-2021
[say]"Oh, I see,"[/say] Ronin says. [say]"Well in that case, I probably do take them back. It's a terrible decision, though, because I'll end up being shot by that very same mafia when the debts can't be paid off. Because there are always more mafia debts, no?"[/say] He raises his eyebrows, like the answer should be obvious to two men who have (presumably, he can't speak for Remi) never had anything to do with the mafia.
Reaching out almost automatically, Ronin can't help but help to open the cheese container, though he's half certain that Bandcamp doesn't even really want any. Now he can see what the other man means, with being weird, but he doesn't begrudge him it. [say]"I'll make sure to take a couple of pictures to send to you for the intermission. So you can see how they're absolutely not doing that."[/say] He smirks.
Pre-show ritual sounds like an cult orgy, he's not going to lie, but the prospect of meeting up afterwards distracts him from asking about it. [say]"Will I have to wait in line with everyone else to get autographs?"[/say] he asks, grinning and snagging another slice of pizza. [say]"Or is there a bar I can meet you at?"[/say]
RE: whiskey, smoke and aces high - Remi - 08-19-2021
[say]'Or, she barters on your behalf. Says you can fix all their cars and hide the bullet marks. Soon they have you pulling apart cars for scrap or so that the cops don't know they've been stolen.'[/say] Though cliche mobsters were normally Italian, it was absolutely true that Remi has absolutely no idea what he's talking about.
[say]"Oh my god please don't."[/say] Remi says with a nervous laugh, giving Ronin an imploring but appreciative look. The smell of the cheese has his stomach turning slightly. [say]'Also there's a rule about no flash photography, so it'd just be a black screen anyway."[/say]
Thankful that Ronin hasn't asked what his ritual includes (a non-alcoholic Shirley temple, drugs, and masturbating), he smiles crookedly. [say]"I uh...had to pre-sign a bunch of posters so...no autograph line."[/say] He mumbles, hoping he doesn't sound like an absolutely conceited asshole. [say]"Yeah absolutely. Could do the Kickback, unless you had somewhere else in mind...?"[/say] There's a pounding at the door followed by a rather bored-sounding voice proclaiming that Remi has ten minutes before he needs to go get changed. [say]'Fuck.'[/say] Ten minutes would rush his ritual. He'd have to skip the Shirley temple. [say]"I really should go. After, though?"[/say]
RE: whiskey, smoke and aces high - Ronin - 08-19-2021
[say]"Who said anything about it being a she?"[/say] Ronin wants to know, looking entirely shit-eating given that he's munching on pizza while Remi shies away like a wallflower. [say]"Alright, well I'll just have to describe it to you in great detail when I see you at the Kickback afterwards. I'll be at the bar so you can't miss me."[/say] He won't be paying the slightest bit of attention to the bartender, either.
He'll definitely be bringing up the posters later, but for now there's a knock at the door and they both have other places to be. And so, hurriedly finishing his second slice of pizza, he blows Bandamp a kiss and heads for the door. [say]"Break a leg. That's what they say, right?"[/say] He grins. [say]"After."[/say]
And with that, Ronin sidles out of the greenroom so he can go and take his seat in the theatre and wait for the show to start.
RE: whiskey, smoke and aces high - Remi - 08-19-2021
[say]'Ah right, slip of the tongue.'[/say] The musician corrects with a mischievous smirk.
Nearly choking on his own breath as Irish goes and blows him a kiss, Remi just frowns and shakes his head. [say]"That's for the theatre."[/say] He finds himself saying, which doesn't at all sound like kiss me for real instead, which is what he'd been thinking.
Irish leaves, Remi finds himself in the bathroom with a baggie of blow in one hand and his dick in the other, failing to enjoy either but needing them both. It's on pins and needles and sparkles that he gets into his outfit has his hair styled, before being shoved on stage. It's all predictably pop-y and neon until the crowd begs for an encore and it's just Remi who appears on stage this time. Holding his guitar, Remi tries to find Irish's face despite the glare of the lights. Failing spectacularly and blinding himself in the process, Remi pulls a stool up to the edge of the stage and sits down, adjusting his guitar over his lap. [say]"This one...is for a special someone."[/say] The women cheer, and because the pronouns of the song are female, they all go home thinking the song is about them.
