Dice’s POV

I really wanted to commit the murder I will be imprisoned for. The sooner – the better. And no, I didn’t have any delirious hope about me not sitting behind bars in the nearest future. I knew sooner or later somebody would kick the anger switch real hard forbidding me the chance to go back to my normal psychological state. Yea, truth be told, I always had been the law abiding citizen simply because I knew my rights and I knew how to abide laws. Without being caught. But you can’t get away with a murder.

Want a surprising fact about the redhead you see behind the bar five days out of seven? She majored in law. Yes, the same foul mouthed sailor chick you were too afraid to ask for a glass of water unless you wanted to be called a pussy and receive a bucket of ice over your head. Why did I go to Yale? And how did I even get in? Well... I used to be smart. And I wanted to say a little ‘fuck you’ to every one that told me I wasn’t good enough for it. Guess what, motherfuckers, I got through it and to make the little ‘fuck you’ even more vivid and colorful, instead of working for one of the law firms that wanted to take me in under their caring arms, I came back to Huntington Beach and started ruling the bar. And if anyone ever came up to me and said that was the worst decision I’d made in my life, then, ha, fuck you. The pink Jimmy Choo’s obviously were the worst decision. Anyhow I have three hundred bucks in my back pocket just from the tips I received through the night and you have a fat ass.

Speaking about fat ass people, I can’t believe Frank threw Malcolm out without as much as a single broken jaw.

„You’ll be sorry, Dice!” He yelled as Frankie-poo pushed him out the door. Good riddance. I just hoped MJ had crawled in some trash can to avoid that dick. Never did I understand how could she fall for the douche.

See, I never liked the guy, but I needed to bare with his good for nothing behind because MJ claimed she was deeply in love with the guy. An obvious eyeroll. He smelt fishy since the first time I met him and I know rotten fish when I see one. But what could I do? MJ was my family, I loved her to death even tho sometimes she could get quite obnoxious with her oblivious nature. I knew he was a cheating son of a gun, but I couldn’t just go up to MJ and tell he was cheating on her with no solid evidence. That was what Yale thought me. But, thank god, eventually the evidence showed up. I mean, no judgement, we’re all god’s children, but where have you seen a guy bathing in Chanel no. 5?

„Who was that guy?” Max whispered in my ear while I was trying to regain from the state the dick had led me to and take deep breaths. I shook my head, feeling myself close to shaking.

„An asshole,” I spat leaning against the liquor shelves. „A fucking son of a bitch.”

„Your ex?” Bradley – a handsome devil I may or may not had a couple of one night stands with – decided to butt in. Oh just drink that scotch and shut your pie hole, mate. I smirked lightly.

„Do I look like a gal’ who has exes?” I chuckled. Bradley nodded with a mischievous grin and returned to his drink.

„So you think you can carry on?” Max continued as I took a shot glass from under the counter and leaned for a bottle of Sambuca. „Maybe take ten...”

I threw my head back downing the liquid and not really caring that you had to light up the drink to make it softer. I didn’t give a fuck really. My insides were made of iron and steel. I shook my head – no. „Nah, I’m good.” I blew out vapors from the burning liquid. „Besides I’m not allowed to stay in my own head for that long.”

„DICE!” Frank yelled over the loud chatter and some 80’s rock I didn’t know. My head piped up, trying to get a glimpse of that big shaved head. Max leaned over the counter to continue with a frown taking over his face.

„Ooh, a fight!” Oh no, no, no, no! Fuck no! Whoever was the person to yell that, he’s so dead. There were two rules around Johnny’s ... Actually three. First – the bartender is always right, second – if the bartender is not right, check rule number one, third – under no circumstances one must declare a fight. I don’t know what that did to these guys or most precisely what kind of synapses did it tear apart in their heads, but that was not only a declaration of a fight, that meant World War III. Have you seen these guys? Tattooed, big and angry most of the time. Oh, and don’t forget drunk. One yells ‘a fight’ and they don’t hear it as a noun, but as a verb. ‘to fight’.

„Dice, get out of here!” Max shouted taking a baseball bat from under the counter for occasions like these. Yea, that was probably a fucking good idea. Without a further a due I got on the counter and hopped over since both exits were blocked. Suddenly Johnny’s turned in a boxing ring and Frank was left shifting his attention from the door to the bar and back. Who was the idiot to start a fight here?

„DICE!” Frank caught my attention as I was crawling through the crowd on my fours to avoid getting a black eye.

„WHAT?!” I yelled back a tad annoyed (but just a tad, in all honesty, this was too fun) as my hand reached for the cue on the pool table. I felt a leg in my ribs, before someone went falling over me and suddenly Frank was pulling me out from underneath the pile of people.

