heart eyes for real
you talked about bartender!sirius in a previous post and omg i can't stop thinking about it!!! could you do a fic with costumer!reader and him being all flirty and stuff (maybe even angst where reader is really drunk or has come to drink all her problems away or someone icky is hitting on her or smth?? idk i trust your judgement<3)
litterly giggling and kicking my feet just thinking about itđđ¤
Thanks for requesting gorgeous <3
cw: alcohol
bartender!Sirius x fem!reader ⥠1.4k words
There are three people working the bar, and you have basically no hope of ever capturing oneâs attention. Youâre not as assertive as the other patrons vying to get their orders taken, not willing to lean across the bar or shout like they are and perfectly willing to let yourself be pushed out of the way when one of them decides their cause is more prevalent than yours. It probably is. This pub is noisier and more rowdy than youâre accustomed to, and youâre not much of a drinker to begin with, only trying to pay your tax to sit with the friend that invited you here. Youâre considering abandoning the endeavor entirely when the next man shouldering you out of the way gets waved off by the bartender nearest.Â
âOi, she was here first.âÂ
The bartenderâs gaze fixes pointedly on you, which is kind of a lot. He has sharp gray eyes paired with superblack hairâlike, the kind of black no light can penetrateâand a crooked smile, a handsome and somewhat menacing combination. He leans across the bar, lowering his voice as if he can tell thatâs what youâd prefer.Â
âWhat can I get you, doll?âÂ
You fumble for your tongue. âUm, can I have a citrus spritz, please?âÂ
He grimaces. âWish you could,â he says, âbut we just ran out of that gin. Got a second choice?âÂ
âOh, uh...â Youâd only found your first choice after perusing their menu and asking your friend what each thing was, so no, you do not. You take a step back from the bar, yielding your time. âSorry, Iâll have toââÂ
âNo, come on, itâs alright.â The bartender doesnât move, but his voice is loud enough that it reaches you, gets you to turn around. Heâs on you with that smile again, one hand beckoning you towards him. âWeâll figure something out for you, sweetheart. Come back here.âÂ
You step up to the bar stiffly, more than aware of the irritated looks being shot your way by other patrons.Â
âWhat do you like?â he asks you.Â
You feel your eyebrows pinch, shaking your head helplessly. Your face feels like it could heat a small home. âI donâtâIâm not sure, sorry.âÂ
âYouâre alright,â he promises, grin vanishing for a moment as he cuts a glare towards a man trying to talk over you. Itâs back before you can miss it. âA sweet kinda drink, yeah? Fruity? Dâyou want something else with citrus?âÂ
âThat sounds good,â you manage.
He winks and pushes off the bar. âStay put, babe, Iâve gotcha.âÂ
You do your best, keeping your front pressed to the bar even as everyone else moves around and into you. You feel like a rock in a stream. With no one else to talk to, you watch him work behind the bar. He grabs a bunch of bottles at once, pouring without measuring or counting or hardly even looking, and when he starts shaking it all in a metal cylinder you have to look away from how his tattooed biceps bulge from the short sleeves of his shirt. Youâre scanning the rows of liquor behind the bar when he gets back, trying to will the warmth away from your face.Â
âGive this a try.â He sets the drink down in front of you. You notice itâs got a bit of dried fruit on top, and then he sets a small shot glass of something bubbly and transparent down next to itâyou wince. A garnish and a side; probably not as cheap as you were hoping for. âIf you donât like it,â he says, glancing between you and the drink expectantly, âdonât tell me. Just bring it to the bathroom and flush it. My ego canât take the rejection.âÂ
You press your lips together into something you hope approximates a smile and take a careful sip. It is sweet. You can barely taste the alcohol. You rub your lips together as you set it down, hoping you havenât gotten foam on your mouth.Â
âItâs really good,â you tell him honestly, and he grins in response. You raise it to your lips for more. âWhat is it?âÂ
