Shae's ears perked up noticeably at the other man's introduction. Ren Raikou. Ren Raikou. Ren. Why did that name sound so familiar? He racked his brain for a possible answer, but nothing really struck him.
That is, until Ren admitted to having only recently moved to the neighborhood- then the proverbial light bulb came on. Shae smiled at the recollection of a certain forum thread and the casual challenge he'd set forth within it. Could this really be the mystery neighbor from 404? What were the odds, with a name like that?
Shae watched his newly named opponent down the unappealingly pink concoction, chuckling at the expression on his face as he finished it off. "Make yo' shot. I' be back." He propped his cue stick against the wall and headed up to the bar, absently drumming his fingers on the countertop as he waited for the bartender to finish with his previous customer. He was so preoccupied with his recent discovery that he didn't even recognize the blonde-haired fugitive that had just claimed the barstool beside him- until he caught a glimpse of the man's reflection in the mirror behind the bar.
The drumming stopped. Calmly, he leaned forward and gave his order to the bartender, who passed a pair of bottled beers over the bar to him. Then he turned, caught the blonde man's attention long enough to offer a smile and a wink, and made his way back to the billiard table.
"Here, wash da taste of 'dat shit outta yo' mout'," he said, offering one of the bottles out to Ren and picking up the conversation right where he'd left off. "I'm Ezra. Haven' been here 'dat long myself, but it don' take much to see you ain' gotta damn clue where you are." He arched an eyebrow at his young companion and took a swig of his beer, waiting for the inevitable reaction.