InsaneJournal

WHO: Emma Swan & Michael Guerin
WHERE: Double Tap
WHEN: {backdated} last month
WHAT: Emma is saying thanks for not stealing her money.
WARNINGS: PG13
STATUS: Complete

In the larger scheme of things, ten grand wasn't a lot of money. It was a very nice chunk of money to just have, with no restrictions or requirements on it, having it pop up out of nowhere meant that Emma didn't feel like it had to be spent on one certain thing. So she'd put it in her account, getting a look from the bank people at the fact that it was just under ten thousand dollars in cash -because of course Emma had kept a little out of the bank, she'd decided to go shopping and kit herself out with a new work wardrobe just because she could. Throw in the cost of her hair treatments at the moment and it made sense to have some money on hand.

After she'd picked up her car though, she'd made a point on getting Michael to agree to going out somewhere for some actual drinks rather than just buying him a box of beer.

Because she wasn't one for bars, she'd been to Double Tap and some gimmick bar in town, Emma left the location up to Michael while she just made sure she had enough cash on her for some decent drinks and some snacks if needed. She wasn't too done up, her hair was curled into its waves and she was in a nice pair of jeans, some boots and a somewhat fancy top, some cleavage on show but not too much, it worked well to get served faster sometimes and Emma was just used to it.

More than anything, she was just looking forward to actually being out to let her hair down a little.

---

The case of beer had been more than enough for Michael. He wasn’t expecting or needing more of a thank you than that. Or a thank you at all. He had just been doing his job after all. But Emma had insisted and well Michael wasn’t one to turn down free alcohol.

There were a few bars he frequented. Double Tap was one of them, but it was more of a dive bar. Not to mention he was friends with both the bartenders and might end up talking with them instead of Emma which would be rude considering she was buying. That also meant the Wild Pony was out of the question too given his relationship with Maria. So he told Emma to meet him at one of the other bars he went to instead.

Thinking ahead Michael took an Uber to the bar, he had left his car parked in parking lots over night too many times. Dressed in jeans and a white t-shirt he made his way into the bar it took him a minute to spot Emma, but when he did he made his way over immediately.

Damn, she looked good. Better than he remembered in his garage and yes his eyes may have wandered for just a second before falling back on her face. “Hey,” he greeted with a smirk. “You know you really didn’t have to do this.”

---

“Hey,” Emma was mostly just glad to be out for a while, she sometimes forgot to make time to get out, especially after work, so it was something for her just as much as her way to say thanks again to Michael. Plus, she felt like a box of beer wasn’t exactly cutting it since he would probably just use that at home. “I know, but I wanted to, so maybe try and just have fun?” She was sure that if Michael really didn’t want to he would’ve just said, so this was probably not that kind of deal.

The bar wasn’t too busy, but there were some pool tables at the back, probably for mild entertainment, and some tv’s with sports on to keep other guests amused. Right then, Emma was just about some drinks and snacks though. “So, what’re you drinking and we’ll get all small talk?”

---

“Trust me,” Michael said with a grin on his face. “I’ll have fun.” He always did when he was drinking. Well at least if he was already in a good mood. Sometimes he did have to drown his sorrows or his anger in alcohol. But luckily for Emma tonight he was in a good mood tonight.

“Whiskey,” Michael said already waving the bartender over to order his drink. “What’s your poison?”

---

It probably wasn’t a hardship to have fun on someone else’s card, frankly it wasn’t something Emma normally did, but she had an allotment of money right then that she had outwith her budget, and she didn’t think it hurt to just use it for whatever.

“A pink gin and lemonade please,” Emma wasn’t a fancy drinker, although she’d been caught up on gin after a fundraiser she’d attended for work, it was nice enough to keep up with afterwards, rather than necking beers all the time. She could pretend to be somewhat feminine at times. “I figure I might as well splurge on something, you know?”

---

“No need to explain yourself to me,” Michael replied a small grin on his face. “I know how much money you found,” he reminded her. “Buy all the fancy drinks you want.” Michael wasn’t judging. If he found that kind of money he’d most likely spend it all on alcohol himself. Maybe even some more expensive whiskey.