âA pornstar martini.âÂ
You nearly spit foam right at him, somehow reversing at the last moment so you take in a hearty sip instead. His grin widens, showing canines, like he knew the effect the name would have on you. It should make you feel childish, but he doesnât seem like heâs laughing at you so much as with you.Â
âItâs good,â you say again, taking out your card. âThank you.âÂ
He holds up his hands, stepping away from your credit card like itâs a weapon. âPut that thing away,â he says. âYouâre insulting me, dollface.âÂ
You let your card hover in the air between you, unsure. âI canât let youââ
âSure you can. You have to,â he insists, setting both hands on the bar and leveling you with a significant look. You canât look back for more than a second before your gaze flees downward. âIf I canât comp a pretty girlâs drink, what am I doing here?â He lowers his voice, leaning across the bar so his face is just a few inches from yours. âAnd if I canât add a pretty girlâs drink to a tosserâs tabââ he flicks his gaze over to the man whoâs been especially persistent in trying to get his order in over yours since youâve come up ââthen I may as well quit.â
You press your lips together, trying desperately to keep from looking as flattered and flustered as you feel.Â
âYou donât want to leave me without purpose, do you?âÂ
âNo.â You smile down at the bar, privately rolling your eyes. When you glance back up, thereâs a waggishness in his eyes that suggests he saw. âThanks.âÂ
âThank you. Have a good night.âÂ
âYou too.âÂ
You turn, starting back for your table, but stall a couple of steps in. Your seatâs been taken by a man around your age, all smiley and nodding as your friend talks. Theyâve both got their elbows leaned on the table, eyes locked like theyâre in some sort of competition. And you may not spend a lot of time in pubs, but you know enough to stay away when two people are looking at each other like that.Â
You stand awkwardly on the fringes of the bar crowd, looking around for another empty table, but itâs too crowded tonight; there are none. You consider dropping by to tell your friend youâre leaving, but now youâve got this full drink in your hand. Maybe if you finish it quicklyâŚ
âHey!â You pivot, and the same bartender is looking at you again, craning his neck to see you over the crowd. âHey,â he all but shouts to be heard, âcome here.âÂ
Youâre nothing if not obedient, working your way through the crowd with murmured apologies and your eyes on the ground to ensure you donât step on anyoneâs toes. When you get up to the bar, heâs waiting for you, holding up a hand to pause the manâthe tosser, heâd dubbed himâtrying to talk to him. You wonder if heâd halted his order halfway through.Â
âWhatâs going on?â he asks, eyebrows twitching together. âYou looked lost over there, babe.â
âSorry,â you say, though youâre not sure what for. âI justâmy seat was taken, so I was just trying to figure outââ
âYou can sit here.âÂ
You blink, and he motions to the stools tucked under the bar in front of you, the ones nobodyâs using. âI mean, you donât have to,â he says, the closest thing to hesitant youâve seen from him yet, âbut youâre welcome to. I could use some good-looking company. Weâre severely lacking over here.âÂ
âFuck off,â says another bartender, skimming behind him to grab a bottle off a shelf.Â
âNot counting you, Marls.â He shoots a sharp-edged grin towards the blond woman before fixing it back on you. His eyebrow twitches slightly in question.Â
âOkay.â You pull a seat out. âOkay, thanks.âÂ
âDonât thank me, doll, youâre doing me a favor.â He sets his forearms on the bar, leaning towards you like youâre having a far more private conversation. âIâm Sirius.â Something about him softens when you tell him your name in response, and you get the sense heâs been waiting for it. He repeats it back to you like itâs something special. âAlright, y/n, enjoy your drink, and Iâll try to be as decent company as I can while dealing with these pricks.â He makes no effort to keep the man beside you from hearing, then turns to him with an extremely false-looking smile. âHi, what can I get you?âÂ
Even as the man starts giving his order, Siriusâ eyes flicker your way to see if he made you smile. He did.