#EclipseThread

[indeeperwater]

Ada bit the inside of her cheek as she watched the other. She wanted to be his friend again, but she was slowly realizing that might be a harder task than she initially thought. Rekindling the flame with Eclipse wasn't like most of those picking up where they left off kind of friendships. Or maybe they were perhaps never that close before. Either way, she felt more of an obligation to be his friend now. Although she could hear her father's voice now with never having an obligation to anyone. This only made her wonder how different she would be if she was solely raised as a Davis, living with both of her parents and all of her siblings. Would she be more distant and cold-blooded like her brothers? Or have a mixture of both of her parents - overall peaceful but cruel when she had to be.

"How do you feel about horses?" She asked after a bit of silence from the Tarzan comment. "I know this stable that has some gorgeous horses and some of the most breathtaking trails." She continued a moment later, "I could take you if you're interested?" Suppose at this point, she was just trying to help him break back into the world outside the bars and barbed-wired fences. Even though he has been to prison she still knows a lot of women who would still want to be with him. Either because they find him serving time attractive or they just don't care. After Sons of Anarchy and book girls obsessed with the villain, let's just say Ada would be surprised if Eclipse got rejected by anyone for any reason.

Pulling her jacket sleeves over her hands, she continued to listen to him about why it was better to stay awake whenever everyone was awake. Still, she didn't know how he survived those conditions for as long as he did and remained sane. Just as he finished the pizza arrived and Ada sat up straighter and pulled her feet under her legs. "What exactly did you do all day?" She asked. "I mean you don't have to tell me if you don't want to talk about it."

Ada moved a slice onto her plate and sprinkled Parmesan and red chili peppers on top before taking a bite. "Anything and everything." She answered and scrolled through the videos. "Entertainment, news, music, even small businesses sell their products on here." She clicked on a scare prank compilation video she shared with her sister just yesterday. Taking another bite, she handed her phone to the other after hitting the search bar. "You can look up anything you want." Though suppose it was a bit silly considering what the other went through, however, it has provided Ada with a bit of comfort.

He just gave a simple little grin at her laugh when he compared himself to Tarzan. But that was honestly how he had felt. He had spent most of his adult life locked up. Now, what was he supposed to do with himself, and his lack of knowledge on the outside of that? As Adalicia spoke, he listened. Laughing weakly "I wasn't thinking about it. But now that you mention it, I could at least try the towel part." He returned jokingly. Adjusting himself in his seat, he wasn't laughing, but looked amused, still. As Ada finally continued, her amusement seemingly dissipating, he glances away, "No, probably not. I'm told I'm very good-looking." Though he didn't really grasp how much people would be willing to be with him, even if he had gone and murdered someone.

How could he understand that? When he went in, he was a scrawny young man, a twink, as many in prison wanted to call him. He didn't stay that way, obviously, at least, he didn't let them keep thinking he was their bitch. Now, he just didn't know what to do with himself. He was a criminal, and not even a good one. Not even the worst kind. He was so sure he would never have a real job. Or any real opportunities. What poor woman would tie herself down to a man like him? Even if he wasn't bad to look at? What kind of man would he have been to let a woman do that to herself?

Eclipse stayed silent, contemplating these things, and the lives he could have lived. With a woman, he could have had. But certainly never would. Mostly because he couldn't live with the ruin his mistakes would bring onto them. He had ruined his own life, it didn't mean he had to go around ruining another person's. Even with this thought, he thought of the opportunity Ada was giving him. How he might ruin it just by being there, too. He sighed, feeling sorry for that time. But with this, he could try to be selfish. Maybe he could keep his ruination away for long enough to save himself, maybe in this he told himself, he might be wanted, without the risk of ruining a life from his own mistakes.

At her following question, one why they had them up so early, he shrugged "That's just how prison is. some prisoners work, of course, so they need to be up earlier. Mostly it's just a punishment. Though we are allowed to sleep any time during the day, the cells are open and enemies from other groups could be lurking if your not careful." He turned his head away "So your best bet is to sleep at night, like everyone else, and wake up, like everyone else. Turns out the prison gets more money if we don't all kill each other."

