Think of the day...

[trenchknives]

When; In the evening on Wednesday.
Rating; PG is the highest I can imagine just because Jimmy has a filthy mouth
Characters; Jimmy Darmody & Ruby Flint
Summary; When Jimmy was under the influence of the Years That Never Were curse, he asked Ruby on a date. Tonight, he's going on that date as his normal self. Uh oh...
Log; Even though Jimmy had apparently arranged a date, and had gone as far to as to write it down on a scrap of paper that he set on his table, he didn't remember much about the circumstances surrounding it. If he had, he might have been a little bemused and a lot embarrassed, realizing that he'd not only been completely unlike himself, he'd divulged emotional information about himself, something he rarely did unless under duress.

He vaguely remembered Ruby, or at least thought he did. That day must have been a curse day, but he couldn't for the life of him remember exactly what had happened, except that he'd been a lot more cheerful than normal. Still, there was no way he was going to stand up a pretty woman (she had been pretty, he remembered that) so he walked into the bar, looking around almost apprehensively, his limp as noticeable as ever.

Comments

[spotlighted]

Ruby had been looking forward to this ever since they'd arranged the date. It had been complete chance that she'd quite literally bumped into him, and he'd seemed like such a sweet, thoughtful guy. It had been refreshing, really. She's dressed in her finest and sat at a table poring over some sheet music, which she hurriedly folds and tucks into her purse as she sees him enter, smiling broadly over at him. "Over here!"

[trenchknives]

He limps over to her table, smiling at her. The smile is genuine -- she is as pretty as he remembered, and he'd never turn down a nice drink with someone, even if he doesn't quite remember what made them set up the date in the first place. Dressed in his blue pinstriped suit, he does cut a fine figure, even if his pace as he walks over is a bit slow; his leg has been bothering him lately.

"Hey."

[spotlighted]

She notices his gait and looks a little concerned - he'd walked just fine when she met him before, and she wonders whether he's got into a fight or an accident or something. "You doing okay?"

[trenchknives]

"Huh?"

He genuinely doesn't realize what she's referring to for a moment, and then he looks down at his leg and nods. She must not have noticed the limp when she'd met him before, and that was good, because he didn't like people commenting on it too much.

"Just an old war wound. Nothin' serious."

He sits down at the table.

[spotlighted]

She looks very confused then - you didn't just suddenly develop an old war wound over the space of a few days. And she'd have thought he'd mentioned that he'd been in a war when she mentioned her own experience. She decides to shrug it off, for now at least, the smile returning to her face as he seats himself.

"So, did you finish your book?"

[trenchknives]

The book he had found on his bedside table, and had ended up finishing, although he hadn't remembered starting it in the first place, so he nodded in response to her question. "Yeah, it's a good one. I've been meanin' to get more books."

Some things didn't change -- he still enjoyed reading as much as he'd ever did, though he hadn't made it as far in college.

"What d'you wanna drink?"

[spotlighted]

"I don't even know what books are available here," she admits. It's not something that she'd ever thought to look into, really, although the City doesn't seem to have any of the movies that she'd loved to watch back home. "I've never been much of a reader, but I figure I should probably start reading more. It was kind of sweet, really, seeing just how absorbed in a book you were. And you needn't worry, most of my groceries were just fine."

"I'll take a scotch and soda."

[trenchknives]

"Your... your groceries, right."

Bits and pieces of the meeting were starting to come back to him, something about running into her, spilling her groceries on the ground, apparently because he'd been reading so intently that he hadn't seen where he'd been going. That wasn't like him. Strange.

"There's a library here," he said, happy to know at least that much, "and you can get some good stuff."

Pausing for a moment, he ordered her a scotch and soda, and straight whiskey for himself.

[spotlighted]

"I'll have to look into it. It's been a while since I had as much free time as I do currently, it would be nice to find a book to dive into."

She lights a cigarette before offering him one. "So, what sort of work do you do here, anyway?"

[trenchknives]

He accepts the cigarette with a grateful nod and lights it with his own lighter before answering. "I actually work in a store that sells magic stuff. Y'know, like magical jokes 'n tricks, except they're real magic, not fake magic like we got back home. I didn't believe it was possible, either, but I guess anything's possible around here."

[spotlighted]

"I heard about that sort of stuff when I first got here, but I haven't seen any of it for myself yet - except for these curses, of course. It still blows my mind that something like that's even possible, really." Their drinks arrive and Ruby takes a long sip before turning her attention back to Jimmy. "It sounds like the sort of store where there's never a dull moment, though."

