No matter which way Sadie looked, bodies of tourists flooded the streets. Some wore too much floral, while others barely wore any clothing at all. But not only was the festival crowded and loud, but the sun beat down on anyone who dared to step out of the shadows, boiling their naked flesh to a crisp. Ok, so the heat wasn’t that bad, but it was still really hot. Luckily, Sadie had landed a spot at one of the bars before the festival got too congested. Though she had to push her way through a crowd of sweaty tourists, being able to rest under the shade of the bar was well worth it. There she stayed perched for most of the early hours, ordering ice cold drinks with her fake ID. “Bartender, could I get one more? Extra ice as well, please.”
The drink was a margarita and came with its own silly straw and a floral lei with flowers so gaudy it would make any Bellossom jealous. After taking her first sip, her glossy lips curved into a grin. The chilling beverage gave the girl goose bumps as it traveled down her esophagus, causing her to giggle with glee. Sadie wasn’t one to loosen up, but I’m on vacation for Heaven’s Sake! she thought. If I’m gonna partake in illegal activity, now would be the perfect time to do so. And with that, she took another swig from her drink, this time savoring the flavors for all they had to offer. There were hints of citrus and berries, but the most notable flavor was… fruit punch!? Swallowing what was left in her mouth, she immediately turned to the bartender and asked, “Have you been serving me fruit punch this entire time!?”
The bartender chuckled at the girls accusations. As he cleaned a glass with a rag, “You finally noticed? It only took you three drinks,” he responded.
Not only had she been smeckledorfed, but he was laughing at her as well. There were many ways Sadie could have gone about the situation, but she settled on the easiest: threaten. Sipping her fruit punch, she placed the cup down and looked him straight in the eye and said, “Look, I’m not sure why you did it, but I paid for those drinks. So either you give me what I ordered, or I want my money back.”
The bartender raised his hands in defeat, a smirk slapped across his face. “Alright, alright, you caught me. I’ll get you want you wanted,” he said. Taking the cup from the bar, he mixed a drink for her and even added a tiny umbrella to it. “Here,” he said, passing her the glass.
Sadie sneered at the bartender as she took the glass from him. It didn’t look all that different, sans umbrella. She raised the silly straw to her lips and took a sip of the drink. Pausing for a moment, the brunette sloshed the drink around in her mouth, deciphering what new tastes this drink had to offer. Hmm… tastes like… fruit punch!? “What the fuck!?” was all she could muster. “This is the same exact drink as my last one!”
The bartender was in a fit of laughter now. He practically had tears rolling down his eyes from laughing so hard. After collecting himself, he leaned over the bar and motioned for her to come closer. In a soft tone, “We both know you’re not 21. So if you wanna be a bad girl and drink yourself into a stupor, you’re gonna have to find yourself a different bar. And good luck with that. You might make it through the line in 90 minutes if you’re lucky,” he explained. “So what’s it gonna be? You gonna stand in line with all those sweaty plebs for a beer or do you wanna stay here with your fruit punch like a good girl?”
The bartender had given her an ultimatum and a shitty one at that. Stay with the guy who just pulled a ruse over her twice in a row or bare the heat so she could maybe get some liquor? And who’s to say they won’t turn me away at that bar either? Though she’d hate to admit it, she had been defeated at her own game. After a short deliberation, she took hold of the glass of fruit punch and drank from it, sighing between her sips. Fuck.