bartenderpuck

[bartenderpuck]

alandietrich​:

     Mission accomplished. One single trip to the nearest bathroom stall had provided a much needed high. He didn’t know either of the hosts but he’d seen them both hug people and shake hands all over – this must be one of them. “So far, so good,” statement capped with the back of his hand brushing over his nose just in case. “D’you know everyone here?” Redundant, since they at least didn’t know him.

By Puck’s judgement the party was developing quite nicely. They had no idea how many bottles had been gone through, but there had been at least one cop car do a slow roll down the street, which was just as much of an indicator of success. They gave the cowboy a once over, trying to place where she might know him from, not missing the subtle pass over his nose. Grinning they snagged a couple of jello shots from a passing tray, “glad to hear it,” their speech punctuated by the shots “nah, not at a party this big. It’s not exactly a party we sent out invitations to. Though I did see some flyers, absolutely no idea who made them though.” 

Open starter!

Location: The Halloween Bash, Rented Party Hall

Puck was very pleased with themselves as they stood on the slightly quieter mezzanine, surveying the many masked and costumed partygoers below. They may be a host but that didn’t mean they were greeting people at the door, they preferred to mingle, liquor bottle in hand, and engage with people. “So, what do you think, a party worth going to?”

[bartenderpuck]

lolavillarin​:

“Stop,” she says in the cadence of one who truly means, go on, “I wanted to wear that, but it’s  —  yeah, there’s no such thing as slutty casual, apparently. I asked.”  

Instead, Lola wears what’s reserved in her closet as court dress — blazer and skirt, as curated by her own judgement. “…Thanks for coming, though. I know it’s not your usual hours.” Beat, as her arm hangs down like a pendullum, bearing a heavy folder. “Hey — The good guy won. D’you wanna get a drink?”

“I will dress exclusively in slutty casual from her on out to balance out the universe” Puck joked. “I am capable of existing in sunlight, I’m not a vampire” Lola wasn’t wrong though, with her working hours Puck was practically nocturnal, and their social life reflected that reality. “Hooray for the good guy!” They cheered, earning glares from passers by on the courthouse steps but she didn’t batt and eye. “First round is on me, to celebrate your success. But we are going somewhere that also makes pancakes.”

[bartenderpuck]

     where: halloween bash      with: @bartenderpuck

     It had been an interesting night already, to say the least. Perhaps the key difference with the previous halloween for Ava was that she was definitely not staying sober this time. It had been a fine experiment to test when they were supposed to behave and be civil last year, but after walking around a manor filled to the brim with blood and gore, it seemed like hiding in plain sight was this year’s approach. “Is there a way I can get a negroni sbagliato with prosecco in it here?” Her one and only cocktail connoisseur was the obvious target of the question. “Don’t give me a look. I need to try it.”

[bartenderpuck]

Puck whipped around at the mention of the drink and when they realized they recognized the culprit leveled her with their most threatening glare before rolling their eyes. “Do you know how many of those fucking things I’ve had to make this week? At least twenty tonight alone and half of them get sent back when they realize they want the person who made the drink and not the actual beverage.” They grabbed the Campari down, realized it was empty and threw it into the broken bin. “But, since it’s you. And you asked so nicely, I guess I have to oblige don’t I?” She smiled at Ava over the shaker, showing she isn’t truly mad just exasperated. “You enjoying yourself?”

     where: halloween bash      with: @bartenderpuck

     It had been an interesting night already, to say the least. Perhaps the key difference with the previous halloween for Ava was that she was definitely not staying sober this time. It had been a fine experiment to test when they were supposed to behave and be civil last year, but after walking around a manor filled to the brim with blood and gore, it seemed like hiding in plain sight was this year’s approach. “Is there a way I can get a negroni sbagliato with prosecco in it here?” Her one and only cocktail connoisseur was the obvious target of the question. “Don’t give me a look. I need to try it.”

[bartenderpuck]

Puck as Shane from The L Word

[bartenderpuck]

Open starter!

