He was cutting it close if he wanted to be on time for seeing Lalinda, Jack however had stopped about half a block from their meeting place and was pacing back and forth fretfully. He couldn’t stop himself from second guessing what was going on and why she wanted to see him. Was it really just to have fun like the had said back in the Northward Hunters Association building? Or was there some information that she wanted to talk to him about that she didn’t want others from her group to hear? If it was the first, why him?
Jack knew objectively that he wasn’t the most attractive person in the world. In fact, all of her associates were much more attractive than he was. Also, he hadn’t really done anything that he could think of during their meeting to suggest that he was interested in her. Perhaps it was the fact that everyone that she worked with were her childhood friends and she didn’t want to strain those relationships when she just wanted sex. Though deciding to pursue a stranger asking about a companion who has gone missing was an odd choice to Jack in that regard. Then again, Jack thought he didn’t really know to much about relationships or romance himself. It was something that he never really dealt with too much after he had left that place to be on his own.
On the other hand if this meetup was about something to do with the case then why wouldn’t she want to talk about it in front of her group mates? Was there some reason to suspect one of them of being the reason that she disappeared? Or perhaps she had brought up an idea that they dismissed but she felt that it was still important and didn’t want their dismissive attitudes to affect his consideration. All of these ideas and more jumbled up in Jacks brain.
As he dithered trying to get his head on straight he realized with a start that if he didn’t get a move on then he would be late. Pulling up his ever constant companion of a time spell he saw he was already a couple minutes past when they were supposed to be meeting. Cursing under his breath Jack shoved all his thoughts to the side and ran the rest of the distance.
Pausing a bit in front of the entrance to catch his breath Jack shook his head refusing to let himself fall back into the trap of overthinking that had him stuck just a minute ago. No matter why she had wanted to see him the best choice was to simply keep moving forward.
Taking a look at the inside of the shop it was clear that this was a pretty popular destination. Almost every both was filled up. There were people of all ages and group sizes sitting around and enjoying the music playing from a contraption on one end of the shop. It was one of those jukeboxes that could cycle through a number of different crystals that had music recorded onto them. Jack smiled a moment remembering when he had first seen one of those almost a decade prior. It still amazed him to this day the joy that something so simple in concept brought.
As he turned to look elsewhere in the shop he felt someone grab him in a hug from behind. “Took ya long enough! I was beginning to think ya stood me up!” a voice exclaimed right next to his ear. Jack tried to turn his head to be able to respond but found himself pushing his cheek right into her nose instead. He felt a wet pair of lips kiss him followed by a whisper in his ear. “Oh, couldn’t wait for the end of the date for a kiss, eh?”
“Well, who could when on a date with a beauty like you?” Jack couldn’t help but to laugh at her behavior and decided to play along, as he turned himself around in her grasp and kissed her on the cheek in response. His actions were rewarded with a huge blush on Lalinda’s cheeks and her burying her face into his shoulder from which he heard a mumbled “Shut up.” It seemed that while she was good at acting flirtatious, she wasn’t so good at receiving compliments.
After a moment she pulled herself up and seemed to have recovered other then a slight blush still decorating her cheeks. Taking a breath, she said “Well what are you waiting for? Let’s grab ourselves a table! This place has some amazing burgers! And the drinks are to die for!”
With that she pulled Jack forward and into the diner. The little bell above the door ringing as they entered caused the waiter behind the counter to look over and call out “One moment and I’ll be right with you!”
Jack and Lalinda waited a moment watching the waiter excuse himself from a conversation, fill someone’s drink and then come around the counter to meet them by the door. “Hello there and welcome to Valian Soda Bar! Lalinda great to see you again! How’s everything been going? And who is this fine gentleman?”
“Hey Jerry! It’s been gooood. Decided to get myself back out there again, and this handsome fellow is Jack. We were looking forward to getting some of your guy’s world-famous burgers and shakes!” Lalinda immediately replied back in rapid succession not seeming to pause even a second for breath.
“Of course, sweetie! Come right this way and I’ll get you two seated.” Jerry prompted them doing his best to hide the wince he had when he heard Jacks name. Jack more then used to it by this point pretended not to notice he had made his choice when he decided to keep the name rather than changing it.
On the way to the table Jerry nabbed a couple of the menus from a basket on the counter for them to peruse and wisphered harshly to Lalinda. “Look it’s fine if you are on a date with someone you don’t like but really calling them that to their face? Do you have to go so far?”
“I’m not. It’s his name.” She whispered back, and when he looked at her in askance, she affirmed “Yes, really.”
Sitting them down in a booth Jerry handed them both menu and asked “Can I get you anything to start? A nice coffee perhaps?”
Jack nodded his head and replied “Sure I’ll take some coffee.”
While Lalinda spoke at almost the same time “None for me thanks! Is Earl doing any of their tea today? If so, I’ll take a cup of that!”
