Steve is seated at a booth with his back against the wall and legs up across the bench. He seems to be lost in thought as he absently rotates a half empty glass on the table.
#Miner'sRespite – July 28, 2013
Renala descends the staircase, wearing a casual attire: jeans and a red top at least similar to the one she went to Hinpinn in. While headed to the bar, she spots Steve sitting in a booth and gives off a small smile, but doesn't divert from her path to the bar. When there, she waves down the bartender and orders a glass of beer.
Steve lifts his glass and stares at its' contents for a moment before slamming back the rest of it. With a bit of effort, he pulls himself out of the booth and slowly makes his way to the counter. A familiar face beckons forth a quick smile. "Hey Ren." he says softly, almost a whisper, acknowledging the asari before ordering a refill on his drink.
Renala turns to face the human, the small smile still present. "Hey," she replies in a neutral tone. "How's it going?" The bartender delivers her drink, but she leaves it be for the time being.
Steve takes a seat on the stool beside Renala. "Been better..." he says, but quickly attempts to change the subject, "How about you? Make your decision on the salvage job?"
Renala sits down on the stool beside him. "I'm well enough," she says while reaching for her glass of beer. "And yeah, I signed up for it." She takes a small sip of the drink and adds, "Have you?"
Steve shakes his head. "Not yet... I plan on getting to it later today. So what about your little financial issue? Were you able to come up with all the gear you needed?"
Renala | "I hope so, at least," Renala says as she takes another sip of her drink. "I got a pistol, ammo and clips, along with the equipment to maintain it. I can't really get much more than that when the pay isn't at all certain."
Steve nods and takes a sip of his drink. "Yeah... I've got an old set of armor I'm working on getting cleaned up. Not sure if it'll be done by the time I need it, but we'll see..."
Renala nods and brings her glass up to her lips. "Would feel a lot safer on that job if I had one, but that would be quite the investment," she says before taking a long swig of her glass. "I take it you were military, then?" the asari asks out of curiosity.
Steve nods as he takes another large swig of his drink. "Yeah..." he says before clearing his throat. "But that was a lifetime ago..." he adds, a hint of sadness in his tone.
Renala frowns, noticing his change of tone. "Oh, did something happen?" she asks, probably guessing the wrong reasons for his tone. She takes a long swig of her drink and places the glass down on the counter. "I'm not going to pry if you don't want to talk about it."
Steve smiles weakly. "Yeah, something happened." he says, absently playing with his drink as he tends to do, "That's the nature of life, right? Things happen. Sometimes they catch you off guard. The military life just wasn't the life for me." he continues, making eye contact, "So we went our separate ways."
Renala nods, considering it for a moment. "Yeah, I can attest to that," she says. "Things catching one off guard, I mean." She picks up her glass again.
Steve taps a fingertip against the counter. "But we're here now. A chance to put all of that behind us, right? No point in dragging all that baggage with us." he says, in an attempt at convincing himself moreso than Renala.
Renala | "I left quite a lot behind, though," Renala says and brings the glass up to her lips and takes a long swig of it. "But yeah, I suppose you're right," she continues. "And I'm guessing it's probably going to get better once we find some more dependable work."
Steve leans forward, placing an elbow against the counter and nods to himself. "Well, hopefully this job will help with that. She said there's potential for it to lead to more work. I just hope it won't be a case-by-case basis. I came here to settle down, not run around trying to make ends meet."
Renala | "Me too," Renala nods in agreement. "I've done enough of running around when I was younger, even if that was more for the sake of it rather than earning a living." She glances at her glass thoughtfully.
Steve stares at his drink quietly for a few moments before speaking up. "My father worked construction most of his life. Nothing ever blindsided him. I mean, there were issues. But they were normal, everyday problems, ya know? My mom was a teacher." he says with an insincere chuckle, still focused on his drink. "When I was a kid, I dreaded the thought of growing up and living a dull, boring life like them. Now, I'd give just about anything to have that life..."
Renala nods slowly. "You're not alone about that," she says. "I think that's something most of us think when we're young." She takes a long swig of her drink, the glass not too far from empty. "We asari usually don't settle down until way into our fourth century."
Steve turns to face the asari. "That's always blown my mind..." he begins, cringing slightly as a twinge of pain shoots throughout his head. He clenches his eyes closed for a moment and begins digging through his pockets before continuing. "Sorry... I mean, I was just a kid when we learned the asari even existed. It's always fascinated me. The thought of living so long... When you live such a short life, one mistake can echo throughout the rest of it. I can't help but feel a little jealous." he says with genuine interest. "All that time you have to set things right."
Renala | "Blown your mind, huh?" Renala couldn't help to let a smirk escape her, but she doesn't comment further on it. "Seriously though, the long life is romanticized a lot." A swig of her drink follows, depleting the glass, which she places on the counter. "It's not perfect, is what I'm trying to say," she continues. "For one, there's a," a beeping notification interrupts her, "lot of room to make mistakes that can cut it short during the first few hundred years."
Steve listens intently as he produces a familiar bottle from his pocket. As the asari speaks, he twists off the cap and taps a few pills into the palm of his hand routinely as if he's had a fair amount of practice perfecting it. As the asari finishes speaking, he scoops the pills into his mouth and washes them down with the rest of his drink. "It's easy to romanticize something that's so far removed from anything I could possibly experience. Suppose it's a case of the grass always being greener on the other side, huh?" he says, placing the pill bottle back into his pocket.
Renala | "Probably, yeah. I haven't heard that one before, though" Renala says while her omni-tool's orange interface comes to life and she glances at the message and stands up. "Well, looks like I've got to go," she says with an apologetic smile. "Was nice talking with you, Steve." She pays for her drink and lets her omni-tool's interface dissipate.
Steve nods and stands from his stool to face the asari. "Always a pleasure, Ren." he says with a smile, "You take care."
Renala | "You too," Renala nods. "I'll see you around." She turns towards and makes her way over to the stairs, leaving the Respite's first floor.