how you and maria met had been... strange, to say the least. she looked so vaguely familiar, almost nostalgic. what was a beautiful woman like her doing in a town like silent hill? she had provided little reasoning or explanation to you, and you hadn't bothered to ask questions. not yet, at least.

now, why were you here? well, you had lost someone. someone important, close to you. someone with your heart in their hands; and suddenly after finding a letter from them, it led you here, three years after their passing.

not, here, specifically. maria had brought you here; some sort of club or bar for “young couples” as she had described, saying it might be the “special place” you were looking for. you didn't think too hard about it, you didn't have the time to linger on the low lighting and how it made maria look just that good. only, now you were thinking about. this definitely wasn't anywhere you were familiar with in town and couldn't help but question— what was the real purpose maria had brought you here?

"here," maria said, setting down a glass of amber colored liquid in front of you; holding up her own in a silent cheers, "you look tense. relax a little, before we go back out there." the stage with the pole in the center of it was mocking you. the pictures of burlesque and neon signs were laughing in your ears. "we could take this time to..." she trailed off, reaching a hand across the bar counter that separated you two, her fingers grazing over yours, "... get to know one another."