“I’m afraid not. He’s out of town right now to visit his parents for the upcoming solstice.” Jerry shook his head.
Hearing that Lalinda pouted exaggeratedly and sighed before perking back up and laughing. “Well just water to start for me then!”
“Alright give me just a moment and I’ll have those drinks out to you in a jiffy. You two take your time and let me know when you are ready to order.” Jerry smiled at the two of them and headed back around the counter.
Looking at the menu in front of him Jack skimmed over everything and asked his table partner. “So, anything in particular that you would recommend? I recall you saying something about their famous burgers and shakes.”
Lalinda who had had a slight pensive look after Jerry had left the table had a sudden look of relief sweep over her face. “Yeah! They have amazing burgers here and the malted shakes are to die for. I really love the shadow bison burger and the chocolate lava shake. It’s amazing! For the shakes they use magic to keep the consistency the same while allowing it to be all kinds of different temperatures. In winter here the hot lava shakes are just the best. So warm and filling while still having that great milkshake texture!”
Jack listened intently then took a look at the menu again. “Any good sides? And how is the flying pig sandwich? From the description it sounds pretty good.” While it was obvious that something was bothering her he figured the best choice was to wait a bit and allowing for her to relax. Hopefully she would then be willing to talk without him having to confront her.
“Hmm… Well Clarence says it’s super good, but I haven’t tried it myself. I don’t go for pork all that often myself. Honestly, I love the sweet fire yam fries. They have this sauce that they serve with ‘em that is just to die for.” Lalinda responded holding a finger to her chin as she thought.
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“Sounds good, why don’t we get a side of those then to share along with our sandwiches? I’ll give that shake you recommended a try as well, it sounds interesting.” Jack suggested.
“Mmh.” Lalinda hummed and nodded in agreement.
The two of them lulled into a silence for a minute, as it went on Lalinda began to fidget more and more starting to look a bit distressed. Right as Jack was about to ask her if she would like to talk about whatever had her so worked up Jerry came back over to the table.
“Hey there you two lovebirds! Sorry it took so long to get these to you. Have you had any thoughts on what you want?” Jerry called out in a warm tone as he set their drinks on the table.
“Yeah! Can I get my usual?” Lalinda asked relief clear on her face for the distraction.
“One shadow bison burger and chocolate lava shake, got it, and you?” Jerry acknowledged and then prompted Jack
Jack replied a bit hesitantly, “Right, uh, could I get the flying pig sandwich along with one of those shakes that Lalinda is getting? Oh, uh, and a side of the sweet yam, sorry sweet fire yam fries as well. Thanks”
Jerry scribbled something on a small pad and said “Alrighty we’ll have that out to you two in a little bit here. Just let me know if you want any refills or anything.”
“Will do! Thanks Jerry!” Lalinda chirped. Before he turned away Jerry gave her a last look seeming to silently ask her a question. She shook her head slightly and Jerry nodded in response and headed to give their order to the kitchen.
Jack sighed slightly and gently confronted Lalinda. “I hate to force matters but could you tell me what has you so bothered? It seems to be bad enough that I have noticed several people keeping an eye on us. Likewise I don’t want to presume but was asking me to join you tonight actually for a date and pleasure or did you have another goal in mind. I don’t mind either way of course, but I would rather know what footing I’m on going forward here.”
At the direct questioning Lalinda bit her lip and nervously played with her hands a minute before finally bursting out “I’m sorry. I just… well I wanted to get a chance to talk to ya outside of my team for a bit. I mean I wouldn’t say no to us possibly taking a tumble in the sheets, I mean… you aren’t hard on the eyes or anything and certainly seem nice enough, but. Yeah, it was more that I wanted to talk to you alone.”
Jack nodded in understanding. “It’s not a problem at all. So, what in particular has gotten you so worked up? It has to be something big for you to be this stressed about it.”
“It’s… well it’s hard for me to say.” Lalinda admitted shifting uncomfortably in her seat. “If ya don’t mind, can we talk about something else for a bit and… and I’ll tell ya everything before we leave, promise. Okay?”
“Of course. Take your time. I won’t push. Well then, how about you tell me how you discovered this place?” Jack reassured her in a calm voice trying to find a good topic to relax her.
It was evident that this was a good choice as she immediately perked up, her body language shifting from uncomfortable and nervous to relaxed and cheerful. “Oh, that’s easy! I used to work here! Ya see, s couple years back not to long after we came to the city, we were running a bit down on our luck. While we had been doing missions, we weren’t known well enough yet to be doing the better paying jobs. So, all of us were trying to find some side work to get us by. Back in our hometown, my family ran a small bed and breakfast so I had some experience in that kind of work. So first place I tried to work was some of the hotels in the area. Ended up getting a gig at the place right around the corner there.” She said pointing over her left shoulder before continuing. “Well, the manager I had there was a right asswipe. Tried to get me to sleep with ‘em for my paycheck. Punched ‘im right in the dick instead. Turned out he was the owner’s son.”