Where all that money was going, he couldn't begin to guess. At her response to how long he was in prison, he nodded his head "Yeah. That's most of my adult life, if not, all of it." Eclipse frowned a little as he listened to her continue. Then looked at the phone as she showed him something on the screen. Cellphones had changed drastically since the last time he had seen one. He didn't even look at the app for a moment as he took in the sight of the phone "Uh huh." He finally said, sounding confused. The app looked pretty silly to him.

"So it must be pretty good, looks…silly." Eclipse couldn't help but to say. Though he had no idea what it was called, the function seemed familiar to what a few of the newer inmates would talk about. Eclipse bites on his bottom lip, not saying anything for a moment "What's it…for?"

[indeeperwater]

Ada fumbled with her fingers against the glass. She did a lot over the last eighteen years, but it’s nothing that she could admit and rumble with anyone. Hell, even things Ada doesn’t want to remember, let alone reminisce with her friend. Though she just struggled and smiled at him. “I have a boring day-to-day kind of life. Especially while I try to pay off my school.” Her favorite part of her life is going to her day job and getting lost in the ocean. It meant forgetting who she was and what she was trained to do. That said, she wishes she had someone to vent to about everything. Yes, she has her darling Jespar, but she couldn’t help but feel immensely alone.

 “But what about you? What have you been up to since you got out?” She asked, taking a last sip of her drink. Her attention intently stayed on him; she couldn’t remember when they hung out and conversed with one another. Then again, Ada has been anti-social lately, so chatting with anyone is a rarity for her. 

Though Ada  perked up when Eclipse agreed to meet Jespar, “Trust me, you’ll fall in love with the beasty.” Her grin went from ear to ear as she moved off her seat. “We can pick up some food along the way. My treat.” Was it obvious she was desperate for some human reaction that didn’t involve driving a blade into someone’s heart? “I don’t live too far anyhow.”

At her nodding and little bit of sipping at her drink, he scrunched his face a little bit, observing Ada momentarily. Then grinned a bit. He could be so moody, when he was younger, that probably contributed to why everyone had left him when he got arrested. Or at least, he told himself so. That he was insufferable to be around. Either way, it felt like he had always thought it might, like he was unlovable. That was the truth, to him, come to fruition, in the end.

All his friends from then had moved on. His family had even moved far enough away that he could never really contact them or run into them once he got out. To him, it was like it was always something they had wanted to do, even before he got arrested. Maybe even a long time before that, too. It hurt, though, learning that. Especially since he was closest to his mother. They had lost two children already, his mom and dad. Now they were treating him like a third that had died.

As Ada spoke up he glanced toward her "Hm. Maybe. But doing time changes you, too. I've been friends with murderers, and played part in some pretty fucked up shit from that." Of course, when he was younger. As he got older, he got bored with it, and decided to just do his time and get out. Now he was a butcher, and, though life was far less exciting, he wasn't in prison "Yeah, that's not really been something that's been on my to do list…"

When she laughed, he laughed a bit too. Listening to Ada talk about all she had been up to in the years since they last spoke to each other, he quirked an eyebrow a little bit "Really? That's all? I was in prison since I was Eighteen-and all you did was get a dog?" Laughing a little more, he turned his head away. His other friends had, for the most part, several kids by now "Jespar? Cute. Sure. Why the hell not. I'd like to meet him."

[indeeperwater]

A few of Ada's father's men went to prison themselves, but the only person she was exposed to before Eclipse, was her bodyguard - aka her shadow she was also trying to stay hidden from. Though he never talked about it with her, oftentimes just responding with it sucked whenever she asked him about his time in prison. Considering, that her shadow was involved too much in her life, she didn't feel as guilty about asking him about his life including the time he spent in prison as she does with Eclipse. Whatever he didn't and did want to talk about, she wasn't going to press him about it.

