Our past is our future... [attn: Owen]

Owen slipped his boxers on. "I didn't hear you leave. Is everything alright?" he asked as he located his pants.

Lynne made a face and looked away from him as she pulled on her shirt. "Let's just say I gave Shannon a piece of my mind finally...and I'll be spending my day looking for a new flat that I can afford. Here's hoping I can find one in Cardiff, or else I'll be calling my parents to float me a loan to get back to the States," she said sadly. "Any ideas where I should look? Shady part of town, perhaps? I'm sure that'd be affordable," she added with a half-smirk and a playful roll of her eyes.

Owen panicked slightly. He didn't want Lynne to leave. He liked her. A lot. 'Why do the ones I care about always leave?' he thought to himself bitterly. "You don't... you wouldn't really leave, would you?" he asked, tentatively.

"Not if I can find a place, but I can't just sleep on the streets, Owen," she said gently. "My main issue is that I don't really know Cardiff well enough to know where to start. She has to give me thirty days, whether she likes it or not, because I signed the lease here with her, but the sooner I can find something, the better. I don't want to go..." she said. "Believe me, leaving here...leaving you is the last thing I want. I'll just have to figure something out or maybe pick up a third job or something...give up my days off or...well, there's other bars I could work at...I just don't know how well you'd like it if I did, if you know what I mean," she said, crinkling her nose.

"Well, you could stay with me," he said impulsively. He sort of meant it, after all, she did spend most of her time with him when they were free, and he desperately did not want her to go, but at the same time, it was moving far too fast in their relationship, though that problem seemed to have been placed on the back burner.

Lynne looked up at him. "Oh, no no no...that would ruin everything for us, I know it would," she insisted, shaking her head. "No, I can't. I couldn't ask that of you, anyway. I'll figure something out. I won't leave without a massive fight, I promise you that. And if I have to go, I'll make sure it's only for a few months...just long enough to get a job back home, save up enough to come back, and try again. That's worst case scenario. But, no...I..."

She paused. He couldn't possibly mean it, anyway, could he? They were far too new and anyway, she'd probably cramp his style if she lived there; and he, hers. "I'll figure something out. I've got all day today to look for places and jobs. It might mean not getting to see you as much..." she warned sadly. "But at least I won't have to go home."

"Right, yeah," Owen said, closing his eyes and shaking his head slightly. He opened his eyes and looked at the pants still in his hand before putting them on. "I could, uh... Look some stuff up," he said after a pause. He knew this is what he should have said first, and he refused to admit that he had panicked, so he hoped she'd let it slide.

Lynne slipped on her jeans from the previous night and nodded. "That'd be awesome," she replied gratefully. "And thank you for the offer, really...I just...think it's too soon and it'll fuck up this great thing we've got going, you know?" she added gently.

She thought it was incredibly sweet of him to have offered, even if she thought he probably didn't mean it; not really. It made her happy to know that he would offer something so drastic just to keep her around, in any case. "But, um...what if I can't find something by the end of the month? Will your offer still stand, then...?" she asked tentatively.

Owen had found his shirt and had bent over to retrieve when Lynne asked if his offer would still stand. He crabbed it and stood up, looking at her. "Yeah, definitely," he said after a small pause. He smiled at her as reassuringly as he could despite his mini-panic attack. "We'll figure something out," he said mostly for her, but partially for himself.

"If I...have to go home...you could always visit me instead of Paris," she offered weakly. She didn't want to go and she was going to do her damnest to stay, but she wanted to allow herself to accept, at least, the possibility. It would soften the blow slightly if she had no other choice. "But, um...thank you," she added. "I'll do some searching on foot - walk off some of this fat ass," she muttered, "since I haven't a car and I'm not wasting money on cab fare, now. And you can do some internet research and, I mean, we'll find something, right? Can't be that hard..." she said, unsure of who she was trying to convince; herself or Owen.

Owen smiled at Lynne and stepped over to her, hugging her closely. He let go and nodded, "There's got to be something in Cardiff." He put his shirt on and sighed. "We'd better get going for coffee," he said somberly. He didn't want to go to work, he wanted to stay with Lynne and help her, but he knew Jack wouldn't hear of it.

