| Chapter 02: I Am In The Marvel Universe? |

| Author's Note: Alright, what are your opinions regarding the infinity stones? I am rather curious to hear some different sides on their supposed use, and all of that. |

¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ( A few hours later / Night Time )

| Gilgamesh 1st Person Pov – Right Outside The Fraunces Tavern, New York |

"Welcome! What may I get you, young man?" The voice of an older man reaches me, as I take a step near a long, wooden bar counter.

It was already night-time, and being the first full day that had passed since I found myself transmigrated into this new world, I decided to search on Google for a few good bars to try.

The winner was this one, — The Fraunces Tavern.

With a look at preserved history, the wooden materials all around me, alongside the choice of having the bar supported only by a dimly lit ambiance, brought me a sense of homely comfort that was much appreciated on my part.

I needed something like this, to help distract my mind from the things I recently lost. And so I did just that, keeping it all behind my back as best as I could. "I need something strong, so how about you bring me anything you think that will do the job." I told the older bartender, who looked at me with a gentle smile on his face.

"I'm sad to hear that, young man. But I will get you something nice in a moment!" He said with a respectful nod, gently smiling, and I returned the smile as well, thankful for having found a nice and cozy place with respectful, and kind workers.

"Sure thing." I muttered, taking a seat on a comfortable wooden-like stool while also taking a small peak around me. Everywhere my eyes layed upon, people of different ages seemed to be deep in casual conversations, some were smiling and laughing, while others were a little more reserved.

And at that sight, I felt like I made a good choice for the bar. And sincerely, I even breathed a sigh of relief.

My mind has taken its toll when I found myself certain about my transmigration.

And truthfully, the writers back then didn't do any justice to what it means to travel from one world to another...

Now that I am actually living those moments, I can't help myself but think that those writers downplayed the impact that such a loss would have on normal people like me, and many of those who read those kinds of novels would go through. Sure, many people would feel like it was a blessing to 'travel' like this, especially people who did not have anything to lose in their lives anymore.

But what about those who had? Those who had a family, friends and a stable plan to work for in their future? They were bound to go through some kind of repercussion. I mean, I am suffering through it, as I lost it all.

The moments of laughter with my friends, the smiles and loving gazes of my family...

I lost it all on a short moment's notice, and yet I feel like I should, at the same time, be thankful that I got such an opportunity.

But can I feel that way? Will I ever be thankful for such a thing? Perhaps I will, who knows...

"Here you go, young man." The voice of the bartender snapped me out of my musings, as he slidded a blue'ish drink in my direction.

His posture relaxed on his spot, and he seemed to be waiting for me to taste it, probably wanting to be praised for his good work, I suppose. "Care to share what it is?" I asked him, as I took the drink in my right hand, swirling it slowly in a circle motion, taking a moment to enjoy its interesting color and unique smell. "It's a 'Blue Bird', of course!" He replied cheerily, and I sent him a serene smile of my own, momentarily forgetting my perils and doubts.

"Hah, got it." I chuckled curtly and lightly, enjoying the older man's enthusiasm, taking the drink closer to my mouth.

"Please, enjoy it!" He said with a worried twinkle of his eyes, and I waved his concern away by replying playfully to his request. "I sure hope I do!" I laughed politely, taking a small sip of the blueish drink right after.

My eyes proceeded to widen in surprise at the fresh, and yet spicy taste, savouring the drink in my mouth before swallowing it with a light gulp.

"Jesus! The guy did find me a strong drink." I muttered in a surprised hush, low enough for no one to hear me.

.

Time passed like a hastened runner after that first interaction, and I had by now drank around 3 or 4 of those 'Blue Birds' the older bartender gave me. And let me say, they did pack quite the punch.

Though I had remained sober until now, since I was not in a normal human body anymore. I still felt and understood the 'punch' that these small drinks had in them, but the 'getting drunk' stuff was not possible anymore. And honestly, I am surprised by the drink.

I was never a usual drinker in my past life, but I did still enjoy some drinks now and then.

But never had I gotten close to drinking something so strong as this, with a fresh and out of the norm taste.

It felt good in all honesty, to enjoy such a small thing without thinking too much about anything else happening around me.

It was then, that an older portrait caught my attention. The bar by this time was swindling in numbers, and besides a few clients in the most far-away places of the bar, I was the only one left at the counter. That made the perfect luck of having the attention of the older bartender focused on, yours truly.