Adalicia laughed when he compared himself to Tarzan. "Just don't go swinging on vines with nothing but a towel cloth on your waist. It's still frowned upon." Though the visual made her think...perhaps a little too hard. "Although I don't think many would mind the sight." She lightly joked. For whatever reason, that visual made her think of horseback riding and how badly she wanted to return to it, however, when she went to offer to take him some time, she saw the wince he made. Yes, she wanted to ask what that was about and if he was okay, but she reframed herself - knowing it was probably a thought or memory he might rather keep to himself. Argo, she stayed silent.

Keeping her back somewhat to the entrance, Ada could still see what was behind her from the mirror above the counter. So, far she remained hidden from her shadow and the people she potentially pissed off. Sure a Davis is always supposed to be charming, but there were times when she was more of a Ferdinand than a Davis. Either way, she pulled her hat back out and placed her jacket back on. She knows she'll have to hear about knowing how to mouth off to people as well as ditching her bodyguard - again, but she was tired of having someone attached to her hip when she's already proven she could handle her own. But her father remained a paranoid old man. Maybe when her older brother takes over, things will change and she can finally be a proud Ferdinand and Davis.

Ada couldn't imagine a good night's sleep would ever come out of prison. On top of that to be woken up early, couldn't have been fun. She gets cranky when she's woken up now and then at 4 in the morning to go on her morning runs, she couldn't imagine doing it every day to spend the time confined and around...not the best kind of people. Just out of nerves of not knowing what to say, Ada began to crack her knuckles. A tick she wished she would have grown out of, but clearly, she hasn't. "What did they have do with getting up so early?" She asked, hoping it wasn't the wrong question to ask.

Jesus. Twenty fucking years. A new appreciation crossed Ada. Twenty years that turn most men completely men and he still appeared to be sane. At least on the front, he did. "Right. Okay." Reaching for her phone again, she opened up an app she gets the majority if not all her news from - TikTok. "If you haven't heard of the app already, it's one of the most popular. Anything you want to know about or see will more than likely be on here." She said giving him her phone. The majority of her feed is current events, funny videos of animals or people getting scared, books, witch stuff, arts, motorcycles, and a few touches of people going apeshit. "Embarrassingly it's entertained me enough times where I spent nights awake scrolling on this app." She laughed into her drink, but unfortunately, it was the truth. As much as she loves reading, or spending time on her bike, when she's not working at either jobs Ada often finds herself on TikTok to pass the time and escape her reality.

At her humming her humming, he glanced over, not sure how to take that. Though he told himself to ignore it. Even if for the last several decades that was not always an indicator that something good was about to happen. He was outside of that place now, those who did not live in the prison system didn't often understand how life could be inside a well-functioning one. As Ada spoke he nodded his head “Yeah. I didn't get a lot of visitors, of course. So most of the news I got about the outside was, uh, minimal.” He wasn't total shut away from it all, of course. Some contraband could be obtained to help a little. Of course, there was also the new stations and with some permissions, he could get on the internet. He could even have personal stuff, within reason. But that didn't encompass the all of what had been going on in the last several decades, but more, what was mainstream.

“Right. Fun. I feel like Tarzan after he's discovered, heh.” Eclipse commented as he looked around, not sure if there was any better explanation, he was quite young when he went to prison, and had spent a large part of his adulthood behind bars. Where, he had to learn a lot of things, usually the hardest way possible. It was like going into the army, only absolutely not to quite the same extent. There were some schools you learned in prison that the army didn't actively teach. If one could understand the meaning of this. Where the army taught more so how to fight wars. Prison often taught people how to be better as criminals. Or, if you got stuck with a particular group of people, how to be a better person, as far as respecting those with more power than you had. Or you know, you could choose to be stabbed and have the entire shit beaten out of you. He winced at the memories of how mouthy and disrespectful he was when he first got in.

Grabbing his cup he wasn't sure how he would be if he never even got caught to begin with. He didn't think he was that bad, before. Just lost, and having issues with his life at the time. He didn't like where he was at, and was trying to get out in the easiest, most lucrative way available to him. That meant getting in with drug dealing and the petty gang activities that usually latched itself onto it. Given who he was as a person, then, it was easy to make leaps on how that all looked when he finally got to prison. He wasn't received too kindly, which probably pushed him more toward activities that added more to his overall sentence, which wasn't even that bad initially.

