I Can't Actually Play Pool (Open)

[Everett Lilien]

Everett was at the bar, by himself. Bars weren't his usual favorite hangout, but he had managed to meet Faye there on a lucky night when he was moping about Gabe sleeping with his sister. He was still trying to apologize to them for acting like such an asshat, but it was a slow process, especially when he'd really overreacted...for months on end.

So, here he was, drink in one hand, pool stick in the other, looking around the bar for someone to challenge him or at least to strike up a conversation. He actually hoped he didn't have to play the game, because he knew that he wasn't any good at it from high school. He preferred foozeball. Now that was something he could beat someone at. He'd decided that after Faye seemed to have just fallen off the face of the planet, that he needed to try and at least get back out there and meet somebody. He could only hope that it would go well.

[Kateri Rivera]

Sometimes Kateri got a babysitter and came to the bar for no reason at all. She wasn't meeting anyone there. There was no real reason for her to be there. Except that old habits died hard and, frankly, she missed having a life other than being a mom to Meg. So she'd called the babysitter, told her she'd be gone for two to three hours tops and to make sure Meg didn't try eating the sofa again, and then had pulled on a nice-ish t-shirt and new jeans because the old ones hadn't fit and had gone out. Sans make-up. Sometimes a mom just couldn't be bothered. Besides, her days of going to pick up guys was over. She'd learned her lesson. Nah, this was just to enjoy a drink and feel like an adult.

Today she had a beer bottle in hand and was watching from the stool as a young man--trainer at Hammel, she thought--tried to play pool. Or not really tried. Kinda just...postured.

Well, that was an invitation if she ever saw one. The woman smiled and hopped down, picking up a stick.

"You just going to stand there all night or are you going to ask someone to play?" she inquired, brows raised. Then she grinned. "I'll just have to pretend you did the right thing and invited me. Let's get started."

[Everett Lilien]

There were plenty of prospective pool players at the bar, but Everett wasn't sure if anyone would offer and he kind of hoped they wouldn't, but then again, he was sure he looked like an idiot, standing there along, practically just posing with the pool stick. And so when a familiar red head jumped down from her stool and accused him of just standing around, he turned to her. "I was hoping that someone would take pity on me and ask me to play," he admitted, with a sheepish smile. It was always kind of weird seeing co-workers from Hammel here. Then again, it would be weirder for someone else, Ev didn't really care much. He'd seen her around. He was sure she taught Math... That sounded right and like an incredible bore. But it was evident she sure had a personality as bright as her hair.

"Alright, let's go with that." Ev said, twirling the pool stick. He actually had to play? Oh man... "Uh, do you wanna break?" Was that what it was called? He'd just put all of the balls in the triangle thing.

[Kateri Rivera]

Kateri laughed. "You know that's not how it works. You have to try to talk to someone else. Be brash. Be loud. And then lose spectacularly." She leaned her head to the side. "Yeah, that sounds about right." She winked at him. "Well, here I am. Sort of taking pity on you by pretending you asked me to play." At least he didn't have as much of a straight-man attitude as Adam Deulane. That was much better. Though this one looked a little shy. Well, she wasn't meaning anything by it, just having a good time.

She nodded. "Sure." Now truth was, Kat didn't know a lot about pool. But she knew about geometry and had hung a lot in bars with men who liked to try to teach her how to play pool. So she figured she could give it a go without too much harm. She fetched the triangle and arranged the balls inside, then took a careful shot. "I'm sorry, I don't think I remember your name. I'm Kateri."

[Everett Lilien]

"Is that how people are supposed to act at bars? Because I think I missed that memo," Everett told her, honestly. Sure, he could be outgoing, but he usually went up to people and made a fool of himself right away. It was safer to hang back, especially when it came to women. "Well, it worked then." He grinned at her. "I always appreciate a woman giving me the benefit of the doubt."

She agreed to break and apparently his term had been right because she didn't object and she seemed kind of fiery, so he was sure she would if he'd been wrong. As she took her shot, he watched as the pool balls spread across the table, curiously. He only turned to her when he spoke. "Don't worry about it. It's hard to remember," he told her, and honestly he hadn't remembered hers either. "I'm Everett. You teach math, right?"

[Kateri Rivera]

Kateri smiled. “Well. That’s how Irishmen act at pubs when there’s a pool table. That’s how a lot of men act at bars after a few drink. So yeah, you might say you missed the memo. But now I’ve brought you up to speed. Consider this a personal favor.” She winked back, then laughed. “See, you’re picking up the cues already. Give me an hour and I will have turned you into a proper pub-crawler in no time.”

