Personal Victories

[Levi Alexander Wolfe]

With everything that had been going on in the circus that is Levi’s mind. He had completely forgotten the fact that it was his birthday. If it hadn’t been for his brother who called him (a week late) he would have probably not even remembered that he had a birthday. With every day that passed, his insomnia was starting to fade and with each good night sleep he awoke each morning one step closer to gaining enough courage to face his fear. He knew that the day for that was no closer than ever. It was less frightening every time he thought about it.

In celebration of his birthday and the little personal victories Levi had decided to take a trip to one of his favorite places in town. He hadn’t been there for what seemed like years, but in reality it was only a month or so at best. A nice glass of scotch was well overdue. It was silly to think that he could stay away. It was the only place he had felt somewhat at peace. Here he could stop thinking and be free from his mind. He knew what it could look like, but Levi knew better than to let the alcohol take control. No, Levi was most certainly still in control. The simple fact that he managed to stay away and no go crazy was a good sign. Tonight was for him.

Levi entered Matt’s Hole in the Wall and immediately his hazel eyes locked on his normal seat at the end of the bar. It was open. The familiar scent of the bar filled his nose, his head panned around and saw a few people sprinkled throughout. With a half-smile he took a seat. Changing his mind on his drink, he went for his usual whiskey sour. His mind was quiet tonight, and he was beyond happy about it. He just hoped it stayed that way.

---

Tag: Matt Wilson

[Matt Wilson]

As Matt had always intended, the bar was one of those places where you entered and people immediately started hollering at you. Levi proved to be no exception, as several locals gave him a wave. The flirty, middle-aged blonde who looked decidedly more than middle-aged gave him a lascivious wink that promised quite a bit if he should decide to go ahead and go on with it. And, also true to form, Matt was having another playful shouting match with his cook.

"Well, you're supposed to actually fry crap when I tell you too, dammit!" Matt said, his voice echoing loud enough from the back to be heard in the bar. Several of the regulars were already chuckling. "An' yeah, we're gonna try something with chocolate. I wanna get a damn ladies' night in here. No it ain't 'cuz I'm sad an' lonely! An' you shut yer mouth 'cuz everyone can hear you!"

Matt snorted and walked out, immediately scanning the bar. He recognized most of the people from being there before he walked in. He actually skipped over Levi at first, it wasn't until his sweep back that he saw him. "Well, if it ain't the Wolfe-man," he said, striding forward. "Don't you got somewhere better to be? An' I see you're still drinking that same crap. Gonna burn a hole through your gut. Only way it would be quicker is if you," he leaned back to yell toward the back, "ate some of the damn hot wings," before leaning back and extending a hand toward Levi in greeting.

[Levi Alexander Wolfe]

Levi sat in silence, taking small sips of his drink every so often. There was no need to drink like a college student tonight. His eyes meandered from the bar and had another look around the place. The usual faces remained the same. There was maybe a handful of people who looked new. He averted his eyes away from a blonde that winked at him. Not tonight.

Soon after he was feeling a bit relaxed, he heard Matt’s voice diffuse throughout the bar. The source sounded like it was from the kitchen. Levi let out a small chuckle. He watched Matt push through the door, making an entrance as always into his own establishment. Everyone here had heard him, and those who knew him knew it was nothing new. The moment Matt spotted him, Levi sighed, preparing himself for what was to come.

Levi rolled his eyes and shook his head when he heard Matt referred to him as the Wolfe-man. Levi was tempted to let out a soft howl. Levi laughed, even more glad that he forced himself out tonight. “No place better than here!” He said with a shrug. He lifted his glasses and tip it slightly to Matt. “That’s what I’m prepping it for man.” He jested as he took a large sip from his glass. Levi extended his arm and gave Matt a firm shake.

---

Tag: Matt Wilson

[Matt Wilson]

"You sure you ain't been trapped here or somethin'?" Matt asked. He leaned forward. "Carol ain't got her hooks in ya, does she?" his eyes flicked to where that not-so-middle-aged blonde lay waiting for the first one of the handsome young men customers Matt seemed to get to make a mistake. Matt almost wanted to gulp just looking at her, but instead he settled back down.

