[Deleted]

It was yet another night in the bar, McLaren's pub, the bar was filled with a decent amount of people, small groups of friends hanging in booths sharing laughs and chatting, others sat at the bar, looking to mingle with the patrons of the bar, however Max sat alone in a booth in the corner, looking blankly down at the half empty beer in front of him. He knew he would have to spend the night at a low end motel tonight, the homeless shelter had restrictions against drunks within the shelter, yet he couldn't stop himself, he needed to deafen the voice for a while, the whispers were getting more intense as of late and he couldn't tell why, it only seemed to stop when he drank, and he couldn't afford to go to the doctors, he lacked the money and if the government knew what he was slowly uncovering, they surely would silence him, he was a nobody, no one will miss a nobody. Max knew he was getting close to the truth, the voice was whispering things about criminals being locked up and his investigations has lead him to find out they were beaten by a powered hero, it had to mean something, why were they telling him about this? Someone was telling him to check up on these victims, the limited information he had gathered, it was the same person who did it but no one stepped forward, not even the whispers would provide an answer. It had to be hidden under layers, enough layers that clawing at the surface would lead to nothing but broken nails at best. But why would they even point him in that direction? Why just that one powered person? There was much questions he had to answer, yet the whispers insisted on preaching nonsense, when it got this bad, only a stiff drink would calm it. 

Max sighed and took yet another drink, looking at the time and seeing it was now 8:30 PM, the night was young and the voice was beginning to go silent, he could stop now and risk angering the voice or keep going and risk blacking out. Either way, he wasn't going to sleep well tonight. If he stopped now, the voice would begin it's nonsense screaming, it was strange to hear another voice scream at him and extremely uncomfortable but he could bear through it, but if he kept going and blacked out, he would end up in another place, some times just walking outside and still feeling drunk, other times he would be at home in bed, through few times he ended up in a strangers bed, it was strange being there, he often sneaked out but he recalled once he was caught. The woman claimed the two had spent the night together, it must've been done while he was blacked out but still it was unlike him to actually end up like that, he couldn't deny it since he was there, however he broke contact with her extremely quickly, she kept making advances and it was around the time he had begun investigating into the governments involvement, too out of character, strange and unlikely timing. 

Max sighed once more and took a final shot, finishing the pint of beer and looking around at the bar, time barely passed by and he had much on his mind still, the whispers were in a loud tone but bearable at the time. He wished he had a friend out with him, but they were busy as usual, he hated this, having such a small friend group that often ignored him until they needed something, but he couldn't bare the thought of them leaving him all alone. He was sick of being alone, he grew up alone, he lived alone, he ate alone, the only joy was drinking and that was soured with the awful taste of being alone.

@tag

MADE BY VEL OF GS AND ADOXOGRAPHY 2.0

[Sonnet Matsuda]

In the end everything collides

338

@maxcaudwell

Sonnet had not visited this bar before, and judging by the clientele she saw here, she doubted she would be visiting it again any time soon. She'd already had to less than gently discourage the attentions of one over eager patron at the bar. He was at the other end of the bar now, nursing his red, but unbroken fingers. He would think twice before allowing his hands to wander over strange women in future. Not that re-educating him had been Sonnet's intention when she'd bent his fingers back off her ass.

She'd already paid for her drinks unfortunately, and while it would have been the work of an instant to simply take it home with her, but it wouldn't be wise to do so in such a crowded bar. That and it would burn off the buzz before she had even reached it. The side effect of her enhanced metabolism was that it took enough alcohol to fell an ox just to give her a buzz.

She glanced around the bar, if she wanted to avoid unwanted attention she'd have to find a table, somewhere to sit. But they were all taken, most of them crowded with young groups of friends or couples. Then her eye alighted upon one option, the only option.

Tucked away in the back corner was a booth with a current occupancy of one, a man who seemed to be making a deep study of the beer in front of him. Lifting the bottle of whiskey and glass from the bar, she made her way over to the table.

"This seat free?"

