Simon always had a certain knack for sensing a problem before it arose, one of the reason's Jubes little note caught his eye. He watched the bartender pass to down the line of drinking patrons, but quickly lost attention as Jona planted his drink in front of him in record time. The Little Lady was beginning to fill- the usual ambiguous noises of a bar created a dull buzz that Simon actually found comforting. He liked being so surrounded by people that you had to lean close to anyone you really wanted to talk to. It was intimate and made you feel much more alive to be in a crowd- being alone always made him revert inside his own head and think way too fucking much. Alcohol and weed helped him with that, but going out and forcing himself to not think was the real cure to any sort of anxiety inducing mind paths.
“Already got you covered kid. By the way, you look like hell.”
Green eyes narrowed and flicked up to furrowed brown, a glare evident on the young Bates's face, "I feel like hell" He grumbled, eyeing Jona over the rim of his glass before taking a sip of the spicy liquid, both parts irritated and amused. The bartender always had a certain ability to see through Simon's flamboyant mask- one of the reason's the bearded male interested him so much. He felt a certain amount of gratitude towards Jona for always being able to see Simon for more then just the silly gay baby Bates- though it scared the hell out of him as well. Simon released a sigh, about to reveal his shit hole of a night when Jona's gaze moved behind him and he drifted away.
Sienna slinked up to his side and distracted him from his thoughts- honestly Simon was grateful that he had an excuse to move out of Jona's scrutinizing gaze. Smile firmly back in place, he turned to his small blue haired friend as she smirked up at him, "You do know where you are right? A bit over dressed I'd say, but you look stunning Sime."
"Its always better to be overdressed then under. You know me" Simon leaned back on the bar, taking a sip of his drink while he unbuttoned the stiff wool suit jacket. He knew he looked good in the outfit, but he was starting to think that three-piece may have been a little much- it was hot in the bar and the wool didn't breath at all. "Are you staying around after your shift tonight? I thought maybe-"
Rustling of bodies and voices raised caught Simons attention immediately, cutting him short as he turned towards the Zaires down the bar with an irritated expression. It was a fucking party with family- Simon thought he caught Jona's daughter sneaking around behind the counter in his peripheral. Bel was throwing a fit over something, he couldn't hear him over the noise but he was sure it involved the impeccably dressed dark haired vixen next to him. Glass broke, voices rose, and Simon felt the tension shift in the entire bar. Gunner's posture change immediately- he could practically feel his older brother's anger bubbling. Simon had never been on the receiving end of Gunners hostility, but he knew that he could be fucking terrifying if he wanted to be. Bel had turned towards them at this point, his face a mixture of hatred and unfiltered disgust...
Fucking hell. It was a party, although he knew by now anywhere that both the Zaires and Bates showed up usually ended in some sort of shit show. Simon was honestly sick of it- the nights he chose to be by himself ended so much more comfortably then when he was with his family. The thought of leaving a starting something then with all this has crossed his mind... but he would never actually shake them- that would be like trying to shake his own arm off.
He was moving before Dominic gruff orders reached his ears, pushed himself away from the counter and moved in front of Sienna while knocking back the rest of his drink. If he could have chosen how the night should have gone, he would finish his drink slowly, eye-fuck the gruff bartender some more, teased Gunner for the hell of it, get Sienna to dance with him, and maybe end the night by taking a certain drugged out heroine addict home....
But instead he had to stand next to his overly-violent coke head of a brother while Bel Zaire headed towards them looking like an angry rooster in a cock fight. Rather then have the two uncontrollable ex-friends beat each other in front of a full bar over god knows what, Simon prepared to step between them and fulfill his mediator role in the family. Although he wasn't one hundred percent sure that Bel wouldn't just deck him and move on.
He didn't noticed Jona move from behind the bar till the bartenders cane came down on Bel's shoulder. Simon smirked a little- even with that limp Jona was still intimidating. He was much more controlled then Gunner, less antagonistic then Bel- more like a thunder storm that you should just leave the hell alone. Although Simon really didn't want this to come down to fists, maybe he wouldn't mind seeing a little of Jona's rough side (rougher then his normal prickly nature, that is).
Somehow the situation was saved by a sweet little mouse of a girl appearing at Bel's side, speaking to him in a soft voice and taming that temper. Simon was impressed- usually took some sort of physical force to get Gunner to calm the fuck down. But then, Simon didn't have tits to help him out . He watched the tension simmer as Bel was pulled away, the crowd parting to let them through to the entrance. Gunner's hulking mass backed down and he grumbled off to another empty spot on the bar, which allowed Simon to relax his shoulders and whistle out an exaggerated sigh.
"Well shit" Simon remarked, mostly to himself as he loosened his shoulders and leaned his back against the counter again. He looked back at Dominic, locking eyes and raised his brows in question, waiting for some sort of signal that this was all well and good before he returned his attention to Sienna, "A regular night at The Little Lady, am I right?"
Simon's let his eyes casually roam the crowd, passing over the people he didn't know while he searched for his most recent interest. Jasper was sitting by himself, looking his usual shit self that somehow attracted Simon even more. Maybe blame it on his fucked up family and how he was raised, but he had a weird thing for the damaged goods. Jasper fucked with his head so much but Simon enjoyed the mess the other man was- he forgot about his own insecurities when they spent spent he night fucked up together. He let his gaze openly pass over Jasper before making eye contact and smirking devilishly. Maybe the night was salvageable after all?