The Muse {In Character} (ChanceEncounter & Illuminate)

[Illuminate]

((*waves him over whenever he's ready to post in*))

[Illuminate]

Abigail Gerard

Location: New York City {The Muse Coffee Shoppe}

Time: 8:00AM

"Thanks dad, I'll give you a call later today, okay? Tell mom I love her. Thanks. Bye, dad."

The line fell dead, and Abby pressed a chilled thumb to the worn button; hanging up as well. The phone was old-school compared to the spiffy iphones everyone carried around. Just a simple press-button mobile divide that fit perfectly in her pocket, didn't break when dropped, and certainly didn't short out if it got a little wet. Perfect for her line of work. She slid it into the pocket of her coat, coming up on the coffee shop she frequented almost daily on the way to work or school. Today it was work, and she wore her scrubs beneath the layer of her coat. Only the faded sea-foam color of a medical student.. Nothing bright and tangy. The coffee shop was nestled into the bustle of New York , it didn't look like much, save for the vinyl lettering depicting its very own identity in the midst of a cookie cutter city. The Muse, scripted in a series of peaks and dips in cursive harmony with Coffee Shoppe detailed in typewriter blocks and much smaller letters just below. A hand reached for the door, pushing it inward for entrance, and the ding of a bell announced her arrival.

The coffee shop was busy today, with a line of five or six individuals all wrapped up in coats and hoods waiting for their beverage of choice and perhaps a warm freshly baked muffin. Aside from this, there were the usual customers seated in the various booths, and tables strewn across the small interior. The door fell shut, and the barista behind the counter called out her name upon recognizing her.

"Abby! Mornin' hun."

She was greeted with a smile on the face of old Marge; the owner of the bustling business. Abby waved, returning a bright grin as she approached the counter space.

"Good morning Miss Marge." Her voice was easy to listen to; soft and friendly.

"It's cold out there, darlin'. What'll you have this morning?" Marge leaned elbows to the counter, waiting for Abby's order.

"Think I'll just have a hot chocolate today. Can you add whipped creme on top?"

Miss Marge chuckled, and with a nod was off to make the requested drink for Abby.

Abby smiled. The woman was right.. The chilled air had seeped right through her scrub pants, and was leaving goosebumps all the way down the length of her legs. She loved that woman though. Miss Marge reminded her of a grandma, one of those women that just drew you in, and you never wanted to leave. She was probably the only reason Abby even stopped in so often. Stepping back from the counter, she waited for her drink while picking up a paper from the stand near the door. The front cover depicted a man in his sixties, someone of ill importance, though he had just won the lottery and in turn his fifteen minutes to fame. Turning from the paper, azure hues rested on the scene unfolding. A bit of a people watcher, she was more than content to sit back and enjoy the interaction produced by those individuals within the shop. Across the way sat an elderly couple at a table; situated across from each other, she folded her arms across her middle as she watched. The old man had just brought their drinks to the table, and they were sharing one of Marge's holiday pumpkin spice muffins. By far the best ones in all of New York. It was like a hallmark movie between the two of them, one that left you grinning for days in remembrance of what that one special little scene.

Another customer entered with a ring of the door-bell, and Abby stepped off further to the side and out of the way.

[ChanceEncounter]

The young man who entered resembled a turtle more than a person at this point in time, with a backpack stuffed to the gills hanging high on his back. The hood of his heavy winter coat was up, and as he walked, one could hear the strain in his voice. It was apparent he'd been lugging the backpack a significant distance, and once in front of the counter he removed it from his shoulders, sighing in no small amount of relief.

He wasn't a local, it seemed, but the barista greeted him with a friendly smile anyway.

"I'll have a mocha," he said, still panting heavily from the exertion of what seemed to be a very long walk. "Largest one you have. Weather's getting awful out there, so I'll probably be here for a while."

The barista chuckled, but nodded by way of reply, gesturing over to the nearby tables. His hand was halfway to his wallet when he realized that this was a table service cafe. His head cocked to one side, but he nodded at Marge and began to drag his heavy backpack out of the way of any further customers. Order of business one was to slide his backpack under the nearest table he could find. With that taken care of, he pulled back the hood of his coat, revealing short brown hair and a face that was bright red from the cold. He reached up to wipe melted snow from his glasses, and finally let his shoulders relax, a sigh of relief escaping his throat as he began to survey the coffee shop.

"Didn't think I'd make it here," he murmured, to himself, looking over the elderly couple as they enjoyed their drinks, and then to a younger face, closer to his age, or at least he thought so.

He smiled at her and waved. He'd be here for a while, at this rate, and considering his cell phone was out of battery and his backpack was packed primarily with clothes for what was to have been a trip home, company would be ideal. He'd avoided freezing to death; the risk of death by boredom was only slightly less serious.

