"... Once I ran to you... now I run from you...."
^Mina slugged back another straight shot of whiskey. It was number five. Or was it six? Who was counting? If it was anyone, it certainly wasn't her.
She sat alone at the bar, stairing down at the cold, hard surface of the countertop.^
"... This tainted love you've given..."
^It was quite obvious she wasn't having a good day. In truth, it had been a rather unpleasent couple of weeks in general. Mina was beginning to have doubts about this town. About staying.^
"... I give you all a boy could give you..."
^She looked up, and nodded to the bartender, raising her shotglass. In but a moment it was full again, and Mina looked down into the yellowish drink. She swirled it a bit, before downing it. Damn. It was good stuff.^
"... Take my tears and that's not nearly all..."
^Mina snorted a bit. She'd never liked that song.^

Del walked into the pub, seating himself at the nearest empty table. He rested his head on his hands, tapping his feet against his seat. The bartender must've noticed the lighters and matches sticking out of his pockets, because in a few minutes he came over with an ashtray.

"Sir?"
"...No... I don't smoke.. 's a filthy, filthy habit," he said, staring across the room at a dirty, coughing man with a lit cigarrette(sp?) in his fingers. "Just... give me whatever drink's most popular... I dunno"
"Yes sir," the bartender said oddly, walking back over to the counter.

^At the sound of Del's voice, Mina shot a glance back to him. She raised an eyebrow... he stood out a bit, and not only in the fact that he was far too young to be in here. Bored and half-drunk as she was, she decided to see what was what.^ "Ay... Henry... I got it." ^She said, intercepting the boy's drink from the bartender. She half-stumbled over to his table, setting the thick glass mug before him with a great thud, spilling a bit more of the drink then she'd expected.^ " 'Ere yeh are, mate. Mind if I have a seat?" ^She said, her speech somewhat slurred.^

Scooting over a little, he replied. "Erm.. sure.. I guess..." Scooting over some more, he looked at her uncomfortably, never having liked being very close to drunks, which was what she sure looked like to him..
He took his drink and sniffed a few times. "Um... what exactly is this?"

^Mina plopped down across from him, leaning back into her seat.^ "S'Vodka, mate! Vodka n' OJ." ^She said, her fingers tracing a pattern across the grainy wooden surface of the table.^ "Yer a 'lil... young t'be 'ere drinkin', ay mate? Hm?" ^She leaned in, and squinted at him a bit.^ "17, I'd say. Or 16."

He decided he'd try to fool the drunk, just for kicks. "Yeah, people are.. always saying that. I'm twenty-one, though. Always seem to forget my license.. Oh well, s'okay, right?" He takes the mixture of vodka and orange juice, taking a large gulp and cringing.

"Wow, this is..." He tried to swallow the aftertaste. "...interesting.. My first drink.. Heh heh... yeah.."

^She snickered, and laughed. At what... that was another matter.^ "Yer first drinky-drink... I drink here sometimes. Helps me forget m'crummy life. What brings you here, Mr. Twenty-one? Yer at the wrong ar if yer lookin' fer a little roll in the hay."

"...erm.. 'roll in the hay?'" He was obviously lost. He shook his head, though, and, without thinking, took another drink of the vodka. He cringed again. "Agh.... how can you *drink* this stuff?"

"Ay, I hear yeh, mate. 'Ere... I'll get yeh somethin' good." ^Mina looked over at the barkeeper, and made a sloppy whistle. As he looked over and she put up to fingers, and he nodded. She turned back to the boy, with a most likely alcohol-induced smile.^ "So, mate, what's yer name?"

Continuing staring at his drink, he said, "Del.." He shook his head quickly, as if getting out of a trance. "Yeah... yours?"

"Mosht people call me Mina. Some people back 'ome used t'call me Will. Yeh can call me whatever yeh like, mate." ^She said, picking at the edge of a label on a bottle of beer that had been left on the table with one of her nails. Just then the bartender waddled over with two small shotglasses, filled with a yellowish liquid. He set them on the table and sauntered off again.^

He sniffed the yellowish liquid, and took a small, cautious sip. "I'll.. just call you Mina, I guess..." He drummed his fingers on the table, tapping out some random rythm.

|| >- Short post ||

^Mina raised an eyebrow as he took a sip from his shot glass. She began to skake her head.^ "Nah, mate, nah... that'sh not how yeh do it. Yeh gotta down it in all'a one go... 'ere. Take mine." ^She pushed her shotglass across the table to the boy.^ "Just down 'er."

"Erm... okay then..." He takes the shotglass, downing it in one gulp, and begins coughing. After his fit of coughing leaves, he wipes off his mouth and says, "..hm.. Not bad.."

^She slapped an open hand upon the table and laughed out loud as he coughed.^ "Yeh handle yer alcohol like an eight year old girl, mate!" ^She roared again. After laughing at herself for a few more most likely uncomfortable moments, she reached across the table and slapped him rather hard on the arm.^ "Yer ok, mate. I like yeh."

