June 2012: Badlands of South Dakota; Ted's Diner

[damncompass]

Travelling is hell, especially when you're half-moving anyway. Joshua had decided that he was going to take some books and the Artifact to the B&B, to just have a few less things things to take when he actually moved a week later.

Flights were late, Customs was eying Joshua's papers like they were in Greek, and the closer they got to South Dakota, the more unsettled Helena was. So, when they got to the airport finally, Joshua decided to fuck it, and get the flashiest car that the Hertz place rented: a red convertible something-or-other that suited Joshua's mood just fine. However, to his vast embarrassment, he'd almost forgotten how to drive in the fifteen years that he didn't actually need to. He was able to get the car in gear and going, with a minimum of offers to drive from his Victorian now-girlfriend.

Driving into the address that he'd been e-mailed a couple days ago (how they got his e-mail, he wasn't actually going to ask at this point), he parked (very poorly) and looked around, wondering where the shit everyone else parked, as the lot was mostly empty.

Comments

[timelessinventor]

She kisses him back, just as thoroughly. "Just make your argument well."

[damncompass]

"Of course I will." He kisses her again. "Debate team has to be good for something."

[timelessinventor]

One would certainly hope it is. "I love you." She's trying like hell to hang onto that.

[damncompass]

"I love you too, Helena." He's holding her tightly, hoping that somehow he can calm her down.

[k39zzz]

"Ahem." Mrs. Frederick clears her throat, probably a bit more loudly than is truly necessary.

[timelessinventor]

Helena starts out of Joshua's arms. "Oh. Sorry."

[damncompass]

"Er, sorry. Um." Joshua sighs. "Right. We probably shouldn't go in together."

[k39zzz]

She doesn't say anything, just raises her eyebrows and takes note of this very interesting development.

[timelessinventor]

"True. We don't want everyone else biased against your opinion already." Helena sighs (and might roll her eyes a little). "See you in a bit, then."

And with that, Helena follows Mrs. Frederic into the diner. (Hopefully the food's good. She barely had the stomach for what airplanes seem to think they can pass off as edible.)

[damncompass]

"See you soon." Joshua watches them walk in, remaining outside himself for a while.

Eventually, he walks in, taking an assessment of everything around him. About three-quarters of the people in the diner take notice of him, mostly clinically. Helena nods, but her attention is mostly on a menu in front of her. In the back corner is a blonde woman lazily eating a bit of pie. As her booth is the only one that doesn't seem to be full of either someone glaring at him or a teenager, he walks over.

"Um. Hi. Do you mind if I join you?"

[k39zzz]

It's rare that Jane gets company back in her corner, but she's not at all surprised, in this case; she looks up and smiles.
"Not at all. I've found this is the best seat in the house, actually."

[damncompass]

"Can see everything going on without being seen too much." Joshua grins. "I like it." He pulls a menu out from behind a napkin dispenser. "Anything good here?"

[k39zzz]

"Most of the food and all of the pie." It's one of the perks to having the meetings here, really.

It's not long before Theodora comes by to take Joshua's order (she looks more than a little displeased that he's here - Jane has no idea what that's all about).

[damncompass]

Joshua orders a burger, fries, and a couple pieces of pie. Yeah, he's hungry.

Theodora leaves, still none too pleased.

"What's up with her? She usually like that?" Joshua lowers the volume of his voice.

[k39zzz]

"Sometimes. I have no idea what her problem is today, though." It could be the meeting, it could be Joshua, it could be something in her private life.
Jane does, however, raise an eyebrow at Joshua's order. "Do you always eat that much junk or only when you're worked up about something?"
(Sure, it's a bit of an assumption to say he's nervous, but she certainly was before her first meeting, back in the day.)

[damncompass]

"Uhm. Mostly when I'm working or nervous." He sighs. "Claud always yells at me about it too. Besides, I haven't eaten since Geneva. Plane food is shit."

[k39zzz]

"Ah. I can give you a pass, in that case. As my husband would have said, airplane food doesn't count."
(That pass only covers this meeting, Joshua. Next time she might hold you to getting a salad.)

[damncompass]

"I hope so, because I'm really damn hungry." Joshua's stomach proves that by growling so loud that pretty much everyone in the diner can hear.

Helena tries so hard to hold back a giggle. It doesn't work very well.

[k39zzz]

Jane smiles. "Good thing we're meeting here today, then. I'd been wondering about that - something as... contentious as this can get isn't, usually."

[damncompass]

"If we weren't meeting at a diner, I probably would have stopped at a Mac's or something." More junk, but it is food. "Yeah, that is a thing that I was wondering. Are meetings generally at a diner of all places? Aren't half of these people... not here for the meeting?"

[k39zzz]

"Closer to a quarter," she says, after looking around the diner. "I don't know why she can't put up a private-party sign when we do this. Probably something about it being bad for business."
But it's frustrating, when there's other business to attend to and Theodora damn well knows it.
"We have been having a lot of them here lately, though. Not sure why."

"The pie, Mrs. Lattimer," Mr. Kosan says, smirking a little at them both before he leaves their corner.

"...Somehow, I'm not surprised."

[damncompass]

"There's business and then there's business.". Joshua is cut off by his boss approaching, smirking then going away. Before he can open his mouth again, however, Theodora comes back with his food and pie.

Digging in, he's distracted for a moment, but as he puts his burger down, he remembers. "Wait. Mrs. Lattimer? As in...."

[k39zzz]

"To be fair, she does tend to cover the tab when she hosts." Odds are Theodora's trying to make up the balance, but really. She could do that with the rest of the day.
In response to Joshua's question, Jane sighs. "Yes, as in. Please don't mention it to Pete - I'm working on it."
(Yes, she knows what that sounds like.)

[damncompass]

Joshua just raises his eyebrows, but says nothing. Generally when someone says that they're 'working on it', Joshua calls bullshit, but he he refrains from commenting in this case. There is such as thing as politeness.

Actually, Theodora might be a pain, but her food really is pretty good.

[k39zzz]

"When you spend 40 years not mentioning something, the first twelve of which you're pretty sure you won't have anything to mention, it's a hard habit to break."
One kid with two parents in high-risk jobs, sure. But two kids? That was the point Jane realised they needed her around, at least.