Chapter Text
Gepard sighed as his friends eagerly chatted away in his car. Since he had finished his Student Council duties, his dear friends and older sister had come to drag him out of the classroom where he usually stayed. In all honesty, Gepard didn’t wish to be here. He was sure he could have spent this time coming up with activities for his college to do to increase their community. However, when his sister was involved, he knew he wouldn’t be able to escape. Though, maybe this was a good thing.
In recent times, Gepard had found himself awfully distracted. There was a rather troublesome peer that occupied his mind. Gepard would find himself envisioning the eyes of the man. He’d hear his voice in his head at a constant rate and it was really affecting Gepard. To fall for a man, it was unheard of for him.
He didn’t mind if others fell for the same gender but him? He was straight. He had to be. How could someone like him even possibly fall for someone of the opposite sex? Gepard quickly pushed his thoughts away as he pulled up to the bar.
“Alright, we're here. Please, try not to get too drunk. I don’t want to have to clean up vomit after this..”
He heard his older sister, Serval, laugh in the passenger seat as she pulled her younger brother close and ruffled his hair.
“Haha! Don’t sweat it too much! We’ll be careful. Enough at least. I came prepared just in case!”
Serval pulled out some paper bags for if someone did need to vomit on the drive back. This made Gepard sigh as he stepped out of his car and closed the door. His friends and Serval followed shortly after. He stopped for a moment to allow Serval to go forward as he gazed upon the bar.
Bars had never been his thing. He always saw them as a place filled with too much noise and potential broken laws. He couldn’t turn back now though, he was already standing in front of it. Serval walked up forward to the bouncer as she showed her ID. It was scanned and she was soon let in.
“Come on!”
Gepard sighed following close behind him. He showed his own ID to the bouncer yet since it was his entirely first time at the bar, this guaranteed a pat down. He knew his friends and Serval were likely regulars considering they didn’t get patted down. Once it was over, Gepard took his ID back and awkwardly waved to the bouncer.
He stepped fully inside the bar as he heard the loud music start blasting. It was honestly already giving him a headache yet he was already committed. He looked around the area to spot his sister as he hurried over to her. Serval must’ve sensed how tense she was because she immediately wrapped her arm around Gepard's shoulders.
“Loosen up! It’ll be fun. I promise! Plus I just got news that there’d be a special performance today. Isn’t that at least a little exciting?”
Gepard groaned as he nodded. He wondered if Sampo enjoyed bars. Wait– What? No. He shouldn’t think about such a thing. He shook his head as he smiled at Serval. He had to get into the mood to get his mind away from him.
“Yeah. You’re right. I’m sure their performance will be great.”
Serval smiled seeing Gepard relax a bit as she released her hold on him. She gently elbowed him on the side as she chuckled.
“There we go! Now come on. I think one of your buddies already got us a table. We can order some food.”
Gepard nodded as the siblings went towards the table. Once they sat down, Gepard picked up the menu and looked at it. All the options were rather unhealthy. He preferred to keep to a healthy platter yet the salad looked like the healthiest option right now. He could hear Serval laughing with his fellow Student Council member friends.
This made him turn his attention to them as well as he listened in. After just a few seconds, one of the waiters arrived. Since everybody was ready, the waiter began to speak.
“Welcome, what may I get for you guys today?”
Gepard grabbed everybody’s menu as he passed them to the waiter with a smile.
“I’ll just have the salad with water, thank you!” Said Gepard.
“I’ll have the french fries with a beer, please!” Said Serval.
The others gave their orders and once the waiter had finished keeping track of the orders. He gave a gentle bow putting the paper back into his apron.
“Thank you, I’ll have those available as soon as possible. In the meantime, please enjoy the show. I do believe it’ll start soon.”
As if on cue, the moment the waiter walked away the lights of the bar began to dim. Serval elbowed Gepard as he rubbed his side a bit.
“Look! It’s about to start! Aren’t you at least the smallest bit excited to see this?”
Gepard began to fidget with his hands underneath the table as he smiled. Even now, he could still picture Sampo in his mind. He felt sick. His stomach was doing too many spins and his head continued to rush. Sampo probably did enjoy bars. At least going by his records.
“Yeah. Sorry, I was zoned out.”
Music started to play as Gepard turned his gaze onto the stage. He watched a leg appear from behind the curtains. Then the curtains suddenly opened. The woman that walked out had Gepard mind blown.
He felt his heart race as the woman walked down the stage.
“You had plenty money, 1922~! You let other women make a fool of you.~”
That voice, it sounded angelic. Gepard couldn’t help but blush as the woman continued to walk slowly on the stage. The way her hips moved with her hands on her waist. Gepard couldn’t keep his eyes off her.
