On the one hand, Murphy was tired of spending every night the same way. The same bar, the same people, the same drinks, and the same hang over in the morning. Murphy exhaled smoke through his nose and tapped the ash off his dwindling cigarette, watching as it fell to the ashtray. Then again, what the fuck was he complaining about? So what if it was the same bar - where else, what else, did he have? So what if it was the same people every night - they were his friends and all he had.
Murphy's eyes shifted to Connor, whose gaze was already fixed worriedly on his twin, their identical blue-green eyes catching each other. Murphy shrugged and brought the cigarette to his lips, trying to give Connor a look to convince him he was alright. But Connor could see right through him and Murphy knew it. Just as Murphy was in the process of trying to make himself look and seem happier than he was, and just as Connor was about to say something - anything - to find out what was going on in Murphy's mind, the distinct sound of the door opening could be heard, even over the loud drunken laughing, and all eyes turned toward the entrance.
There in the doorway stood a rare sight - a woman. McGinty's didn't usually get women as patrons, something that never struck any of the regulars as odd. The woman standing at the pub's entrance now was tall and slender, dressed simply in only a fitted white t-shirt, plain, dark blue jeans, and heavy boots. She wore no jacket or coat, despite the coolness of the weather outside. She had shoulder-length brown hair and large eyes of a color perfectly matching her hair. Eyes that stared right back at all the men at the bar fearlessly. In fact, she looked quite proud of herself standing there, a slight smirk on her full, slightly parted lips.
"Hello, boys. You got room for a woman at that bar?"
Her voice was thick with a hearty Scottish accent and her greeting to the bewildered men at the bar was delivered as though she was an old friend of every one of them.
Murphy, smirking and strangely impressed, seized the moment. "Aye." He gestured to the empty seat on his left, at the end of the bar.
The woman flashed him a large smile. "Thank you."
Murphy returned the smile, looking her over as she seated herself next to him, only now realizing that a woman might be just what he needed to kick the strange sense of monotony in his life.
The woman lifted her brown eyes to his, and for a moment Murphy forgot where he was. For a moment it seemed like it was only the two of them.
"I'm Linsey. MacKellar." Her last name was added with a tone of clarity, making it sound like an afterthought.
The way the woman so quickly and intimately introduced herself to Murphy just added to his feeling that they were alone. She seemed to completely disregard the rest of the still quiet bar. Stupidly, Murphy was almost aroused by the way she introduced herself, like she was giving her name only to him and no one else. Like a secret. Stupid. Murphy blinked, shaking himself from wherever he'd been and bringing himself back to reality.
"Murphy MacManus."
A few seconds of pause and Connor elbowed Murphy roughly in the stomach. Murphy could practically feel his brother's curiosity like something tangible between them.
"This is my brother, Connor."
Murphy turned slightly toward Connor to afford his twin a better look at Linsey. Connor and Linsey both leaned forward toward the bar to see each other around Murphy. The two exchanged greetings and Linsey gave Connor the same friendly smile she'd given Murphy. Murphy felt a strange and completely unwelcome jealousy swell inside him, and promptly tried to shake it, mentally kicking himself.
Linsey turned from Connor to Doc behind the bar, confidently requested a Guinness, and she smiled when the life and noise came back into the bar as she did so. She laughed, taking a healthy gulp of the dark liquid and watching all the men instantly accept her. She shook her head, amused, and turned her gaze to Murphy, noticing him staring at her. Her deep brown eyes darted over his face, trying to take his handsome features in all at once, practically trying to memorize him. Her gaze unnerved him a bit, it seemed too forward, but then again, he had been staring at her.
As the night wore on Murphy was surprised at how casually Linsey conducted herself. He'd never seen a woman so comfortable around men, much less drunk, Irish men. Murphy eventually was able to steal her away from the general conversation and get her to talk about herself. Linsey surprised him still by giving him a story nearly identical to his own.
"Simply put," she began in a near whisper, and even though the bar was loud as it would ever be, Murphy was so focused on her that he could hear her just as well as when the bar was silent and she'd given him her name. "I grew up in Edinburgh, poor. Just me and my da, I don't even remember my mum. I worked hard to get enough money to come here, try to start a new life. Something better, you know?"
Murphy nodded and told her about Connor and himself, and she smiled that big, friendly smile again.
"I guess it's pretty cliché, huh?" Linsey asked with amusement in her voice.
"It's true, though," Murphy replied, shrugging.
Linsey nodded. "Aye." She paused. "Have you found it yet?"
Murphy cocked his head slightly to one side, studying her eyes. "What?"
"Something better."
Murphy laughed loudly. "I don't know."
Linsey laughed out of agreement. "It's not much here, but at least I have a place to stay and something to eat everyday. More than I can say for home."
"Aye." Murphy was serious again and his eyes were back on hers, locked.
"What are you thinkin', Murph?"
Murphy was happy that in only a few hours time, she was comfortable enough with him to use his nickname. Murphy closed his eyes, just to get them away from her, and opening them again, looked down at his cigarette in its ashtray. He picked up the cigarette and took a drag. Murphy exhaled the smoke from his lungs, and Linsey stole the cigarette from his fingers, partly to smoke it and partly to get his attention back to her.
"Hey, I just spent the better part of my night in a bar in the, arguably, bad part of town with a bunch of drunk guys and not another woman in sight. You think a little truth is gonna scare me?"
Murphy smiled, his eyes back on her, watching her smoke his cigarette. What was he supposed to say? What he was really thinking? Well, what he was really thinking was that he wanted to take this woman home and fuck her senseless, but he couldn't exactly tell her that, now, could he? Murphy wondered if that look in her eye was just her faking being able to see what he was thinking, or if she really could see inside him but she just wanted him to say it.
Murphy jumped slightly as he felt her hand on his thigh. She leaned closer to him and exhaled smoke. "If you want me, tell me," her voice was a whisper and she was so close Murphy could feel her breath on his skin. "You think I don't see it?"
Murphy licked his lips, resisting the temptation to kiss her. She saw it in his eyes and smiled sweetly. "I'm yours if you want me, Murph. Take me home."
Murphy didn't waste any time, either. He promptly slid off the barstool and Linsey followed, stubbing out the cigarette in an ashtray on the bar. They both laid some bills on the bar to cover their drinks and headed for the door.
"Hey, Murph!"
Murphy turned toward the bar, hearing his brother's voice.
"Where the fuck you goin'?" Connor asked, as if Murphy's attempt to escape had suddenly ruined all the fun.
"Home." Murphy slid an arm around Linsey's waist and laughed in a way that seemed to say, "why the fuck would I want to stay here with you when I could be at home with her?"
Connor grinned, accepting this, and turned back to the bar, letting Murphy and Linsey happily leave the bar for the brothers' apartment.