ONCE BURNED was made by MEL. Copying, altering, or stealing any of the site's content is prohibited. All of ONCE BURNED's characters are the original work of their owners and may not be replicated or stolen. All images and graphics belong to their rightful owners and ONCE BURNED does not claim to own any of them.
Emmett learned very quickly that she should always bring Teddy to bars with her - especially this one. The mechanic lifted a small glass to her lips, throwing her head back as she quickly downed the golden liquid inside. Once the glass slammed to the counter, she reached for a slice of lime, biting down on it to help chase the hard taste of tequila. It was the fourth shot so far that evening, none of which she or her companion paid for. Her flushed cheeks gave away her state of mind; things were feeling good. Great.
It was smart that neither of them drove.
She shook her head, blonde hair falling around her face, but her grin could still be seen from across the room. It was if someone noticed a trend and the bar wanted to keep it going, but there wouldn't be a sound of complaint passing Emmett's mouth.
"It's the flannel, I'm telling you." The mechanic put a palm against Teddy's shoulder, fingers pinching the plaid fabric lightly. She wore it well; far better than Emmett ever could. The lawyer could wear sweatpants and she'd still look like a boss. "Just keep it." It was better that way, she was sure.
And without any sort of transition, Emmett kept going. "Tell me one of your funny lawyer stories."
Teddy never understood the desire behind drinking tequila, but there she was, four shots in with her client-turned-friend with every dollar she walked in with still in her possession. She had to give Emmett credit for the concept of dressing the lawyer down from her usual high value items. Though she hoped it would make it easier to blend in, it absolutely didn't, and the bodies so near to her at the bar proved that in an instant.
At least she recognised the familiar hand on her shoulder. The light pull of the material against her skin had her looking before she drew her eyes back to Emmett. "I feel like it belongs in my care package." She declared, but she probably wasn't going to give it back anyway. It was too fitting.
Funny lawyer stories? Teddy gave herself a brief moment to think. In her years she had endless stories, but she had to pick one she knew her companion would appreciate. "I had a guy once try to argue that he didn't owe his credit card company any money because debt is a sin and Jesus died for our sins. So... Jesus already paid his debt."
When she removed her hand from the lawyer's shoulder, a curious eye turned to those around them. Teddy could hold down a place like no other. She really hadn't expected a small crowd to linger around them, but then again, the simple town of Stagfort hadn't seen anyone like her before.
Emmett snorted at the story, her mouth quickly opening to allow for a laugh. "What the fuck?" Of course some idiot would try to use religion as an excuse not to pay off a debt. They used Jesus as an excuse to do anything else they wanted. "How do you argue with an idiot like that?"
But before her question could be answered, two more shot glasses were placed in front of them. When Emmett looked at the bartender, a finger pointed down the length of the bar to another interested party.
Parted lips went to explain herself quickly, but she didn't get a chance. Her bright eyes glanced down at the fifth set of shots and a little grimace on her face. Again, already? Really? She followed the sight line provided just like Emmett did, and there was a body she'd never seen looking at them. She was pretty sure it was the both of them.
She pressed her hands together, sincere gratitude colouring her features as she mouthed the words thank you over the music. A lingering second or so before she turned back to her friend, and the apparent interested party seemed to be gone from her mind.
"You don't." Teddy argued flatly, "It's career suicide. You let him go somewhere else and ruin someone else's reputation. And if you're good enough, you rep the winning party instead." It was rare for her to ever admit something that sounded so cold blooded, but she couldn't help it.
When her gaze landed on the person that had apparently bought them their next round, Emmett offered the best smile she could, it was the best thanks she could think to offer, even if it was for something neither herself nor her friend asked for. Rather than downing the shot so soon after the one she had only just taken, her attention snapped back to Teddy, eyebrows quirking up at the explanation given. It might have sounded cold, were it not for the fact that the mechanic found it hilarious.
"Tell me you repped the other side." Because that would be too good. "Or like, was it such a ridiculous case that it didn't matter?" It surely sounded like Teddy had the power to pick and choose what was worth her time, and maybe an easy win would be too boring. "Maybe you could have used just 'cause against him and won."
Teddy should have known her story would drag the questions out of her. She had to laugh st them. "I sent him off with the best advice I could give; don't be an idiot." She explained, shrugging her shoulders st the fact.
Then her eyes dwindled to the bodies around them. She didn't need special sight to catch the sets of eyes staring at them. For anyone else, it'd be daunting.
"Is it usually like this?" Teddy had to ask. Despite her preferences, she had yet to set foot in a bar like this in the time she'd been living in Stagfort.
Don't be an idiot. Emmett grinned at the explanation. Simple yet effective. She had to wonder if the guy ended up giving up or actually found someone to take his case.
Her forefinger and thumb rotated the small glass, eyes following the path that Teddy's made. There were a lot of women looking.
"No." The mechanic explained shortly, letting out a little laugh. "I mean, usually someone comes up to you, but this is something else." A thought creeped into her mind, and hazel eyes snapped back to the lawyer. "Have you ever been to a bar like this before?"
Teddy felt her eyebrows raise at the information given to her. It wasn't the worst thing in the world that it wasn't supposed to be like this, but it had to surprise her a little. She caught the eye of a person or two, but to this minute, no one had actually come up so far as to talk to them. She let Emmett have her attention instead, talkative as she clearly was.
"In America? No." Teddy admitted. Though she had never really considered that there would be a difference. But here she stood, well aware that despite her altered appearance she stood out in her own way. Now didn't seem the time to tell her friend of the serious relationship she had in the past that prevented her from things like this.
Reaching out, she pressed her index finger to Emmett's shoulder lightly; "But you seem to know at least have the women here."