[Illuminate]

At the start, Abby didn't pay special mind to the newest customer to enter, figuring him to be yet another college student by the looks of his overloaded backpack. In her experience, they came for the 'fad' of coffee shop breakfasts and a cup-on-the-go. He approached the counter, and Marge took his order just like she did for anyone else.  With a smile, and a soft bubbling chuckle. If one thing was certain, one would be treated as family no matter who they were, or where they came from.

Abby waited patiently for her hot chocolate, and almost simultaneously, she caught the wave of the young man just as Marge appeared with her drink in hand. Flashing him a smile, she held up a finger signifying her apology and took the cup from the counterspace.

"Thanks, Miss Marge. Abby proffered a warm smile. Miss Marge had caught the friendly gesture as well, and curled those knowing lips into a coy grin.

"You be careful now, Abby. Marge winked, and returned to filling other orders.

Abby chuckled, shaking her head. Marge was gone before she could reply, so she dropped the topic. Twenty-five, and uncommitted, Marge knew this and was really the only 'protective' caring person she had here in the big city. Mom and dad lived four states away in Virginia, and between work and school, Abby didn't have much time for socializing. Turning toward the table, she took her time in shuffling toward him. She reached the table with a fair amount of ease despite the growing line of awaiting customers.

"Hi! You're new to the area, aren't you? Lips curled, and she pushed a chair back, dropping her slender frame into it.

[ChanceEncounter]

He was clearly exhausted, both mentally and physically, by the day's travails. For that reason, he didn't mind just sitting, listening to the shop's Christmas music, and trying to get his bearings back. When the young woman he'd waved to smiled at him, he returned the grin, and shifted his seat over a bit to allow her room if she wanted to sit.

"Kind of," he admitted, in response to her inquiry. "I've been in the city for about a semester for grad school. Was on my way to the train station, but I got off at the wrong subway stop and have been wandering for about...twenty minutes." He took a look outside, as the snow continued to come down. "Not a bad thing, as it turns out. If it gets much worse than this I can't imagine my train would be leaving today to begin with."

He had been "looking forward" to a six hour train trip back home to Virginia, but that had been put to a halt by the weather.

"Feel free to pull up a chair," he offered, friendly enough as he watched the barista bring his drink over to him. Thanking her, he took his large cup, and placed it down before him, his eyes lighting up at the warm beverage. "Looks like we're going to be in here for a while, Miss--" and his voice trailed off. "Sorry, I'm forgetting my manners. I'm Jonathan, or Jon, whichever you'd prefer."

[Illuminate]

Abby had about an hour before she had to be at the hospital two blocks away, and so figured it would be okay to take a breath from the constant ongoings of her life if even for a few minutes. Sometimes busy-ness had her so caught up in getting to the next thing that she often forgot what it was to experience a good conversation, rather than just watching one unfold. Placing her cup on the table so she could undo her jacket, she dropped the zipper

"You're from Virginia too?" Ocean depths lit up with interest as she slipped her arms from her coat and rested it about her waist in the chair. She wasn't going home this year because of the job she had landed at the hospital, though she missed the familiarity terribly. The smell of mom's cooking, and the warmth of dad's arms. It was enough to practically make her nostalgic. In truth, it did make her nostalgic.. "My folks live there. I moved here to go to N-Y-U." Slender digits wrapped around the base of her warmed cup, and she brought it to pursed lips, taking a sip as it were. The chocolate was rich, just like she loved, and the whipped creme had melted to a frothy consistency that now coated her tongue in something of a winter ecstasy. "What are you majoring in, if you don't mind my asking?" She swallowed, taking another sip before settling the cup back once again to the surface of the table.

Marge brought him a drink just then, and Abby smiled innocently up at her while Marge gave her a warning wink as she turned around. yeah, yeah. Attentions returned to the face opposite her, and she studied the contours of his features for a moment before he spoke up again. Taking note of the exhaustion lining his brow, and the way his physique slumped ever so slightly with the weight of fatigue. Smiling, she extended a hand. "Abby. Just Abby. Nice to make the acquaintance, Jon."

[ChanceEncounter]

Jonathan smiled at her, and nodded in agreement. "Yes, Richmond, to be exact," he said, scratching his chin for a moment. "It's a lot smaller than New York City, that's for sure. Overwhelming being here, even after a few months."

Watching her drink was pleasant. This was largely because she herself was pleasant, with a soft voice and a nice tenor to listen to. Most of his time was spent studying; he hadn't had this little social interaction in forever.

"Masters in political science," he replied to her question, without missing a beat."So, SO much more work than I thought. Afraid I'm going to lose my mind."

With his drink arrived, he nodded gratefully at Marge, listening to Abby as she spoke and taking a long, slow drink from his warm mocha. It warmed him as it went down his throat; even the steam hitting his face a pleasant respite as feeling began to return to his fingers and toes. Jon extended his hand, shaking it firmly with a friendly smile on his face. "The pleasure's all mine," he replied, looking up at her. She wasn't at all unpleasant to look at, he noted, taking another sip of his beverage. "It's nice to have company on such an awful day."