“–like some other men do?~”
The way she leaned against the wall and slid down. Gepard found himself completely head over heels. He watched as she walked over to the center of the stage again and closer to one of the men who had a table closer to the stage. The way she teased him, Gepard almost felt jealous.
Either way, His gaze never once left her sight. The way her blue hair cascaded neatly behind her, those striking deep blue eyes. It almost reminded him of Sampo…Gepard shook his head again. No, there’s no way that his woman and Sampo could be the same. It was likely just a coincidence.
“You wouldn't be a-wandering now from door to door.~”
Gepard’s eyes landed on her face as he smiled. He was so lost in the moment that he hadn’t even noticed the look Serval and his friends were giving him. He’d be in for some heavy teasing from his sister when this was over. The women looked over at Gepard making direct eye contact.
Something must’ve drawn the women’s attention to him because she began to move away from the stage. She stepped onto a table and down onto the floor. Never in his entire life would Gepard have expected her to fully walk over. He thought she was just doing a bit and looked over by accident. It seemed he was wrong.
Gepard felt her sit on his lap as the blush on his face only grew.
“Get out of here and get me some money too.~”
The way her hands grabbed on his tie and loosened it. Every touch was making Gepard’s head spin. She leaned close as if she were going to kiss Gepard yet Gepard moved back, far too embarrassed and shy. She must’ve found this rather amusing because she soon got up off his lap, her fingers gently caressing Gepard’s back before she returned to her stage.
Gepard quickly adjusted his tie as he did his best to calm his breathing. That woman looked so much like Sampo that it was driving him insane. He felt dizzy, as if he couldn’t breathe. It was too much for him. When the performance was over, Serval noticed his state.
She was quick to grab a napkin and whip away some sweat off Gepard’s face.
“You alright? You looked pretty flustered there~! Say, She looks like that one guy at our college.. Hm.. Must be a coincidence!”
Gepard could only nod as he remained silent. He knew that if he spoke, he’d just be a stuttering mess. His heart was still beating all too fast. He wanted to know more about her. Would that be over preaching? Maybe bars weren’t so bad. Gepard felt like a fool for letting one little performance get under his skin this much. Surely, she just acted like that with everyone.
“I think this Madame Poisson might’ve just broken my brother..”
Serval moved the paper that listed the events away. Gepard immediately stood up as he shook his head.
“I'm FINE!” He said just a bit too loud.
He felt people turn to look at him as he shielded himself from their view.
“Sorry. I’m fine though. I just..need some fresh air! Keep enjoying yourselves though. I won’t take long!”
Without waiting for a response, Gepard hurried out of the bar. His clothing felt all too tight, he couldn’t breathe. The moment he was outside, he took a deep breath and leaned against his own car. He felt better now. The sweat wasn’t clinging to his clothing. His mind was all over the place. He thought that by being outside, He’d be saved from seeing the woman again yet Madame Poisson soon stepped out the bar via the employee exit.
She seems to have spotted Gepard as she walked over to Gepard.
“You seemed to enjoy my show~!”
Madame Poisson grabbed onto his tie once more as Gepard looked down at her. What was she doing here? He came outside to calm down, not to get toyed with again. He immediately moved away from the women as he fixed his tie and turned his blushing face away.
“I did. It was…nice.”
He heard a faint laughter before feeling her grab his hand. He was about to move his hand away yet he felt a slip of paper land on his palm. Soon, that touch was gone. Gepard looked back to where he had last seen the women yet she too had already moved away. He looked towards her direction then at the paper. Just as he was about to open it, Serval stepped out.
This startled Gepard so he shoved the paper into his pocket and cleared his throat.
“Serval! Hey! I was- uh- just about to head back in!”
Serval looked at her younger brother before sighing. She could sense something was up but she didn’t want to pry too much. She already knew about her brother’s crush on Sampo. It broke her heart to see her brother affected by their fathers influence so much. However, she knew she shouldn’t force too much. She’d just wait till he came to her for assistance.
“If you don’t feel well, you're welcome to leave. I won’t force you to stay, lil bro.”
Gepard shook his head. He felt..better. If anything, he was curious about what Madame Poisson gave him. He didn’t want to check right now though. He’d check later back at home. For now, he figured he should at least finish the hang out that he promised his sister and council members.
“I’m alright now. Thank you, Serval.”
He smiled warmly at her as he straightened himself up.
“I’ll be right behind you.”
Serval nodded as she went back inside the bar. Gepard followed close behind as his fingers brushed against the slip of paper in his pocket. He was incredibly curious about Madame Poisson but he had to wait till he was home. He can finally forget about his thing for Sampo with this. This was his chance.