The question was an afterthought, she'd already slit onto the opposite bench. The guy was too focused on the drink in front of him to actually have a friend or partner in the bar. No one with friends studied alcohol with quite that intensity.

She poured amber liquid from the whiskey bottle into the glass she'd brought with her, before beginning to drink.

"Is the beer that bad? Or that good?"

My childhood spat back out the monster that you see

► kaigra ◄

[Deleted]

As Max sat and stared at the beer, lost in deep thought, he barely even noticed that a woman was on her way to join him, only taking note when she joined him at his booth, surprisingly him greatly as he looked up at her, his facial expression however didn't change despite the surprise he was feeling inside. The woman had asked if the seat was taken but she clearly didn't care as she was already sitting in the spot before he could even confirm rather the seat was empty or not. "Seat's free. Always is." He'd say with his usual monotone raspy voice, not really caring that she had already taken the seat before she asked.

The woman poured herself a glass of whiskey, seeming content to drink here with him for now. This was rather straight forward behavior to Max, the other regulars seemed to avoid him often, meaning this woman must've been to the bar. He wondered how long she would decide to hang around until he drives her away, it was bound to happen, it always does. As she poured her drink, Max examined her, trying to figure out why she decided to sit here of all places, surely someone with her appearance could find others to mingle with besides him. She seemed fit, meaning she had to work out regularly, but why? The hair was short as well, something common among either fighters or cops, but then again, the few media he saw did display some Asian women as having short hair, so perhaps it was just a trend. Then he caught something off putting, a scar along her neck, it could've been some sort of mugging, accident or any other means, but he had begun to suspect she was a cop. Did they really know he was getting close to figuring it out? How?

The woman then asked rather the beer was that good or bad, confirming she must be new here since she didn't know for sure. "Decent." He answered. Then he begun thinking about it, her wording was a bit off, instead of rather it was good or bad, she asked if it was that good or bad, she must've noticed that he was lost in thought. "Sorry. Just thinking." He'd explain as his eyes returned to his beer. "Why are you here?" He'd ask her, yet not change of tone in his voice was detectable. He was curious what story she'd try to feed him. His eyes remained down to his beer, part of him hoped she was just a regular person who happen to decide to sit with him for whatever reason but he already suspected she was an undercover spy, the voice was wary of her, it told him not to trust her, but the voice wasn't always right when it's in this state.

Sonnet Matsuda

MADE BY VEL OF GS AND ADOXOGRAPHY 2.0

[Sonnet Matsuda]

In the end everything collides

377

@maxcaudwell

There was no objection to her sitting, simply a quiet, self-pitying response. She rolled her eyes. So the guy was lonely, sucked to be him. Clearly he wasn't going to be great company, but that was fine, because in truth, neither was Sonnet, and she certainly wasn't looking for a drinking buddy. Anyway, being sat at a table with someone, friendly or not, would mean that she wouldn't have to… discourage any more interested parties. Usually she took a savage glee in doing so, but tonight she wasn't in the mood. Recently she hadn't been in the mood for such confrontations. That had limited her drinking to very specific bars, or new ones that might have a less handsy clientele.

She tilted the glass to her mouth, letting the cheap whiskey slide over her tongue and down her throat. It wasn't particularly good stuff, but when you paid $35 for a bottle of whiskey; you got what you paid for. She wasn't a particularly fast drinker, but it didn't take long to empty the glass and pour herself a new one. She didn't react as he inspected her; after all, she had sat down at his table without waiting for an invite. She might not appreciate the attention, but she wouldn't complain. She caught the inevitable glance at her neck, that always held people's gaze for a few seconds longer. It looked like someone had tried to rip out her throat, and someone had, it had only been her ability that had saved her. She hadn't expected to end up a hundred miles away from the attempted assassination, let alone to live out the day.

She blinked in surprise at his question. He didn't sound particularly hostile, yet the question was undeniably so. She looked pointedly at the bottle of whiskey, then at his beer, then glanced in the direction of a bar.

"This is a bar, they sell alcohol. I want to get drunk."

She lifted the glass again, "Pretty much what these places are for."

