The sounds of construction were like white noise to Ashton. He worked so many different jobs, he was used to the noise of trucks passing by, jack hammers and concrete saws buzzing. A good set of noise cancelling ear protectors were needed, especially now that he was more sensitive after the incident.<br/><br/>After setting the four large bags of cement down beside the mixer, he wiped the sweat from his brow with the back of his glove and his eyes rose to the top of the scaffolding that had been erected beside the concrete wall they were building. An addition to the student center. His eyes landed on one man standing at the top who was spreading Spackle on the wall, yet half heartedly. Ash's gaze lowered to his belt and he noticed he was not clipped to the railing as he was supposed to be.<br/><br/>It was a hot day. Everyone was told to keep hydrated and to keep an eye out for others, yet this man seemed to teeter on his heels a bit, then shake his head and continue with his work. Ash opened his mouth to say something, but the man finally fell over backwards and over the railing.<br/><br/>Without thinking Ash had jumped forward and scaled nearly a story of scaffolding in a flash before he met the man on the way down and caught him in mid air. The jolt woke him and he began to panic, grabbing onto Ash for dear life.<br/><br/>"Holy shit! Thanks, man!" he stammered.<br/><br/>"Hook in next time." Ash said, "Hold on." He made his way down as his co-workers began cheering and clapping, as the supervisor ran over with the guy trained in first aid. Handing him a bottle of water, Ash gave the man a pat on the shoulder and he took his hand for a hearty shake.<br/><br/>"Thank you. You saved my life." he said, exasperated.<br/><br/>"No worries, man. Drink up. Get that water in you." he replied, gesturing to the bottle.<br/><br/>"Way to go, Beast!" Someone yelled from behind. the group that had gathered were still clapping and Ash was starting to get uncomfortable. Beast was a nickname they called him when he first started here. He mistakenly carried six bags of concrete by himself and forgot what a normal person was supposed to be capable of. He played it off like it exhausted him and that he was trying to show off, but they called him Beast ever since as a term of endearment, or new guy hazing, whatever.<br/><br/>"Come on, man! You have to let me buy you a beer after that." He said, taking a sip of his water, "That was amazing!" The man turned to look up at where he had fallen from and remembered how high they were when he was caught. Judging the distance, his eyes went a little wider, "Still though, how did you get up so high so quickly?"<br/><br/>"I saw you start to waver on your feet. I was already half way up when you fell." Ash quickly lied.<br/><br/>"You could have yelled at me or something." he said. Ash just pointed at the jackhammer nearby. The guy using it was still going, oblivious to what had just happened, "Ah I see. So after work, this evening, We're going to the bar."<br/><br/>"That bar near the campus? St. John's?" Ash asked.<br/><br/>"St. Patty's. An Irish pub." he said, "Great food there, good beer and hot waitresses."<br/><br/>"Really?"<br/><br/>"Listen, tonight's on me. For saving my life." he said.<br/><br/>"Sorry I didn't get your name." Ash said, "Ash." He held out his hand.<br/><br/>"Tom." he replied taking it.<br/><br/>-------------------------------------<br/><br/>St. Patty's bar was rather busy for a Saturday night. Ash had run into the Campus gym and used the locker room to shower and change after work. His new friend Tom had run home to do the same. The sun had just gone down when he pulled his truck into the parking lot and saw him leaning against the wall, waiting.<br/><br/>"Hey!" he called as Ash stepped down out of the truck. He was led into the bar and the smell of smoke burned his sensitive nose, yet he barely flinched. Sitting with his back to the bar, he sat down at a table and picked up the menu to look through it.<br/><br/>"Now listen, tonight's on me." Tom said, "I really appreciate what you did."<br/><br/>"No, Tom. You can buy me one drink, but neither of us are making enough at that place to go treating people to a meal like this." Ash replied. Tom huffed and leaned back in his seat.<br/><br/>"You aren't going to take no for an answer, are you?" he asked. Ash just shook his head.<br/><br/>"So you said the waitresses are hot here?" He asked, then shut his mouth as the scent of perfume lingered behind him and he turned around. He looked up and his eyes went wide...