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.
Sol leaned over to whisper softly to Joey, “Hey, it’s okay, I promise it’ll be okay.”
He looked back up at Nik and loosed a sharp whistle. Moments later, a yellow-eyed female appeared behind Nik.
“Hey, Akali, we have an unwanted guest.”
Joey glanced up again when the woman showed up, fidgeting nervously with his hands. He was growing a bit tired from the alcohol and from having used the glamour on his wings all day. I guess she's a… bouncer or something? I'm sure she can get rid of him.
It didn’t take long for Akali, who was a dragon shifter, to hustle Nik away from their table and out of the club.
Mental note to give her a raise.
Sol shifted to face Joey. “Hey,” he said softy. “You okay? Do you want to leave?”
"Yeah, I'm okay. Just kinda tired." Joey smiled tiredly up at Sol. "What with the uh… the alcohol, and all. I'm guessing I'm probably kind of a lightweight." He laughed softly, glancing up to make sure Nik didn't come back over to bother them.
Sol frowned a bit. “Yeah, that might have been too strong for you,” he said, gently squeezing Joey’s shoulders. “I should probably get you home, do you live nearby?”
Joey nodded a bit, getting to his feet. He was obviously a little bit tipsy, but still present. "Yeah, in an apartment complex nearby. Only about a block away from the shop."
Sol helped Joey stand, gently wrapping an arm around his waist. He frowned a bit at how thin the male was. “I can take you on my back or call a cab, what do you prefer?” he asked. This was such a mistake…
"Oh, either is fine…" Joey yawned and allowed Sol to help him. He wasn't quite right in the mind enough to say that he wouldn't want to be carried; his weight would be very incriminating. Considering his hollow bones and not eating enough, he hardly weighed anything at all.
Noting how out of it Joey was, Sol carefully scooped him up, one arm under his knees. Cradling the far too light male against his chest, Sol strode out of the crowded club. Most people knew him and got out of his way, so it didn’t take long to get outside. Once at his bike, he gently sat Joey down. “We can take my bike, it’s faster, ‘kay?”
"'Kay…" Joey held onto Sol's waist to keep himself on the bike, glancing around from where he was. "You'll have to… um… go forward for a bit, then take a… right. And after a bit, you should see the apartment complex."
Sol nodded, familiar with the location he was talking about. It didn’t take long to get there on his bike. Parking outside, he gently picked Joey back up. “What number are you?” he asked softly
"Number sssssseventeen." Joey replied, resting his head against Sol's shoulder. Honestly, he just looked and felt fragile to the touch, as if he would break if someone looked at him wrong.
Sol carried Joey up to his apartment, nodding at a woman he passed. A flick of his fingers had the non-magical door unlocking. Stars the male weighed nothing; it worried Sol. After gently setting Joey on the couch, he pulled out his phone
hey sis, can’t make it tonight, sorry
Joey curled up on the couch and yawned, closing his eyes. It didn't take him too long to doze off, and the glamour on his wings faded when he did so. His large white wings appeared, nearly pushing him off the couch with all the space they took up.
Sol turned and sucked in a breath when he saw Joey’s wings. So he was an angel. Beautiful…
Grabbing a blanket from the back of a chair, he draped it across the angel. Should I stay…?