Well, she wouldn’t have been too harsh on him if he was wrong. Teased him, yes, but nothing more. She was fiery but she liked to think she wasn’t mean. She’d learned that lesson a long time ago. “Your shot,” she said, then laughed. “Make it better than mine.” She nodded to his statement. “That’s right. And you’re a powers trainer, aren’t you? How are you liking the work so far?”

[Everett Lilien]

"You know Irishmen?" Everett asked, raising an eyebrow. He laughed, wondering if she was serious, so he was only half joking. "Not sure I'm the brash and loud type. I mean, guess I used to be loud. But I guess annoying is a more accurate term." Thinking back to his Hammel days as a teenager, that seemed to make the most sense. He liked to play pranks and attempt to flirt with girls and cause power outtages so he didn't have to take a test. "Do you go to a lot of bars? Or pubs?" Is that what she called all of them? Didn't they only do that in Ireland?

"Yours wasn't too bad," he mused, although he wasn't really sure what constituted a good shot. The balls were just suppposed to sink into the pockets. Such a simple objective and yet... "We'll see." He took his pool stick and lined it up with the white ball where it had slowed to as top after Kateri's shot. He felt sort of nervous with her eyes on him as he aimed to take a shot. "Yeah..." he trailed off as he took a shot and watched as the balls richoted off of hte sides of the tabe. He was fairly sure he hadn't done any better. "It's alright. I don't have many students right now."

[Kateri Rivera]

Kateri paused and gave him a look. Right. Right. She’d forgotten that she’d gone native. It made her sad to know Meg probably would never even have an accent. Ah, well. Life as a green card carrying American. “Oh, aye,” she said in her thickest Irish accent. “I know it doesn’t show as it did but you know sometimes the Irish just’ll come right outa ya.” She winked at him, then laughed. “You call yourself annoying? My dear fellow, we need to work at your self esteem.” However, had she heard about his teen antics she would’ve respected him more. It was a lot like what she’d gotten up to.

She nodded. “Pubs, yes. Less so now. Used to be quite the drinker. But then I had my baby girl and now I behave myself. One beer, see?” She held it up for demonstration as she leaned against the cue. “I have to watch myself now.”

Her lips curved up as she noticed the nerves, but she said nothing and just nodded. “Not bad. Least you hit something. Any trouble students? I admit, I pawned most of mine off on the new maths teacher. And by that I mean I revised some of the premade lists to do it.” She lined up the shot carefully, aimed, and managed—barely—to hit a ball into a hole. She grinned, then looked up at him. “What’s your specialty, Everett?”

[Everett Lilien]

"Wait, you're Irish?" Needless to say, Everett was confused. Was she just talking like that for fun? "And yeah, I've accepted that I'm annoying." He shrugged. "Really, it's probably one of my most redeeming qualities." He was joking for the most part, but he did know that he had issues like everyone else that he needed to be working on. Like his stubborness or that he butted in when he shouldn't. "I have self-esteem. It's called poking fun at yourself, Rivera. You should try it." He grinned at her.

"Quite the drinker? Does that mean you were doing keg stands or AA quite the drinker?" He hadn't meant for it to come out that way and he nearly facepalmed when it did. "But look at you. One beer. Mad props." He wasn't about to talk about the fact that she'd had a beer in her hand and he had a cup of a mixed drink in his hand, particularly a screwdriver and he drank it discreetly, and also ordered it by getting close to the bartender, elbows on the counter and whispering it. He drank alcohol like a girl.

"True," he mused. He supposed he could be worse at this game. "Eh, I've had my fair share, I suppose. I've got a shapeshifter....who shifts into a vending machine. And a guy who phases through walls whenever he feels like it. So...it's interesting." He watched as she took her shot and rose an eyebrow afterwards. "Wow, nice." He walked around to where the white ball had ended up and prepared to take his shot. "Well, it's definitely not pool," he replied as he took his shot, watching as it hit a ball just right to go into the pocket and he breathed a sigh of relief. Well, he wasn't absolutely horrible at this. "Do you mean in training?"

[Kateri Rivera]

Kateri sighed. She liked this fellow—he was good looking and seemed friendly enough—but she didn’t think her accent was that faded. “Yes,” she said, in her normal voice. “Born there. Came here when I was eighteen for a boy. Now I am here, teaching maths to young impetuous students.” She blinked at him, then laughed. “You admit that you’re annoying? I like you, Everett. You can laugh at yourself. It’s a good trait to have.” She didn’t mind being called Rivera either. She winked at him. “What’s the fun when I can be poking fun with you? Much more entertaining and much less work.”

She’s sassier when she’s sober.

