Vibin' With The Boys

The crowd of men converged on the drunkards, ripping them away from where Elric was on the ground. Pained shouts rang through the air as a few of the lads stopped to help Elric back to his feet.

"You good, bro? I've seen a few pictures of you, but man, editing sure is a bitch."

The young man looked Elric's face up and down.

"You look like shit, man. Is this normal for you, or was that 'Basic Combat' on your profile a lie?"

Painfully brushing some dirt off his clothes Elric frowned at the questioner.

"Screw off, Milky. There were four of them."

Grinning, Milky gestured over to where a few other lads were helping Grassless up.

"Eh? But you had a teammate, too! Surely old man Grassless could handle a few enemies, right?"

Milky's eyes roamed the surrounding area.

"Now then… where's this girlfriend of yours? Please tell me she didn't run off when she saw you getting your ass beat."

The look on Milky's face was perverted, and Elric considered lying to send him away. This guy wasn't someone to trust around your girlfriend.

Not because he would steal her. No. Instead, he would probably do something so cringe that said girlfriend would dump you, just for having known Milky.

"She should still be inside, singing. Let's head in."

Ignoring his worries, Elric took a step forward but nearly fell to the ground as his right leg gave out.

"Ow. One of those bastards kicked my leg pretty good. I think I've got a few bruised ribs as well, if they aren't broken."

The main team of The Boys seemed to have finished with the drunkards, and they recongregated around Elric.

With a few instructions from Milky, a group of them started lifting Elric off the ground, preparing to carry him inside.

"Guys? You could just help me walk in."

One of the lads shook his head.

"No can do. You're the valiant knight who just defeated four nasty gangsters to defend your girlfriend's honor. It's only fitting if your friends, who unfortunately showed up too late to help, carry you in for your victory ceremony."

Elric wasn't sure what to say as he was hoisted off his feet. What was even going on here?

Glancing around, he saw Grassless giving him a thumbs up.

"I called some of The Boys over after talking with Ember when she first came inside. Heh, they came right on time."

Seeing that one of the lads had a damp towel out and was about to wipe some blood from Elric's face, Milky quickly halted their actions.

"Oi! Are you trying to sabotage the mission? Girls love guys who'll get hurt to protect them! If Kind goes in looking like this, she'll surely fall for him!"

Milky patted Elric's shoulder before they entered through the doors.

"Kind, your real name is Elric, and this girl's name is Ember, right?"

"...Yes. Why?"

"Nothing. Boys, you know the drill! Someone give me a countdown!"

"Three!"

"Two!"

"One!"

Carrying Elric like he was a coffin at a particularly upbeat funeral, the lads entered the bar. Their countdown reached zero right as they pushed through the doors, and they began chanting in unison.

"Elric X Ember! Together forever!"

"Wait! I'm supposed to be her manager!"

Elric's words were drowned out by the chant as the group rushed toward the stage.

The leading members quickly saw the tears on Ember's face as she looked up.

"Bro, your girl is crying! She probably thinks you died out there!"

The Elric carriers rushed him up to the stage before placing him down in front of Ember.

His face was still a mess of blood and bumps that would soon become bruises.

"E- Elric? What happened to you?!"

"Your singing was amazing, those drunks were lying. I tried to stop them from bringing you down, but I guess I overestimated myself a bit."

"W- wha… You didn't leave because I was too bad?"

"Listen. Your singing was great. Those dudes were fans of some other musician that is apparently joining the beef wagon with that Nulstaya chick."

Clenching his fist, Elric looked Ember in the eyes.

"It's just another target for us to take down. You are plenty good enough, let me handle everything else. Those drunks will regret shit-talking you."

Someone coughed behind Elric.

"I'm pretty sure they already do. One of the lad- I mean, Elric snapped one of their legs! We left them to crawl to the hospital on their own!"

A few of The Boys cheered, and someone else shouted out some more info.

"I even took their phones so they can't call for help!"

The cheers intensified, but up on stage, Ember started crying again.

"Y- You got hurt so badly just to help me…"

Before Elric could respond, Ember reached forward, hugging him.

"Thank you."

Noticing that Elric was shifting around in her hug, Ember released him.

"Are you really ok?"

Elric tried to give her a thumbs-up, but his arm was trembling a bit from the pain.

"Cough, I'm fine. I think. I should probably head to the hospital for a checkup after you finish singing."

With the help of a few of the lads, Elric made his way back over to the bar.

"Ember, can you sing that first song again? It was really good. I want you to present it to a proper audience."

Ember's face looked a bit red, but she nodded as she looked through the crowd that had gathered below the stage.

Thirty lads, their ages ranging from high schoolers to businessmen in their early forties.

It was a bit odd to see them all traveling as a group.

"Alright. I-I guess I'll introduce myself again."

After repeating a similar introduction as the first one she'd given, Ember started playing the song. Despite the tears still lingering on her face, her eyes were hopeful once more, and a passion for music shone brightly on her face.

Opening her mouth, emotions in verbal form flowed out.

Closing his eyes, Elric nodded his head to the beat. Without looking, he could believe he was at a professional-level concert. Ember's voice and guitar playing were top-notch.

Aside from Ember's singing, the bar stayed silent for the entirety of the song.

Only when it ended did someone make a noise.

"YEAAAH!!! EMBER!!! I LOV- WAIT! ELRIC LOVES YOU!"

"EMBER! EMBER!"

Their cheering shook the entire bar.