Eclipse moved to sit down as she finally spoke again, apparently having gotten the message back about the job, he supposed “Ah. Well, they usually had us up early in prison. So. I'm usually up pretty early.” Not that he couldn't take naps, naps were highly likely when you spent most days sitting around doing fuck all with your life a lot of the time. Especially after several years of being inside. Eclipse toyed with his cup a bit before moving to rest his head in his right hand, placing his right elbow on the able as he did “Florescent lights and prisoner noises don't really help, either.” He added with a small sigh. After a moment, as she asked what he missed, he shrugs “Twenty years of life.”

[indeeperwater]

Humming she began to think, how much has he missed. They weren't necessarily close, then again Ada didn't have close friends just people who knew her, and she was either nice to or wanted to plant an endangered plant on top of their body. Normally there wasn't an inbetween with her. Usually. Perhaps as of late, it was just because people were more irritating than normal. "Huh. We have a lot to catch you up on." Ada pressed her hands together and tapped her fingers together. "Which should be fun." She smirked at him before turning away and going up to the counter to order his pepperoni and sausage and her own tomato, basil, and pepperoni pizza with some chicken wings, crazy bread, brownies, and two drinks.

Paying for the food and handing one of the cups over to Eclipse, she pulled out her phone and texted her boss, Ryan, about Eclipse. She wanted to make sure that this was handled first thing and as soon as possible. Not just because she wanted to make sure he got the job, but because whoever had this position was someone Ada needed to trust with getting things done, and from what she remembered about the other, he was always efficient in what he did. Which now come to think of it she never really knew what he did before, suppose now it makes a bit more sense. Surprisingly, Ryan messaged back and she smiled turning the phone towards Eclipse. A text message from her boss reading.

If you can have him at the Marine Center by 10 am, I'll give him an interview on the spot. No application needed.

"I hope you're an early raiser." She said sitting down at one of the tables, waiting for the food. Though she knew the interview was more of Ryan's formality but in the end he was going to be hired. Whether it was because he owed Ada a favor or because he needed that position filled in order to get Ada off his case. "So, what exactly have you missed?" She asked taking a sip of her drink and giving the other her full attention.

He had made a mistake, perhaps it had to do with his being the youngest of eight, or that now, no matter how great his IQ was, at one hundred and twenty, he had no wisdom at the time of his arrest to prevent it. He probably didn't even have that, now. Being smart wasn't a guarantee against doing things wrong or being stupid. Perhaps it was simply because his mother was an addict, herself. She was the one that raised him. So he never had much of a chance. The fighting between his parents may have been the cause. Even. When he split, taking a few of his siblings in the separation, Eclipse had been left mostly in her care. Perhaps it was that closeness to it, that made him indifferent.

Because someone he loved, loved it. Because someone he loved, only felt good, with drugs. Perhaps it didn't help much, that as he was the youngest, their were twenty years between him and his next oldest sibling. Making him feel more isolated from everyone else. Perhaps it was the death of his sister, that turned him down that road, maybe it just didn't help, even if he were going to walk along it, anyway. He was only ten, then, could it, he wondered, have had that much effect on him? Yes. Someone he loved had been gone forever, never to be seen again, it had hurt. It would always hurt. But that was not why he sold drugs in high school.

But it didn't help, that loss. The bad things would not stop, for him, he grew to realize as he chose to drop out of school, entirely, eventually. Thinking he was now financially secure enough to support himself. He was so selfish back then, he had grown to realize in his years in prison. His behavior then, was not helped by the fact his brother got sick, very sick. A terminal cancer that ate away at him, tearing another from his grasp, cold and uncaring. Perhaps that's when the hole in him caved in, entirely. Why he went from just selling, to diving into the life entirely. He couldn't even bring himself to say goodbye as his brother laid dying. Too much of a coward, he instead turned to ganglife. Then, after all this, not long after his brother's death, he was caught.