When at least Remi is able to bow his way off the stage, he hurriedly shoves a humidifier between the strings of his guitar, shoves it into its case, trades his preppy boy-band outfit for what he'd been wearing before, and sneaks out the back entrance.
Mobbed only for a few minutes (though tailed by a gaggle of teenaged girls), Remi enters the clumsily lit entranceway of Kickback with a relieved sigh.
Remi plays this.
RE: whiskey, smoke and aces high - Ronin - 08-19-2021
[say]"We're in a theatre!"[/say] is what Remi will hear called back at him, and those are Ronin's updated parting words of good luck, since he's swallowed up by the rest of the venue in no time at all. The mechanic has himself a lovely little seat up in one of the wings - not somewhere he's sat since he was barely a teenager - and it gives a particularly good view of Bandcamp when he turns just so (mainly he's looking at his ass, it's true). Ronin can't confess to like the chosen set any more than he did at the Kickback, but at least this time he understands why it is the way it is.
And then there's that special someone song, and if he was a teen girl he'd probably be screaming and throwing his bra at Remi anyway. He does consider throwing his shirt down there, but he feels like that would ruin the vibe a little. (Also he doesn't have a spare).
So when the famous frontman with his impeccably styled hair clashing with his street clothes comes rocking into Kickback, Ronin has already sunk a whiskey and has another two on the way, but this time there's someone there to join him. [say]"And you didn't even break anything,"[/say] he calls out as a greeting to Remi, kicking out the barstool next to him.
RE: whiskey, smoke and aces high - Remi - 08-19-2021
Breathless, but riding the adrenaline high from the show (a high that's now competing with the fluttery feeling in his stomach inspired by the twinkling blue eyes suddenly turned his way), Remi rolls his eyes cheerfully toward the mechanic. Joining him at the bar (a gaggle of girls pressing their way in behind him and taking a seat in the corner), the musician raises a brow. [say]"Oh? Does that mean you stayed for the whole thing this time?"[/say] He wonders leadingly. As the bartender sets down the two shots of whiskey, looking slightly disappointed to see Remi joining Ronin, the musician snorts under his breath. [say]"Wow, two? Was I really that bad?"[/say] He asks coolly.
With the drugs still flaring happily in his system and with the show behind him, Remi is back to his old self (whatever that means). Calm, cool (?), and collected (???), he swivels on his stool slightly that his knee might accidentally brush against Ronin's. But then, they're sitting close together after all, and with the bar growing more and more crowded, space is at a premium.
RE: whiskey, smoke and aces high - Ronin - 08-19-2021
[say]"I stayed, even during the parts where you weren't on stage,"[/say] Ronin informs him, sounding very smug about it to boot. He's grinning as he slides one of the shots to Remi, clinking his own glass against it before knocking it back in a fluid gesture that suggests it happens fairly often. [say]"You weren't bad at all. No accounting for the shit your manager makes you sing, but you made it bearable."[/say] He winks, taking a second to look Bandcamp up and down as if wondering if his show clothes were really that bad.
[say]"The extra shot was either for you, or it was because I expected to have to wait for you all night,"[/say] he explains, surreptitiously turning as well just as someone else comes sidling up to the bar - Remi is right, and space is increasingly difficult. It's also getting pretty loud in here as Kickback fills with the post-show riff-raff, and Ronin smirks and nods over at the corner without actually looking. [say]"You need a bodyguard?"[/say] he wonders. If he's not fighting in a parking lot maybe he can act as Remi's muscle.
RE: whiskey, smoke and aces high - Remi - 08-19-2021
[say]'You're a real fucking prince.'[/say] Remi retorts with a roll of his eyes. [say]"To think you stayed in your box seats after your catered meal. A real prince."[/say] Swallowing down the need for approval alongside his whiskey, the musician pulls a face as he sets it down. Not as practiced as the mechanic (Remi preferring to take his poison against his gums or in his arm), he tries to catch the bartender's eye that he might order two more. Why not.
[say]'Why, you know someone?'[/say] He wonders, turning properly to face Ronin now and finding his splayed knees interlocked between the other man's as his chair is nudged to make room. Noticing the way Ronin had been looking at him, Remi sighs and rolls his eyes before leaning forward conspiratorily. [say]"Most of its rented. The jacket I was wearing tonight? Designer. Cost $4000."[/say] He whispers, before leaning back. [say]"The last thing I wanted was to owe that just because I wore it trying to look cool and had a drink spilled all over me."[/say]