After a quick cleaning and a change into a new uniform, Luke and Rogers walked into a pub in a nearby town.
As the noise poured in, the air was filled with the scent of malt and the pale blue haze of burning low-quality tobacco. ??
Those captured soldiers who escaped by luck and returned successfully drank cups of hard liquor or gathered together to play cards and arm-wrestle.
Some people were even ready to have a wrestling match on the spur of the moment.
From time to time, there was a burst of laughter from the soldiers who filled the pub.
The buzzing sound made the ceiling overhead shake slightly, and the light bulbs hanging from it swayed.
"Our heroes are here!"
Dum Dum Dugan, who was sitting at the bar, caught a glimpse of Luke standing at the door and immediately shouted.
He tapped his glass against the bar table like a rhythmic drumbeat, drawing everyone's attention.
The soldiers spontaneously stopped everything else, and everyone stood up and applauded.
The whole pub looked like it was about to topple over.
Those adoring gazes and grateful glances turned into a round of applause for Luke.
This is the respect for a war hero!
"They're so enthusiastic!"
Applause and cheers lasted for 2 minutes. Rogers sat down beside his friend and handed a glass of whisky on the rocks.
"Have you chosen your partner for the dance?"
Luke picked up his glass and poured the cold 'hot liquid' into his throat, giving him a rush of relief.
"Why don't I know that?"
Rogers opened his eyes wide. He hadn't heard that there was a dance at the celebration.
Captain America still thought that Luke was joking in the barracks and that it was a little too much to hold a party before the war was won.
"Howard told me. He has already chosen his target for tonight. "
Luke smiled and tapped Rogers on the shoulder and said, "That's the lucky one who took Captain America's first kiss? She looks good, with beautiful blond hair … See, she's staring at you with passionate eyes."
"Steve, you're gonna get it tonight."
His best friend's teasing made Rogers feel annoyed.
After all, in America's culture, a 20-year-old boy with no emotional experience is a bit unjustifiable, comparable to a pure white sheet.
"Not everyone is like Howard Stark!"
Rogers lowered his voice and raised his glass to hide his embarrassed expression.
"All right, no more jokes. "
Luke cleared his throat and looked severe.
Then, it wasn't long before he leaned his head and asked with a smile, "So, Captain America, are you prepared to give up your virginity tonight?"
Poof!
Rogers, who was drinking, spit out his mouthful of whiskey.
The sudden noise caused the bar crowd to burst into laughter.
"Sorry! I'm sorry, I didn't mean to …"
Rogers is scrambling around, explaining to the innocent bartender while glaring at Luke.
However, the latter had already slipped away and disappeared up the stairs to the pub's second floor.
"Bastard!"
The always decent Rogers, for once, burst out a foul word.
Half an hour later, the drunken soldiers gradually left the scene.
Everyone who heard the news of the dance ran to the second floor early.
The desks and chairs had been emptied, and a vast space had been drawn.
An old-fashioned phonograph was placed by the window, and the soothing and quiet music melody flowed out of it and echoed on the second floor.
The soldiers, with impure purposes, looked at the women in the room with subtle and implicit eyes.
Some of them were unmarried field nurses, some were young girls carefully selected by the local mayor, and some were civilian staff of the Strategic Science Reserve.
They were like delicate flowers, in the beautiful stage of budding, waiting for someone to pick them.
"General, I've always wondered."
Dugan, nicknamed 'Dum Dum', touched his beard and asked, "These guys ultimately aim to get women into bed and aren't interested in dancing at all. "
"Then why don't they just say what they want, so they could save time, skip to the crucial step, and spend more time on what they want. "
"Dugan, tell me when you proposed to your wife, did you put a gun to her head? Otherwise, why could she promise to marry you? "
Luke joked and handed the glass to his partner.
Later, the young Brigadier General of the Allied Forces solemnly explained, "Human beings are very complex animals. In social situations, men try their best to show their humor to attract women's interest and lay the foundation for further in-depth communication. Women also know what men are doing, but they enjoy it and call it 'affection'. But in reality, it is just dopamine secretion in the brain so that both parties produce the mating impulse. "
"You go to any woman and tell her, 'Let's skip all the steps, get down to business, and finish the bodily fluid exchange, what do you think?' She would give you a clean slap and treat you as a pervert. "
"But in a different way, you go up to someone, invite them for a drink, tell a few funny jokes, talk about your experiences - don't care if they're true or not, just charming enough to be interesting and attractive. When the mood is right, you can ask to go to her room or let her visit your room! If you are strong enough, she will snuggle up to you and say, 'You are the best man I have ever met!'"
"Do you understand, Dugan? With straightforwardness, you will end up being treated as a pervert. The only way to harvest the prey is to speak eloquently. "
Dum Dum was confused; he could marry his wife back then purely because of good luck.
"Luke, I'm impressed with you. I didn't expect you to have such a brilliant perspective. In the future, we can discuss more and exchange more when we have time. "
Luke, leaning against the bar, saw Howard coming over.
The arms magnate is dressed up very flamboyantly, with a suit and vest, trousers, and leather shoes. His hair was combed and shiny, and his mustache was carefully groomed.
"You're better at this. I am just an armchair strategist with rich theoretical knowledge. "
Luke smiled and admitted defeat. Flirting was Stark's family heritage; he couldn't compare.