Ah Ryan, you're a good-lookin' bastard , from the collarbone up, that is. But for a rude shock , all a woman needs to do is--" . Ryan snatched up a fistful of fries, tossing one into his mouth and assailing another at Liam's unkempt hair. "You just drink the alcohol I shouted you, alright." Liam's smirk enlivened his features with electricity as the grease-laden fry embedded itself in his gritty strands. Midnight had come and went and the bruises under Liam's eyes collected the darkness of the bar, Ryan's fatigue glowering in his eyes as he yawned. "Oh, I'll enjoy every drop, but seriously, the blonde at three o'clock ...has her eyes all over you. You're already naked at this point, in her head anyway." As Ryan's head turned with wry inquisition , Liam emptied his glass, swilling the final mouthful as amusement danced across his unshaven face. Ryan cursed under his breath, winking into the sea of bodies and forgetting Liam's existence as he rose from his stool. "Finish my Hennessy Li'..." he trailed off as he disappeared under the dim filter of light, abandoning the counter with distraction. "Yeah, you won't be back," Liam muttered, tracing the rim of his glass in a dwindling circle as Ryan's voice faded under the din of chatter and a vague Red Hot Chili Pepper song. As traces of cigarette smoke filtered through the air, perspiration and the fatigue of two am weighed on his posture as he countered, "And I'll just be finishing this..." Then, as his hand gravitated towards the abandoned Hennessy, the tepid feel of the glass caused him to reconsider. As he found himself staring at the basket of remaining bar fries, his stomach churned with revulsion. His eye sockets ached with the impact of his earlier scuffle, and the fleeting solitude left him recounting his brush with the concrete. "Well here's to drinkin' alone" , he muttered to no one in particular, the dank atmosphere receiving his one-sided toast . "What do we have over here, a sight for sore eyes , busy talking to himself?" As the smoke infused lilt of a female voice wove through his moment of introspection, her eyes caught him off guard and he paused. "I was not talking to myself," he replied with a weary grin. "It seems I was talking to you too-" Her green irises held his gaze with a hint of unmatched humour as she claimed the space Ryan had abandoned, swinging around on his vacant stool . "And he thinks he's funny, huh?" Liam's broad grin, lopsided and drunken, propped up a dimple on his right cheek as he asked, "Well, he made you laugh, I suppose that's something goin' in my favour?" She was already reaching out and rearranging his grime-infused hair as her laughter interspersed the closing space between them. Her weathered jacket, a khaki, vintage leather, contrasted against the counter's dulled wooden surface. "Yeah, maybe he got a laugh , but can he talk me out of leaving here with my friends...he has twenty seconds starting from now". As her finger grazed his earlobe , he raised an eyebrow, taking on a lesser challenge than his night had endured. "Oh, twenty seconds huh? Gimme ten. My friend up and left his drink, and now, you're gonna let me finish it ? I'll end up rotten ya know..." She smirked as she finished her toying with his light strands , and roughed his hairline as he leaned forward , resting his chin on his elbow. "You look like you haven't slept in a week, and I know the feeling to be honest " she said with a casualty in her voice, ensnaring a fry from the basket and helping herself to a sodium hit. As she engaged with his bloodshot eyes, her own gaze shone with flecks of amber, hidden amongst a distinct green hue. "So you're telling me you haven't slept , I'd say you don't look half bad for it. Here I am looking like shit on toast-and hell, maybe I haven't slept either," he admitted, his fingers tracing circles on the counter between them. She offered a smile laced with jest, the fatigue in her own eyes betraying her tease of his time running away. "Well, you had more than twenty seconds, but the question is, will I stay?" As her dark hair cascaded over her shoulders in loose ringlets , she turned away, and Liam asked, only half joking, "Oh, I failed huh? There may just be a dark corner over there, where you could tell me your name..." Her eyes, flickering with a challenge, confronted him as she smoothed her palm over the collar of his Henley. "If I drag you over there, how long could you stay awake, soldier?" She gestured towards his fatigues, the dust imbued in the fibers, as he managed a grin. "We could always fall asleep together..." She broke into a smile, her laughter intoxicating as she twisted around to face him. "So you are in the force? You're deployed?" His eyes held on hers as he shook his head, reaching for a dilapidated fry and rotating it between his knuckles. "No, but I did spend a hell of a time in the middle of