Her voice was flat, hoarse as though she had been shouting, and with the curiously mechanical tone that comes from having learned the language being spoken at a later age. She stared challengingly into his eyes.

"Why are you here?"

My childhood spat back out the monster that you see

► kaigra ◄

[Deleted]

The woman seemed surprised at his question, her eyes glancing toward the drinks and then to the bar, before claiming she was here to get drunk. That much was obvious but what wasn't was why she was sitting here with him of all people. She lifted her drink to announce that the bar was indeed the place people go to get drunk, but as she did so, he noticed something odd about her voice, something he didn't hear the first time she talked, which was a bit surprising as her voice was hoarse, like it was strained from overuse. 

He assumed her voice was like that from the injury, it would take a miracle for her vocal cords to go untouched from a wound like that. More importantly, she avoided answering the question, rather it was intention or not was unknown to him, but she was now locking eyes to him, her expression was a strange new one, it had a hint of aggression to it but not the same one that he had seen usually, however he still maintained his emotionless face, his eyes meeting hers.

She then asked why he was here, something he knew would come eventually, but not with the aggressive look she had. He decided to brush it off and answer her question. "Need a drink." He'd answer quite bluntly before taking a sip of his beer. "I don't dislike you." He'd add quite suddenly, believing her expression was because she thought he was rude for asking a question such as that, for whatever reason. "But there are many places to sit. Like the bar. Yet you sit here. With me. Why?" He'd add in after his disclaimer, trying not to upset her yet still curious on the answer that she had.

Sonnet Matsuda

MADE BY VEL OF GS AND ADOXOGRAPHY 2.0

[Sonnet Matsuda]

In the end everything collides

301

@maxcaudwell

Sonnet went back to her drink, lifting the glass to her lips, and pausing as she heard the man speak once more. She took another gulp of whiskey, it wasn't good enough to be sipping it. Frankly she didn't give a damn if he liked her or not, and she said as much.

"Why would I care?"

Then he clarified his earlier question, and she rolled her eyes. So he was stupid as well as drunk.

"You ever been a woman sat at a bar? No of course you haven't, even with that hair. I didn't want to be bothered."

She took another gulp of the whiskey, before dropping the lip of the bottle onto the rim of the glass and pouring another three fingers. She let the bottle drop carelessly onto the table. Sitting at the bar meant that you were looking for company, or that you weren't against being approached for it. Sonnet was not in that kind of a mood. Every other table was occupied by more than one person, which left this one booth that she could join. Lo and behold, no one had bothered her since she'd sat down.

"Sit at a table and people are less likely to notice you. Sit with a guy and the chances go lower. Sit with a guy looking like you… well…"

It was true, the man across the table didn't look like the kind of person you crossed carelessly. He was muscular, brooding, and clearly enough beers deep to throw a punch if you pushed too far. He probably wouldn't throw a punch at her, and if he did she was confident that she could beat the shit out of him before he could throw a second. She usually could when it came to guys that looked like that.

My childhood spat back out the monster that you see

► kaigra ◄

[Deleted]

The woman didn't seem too appreciative of his attempt to ease her, nor did she seem happy to hear him clarify his question. She seemed to be getting more aggressive the more he talked, it was strange to him, he thought she would be a bit more friendly since she sat with him and was willing to make conversation. He sighed as his eyes looked at the clock, seeing the night was still young, he was just going to have to deal with her for the time being, at least until he blacks out.

She explained she didn't want to be bothered at the bar, something that made some sense seeing as even Max noticed the female patrons tended to have more people approach them than the males. He simply shrugged in response, he didn't really have anything to comment about, her comment about his hair was strange, but reasonable and it wasn't his business to ask about why she didn't want to be bothered.

There was a small silence as she downed yet her glass of whiskey, she seemed intent on getting drunk rather quickly, unlike Max who merely took sips of his beer. As she finished pouring herself another glass, she added that people were less likely to approach her at a table, though someone like him was ideal to camouflaging herself. The last comment was surprising, he knew he was a bit unapproachable, but not to the extent of a guy repellent for any girl that decided to sit near him, though he had to admit that it was clever of her to avoid others like this. "Clever." He simply said, he had the feeling she just wanted to drink in peace so that what he was going to let her do. He took a gulp from his beer, ready to drink in silence with this strange until he woke up in his motel or wherever his drunken antics would decide to leave him.

