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Post by Zuyuri on Jul 9, 2017 18:45:25 GMT
One of the rarest things Shadow did happened. He would blame the alcohol for it once he sobered. His shoulders and chest heaved, and out from his throat came a loud, if not partially subdued, laugh. Between them, the bottle was almost halfway done. Jane could hold her drinks down, and he was impressed.
"Oh he apologized," he said between laughs, "I just laughed it off."
He swigged the next shot. He was running out of confessions, save for the very one he wanted to avoid. Oh well. "Never have I ever been in a relationship."
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Post by skyeknight on Jul 9, 2017 19:23:48 GMT
Jane blinked almost owlishly in surprise. Shadow was laughing? Perhaps she should be concerned that his face might crack if he kept that up. She didn't even think he could smile or laugh and yet she managed to make him do both in one night. She gave her drink a wary glance.
"Uh huh... well then," she said.
Never been in a relationship. She toyed with the edge of her glass. She hadn't told her father. Right before she ditched her foster family, they had been talking arranged marriage. But because she wasn't their biological child, she had the right to say no. So she did. In the worst way possible, by flipping off her parents and the family lawyer and literally skipping town. Her father would be proud of her.
"Does arranged marriage count?" she asked. "My foster parents tried to get me hooked up with some rich guy."
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Post by Zuyuri on Jul 9, 2017 20:42:40 GMT
"Only if you said yes to it, and since you don't have a ring on your hand, no."
That was as sincere of an answer his tipsy brain could rack up. Arranged marriages were a notion that grossed him out. Nothing good came from them. Arguments about dowries, the arranged couple not liking one another, motives for murder, the list went on and on. Kudos to Jane for telling her foster family off.
"But drink to get the nastiness of that idea out. I know I am." He swigged and looked at the bottle, which was now 75% empty. Cobweb Potion. Strong stuff, and a sort of clove aftertaste was kicking in. Not bad, but his mouth would taste like potpourri
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Post by skyeknight on Jul 9, 2017 22:06:33 GMT
"So no drink for me." she said.
She hadn't been married. She hadn't even met her betrothed-to-be. She hadn't wanted to deal with any of that. She considered her drink. They were almost done with the little game with no real 'winner' yet. And well, unlike her father, Shadow wasn't making a big deal out of it, which was nice. Because she didn't want anyone worrying over her like some sort of invalid. Or a child.
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Post by Zuyuri on Jul 10, 2017 5:56:35 GMT
"Well, I think you won," Shadow slurred. "and yeah, no drink for you.
As she had regaled him the whole issue of the arranged marriage, he had felt himself start to get slightly dizzy. Was that...ten...fifteen shots? Yeah, doub;e digits. That was enough for him. Any more and he'd have one nasty hangover. It didn't matter if Cobweb Potion was shockingly good, he had desk work to get to tomorrow. The bottle had only enough drinks for one more.
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Post by skyeknight on Jul 10, 2017 15:33:17 GMT
"Not yet!" she said.
She took the bottle and tipped the last of it into her cup. She raised her glass at Shadow before downing the last of it in a single gulp. A shot done right. She even placed her glass upside down as was customary when doing a line of shots. Luckily for her, she was not called in tomorrow to teach, which was why she had gone out in the first place. Because she wouldn't want to set a bad example for the kids, but needed a drink anyways. It wasn't easy dealing with stuff she was going through. Namine had told her Omar had offered to adopt her. Her dad was pining away for some faery girl who didn't seem to give him the time of day. And she had to adapt to her new job. Not to mention, Shadow had a girl who was in love with someone else and he had been hurt on the job. Sulky little bastard and his stupid face but surely that was the alcohol talking.
"Now I've won." she declared.
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Post by Zuyuri on Jul 10, 2017 18:10:11 GMT
The final drops were powered by Jane into her own cup. Well, yep, it was time to raise the white flag. As Jane raised hers, Shadow raised his partially empty one to meet hers. The glasses tinked together before she downed it and he set his final part aside. As the liquid slithered down his throat, the sudden heat of too much to drink came onto his face, and he was in the odd fog between hot-cheeked and slightly chilled. "Yep," he answered. "You won."