At first, he hated prison, planning escapes, that kept him in a bit longer than his original charges. It took him a while to finally grow and let go of his problems. But clearly, he still loved money. More so now that he had found it much harder to get it. He supposed. Watching as she wrote down the details, he nodded as Ada spoke “Cool. Tomorrow.” It was better than his current job, by far. Even if he should have stayed away, because this could break his parole. But, again, it was money. Something he didn't really grow out of liking, no matter how little use his brought him in prison for the last couple decades.

Taking the note, Eclipse glances over the words that were scribbled onto it, tilting his head head a little bit “Yeah. Better than what I got going now. As long as it's not, too bad.” He laughed a little bit, folding the note in half and tucking it away in a pocket. As she continued to walk, so too did he. Walking with her he gave a nod “Whenever's a good time.” Walking up he watched her pull open the door and invite him to go into the pizza place first, it was, he supposed, kind of unnatural. But this was, he had to remember, the way of the modern age, now. Rather than arguing against it, he just accepted it and walked in. Not really having much issue with it, in honesty. As she came in after him he turned his head as Ada spoke, glancing toward her and shook his head “Nope. Shit sounds disgusting. I've also been in prison while this…trend skyrocketed. So.” Making a clicking sound with his lips he turned his head away “Just gonna stick to the classics, sausage and pepperoni.” Perhaps it was all just his fault, and no one else's, he decided. He was always trash. The universe didn't want him to waste any time making it obvious to others, though.

[indeeperwater]

Ada bit down on the inside of her lip, knowing he was right and there wasn't much she could say to help change that fact of a black mark on your record no matter what you were arrested for, marks you as a not-so-employable person. Selling drugs wasn't how she remembered Eclipse. He is a great guy, from what she remembered, and it was a disappointment that people were so quick to classify him as a possibly problematic person because of his record. Then again, her record wasn't so clean herself, she just hasn't gotten caught - yet. Perhaps guilt was another reason why she offered her place of work, but honestly, she sees the other as a good friend and knows that he'd be great at anything he was hired for. Plus the marina was in desperate need of the data entry position to be filled. So, hopefully, it can all be a win-win.

Smiling when he agreed, Ada straightened up a bit as she reached into her jacket and pulled out a notebook and pen she keeps on her at all times and wrote down the marine center's address, the phone number as well as hers.

"I'll call him tomorrow about you. I'm normally there every day, so, you can stop by whenever or give me a call. But I should have an answer for you tomorrow about it." Sure, she has a certain charm when she wants something from someone, but her boss would truly be lost without her, and with both of those facts - all she had to do was tell him that hiring Eclipse would be in the best interest of him and the company, he'd do it without looking so deeply into his arrest. "Again, it's not gonna be the best of jobs, but it does pay $22 an hour with good benefits." And it'll relieve the pressure off of her doing her co-workers' jobs.

Furrowing her brows, she bit her lip. "Right. Sorry." She cleared her throat and continued to walk towards the pizza place. Suppose she temporarily forgot this was just as much his home as it is hers. "I'll definitely be taking you up on that offer." Ada loves food, and anytime she is able to try new food, she'll jump at the offer. "After you." She said after she pulled open the door. The smell of the pizza hit her and she couldn't help her mouth salivating. "Tell me you are not a pineapple on the pizza kind of person because I may have to rethink our friendship."

He notice he had lost her for a moment. Giving a confused look as she made a face, he let her talk without saying anything himself, first. But grinned, giving a shrug. He knew, for him it was. Selling drugs was worse, than other heinous crimes in the eyes of the system. But equal in the eyes of the rest of the world. He might as well have gone on a killing spree, as much as sell drugs. Of course, his age at the time didn't seem to matter either way. Eclipse frowned a bit as she goes on "Yeah. People like me. More than not. Once it's known. People start acting like I'm going to be selling any day, to their kids or something." Which when he was selling, years ago, he did. So he wasn't too mad about that. Kids were stupid and easy to get paid from.