Sonnet Matsuda

MADE BY VEL OF GS AND ADOXOGRAPHY 2.0

[Sonnet Matsuda]

In the end everything collides

353

@maxcaudwell

They sat in silence for a while, long enough for Sonnet to have finished the first bottle and gotten most of the way through another. She’d been drinking them fast, faster than she normally would, and they were big bottles. As a result, she had something of a buzz going, which didn’t help what happened next. Whether it would have made any actual difference was unlikely. Sonnet didn’t need alcohol to start a fight.

The man that put his hand on the table was muscular in the way that suggested it was manufactured in the gym rather than entirely natural. Sonnet glared balefully at the interruption, but he wasn’t paying attention to her, he was looking at the other guy sat at the table, evidently assuming he was her boyfriend, and therefore in charge of her.

That probably didn’t help. ”Hey buddy, you and your girl are in our spot. Clear off.”

She glanced at the long-haired man sat across the table from her, and not seeing what she wanted, she slammed her glass down onto the offending man’s pinkie. He didn’t quite scream, but the half-whine that came from between his teeth betrayed the pain he had felt. Sonnet ground the glass into his finger some more. Until he snatched it back with a growl.

”Bitch. You got a problem?”

She glared mockingly up at him, ”Not any more, he just took his hand off my table.”

He clenched his fists, clearly wanting to hit her but not willing to raise a hand to a woman in front of his friends. ”This is our table, you two are in our space, now you and your boyfriend clear off.”

Sonnet slowly stood up, staring him in the face the whole way, then leaned forwards. He towered over her by quite some margin, but her face showed not one iota of fear. ”It’s my table, now fuck off before I make you and your friend’s my bitches.”

He glanced back at his friends, gaining some bravado from their presence. He couldn’t let himself be shown up by a woman. That was his first mistake.

My childhood spat back out the monster that you see

► kaigra ◄

[Deleted]

The two sat in silence, Max drinking at a leisure pace unlike the woman who seemed to be downing glass after glass, it was quite impressive really. Normally he'd be trying to get as drunk as fast as possible, but even with his dismissal of the voice, he was cautious of her, she has shown an aggressive behavior, something that would only improve with each glass if he had guessed correctly that she was a mean drunk. 

However, the next aggressive move didn't come from her, instead a muscular man placed in his hand on the table with just enough force to get Max's attention. The man seemed to be in his early twenties, along with the rest of his group, stereotypical. He seemed to brush off the lady to talked to Max directly, incorrectly assuming that she was his girlfriend, something that Max frankly couldn't see. 

He shot a look toward the lady to see what her reaction would be, he didn't want to end his night of drinking fighting for a booth, but he couldn't exactly just leave her to fend for herself. She seemed annoyed at his current behavior and took the first action, slamming her glass into the leader's pinkie, causing him to emit a sound that sounded rather lady-like. Max found that amusing, yet still his face was emotionless, but he knew now that he was going to get into a fight, rather he wanted to or not.

The man retracted his hand and asked her what her problem, something a bit surprising since they were the ones attempting to kick the two out. She gave a smug reply, while Max watched the scenario fold, still taking a sip every now and then, waiting for the fight to escalate until he had to step in. The leader seemed quite angry but for some reason he wasn't acting on it yet, Max could only assume social cues or Max's presence was preventing him from doing anything. 

At least until the lady stood to the man, she seemed ready to fight despite the man at least standing 6 feet, he would tower even over Max. Judging from how he looked over at his friends for assurance, he was getting ready to fight as well, though why he felt the need to fight a lady over a seat in a bar that isn't exactly the most ideal bar was far beyond Max. 

