The Fool

Prologue

The teenage boy stepped into the small pub. The consistent smell of sweat and alcohol engulfed his figure as he made his was towards the bar at the opposite side of the room.

He took a glance at his surroundings from underneath the safety of his hood, taking in the people that were going to be joining him on tonight's celebration.

The pub was extremely run down, as one could tell simply by looking at the peeling paint or the ripped carpet with endless unknown stains on it. Booths lined both sides of the walls. Older men seated with friends and their chosen bimbo for the night seated on their laps, minding their own business and simply unaware of the families most of these men had waiting at home. In some booths, the men played poker, eyeing one another as they placed their next bets. In the centre of the room, a pool table stood. Younger men crowded around it, smoking freshly rolled joints with their crew as they each cheered on their player in which they betted on at the start of the game of snooker.

As usual, the hooded boy ignored everyone around him once he had observed them. He took a seat on one of the uncomfortable wooden stools at the bar and kept his head down.

"Fancy seeing you here tonight" The young bar man made his way towards the boy with a teasing smile on his face, his long hair pulled away from his face in a bun behind his head. Only in his early thirties, the man ran the place and was heavenly acquainted by all of his customers. Although always friendly, many fights break out in a day in the pub which leads to the young barman sorting them out very quickly using their method of choice, fighting. And so with the reputation, he was gifted the nickname Bruise.

Receiving only a grunt from the teenage boy, he rolled his eyes, slinging the towel over his broad shoulder and leaned against the counter.

"What can I get ya, Synn?" Bruise asked, watching as the lost boy in front of him tore up his beer mats.

"The usual" Synn mumbled. Bruise nodded and grabbed a glass. Synn set aside the mats and folded his bruised and cracked hands in front of him. He heard the seat right next to him being taken. He shifted uncomfortably, sneaking a peak at the woman before turning his attention back to the drink that was placed in front of him. He nodded at Bruise before he tended to other people who made an appearance at the bar.

Synn took a sip from the glass, then proceeded to swirl the liquid around, his hand tight around the glass as he tried to control the anxiety that was creeping in from the scrutinising stare of the woman next to him.

The woman, however, was oblivious to his discomfort. She studied the boy - what she could see of him, that is. He pulled the hood of the sweater he wore down over his face, only a dark shadow visible. Her dark eyebrows were pulled together, causing deep winkles to stretch a cross her forehead. Her thin lips, painted a dark pink, were pulled into a frown which only dragged her wrinkled skin down further. Raven messy hair was scattered messily across her shoulders, covered in a pink shawl. She glanced down at the glass clenched tightly in the boys hands. Her green, beady eyes squinted. She quickly reached forward, placing one of her long fragile fingers on top of the boys glass, instantly stopping the rotation as her heavy rings clanked against the rim. Synn tensed further.

"Aren't you a little young to be in here?" She questioned. Her voice was hoarse, almost as if it were painful to speak. Synn turned his head slightly to look at her. The cheek of her to ask such a question angered him. Although what the woman stated was true, he still knew it was none of her business. Synn had been coming here for a couple of years after he met Bruise through the shared profession they desperately took. Bruise offered the boy to swing by for some drinks, oblivious to his age as he thought no kid would be doing what Synn and he were doing. Though as Synn put more effort into the relationship they devolepd, Bruise finally became aware of his age but it was left an unspoken secret between the two.