Act Natural

Ch. 2 - Bitter Like My Soul

***

The inside of 6th Century looked just like any other fancy bar. I blinked a few times as my eyes adjusted to my surroundings. It was dark and cold inside, like a cinema, and everywhere I looked, there were horny adults. Colorful lights and bar music blended in with the chatter and scent of expensive perfume. It looked bigger than it did on the outside, too. There was also an island bar in the center. They collected multiple circle chairs around tables and the bar. Neat.

I blended into the crowd, unbuttoning the top button of my shirt to breathe, and chuckled to myself. Almost getting caught was worth laughing about, right? 2 years of time traveling, but they never looked here of all places! First time for everything, I suppose. I breathed in the cool air and rummaged through my pockets. I couldn't just walk back out. Maybe I could get Sean to pick me up...

'Wallet... lint... pen... no phone? Seriously?'

"... Fuck."

"f**k what?"

I jumped, putting a hand above my heart as if it would leap out. Turning to the source of the voice, I calmed down. Beside me was a man in a suit vest, taller than me and giving me a smile that conveyed aloofness. Less robotic, more friendly. His emerald eyes crinkled at the sides. I broke eye contact and looked anywhere other than his face. I was never good at eye contact.

"Ah- um- er... e-excuse me?" I stammered, furrowing my eyebrows.

"Oh, I'm sorry, did I startle you??" The man grinned. "You just looked lonely! And I wanted to make a friend!!" He chirped.

... Is this guy for real?

"I barely know you though?" I asked, crossing my arms coolly and leaning against the wall. The guy laughed and slapped my shoulder. "Why don't you tell me your name, then we can be friends! I'm Antonio," He chimes, scanning me up and down. "Nice sweater vest, by the way!"

"Do you...... usually come up to people randomly like this?" I hesitated. He pats my back, making me cringe at how many times he touched me without my permission. "Ah, so many questions. Would you like a drink first?"

I licked my chapped lips, noticing how dry my mouth was. ".... I guess I could use a drink bu-"

Before I got to answer properly, 'Antonio' had dragged me off to the bar counter. His coworker still had his back turned to everyone, wiping shot glasses.

"Great! What would you like, friend?" Antonio says, nudging the other guy with his elbow. I raised an eyebrow. "Uhhhh, a Manhattan..." I muttered, taking a seat at one of the bar stools. Antonio nodded, walking off to another side of the island bar. "Alright!"

I spun my bar stool and propped my elbow on the counter. Leaning my elbow on the bar counter, I scanned the room a second time in case the Calendar followed me.

"Sorry about him," A deep, smooth voice from behind me said. "Antonio, I mean. He really thought you looked lonely... sorry if he startled you, sir," I turned around and saw the owner of the voice. As we made eye contact, both of our eyes widened in shock.

Bartender #2: tall, with dark hair tied in a ponytail and a pair of shining amber eyes. It wasn't his pretty face that made me shocked.

'... isn't this the guy from that one time travel-'

My jaw dropped as I stared. Thoughts raced back and forth in my mind. 'This is definitely the guy,' I thought repeatedly, looking back on my memories if I was hallucinating. He seemed to have the same look of shock as I did. Did he remember me? That was literally 2000-ish years ago! At least for him. To me, I believe it was at least 3 or 4 days.

'But then again, it could be a coincidence? Is he immortal? Dead? A Calendar? No. Noooo. Maybe it's just a coincidence? He's got to be dead- like a ghost. A Phantom. Some kind of Guardian Angel...? Right? Riiiii-'

"...Aren't you—" We both began.

The sound of a glass gliding across the counter interrupted our short-lived staring contest. "A Manhattan for...... what's with the staring??" Antonio remarked, crossing his arms and looking at the two of us. I broke out of my trance.

"Oh, it's...it's nothing." I faltered, fiddling with my fingers, trying to play off my baffled confusion.

"...If he hasn't told you yet, his name's Exuvius!!" Antonio exclaimed, patting 'Exuvius'' back. He seemed to avoid my gaze. Hah. "Well then," I drawled, folding my arms above the counter. "I'm Willias! Nice to meet you, Exuvius."

"Ah, um- Likewise..."

I gave him a smile. No, not a smile. A grin. A big ol' s**t-eating grin to show that I was onto him. I squinted my eyes to show that I plastered the smile on my face with pure sarcasm. 'Exuvius' shifted on his feet, clearly uncomfortable. Antonio didn't notice and continued to drop ice in the chilled glass he brought.

"Why don't you tell us about yourself, sir! I'd love to get to know you more," Antonio chimed in, breaking the short-lived silence.

"Well, for starters... those bitters you put in my Manhattan better be as bitter as my soul."

Antonio laughs loudly. "You have an odd sense of humor, sir,"

"Willias."

"Hm?"

"My name. It's Willias." I give Exuvius a side-glance, noticing how he went back to wiping glasses.

"So Mister Willias, what brings you here?" Antonio said, stirring the ice in my requested drink. "Oh...just... got bored, wanted to see what everyone liked about this place." That wasn't a lie, but it wasn't the full truth either.

"How do you like it so far? Any comments? Is Exuvius scaring you?" He blabbered, getting himself elbowed in the gut by none other than Exuvius. "Well, for starters, I'm still waiting for that Manhattan, and yes, Exuvius is scaring me." I mused. Antonio grabs a table cloth, throwing it behind him directly towards Exuvius' face. "Oops."

Exuvius removes the tablecloth from his face, throwing it back at Antonio. I can tell they're good friends. I suppress a grin as a small flush of color appeared on his face.

'Alright, I'll admit. He's attractive. Ta, ta, Heterosexuality.'

I crossed my arms, snickering. "I was kidding, Anto--" "Blacke."

A robotic voice laced with venom interrupted me. I turned around to see the Calendar.

"... Oh fu--"