"Liam! You're late!" She was definitely more than 4 cerzis in.

  "You're early. It's barely 3, how many have you had?" I asked and sat in the only empty chair.

  "Not enough." She giggled, "Oh! Zak, Jeremy: Liam. Liam: Zak 'm Jeremy."

  "Pleasure." I held out my hand.

  Zak was scrawny, pale, and his mop of a haircut almost covered his eyes. He was definitely in with the emo crowd in high school. Jeremy seemed like the typical traveler. Somewhat fit, tan, mannerisms that screamed 'upper/ upper middle class'.

  "Oh! This one for you." She took out a bottle from the ice bucket in the middle of the table and handed it to me.

  "Thanks." I unscrewed the lid and took a sip, "So, how'd you guys meet?"

  Jeremy and Tammy exchanged a glance then burst out laughing.

  "It's kind of an embarrassing story." Jeremy said.

  If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it's taken without the author's consent. Report it.

  I was still trying to place the accent. I was leaning towards general Australian but he could have easily been a drunk Britton.

  "Care to tell it?" I asked, looking at Tammy.

  She laughed and started, "I was with some girlfriends at a club in Playe di Carm. I see this cute guy walk in, alone, and head straight to the bar. I walked over and offered to buy him a drink. Spare you the details; my roommate was not happy with me the next morning."

  "Who was your roommate?" I asked.

  She pointed at Zak.

  "I didn't sleep at all that night." He said.

  The New London accent fit him perfectly.

  "And how did you meet?" I asked.

  "Found him in Elysium City. I was checking out the anthropology museum with a friend and this guy walked past us like 7 times! He'd leave the exhibit, disappear for a bit, walk back in, mutter something to himself, then leave again! He looked like a kid lost at a department store. It was so cute. We asked him if he needed help. He couldn't figure out the Elysian name for the exhibit he wanted to go to. I kind of kidnapped him after that and we've been traveling together since."

  "Since Elysium? Quite a while, no?" I asked.

  "Only a few weeks. Besides, I've got a shuttle booked to New London next week so that 'while' will be over soon." Zak replied.

  "Don't remind me!" Tammy protested.

  I finished the cerzi and offered to buy the next round. We chatted the evening away until night finally came and a heavier crowd started to filter in. I lost count of my cerzis somewhere along the way.