„You have to go out there, fuck—„ Someone cut him off by throwing a punch in his direction. That was a real smart move, dude. Woohoo, this meant we’re closing early, fuck yeah! But that was when I noticed what was happening outside. You want to know who started this whole thing off? MJ’s prince charming and king douche.

By then no music was playing, I was pretty certain the jukebox was in the jukebox heaven and I nearly lost my boot, before someone pushed me out of the place. A sudden wave of fear washed over me when I figured I had lost MJ. But then the fear turned into anger once I figured that asshole is punching one of my best customers. I gripped the cue in my hand seeing only and solely red. And I was not talking about the blood on the ground.

„Shads, break them up!” I heard Zacky yell, trying to get a hang of Gates, but they were moving too fast.

„What the hell do you think I’m doing now?!” He screamed back.

„I will fucking kill you, pretty boy!” Malcolm roared getting on top of Gates. Oh hells no, you’re touching his face only over my fucking dead body! But in all honesty I was too slow and he managed to throw a couple of punches at his face and even elbow Matt in the nose as he tried to get him off Syn. That was the moment when Zacky figured to be the smart guy and step aside. Sissy.

„Hey, Knoxville!” I yelled walking towards them. To my surprise he raised his bloody face, searching for the source of the yell. I didn’t know if mister Gates was alive by then, but he clear as fuck wasn’t fighting anymore.

„Dice?” He frowned, clearing his eyes from the blood which was dripping from his cut eyebrow.

„Bingo!” Bam. And he was out. Fell to the ground like a log. And I broke my cue. Bummer. I hoped I broke his face too. Serves him right. The remainders of cue dropped next to him as I bent over to see Syn’s face covered in blood. But he was alive. „Okay, what the fuck happened here?” I scanned both Matt who’s holding his nose and Zacky who was trying to get Gates off the ground.

„You just knocked him out...” Matt’s jaw fell open. Yea, I’ve done a lot more impressive things in my days. Syn winced as Zacky helped him up, by throwing Gate’s hand around his neck.

„D-d...i-ice?” I turned around and saw my little MJ with bloodshot eyes, smudged mascara and shaking like a leaf next to the front entrance of the bar. She was on the ground and as I approached I saw the wall covered in blood. Man, they really tangoed around here. I dropped in front of her ignoring the cold ground and pulled in a tight embrace.

„Shh, it’s okay...” I cooed in her ear and felt her arms wrap around my waist. „It’s okay...” No, actually it wasn’t okay, Frank and Max probably were already dead inside there and I may have killed Malcolm. And MJ’s tears were ruining my jacket. But right now all that mattered was her. And maybe just a tad I cared about my jacket. But just a tad.

„Look, Dice, he was being a—„ Zacky spoke and MJ’s head instantly shot up. Zacky gasped. Did someone just shove an elbow in his side? I couldn’t know, my back was turned to them, but judging by the sound? Yea, it sounded like he was in pain.

„It was my fault,” What? I felt MJ pull away from me, so I looked back over my shoulder a great frown engulfing on my face. Syn pulled the lining of his shirt up to his face to clean the blood out of his eyes. „I got a bit carried away with the liquor,”

„What the fuck are you—„ Matt frowned looking over MJ’s dark eyed prince. Slowly I stood up, narrowing my eyes on that bloody face. Was he lying? Looked like it, but why the fuck should he be lying? I knew him, he was too lazy to be the initiator for something.

„It’s the truth.” Gates continued. Yea—no, that’s bullshit.

I turned back to my little hot mess who by now was up and giving me a small smile and a light shrug. „Is that the truth, MJ? Gates started the fight?” And I know when you’re lying MJ, so you better not be.

„Technically,” She spoke quietly, „Well y-yea, Mal said something, but—„ Okay, people, are you all high? How the fuck is this here not bullshit? I mean, as much as I don’t want to believe her, she’s not lying. She does that little eye twitch when she’s bullshiting me, but now she was just hiccuping from all the tear manufacturing. If I wouldn’t know better I’d say she was hiding something from me, but why would she do that?

„Get out and stay there!” The doors flew open and Frank literally threw two guys out of the bar. Oh fuck, the World War III, right. I had completely forgot about it. Felt like Christmas all over. I had an undying love for MMA, so this thing right here? I was ready to jump in there and kick some ass!

„What’s going on there?” Zacky asked, frowning over the view.

„The MMA tournament!” I yelled running for the entrance, eager to punch a dude. Or ten. Knocking the lights out of MJ’s ex had left me on the edge and I was all pumped up with excitement, but when I got to the door, there was no fight left to see. Come on! Slowly every customer was escorted out by the giant and the punisher a.k.a. our dear Max.