"You really should, since they're damn good, even if the guy who cooks them needs to get his head outta his butt," Matt replied, taking the hand and giving it a firm shake. Not firm enough to break anything (always an issue when Matt used his muscles), but definitely firm. "You really should try an' get somethin' healthy from time to time. Pretty sure anyone who lives off this crap is lookin' to die young. Then again," Matt bobbed his head, "at least you'd die pretty. Ya'll can't age like me."

He gestured at himself, grinning. Hey, he knew he looked pretty damn good for his age. Bits and pieces were starting to sag, but nothing too major, and that was more than most people could say.

[Levi Alexander Wolfe]

“No, no. I’m pretty sure I’m at will to leave whenever I want. But…” He leaned in closer to Matt and briefly eyed the blonde woman before looking back at him. “Who knows what kind of powers she could possess.” He said jokingly, completely forgetting what town he lived in.

“Ah, who needs to be healthy?” He said as he waved his hand in front of him. Which was kind of ironic because Levi was usually fit but had been slacking in that department. He’s been eating like crap and hasn’t worked out since his whole insomnia thing started. Luckily for him it’s been under control and maybe he could start working out again real soon. He was itching for it. But considering he hasn’t done much in the past month, what would one more night of poor decisions really do? “As a matter of fact, give me an order of those hot wings.” He said with a carefree expression on his face. “I can use a hole in my gut, and tonight I’m celebrating.” With that he raised his glassed and swished back the remainder of his drink.

Levi laughed at Matt’s comment. He leaned in, “What’s your secret Matt? There’s no way I’m dying young, and I wanna look as good as you when I’m older.” He was half interested. There was some truth to that statement. Matt did look good for his age, and whether it was due to a good diet, exercise or if he was just blessed with good genes who knew. There was one thing that was most uncertain and that was the time in which Levi would perish, but he hoped to prolong his inevitable fate for as long as he possible could.

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Tag: Matt Wilson

[Matt Wilson]

"'round here, there's all kinds a possibilities," Matt drawled. He knew that only some of the locals knew about the whole mutant thing and that powers were actually something that people could possess. Just because he happened to work as a trainer and have muscles that would've put anyone else in tights didn't mean that Matt thought that everyone around here had the same sort of casual approach to the food.

Though given Levi's casualness regarding his order, maybe the guy had an iron gut. Matt chuckled. "Hope you don't end up regrettin' that decision," he drawled, but he was already getting ready to turn around and submit the order. Matt hesitated as he caught Levi leaning forward, instead looking back to the regular. The question had Matt chuckling.

"Clearly clean livin' an' healthy eatin'," Matt drawled, patting his slight gut. He nodded and ducked into the back, issuing the order to his cook, who, for a change, didn't argue but instead stated he'd be getting right on the wings. Which had Matt sauntering right back out.

"Must be in a good mood," Matt said, glancing over his shoulder. "Or he knows somethin' I don't. What are we celebratin'? Redskins win or somethin'?" That was the closest sports team that Montana had, sadly. Matt just generally rooted for Texas and ignored the booing he got from his fellow fans.

[Levi Alexander Wolfe]

Levi let out a laugh, before eyeing the blonde one last time for the night, realizing now what he had just said. She could easily have some sort of power, and that thought made his stomach sink. Why was it he came back to this town again? The most troubling question Levi was a constant battle with his answer. It changed frequently. His most recent answer was that he wanted to settle down in a familiar place, but he was sure that it could soon change.

“No regrets!” Levi said the cliché with a shrug. He knew the wings would be a challenge but he didn’t care. It would be his last night of his so called ‘freedom’ before he cracked down hard on himself.

The local let out another soft laugh, “Guess I need to get on that.” He said quietly as he watched Matt head to the back to place his order of hot wings. His hazel eyes scanned the bar, avoiding the blonde. He ordered himself another whiskey sour. They were tasting extra good tonight.