He stood as well, finally deciding to end the problem. As he suspected, his height was nowhere close to the leader's height, but he was a bit taller than the lady. "Is there a problem?" He asked the leader, glaring at him. "Just fuck off mate!" An voice called out, it had a distant accent, almost Irish like. Another figure who said that stepped out of the small group of 4, choosing to stand his ground with the leader, he was had a similar height but was smaller than the leader and as such, he seemed to be slightly less muscular.

"We were here first." Max replied, looking at the new figure. There was a single cut on his cheek healing up, around the cut was a small hint of purple, meaning he took one hell of a punch recently. The thought of coming across another fighter was interesting to Max, he often had to knock around a few people, most of which couldn't fight, but the few that could was always exciting, even if he didn't win every time.

Sonnet Matsuda

MADE BY VEL OF GS AND ADOXOGRAPHY 2.0

[Sonnet Matsuda]

In the end everything collides

277

@maxcaudwell

She was almost surprised when the guy she had been drinking with stood up. He’d been suspiciously quiet when the overly muscular jock type had approached, but clearly he’d found his balls. Maybe drawing courage from Sonnet’s example. Or just not willing to watch a man beat up on a woman. Of course that wouldn’t be what happened, but he had no way of knowing that.

”I don’t give a fuck about you being here first or not.”

The guy was almost growling, nursing his now reddening pinkie. ”This is our table, and everyone here knows it.”

Sonnet stepped closer, getting as into his face as she could even if he towered over her. There was not one shred of fear or worry in her face, just pure, aggressive confidence and self-assurance. It was a little bit like David and Goliath, and anyone who was familiar with the story would know exactly how it was going to end. Clearly, the muscle headed group of morons were not appreciative of biblical literature. Sonnet was, but she wasn’t thinking about Bible stories at the moment in time, more about how she was going to reduce this man to a snivelling wreck in as short amount of time as possible.

”You going to take it back bitch?”

Then she applied those thoughts. The man raised his hand. It was all the excuse she needed. A matter of seconds later he was on his knees, his face red, clutching his wrist and hunched over as he struggled to draw breath. A second later he keeled over. His friends stood, gobsmacked, for a moment, before the Irish man stepped forward.

”Fucking bitch!”

My childhood spat back out the monster that you see

► kaigra ◄

[Deleted]

The leader growled at Max, seemingly not caring about basic manners or acting mature, instead he seemed to be intent on fighting Max and the lady over a simple booth. Max sighed as the leader rambled on about how everyone knew this one booth was theirs, honestly if Max was alone, he'd just leave and go buy some beer at a vendor. This whole night could be ruined if one the bastards actually tried to hit either of them, he had little doubt that the bar would kick out all of them if they fought.

The lady then took a step closer to the taller figure, she also seemed intent on fighting with them, while Max was strong and a good boxer, even if there was a two on one scenario for both them, he had doubts both could successfully take the 4 person group on. Watching her looking up at the figure reminded him of a story his mother once told him, David vs Goliath, it always stayed with him since he heard it, having been the smaller person in boxing most of the time he was used to re-enacting the legendary fight between the two, he'd dodge and stay away from the bigger person's strikes, only coming in for quick strikes against weak points.

He needed another drink. While it might be a bit stupid, the voice was deafening him, he needed to think clearly for the fight that was bound to ensure without someone else stepping in. He turned to the table, reaching out for his beer when a noise caught his attention, causing him to turn around, ready to fight. Before he could even grab his beer, the man let out a small yelp of pain and hissed in pain as his clutched his hand, it was impressive she was able to make him fall in the short amount of time it took for Max to turn and reach for his drink. While the two seemed shocked, the Irish man seemed relatively unfazed, still standing his ground for the booth despite the stronger and taller man falling rather quickly to the mystery woman.

