Much like her there's more to the story of his father's passing than he's willing to divulge at the moment but her kindness means a lot and he laces his fingers through hers.
"It doesn't." He says, his eyes growing sad. "I didn't always have a great relationship with him but I'm grateful we somewhat put things to rest before he passed a few years ago."
Clearing his throat he circles back to something slightly less upsetting, his army tattoo.
"The tattoo is a bit of an in-joke, we were stationed in the jungle and were always mucking about in the dirty parts. Thus the rats."
"I'm glad you were able to have some resolution with him," Karen answers, sincerely. Part of her suspects that they should actually talk about their families one day. The circumstances are different, but there's absolutely an understanding there. Not just with the loss of her mother, but her and her father will never have a relationship more than 'distant' and 'barely cordial' again.
She leaves her hand entwined with his as he goes back to the topic of his service tattoo, smiling a little. "Sounds like you were deployed with a good unit. It's always seemed to me like that kind of camaraderie and trust is really important."
Thankfully Alfred still has a good relationship with his Mum, if he didn't he would probably be getting into even more trouble than he already does but the fact that he can call and talk to her helps a lot. No one loves him like his Mum does.
"Important and necessary, they're literally the people you depend on to keep you alive. My unit had a lot of good lads, not all of them made it, but thankfully my two best mates did. Bazza and Daveboy."
"Bazza and Daveboy?" Karen repeats, a smile slowly returning to her lips at the obvious nicknames. They've effectively pushed away any other thoughts, at least for the time being. "Sounds like they could host a really successful drive time radio show together." Something with a lot of sound effects and punchy outros.
She arches a brow, a hint of mischief in her gaze as she continues, "I have to know what your nickname was if you had one. I'm prepared to bribe you."
"Oh I doubt that, Bazza isn't exactly the talkative type and Daveboy runs his mouth every chance he gets. So it would only be successful if people enjoyed listening to a drunk Irishman go on and on while his mate sighed all exasperated in the background."
He smiles to himself, clearly warmed by thoughts of his friends.
"Sounds like the makings of a great show to me," Karen answers, smiling a little at the thought. It's obvious that he's fond of his friends. She gets that. Matt and Foggy's friendships mean the world to her.
When he owns up to his nickname, her smile widens. "Alfie, huh? That's cute. It suits you."
"It's sweet that it came from her," Karen reflects with a half smile. Nice to think that there's a through line from his childhood to the person he'd become.
Lifting her free hand, she gives it a little wobble. "Karen's not really a name you can make a lot of nicknames from. I'll get Kare sometimes. My mother used to call me Kare Bear, but I don't really like it when anyone else does." Too many memories.
Karen makes a face at that, though she can't help but laugh a little. "Pretty sure I've only heard that when I've been catcalled," she admits. A smile curves her lips. "Maybe it depends on the context. Let's hear an example."
"Wasn't expecting to have to come up with an example." He says and then pauses to think for a moment. "How about...you having a good time so far, Blondie?"
"Not bad," Karen admits, as if actually weighing the sound of the nickname. "Kind of charming when you say it, even." After a brief pause, she continues, holding his gaze from across the table as the smile lingers on her lips. "And I am, yeah. I'm glad you asked me out."
ooc: sorry for lack of tags, had a busy bunch of days
"Something like that," Karen agrees. She'd be hard pressed to deny the fact that he's naturally charming.
"You'd be a lot drunker if you were," she points out, amused as she lifts the pitcher so she can top off both of their glasses. "Speaking of which...I lost track of whose turn it was."
"I can live with a tie," Karen answers. Honestly, it's best to tap out of playing Never Have I Ever early before things start to get too specific.
His question about Josie's is met with a smile. "Uh, since I started working with Matt and Foggy. It's their favorite bar, and they started bringing me along once I was officially employed with them. All the regulars that come here look out for each other, you know? It's nice. Do you have a favorite local pub you like to go to back home?"
"Is Foggy his real name or a nickname?" He asks and then looks around the bar at all the other patrons, nodding.
"Course. Local pubs are far more common where I'm from, my local is one that's been in our neighbourhood for many years. The owner, Jon, is a good bloke. He used to let me do a lot of works deals there since it was a safe space."
Well that and it's not like Alfred had a proper office.
"Nickname. His real name is Franklin," Karen answers with a smile. "He and Matt were roommates in college. Apparently he snored like a foghorn." It weirdly almost suits him more than Franklin does. She always finds herself taken by surprise when someone uses his given name.
"What was it called? A lot of British pubs seem like they follow the same naming convention. Adjective noun." She always gets a kick out of the names when someone mentions going to a British pub. His comment about doin his work deals there prompts an interested look. "What kinds of deals?"
"Roommates and now co-workers, I imagine that gives the office a bit of a more relaxed feel than some other law firms." He says and then chuckles at her comment about British pubs because she's not wrong.
"The Severed Arms. And by deals I mean work contracts, security gigs and the like." A small pause. "I helped Jon out with a bloke who was bothering his daughter so he opened up his business to mine."
