"Mmkay, if you say so." Joey stretched a bit and resumed his looking around, fidgeting a bit with his hands as he did so. He figured he could trust Sol, but Sol didn't seem to think he could really trust anyone else, so he would be more cautious than usual.
Sol headed over to the bar and ordered a couple of drinks and a huge thing of nachos. Leaning against the bar to wait, he looked out across the club, keeping an eye on Joey as he watched the other club goers. I shouldn’t have asked him here, he’s too innocent for a place like this. His thoughts were only confirmed when he saw others watching the small male.
Joey twiddled his thumbs a bit while he waited for Sol to return. Whenever he noticed someone watching him, he just smiled and waved innocently, obviously not entirely understanding what was going on. He hummed softly to himself, continuing to glance around curiously.
When the bartender handed Sol their order, he quickly strode back to the booth, giving sharp looks to anyone looking at Joey too long. Anyone who had been to the club before knew who he was. Hopefully that would deter any unwanted attention. “Hey,” he said, sliding into the booth. “You good over here?”
"Hi!" Joey smiled brightly at Sol, turning his attention away from all the other random people in the club. "Yeah, I'm alright. What did you bring me?" He asked curiously, clapping a bit in anticipation.
Sol laughed and smiled slightly. “Nachos to share, an orange sunrise for you, and coke for me,” he said. “I’m headed somewhere after this, so no alcohol for me.” Handing Joey his drink, he looked out at the club. “Did anyone bother you?” He hasn’t seen anyone approach, but he wanted to be sure.
"Ooh, what's an orange Sunrise?" He asked, accepting the drink from Sol and examining it curiously. He looked up when he was addressed again and shook his head. "No, a couple people looked over, but nobody bothered me. Where are you going after this?"
“Orange juice, pinapple juice, sprite, and vodka,” Sol replied. “i’m going to my sister’s place and it’s a little ways further into the city.” Scanning the crowd, he saw a few eyes still on Joey and had to refrain from growling. Not everyone knew he was fey, even if they knew he was in the gang, so he needed to keep that on the down low.
Joey started sipping at the drink, shivering at the alcohol. "Ooh! That's cool!" He kept his gaze on Sol, eyes wide with curiosity. "Is she nice?" He asked, fiddling with the straw in his drink. "I've got a little sister and a big brother, but they don't live around here."
Sol coughed a laugh. “she’s… a character, that’s for sure, nice is debatable,” he replied. “But she always has my back, and I love her. We’ve been through a lot together, she was gentler when we were younger, but we had to grow up fast.”
He’s too cute, Sol thought, looking into Joey’s big blue eyes.
Joey nodded along to Sol's description, drinking a bit more of his drink. "She sounds nice! Maybe you could bring her into the shop sometime!" He grinned up at Sol, crossing one ankle over the other. "Do you have any friends? Maybe I could meet them too!"
Sol tilted his head in thought. “She might stop by sometime, the shop is in her territory,” he said, taking a swig of his coke. “I do have a few friends, but i’m not sure that you ought to meet them. they’re… a different crowd than you’re probably used to.”
"Mm… do they not like to read much?" Joey asked, drinking some more of the orange Sunrise. "I bet they'd like some of the books we have! We've got all sorts of books from all sorts of genres. I bet everybody could find something they like there."
Sol couldn’t help but laugh. “Stars, Joey, you’re too cute,” he chuckled, smiling at the smaller male. “A couple of them do enjoy reading, I just mean they’re kinda rough on the outside, and I don’t want them to scare you.”
Joey flushed a bit and smiled sheepishly, drinking a bit more of the drink. "W-Well, we get all sorts of people coming into the shop. Everybody's welcome! Assuming they don't cause property damage or generally do anything illegal, of course."
“Well, they wouldn’t do anything illegal while in the shop, at least,” Sol said, noticing Joey’s light blush. Cute… “But they can be rowdy, and likely will have done something illegal beforehand.”
"Well, I can't exactly stop what they do before and after they come in, but they should be okay as long as they behave while they're inside." Joey smiled softly up at Sol. "I'm sure a fair few of our customers have committed crimes before they came in."
“If you say so,” Sol said with an amused hum. “I might bring them around sometime.” Sensing eyes on them, he looked up. Damn… not this guy…
Joey looked up at well, following Sol's eyes over to the stranger. "Oh, is this a friend of yours?" He asked curiously, drinking a bit more of the orange Sunrise. He soon finished it and set the glass in front of him on the table.
“‘Friend’ isn’t the word I’d use,” Sol muttered, shifting closer to Joey. He stared down the male approaching. “What do you want, Nik?”
The new male, Nik, smirked. “Hey, Forest, chill, I just wanted to introduce myself to this cutie,” he said with a wink to Joey. Sol growled.
Joey flushed a bit and moved a little closer to Sol, seeming pretty uneasy. "Oh… u-um… nice to meet you, sir, I guess…." He said quietly, neglecting to mention his own name. He could tell this was the kind of person he shouldn't talk to.
Sol noticed Joey’s discomfort and gently put an arm around his shoulders, pulling the smaller male into his side. “Well you’ve met him, now leave,” he growled. Anyone within fifteen feet who possessed heightened senses would know to back off. Unfortunately, Nik was not one of them, and remained standing there, smirking.
“Aww don’t be greedy, fairy boy.”
Joey cowered a bit, keeping close to Sol. He definitely didn't like the look in Nik's eyes. "S-Sir, I'm… I'm not interested." He said softly, keeping one hand on his pocket just in case. "Please leave us alone."
Sol held Joey a little tighter. I shouldn’t have invited him here, I should have known better…
“Leave now, Nik, you’ve been asked more than once,” he warned, flames beginning to flicker at his fingertips. The man backed away a bit, hands up. “No need to get testy, Forest,” Nik smirked.
Joey looked away from the man, suddenly very interested in the tabletop. He hoped that the man would just go away if he just ignored him for long enough. He seemed nervous, but was trying his best not to show it.