"Yeah," she agreed on both accounts as she zipped her jeans and pulled her hair up. "Hey, it's gonna be okay," she told him more confidently than she felt. "I'll work a hundred jobs if I have to and I can swing it, Owen. I don't want to go back there and I sure as hell don't want to leave you," she told him, taking his hand.

Lynne thought to herself that if worst came to worst, she could work in one of the dive bars on the shady side of town. She'd been to a few of them on her first job search and ended up bailing on them at the very idea of the dress code. But, they'd offered a much better pay, so if nothing else, she'd just have to suck it up.

"Coffee. Best way to start out a fairly crap morning, huh?" she joked feebly.

Owen smiled and squeezed her hand. "I just wish there was something I could do to help." He could offer her money, but he couldn't think of a way to tactfully bring up the fact that he was so well off while she was struggling.

He looked down and smiled. "Right then, let's go. And am I going to have to fear your roommate out there?" he joked as he brought his gaze back up to her.

"Offering to help me look is plenty," Lynne said with a smile, kissing him on the cheek. "And no, she'll be sleeping a few more hours before she's gotta go to work. You wouldn't have to fear her anyway," she added with another playful eye roll. "She loves you," she went on, drawing out the word 'love' sarcastically as she started toward the bedroom door.

"Great, that's all I need," Owen said with a smirk, rolling his eyes as they exited Lynne's soon to be former bedroom hand in hand. "You're going to be out all day, right? I mean, I'd hate to leave you with this..." he said, nodding his head in the direction of a closed door he assumed to be Shannon's.

"Yeah, I've got a lot to do today all of a sudden. I'll have my cell on me, but I probably won't be here. Um, can I ask you a favor? And you can totally say no and I won't be upset," she prefaced as they headed out of the apartment. "Can I stash 'Veda at your place until I find a new flat and get moved in? It'll be easier to sneak her into a place when I've already moved in so I can dodge the pet deposit, which will save me money I'll need for a move-in deposit...I'm rambling. Shut up, Lynne," she laughed awkwardly.

"Yeah, sure," Owen replied, "She's not going to tear my flat apart is she?" he smiled at her with a small laugh as they exited the building.

"No, she's really chill. Sometimes she'll start picking at the carpet at night when there's shadows on it, but if you just say her name low and firm, she'll stop. She's really good, I promise," Lynne replied, giving Owen's hand a squeeze. "Thank you," she added sincerely.

"When do you want to bring her over?" Owen asked as they made their way to the coffee shop. "You should probably do it soon before your roommate gets the idea to stick her in the microwave or something..."

Lynne looked back at him a little wide-eyed. "I doubt if she'd stick 'Veda in the microwave, but extreme example aside, you're probably not wrong..." she agreed. "It'd have to be when we're both off work...I don't have a key to your place or anything, so you'd have to be there. And, well, I doubt a cab would let me bring her with, so you'd have to drive..." she went on. "Your flat; your decision."

"We could do it tonight after I get out of work," Owen said as they approached the cafe. "I probably should get you a key..."

Lynne looked down. "You don't have to give me a key, Owen. Just...if I'm not around for a day or something, just feed her and give her some water, if you don't mind, and that's all you need to do..." she replied quietly. She didn't want to push that on him, especially if he had only offered her the opportunity to stay with him out of panic or some sort of feeling of obligation to her.

"Well, she's your cat, you should be able to see her whenever," he replied as he opened the door for Lynne. "My schedule can get pretty crazy sometimes, unfortunately... You shouldn't have to rely on me to see your cat..."

Lynne smiled as he opened the door and stepped through. "Well, okay...but, I mean, I'll give it back to you as soon as I get her and I moved into a new place, okay? That way I'm not invading your privacy by having it," she replied.

Owen smiled at Lynne and caught up with her, walking up to the counter. "So, what are you having?" he asked before the girl behind the counter got a chance to ask.