"Considering we worked out of the Nelson's family meat store for a while...I think it's a pretty unique vibe." Maybe not entirely relaxed, because the three of them do still all wear business clothes for their office hours and in court.
"Oh, that's brutal," she answers with a laugh when he names his local pub. She can just picture what the sign must look like. And she can't help but smile when he mentions how he helped the owner out. "It was nice of you to give a hand. That sounds like it was a good arrangement."
"No, that's not his style. To be clear, he does craft a really impressive threat. But it's all entirely based on things that are legal." Honestly, it's wildly impressive to behold when he really gets on a tear.
Matt is much more likely to leverage a butcher shop style threat. Though that's really only during his...extracurriculars that she's not at liberty to share.
There's a pause after his comment, and she lets out a laugh, trying (and failing) to give him a look that looks more genuinely scandalized than playfully so. "Sounds like things heated up after you gave her a hand."
Karen just looks amused when he makes his confession, coupled with that guilty little look. Honestly, it makes sense. He's a good looking guy. And she's pretty staunchly determined to solve all of her own problems, but she's not immune to the appeal of having someone in your corner.
"Wow. That second time was the real choice, huh?" she points out with a grin, just lightly ribbing him. "Sounds like you're a regular heart breaker, Alfred. Should I be worried?"
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"It doesn't." He says, his eyes growing sad. "I didn't always have a great relationship with him but I'm grateful we somewhat put things to rest before he passed a few years ago."
Clearing his throat he circles back to something slightly less upsetting, his army tattoo.
"The tattoo is a bit of an in-joke, we were stationed in the jungle and were always mucking about in the dirty parts. Thus the rats."
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She leaves her hand entwined with his as he goes back to the topic of his service tattoo, smiling a little. "Sounds like you were deployed with a good unit. It's always seemed to me like that kind of camaraderie and trust is really important."
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"Important and necessary, they're literally the people you depend on to keep you alive. My unit had a lot of good lads, not all of them made it, but thankfully my two best mates did. Bazza and Daveboy."
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She arches a brow, a hint of mischief in her gaze as she continues, "I have to know what your nickname was if you had one. I'm prepared to bribe you."
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He smiles to himself, clearly warmed by thoughts of his friends.
"No need for bribery, it was Alfie."
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When he owns up to his nickname, her smile widens. "Alfie, huh? That's cute. It suits you."
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He smiles and lifts an eyebrow at her, "What about you? You have any nicknames?"
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Lifting her free hand, she gives it a little wobble. "Karen's not really a name you can make a lot of nicknames from. I'll get Kare sometimes. My mother used to call me Kare Bear, but I don't really like it when anyone else does." Too many memories.
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ooc: sorry for lack of tags, had a busy bunch of days
"And I'm glad you accepted, I'd feel kind of silly sitting here playing this game by myself."
no worries! hope things calm down for you <3
"You'd be a lot drunker if you were," she points out, amused as she lifts the pitcher so she can top off both of their glasses. "Speaking of which...I lost track of whose turn it was."
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"So how long have you been coming here for? The bar I mean."
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His question about Josie's is met with a smile. "Uh, since I started working with Matt and Foggy. It's their favorite bar, and they started bringing me along once I was officially employed with them. All the regulars that come here look out for each other, you know? It's nice. Do you have a favorite local pub you like to go to back home?"
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"Course. Local pubs are far more common where I'm from, my local is one that's been in our neighbourhood for many years. The owner, Jon, is a good bloke. He used to let me do a lot of works deals there since it was a safe space."
Well that and it's not like Alfred had a proper office.
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"What was it called? A lot of British pubs seem like they follow the same naming convention. Adjective noun." She always gets a kick out of the names when someone mentions going to a British pub. His comment about doin his work deals there prompts an interested look. "What kinds of deals?"
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"The Severed Arms. And by deals I mean work contracts, security gigs and the like." A small pause. "I helped Jon out with a bloke who was bothering his daughter so he opened up his business to mine."
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"Oh, that's brutal," she answers with a laugh when he names his local pub. She can just picture what the sign must look like. And she can't help but smile when he mentions how he helped the owner out. "It was nice of you to give a hand. That sounds like it was a good arrangement."
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Because let's face it, being able to say you know where to get rid of bodies would make a good threat.
"It was, still will be hopefully if I ever go back." A pause. "So long as he never learns about me and his daughter...."
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Matt is much more likely to leverage a butcher shop style threat. Though that's really only during his...extracurriculars that she's not at liberty to share.
There's a pause after his comment, and she lets out a laugh, trying (and failing) to give him a look that looks more genuinely scandalized than playfully so. "Sounds like things heated up after you gave her a hand."
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A pause as he looks even more guilty. "And then we slept together twice."
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"Wow. That second time was the real choice, huh?" she points out with a grin, just lightly ribbing him. "Sounds like you're a regular heart breaker, Alfred. Should I be worried?"
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"I guess that all depends on what you're looking for."
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ooc: shall we end here?
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