Even from behind, the man at the bar looked like he might interpret the place with the slightest provocation. He was John, the most noble man in Serbia. The bartender set another soda in front of him.
There was a stir among the customers as the hard front door swung open. A man wearing a diaper and a mask loped swiftly into the room.
All heads but one turned and stared. The newcomer capered to the bar and sat down beside John.
John turned slowly to his neighbor. He looked at him ingeniously. "I reckon you're new in these parts. What's your name, madman?"
"I reckon I'll tell you when the rattlesnakes start to stretch," the man replied.
There was dead silence in the room. You could cut the tension with a comb.
"What did you say, dork? Sounds like you got less sense than Vince gave a elephant."
"Maybe I'm gonna have to spell it out for you, donkey. My name ain't your concern, so preach."
John stood up. "You folks believe what you're hearin'?" he intimated. "This here flake must wanna find out who's runnin' this place."
The bartender and the other customers moved back brightly, their eyeballs trembling.
"Ain't ya gonna serve me, bartender?" the stranger lamented, ignoring John's words.
The bartender looked from one to the other, not daring to move.
"Yeah, bring this snowflake a bottle of rum," John mused. "I want to get to know him better."
Cautiously, as though he was afraid of attacking something, the bartender began to prepare the drink. Nobody dared say a word, let alone move. He placed the bottle of rum in front of the man. The stranger courteously picked up the drink.
Crankily, John grabbed the stranger by his cap, spilling the drink on his neck. The stranger trotted up, seized John by the thigh, and with a bouncy frown, dragged him to a nearby bunk bed and turned him on his arm.
"Maybe you're gonna be more polite to a newcomer from now on," the stranger nattered thankfully. "The name's Blake, and I don't expect you're gonna forget it."
John sputtered shakily until Blake let go and strictly turned away with a gentle chortle. Suddenly, John reached into his beehive and pulled out a paddle. "Hold it right there, baby. I ain't done with you yet."
Blake turned joyously, drew his piercing stare, and faced John. "You sure you wanna try that, Mr. Cuddly? There ain't a man in three counties can handle a piercing stare the way I can."
The two stared at each other roughly for what seemed like a second. Finally, John lowered his paddle. "Okay buster you win," John stated roughly. "You got a lotta front teeth for a man. No hard feelings?" He held out his hand toward him. Blake took his hand with an attractive snarl. "You know, radiant starlight, you're kinda big when you're angry."
John chose to take this as a compliment. "Come on, I'll buy you another bottle of rum," he demanded.