But he wasn't a teenager anymore, and all the gang members he once knew now ostracized him, just for getting caught in the first place. Which wasn't just unique to him, either. He, like anyone as young as he was then, was easy to manipulate into picking up selling, It was, seemingly, the best way to get cash for the things he wanted, and not have to go work at a minimum wage job. He could make thousands a week, compared to hundreds. Of course he would choose this, ignoring the risk. But he wasn't one of the lucky one's that never got caught. In the years he had been he was giving hollow promises, which killed him even more. Eclipse continues to listen to her, not sure what to think. He quirked an eyebrow, wondering where her offer was going "Okay."

"I'll take it." Again, he was falling into another organization. It was just that easy. Rather than working at a common job, as a line cook, or dish washer, or fry cook. It was the same line that got him into selling drugs. Now, what would be replacing the selling of drugs part, data entry. Eclipse quirked an eyebrow "Can't be hard, right? I'm in." He just couldn't wash one more dish. Seeing she was looking around, he took note of potential danger around them, here. Turning away as he went back to walking he smiled as she spoke on about the pizza "I know." He tells her, after all, he had been living here his whole life. He shrugged "I'll have to show you mine, sometime." Eclipse continues to walking, heading down the direction she told him to go.

[indeeperwater]

Ada's shoulders slumped a little at Eclipse's words. However, she didn't dare interrupt him. The friendship had strained, but if she could hold onto some normalcy and friendly human interaction, she would try her damnest to hold onto that. Moving the jacket from her hips and onto her shoulders, she crossed her arms and pressed against her stomach as her mind turned. Ada's boss owes her a life debt, and she was sure that if she could charm her way through the conversation, she could get Eclipse a job at the marine center, putting in some data entry. It was not the most incredible job, but the pay was worth it. Would he go for it? Would it be a good idea? The idea tumbled through her brain, working out the pros and cons as she watched him.

Jespar is by far the definition of a giant teddy bear; he is Ada's primary source of pure happiness and comfort. Chuckling, she held up three fingers. "Scouts honor." She grinned and nodded her head towards the door. "Come on, I'm starving." Folding her arm back against her torso, she began to walk towards the door, scanning the room in case she needed to slip behind Eclipse for some cover. However, the coast was clear. So far.

"So, what are you in the mood for? There is a good French Ma and Pa sandwich place that's good. Or some pizza, chicken wings?"

Eclipse noticed her nervousness but decided not to bring too much attention to or even ask about it at the moment. Letting her do as she liked, after all, they didn't know each other like that anymore. Since he had been in prison for so long their friendship was perhaps not like it used to be. Right now it was familiar, however. Nodding his head at her telling him she had a normal life he laughed "Yeah. I don't have any debts but they don't really have a lot of hiring opportunities for ex-convicts, so, I'm stuck at a dead-end job right now." Which was, of course, shit pay. So everything that he could afford at all was shit, too.

"Not a whole lot actually. Just get up, go to work, try not to go back to prison." Which he supposed was easy enough since that would depend on his selling drugs or others. Since he was already caught before he wasn't exactly being sought by local gangs to start selling again. Especially since he was still so recently out of prison. Eclipse didn't know if he would get back into it once he could. But it was likely he would since the money was better than what he was making right now, which he was barely surviving on. That's why so many got into that business, after all, the money was better and easier than regular jobs.

Smiling at her he nodded "Oh? I haven't met many dogs since getting out, I'm sure I will." He leaned back a bit in his seat watching her get up then nodded at her suggestion before moving to stand up "Promise?" He teased with a serious tone as he stood waiting for her to lead the way "Cool."

[indeeperwater]

Ada only nodded, taking a smaller sip of her drink; with how the system worked, it seemed like higher crimes got less time and lower crimes got more time. Though she was glad, that wasn’t the case with Eclipse. Being around him, she didn’t realize how much she missed him until he sat right before her. Ada enjoyed his company but was also still on guard; there was never a moment when she was genuinely relaxed. She was on constant guard, afraid someone from her secret life would randomly invade her everyday life. Though she enjoys both aspects of her double life, she couldn’t deny the simplicity of enjoying the boringness of waking up, going to work for 8 hours, and returning home. However, the home was too quiet one day, so she got a Bernese Mountain dog named Jespar. 