And I took that opportunity to make small talk with him. "That's a picture of Tony Stark, am I correct?" I asked him while looking at a far-away portrait of Robert Downey Junior that remained on the middle of a large wall, near the entrance of the bar.

The man showed no surprise at my remark, or even much pride in having it on the wall.

He simply chose to reply to my comment with a small and meaningfull smile of his own. "You would be correct. You see, Tony Stark used to come here a lot, before you know, all that hero crap started." He said, while chuckling to himself at the end.

His hands were occupied by a recently washed glass that he kept rubbing with a small towel, and I raised my brow in curiosity.

Was that a trait that all bartenders had? To clean glasses while talking with someone?

I chuckled softly at the thought, though I take no more than a few seconds to continue speaking with the man. "I see, it must have been quite the loss," I replied, noticing the confused look on the older man's face.

I then proceeded to explain my reasoning, while looking at his face with a small teasing smirk. ", — losing the greatest playboy there is, to the hero's life I mean."

The man seemed to take a few seconds to get the joke, before he busted out laughing like a madman, much to my amusement.

"Hahaha, I like you young man." He said, a single streak of a tear happily leaving his right eye. "What can I say, I am usually likable," I told him with a now false-arrogant smirk, making him click his tongue in amusement as well.

Things were going normally until now, when suddenly a feminine voice sounded from behind me."Are you?" She asked, and I showed her a surprised stare, as I turned to my left. There a beautiful white-haired woman wearing a back-less black dress helped herself taking a seat right next to me, and I couldn't help but mutter in surprise at her audacity. "Huh?"

Thought that soon turns into disbelief as I took a closer look at her features. I know this woman. Well, not really. But I do remember her face from somewhere, when I was reading some Marvel stuff on the internet back then.

What was her identity again? Was it black-cat? I tried to remember it, but since I did not succeed in doing so for a few seconds, I decided to simply let go of the matter for a while.

She seemed to eye me for a few seconds, and though her gaze was slightly uncomfortable, it soon became friendly.

"Would you care for some company?" She asked me with a sweet voice, as I noticed her eyes taking in my appearance. Uh, so that's how it is...

"Feel free to do whatever you'd like." I answered her doubt with a small and friendly smile, her eyes shinning in delight as she got the confirmation she sought. And that seemed to be the turning point for her to get comfortable, as she jumped straight into a friendly conversation. "Say, what's a handsome guy like you doing around here?" She questioned softly, using a hushed tone, as if there were people near us who could listen in on our conversation.

There were none, and I concluded that she was simply trying to be flirty with me.

"What would you possibly mean by 'around here'?" I joined in on the fun, taking a sip of my 4th glass of Blue Bird, while I looked softly into her beautiful green eyes.

She took a few seconds to answer, her body posture turning in my direction, while she lowered her upper-body into my personal space.

"Exactly what I meant, I have never seen you here before." She replied curtly, though her sultry tone was not lost on me, and I raised a curious eyebrow at her in response, before she could continue with her reasoning. "... – and I know very well, every single handsome guy who visits this tavern..." was what she said, her pronunciation of the word 'very', — very perceptible, let's say.

So that's your approach, nicely done I must admit it! And I laugh inside my mind at her advances, though I have yet to figure out who she is for sure, her undeniable beauty is cornering my attention on her. "I guess you could say I am new to town." I told her out loud, after pondering on my answer carefully, but not overly so.

"Oh?" She questioned curiously, and something flashed in her eyes, was it greed?

"Hmhm." I answered her with a small hum of my voice, taking yet another sip of the blueish drink in my hands.

That seemed to turn her attention onto my drink, which surprised me a bit. "Do you mind if I try it?" She asked, her sweet voice coming out like honey to me, and I showed her a confused, yet amused smile.

"Odd wish, but go ahead if you'd like." I allow her, nearing the drink to her side, as she eagerly waits for me to hand her my glass.

Elegantly, she took the drink in her hand, slowly but seductively taking a small, but prolonged taste of it.

Her eyes never left mine during the act, and I must confess that the look she was giving me was doing wonders to my imagination, and even my own ego as well.

A few seconds went by us, and she put down the glass near me after drinking from it, looking directly at me with a teasing smirk.

"Like what you see?"

