outfit
~*~

It had been a long time since Amanda had been at the Grill in general, but tonight was open mic night, and it had been even longer since she'd been to one of those. She loved singing though, so naturally she'd signed up. Singing was the one time she was completely relaxed no matter what it was that had agitated her to begin with. Today she was just feeling good in general though from finally getting her magic back from her mother.

When the time came for her to go on stage, Amanda had a quick word with the band before they played one of her favorite songs. She felt free for once and not to mention normal. So she sung one of her favorite songs by Paramore as it always put her in a good place.

"I feel happy, I feel sad, I feel like running through the walls..." She continued to sign until the last lines of the song, really enjoying herself again for the first time in too long. Once the song was finished, she smiled slightly and bowed before she left the stage for the bar to get a drink. Only good thing that came with her new werewolf dna was her ability to take a lot more liquor than before and she loved drinking.

song

The day had been less than kind to Kevin, he felt quite deserving of the evening he had planned.  Drink.  Drink.  And then drink some more until he stumbled into a cab and went home to pass out.  He hoped there were some girls there- real ones.  Not just a pretty body in tiny clothes.  It had been a strange day.

Kevin entered the Grill about half-way through a woman singing about a cruel world.  She looked attractive enough from a distance and in the poor lighting, but he didn't feel like checking for an Adam's Apple right now.  Making a beeline for the bar, he nodded in familiarity with the bartender, having seen him around a time or two during his shifts as a busboy.  "Scotch, on the rocks, three fingers."  He said as he slipped a shiny credit card across the bar to start a tab.  Should the bartender take care of him, Kevin would take care of the bartender.  Just to make sure the unspoken agreement was understood, Kevin slipped a ten into the tip jar at just as his drink arrived.

The scotch felt good and chilled his rattled insides.  Sure, he looked cool as a cucumber on the outside; uncaring in his dark blue button-up, the sleeves rolled to his biceps, fabric straining slightly against the muscles, jeans ripped and faded.  He stepped away from the bar just enough to give room for other thirsty customers, he knew he'd be back momentarily for a stronger drink.

As Amanda reached the bar, she realized she actually knew the guy working that day. They'd worked together a couple of times before she'd left on maternity leave and ended up opening her shop instead of returning. "How've you been?" she asked rather cheerfully as he poured her a gin and tonic. She liked the bitter taste and the bartender knew that. Leaving money for the drink and a good tip, she turned to look around the place to see if she could spot some familiar faces.

When she didn't see anyone other than the people working there, she stepped away from the bar and right into the guy who'd stepped out of the way to make room for her to order her drink in the first place. "I am so terribly sorry, didn't mean to walk into you like that," she said with a chuckle as she collected herself again and stepped away she she wasn't awkwardly close to a complete stranger like that. Didn't matter if he was handsome, she still wasn't comfortable being so close at least until they were at least on a first name basis.

"Let me make it up to you, next round's one me," she said with a smile. It had been a good day all around. Completely wolf free, trouble free and she was finally feeling like herself again.

The drink had been full enough to spill on his chest, a shock of cold and wet, but she was pretty enough he didn't care.  "Hey, don't worry about it."  She was a lot prettier close up and he felt the tiniest pang of disappointment when she stepped further away.  It had been the right call, but it was rare he met a beautiful woman, especially in this town.  Trying to be sly he tried to check her throat for a piece of anatomy that should not be there, but it was dark enough and he was paranoid enough he could neither confirm nor deny its presence.

He insistently said, "It's not necessary, barely a drop and I think it's more my luck than yours.  You were simply an instrument of the universe."  He punctuated his remark with a sip of his scotch.  A coy smile developed as he considered her, "But I'll get the next round if you want to take some shots?  Consider it my good deed for the day so maybe I can catch a break."

Amanda hadn't really noticed she'd spilled a little on herself as well, she was more concerned with spilling on a stranger like that. It was a terribly rude thing to do, and she'd been raised to be a good girl and try to make things right after all. Even if she hadn't exactly been acting as such a good girl recently. Things were changing though.

Taking a sip of her drink as she listened to him talk, Amanda smiled when he was done with his remark about the universe. She'd simply been in the wrong place at the right time to bump into him like that, but who knew what the night would bring anyhow. "Rough day?" she asked when he mentioned catching a break. "Tell you what, I'll have some shots with you if you care to tell me your name. Mama always told me not to talk to strangers," she said with a chuckle.

"I'm Amanda," she said with a smile, before having another sip of her drink. Now they weren't strangers anymore. Not that she really cared much about the don't talk to strangers bit, she just liked to pretend to be sweet and innocent from time to time.

