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 Posted: Thu Nov 06, 2008 8:17 am
Who: Kinsey Finch & Phiel
Where: Local coffee shop
Kinsey was out of a job. Or, well, kind of. She did have that little paperwork business on the side, but...that wasn't really enough to pay all the bills. Not really. And she couldn't go crawling back to her mother already, no! Kinsey Finch was just going to have to buckle down and find a new job. After all, there must be some other restaurants out there in need of a cute little waitress, right? (Not all of them could mind her distinct lack of...bust. Right? Not all of them had a cute little uniform?) After all, it wasn't her fault the owner had decided to retire and close the Midnight Diner...
Kinsey shook her head and looked around the coffee shop. Well, she wasn't going to get a job just sitting around here. The youth stood and walked over to the front, handing her application to the pimply-faced teenager before ordering herself a hot chocolate, to go. She paid, thanked the youth and spun around, crashing into whoever had the misfortune to be near the young woman. Damnit, she just paid for that hot chocolate!
".....sorry about that."
Kinsey was not good at looking before she leapt.
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Posted: Thu Nov 06, 2008 9:14 am
Hot black coffee, Phiel Cereus had been thinking with the same wistfulness that another man might have had at the thought of a Thanksgiving dinner. And a chocolate pastry. As big as my head, at least.
He had been out at a job all night -- a rough-and-tumble one that had even the tall, sturdy bodyguard looking forward to curling into bed like an exhausted kitten after he got the gnawing pangs in his empty stomach settled and the tanks of fish that brightened his room squared away for the day. The line wasn't long, thankfully, and the girl in front of him seemed almost done... it was safe to close and rub his tired, dry eyes, right?
Wrong. Phiel felt himself firmly jostled, and then as his eyes opened, the wet heat and fragrant steam of... hot chocolate?... seeping into his vest and shirt. "Oh," he said, his low, quiet voice hoarse and tired as he lifted a leather-gloved hand to steady the girl, gripping perhaps a little harshly at her shoulder before he moderated the pressure. "Are you all right?" It was instinct, despite himself, to react with deference. Even so, irritation was filtering in slowly through the layers of exhaustion, which Phiel tried his best to quell it. Damn, this is the second set of clothes in two weeks that have been covered in sweets! he thought, with a sigh.
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Posted: Thu Nov 06, 2008 3:45 pm
If the man wasn't so entirely solid, Kinsey might have hit him for grabbing her. As the case may be, he looked positively enormous from here. And covered in her hot chocolate. The youth sighed and brushed her hair out of his face, tipping her head to the side as she took a step back. "Uh, I'm fine. Shouldn't I be asking you that?" she asked, pointing at the mess. Hnn. She should probably help him.
Normally, she was dumping coffee pots in a man's lap, and that was on purpose.
The young woman tried to step away and twisted, looking at the teenager she had paid only a few moments ago. "Uh, hey, can I get something to clean him up?" she muttered, only to be offered a handful of napkins. She rolled her eyes and just handed the paper to the stranger. "So, uh, yeah," she muttered. Wait, what was she doing? Time to turn on that waitress charm! "I'm real sorry about that, darlin'." (There was that cursed word again.) "Is there anything I can do for you? Pay for your coffee, or something?" Kinsey tipped her head, the rubies under her left eye sparkling.
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Posted: Mon Nov 10, 2008 12:09 pm
Flabbergasted, Phiel paused, forced his eyes open to look down at the woman where she stood. He managed a smile that didn't look too much like a death's-head grin (he hoped; everything seemed wrapped in cotton) with the hollowness exhaustion lent to his features. "It isn't a big deal," he said with a sigh, looking down at her and accepting the napkins, beginning to mop at them with the strange lucid half-asleep spaciness that kept him a step removed from his irritation.
"I should be paying for your hot chocolate since it's currently soaking into my vest," he said, offering that smile again as he peered down at the sodden napkins in his hand. "I shouldn't have stood so close." Right, it's my fault, because things usually are when I'm exhausted, he reasoned, and it brought a sigh. "Will you let me pay for yours? I'd feel better about the whole thing." He was wobbling a bit on his feet. Coffee. Please. Five minutes ago..
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Posted: Mon Nov 10, 2008 1:19 pm
Kinsey raised an eyebrow. Was this guy crazy, or something? Or maybe he was one of those coffee addicts who really needed his fix. She could understand that. She got in a bad way when she was too tired and in caffeine-withdrawal. "You'd feel better? You get covered in burning liquid and paying for it makes you feel better?" Kinsey muttered, shaking her head. "I'm not sure if that's really the right way to go about it, but I guess if you really wanted to." The youth shrugged. "It was only a couple of dollars, anyways."