nowhere-but what I want to know is, why haven't you slept huh?" Her softened gaze almost answered for her as she leaned in on one elbow. "I was - in fact you know what- let's just start with the basics. I'm Emma." As he absorbed her striking features, his own name, already off his tongue, struck him whilst his facade maintained its forefront. "Liam. Not deployed , but hey I'll take it. Beats the alternative at this stage. " Her smile was gentle as she tucked a strand of hair from her vision . "The alternative huh -a stint in the middle of nowhere , sounds intriguing to me ." He averted his gaze, caught off guard yet again by her raw nonchalance. "So, you're still here huh? And I bet you're thinking, how the hell did get this-' he asked , gesturing to the indentations above his cheekbones, still screaming with pain , the dark circles prominent . "Well, you were probably rough-housing , acting dumb-" she said, amused yet unfazed. He only offered a smirk, before shaking his head and eyeing the basket of fries with reconsideration. "Damn it's been a hell of a night. Rough-housing, that sounds a lot better than what happened-good thing I can handle myself I spose' " . After almost succumbing to a fry despite his churning stomach, he noticed her smoky, metallic scent, its overtones of embers and warmth infiltrating his lungs. He missed a breath, savouring its contrast to the sweat and alcohol clinging to his flesh. "I might have lost my drivers license , lucky I didn't have a wallet to fleece, kept my credit card in my other pocket thank God for that- But I'll live-let's talk about you" he said, as his wits drowned in the encroaching lull of her presence, as her fingers hovered near his hairline in concern. "Yeah, still I'm sorry you've had a rough night. " She traced a finger through his hair, the pain easing under her cool skin as his resolve finally broke and he picked up a fry, snagging it in his teeth. "Thanks, but I've had worse nights-the company ain't half bad. " he said, ingesting the food and reaching for a napkin . As Emma grazed her hand against his , gathering a few more of the limp fries into her hand , as she moved her other hand toward his eyebrow. "As for me, well, I guess it's been awhile since I've set foot in a place like this , and I haven't been home in even longer. But I don't want to bore you with the details. There's too many , and you look as though you've lived through a fair amount of details already . I'm surprised that blow to your right eye didn't clear you out cold ." The memory , causing him to flinch and chuckle at the same time had him musing in silence. "Well , that was before I sank a few. And I don't wanna press ya for details , green eyes, tonight can be for tonight huh? " as her finger roamed across the scar in his brow, she smiled , "Sure, tonight is just for us-So tell me, how did we get this ? You're gonna play it off but, it looks like it was painful-hasn't even faded" . With a shrug, his tone lost the encompassing energy that had laced it and he answered in one breath. "That scar , I wasn't conscious when they-. " As if expecting the deflection but not retreating, she asked , as her finger remained in the etched line , rough with stitches . "So what's the story ? Just an honest truth...for tonight...I'm still here right? So hit me" . He offered a crooked smirk, and replied "ah cmon now , I would never hit a woman with ...this ugly incident. Ryan was unfortunate enough to have had to play surgeon on that . Hell of a wound but, he don't flinch easy. And yeah that was only a few months ago." As his eyes darkened , she reached forward and buttoned his crooked Henley, and then unbuttoned it again, as he gazed into his lap. "Yeah , it was a long month, and I feel like if you don't leave, I might tell you things you don't wanna hear. Talking to you is too easy -" His eyelids sank with inebriation and fatigue as his ran a hand over his face, groaning at the touch of his own skin. "But on the other hand , I might just pass out if you keep talking with that voice of yours-" Emma laughed as she reached for the last fry, absentminded in doing so, and sighed as she admitted "It's a weapon, right? But I wouldn't dream of having you all messy and ass-down on a greasy counter at four am. I assume Ryan is that dark haired stranger whose stool I claimed? I can hear him from over here." Ryan's laugh rang through the air as he strode toward the exit, leading an unfamiliar woman through the crowd behind him. "Ah that's the guy, sometimes the back of him is a nice view because it means I can think", Liam smirked , tilting his eyes under the fluorescent light. "Oh , think about what? " she asked , catching his gaze with inquisition. "Well, I've long overstepped my twenty seconds and I still don't know a thing about you. And I've got all night. " With her chin propped between both elbows , the