Downing shots in a bar wasn't something she did very much recently, but, the redheaded Irish woman thought to herself, indulging every now and again can't hurt, right? Besides, she'd been a bit down on her luck, so a nice visit with her old friend, Whiskey, seemed like a good way to cheer herself up... Only, it wasn't helping.
A shaggy-haired man with a short yet scruffy beard approached her confidently, clearly looking for some action. "Hey there, gorgeous-"
"Fuck off."
"Damn, woman, don't you wanna know my name before you bite my head off?"
"Not particularly," she relied bluntly, not caring in the slightest about being polite or ladylike as she swallowed another glass of bitter alcohol.
"Well, the name's-"
"What part of 'fuck off' do ye not get, man?" She motioned to the bartender to refill her glass. "Thanks." She promptly downed half of the fresh whiskey before snapping again at the man who seemed quite astonished at either her behaviour or how well she could drink, "Now, piss off. I'm sure there's plenty of girls at a club somewhere who're more than happy sit on any random asshole's lap." Seemingly at a loss for words, the anonymous man turned on his heel and returned to his two friends with his jaw wide open.
"The one with slightly lighter hair nudged his shaggy-headed friend, "Any luck with the lassie?"
"Bitch told me to fuck off! Twice!" The other two howled with laughter. "Yeah, haha. Very funny. Here's your fuckin' money." A ten-dollar bill slapped down in front of both men.
The one with the shortest hair eyed up the young woman across the bar. "Whaddya think, Connor?" he asked, "Ye think I got a shot?"
"I doubt it, Murph, but ye may as well try." Connor smacked his brother on the back and gave him a shove. "Go show us what ye got!"
"Murphy grabbed his drink and headed over to the nameless stranger. "Mind if I join you?"
"She downed yet another shot of whiskey. "Does it look like I'm gonna stop ye?"
"Having a bad day?" Murphy asked as he situated himself on the barstool next to the gorgeous stranger.
"That's an understatement," she replied bluntly, "Ye see, I do freelance work, but the asshole I was workin' for decided he didn't wanna pay me, so there's a month of me life I'm never gettin' back. Then, I get fuckin' kicked out of my damn apartment. So I came down to Boston to see if I could find some work, nothin'. So to answer yer question, aye, I'm having a pretty bad fuckin' day."
"Well, I suppose you've got a pretty good reason to be drinkin' then," Murphy responded, not sure what else to say. "Want me to buy you the next few?"
"I'd not be opposed to it," she accepted.
"Me name's Murphy, by the way. Murphy MacManus," he introduced himself properly and held out his hand.
She took the offered hand and shook it lightly. "Siobhan Jameson."
Catching Siobhan off her guard, Murphy quickly lifted her hand, kissing it with a cheeky grin. "Enchanted."
Swallowing her surprise, Siobhan commented, "I think ye've gotta be the first man to try that, to me at least."
"Well then," Murphy chuckled, "I suppose ye'll be remembering me? Always remember yer first, aye?"
"True enough," Siobhan agreed, "But I never forget a face, so I'd be remembering ye anyhow."
"Take all the joy out of it, will ye?" Murphy eyed the empty glass beside Siobhan's hand. "Hey, Doc! Another drink for the lady, on me!"
Two hours later, Siobhan and Murphy had migrated into a booth, laughing about something over pints of Guinness. Meanwhile, Connor and Rocco sat up at the bar, starting slack-jawed at the other MacManus.
"I can't believe he fuckin' did it," Connor professed, "I thought Murph'd get shot down within a second, but he actually did it!"
"I'm not so sure, man," Rocco disagreed, "They ain't makin' out or nothin'. Ten bucks says she won't go home with him."
"Ten bucks says she will." Connor added, "Oh, and I'm spendin' the night at yer place if I'm right."
"Whatever."
"So, Siobhan, got a place ye're stayin'?" Murphy mumbled, the alcohol finally starting to affect him.
She shook her head clumsily, also finally a bit tipsy. "Nope. I'll find a hotel 'er somethin' later. Or I could always try a church. They let travellers stay in churches here, no?"
"Aye, they probably do," Murphy agreed, "But ye could stay at my place if ye want. Me brother wouldn' mind much."
Siobhan thought about it for a few moments, not quite as sharp as usual. "Promise you won' try anythin'?"
"On my honor!" he proclaimed, grinning.
"Honour don't mean shite! Pick something else."
"M'kay... I swear on... um... in the name of... ah... Jesus Christ!"
"Works for me!" The two clinked their glasses together merrily and took several gulps from their glasses. Pretty quickly, Siobhan's merry grin twisted into a confused grimace. "How'm I gonna pay you back?"
"I offered, lass. ye don' have to," Murphy assured her.
Siobhan shook her head vigorously, sending her fiery hair flying, "I do! Else I'll owe you!" The two bickered playfully, each firmly grounded on their side of the argument.
"Jesus, Murph!" Connor appeared suddenly behind the pair, startling them both. "You and yer new lady-friend already havin' a domestic? Just kiss an' make up already! We gotta work in the morning!"
Murphy groaned loudly, remembering that the next day was Monday, "Ah, fuck. We do, don't we?"
"Connor dragged his brother out of the booth by his arm, taking a good look at Siobhan when Murphy wasn't paying attention. "She's a pretty one, Murph," he approved, "Ye plan on takin' her home with ye?"
"Aye, but not in the way yer thinkin'. I said she could stay at our place." Murphy turned and smiled Siobhan, holding out his hand for her to take. "Let's get goin', lass."
"Gimme a second. I wanna finish me drink." With a gleeful glint in her emerald eyes, Siobhan tilted back her glass, still more than half-filled with Guinness, and bolted it all down without pausing for a breath. After taking a moment to get her breath back, she grasped Murphy's hand and stood up, bracing herself a bit on his shoulder when to keep herself from tipping over. "Alright, let's go."
Before the three got to the door, Connor shot an enthusiastic grin at his brother, telling him, "I like this one. We're keeping her!"