birthright_rpg | Thread 1: Skylark Casino Celebration

“I’m Maddy, and hell yes,” she responded, shaking back with a hand that was slender but squeezed with confidence. “I’ve never turned down a drink in my life.” Bringing the cup of tokens near her face, she dabbed at her eyelashes with her thumb. She wasn’t used to the feeling of mascara on them. It felt burdensome to blink. “That’s a better idea anyway. I was thinking of going up to the roof, but I’d just jump in the pool in my dress and ruin the whole thing.”

She knew Brian was up there. He liked the band. She thought they blew chunks and didn’t mind expressing her contempt loudly. Another reason to stay downstairs.

A jacketed server rounded one of the gaming tables, and Echo flagged him down to ask for a Guinness and whatever Maddy wanted. This could be good practice for learning to talk to a girl without spazzing out. If she could speak without stuttering, it would be an improvement.

"Tourist or local?" she asked once the drinks had been ordered. "Not many people who live in this city seem to be from Nevada, but you might be the exception to the rule."

Maddy ordered a bloody mary because she liked that it came with a celery stalk. “I’m from Tacoma,” she said, “but I’ve been here eight or nine years. Where are you from? Definitely west coast, right?” She had a decent ear for accents and thought that Echo’s sounded distinctly northwestern. She looked around and spotted a pair of neglected bar stools. It beat standing in her shoes, which were killing her, though she was loathe to admit it. She reached out just as a man began to sit on one. “At-dat-dat! Nooooo. Mine.” She slapped his arm. “Get outta here.”

Maddy flopped on the cushion and sighed with relief.

Yeah, definitely adorable.

"I came down from Seattle instead of going to college," Echo said, taking up the stool next to Maddy's and hooking the heels of her boots on the bottom rung. "We were practically neighbors."

Don't stare at her legs. Yes, the dress is short, but behave yourself.

"This is going to sound awful, but I was wondering if you were old enough to be in here. I'm sure a hundred other morons have asked you the same question."

“Uuuuuugh, are you fucking kidding me?” Maddy groaned, letting her head roll backward. She bent down and set the cup of coins between her feet. To cut straight to the chase, she pulled the beaded purse from her shoulder and whipped out her driver’s license, which was stashed alongside a wadd of small bills and a tube of red lipstick.

“I’m twenty-four. See?” She flicked the date on the glossy plastic.

Edited 2013-09-23 03:27 (UTC)

Echo blushed, abashed and chastised. "I'm sorry," she said, raising her hands in surrender. "I'm barely old enough to be in here myself, so I shouldn't point fingers."

The server came back with their drinks, and the hybrid gratefully picked up the room-temperature bottle. The first sip reminded her that this was the beer you could eat with a fork, and she held it between her palms while she looked for something less contentious to say.

"I guess you're done with school?" she asked with a hopeful expression. "UNLV sent me a catalog in the mail. They have a fairly decent arts program. I'm weighing my options."

Maddy snorted. “School. Yeah right.” She stuffed her ID back in the purse. “It’s expensive, it’s boring, and it’s overrated. What’s one thing they can teach you about art that you can’t figure out yourself?” she asked. “They’ll just teach you to copy other people. It’s bullshit.” She ran the zipper and accepted the Bloody Mary with gratitude and a sip. She wiggled her nose and tried not to sneeze, thanks to an overage of pepper.

Okay, maybe, maybe the thought crossed her mind, on a rare occasion, that she wouldn’t be slaving away at three low-paying jobs if she’d gone to college. Pouring coffee paid the rent on her slum, playing bass guitar paid the phone bill, and being a second-rate circus clown on the street paid for…

Well…

Nothing.

It was just funny.

"I was thinking about art history," Echo said, and she displayed her palms as if for inspection after a washing. "I already know how to draw and make stuff, but learning about the people who already made it could be interesting."

Her posture loosened up a little as she sat there, and she tried to avoid slouching. "So I guess you live in the city," she said, and it wasn't a question this time. She'd have recognized Maddy, seen her before, Definitely.

"I almost didn't show up tonight," the hybrid admitted, beginning to pick at the label on the bottle. "I'm not naturally social."

Thread 1: Skylark Casino Celebration

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