dim light flickered across her cheeks, and she eyed the empty basket . "How about I shout us some fries , and I'll tell you about my dog , zeppelin, I left him to be on the road and I bet he's peed on every carpet by now..." . Liam , rearranging his own hair as he followed the lilt of her voice into a micro sleep, woke to her holding him upright by the shoulders. "Hey , he's slipping away , am I that boring I suppose" she said, but still laughing . "Oh God I'm sorry -" he said, the rusted shadow of his unshaven jaw masking his drawn appearance. "Ah , it's your fault anyway , I told ya that voice is -well anyway, you'd better get home to your dog, maybe not yet but , y'know... before the poor ol' boy has to move in with the neighbours. " All she said was a resolute "Yeah. " And silence fell between them. ----//// As an hour elapsed , the fresh heat of the fries deteriorated into cold remains . Several rounds of drinks slaved their nerves as Liam spun his credit card under his thumb. "Those bastards had me in both eyes, and they were this close to my temporal-y'know -thing up here somewhere" He stabbed , albeit messily, at his forehead, and swung his arm back down on the counter. "Looks like we're shutting this place down ..." she noted, as her own awareness grew hazy. "I guess, you've earned this , soldier " . Emma , sliding a napkin with traces of matte orange lipstick and a scrawled number, pulled her jacket tightly around her frame.

So does it transition smoothly

Is the mood cohesive

What charming things does Liam say

What shows Liam's attraction to emma

Is their conversation interesting? What makes it pique your curiousity, what would you like to know about them?

Ah Ryan, you're a good-lookin' bastard , from the collarbone up, that is. But for a rude shock , all a woman needs to do is--" . Ryan snatched up a fistful of fries, tossing one into his mouth and assailing another at Liam's unkempt hair. "You just drink the alcohol I shouted you, alright." Liam's smirk enlivened his features with electricity as the grease-laden fry embedded itself in his gritty strands. Midnight had come and went and the bruises under Liam's eyes collected the darkness of the bar, Ryan's fatigue glowering in his eyes as he yawned. "Oh, I'll enjoy every drop, but seriously, the blonde at three o'clock ...has her eyes all over you. You're already naked at this point, in her head anyway." As Ryan's head turned with wry inquisition , Liam emptied his glass, swilling the final mouthful as amusement danced across his unshaven face. Ryan cursed under his breath, winking into the sea of bodies and forgetting Liam's existence as he rose from his stool. "Finish my Hennessy Li'..." he trailed off as he disappeared under the dim filter of light, abandoning the counter with distraction. "Yeah, you won't be back," Liam muttered, tracing the rim of his glass in a dwindling circle as Ryan's voice faded under the din of chatter and a vague Red Hot Chili Pepper song. As traces of cigarette smoke filtered through the air, perspiration and the fatigue of two am weighed on his posture as he countered, "And I'll just be finishing this..." Then, as his hand gravitated towards the abandoned Hennessy, the tepid feel of the glass caused him to reconsider. As he found himself staring at the basket of remaining bar fries, his stomach churned with revulsion. His eye sockets ached with the impact of his earlier scuffle, and the fleeting solitude left him recounting his brush with the concrete. "Well here's to drinkin' alone" , he muttered to no one in particular, the dank atmosphere receiving his one-sided toast . "What do we have over here, a sight for sore eyes , busy talking to himself?" As the smoke infused lilt of a female voice wove through his moment of introspection, her eyes caught him off guard and he paused. "I was not talking to myself," he replied with a weary grin. "It seems I was talking to you too-" Her green irises held his gaze with a hint of unmatched humour as she claimed the space Ryan had abandoned, swinging around on his vacant stool . "And he thinks he's funny, huh?" Liam's broad grin, lopsided and drunken, propped up a dimple on his right cheek as he asked, "Well, he made you laugh, I suppose that's something goin' in my favour?" She was already reaching out and rearranging his grime-infused hair as her laughter interspersed the closing space between them. Her weathered jacket, a khaki, vintage leather, contrasted against the counter's dulled wooden surface. "Yeah, maybe he got a laugh , but can he talk me out of leaving here with my friends...he has twenty seconds starting from now". As her finger grazed his earlobe , he raised an eyebrow, taking on a lesser challenge than his night had endured. "Oh, twenty seconds huh? Gimme ten. My friend up and left his drink, and now, you're gonna let me finish it ? I'll end up rotten ya