Kat grimaced. “Oh, not that bad. Keg stands. I was always careful.” She noticed how sheepish he looked for the statement and laughed. “Didn’t come out how you wanted, did it? Don’t worry. We’ll forget it ever happened. And thank you.” She smiled. “I’m learning.” She had noticed the drink and nodded to it. “Nice choice. I do like those but my father was always making jokes. So now I drink these.” Although she did like beers. It also had the benefit of being not very alcoholic. Although she would’ve laughed at him for how he’d ordered it. Men could order women’s drinks, sure, but they should at least be bold about it.

“A vending machine,” she repeated. “Who is that, exactly?” It was likely she had him as a student but she had to know even if she didn’t. Just so she could snicker quietly behind her desk. The wall phaser she nodded to. “Oh, those.” She sighed. “Those ones make me lock up the test keys in my desk at home. So very irritating.” She nodded approvingly as he hit a ball into the pocket, and motioned. “Your turn again. And yes, I mean in training.”

[Everett Lilien]

"Oh...." Everett definitely felt awkward now, if not ridiculously stupid. "Right, you have an accent. I knew that...I guess it just wasn't registering...or something?" Funny, considering accents were always so attractive to people. "Must have been a special boy if you left your homeland. Especially Ireland..." He'd never been, but he could imagine it was great. "Yeah, well I've always told myself that if others are gonna laugh at me, might as well beat them to it." He shrugged. "Alright, at least you're poking fun at someone."

"Yeah..." he trailed off. "That was a horrible way of presenting two sides of drinking." He continued to grin sheepishly, shaking his head at himself. "I can only imagine how much your father would make jokes about me then," he told her. "Beer is just..." He made a face, of disgust. "Nope. Not for me." He drank it sometimes, but had to force himself to.

"His name is Chris Suzuki. He's...interesting. Not so sure he likes me, but then again, guess I'm not working a job that makes me very liked among students." Maybe Chris would come around. "Ah, well, he's not like that, the phaser. He's a good kid. He mostly phases through walls to avoid awkward situations."

When she told him to take another turn, he looked at her in confusion. "I get to go again?" he asked. He really didn't know the rules of pool too well.

"Physical powers," he answered. "I'm an electrokinetic." He couldn't help but think that he seemed exceptionally slow.

[Kateri Rivera]

She stared at him for a moment, then chuckled. “It’s okay. I’ll try not to take it personal. My accent has faded over the years. I’ve been here now longer than I ever lived in Ireland. Isn’t that a strange thought?” She studied him, then shrugged. “Yeah, it was great. Is great. But I go back often and besides, I live here.” Plus, she had to admit that there were some other, pretty substantial benefits. Vermont had less political turmoil by far. But she did enjoy Ireland. She smiled at him. “That’s a good attitude, though. Very healthy. Good for you.”

She was laughing at him again, but he looked so embarrassed that she had to bite her lip to stop herself from doing it. The poor fellow seemed so very nervous. Like the only woman he’d ever spoken to was his sister or his mum. She had to take some pity on him. “Not the drink for you, eh?” she said. “Probably not a big vodka fan unless it’s mixed with something either. Then again, who is? I do like whiskey and scotch, but you know, in small amounts. When I don’t have to drive home. You know how it goes.”

She shook her head. “You aren’t, you got that right. Neither am I. You get to accept it after a while.” She got the impression he was much younger than she was, so felt she could dispose fairly of some mentor-ly advice. “Still. Vending machine shifter. Lord, but I never get tired of this place.”

She nodded. “Uh huh. If you hit one into a pocket you take another shot. That’s the rules. Ah.” She smiled. “Wonderful. I’m weather manipulation. Good for shaping clouds. Now take your shot. A girl can’t wait all night.” She winked at him. Because frankly, Kat would never not be…Kat.

[Everett Lilien]

"Honestly, I'm just really slow in the head sometimes," Everett admitted, again poking fun at himself. "And I'm actually like...a fifth Irish or something. Sometimes I grow a few red hairs on my chin. That's why I don't have a beard. It would be blonde and red. Kind of weird."

"I just figure if I'm going to drink something, I'm going to like it. Why would I drink grape soda if I hate it? You know?" He shrugged. "So yeah, cocktails are my thing. Isn't good unless it's mixed." He grinned sheepishly. Man, he was being way too confident in himself and his quirks. Really poking fun at himself. "Well, aren't you responsible."

"Sometimes I do," he found himself saying. It just slipped out. He got tired of this place sometimes. It made his comic books less interesting almost, because it was happening all around him all the time. "I mean, I like my job. I just...it wasn't what I planned to be doing I guess."

He lined up his shot once more and hoped for the best, but the ball missed the pocket and instead bounced off the side. Lame. "So you could make a dark cloud follow me around all the time and rain on me?"