[trenchknives]

He laughs, nodding. "That's one way to put it, yeah. Right around when I started, we had this curse where there was mistletoe everywhere..."

He raises an eyebrow, intending to indicate just how well that went, especially in a store that was already full of magic.

[spotlighted]

She laughs along with him. "I heard about that one. As the curses go, I think that's one I wouldn't have minded, provided I was around people I wouldn't mind getting stuck under the mistletoe with." She smiles a little suggestively there.

[trenchknives]

"Yeah, well, I was stuck with my boss."

And generally kissing your boss is a bad idea, especially if you aren't attracted to said boss. "That said, guess I wouldn't complain if there were a mistletoe curse right about now."

[spotlighted]

Ruby wouldn't mind too much if she was stuck under the mistletoe with her boss, although she thinks he'd probably mind quite a bit.

"I don't think I'd complain too much, either."

[trenchknives]

"'n you're a singer, right?"

He remembers that much of their conversation, and he has to admit, he's curious. He downs the rest of his drink, probably a little too quickly to be entirely polite, and beckons the waiter over for another one. If he's going to figure out what the hell happened when he met her the other day, he might need a couple drinks to get through it.

[spotlighted]

"Yeah, I sing four nights a week, at a little place called Lucky's. I was fortunate in that I could carry that on here, really." Another drag on her cigarette. "I guess there aren't too many jobs here for English majors, but it sounds like you're doing all right for yourself. And it's like I said the other day, it's more important that you're doing something you enjoy."

[trenchknives]

"English majors?"

He pauses under the guise of taking a sip of his new drink to think about this. What had he told her? He wouldn't have deliberately misled her into thinking that he'd graduated college when he clearly hadn't, although English had been his topic of choice, but... he'd had less than a year of college, and he'd made that fairly evident to anyone who asked.

"Y'know, I'm startin' to think there might be somethin' strange goin' on."

[spotlighted]

Her brow furrows in confusion. "What do you mean?"

[trenchknives]

"'cause I kinda remember meetin' you the other day, but then when you saw me tonight, you seemed surprised that I had a limp, 'n I've had that for the last couple of years. 'n you called me an English major, which I guess I was for awhile, but..."

He frowns, too, twirling his glass in his hand absentmindedly. "What other kinda stuff did I tell you the other day?"

[spotlighted]

"You only kind of remember meeting me?" Her face falls considerably. She liked to think that she was unforgettable, it's quite a blow to her ego, especially as she'd been looking forward to this evening so much.

"Let me see now. We talked about the book you were reading, which led into you telling me that you'd graduated from Princeton and majored in literature. I said how wonderful it was that you'd done a subject you enjoyed, even if there were some who considered it useless, and you said that your father agreed - not your real father, but someone you looked up to very much. I couldn't help but think how fortunate you were. Then we arranged to meet for a drink - that part you seemed to remember, at least."

[trenchknives]

"Well, no, I mean, I remember talkin' to you, how could I forget someone like you?" He can see the way her face falls, and he hastens to make her feel better. He really does remember her face, and remembers liking her -- and asking her for a drink -- but he doesn't remember what they talked about. Still, he doesn't want to make her uncomfortable, even if he's feeling a little uncomfortable himself.

"The thing is... that wasn't me. Or I mean, I guess it was me, 'cause I remember some of it now that you mention it, but..."

He sighs, resting his chin on his hand for a moment.

[spotlighted]

Her expression turns cold. "If you thought that making up those kinds of stories would impress me, you were sorely mistaken. I like to think that I take people for who they are - goodness knows I want them to do the same for me - and it's hurtful that you would do something like that."

[trenchknives]

He shakes his head. "No, no, I didn't make up anythin'. That's what I'm sayin'. I don't know why I woulda said that kinda stuff, except that it coulda been a curse. Believe me, that isn't the kinda stuff I'd've wanted to say, anyway. It doesn't impress me, either."

Especially anything about his father.

[spotlighted]

The idea that it could have been a curse hadn't even occurred to her until he mentions it. She sighs and looks contemptuously out the window at the City beyond. "I shall never get used to this place. Some curses I'm learning to recognize pretty quickly, but something like that..." She shakes her head. "Well, was any of it true? I don't want to keep you here if you didn't really mean to ask me out."