Kevin smiled broadly, seeming to have finally found a person he could understand in this crazy town.  "I have had the kind of day that you wouldn't believe."  Even having seen it all with his own eyes, he could barely accept that it had all happened.  The inconsistencies his memories had with his belief in the world forced his hand to heavily tip back the drink into his mouth, gulping the scotch down a bit more than he had been.  It really had been a day to remember, parts of it alright, other parts embarrassing, with a dollop of infuriating frustration.  Maybe she'd be the cherry on top of it all.  A sweet little package to end the day on a softer note.

In a chivalrous manner, Kevin extended his hand in greeting, "Name's Kevin, ma'am."  He winked briefly at her, "Now we aren't strangers at all.  How has your day been?"  He brought his drink back to his lips, a smaller sip than when reminded of his day.

It was good being around someone who didn't know her for a change. That way she was sure she wouldn't be judged by her past as long as she didn't bring it up. The people who knew her seemed to only remember the bad things she'd done anyway and she didn't like that. It was time to get some new friends that wouldn't have to know anything about her other than what she chose to tell them. "Been living in this backwards town for long enough, you'd never know," she replied before having more of her own drink.

Amanda shook his hand with a smile of her own, noting that he did indeed have good manners. That was a redeeming quality in any male, no matter what their flaws might be. Besides, she just wanted to enjoy the moment so she wasn't going to look for flaws with the other. She usually never did that anyway unless things got serious or she had to deal with them on a long term basis, then it was useful to have some way to push their buttons. Like Jack... She knew she shouldn't push him so far, but she couldn't help the satisfaction it gave her.

"It's been a good day all around actually, been really busy at work for a change so that's good. Not to mention I accidentally walked into a handsome stranger tonight," she said, all smiles still. It felt good to be in a good place again and she planned on enjoying it for as long as possible.

His smile warmed even more as she complimented him, playfully wagging a finger at her, "No longer a stranger, Ms. Amanda."  He finished off the last of his drink, jostling the ice that was left behind, his eyes stared at the lights bouncing off the cracks in the cubes. "Personally, I'd rather be busy at work than idle.  Makes time fly by faster."  His blue eyes shifted focus to her face, enjoying the curve of her smile and tried to make out the color of her eyes in the dim lights.

He felt the conversation had been serious enough for the moment, his drink was empty and shots had been promised.  "Now, what shall be our poison?  Ladies pick, I insist."  In a smooth motion he gently set his free hand to her shoulder, testing the waters as much as trying to gently turn her to the bar, with his drink he gestured to the bar and its endless possibilities.  It was one thing Kevin loved about the bar scene, liquor flowed in a multitude of flavors and words exchanged with as many different people.  Everyone had their own favorites, the drink of choice, the favored shot.  Or the hated shot.

Toasts were Kevin's favorite, he'd made it his mission to find different ones all the time, never wanting to use the same one except for his favorite.  He hadn't known Amanda long enough to say that one, yet.  Maybe on the third round, if they found each other's company amicable enough to get it there.

A chuckle escaped her at being reminded they were no longer strangers. "Touché," she said before studying Kevin for a moment over the top of her glass as she drank what little was left of her own drink. Being busy at work did make time fly faster and it also meant more money for her to manage as she would be nowhere if her shop didn't have its busy days. It seemed a lot of the kids at school really liked getting new art supplies at the end of term as well as for school at the beginning of term.

So she got to pick their poison of the night? She couldn't help but be amused by that idea, there were so many choices to make and she didn't mind him setting his free hand on her shoulder, in fact it made her smirk ever so slightly as she was thinking about the best kind of shots to get. "We'll need salt and lime," she finally said and turned to Kevin. It wasn't a straight answer, but hopefully he'd get what she was hinting at.

Kevin waited patiently the few moments needed to catch the bartenders attention, it was incredibly packed, just enough bodies so the place wasn't deserted.  "Two shots of Patron, with all the trimmings."  As he waited for the shots, he set one arm onto the bar and leaned, most of him still turned towards Amanda.  


The order didn't take long and the bartender set two salt rimmed the shot glasses, and a handful of limes on a napkin in between Kevin and Amanda.  Kevin set his glass of melting ice onto the bar, never even noticing at the bartender swiped it away.  With his eyes focusing on her completely, he lifted the shot into the air in a toast, "May tomorrow be a day better than today and may today be very, very good."  He knocked the shot back after licking the rim and made a slightly unpleasant face to the taste, quickly he went for the lime.  It wasn't that he couldn't take his shots, he just didn't prefer tequila, but he was a man of his word, she had the right to pick anything.  He'd do dozens of tequila shots until he passed out if that was all she wanted.