[Illuminate]

Richmond. She knew the place, and smiled in acknowledgment. "Yeah. Big cities aren't my thing either, but for now its home." Digits curled around the arch of the cup, and tips tapped out a tune similar to the song playing across the speaker system. "For another year at least. I graduate next May." Jon mentioned political science, and Abby's brow quirked in slight curiosity. It wasn't really an area that she knew well. Or at all for that matter. Though she knew the feeling of loosing her mind. Her mind wandered off often, and she was always trying to find it again and bring it back to the present. To the books, and to the work at hand. "So, what does that entail?" She asked, raking her free hand through blonde tendrils. "Political Science, that is."

The weather had turned sour, and snow spit against the window they sat near; leaving distinct snowflakes that sizzled on contact into drops of water. Drops rolled down the pane, collecting at the bottom in a singular pile of slush. The breakfast crowd was slowly trickling out as time waned, and Abby stole a glance at the old analoged clock situated above the shelf behind the register. The small hand reaching midway of the 8 and 9 while the long hand stretched toward the scripted six there at the bottom. Eight thirty. Still a few more minutes. She was honestly enjoying herself, regardless of the time crunch. Perhaps she would do this more often; talk to random strangers while waiting for her drink every morning. There wasn't much else by way of socializing, and being intentional about her interactions would probably prove to be beneficial.

Brilliant blue hues trimmed the rim of Jon's glasses, to the bridge of his nose, and even down the side of his face to the way his chin shifted when he spoke. She smiled inwardly, finding his appearance to be an uncanny resemblance of Harry Potter. Even the way he reacted, and acted mirrored the teenage star. This didn't bother her, moreso made her aware that she very well 'could' be in the presence of his stunt double.

[ChanceEncounter]

Jon smiled, listening to her speak. He presumed she was from a bit further in the country than he'd been, just from her mannerisms. She would also graduate before he would, at this rate.

"It's a lot of different things all rolled up into one. Study of government and elections, things like that, only with a more scientific tint to it. Looking at facts and figures, demographics, things like that. If you read any of Nate Silver during the recent campaign, a lot of what he does qualifies." Election time was always busy for political scientists, and even as a student, the elections had provided lots of data and material to study, and made for an exciting, yet very, very busy semester.

He was content to sip his coffee and watch her watching him. She was looking at him very intently, in a way he wasn't quite used to. As far as he was concerned, he tended to blend into surroundings for the most part. Still, he didn't mind. Having an eager audience was nice -- particularly so when that audience was a lovely young blonde.

"So," he began, grinning, "You know what I do. Your turn to spill!"

[Illuminate]

Abby listened intently to the description of Jon's college major. Quite impressed, really that he even ventured to understand it, let alone learn more about this area of expertise and then make it a career... Or in the very least; worthy of a degree. Perhaps it was the difference in location. Richmond tended to be a bit more on the up-and-up when compared to her small hometown. Goode literally consisted of a single stop-light, and a convenience store with expensive fuel. The rest was farm land, and newly established developments. Or it simply boiled down to the difference of personalities. Likes and dislikes.. These are often what shape a person. Their decisions are thusly based upon those very same likes and dislikes, and their careers choices often follow the same path. She didn't know who Nate Silver was, but just to sate her curiosity, she'd probably go look him up when she returned home for the night. She assumed that with the elections just recently concluded; his study-load would lighten somewhat in the coming months.

Jon took a sip of his coffee, and a smile unfurled upon Abby's lips. "To be honest, that doesn't sound the least bit appealing..." She wrinkled her nose with a small bubble of laughter. Obviously she hadn't meant this as a jab-- simply stating that this wasn't her area of expertise, and probably for no other reason than the fact that she just didn't understand it.
Jon asked what she did, and a blush flourished in the bulbs of her cheeks. Light pink hues mingling with the pale canvas of her flesh. "I'm just a CNA right now.. Going to school for my nursing degree. Nothing too exciting." it was then that she looked back up at the clock. Five minutes to nine! How had the time flown by so fast? "Speaking of: I've gotta get to the hospital. So sorry to chat and leave." her blush deepened to crimson as she hurriedly began putting on her jacket. A thought crossed her mind, and she tried brushing it off, grabbing her cup of coffee. No.. She would. "This is crazy... I know I just met you, but I really enjoyed our talk." Abby snatched a napkin from a dispenser on the table, and grabbed a pen (from somewhere... Dunno where it's coming from. xD) "Here's my number.. Give me a call sometime! I'd love to do coffee again." Jotting down her number, she left the napkin on the table in front of Jon, and turned to leave; giving him a broad smile, and a wave before she exited, and raced down the street to work.