The young woman narrowed her eyes. Was he swaying? Gods, he better not pass out! No way in the nine hells would she be able to hold him up. Cursing under her breath, Kinsey straightened herself out and grabbed the man by the arm, guiding him, rather forcibly, to a table. "Sit," she insisted, because apparently, sweet and charming was not doing it for this guy. She seriously did not want to be squashed. And what was the second part of that thought? Oh, right. Take care of the client.
Kinsey twisted away back to the short line, ordering herself another hot chocolate and a coffee for the stranger (black, with sugar and cream on the side) before weaving her way back to the table she had tried to sit the large man at. "Now. Here's the coffee." She set the cup and condiments (could they even be called condiments?) down. "That is why you came here, right?"
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Posted: Wed Nov 12, 2008 2:00 am
It couldn't be helped that Phiel didn't remember much until he'd sat down at the table and the reviving hot scent of coffee drifted up to his nose, perking his senses. Half-blindly his hand lashed out, long fingers wrapping around the hot styrofoam cup, and he brought the coffee to his lips, tilting it back. The black coffee was hot enough to scald, but it was potent and reviving, and he drew a deep breath, sighing. Finally he got a good eyeful of her, through the steam of the coffee. She was not what he had expected, he supposed, but she seemed nice enough.
"Yes," he said, sighing. "I'm sorry if I've made no sense thus far, or been crass. I've been awake for..." He paused, tugged out a pocketwatch. Blinking, he wiped a smear of hot chocolate off the faceplate, then opened the lid to peer at the time. "... Mm. Over twenty-four hours, so I am a bit out of it without my caffeine fix." A brief, small smile captured Phiel's mouth for a moment, ruefully. "I was going home to bed, after this, but it is probably wiser for me to wait and finish this cup to make sure I do not fall asleep driving." He took another deep, near-boiling sip, letting the burn trail all the way down to his belly. "My name is Phiel Cereus, incidentally," he murmured, appreciation in his voice.
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Posted: Fri Nov 14, 2008 9:06 am
Kinsey raised an eyebrow at Phiel, settling herself down in the seat across from the large man. She took a sip from her warm drink, sucking on the tip of her tongue as the liquid singed. Shoot, she should have let it cool off longer. "Huh. Yeah. I'm not sure if you should be driving at all," she commented. Not with the way he was rocking all over the place earlier. Driving tired was just as dangerous as driving drunk, so she'd heard.
"I'm Kinsey Finch, as it were," she nodding, brushing her hair out of her face. She really needed to do something about the way it kept falling right in her eyes. "But seriously. I don't think it would be very safe for you to, uh, drive," she reiterated, making sure she got her point across. "I could give you some money for a bus or a cab or something, though." Wait. Why was she offering money to complete stranger? Ah, well. It wasn't like she could take it back now. And she did spell coffee, er, hot chocolate all over the guy.
"You want a change of clothes of something before you go, though?" The violet-haired youth waved at the large hot chocolate stain covering the man's shirt. "I'm sure I can talk someone out of a shirt." Kinsey liked to think she could charm the teeth right out of a snake, if she had to.
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Posted: Sat Nov 15, 2008 7:11 pm
"I'll be fine," said Phiel, waving a hand and sighing a little bit. "My apartment is not far from here to begin with, and after I get some coffee into me, I will be fine to walk there. I did not drive here to begin with." He offered her a small, slightly grim smile, downing another deep drink of piping-hot coffee. "If you are worried you can come with me, but otherwise, I am more than capable of getting home on my own." The slow oncoming twinge of a headache had begun to ball itself tightly at the base of his skull, and Phiel fought to smile in a way that didn't seem quite so stygian. "I am Phiel Cereus, in any case," he murmured. "Pleased to make your acquaintance, Miss Finch."
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Posted: Sat Nov 15, 2008 7:45 pm
Kinsey snorted, giving Phiel a firm look. "Fine my a**," she grunted, sipping at her hot chocolate again. "That's definitely the second time you introduced yourself." Normally, she'd accuse a stranger that discombobulated of being completely s**t-faced, but he hadn't reeked of booze, and he did seem to perk up instantly with coffee. "Are you sure you even remember where you live?" she inquired, unable to keep herself from teasing gently.
"I mean, you can probably crash at my place if you need to." At least she knew she could get them both to her apartment in one piece. The stairs were another question entirely, but let's not get ahead of ourselves. "I have a nice couch and s**t. And pillows." It didn't really occur to Kinsey she was offering said couch to a strange man and what on earth was she thinking, and, did she even know what her mother would have to say about this if she knew?
"You do look like you're about to crash."
Nothing wrong with being blunt.