know..." She smirked as she finished her toying with his light strands , and roughed his hairline as he leaned forward , resting his chin on his elbow. "You look like you haven't slept in a week, and I know the feeling to be honest " she said with a casualty in her voice, ensnaring a fry from the basket and helping herself to a sodium hit. As she engaged with his bloodshot eyes, her own gaze shone with flecks of amber, hidden amongst a distinct green hue. "So you're telling me you haven't slept , I'd say you don't look half bad for it. Here I am looking like shit on toast-and hell, maybe I haven't slept either," he admitted, his fingers tracing circles on the counter between them. She offered a smile laced with jest, the fatigue in her own eyes betraying her tease of his time running away. "Well, you had more than twenty seconds, but the question is, will I stay?" As her dark hair cascaded over her shoulders in loose ringlets , she turned away, and Liam asked, only half joking, "Oh, I failed huh? There may just be a dark corner over there, where you could tell me your name..." Her eyes, flickering with a challenge, confronted him as she smoothed her palm over the collar of his Henley. "If I drag you over there, how long could you stay awake, soldier?" She gestured towards his fatigues, the dust imbued in the fibers, as he managed a grin. "We could always fall asleep together..." She broke into a smile, her laughter intoxicating as she twisted around to face him. "So you are in the force? You're deployed?" His eyes held on hers as he shook his head, reaching for a dilapidated fry and rotating it between his knuckles. "No, but I did spend a hell of a time in the middle of nowhere-but what I want to know is, why haven't you slept huh?" Her softened gaze almost answered for her as she leaned in on one elbow. "I was - in fact you know what- let's just start with the basics. I'm Emma." As he absorbed her striking features, his own name, already off his tongue, struck him whilst his facade maintained its forefront. "Liam. Not deployed , but hey I'll take it. Beats the alternative at this stage. " Her smile was gentle as she tucked a strand of hair from her vision . "The alternative huh -a stint in the middle of nowhere , sounds intriguing to me ." He averted his gaze, caught off guard yet again by her raw nonchalance. "So, you're still here huh? And I bet you're thinking, how the hell did get this-' he asked , gesturing to the indentations above his cheekbones, still screaming with pain , the dark circles prominent . "Well, you were probably rough-housing , acting dumb-" she said, amused yet unfazed. He only offered a smirk, before shaking his head and eyeing the basket of fries with reconsideration. "Damn it's been a hell of a night. Rough-housing, that sounds a lot better than what happened-good thing I can handle myself I spose' " . After almost succumbing to a fry despite his churning stomach, he noticed her smoky, metallic scent, its overtones of embers and warmth infiltrating his lungs. He missed a breath, savouring its contrast to the sweat and alcohol clinging to his flesh. "I might have lost my drivers license , lucky I didn't have a wallet to fleece, kept my credit card in my other pocket thank God for that- But I'll live-let's talk about you" he said, as his wits drowned in the encroaching lull of her presence, as her fingers hovered near his hairline in concern. "Yeah, still I'm sorry you've had a rough night. " She traced a finger through his hair, the pain easing under her cool skin as his resolve finally broke and he picked up a fry, snagging it in his teeth. "Thanks, but I've had worse nights-the company ain't half bad. " he said, ingesting the food and reaching for a napkin . As Emma grazed her hand against his , gathering a few more of the limp fries into her hand , as she moved her other hand toward his eyebrow. "As for me, well, I guess it's been awhile since I've set foot in a place like this , and I haven't been home in even longer. But I don't want to bore you with the details. There's too many , and you look as though you've lived through a fair amount of details already . I'm surprised that blow to your right eye didn't clear you out cold ." The memory , causing him to flinch and chuckle at the same time had him musing in silence. "Well , that was before I sank a few. And I don't wanna press ya for details , green eyes, tonight can be for tonight huh? " as her finger roamed across the scar in his brow, she smiled , "Sure, tonight is just for us-So tell me, how did we get this ? You're gonna play it off but, it looks like it was painful-hasn't even faded" . With a shrug, his tone lost the encompassing energy that had laced it and he answered in one breath. "That scar , I wasn't conscious when they-. " As if expecting the deflection but not retreating, she asked , as her finger remained in the