Location: The Halloween Bash, Rented Party Hall

Puck was very pleased with themselves as they stood on the slightly quieter mezzanine, surveying the many masked and costumed partygoers below. They may be a host but that didn’t mean they were greeting people at the door, they preferred to mingle, liquor bottle in hand, and engage with people. “So, what do you think, a party worth going to?”

[bartenderpuck]

mirelacarter​:

Mirela nodded, it could have been worse, but thankfully the actors were good enough to make those hours berable. Besides, they were all, not great, but they studied their script well to make the lines sound just like songs, the way that made Mirela fall in love with the Shakespeare plays. “Yes, I am…”, she bit her bottom lip, having a half smile on her lips at the thought of Erika back home.

“The suggestion is very tempting, and I have a really great excuse to justify sneaking out, but..”, she turned her head towards the stage, and then, back to the girl. “I shall probably stay a little longer, I’ve been out from these events for a while, and it’s good for my business staying here” Networking, Mirela lost the count of how many contacts she made on these events, and this one wasn’t an exception. 

Puck can tell the socialites mind, and heart, was elsewhere. She may have committed to an evening of entertainment but it isn’t where she truly wants to be, its a look Puck sees often sitting on their barstools. “Always working huh? No rest for the wicked, or widely adored.” They offer a smile with the addition to the phrase. They may fall into the wicked, but the bartender was confident the woman in front of them fell into the second category. 

[bartenderpuck]

Puck noticed the detective as soon as he came in, they may not be a bouncer but that didn’t stop them from being protective of the girls who were dancing. Cops in a club was never something they would prefer, call it a lifetime of wariness from the women who raised her. That didn’t change the way the bartender did their job, they just kept a closer eye out. In their experience police came in for three reasons, to try and get a bust, to cop a feel, or in some attempt to integrate themselves within the community and often the first two ended up combining.

Puck raises an eyebrow at the request for water, pulling out a bottle from the cooler and adding it to his tab before sliding it closer to him, resting an elbow on the counter. She makes a show of looking around the decently packed club before catching his eye again. “It’s a pretty good night, plenty of patrons and good dances happening. Though that might turn around if you all switch to buying water instead of liquour.” They say it with a wink and a smile, their tone friendly with a firm undertone of sass. It doesn’t do well to piss off cops, but that doesn’t mean they’re going to fawn over one.

Starter for: @bartenderpuck​

Location: Gentille Fille

There was no better way to ingratiate into the community than spending time around it. That was the only reason Will was here, and he’d swear that on his life. Work. It was all about work, and certainly not about the dancers. After all, it helped to collect information, to win over the types of people who showed their faces in here. It was a long game he played.

Nursing the dregs of a whisky sour (more sour than whisky, now), he met eyes with the bartender. “Could I get a water?” He asked over the sound of the music. While he waited, he watched them, idly interested. “This a good night of business for you? Seems pretty packed.”

[bartenderpuck]

chefbryne​:

Aoife could see Puck mentally congratulating themselves and rolled her eyes slightly. “You are drunk and it takes more than a little dedication to have it memorized. “ Aoife tried to backtrack. She didn’t mean to offend Puck. Puck was one of the few close friend Aoife managed to make as a civilian, and didn’t mean to insult that. The line between light tease and something more mean spirited was so thin and Aoife was worried she had crossed it be accident. Aoife started to braid the end of her hair  mindlessly, as she talked. “I know what you mind. My dad showed me Shakespeare first, and he stuck mostly towards the comedy side of things. These types… just arn’t as comforting” Aoife finished. She meant to say felt to familiar, but that was a hard statement to reason through for someone who knew nothing of her previous life. “You here with some friends or…?” Aoife trailed off.

Puck may not have been sober, but they weren’t a complete idiot, and they saw the way Aoife faltered after the words tumbled out. They appreciated the backtrack but it was unnecessary, they knew she didn’t mean any real harm and the way she fiddled with the ends of her hair was charming. “I don’t know many folks who consider shakespeare comforting, must be an English thing,” They joked, taking a step away from Aofie so she could breathe. They noticed the way she got quiet whenever she talked about things from her past. “There was a group at one point, but i think they’ve wandered off in search of more… exciting forms of entertainment” From the theatre behind Puck heard a trumpet sound and turned to see the lights flick on and off. “That’s five, you ready to head back in?”