Max took a step in front of the Irishmen. "Take your friend and go." Max told him, hoping that this would be the end of the confrontation, but if he was correct in his guess, there was going to be a fight. As he thought so, the Irishmen didn't back down and instead chose to fight, his fist immediately going for Max's face, however Max saw this coming and while he was partially drunk and the voice was commanding him to use different tactics, his old training was still intact. He swiftly leaned back, bumping into the lady behind him, but followed it with a swift punch to the Irishmen's gut, who wasn't expecting a dodge, let alone a follow up strike. The Irishmen hunched over and Max followed it with a knee to the poor bastard's face, not wanting to take any chances on letting him recover, this force caused him to fall back, his friends backing away and looking at their two friend taken down fairly easily by the "couple" sitting in their booth. "Take your friends and go." Max simply ordered the two standing men, not really sure if they'd listen or try to fight a 2 on 2, at least for a while, Max may be strong, but he doubted he could knock out someone this quickly with just his knee. Though this wasn't counting in the leader who had been clutching his hand since the Irishmen stepped forward Max didn't know what the lady did to their leader, rather she broke a finger, wrist or just hurt it enough to keep him incapacitated for a while.

Sonnet Matsuda

MADE BY VEL OF GS AND ADOXOGRAPHY 2.0

[Sonnet Matsuda]

In the end everything collides

308

@maxcaudwell

The long-haired man tried to defuse the situation again, but it was clear that the men who wanted their table had already been drinking themselves. Their actions were definitely being led by either liquid courage or liquid stupidity. Fortunately for Sonnet, or rather, unfortunately for the men, she could probably down more booze than all four of the men together and still walk in a straight line. She was buzzed enough to have started the fight, but it certainly wouldn’t affect her ability to beat the shit out of all of them.

Sonnet was pleasantly surprised when the man she had been sitting with demonstrated some fighting skills of his own. Sonnet had been trained in enough Martial Arts, and practised them regularly enough to recognise a trained fighter when she saw one. His movements were too fluid, too automatic and the Irishman was down a second later. She was pretty sure the following knee wasn’t part of the boxing training, but who was she to criticise? The fight was done, and the last two men realised that pushing it any further wasn’t going to help their case. One of the bartenders had called for a bouncer, but even he looked wary about engaging the snarling Sonnet.

With the room turning against them, the group of four backed away, one of them half dragging the man clutching his wrist, the other assisting the Irishman who was occupied trying to staunch the flow of blood from his nose. Sonnet waved at the bartender that was staring them, then pointed at their drinks, then she turned to her companion, ”nice punch, your next one is on me.”

Her voice was clipped and hoarse, and the scar at her throat worked slightly as she spoke. She looked the other guy up and down, before sliding back into the booth, ”I’m Sonnet.”

My childhood spat back out the monster that you see

► kaigra ◄

[Deleted]

Max was disappointed the Irishmen went down fairly easily, even if Max got him with a surprise combo he was expecting more of a fight, but he was happy that the bouncer seemed less than willing to engage the two, especially now that the group was backing away, the two standing men helping their two fallen buddies out of the bar. This scenario had played out much better than he expected, they kept the booth and could still drink in the bar, though if it was up to Max, this scenario wouldn't have happened at all.

As Max watched the group retreat from the bar, the lady pointed toward the drinks, shortly before turning to Max, causing him to turn his attention to her. She gave him a compliment about his punch and told him the next drink was on her, this surprised him, she was quite aggressive a while ago, but now she was even paying for his drink and being friendly, not that he hated this change of pace, it was a much welcomed change of attitude. "Thank you." He said and for the first time since he sat in this booth a small smile barely formed on his face, but the same couldn't be said about his voice, it was still emotionless as usual. As she looked at him, she'd see that he was well built, but his clothing was rather plain, a black t shirt and dark blue jeans with a noticeable blood stain on the area his knee would be, and lastly he wore some gray running shoes that were beginning to wear out. As for Max, he also looked at her, attempting to figure out rather she was fighter or not based on his appearance since he didn't really get a good look at her body.

She took a seat in the booth and introduced herself as "Sonnet", a strange name but then again he never really watched the media or had much interaction with people in general. "Name's Max." He simply said as he took a gulp of his beer, the voice had been screaming at him since he saw Sonnet standing up to the taller figure. As he placed the drink back down, he looked at her. "Are you a fighter?" He asked, not really gathering too much info on her based on her body.