He looked back at Matt who reappeared as fast as he had left. Considering there was no yelling in the back Levi could only assuming the cook was behaving. Levi nodded his head in agreement, and gave a chuckle. “I’m not sure about the redskins.” He said giving Matt a shrug. It wasn’t that Levi wasn’t into sports, he just didn’t following any league or team regularly. He enjoyed watching them when he got the chance though. Levi thought for a moment. He didn’t want to tell Matt that he had finely gotten over his insomnia and was working on getting his mind back, because that would imply that he was crazy, and Levi knew he wasn’t crazy. He just needed to get over his fear of going back to his spot in the woods. Which he would do soon. He was sure of it. He also didn’t want to mention his birthday, he hated the attention from it, and he also hated being that person to brag and boost about it, but for now it was the lesser of the two evils. “It was my birthday about a week ago. I had forgotten about it.” He said with a laugh and a swig of his drink.

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Tag: Matt Wilson

[Matt Wilson]

Matt gave Levi a slightly suspicious look as the young man sort of dodged around the sports question. "You backin' another horse?" he asked. Technically Matt would be rooting for the Cowboys. With a name like that, he probably couldn't have not rooted for them, even if they hadn't been from his home state, but, still: he had to wonder. Plus, it would be a nice test to see if Levi could keep walking around in here and fit in with the rest of the crowd.

Still, the guy had to be celebrating something. Matt waited somewhat patiently for Levi to come out and say as much, knowing that the guy had to confess to something. "Birthday, huh? What, big twenty two?" Matt let out a snorting laugh before shaking his head. "Guess you picked a decent spot to celebrate an' all. I'm assumin' you got no taste," he gave Levi a wink before ducking down behind the bar for a bit. There was some clinking before Matt came up with a bottle. He had to rub some dust off, but then he was getting out a glass.

"Gotta give the birthday boy his birthday shot," Matt said, winking at Levi while he sloshed the liquid inside. Then he nudged it toward the young man, while at the same time pouring another glass for himself. Hey, drinking along was lonely and sad; drinking with somebody else was a party.

[Levi Alexander Wolfe]

“Nah, just don’t follow sports much.” He said with a shrug. There really wasn’t much more to that. His sister dragged him to a few soccer (well football) games when he was visiting her in England. It was, alright, kind of boring. Levi preferred American football, or basketball, even hockey over soccer.

Levi couldn’t help but laugh at Matt. “Twenty-eight actually.” He said giving a rather apathetic look. It was kind of funny, people usually guess over or under his actual age. He’s gotten everything from mid-thirties to late teens. Did his look vary that much? He wasn’t one to talk though. He was horrible at guessing people’s ages. It was difficult. It didn’t matter though. He didn’t care about his age, he didn’t care about his birthday. What he cared about was what he was doing with his life. It was the one question he could never seem to answer. Why was he so lost?

He kept his outer appearance light and happy, while his inner turmoil started to creep its way back to his mind. Levi let out another laugh. “This is the best place to celebrate Matt!” He said gesturing to the entire bar. A few patrons let out a whistle or a grunt. So enthusiastic. Levi shook his head when he saw Matt pull out a bottle and mention a shot. “I’m not twenty-one.” He said with a laugh. Ugh, shots. He couldn’t remember the last time he did a shot. It was probably when he was twenty-one, well legally it was anyway. Levi starred at the shot that Matt had pushed in front of him. He felt a tad better when he saw Matt pouring himself one, but only barely.

He let out a sigh of defeat. “Alright.” He picked up the shot glass and raised it to Matt. “To obligatory birthday shots.” He said with a laugh as he swished back the shot, he felt the burn run down his throat.

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Tag: Matt Wilson

[Matt Wilson]

Twenty-eight? Matt took a step back to eyeball the guy, wondering about that. Had to be accurate: that wasn't an age someone would throw up as a smokescreen or anything. And he'd said that Matt kept his youthful appearance. Must be something in the water.