[bartenderpuck]

avamhollis​:

     New York was an overwhelmingly diverse city and Ava had always enjoyed that. Not everyone had the luxury of hiding in plain sight, and she had excelled at that game many years before moving to the city. Finding comfort in other people who were definitely not women was easy, and the bonds hadn’t deteriorated since she’d come out as actually definitely a woman.

     Hence the impatient knocking on her door. “Girly liquor?” The title sounded like something she would have drank in college before committing an absolute massacre. Granted, that wasn’t the most important word. “Gifts?” The door closed behind them and Ava walked them both into her apartment. “You know my birthday isn’t for a few more months, right?”

Gender wasn’t something Puck spent an overabundance of time fixating on, they understood its importance for others, but personally she viewed it as a tool, a means to an end. They were definitely not a woman, but if it benefited for others to perceive them as such she wasn’t going to stand in their way. Working in the industry she did, tending bar and dancing, performing for a paycheck she learned to play up the feminine, but on the day to day they preferred a more relaxed androgeny that bordered on masculinity. Having friends like Ava who were comfortable in their identity and similarly fucked with gender was one of the reasons Puck loved New York and couldn’t picture a life anywhere else. 

“Its pink whitney, don’t knock it completely it isn’t actually that bad. I pour it by the gallon on ladys night it feels like, and I was going for a theme.” Far be it from Puck to be a gender essentialist and insist girls must love pink, but when going for a gag it was the easy choice. “Yes gifts, plural, do I need a reason to spoil a friend? Really though, I have replacements for your club shirts since they aren’t quite accurate anymore.”

Not a Girl™️ Club

Closed starter for @avamhollis

Location: Ava’s place

Time: inappropriately late (as always)

Puck had intended to steal Ava’s Not a Girl™️ club shirt at her gender reveal party. It wasn’t that they didn’t support her friend, she did absolutely and enthusiastically, but the puns on the shirt didn’t work anymore and that was something they would not tolerate. But then Ava had the audacity to have the party at Lola’s and robbed Puck of the opportunity to sneak about with the cover, and excuse, of drunken shenanigans. So they had scrapped the idea of theft, and instead found a sparkly pink princess bag with feather boas instead of tissue paper.

Now they stood outside Ava’s door, pink gift bag of replacement shirts in one hand, a bottle of pink whitney in the other. They did their best to wait patiently, but the moment the door was opened she breezed inside, planting an exaggerated kiss on their friends cheek as greeting. “Finally. I thought you weren’t going to let me in. I have gifts and girly liquor.”

[bartenderpuck]

mirelacarter​:

First of all, Mirela was really flattered by the subtly tone of flirtation on the stranger’s voice. It’d been months since she was playing this game, but hearing it again made her feel awesome again. Of course she still got it, she was Mirela Fucking Carter, newest milf in New York City. Second, it took her simple roll of eyes and tilt of her head to hide the disgusted shiver from the assumption. “I thought you were my sister, you’re almost the same height”, she explained.

“She has a great taste, that you got right. But so do you”, she looked at her outfit, for a regular citizen the girl was okay. “How are you enjoying the play? I’m so glad the went for a shorter version with four acts and not the original one”, she commented and her mind was back again on the little beautiful girl waiting her back home. Just one hour more, and she’d be back to where she really belonged to.

Puck could recognize a brush off when they saw it, and stepped back hands slightly raised, but their smile didn’t slip. Working in their line of business every night was toeing the line of friendly and flirtatious, it was all fun and games with no actual intention of followthrough. Focusing instead on the second, safer, topic they voiced their opinion.