In part, Emmett had half expected to hear that the lawyer had never set foot into a gay bar before. She was glad to hear she was wrong, but amusement still struck her features when she discovered that it was her first in the country. Loads of questions filtered into her mind, like if they served tea instead of beer, but before her mouth could catch her thoughts, she felt the pressure of a finger against her shoulder.
A laugh escaped her before she tilted the glass up, downing the contents without care of a chaser. Her jaw clenched at the taste before she set the glass back down. "Like I said, usually someone will come up and talk to me." Where it lead from there was usually unplanned but inevitable. The mechanic had a history.
"They're probably all dying seeing me next to you though." And with that, she pressed an index finger to Teddy's shoulder with a mimicked motion. "If one of them comes up, you're definitely my girlfriend." Not that it was entirely believable that she'd have a girlfriend at all.
Teddy knew the easy defective approach her friend was taking with her. The lack of a straight forward answer was an answer within itself. Jealousy mixed with hurt and maybe even aggression from some people at her mere presence. Maybe some of them even wanted to warn her given her closeness, she couldn't say, but the emotional magnitude was potentially catastrophic.
"I'm not sure if they'll hate me or pity me for that call." Teddy pointed out, but she had to laugh about it. Still, she snaked an arm around the mechanic's neck to draw her in and keep her. It wasn't a deterrent to the eyes on them. If anything, she only made it worse. Thankfully she didn't care either way.
"Tell me one of your funny bar stories." She said then, because she was sure they'd be better than anything about her job.
The lawyer made a good point, as always. While Emmett didn't put in an effort to follow up with people, she also wasn't entirely blinded to the emotions they might be feeling. How she chose to deal with that was an entirely different issue within itself. But an arm around her neck had the mechanic grinning, and she happily ignored any sinking in her stomach at the possibility of a more serious subject. Her arm moved easily around Teddy's waist, glad to keep her close.
"Oh Jesus." Because of course she had plenty of them to share, it was only a matter of figuring out which one. Her nose crinkled as she thought before she let out a laugh. "Okay, okay. So this one time I was just hanging out for a bit, but I might have had a few too many beers already." Because what good story didn't start with already being drunk? "And this girl starts talking to me, and I realize that she looks sort of familiar, but I can't figure out where. It goes like all night until we're about to leave and another girl approaches us and starts like yelling at her about cheating and shit. And I realize that like a week before I had seen a photo of her, 'cause I had slept with the girl yelling at us a week before and it was on her nightstand." Emmett shook her head. "In my defense at the time I didn't realize either of them were in a relationship. 'Cause that's a little fucked up."
A dry laugh passed Teddy's lips at the story provided. She was learning a lot about Emmett in the short time she'd been out here with her, but it was hardly something to judge her over. "Oh no, that's a completely arguable defence." She pointed out, despite the volatile way Emmett likely had to deal with it. Though, she wouldn't have been surprised if the mechanic somehow ended up calming the entire situation down. She definitely had a way with people.
She was so wrapped - almost literally - in the company she kept that she didn't realise one of their onlookers had stepped up to the plate. Not until a voice pierced the moment with a simple question; "Need help with that?"
Eyes motioned towards the shot Teddy had left behind, and her attention briefly drew towards it before she looked back. "Oh, I almost forgot. But no, it's not exactly something you share." She tried that as nicely as possible. If she had to be brutally honest, it was a weak way to approach someone.
"Can we talk? Just for a sec." She figured it was a not-so casual way of asking Teddy to detangle herself from her favoured company.
Teddy immediately looked at Emmett. They had to know each other, right? Then again, given the story she just told, her memory mightn't have been the most reliable.
Caught up in her own story, Emmett had completely missed the person approaching them. It was only when a voice cut into their conversation did she even notice the other presence. Eyebrows immediately furrowed at what seemed like a really weak approach. Who shares a shot anyway? Her gaze turned towards the source as she requested the lawyer's attention, and Emmett felt the falter in her grin. It almost fell completely.
Because she did recognize the face. Vaguely, but enough to recall the night they had spent together.
When she caught Teddy's eyes, she tried to offer something of an apologetic look through raised eyebrows and an awkward smile. "Do you gotta take her away from me? I'm sort of attached." She joked lightly, though her hand lost the grip it had on the lawyer.
An apologetic look was caught through slightly blurred eyes, and it didn't take much for Teddy to realise what that meant. Awkwardness filtered into her smile and, thankfully for Teddy, she didn't have to wear either because she had no idea who she was talking to. Very suddenly, she was caught in the middle of two people who had some kind of relationship, short or otherwise.
"Oh come on, it'll take like two minutes." That was a whining voice. Teddy did her best to hide how much she disliked it.
"I'll give you two minutes." The Brit declared, almost too easily; "But you have to get my dear friend a drink. Her choice, of course. I can't leave her here with nothing."
It seemed like the idea of giving Emmett anything was the worst thing in the world. The strain was real; "Fine."
Easing her arm away, she made a point of pressing the palm of her hand against Emmett's face lightly. "Tell the nice girl your order, love." She said, humour etched neatly into her features.
Emmett thought to protest the moment a whining tone escaped this girl's mouth, but before she could, Teddy gave agreed for the time asked of her. A frown tugged at the corner of her mouth, but Emmett did her best to fight it towards something more positive, especially when the lawyer managed to score a free drink out of her.
A gentle touch against her cheek did everything to make her grin again, and she caught those bright blue eyes, not even looking at her former companion. "I'll have a shot of Hennessy. Top shelf." Without missing a beat, she turned her head, lips pressing into Teddy's palm. "Two minutes."
And as if she had almost forgotten, her eyebrows quirked upwards. "Oh, can I borrow your phone? Mine's dead."
