Issue 1 Downtime

All in all, it beat working in the rec center.

It was relevant work, too. Step one, get a business degree. Step two, open your own pub. Step three, profit. Something told him there was supposed to be some unknown weird step in there, too, but bollocks to that.

Right now, Connor was wiping down glasses behind the bar during a rather slow period in the XUB. It didn't bring tips, but at least he was still getting paid. You couldn't expect to get the busy shifts right when you started, after all.

Cass walks in and takes a seat at the bar, "Good morning!"

"'Spose it is, luv," Connor said, setting the glass down with the others and setting the towel down next to the rack. "So! What'll it be? In for a drink, or is it too early for that?" he asked with a somewhat cocky smile as he looked his solitary customer over.

"A beer would be great, thanks," Cass says.

"Ah, brilliant, another early starter," Connor said with a grin as he flipped a mug over by the handle on his finger and started filling it for her. "Started thinking this was going to be a bloody lonely shift here."

"I'm sure it'll get busy here soon."

"Heh, not before three, luv. That's the bloody wonderful thing about being he new guy, I get the rubbish shifts no one wants to work. He set her glass down on the bar for her. "Cheers."

"Cheers," Cass says, taking a drink, "So, what do you do all day then?"

"Oh, the usual busy work they all say they don't have the time for," he said, rolling his eyes. "Change the lights, fix the chairs, clean the glasses, empty the bins... I'll put me foot down when they tell me I have to clean the bloody loo."

"Yeah, I would too," Cass says.

"So what about you?" Connor asked, picking up the towel again and starting to dry the rest of the glasses. "Getting ready to head off home for holiday?"

Cass shrugs, "I guess. I dunno. I've been thinking about staying here."

"Get some summer classes in? Or just not feeling in a homeward sort of mood?"

"I'm kind of enjoying it here," Cass says, "It's been fun."

"Oh, aye. You catch any of the World Cup games?" Connor asked with a grin as he put the glass down with the others.

"Yeah!" Cass says brightly, "They were pretty cool. Although, I don't know a ton about soccer."

"Eh, you don't have to, luv. Just pick a team, cheer when everyone else does, and try to pick up what happened. And be sure to jump off your barstool if one of the blokes in your club needs to chuck it at some blighter from the other team," he said with a smirk.

"I'll keep that in mind," Cass says, "Any suggestions on who to cheer for?"

"Mmm... depends. 'M a Newcastle man meself, but you might want a club a mite quieter than that."

"Fuck that," Cass says, "Loud and rowdy suits me."

"Well, that's not hard to find, question is where you want it to fall on the 'violent' scale, luv," Connor told her.

"At least three defenestrations a night is my kind of bar," Cass says.

"Maybe Newcastle's the club for you after all, then," Connor said with a smirk. "Just don't let yer mum find out if you get nicked with everyone else in a toss-up."

"Wouldn't be the first time."

"Oh, really? Halfway there already, luv," he said with a grin. "Wouldn't think it, though... you look like an honest enough girl."

"I have some anger issues," Cass says, brushing her hair out of her face.

"Remind me to stay on your good side, luv," Connor said. "Nothing like a good football game for getting the aggression out, though. And showing a little national pride when we've got foreign blighters running their mouths at the World Cup because England's about to kick their arses."

"I'm an American," Cass says, "We don't have national pride."

"Bah, colonists can still have pride in the mother country," Connor teased. "We can have ye losin' the accent in no time."

"Easy, tiger," Cass teases, "We kicked your ass back to the islands once, we'll do it again."

"Nah, we just let ye have yer peace so we could watch the comedy ensue for a few centuries. And boy have you delivered," Connor teased back.

"Yeah, just like you did with India. Hong Kong. Palestine. Malaya..."

"All right, all right, we might have had to make some strategic with drawals," Connor allowed with a smirk.

"Strategic withdrawals? You pulled out like you were Catholic teenagers," Cass teases.

"Oh, you mean without meaning a bloomin' thing because we'd already done the damage we came to do?"

"More like a very short occupation that ends up being very embarrassing for you," Cass shoots back.

Connor cackled a laugh at that. "Good one, luv. Ye win this one."

"Damn straight," Cass says, sipping her beer.

"Got some nails in this one," Connor mused, picking up the last glass, then shrugging and filling it up instead of drying it. "Cheers," he added before taking a drink.

"Cheers," Cass says, finishing her drink off.