“Its not my favorite, but the actors make it worth the while.” Rocking back on her heals they looked over the crowd, breaking eye contact.  “You eager to be somewhere else? You could probably sneak out with the rest of the intermission crowd, better now then once the next act starts” The advice is genuine, Puck had more than enough experience sneaking in and out of places to know when the best moment is to make an exit. 

[bartenderpuck]

starter for @lolavillarin

Outside the courthouse 

Puck is rarely seen in the harsh light of day, but they hadn’t been out with Lola in what felt like weeks and was determined to change that. She had the next few days off, and had every intention of spending very little of her time off sober. She was incredibly proud of Lola as she worked her ass off becoming a fancy lawyer, but the hours were not condusive to Puck’s preferred nocturnal habits.  

“I tried coming in, but I was informed that there was a dress code,” They rolled their eyes dramatically and gestured to their outfit which was notably missing a shirt with just a jean jacket over her black lace bra. 

[bartenderpuck]

Not a Girl™️ Club

Closed starter for @avamhollis

Location: Ava’s place

Time: inappropriately late (as always)

Puck had intended to steal Ava’s Not a Girl™️ club shirt at her gender reveal party. It wasn’t that they didn’t support her friend, she did absolutely and enthusiastically, but the puns on the shirt didn’t work anymore and that was something they would not tolerate. But then Ava had the audacity to have the party at Lola’s and robbed Puck of the opportunity to sneak about with the cover, and excuse, of drunken shenanigans. So they had scrapped the idea of theft, and instead found a sparkly pink princess bag with feather boas instead of tissue paper.

Now they stood outside Ava’s door, pink gift bag of replacement shirts in one hand, a bottle of pink whitney in the other. They did their best to wait patiently, but the moment the door was opened she breezed inside, planting an exaggerated kiss on their friends cheek as greeting. “Finally. I thought you weren’t going to let me in. I have gifts and girly liquor.”

[bartenderpuck]

chefbryne​:

Laughter peeled from Aoifes lips at the elaborate display from the bartender. Aoife wasn’t an outspoken person herself. She liked to stick to the shadows, having someone so close who glowed like the sun was different. “I have to say I’m impressed. “ Aoife remarked. Forcing her body to relax under Pucks touch. Even after years of leaving the ‘Business’ it was strange to have people just causally touch her. The familiar smell of old spice and beer flowing off Puck however soon washing over Aoife and made her honestly relax.  “You were raised right, can’t fault your mother for that.” Aoife mused. “So how are you enjoying the show?” Small talk. Aoife Wasn’t good at it. Normally with Puck she had a little bit off a buffer with the food and the kitchen. Now there was no buffer, no spoon to shove into Pucks face to say taste this. It was just the two of them. Fuck.

Puck felt the tension slowly start to melt out of Aoife’s shoulders and internally gave themself a high five. The chef always seemed tense whenever she bumped into her, or purposefully sought her out in the kitchen at work. “I feel like I should be offended by your surprise” she joked, mock offended. She wasn’t sure why Aoife was always so tense, assumed it was something to do with her life before in Ireland. They didn’t push the issue, but always made an effort to try and make the Irish chef smile or laugh while she made puppy eyes and tried to get some food. “I am, it’s not my favorite show. I’m a bit more of a fan of whimsy and highjinks than greedy murderous men. But the actors are great so I’m not complaining”

[bartenderpuck]

s-moradi​:

—–

“What do you do with now?” Samira asked as the woman came up to her. She wasn’t sure why she was divulging her feelings to a stranger other than there was something about Shakespeare that could unbutton even the tightest lips and made the most solid of relationships tremble. Thankfully, she wasn’t watching a romance or even a tragedy. Just a failed power play. 

She exhaled and drew herself together. It was stupid to even think about regrets. “You’re right. There’s no reason to agonize over what happened in the past. Why not focus on today… right now.” 

She set her phone back into her purse. She would try to soothe Pieter’s hurt feelings when she went home, and while she should leave now, it would only make him suspicious. It was a lose-lose if he was in a bad mood. “Did you grow up around here? I ask because so far, so many people who have moved here from somewhere else.” 

