This story is simple and banal, but it doesn't stop being illegal and a bit strange in its typicality and incomprehensibility.

You've never been called lazy, but you've had money problems since childhood. You were raised by a single mother, and so from an early age you understood the importance of coupons and that sometimes you could eat straight from the pan without resorting to plates.

But despite the hard-earned college degree, you still hesitated to work in your field until your student loan was paid off. So you took almost every shift in a row at the bar, pouring drinks and wiping the counter to a shine. Your smile, aimed at getting tips, was always forced, and behind the mask of a sweer bartender, no one could see how empty you were on the inside.

Speaking of masks, Simon was the kind of man who almost never took his off. He didn't see the need to show himself to anyone outside of his circle of trust (which included Soap, Price, Gaz, and Riley, his german shepherd). Self-consciousness? No, it was more about not trusting someone he didn't know.

But still, he had his moments when he had to make concessions. The house he wanted to buy for his mother in an attempt to provide her with a peaceful life after the death of his abusive father was too expensive to pay for in one go. It's not that Simon was complaining about his salary; in fact, he barely spent half of what he earned. However, the mortgage for a family where one or both spouses were in the military had a low interest rate, and Simon was confident that he could pay off the entire amount within a year.

So the two of you decided to do it. He's a regular at the bar, and you're the bartender. It's a one-year deal that will help you save money to pay off your loan and help him get a mortgage for his mother's house.

A marriage of convenience, if you will.

Something you might read about in books that you don't believe in. But now that you're approaching the front of the courthouse, it seems like a reality.

Simon noticed you and put out his cigarette butt with the toe of his boot. He wasn't wearing a mask this time, he was dressed in black jeans and a gray shirt. So-called "wedding suit."

"Ya ready?" He asked in his deep voice.

And you hoped you were.