Matt just chuckled as Levi insisted he'd picked a good place to celebrate. "We'd throw up a party for ya if we knew," he said, nodding. "So you'd better watch out next year," and he'd done that for customers before. Reid practically jumped for joy at the whole thing. Because nothing quite beat an adult birthday party at a bar with food slathered in things bad for you.

"You get shots every birthday from adulthood on," Matt insisted. "How the whole thing works. Plus, you see this bottle?" He held up the dusty bottle. "See all that dust? How much you figure it'd have if I jus' waited for twenty-ones year olds? Plus, they ain't got no clue what's good." He took the shot as Levi did, smacking his lip as he finished. "Now," he leaned forward slightly, "how come I didn't know somethin' like that, huh? This ain't a place you go to keep secrets. Otherwise they'd call it a hole," he paused for a moment, "well, you know what I mean."

[Levi Alexander Wolfe]

Levi ignored the look that Matt gave him after he said his age. It wasn’t anything new. He was used to it. It wasn’t like he was trying to be deceitful. He thought he looked his age. Guess not.

His hazel eyes went wide with shock and fear at the mention of a birthday party. Not good. Maybe he should have went with the crazy mind thing. They’d just lock him up in a mental institute. That would probably be better than a birthday party. “As thoughtful as that is. I’m not a big party guy.” He said hoping that there would be no party next year. Perhaps as a precaution he’d probably avoid this bar for a month or so. “Why do you think I’m celebrating alone?” He said with a shrug. “Birthday’s aren’t a big deal for me.” He said waving his hand dismissively. Levi couldn’t remember the last actually birthday party he had. Maybe when he was eight? His parents had thrown all of their kids parties, but as the got older the primary focus in the house was training them with their powers. Levi tended to not stick around for that.

Getting slightly annoyed at himself for allowing the thoughts to come back he let out a laugh at Matt’s remarks. “You know what, you’re right. How about another shot?” He asked Matt. Yes, another shot was most definitely needed.

Levi looked at Matt when he leaned closer. “What my birthday?” He said as he let out a puff of air. “It isn’t a secret…” He said as he shook his head and put up his hands. “I’m just not one to announce and make a big deal of the day of my birth.” He shrugged, “It was one day, twenty eight years ago.” He said with a chuckle. It was true. He didn’t broadcast his birthday like most people did. It honestly wasn’t important to him. Nothing ever changed on that day except the number that people labeled him with. He knew that he kept a lot of personal stuff to himself. He wasn’t one to share things openly. He didn’t it was necessary for everyone to know everything about him. He just hoped Matt wouldn’t pry, but knowing him he probably would. Levi raised an eyebrow, “I bet you got some secrets of your own Matt.” He said with a laugh. Everyone had secrets.

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Tag: Matt Wilson

[Matt Wilson]

Matt could see the shocked look when he mentioned the party thing. The cowboy knew it wasn't quite everyone's thing, but usually looks like that just sparked the ornery part of him, made him want to actually spring it on him or something. He was even grinning as Levi continued, insisting that he wasn't a party guy. "Well, we can always save it for a birthday that matters," Matt allowed, figuring that would probably be a safe enough compromise. he did get the whole birthdays not mattering business. All it did was change some number that just represented the number of years you'd manged to hang on to life on Earth was all. No big deal or anything.

The comments drew at least some laughter and he could tell that he was at least lightening Levi's mood. Couldn't ask for much more than that. Matt had to grin, grabbing the glasses to pour another shot. "there you go, gettin' into it now," he said, nodding along. He got an exact age in there too, not that he didn't already know by now and all. Matt had to chuckle at the mention of secrets.

"'course I do: I'm a bartender after all," Matt drawled, chuckling. In truth he definitely had some secrets. A few years of his life were literally sealed from the public's knowledge. "Tell you what," Matt said, leaning forward, "why don't we make a game of it? Ever heard of 'never have I ever'?" Matt was already grinning. He was also digging around for cheaper booze, because no way was he gonna pull out the good stuff for a drinking game. He wasn't rolling in dollar bills for crying out loud.