Puck contemplates saying something else profound, it’s certainly the place for such sentiment. But the moment has passed, and instead they just shrug. “Drink, laugh, flirt. Find a good party and stay up until the sun is on the Horizen. Then repeat, nothing too deep about chasing a good time.” She rocked back on her heals, fingers drumming perpetual rhythm against their thigh. Standing still was not exactly Puck’s strong suit, they preferred to be in motion doing something not just standing idly by.

“I did, actually, New York born and raised. Didn’t see an open skyline til I was fifteen, and I decided I didn’t like it much. It’s a little different with the ocean, but I couldn’t live somewhere where there wasn’t a dozen sky scrapers in view at all times.”

[bartenderpuck]

Puck was moving aimlessly through the crowd, their friends moved on to a party in the east end with a promise of a very different kind of entertainment. They had stayed behind to see the show through to the end, leaving at intermission was a cardinal sin, disrespect to the actors and the playwright. At least that’s what her mother had taught them, and so she wandered the crowd waiting for the show to begin again.

She hadn’t expected to be tapped on the shoulder by one of the New York city’s socialites, but the attention wasn’t entirely unwelcome. Allowing a grin the slide across their face, “No need to apologize, it’s a simple mistake, though you’ll have to tell me who you mistook me for. Your friend has to have great taste if our looks are so similar” their voice held a cocky, self assured tone with an ever present undercurrent of flirtation.

Shakespeare at the Park - Act II closed for @bartenderpuck​ “There is no creature loves me, And if I die no soul will pity me.”

Mirela was uneasy about something, but she couldn’t quite put a finger on what it was making her feel that way. No, it wasn’t that desperate urge to go back home and stay with her daughter for the rest of the evening. Maybe it was the play, that wasn’t really vibing with her, or it was the idea that she’d have to endure more of that while she was still getting used to go out in public again. No matter how good the evening seemed for social media posts, she was really not in the same energy.

Then, something sparkled… She thought she had seen someone that could help her with that feeling in her gut. A few steps later, she was facing the back of the girl she thought it was her sister and tapped her shoulder. Mirela was about to call on her for not telling her she’d be at the event, arms almost open for a hug, when she realized it wasn’t her little sorry. “Oh gosh, I’m so sorry, I’ve mistaken you for someone else”

[bartenderpuck]

chefbryne​:

Aoife was wrapping up a phone-call with her dog walker when she felt an unexpected arm wrap around her. Aoifes first instinct was to fight, as the adrenaline kicked in her arm went to jab the slightly taller person in the ribs. Luckily for Puck Aoife realized who it was at the last second and stopped her elbow from connecting mere millimeters from them. She let out a low chuck;e as she forced the adrenaline to drain from her body. “You fucking Americans. Dont you know better than to sneak up on people in the dark. I know your mother taught you better than that, ive met her” Aoife chastised her friend. Quickly hanging up her call she turned fully to face the other.  Aoife could smell the alcohol on Puck and her nose wrinkled.  “It seemed like a chance to get out of my underground hole and I took it. I’m kind of surprised you have the attention span for this dearie. “

Puck had the decency to attempt to look apologetic, though the result was more that of a kicked puppy. Reluctantly she removed her arm from around Aoifie as they realized they had actually succeeded in startling the chef. Something she hadn’t realized was possible. She hung her head in mock shame at the mention of Luanne, scuffing their shoe in the dirt. “I guess I just didn’t realize you could be scared, you’re always so steady in the kitchen.”

Taking a step back they swept into an over dramatic bow before putting on their most theatrical British accent and reciting with a cocky grin. “If we shadows have offended, Think but this, and all is mended: That you have but slumbered here While these visions did appear. And this weak and idle theme, No more yielding but a dream, Gentles, do not reprehend.” They gave pause for a moment before sweeping back in and wrapping their arm back around Aoife’s waist this time. “It’s practically a legal obligation for me to attend a show. Besides, like you said my mama raised me right, and she made sure if I had a name like Puck I was going to be able to recite the lines.”