Tapping on the bar to get the tender's attention, Kevin ordered himself another drink and motioned for Amanda to do the same, if she so wished.

Amanda was pleased that Kevin understood what she was hinting at as far as shots went. There was no fun in giving all the details too soon, she wanted to see if they could understand one another without giving all the details at once. After all, where was the fun of that anyway? She was looking for some fun and a good time, and at the end of the day, predictable just wasn't amusing.

When Kevin lifted the shot in the air for a toast, she chuckled some. "To chance meetings," she chimed in and followed the social conventions for tequila shots, licking the salt, knocking back the shot and going for the lime. From Kevin's expression though, it was obvious he didn't prefer tequila and it made her like him just that much more that he'd kept his word after she'd suggested shots he didn't particularly enjoy.

Realizing what Kevin was suggesting, Amanda couldn't help but grin slightly at him. She had to remember that regular people started to get tipsy a little sooner than the supernatural and she wanted to pass as normal after all. Giving the bartender a look, he made sure to pour some extra alcohol into her drink when Kevin wasn't looking. "Where are you from, originally? I mean, I know you're not from around town, it's a relatively small town after all and I'd remember seeing a good looking guy like yourself around."

The glass felt cool and good in Kevin's hand as he brought it to his lips to take a sip of scotch.  It wouldn't be too long until his initial drink and current shot hit him, he hadn't exactly had dinner so the alcohol would hit him shortly.  His tolerance would not hold up next to a supernatural, but he could hold his own on the human side of things.

"Little town outside of Denver, Colorado," Kevin responded.  "Not as small as here though.  It was more of a suburb than an actual town."  Perfect truths with holes of omission, the exact thing anyone did when they were chatting up someone they found attractive.  Blue eyes watched her face as he drank his scotch, the barest edges of his consciousness beginning to blur from intoxication.

"What about you?  Are you a 'townie'?"

It was strange how someone she'd just met was exactly what she needed to make her day perfect. She'd missed going out for drinks and meet people, so Kevin was just what the doctor ordered. And the alcohol was just an added bonus since she hadn't really been drinking much lately to be on the safe side. Now that she felt back in control for real, she would take full advantage and enjoy herself.

So Kevin wasn't from anywhere near Bitter Springs to begin with. Then again, neither was she. The town had grown on her though and she was glad she'd been more or less ordered to find something other to do than just study at home. So she chuckled at the question of being a townie. "I moved out here from Chicago. The fast paced city life just wasn't for me," she said, omitting the fact that she'd moved to town learn how to be a better witch around more real witches and not just fortune tellers that seemed to enjoy the city life.

"Family moved closer as well, so that's always a plus."

Kevin couldn't help but agree, his 'truth' ridden reason for moving was that city life had been to quick, didn't give enough time to smell the roses and all that.  It was why he preferred living near Denver, but not in Denver.  "The Windy City.  I've been there before.  Saw the, what was it, the Bean?  Some big metallic-y bean shaped tourist trap."  In the most care free way he could muster, Kevin added, "Family's good to have around."  For those who have them.  The pain was a wound that would never fully heal, but he'd gotten over a majority of it, most of the time.  Family wasn't who birthed you, who shared a name.  It was his brothers-in-arms, they shared more blood than any family he'd ever met.

Sipping his drink, Kevin smirked, "This town is so much slower than I'd even expected.  Everyone seems completely laid back, I've been beginning to think someone's laced the water with marijuana."  He leaned in close and covered the side of his mouth with his hand and whispered loudly, "I think one of the cooks comes to work high!"  Playfully, he acted overly serious about the matter.

She didn't care much for the tourist attractions of Chicago, then again her parents had never really bothered taking her there either as they took her out of the city instead when they had time. She knew all the best places to eat though, and she missed the pizza, but that was about all she missed as well. Besides, her life was here now. She couldn't imagine moving away from Bitter Springs as it meant leaving Kailah behind, which was absolutely unthinkable at this point.

Amanda was enjoying her drink while she listened to Kevin talk about how laid back the town was and the people in it. She really couldn't help but chuckle at the comment about the cook. "Bri? Yeah, he probably is," she said highly amused. She'd run into the werewolf at the grill before. Or at least passed by him on her way through the kitchen while she was working there. "His food is delicious though, if I could afford it, I would have hired him as a personal chef or something."

The good thing about working for herself was that she didn't have anyone bossing her around, and she could kind of make her own choices. She missed the people at the grill though, they had always been kind to her. With the exception of the few arguments she'd been on her best behavior for most of her time there. "One thing you can count on is that there's always someone willing to lend you a hand when you need one."