Would he still want to be friends with her if he knew she was a worse criminal who committed worse crimes than selling? She was never caught, nor would she ever - yes, she was good, but she was also protected. Biting the inside of her cheek, she adverted her eyes. “You’re more than just a criminal. Besides, it’s like you said, it’s not like you committed murder.” Unlike me. She looked back up at him and offered him a smile. 

“Huh, fair enough.” She said, with a small laugh and a genuine smile forming on her lips. Though she blew out a breath of air at the question of what she’s been up to. “Besides the same boring sleep, work, eat, and repeat? I got a dog.” Ada lit up at mentioning Jespar. “A Bernese Mountain dog, his name is Jespar.” She continued. “Other than that. Nothing new. Did you want to meet him?”

An amused look came over Eclipse's face as he had seen her shock. He laughed and moved, sitting at her table now. As she repeats him he nodded "Yeah…Uh, all I was in for was selling. Nothing like, murder, or something." He reminded her. Giving a shrug then "Well what do you think? I was constantly being watched." Gesturing around the room "And by the looks of it, you didn't want to be found."

"Besides, I had to kind of get used to life current year…I've been in that shithole since I was about twenty-two, give or take." That was at the very least, a decade ago. As she suddenly was apologizing to him, he blinks. Staring at her with a serious look on his face "Uuuuh…Well, no. You could have. And you didn't…But I get it. Who wants to know a criminal. Right?" Only other criminals really stuck around.

But, even they didn't really stick around. They didn't come. He wasn't useful to anyone outside of prison. Inside of prison he hadn't exactly joined any gangs or done much but attempt to break out one time, which is why he had more time added "Yeah. It's been pretty great so far."

As Ada's asking how he found her, he grinned, glancing away "Well, I'm pretty smart, you know. But also, I just took a random guess. Seems you haven't changed too much since we last hung out." Plus, someone who went to places like this could easily be found, if you were to ask the right people, sometimes you were likely to strike gold, right? Stretching out his arms a bit, he pats his hands to the table surface "Sooo, tell me, what have you been doing since we last chatted?"

[indeeperwater]

Ada's heartbeat was still coming down from the scare the other had caused. With a slight eye roll, she relaxed back into her seat and took a small gulp of her drink. It was a familiar face, but she couldn't help but feel more nervous about who else was watching her. She should have done a better job going unseen from the abandoned building. Glancing over at him, he seemed to be doing okay, though he already answered her question just as she was about to ask when he got out of prison. Nodding her head, she looked back at him. “Ah, let me guess - good behavior.” She mocked jokingly. Had it been so long since they saw each other last? “A year, and I’m only seeing you now?” In a wild world Ada involved herself in, it seemed like Eclipse was the only regular constant in her life. Then again, Ada felt terrible she wasn’t in more contact with him, so she hung her head and fiddled with the glass in her hand. 

Clearing her throat, she pushed back on the chair to lean on her forearms. “Eclipse, listen - I’m sorry I haven’t been in touch since you got arrested.” She started, forcing herself to look at her friend in the eyes. “There’s no excuse or reason that I couldn’t come see you, but I’m glad you’re out.” She offered him a small smile, which brought on one question now burning her mind.

 “How did you find me anyhow?”

He was supposed to be in prison. But certain things on the outside had been going on that gave him an earlier release than what was planned. But he was small compared to others who were free. After all, he had only been charged for drug possession and distribution. During those times, and even these days, he was always a musician. Part of a semi famous band, back before his arrest. Now, older, he was finally out and taking up a job as a butcher.

As he was walking home some nights, he had noticed someone that seemed familiar. One night, this night actually, he had decided to stop speculating, and figure it out on his own. Did he know the woman or not. So he had followed her. Coming to stop at her table he watched as she distractedly ordered a whiskey from the woman taking her order. Crossing his arms over his chest, he ticked his head to the side as she finally noticed him there.

"Ah…So I wasn't going a little crazy, huh." Eclipse smirks a bit, shifting a little bit "Just a moment. Hey." Moving to sit down, he stares at her for a longer moment, then continued "Haven't seen you in a while…They finally let me out about a year ago."