Empty cups liter the countertop; Remnants of liquor drip from the brim. Ceri’s cheeks glow a rosy pink and the light in her eyes dim slightly. Her words trip over themselves as she scrambles to form a coherent sentence.

“I can’t believe you drink this - stuff all the time!” shouts Ceri with her hands pressed against the sticky bar top, knocking over one of the empty glasses.

Leor tries to follow her eyes, but he can tell she’s barely hanging on by how low her eyes hang. He tugs on the open flap of his collar to fan himself. “It’s good, right? Makes you feel alive!”

He signals the barkeep for another round.

“I’ll admit it. I haven’t felt like this before.” smiles Ceri. She stops and watches Leor down another serving. Finding the resolve to speak on her own is harder than she thought. Miss Yui’s words ring true not only for Leor but for her as well. The newly refilled glass of liquor calls to her; she washes down the knot in her throat and bangs her glass onto the table. “Why won’t you open up to me!?”

The sudden outburst silences the bar. Or at least in Leor’s head. Ceri’s penetrating gaze and sharp tongue freeze him for a second, but the burning liquor melts the sensation immediately.

“Why? Why are you so persistent in prying into my private life?”

Ceri jumps out of her chair towards Leor. “Because I want to get to know you better! Why do you insist on hiding it!?”

“I’m not hiding anything. I have nothing to say about it and it shouldn’t even matter to you.” scoffs Leor with his eyes wandering around.

“Why not? I only care for you and if you talk it out, it’ll make you feel better!”

Something about those words ignites a flame in Leor; He clenches his jaw and bashes his fist against the table. Silence falls upon the bar. “I don’t need your help! Don’t you get it? We’re from different worlds. There’s no point in telling you anything, because in a few days, I will finish my mission and we will part ways. That’s it. You will go on living your life under your glorified Gods, and I will continue doing whatever the hell I want.”

An eternal minute passes; The bar chatter returns to drown out the gut-wrenching silence. Ceri’s lips hang open and her eyes become watery. Using the back of her hand, she wipes away her tears before they spill from their ducts; With her other hand, she clings onto something around her breast.

“Just because we may part ways soon, it doesn’t mean we will leave each other’s memories.”

Seeing Ceri in a teary mess extinguishes his anger; A new sense of guilt fills its place, which chains his will to reach out to her. His heart turns to lead and any words of comfort sink deeper into his throat. He does not regret the truth that left his lips, but they leave a stinging impression like the alcohol that boils in his stomach. Unable to bear the pain, Leor decides to hammer down another cup of liquor, numbing his reason once more.

“W-what’s that you’re holding onto?” stutters Leor.

“What?” sniffles Ceri.

He clears his throat. “The thing you’re clinging onto right now… You were holding onto it earlier today. Why don’t you tell me about it.” says Leor in a shaky voice.

Ceri shakes her head. “You’re going to ask me that now? After what you just said?” Her tongue is sharper than before.

“Look, I’m sorry for lashing out. I-I’m not good at this. You wanted me to ask you questions and this is all I could think of.”

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Her eyes widen. “So this is what Miss Yui meant. Maybe alcohol isn’t so bad.”

“What was that?”

“Nothing!”

The knot in her throat disappears and her smile returns across her rosy cheeks. She pulls out the item around her breast and presents it to Leor. A necklace with a golden ring carved into the shape of a lightning bolt and lined with emerald stares at him. The world goes dark; the necklace is the only beacon of light in the sudden void. An inaudible voice whispers to him, locking him in a trance.

“Leor! Are you listening?”

Leor erects his spine. “Huh? What? Sorry, I zoned out. Must be the drink.”

“Geez. Pay attention! You’re the one who asked me the question.” says Ceri, wagging her finger at him.

“Sorry. Go on.” He leans in with his chin resting in his palm, squinting his eyes to refocus his vision.

“The story isn’t really interesting. To save you on the details, I’ll cut it short. Lord Alden gave this to me after he took me in.” She holds the pendant up to the light with eyes that shine equally as bright. “He says it’s a relic passed down generations and was once owned by one of the original followers of Lord Ludwig. It’s my most prized possession.”