[Levi Alexander Wolfe]

Yes. Levi should have went with the mental thing. Much better than a birthday party. Matt’s grin just made Levi chuckle in an attempt to keep up his appearance. He had done it to himself that was for sure. The local averted his eyes from the gracious owner. He didn’t want to even entertain the thought of a birthday that matters. Obviously they all mattered, but he had a feeling he knew what Matt meant by that. If that was the case Levi had two years to do something about it.

He did have to admit that his decision to return to the bar was a good one, and Matt was definitely helping his mood, whether Levi wanted to admit that or not. Levi let out a laugh at Matt’s approval of Levi’s decision for more shots. Might as well.

Levi pointed a finger at the owner. “Ah, of course!” He said with another laugh. Everyone had secrets. That much was for sure. Whether people wanted to admit that was something else entirely. Levi wasn’t one to divulge his inner thoughts and demons, so he would never expect anyone else to do the same. He respected other people’s privacy. Everyone was entitled to it. A smirk crawled across Levi’s face. He raised an eyebrow, “Of course I’ve heard of it.” Levi said, shifting in his seat. As much as he’d love to play along, a small sense of panic rushed throughout his body. He disliked lying, but he also disliked talking about himself, especially about his past. Feeling a bit bold tonight, Levi reached in his pocket. “How much for that other bottle of yours?” He asked, gesturing to the dusty one Matt had pulled out earlier. If he was going to do it, he was at least going to drink with some respect for his palate.

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Tag: Matt Wilson
OOC: POST 100! WOOT!

[Matt Wilson]

Matt saw the raised brow at the mention of the game, and his smirk turned into a full blown grin. "Well, then I reckon you're thinkin' what I'm thinkin'," Matt tapped the bottle and all. He knew that there was an element of lying or dodging with a game like that, particularly with someone like Levi, who was clearly wanting to keep some stuff together.

"We can even set some kinda rule about passin' if we don't wanna answer a question. I don't wanna let you know jus' how many men I had to kill," he gave Levi a stern look for a few moments, managing to hold it even as he realized that Levi was asking for the birthday bottle. Matt looked to it. "This thing? You don't wanna buy the whole thing. 'sides, it's kinda on the special side. Gotta bring it out for good occasions. I reckon we should play our game with something a little less valuable."

Matt looked around for a bit, as if hoping that he could somehow knock a bottle down just by thinking about it. Given the way he'd organized the place, that wasn't completely out of the realm of possibility.

[Levi Alexander Wolfe]

Levi gave a nod to Matt. The point of tonight was to celebrate his own personal victories and to distract himself from his own mind. This game could either help, or end really badly. He shifted once again, and felt a slight sense of relief when Matt mentioned about having some rules about passing. That would help, certainly for Levi at least.

He let out a nervous laugh, he knew Matt had been in the military, and there was no way that he could even begin to understand what he had been through, or how many men he’d kill for that matter. That was a subject he honestly had no interest in. Levi never did understand the people who asked active, or even the old time veterans about their time abroad. Obviously people were curious, but at the end of the day the military is no joke and can be a traumatic experience. Thinking about all of that made Levi realize how petty his own past was, nevertheless, everyone was entitled to their own problems. It’s not a contest. Just because someone’s experience in life wasn’t as bad as others doesn’t mean they don’t have a right to complain or to feel like it impacted them any less than someone else. He let out a deep breathe, his mind was acting up again. It needed to stop. “How about if we don’t want to answer a question, we drink.” He suggested. He knew the more he drank, the more he’d lighten up. He didn’t want to think about how dangerous that could be though. It would be an embarrassment if he got kicked out or banned from the only bar he liked in town.

The local let out another laugh, “Ahh fine. If you say so, but that was good.” He said pointing at the bottle. “Then let me buy another bottle, that’s better than the crappy bottle shelf stuff.” He wasn’t going to settle for the cheap crap. No way. It was his birthday. Okay, maybe it wasn’t his birthday today, but it didn’t matter.

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Tag: Matt Wilson