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Posted: Sun Nov 16, 2008 1:36 pm
Dammit. This was the last time he took an all-night job, Phiel thought, raking a gloved hand back through his hair, which stood in rough, fluffy points afterward, and he couldn't be bothered to fix it. It would do what it wanted anyway. "I suppose you are right," he said with a sheepish little noise, looking down into his coffee. "I am not as young as I once was." A smile crossed his lips briefly. "Still, my apartment is twelve flights up, all stairs." Distaste wrinkled his pale brow and Phiel sighed a coffee-scented sigh.
"If you would not mind, Miss Finch, I will take you up on that offer," he murmured after a moment. "I can offer you some money in return. And I will not stay more than a few hours, just enough to take off the edge." Phiel managed to hide a yawn that threatened to split his jaw behind his hand. "I do suspect that this is more than you bargained for, and I can understand why you might be worried." He tried to joke, but it fell flat. "But I assure you, the most interesting thing about your home to me at the moment is those pillows you mentioned, and also perhaps a blanket." His fish would survive a few more hours without him.
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Posted: Tue Nov 18, 2008 5:12 am
"Money?" She needed money. She could really use some money. But...that sort of felt like taking advantage of the man; he was tired and only slightly coherent, and wasn't it just the right thing to do? "N'aw. It's fine. We'll just say you owe me a favor, a'ight? And you can call me Kinsey." Jeez, she wasn't a 'miss'. She looked like a boy, for pete's sake! (Secretly, she had to assume this is why she could not get another waitressing job; she was a damn fine waitress, but no one could ever see past the complete lack of chest. Kinsey was all edges and no curves 'We just need someone a little more...shapely. Nothing personal.')
"Now. As soon as you finish you coffee," she waved at the steaming cup, "we are going to leave, because if you fall asleep, there is no way in hell I am going to be able to carry you." Boyish as she was, she was still on the 'small' side of the scale and no amount of effort or good intentions would make her any more able to carry a man that much larger than she was. "Oh, my house is kinda a mess. I started cleaning it the other day, but, you know..."
Being domestic was not Kinsey's forte.
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Posted: Sun Nov 30, 2008 11:16 pm
A little sound escaped him. Oh god, a mess. Would he be able to even sleep in a mess? Picky and perfectionistic as he was, Phiel couldn't help being a little nervous about that. Still, as long as he kept his gloves on, it should be all right, right? Goodness but he hoped so. "As long as I can move," Phiel said with a dazed noise, tossing back another deep drink of coffee that burned all the way down, "I assure you I will not be bothered, Mi-- er, Kinsey." He couldn't quite remove the formality from his tone even when he was ten minutes from a coma.
He glanced at his watch out of habit, noted the time, and sighed. "I really am sorry to be such trouble. I wish there was something I could do to repay you for your kindness." Phiel could in fact feel remorse, a fact that even surprised him a little bit.
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Posted: Mon Dec 15, 2008 6:30 am
"Oh, I picked up enough so you can move," Kinsey chuckled softly. She just hadn't gotten around the dusting and the re-organizing of things. Her clothes weren't folded, but at least they were clean and had found their way back into her dresser and her closet. "And I keep the fridge clean. Don't worry, it's not gross." Just messy. No, unorganized was definitely a better choice in words.
"No, no, it's okay. Really." Kinsey flashed him a smile. "Though, if you really want, we can just say you owe me one, and leave it at that, okay?" She chuckled softly and shook her head. "But I think we should probably get going, you look like you're ready to drop," she noted, chuckling softly. This guy really needed to consider a change in jobs, or something. Living like this just couldn't be healthy.
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Posted: Mon Dec 29, 2008 8:16 pm
"All right, all right," Phiel said with a sheepish chuckle, ruffling his hair up a bit and sleepily rubbing one eye. "I've downed about as much coffee as I can stand. And I do not mind owing you something." It was a little lie, but he liked the woman well enough. She seemed pleasant and trustworthy, and there was no way in hell he was going to make it home. Picking up the foam cup, he forced himself to his feet, feeling every minute of his workday. "I will have to follow you, then, whenever you are ready." The foam coffee cup was discarded, along with the dregs swirling at the bottom.
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Posted: Wed Dec 31, 2008 2:32 pm
"Well, alright. This way." No sense in wasting time! Kinsey stood and tossed her cup in the trash bin on her way out, making sure to hold the door until Phiel ambled out. No telling how out of it the man was. The youth struggled between bustling along and making sure Phiel was keeping up; she didn't want to lose him, but she didn't want him falling asleep on her before they got to the apartment.
When they finally made it to her building, Kinsey whipped her keys out of her pocket and opened the main door, once again waiting long enough to make sure she didn't lose her little follower. It was kind of like having a puppy, she supposed. She always wanted one of those. "This way," she waved, making for the stairs. "The elevator's been down since early this month." And she thought living on the near the top was a good idea. Bah.
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