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Post by skyeknight on Jul 10, 2017 18:34:19 GMT
Jane waved over the bartender one last time. She gave him her card to pay for the tab. He cashed her out and brought her card back. She smiled, putting her things away in her purse. She would likely have to call a cab to get back home. Which wasn't bad, because she had walked to the bar. But it was late and she wasn't about to risk anything happening, even with a cop sitting next to her. His job didn't even register with her at the moment, the alcohol made her too social, too happy to talk.
"I should probably head home," she said. "No work tomorrow though, so I get to sleep in!"
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Post by Zuyuri on Jul 10, 2017 19:15:54 GMT
"Where do you work?" Shadow asked, both social from the drinks and because, well, he was curious. This was Omar's kid, after all. If she was doing something crazy, hopefully her father was being good at keeping track. Well, okay, he probably did since she was the fruit of labor, but still, nice to have an extra set of eyes and ears for friends with kids.
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Post by skyeknight on Jul 10, 2017 19:38:48 GMT
"At the elementary school. It's not a school night." she told him. "I don't typically do this."
She smiled as she thought about the school. All the kids, it was but a troll's dream job of being able to take care of and protect so many children. There was a new student named Rhona who struck a particular chord with Jane, because she was one, the new student and two, very quiet and she kept to herself. She and her father both adored children beyond belief. They probably didn't even have to know the kid to want to protect them. It was in their nature.
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Post by Zuyuri on Jul 10, 2017 23:48:25 GMT
"At least you have your priorities straight," he said with a nod.
The buzz was still there, but thank God, it was starting to dumb down a bit. The kids needed her to be alert, and elementary level was tricky enough as it was. He had yet to be one of the cops assigned to give classroom talks about drugs and gangs and whatever else was supposed to be worried about by parents, but he got the idea it was tricky. He didn't want to admit it, but deep down he had a soft spot for kids. That had been his connection with Maria manifesting itself as something new
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Post by skyeknight on Jul 11, 2017 0:14:03 GMT
"Always." she said.
It was the kids first. She wouldn't want any child to be as sad and alone as she had been after what happened to her. She made it a point to talk to every kid who went through her classroom. To make sure that everything was okay. That they were happy and healthy and well fed with clothes on their backs and food in their bellies. Even if it meant she brought them lunch herself.
"Do you like kids?"
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Post by Zuyuri on Jul 11, 2017 1:17:18 GMT
"Believe it or not, I do."
Was that the booze or was that the fact Jane was easy to talk to? Eh, he wasn't going to worry about it at all. She seemed like the kind of teacher he would respect; authoritative and tough, but had just the right amount of relatability. Okay, he hadn't seen her with kids, not counting the charity concert where he saw her wave after Rhona, but that was the teacher vibe he got from her.
"They're what keep me going, what keep me doing my job. One monster gets put down, another child sleeps safe."
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Post by skyeknight on Jul 11, 2017 2:41:03 GMT
"Yeah..." she said softly.
Only more proof that Shadow wasn't like the other police officers. He actually wanted to keep bad things from happening to kids, instead of being one of the reasons they happened. She had been so quick to judge because of the badge. It was just a little piece of metal that said he could do his job. But she had let it color her entire perspective of him. She felt like she should apologize. It was on the tip of her tongue but she didn't.
"That's really amazing."
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Post by Zuyuri on Jul 11, 2017 4:58:26 GMT
"...So...I...um..."
This time he didn't blame the booze for the words stumbling. Social interaction was a huge flub for him, mostly because he kept to himself. The only time he ever talked was interrogations or if he was willing to open himself completely; or, had been forced to talk. Jane was a nice enough girl, and this was really the third time they spoke, but it was difficult to say something without being insulted by her.
He cleared his throat, throwing down a few bills. Jane may have covered the drinks, but at least he could feel useful somewhat.
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