„Come on, Max, you’re not really throwing us out.” One of the guys whined.

„Oh I am,” Max said.

„You fucking suck, man,” The brunette glared, before sighing, „We’re still up for poker tomorrow?”

„Yea, yea, now scram before Dice has kicked your ass.” He smirked.

„Ooh, I’m so affraid,” He laughed sarcastically, before noticing me, „Oh... hey, Dice...”

„Bye, Jer,” I patted on his shoulder while pushing against the crowd and somehow getting back to the bar. And then I remembered about Malcolm, „Oh hey, can someone drag the dead guy a couple blocks away from the parking lot? Drinks on me tomorrow!”

„Sure,” One of the patron’s smiled back. „See you tomorrow guys!”

„What do we do with the Avenged guys?” Max asked and I saw the clients creating their own party out of the bar. I smiled. Just like every time after closing. Only this time it was only... I pulled my phone out from my pocket. 3 AM. Fuck... Johnny’s gonna be mad. About this and well... all the broken furniture and the jukebox. Definitely the jukebox.

„We let ‘em in?” Frank piped up.

„Yea. Gates kicked some ass after all. I think he and the guys deserves a couple of shots.” I smiled, turning over a table and a couple of chairs as I managed my way around the bar. „But what are we gonna tell Johnny? That was after all his favorite Jukebox.”

„Don’t worry about it, I’ll talk to him,” Max smiled before going around the bar and gathering his stuff.

„You’re out? And leaving me with... this?” I gestured around the place.

„It’s 3 o’clock and my shift’s over.” He smiled throwing a leather jacket over his broad shoulders.

„Great,” I sighed pulling out a cigarette from the pack and throwing it somewhere across that sticky and shattered glass covered counter. I lit up my smoke and hopped over some chairs to get to the bar. Max patted my shoulder, said something I didn’t give a damn about since I was pissed over him leaving me with this ridiculous mess and then he left. I think I’ll need a drink now.

„Who was that guy?” Frank passed me the high bar stool from the other side of the bar for me to flunk my behind on as I get through the cash in the register.

„Someone you’ll never let in here ever again,” Two glasses flew up from under the counter and I filled them with Patron. I’ll really need something to forget this all. My hand shoved one of them closer to our wonderful bouncer who was trying to tidy up the place. I made the ultimate dive bomb, taking a deep drag of my Marlboro and rinsing it away with the tequila. Right when the glass crashed on the counter Shadows and Vengeance walked in.

„Have you seen the Rev?” Matt asked. Jimmy? Shit, he had been completely out of the picture with all the boxing going on around.

„He’s in the back room,” Frank pointed to the place around the corner.

„Zacky go check on him,” Matt ordered before docking at the bar. As soon as Zack disappeared, he spoke up, „That was some impressive shit you did back there,”

„Thanks,” My cigarette lingered from my lips as I took out the cash. If he didn’t know I used to be a ninja back in the day. A lawyer ninja. I took the cigarette between my fingers, flicking off the ash in the empty glass. „So tell me, what really happened out there,” before MJ has returned and made you lie for her. I started counting the money. „Now this is just great, what am I supposed to do with a half Ben Franklin?” I scoffed. Did I forget to mention I hated closing the bar? And where had that girl gone to? Was Gates having his wicked ways with MJ? Even in the condition he was in now? Hell, I’ll have to make him a Slumdog for that. What was a Slumdog? You really don’t wanna know.

„I think you know what happened there,” He stated and I blew out the smoke. Shit, he got me off my count. How much was there? 365 or 265?

„Hey, do you think you can have a look at the jukebox?” I raised my eyes to him, turning over on the chair, „see if you can fix it.” He graced me with a look and a cocked eyebrow, „I’ll make you a Daiquiri or something...”

„I’m not fixing anything for a Daiquiri,”

„Then what do you want?”

„A tall glass of you?” Oh he’s good. But I’m better.

„Sorry, out of that.”

„How about dinner with me tomorrow at six?”

„Out of that too.” He laughed. You had to understand one thing, when in bar, I speak only the language of the bar. I don’t know basic english.

„So basically you're offering...”

„Jack, Jimmy, Johnnie and Jose, all my favorite men.” I smirked putting out my smoke in the glass of ash.

„Someone said Jimmy?!” Oh no, not him. Now I’m never gonna get through this, not even until the next shift starts. Dude, don’t break the counter, I know you can jump over it, but just...

„Jimmy calm down,” Our heads instantly jerked towards the entrance to see Gates and MJ come inside. Was she... blushing? Now this’s just rich! This calls for a round of shots! Tequila preferably!

Notes

So why is MJ blushing? Did something happen between them?
Thanks guys for the comments and the feedback!

Devil Price.