I couldn't ever say no to such a question, not when coming from the woman in front of me, but I still had quite a bit of experience in the field, so I 'passed her the ball' again. "Would you believe me if I said, no?" I asked her with a serious look on my face, though my eyes were showing her my playful intention.

"Never." She answered, and I was going crazy inside. Her looks, posture... — even her fresh and sweet smell, was turning my mind into a complete mess.

And I was more than welcoming her to do so, my situation far too rigid for my liking, and so she was the exact god-sent luck that I needed to escape my sorrows.

I had momentarily taken my attention from her to the lip-gloss stain her lips had left on my almost empty glass of alcohol, when she threw another question my way."Say, what's your name?" Was her question, and my attention was yet again robbed by her green, piercing eyes, as I took a second to recompose myself for an answer. "An... — It's Gilgamesh." I stuttered at the beginning, almost giving away my last name to her, though I managed to hide it well.

It was then that I noticed her surprised expression, and I could not help but question her. "What? Do I have something on my face?" I asked her in false-awkwardness, as she took to shake her head in a negative manner. "No, nothing like that." She started, "Though is Gilgamesh really your name?!!"

I looked curiously offended by that, and a teasing smile made its way onto my expression, as I locked eyes with her for a brief second. "It is, something wrong with it?!" I questioned her in a hurt tone, and she just laughed at my face. "Hahaha, I don't believe you!"

That amused, and ticked me off at the same time, for some reason. But I allowed her to laugh for a few moments, as she struggled to get herself in check. "You don't need to." I replied curtly to her doubt, as by then silence had reigned in for a while. We both took a few seconds to breathe in, though I remained more silent than I should have, from the question she threw my way right after a while. "Will you not ask me my name in return?" She questioned with a look full of sassiness, and I decided to play hard to get, taking a ton lot of amusement out of the situation.

"Should I?" I replied with a question, using a hushed and teasing tone. There was nothing with more bite to it than to feign ignorance about a woman's approach to the woman in question, — or at least, I thought so.

"Huh, playing hard to get mister Gilgamesh..." Her sultry voice yet again teased me, and I shivered at her tone.

Though even then, I maintained my composure, throwing her a pointed question. "Am I? Or are you simply used to average?"

That question seemed to have the effect I desired, as the beautiful woman leaned into the counter. Her eyes trailling my face, as she settled them on my own at last. "I like you." She said truthfully after a while, a meaningful smile gracing her very hard-to-resist-looking lips.

"My name's Felicia." She said, feeling the need to continue with the conversation, and I nodded at her slightly. "A pleasure to meet you, Felicia." I pronounced her name in a teasing way as well, getting back at her for joking with my own.

She looked at me with a soft glare, faced with my counter-teasing. "Mean."

And when she pouted at me jokingly, I couldn't hold it in me anymore. So I started laughing loudly at her expense. "Hahaha, what did you expect me to do?"

.

As time went by, less costumers remained on the bar / tavern, and it reached the point where me and Felicia were the only ones left inside. Yet, we had spent so much time together speaking, laughing and teasing each-other that we forgot to order more drinks the whole time.

And that would not stand!

So I called the old man out on it, "Say old man, bring me 2 more of these." I asked, showing him the empty Blue Bird drink in my hand. "In a moment sir!" He replied happily, his gaze much warmer than before, but also now tired.

The action took Felicia by surprise as she turned fully to me. "My~ Will the gentleman offer me a drink?" She asked with a smile, and I snorted at her in a warmly manner. "Dream on woman, they are both for me of course!" I jested, and she rolled her eyes at that.

"Ah, pardon me then..." Was her not-so-hurt response to my teasing, and I could only shake my head at her. "I'm joking, idiot."

"Of course you are..." She looked at my downed 4 drinks, and I facepalmed at myself for it. "God, don't make me look like an alcoholic." I stated, as if she was the one at fault for my drinking. "It's your fault, really." she said pointedly, and I actually deserved that.

"Fair. But now relax and wait until the rest of the drinks are ready." I gestured to the bartender who was almost finished with the drinks.

¤ ¤ ¤ ¤

| Author's Ending Note: Well, stuff happened on this chapter, am I right? What, oh, might happen on the next chapter?! *Wink Wink* |

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| Random Poll: Harem? No-Harem? (*This polls are merely informative, your answers may not influence my decisions*) |