Leor watches her squeeze the necklace to her chest and the blinding smile that it gives her. “Hmmm… speaking of Alden. Where did you meet him? You two seem close.”

Her smile disappears; Her eyelids droop lower and she slumps into her chair.

“Ceri? Are you okay?” says Leor in a heartfelt voice, a voice he didn’t know he had.

Honing in on her empty cup, Ceri takes a deep breath and lets out a weak smile. “Yeah, I’m okay. It’s hard for me to talk about… but I guess the drink really does help, huh?”

She snatches one of Leor’s cups and takes a reluctant swig; She covers her mouth from coughing up the foul aftertaste. “When I was younger, my town was attacked by bandits… They raided our small town, killing the men and taking the boys elsewhere. And with the women… -”

Ceri shallows hard, choking back the urge to throw up. “Every time I close my eyes, I can still see my father’s lifeless eyes staring at me, and the howling screams of my mother ring in my head... I can still hear her yelling at me to look away and run, but I just stood there, frozen.“

Tears roll down her cheeks.

“They rounded up me and the rest of the girls. Those monsters looked at us with deranged, soulless eyes. And laughed. Those laughs… They haunt me in my dreams some nights. They laughed as they explained how they were going to sell us off for ‘later use’...”

Ceri clams up as she tries to stop the trembling. Her eyes lose their light and her breath becomes icy.

Leor’s lead heart plunges into his stomach and melts in the flaming, bubbly pit filled with digestive fluids and liquor. He tries to comfort her but his legs refuse to move. Her story pricks at the part of his brain that he wishes would erode with every bottle of alcohol. An abyss of memories opens and eats away at his sanity, causing him to dart for another cup.

A warm, gentle touch to his hand dispels the demons in his mind. Looking up, he finds a sobbing Ceri with her lips curled cradling his hand to her face.

“It’s okay, Leor. I’m here. Thanks for listening”

Water swells up to his eyes, but he tilts his head up to keep them from falling. He scratches away at his scalp as he shakes his head in disbelief. The familiar, unsettling story and her words of assurance drive him mad to the point where he can only burst out laughing.

“Thanks for that, Ceri. I think I get it now.”

Tilting her head, she asks “Get what?”

He shakes his head with a grin. “Let’s have one more drink before we head out!” chuckles Leor. He gazes at her with admiration. Or perhaps envy. Despite her desperate beginnings, the light in her eyes returns from the darkest depths. Unlike himself.

----------------------------------------

After their final drink, they stumble out of the tavern, arms linked, supporting each other. Their skin oozes the fermented drink, etching the burning odor into the townsfolk who are still lining up. Reaching an empty road encircled by lamps illuminating the stone floor, they take a quick rest on a wooden bench.

“Hey, I never even fin-ished my story about Lord Alden.” hiccups Ceri.

“We can finish that the next time we go out.” laughs Leor.

Squeezing his arm tighter, Ceri pulls in closer with a smug grin. “Next time, huh? We’re going out next time?”

The moonlight bounces off her peachy, silk skin and highlights her soft, pink lips. The alcohol is no longer the only thing making him feel hot and bothered.

“Yeah, why not?” says Leor as he draws closer to the lips that magnetize him.

Hesitating for a moment, but then meeting his challenge, Ceri matches his movement. “Oh really? And when’s that?”

He stares into her eyes, then to her lips. The voice in his head comes up with a million reasons why he shouldn’t go for it, but only one thought amongst the million outshine the rest. Brushing her hair to the side and cupping her chin, Leor presses his lips against her’s. The world comes to a halt as it becomes brighter than he has ever seen.

Taken aback, Ceri pulls away for a second to catch her breath, saliva inching from the corners of her mouth. She inhales deeply and leaps at him. Their mouths lock in a dance of dominance, exchanging the taste of hot breath and liquor. They break their battle only for air. The rush of ecstasy launches him to the clouds; a feeling that fills the emptiness in his chest that alcohol has yet to do.

As he pulls away, his lips quiver as if begging to be connected back with its partner. Looking into Ceri’s glossy, dazed eyes, he says “You’re right. I never want to forget you, so let’s make memories that we won’t forget for eternity.”