Jack winced as he could see how this was going. “Let me guess, you got fired and they tried to claim it as you coming onto him and when he refused you lashed out.”
“Yep! Ya got it.” She affirmed popping the p loudly. “I was in tears after that, sitting on the side of the road, having just wasted the last two weeks of my life for nothin’. Well Jerry there was working that day and saw me sobbing out there.” She gestured with a wave of her hand toward the front windows of the diner. “Unlike some assholes he didn’t come and tell me to get lost or anything, nah. He came out asked me to come in and have a free cup of tea. He got me sitting at the counter and just managed to get me to open up about everything. Ha! I couldn’t stop sobbing for the life of me as I blubbered to ‘im about everything from being homesick to the assholes at the hotel.”
She chuckled derisively at just how she felt at the time before her face softened into a slight smile. “He just sat there and listened. After a little while Earl came out and joined him. When I was all done and out of energy Jerry turned to Earl asked him what he thought. Earl just looked at me before getting up and walking out the door. I thought I had upset him or some’in and started cryin’ again. Jerry had just gotten me resettled when in walked Earl. He walked up to me and handed me an envelope. Didn’t even wait for a response before he went into the back. I was so confused I just sat there and stared at the thing. A minute later he had come back out and tossed an apron on me and said “No less then three days a week. Four-hour shifts. Let us know if you will be out of town.””
“Well, that was how I ended up finding this place. Might not have been the happiest start, but this place has some of the best people I’ve ever known. Jerry and Earl ‘specially. Plus, the food here, ugh, so fucking good!” Lalinda cheered. “So, ya know I just gotta ask. You’re a nice enough guy and you seem good enough at what you’re doing. Why Jack? I mean old nickname or somethin’? It just doesn’t seem to fit ya.”
Jack had known that the question would be coming at some point while they were here. it was one he had been asked more then a few times throughout his life. He took a sip from his coffee before answering trying to word it as best he could. “… There are two main reasons. First, it’s not a nickname I’m afraid. My name really is Jack Bertrand”
Her look started to morph into an expression of slight horror and she stammered “W-what? But who wou-?”
Jack interrupted her and pressed on “My mother. She… well, she… she hated me and everything I represented as a child. In her eyes I was a failure. I don’t fully know for what reason she had me, but there had been some purpose behind it. My trait levels however made her deem me worthless. I don’t know how she did it, but I assume she got me tested right after I was born considering the name on my birth certificate is indeed Jack.”
Lalinda’s face was fully aghast at that point not wanting to see what the next expression would be Jack closed his eyes and leaned back slightly before he continued “The second reason is, I am actually a jack. Magic wise I mean, ended up doing it to myself back when I was younger.”
“Really!? You’re a jack? But you don’t seem anything like what I’ve heard.” Lalinda exclaimed in surprise, loud enough that several other patrons turned toward the duo. Realizing just how loud she was she whispered her follow up “I thought jacks couldn’t use magic at all? How do you manage to get by if you can’t?”
“Yeah, that’s probably true for most jacks. It isn’t actually that mana can’t be used but that using it is extremely painful. So painful in fact, that it’s to the point that most would rather do anything then touch magic again, and I really do mean anything.” Jack opened his eyes and looked directly in hers trying to convey just how serious he was. “I get by because I’m too stubborn not to. I refuse to let myself be worthless. After I ended up doing this to myself, I swore that I would prove both myself and my namesake as more then how the world viewed us. I will admit that it helps some that I have read theories that if someone can manage to stick it out long enough that eventually their mana veins will adapt. Though there is no way to know if that is true or not.”
Jack shook his head and laughed slightly. “Right! Well, enough of that. Let’s find us some happier topics to talk about her as we eat. We have plenty of time to talk about dreary topics afterwards.”
Letting out a held breath Lalinda nodded. “Yeah, sorry about the depressing topic there.”
“No, no. It doesn’t bother me any” Jack waved off her apology and laughed. “I’ve had to deal with the name and everything my whole life. I got over being bothered by it years ago.”
There was a bit of silence as they both attempted to think of something that wouldn’t upset the other. After a bit Lalinda shrugged to herself and in a joking tone asked “So… how ‘bout that weather?”
Jack who had been in the middle of taking a drink found the innocuous question funny enough that he ended up sorting the coffee up his nose. With that the stilted silence and uncomfortable atmosphere that had started to develop was shattered. They grabbed some napkins to clean up the table and chatted about the weather and other light hearted topics. Purposefully avoiding anything else too serious or heavy. After a little while Jerry swung back over with two large plates of food, a basket of bright red fries and two dark brown milkshakes.
“Alright, here you two go! Enjoy the food and let me know if there is anything else we can do for you!” Jerry smiled at them clearly more relaxed now seeing that Lalinda was no longer nervous and stressed as she was earlier.
Looking at the delicious spread set in front of them Jack and Lalinda got ready to dig in.