“So you got any plans for what else you’re going to do with it?” Michael asked more trying to make conversation than be nosy.

---

Fancy drinks were a luxury, although Emma was just as comfortable with a beer, it was nice sometimes to get something girly, fun and full of sugar rather than alcohol.

“Tragically, I’ll probably be horribly responsible and use it to put a downpayment on a better apartment.” Her place wasn’t bad, and she was thinking of a house in the next five years, but she needed to work up to that, she didn’t want to get loans with high interest rates, so she’d have a look around in a while, once she had a few years under her belt with a good paying job.

“I’m pretty sure I need to be responsible with this, or I’ll regret it down the line.” As much as she could literally go on a shopping spree tomorrow with it. “So, age old question, if you found ten grand, what would you spend it on?”

---

“You should indulge yourself at least a bit,” Michael replied. Because if he suddenly had ten grand? He didn’t think he’d be all that responsible with it. But then Michael didn’t have anything he was saving for. He was happy with his trailer. He didn’t need a nicer place. He lived a simple life and he was content.

“Probably alcohol,” he replied honestly answering her question. “Or maybe a down payment on a new truck.” He’d had the same one for the past ten years after all and it was used when he got it. But he took good care of it, it was still holding up even after all these years.

---

Indulging was probably something she should do; new shoes, some clothes, maybe a heavy duty hair treatment for herself. She rarely had the time or funds to properly treat herself. “Ah, but I have a bug that gives me ten grand out of nowhere.” Why would she ever want to get something else?

Sipping on the drink she had, Emma pondered a little more. “I’m going to be honest, I’ll probably end up just putting it into my bank and using it for bills.” Because Emma was super boring like that, she’d long since lost that wanderlust of hers, the days when she’d use it to set up another time in another city, or go hand-gliding.

“Man, I’m getting old.”

---

“You did ask what I would do with the money,” Michael reminded her with a grin. “Though I guess if my car gave me thousands of dollars out of nowhere I wouldn’t want to get a new one either.”

Michael took another swallow of his drink while Emma went on. “Nothing wrong with being responsible,” he replied with a shrug.”Growing up never really having a home it’s nice to have some sense of security.” Which was why Michael never lived above his means. Hell he could probably afford to move out of his trailer now even, but he liked it. Not only could he easily afford it, but it was also the first real home he had ever had.

---

"I've been a bit... nomadic for a while." Her own memories and the dreams had merged to the point that although she had grown up in a loving, stable environment, she had developed some of those foster kid traits that dream!Emma carried with her all her life. "I'm in my thirties, y'know? And I still act like I'm living out of a backpack."

Although through the years it had been a trash bag and then just a carrier bag until someone had, eventually gifted her with a backpack to keep her meagre belongings in until they sent her on to the next foster home she wouldn't get to stay in for long. It wasn't the best way for any child to live, and more than that it left it's marks long after, even for someone who didn't exactly live that life so much as experience it through magical flukes.

"I feel like being responsible with this is the smart thing, if not the most fun." But then, Emma had a really good job now, and she had a stable paycheck with good friends and a nice situation. All in all, it seemed like responsible was her thing now.

---

Unlike Emma, Michael had experienced that life in both the dreams and real life. He was well aware of how it could leave someone scarred - for Michael the scars were both physical (his left hand) and emotional. However, he dealt with it in a different way than Emma. Instead of choosing a nomadic lifestyle, Michael had chosen to stay put. In the dreams he thought it was because his alien family might come back. Here, it was because he was tired of always being on the move. He needed that stability.

“Just make sure to have a little fun with it.” While he understood why she wanted to use it for bills, she did at least deserve to splurge on something.

---

“Okay, how about for tonight we just have fun then.” She could let her hair down, hang out and enjoy herself. It wasn’t like she had to be anywhere tomorrow so she could see how her alcohol tolerance was. She hadn’t just broke free in a while, and she wasn’t old, this was still her youth to enjoy.

“Drinks are on me, we can go anywhere and do whatever, no restrictions.” Emma would rather do it tonight with Michael, since he discovered the money.

---

“Those are terms I can agree too,” Michael replied with a smirk. He fully intended to make sure that Emma had a fun night.