Sonnet Matsuda

MADE BY VEL OF GS AND ADOXOGRAPHY 2.0

[Sonnet Matsuda]

In the end everything collides

386

@maxcaudwell

Sonnet noticed the small smile, even if the man's voice did not waver from it's monotone. She wondered idly about the blood stain on his knee, it didn't look fresh, although it was no entirely surprising, judging by the man's long, tangled hair he didn't care all that much about his appearance. He was unusually short for a man at only 5'6, although that still put him above Sonnet's diminutive frame.

She saw him returning the inspection, examining her work clothes, jeans, a blouse, and heavy boots, with a dark jacket over the ensemble. The jacket had a high collar, but it was open, and did nothing to conceal the livid scar at her throat. She moved with the easy grace of a dancer or a gymnast, and what was visible of her bare skin showed toned muscle.

She smiled and raised an eyebrow at his question. "I wouldn't say it's my job description but if you were paying attention it's obvious I can take care of myself."

There was a hidden threat there, a cautionary tone that warned Max not to go too far. Normally Sonnet would have taken offence instantly at the suggestion that she couldn't handle herself, but she was feeling strangely generous, and the slight buzz in her system was probably feeding that. Besides, her skills were rarely needed in bars. The patrons at those she frequented tended to learn quickly, or they were already in the habit of not causing trouble with others. Sonnet liked to drink quietly, and there were few people who could keep up with her drinking habits.

She'd watched the way Max had fought with an experienced eye, and it hadn't been the wild and unruly punches of a drunk man, but the calm and collected responses of someone used to taking hit. "Boxer?" She said by way of a question.

After all, they clearly both had sorrows to drown, perhaps they should drown them together. The new drinks were brought to the table, another beer for Max, and another bottle of whiskey for Sonnet. Her metabolism made it difficult, not to mention expensive to get drunk. Perhaps some company wouldn't be so bad. She almost laughed at that mood, it was so rare as to be alien to her, but she wouldn't squash it just yet.

My childhood spat back out the monster that you see

► kaigra ◄

[Deleted]

She seemed to have hinted that fighting was something she did quite often as part of a job, it was strange, but considering she might've broken a person's hand simply for trying to take a booth in a bar, Max didn't really consider her to be a cop anymore. He would've pushed on with the questioning, but the voice seemed to warn against it, it was actually warning him clearly too. He didn't like that so he dropped with the line of thought, not wanting to risk angering her or the voice. 

She also seemed interested in his fighting skills, it was partially expected since she did compliment him about said skills. "Partially. Boxed when younger. Few fights every now and then. Now it's just instincts." Max explained, he was by no means a great boxer, he was good enough to win local, minor championships but not enough to go pro. Since that didn't pan out he had to rely on a mixture of instincts, previous street brawls and his old training, the knee was by no means a regular boxing skill, but when you live on the streets long enough, you learn no one has honour, it weights you down, just gets in the way. However, despite the disadvantages of honour, Max still had some sense of honour, he didn't like to kick a man when he was down, if they went down, he'd let them get back up until they stopped getting back up, nor did he enjoy surprise attacks, he wanted a proper fight, it gave him a thrill to meet someone who could put up a challenge.

"Thank you" Max said to both the waitress and Sonnet, the free beer meant more money saved, even if he disliked having to depend on someone else's charity, but who was he to refuse a free drink from someone who was only now becoming friendly toward him? Max chugged down the rest of his old beer and placed the cup a small bit to the side, not wanting it to stay in the way. "How did you get the scar?" Max would decide to ask, but the voice then again warned him. "If you don't mind me asking, that is." He quickly added, just the tiniest hint of concern could be heard in his voice. Max's vision had become just a little blurry because of how quickly he chugged the surprisingly large amount of beer left in his old cup. He knew this state well, it was only a matter of time before he either passed out or blacked out, though from him experience, blacking out was the most likely scenario.

Sonnet Matsuda

MADE BY VEL OF GS AND ADOXOGRAPHY 2.0