etched line , rough with stitches . "So what's the story ? Just an honest truth...for tonight...I'm still here right? So hit me" . He offered a crooked smirk, and replied "ah cmon now , I would never hit a woman with ...this ugly incident. Ryan was unfortunate enough to have had to play surgeon on that . Hell of a wound but, he don't flinch easy. And yeah that was only a few months ago." As his eyes darkened , she reached forward and buttoned his crooked Henley, and then unbuttoned it again, as he gazed into his lap. "Yeah , it was a long month, and I feel like if you don't leave, I might tell you things you don't wanna hear. Talking to you is too easy -" His eyelids sank with inebriation and fatigue as his ran a hand over his face, groaning at the touch of his own skin. "But on the other hand , I might just pass out if you keep talking with that voice of yours-" Emma laughed as she reached for the last fry, absentminded in doing so, and sighed as she admitted "It's a weapon, right? But I wouldn't dream of having you all messy and ass-down on a greasy counter at four am. I assume Ryan is that dark haired stranger whose stool I claimed? I can hear him from over here." Ryan's laugh rang through the air as he strode toward the exit, leading an unfamiliar woman through the crowd behind him. "Ah that's the guy, sometimes the back of him is a nice view because it means I can think", Liam smirked , tilting his eyes under the fluorescent light. "Oh , think about what? " she asked , catching his gaze with inquisition. "Well, I've long overstepped my twenty seconds and I still don't know a thing about you. And I've got all night. " With her chin propped between both elbows , the dim light flickered across her cheeks, and she eyed the empty basket . "How about I shout us some fries , and I'll tell you about my dog , zeppelin, I left him to be on the road and I bet he's peed on every carpet by now..." . Liam , rearranging his own hair as he followed the lilt of her voice into a micro sleep, and woke to her holding him upright. "Hey , he's slipping away , am I that boring I suppose" she said, but still laughing . "Oh God I'm sorry -" he said, the rusted shadow of his unshaven jaw masking his drawn appearance. "Ah , it's your fault anyway , I told ya that voice is -well anyway, you'd better get home to your dog, maybe not yet but , y'know... before the poor ol' boy has to move in with the neighbours. " All she said was a resolute "Yeah. " And silence fell between them. ----//// As an hour elapsed , the fresh heat of the fries deteriorated into cold remains . Several rounds of drinks slaved their nerves as Liam spun his credit card under his thumb. "Those bastards had me in both eyes, and they were this close to my temporal-y'know -thing up here somewhere" He stabbed , albeit messily, at his forehead, and swung his arm back down on the counter. "Looks like we're shutting this place down ..." she noted, as her own awareness grew hazy. "I guess, you've earned this , soldier " As she nodded toward his pocket, sliding a napkin with traces of matte orange lipstick and a scrawled number into his hand, she pulled her jacket tightly around her frame. Then as he accepted the stained remnant of their night into his fatigues , he dodged the yellow lights and their spasmodic flickering . "I want to tell you... the reason you might not-" . Liam's hand hesitated as he continued , almost drawling with the alcohol catching up to his accent. "You ain't gonna hear from me again because..that operation that went south, it was illegal , and I wasn't there because I wanted to be-" Her face, draining of its warmth, mirrored her paling eyes. "Tell me, you weren't jumped earlier, when your listener was beaten out of you, it was more than that?". His gaze trailed back to his lap as he cursed out of ear shot. "I was nearly dragged back to that middle of nowhere-nearly pissed myself and well, Ryan's shout of drinks was much for himself as for me. I know I have more history than anyone else here, and you should probably be-" . There was a long silence, his eyes disengaged from hers as she finally found words. "That's true, that I shouldn't be sitting here wasting my time with you-but you have a few things that come with the dark bullshit I happen to notice. Half of these guys dont have the depth .. y'know?" He laughed , more to himself , his voice hollow. "They don't have the guts , but then , what makes me so special , I'm a mess but-" She smiled , and answered with a deft swipe at his hair . "Oh deal with it, I can see through it y'know, you've already lost the argument before you started." He stared at his , incredulous, as he drained his glass and said, flatly. "No , I'm outright telling you, I'm a ghost." As Emma's rose from her stool she said a few words he had to strain to hear. "But, soldier , you're not dead."

What about the ending dialogue?