𝐒𝐔𝐏𝐄𝐑𝐒𝐎𝐍𝐈𝐂, bradley rooster bradshaw

002 ━ the hard deck and ice dines

CHAPTER TWO
━━ when i first saw you
from across the room
i could tell that you were curious,
oh, yeah

In another life, Sage probably would have been a successful businesswoman. A few years after she was honorably discharged from the Navy, she wanted to something to do. So once she was well enough— and used to her new leg— she decided to band together with Penny to open a diner. Penny Benjamin already had a bar; the Hard Deck, but she wanted to try another branch. So when Sage proposed the idea to her, she was more than happy to hop on board.

The Hard Deck and the Ice Dines were side by side— if not combined. The bar had an open deck that connected to the diner, and Penny and Sage often traded working bar and diner at the same time. When her father left, he accidentally left some of his things in the attic of their house. Sage was twelve when she dived through the boxes and found his cook book. With those family recipes she knew damn well she had a right to— she is his blood, afterall— she went all out with the diner.

Thalia, the manager of the diner aka the second boss after Sage and Penny would take over whenever Sage wasn't present. Today, Sage took the day off as she needed to attend a check up. However, after Ice 'ordered' her to go to the Hard Deck after the aforementioned check up, she decided to help out at her diner as well.

"Sage!" Thalia exclaimed, holding an empty tray in her hand as she joined her boss behind the counter. "I thought you were at the doctor's?"

"I was, but now I'm here," Sage smiled at her, looking at the register and checking their business for the day. "Slow morning?"

"Very fast evening, coming ahead," Thalia answered, making Sage raise an eyebrow. "New group of pilots are coming apparently. Naturally, they'd inhabit the entire deck."

Sage chuckled, shaking her head. Thalia was much older than her, kind of like the cool aunt you'd meet only once a year. They both respected each other, but it was hard not to love Thalia when she treated everyone like her own child.

"You should help Penny at the bar today, I'm sure the pilots are gonna get frisky," she sang the last part and bumped her hips into Sage's, making the girl let out a genuine laugh at the woman's antics.

"You sure you're good here?"

"Better than ever, buttercup! Now, shoo!" Thalia turned Sage around by her shoulders, sending her out onto the deck that connected to the bar. "I've got hungry people to serve, you've got drinks to shake."

The brunette chuckled, giving her a pat on the arm and walking into the Hard Deck. The bar was already getting packed as they had expected, a lot of them in the tan Naval uniform. She sighed, subconsciously pulling on her shirt sleeves. She didn't want to be found out yet, as she wore her faded jeans and a white tank top, before tossing on a long sleeved brown button up shirt that she left unbuttoned. The shirt— that she borrowed from Iceman's wardrobe— fell right above her knees.

She made her way through the crowd towards the bar, sliding in to join Penny behind it. She tapped Penny's shoulder to announce her presence, making the woman beam at the sight of her.

"I thought you weren't showing today?" She asked after giving the brunette a hug.

"I got orders," Sage responded with a fond eye roll and Penny laughed, knowing it was Iceman who sent her.