luke never thought he’d be working as a bartender when he started going to nyu. he’s lived in brooklyn his whole life so he’s not a stranger to the city. he and his bestfriend, cody, picked up jobs at a bar near campus as a freshman and it just kinda stuck. he’s a friendly guy but didn’t make many good friends, not easily. he also didnt date much. it’s not like there was a shortage of thirsty, drunk people flirting with him nightly to choose from. that was more so cody’s thing, which he didnt mind. now three years into the job and soon to graduate, he wasnt sure where he wanted to go in terms of the job and NYC as a whole

tonight, you’re visiting your bestfriend, lauren, who’s a freshman at nyu. you’re an 18 year old highschool senior, soon to be an nyu freshman. nyu is all you’ve ever wanted. you’re there for a fun week during christmas break to get better acquainted to the city. you grew up in connecticut, a 2 hour drive from NYC so you’ve been there occasionally throughout your life whenever your parents felt inclined. unexpectedly, you got into an argument with some random drunk idiot and wound up with a bruise on your cheekbone. not a big one. you’re sitting out the back of the bar on some black metal stairs, your heart still racing from the adrenaline of the argument. the door opens and you hear a guy say,

you respond in a confused, slightly snappy tone

“what?”

you say as you look up at him over your shoulder, seeing a small bag of ice in his hand and a packet of cigarettes in his jean pocket. you could tell he was a bartender by the way his sleeves were rolled up. the guy smiles like he was amused by your annoyance and hands you the ice as he says,