Frown | A Joker Leto Fanfiction | SEQUEL TO 'SMILE' | {BWWM}

O N E

~ James & Ashton ~
~ day 1 ~
•SOMEWHERE IN BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS•

Someplace in Boston, Massachusetts, on a particularly beautiful night, there was a bar that sat conveniently across from a police station. Not only were the cops there if havoc happened to break loose, but they even got free drinks after hours which, after a long day of work, was very much needed.

The bar was named 'The Queen Victoria' after it's owner, who was proudly named after her royal ancestor. Due to her British heritage, she was well known for her authentic beer, fermented at room temperature that she kept in the cellar of the bar for special occasions only.

Tonight was an especially special occasion. There was a new cop that had happened to stop by the bar a few weeks ago. He was as equally handsome as he was charming and his name was Hunter Griggs. The night that he had walked into the bar, they had an automatic connection and they talked for hours past closing.

Eventually, they had grown closer and closer, a magnetic pull seeming to draw them together. He had told her all about his life before Boston. How he had worked in a high-security prison in Louisiana that no one knew about, how he had gotten caught up with some trouble within the prison and had voluntarily decided to transfer somewhere safer, less high profile. Victoria found him incredibly fascinating, wanting to know more and more, maybe find love with him.

She couldn't help but smile to herself as she wiped down a couple of beer glasses with a clean, slightly damp cloth. This wasn't an official date, she'd never have a date in her own bar, but he had asked to spend more time with her and hopefully, she could nudge him toward asking her on a real date.

The bell above the door chimes, marking his arrival. She looked up, butterflies arising in her stomach as he made eye contact with him, laying his charming smile right on her. It was somewhat odd to see him such casual clothing when she usually saw him in his uniform.

He got all dressed for me, she thinks to herself, unable to resist smiling as her cheeks turned a shade of red.

"I'm sorry. I-I didn't realize we were getting dressed for this," she chuckles to herself, slightly embarrassed as she turned away from him, picking up the pitcher of her famous beer behind her. "I-If I knew, I would've-"

"You look gorgeous," he interrupts, settling at the bar, watching as she pours the beer into their glasses almost clumsily. Her cheeks turn an even deeper shade of red as she sets the pitcher down and scrapes the overflowing foam off the top. He carefully eyes the dark beer in his glass before glancing up at her, a look of slight disgust on his face. "What is this?"

"U-Um," she stutters, immediately taken back by the expression on his face, becoming embarrassed by the fact that she thought that serving an American beer the way her family had been drinking it for years was a good idea. "I-It's a recipe passed down for generations. I-I'm famous for it, I'm sorry. I thought-"

Suddenly, the bell interrupts her, signaling someone's arrival. She had forgotten to lock the door after Hunter had come in, but everyone knows when the bar closes, so it's usually not a problem whether she locks the door or not. She looks up, finding two males standing at the door, scanning the bar as to take in every detail over the empty booths and tables. When they began to take off their jackets and drape them across the back of chairs, Victoria grew wary. She had never seen either of them before. It's not like she didn't welcome newcomers with open arms, but it was almost 12 at night and it wasn't normal for anyone to be out in this area around this time of night.

"I'm sorry, guys," she chuckles nervously, standing up straight as the blond one wanders around, finding a game of darts. "We're closed for the night, but you can come back tomorrow for a free beer. We open-"