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"Is there a reason you're drinking alone?" Noin asked as she slid onto the barstool next to Dorothy.
"Because Fuckwad McFuckerson can go to hell," Dorothy insisted, sounding mostly if not entirely sober.
"Is that his name now?"
"His name can go to hell too. It doesn't matter."
"I see."
Dorothy scowled. "You don't see, actually."
"Care to enlighten me?"
Dorothy sighed. "I thought it could work. I thought… but I thought wrong. He wasn't part of the war. Of either wars. His family name and money kept him out of it. He grew up in the same world I did, and I thought I could get lost in that. I was wrong."
"Mmm," Noin replied.
"After Zero… after everything, I thought escape was the best option. But it wasn't."
"Is drinking the best option?" Noin ventured.
"Probably not. But this has so much sugar in it it doesn't taste like alcohol."
"What are you drinking?"
"A mudslide. I've heard it called the break up drink, so I figured why not. Usually I go for whiskey straight up, or scotch. Between the coffee liqueur and the Bailey's, it's like drinking a coffee flavored candy bar."
"Sounds… decadent." Noin signaled the barkeep. "I'll have what she's having."
Dorothy raised an eyebrow in question. Noin shrugged. "Why not? I've never had it before. When in Rome, right?"
"Sure you're not breaking up with someone?"
Noin laughed. "Not hardly. Sally and I are quite happy, thank you. But I like coffee and I like chocolate. Those are chocolate shavings garnishing your drink, are they not?" Dorothy nodded. "Well then. I see no reason not to try it."
Her drink arrived and she lifted it in Dorothy's direction. Dorothy clinked her glass against it. "Cheers," they said in unison.
"To brighter tomorrows," Noin added as she took a sip.
"And fewer fuckwads," Dorothy intoned before draining the rest of her drink.
"Always that," Noin agreed, took another long sip, then stood, leaving it half finished on the bar. "Care for a walk?" she asked, winging out her arm for Dorothy to take. Dorothy put some bills on the counter top and took the proffered arm, and the two exited the building.
Dorothy had no idea how Noin had found her, but she was glad not to be alone. Glad to know that someone cared.