Hugo sat across from Jessica, trying to stay calm, but inside, his mind was in complete chaos.
'It's been an hour. A WHOLE HOUR! What's wrong with her? What is this woman made of? Titanium? Most girls would've agreed to go sowhere private by now. She hasn't even hinted at leaving with . Is this so kind of endurance test? She's still chatting like this is a book club eting!'
Outwardly, Hugo kept his suave smile, nodding at Jessica's words as if everything was perfectly fine.
But inside? Inside, he was screaming.
'Sanchez said to use the perfect mix of charm and confidence. Well, I've done that. I've smiled. I've complinted her. I've even laughed at her weird tennis injury story. What more does she want?!'
'Okay, do I cut my losses and go talk to soone else? The redhead at the bar looks nice, plus she's been giving glances for so ti now.'
He glanced at Jessica, who was animatedly recounting a story about her tennis career.
'But if I leave now, I've wasted an hour! An hour of my pri charm! No... No! I've already invested an hour into Jessica. I'm not leaving until I get her to agree!'
Just as Hugo was about to double down, he caught sight of the bartender.
The man stood a few feet away, smirking in that infuriating, all-knowing way. Hugo tensed. 'Oh, great. What is this nace planning now?'
The bartender strolled over, leaning casually on the bar next to Jessica. "Miss, would you like a refill?" he asked, his voice smooth like lted butter.
Jessica perked up. "Sure! Why not?"
Then the bartender turned to Hugo, his smirk sohow growing even more evil. "And you, sir? Would you like to leave a tip for her drink?"
Hugo blinked. 'A tip? For what? This guy's trying to humiliate in front of her. Unbelievable.'
The bartender raised his eyebrows, his expression shifting into sothing... odd. He started winking and twitching his eyes, like he was trying to send Hugo a ssage.
'What the heck is this? Is he possessed? Why is he blinking like that?'
The bartender raised his eyebrows, his expression shifting into sothing... odd. He started winking and twitching his eyes, like he was trying to send Hugo a ssage. 'What the heck is this? Why is he blinking like that? Is he having a stroke?'
At first, Hugo wanted to tell the man to buzz off. There was no way he was going to tip this bartender after he almost embarrassed him.
But sothing about the bartender's look made him pause. 'Wait... Is he trying to help ? Is this so kind of secret code?'
After an intense five seconds of deliberation, Hugo sighed. 'Fine. Let's see where this goes. He slapped a crisp $20 bill on the bar. Goodbye, my sweet lunch money. You shall be forever missed.'
The bartender snatched the cash with a grin so wide it could've split his face. "Excellent choice, sir," he said, then hurried off.
Hugo's inner voice went wild. 'Twenty bucks! TWENTY! This is daylight robbery. I should've walked away. Sanchez didn't prepare for scams like this!'
Five minutes later, the bartender returned, holding a tall glass of sothing pink, fizzy, and suspiciously fancy. A tiny umbrella stuck out of the top, and the whole thing practically scread trouble.
The bartender set the drink in front of Jessica. "Here you go, miss. Enjoy."
Jessica frowned, clearly confused. "Uh, I didn't order this. I just wanted the sa drink as before."
"Ah, but this is our newest flavour," the bartender said, his voice dripping with charm. "Limited edition. A special treat for soone as lovely as you. Trust , it's better than the last one."
Jessica hesitated for a mont, then shrugged. "Alright, I'll give it a try."
Hugo watched the scene unfold, his suspicion growing. 'What is this guy up to now? If this is another scam, I'm going to lose my mind.'
Jessica sipped the drink and smiled. "Oh, this is really good!"
Hugo blinked. 'Huh. That's it? No drama? No disaster? Did I just get swindled for no reason? My intuition was wrong?'
Still, Hugo didn't have much ti to dwell on his confusion because Jessica continued talking to him, sipping her drink between sentences.
To his surprise, she was loosening up, even laughing more at his jokes. But then, fifteen minutes after, Hugo started noticing so... odd changes.
Jessica's posture shifted.
Her eyes beca half-lidded, and her voice dropped an octave, taking on a softer, almost sultry tone. She leaned closer to him, her fingers twirling a strand of hair.
And then, just as Hugo was starting to think it was all in his head, Jessica's gaze locked onto his lips like they were the last slice of pizza on Earth.
Hugo froze. 'Wait. Is she... flirting with ? No, no, no, that's impossible. She's been stiff all night. What changed?'
He glanced at the pink drink, still half-full on the table. Suddenly, it clicked. 'Oh my God! It's the drink! That psycho bartender spiked it with so kind of... lust potion or sothing!
Jessica's hand casually brushed against his arm, and Hugo's heart skipped a beat. 'Oh, wow. Oh, wow, wow, wow. This is escalating fast. I wasn't ready for this!' Read new adventures at empire
Jessica smiled at him, her voice smooth as honey. "You're really sothing, Hugo."
Hugo gulped, his brain firing on all cylinders. 'Okay, okay, don't freak out. Play it cool. Whatever that guy put in her drink, it's working. Just roll with it. But also, what kind of dangerous lunatic is this bartender?'
He glanced toward the bar, where the man was casually wiping glasses and watching them with a grin.
Hugo's inner voice scread. 'This guy is terrifying. Absolutely terrifying. But you know what? I might owe him one.'
_____
Power stone Goal!
50 PS - 1 Bonus chapter
100 PS - 2 Bonus chapter
200 PS (Quite an achievent as of now) - 3 Bonus chapters.
Castle - 20 Bonus Chapters!
Reviews
All reviews (0)