"Um.. thanks.. I guess.." He pushed the shotglass away from him a little, folding his arms on the table. He decided to try to make some friendly conversation. "...Sooo... um... do you live near here?"

"Neh. I live o'er on Myre Street... bad part'a town, I know, but what's a gal t'do, ay? I come 'ere now and again. The service ish good, and I know one'a the waitresses 'ere." ^Mina smiled. She, quite obviously, looked the boy over with a raised eyebrow, and nodded.^ "I think yeh'd like 'er. 'Er name is Toka, and she work's 'ere some nights. I'll introduce yeh sometime... she's cute as a button."

"Um.. I.. well.. erm.... okay... If you say so..." He coughed and shook his head, running his hands through his hair. He put his hands in his pockets and lean back in his seat, fidgeting with the matches inside his pocket like he always did. "Um... so... when will I meet her?" He asked, continuning to fidget with the matches in his pocket.

"She'll be 'ere tomorrow night. Come by then, ok? Don't mention me, though..." ^A somewhat sad look came over Mina for a moment, before she shook it off.^ "Listen, mate, I know yeh don't owe me anythin'... but yeh seem like a good kid. With yeh look out fer Toka for me? I'd do it m'self... but the girl trusts me about as far as she could throw me. She's a good kid..."

"Wait... watch over her? You mean like.. take her in? But... that's not what you mean, right? Right?!" A worried look came into his face, but soon faded. "Wait... you mean to just.. protect her from.. bullies and bad shady alley sorta people, right? Or... Gah, I'm confused, what are you talking about? What do you mean, look over her?"

"Keep th'girl safe, mate! She gotta place... nicer place n'mine. She's not yer ordinary girl... yeh'll know what I mean, when yeh meet 'er. There're people out there... well... I can't say anymore abou' tha'. Sorry if I'm confusin' yeh, mate. I'm more then a 'lil drunk." ^She said, stating the quite obvious.^

"Yeah.. you are..." He shook his head. "Um.. Okay then, I guess I can keep her safe.." He picked up his empty shot glass, not realising that it was, in fact, empty, and put it up to his lips.

"..." ^It took Mina's mind a few moments to register what he was doing, but eventually she burst out laughing. She slapped her hand against the table, and shook her head.^ "Yeh daft boy! Are yeh still thirsty, hm? Henry!!!" ^She cried out loudly.^ "Two more, and make it quick!"

"Huh? Em... Heh.." He put his glass down sheepishly, chuckling to himself. He shook his head. "Erm.. right.. okay then, so.. she'll be here tahmorrow? ...Great.."

"So, boy, what'sh yer name?" ^She drawled resting back into her seat once again. She looked him over quickly... a little scrawny, maybe, but then beggars can't be choosers.^ "... er did I ask yeh already?" ^She said with a wide grin.^

"Yeah, actually you did... It's Del.. again." He drummed his fingers on the table, leaning back and looking over Mina.

^Mina had, of course, seen him giving the girl's 'charms' a good once over. She laughed loudly, leaning over the table towards him and whispering rather loudly.^
"'Ay... don't look too long a'that one, mate. A go at 'er'll cost yeh about three hundred bucks, if yeh know what I mean."
^She laughed again, wallowing in his uncomfortableness.^

^Mina glanced to him with a raised eyebrow, and smirked. She'd caught him looking, not that he was trying to hide it.^
"See anythin' yeh like, boy?"
^She almost said she was spoken for, but she wasn't really sure if that was true.^

He snapped to attention. "Huh? Oh.. erm.. nothing. Mind's just wandering. I have a hard ti..me.. paying.. atten....." His sentence drifted off, and he was now staring at a rather good-looking female sitting on the other side of the bar. He caught himself staring at forbidden, southerly places on the girl, and caught himself, quickly breaking the eye contact, hoping she hadn't seen him.

"Woah.. that's just a.. little more than I have.." He shifted in his seat, trying to figure out exactly how much he did have. Dumping his change onto the table, he counted, "Greeeat, four dollars and fifty.. two cents. Whatever." Among the change were littered about twenty unlit matches, and three or four burnt match heads.

"I dunno, maybe I can get a few seconds in with her.." He laughed nervously


((Sorry I haven't posted in.. forever.. I kinda lost the site address.. ))

The door pushed open and a tall figure dressed in a long fur linned coat walked in, the hood was up but not for long as two habds reached up and pulled down. A pale face with dazzleing gold coloured eyes peered around the place as the young women undid the coats buttons and took it off.The hands than moved to her raven black hair and pulled it back into a clip messily. Zyra placed the coat on the bar top and sat down on an empty stool.She looked around as if there sould have been someone there waiting for her, but no one acknowledged her or seemed to noticed she had even entered. She singaled to the tender and asked for a gin straight up, as she waited for her drink she took out a ciggy and began to smoke it, her eyes looking around causually but with interest.