Post by Matt Knox "The Raven" on Oct 11, 2020 0:17:04 GMT -5
The Silver Moon diner was a different animal in the daytime. Free of neon lights, it was just a block of reflective chrome and baby blue. The sunlight would be glimmering from its surface, had it not been blotted out by the gray Baltimore skies. The parking lot itself was empty, save for a rather conspicuous black 1972 Jaguar XJ12 with California plates.
Inside the place was empty. Behind the counter an older gentleman was counting a stack of bills for what would have been the dozenth time. The large man had come in and paid a full day’s worth of sales for him to close up, except for a short guest list during the lunch rush. And he meant pre-pandemic sales.
At a booth, Matthew Knox sat with his eyes half closed, contemplative and quiet. In front of him, a glass of iced tea and a half devoured reuben sandwich.
Mia had never been one for fancy cars. In fact, if she had always had a knack for picking out old Subaru station wagons and making them her own. Her current incarnation, a midnight blue, four door, comes to a stop in one of the corners of the diner’s parking lot. She eyed the Jaguar curiously, but disregarded it, it wasn’t anything that she wanted to contend with. The fancier the car, the more that could go wrong with it. She stays seated, puffing on her e-cig and blowing the air out, watching it disperse within the confines of her car. She felt her heart beating through her chest, it wasn’t everyday that you met people to try and befriend, half of which didn’t have the best of pasts with. Getting out Mia takes another hit, pacing for several seconds before exhaling. Marching to the front of the building, Mia glances sidelong through the glass and only sees Matt Knox waiting patiently by himself. Breathing a sigh of relief that she didn’t have to go in and be on her heels already, Mia takes one last deep breath off her e-cig and savors it before exhaling and entering the building after putting her mask on. Upon entering, Mia is met with the smells and sounds associated with a small hole in the wall diner. The sights, sounds, and smells that always carries the promise of amazing home cooked food and amazing pie to follow. Nostalgia takes hold of Mia briefly but she shakes it away with a shudder. Now wasn’t the time to go down those particular rabbit holes.
Walking silently up to Knox’s table, she slides quietly opposite him, taking the same paper bag out and putting it on the table next to the window. Eyeing Knox, she nods in greeting before saying, “Was going to apologize for running late, but it looks like I’m right on time.” Matthew responds with a small smile, and nod. He rubs his face, which upon closer inspection shows all the telltale signs of having not slept. His right arm is in a cast which has been heavily doodled upon, and his hair is pulled back in a loose ponytail.
“They’ll get here soon, i’m sure of it. Unless Adrienne has tripped and fallen down a manhole somewhere.” He pays his own joke a small chuckle, and Mia smiles slightly, awkwardly. She realizes in that moment that up until now, she had never really reached out to get to know people outside of The Forsaken. What exactly was she doing? She blinks at Knox, unsure how to proceed but then realizes the effects of her THC pen were starting to take hold and her stomach grumbles unhappily. Oh yeah, it had been a little bit before she ate. “So… What’s good here?”
“The Key Lime pie is like a sexual experience. Everything else is wonderfully greasy, and unhealthy. I’d go with whatever your trainer told you never to eat again.” He smiles friendlily at this, leaning back into the booth and taking a drink of his iced tea, “I’d like to come here after smoking a bit of California green, but then I'd never fit back into my ring pants.”
Hearing the mention of the green stuff, Mia relaxes a bit. Former smoker or not, it has been Mia’s experience that anyone who smoked pot was a person that could be trusted. Looking over at a nearby menu, Mia orders some hash browns, covered in cheese, onion, and ham, with a grilled cheese with dill pickles on it. A vanilla shake with a glass of water completes the order, but her eye never leaves the case filled with various pies.
Presently, a sleek, jet black Dodge Challenger pulled into the Silver Moon’s parking lot. It was pristine, the sun glinting off the curves. It also had a small green sticker with a stylized white ‘E’ affixed to the back.
The bell on the door rang as Mitch Heart strode in, shooting off a text as he walked before flopping unceremoniously into the booth.
“Hey, Knox. Hey, A--”
His gaze shot up, eyeing the unfamiliar- to him, anyway- woman across the table, his head swivelling to the older man with a raised brow. His body seemed to tense somewhat, losing the relaxed demeanor it had before.
“...Knox? Thought it was just gonna be you, me, and Ade.”
Obviously this was the Mitch Heart Knox had been talking about. Mia looks him up and down while taking a drink, setting down her glass and washing it down with a swig from her milkshake. She smiles politely after wiping her mouth off and stands, offering her hand to Mitch in the process.
“The name is Mia. I uhm… Come in peace?”
“She’s good people, Mitch. Comes in peace, bearing gifts,” He waves a hand “I wouldn’t have brought her here if I thought it was shady. Had to be semi secretive because..well. Ade DDT’d her last time they saw each other. But after she says her piece, it’ll just be the three of us. Swear.”
Mia takes her seat again and pulls her shake close to her, taking another swig and savoring the sweetness. “Speaking of… Where’s the last member of this wonderful party of ours?”
A hooded figure on a beat up 10 speed cruised by slowly. That person had taken a few moments trying to secure a chain around the frame and a nearby light pole. That person was Adrienne. She stuck out like a sore thumb with knock off Jackie O’s, hoodie, and leggings. Entering the diner, she had seemed to come right into some tense standoff with the expected company and someone she had only met in a tense and physical encounter a few months back. Keeping her hands in her hoodie pockets, Adrienne stepped towards the occupied table.
“Hello?”
“Hey.”
Mitch looked relieved to be in mostly familiar company, and yet, despite that and Knox’s vouching, he still seemed on edge, his hands gripping the sleeves of his red and white Anthony Mantha jersey, occasionally picking up his phone and checking it before putting it back down again.
“So… what’s going on?”
Taking a sip of his iced tea, Matt motioned with his hand before speaking “Mia, I believe this is your cue. And Hi Ade. Nice hoodie!” he remarks, before settling in. He felt like he’d need to smooth this over after, but hopefully Mia would make his job a little easier.
Adrienne took a seat next across from Mia and Mitch. She took off her shades as it would have been rude to have them with company.
“Right. So…” Mia puts her the shake she was working on down. “Don’t know how closely anyone has paid attention, but several weeks ago, our kind and benevolent DICKtator, C$J put a bounty on my head; or Amelia’s to be precise.” She pauses and shifts her weight, uncomfortable with all eyes on her but soldiers forward, “So when I took hold of my own contract from C$J, I also went back and claimed the bounty on myself.” She pushes the paper bag into the middle of the table and waits dramatically, working on her shake as she does so and finally finishing it up. “Ten thousand dollars right there gentlemen and lady. C$J gave me quite the contract and I’m sure he’s regretting that decision now. I don’t need the money and I want to make sure at least a little bit goes to the people on the roster that actually DESERVE to have good things happen to them every once in a while.” She shrugs, “So I went to Knox since I’ve only met him and asked him about who deserves this kind of payday. Lo and behold the two of you were the names he said without hesitation. So, I’m here to gift you both with the contents of that very bag.”
She sits back and casts another glance at the pie case, wondering exactly what kinds there were, but decides to wait until after her food shows up. She eyes Mitch; deciding to get it in a “to go” container seems to be the best bet.
Adrienne broke the silence. While that last encounter had been violent, a lot of things had happened recently. And maybe it would be worth just hearing her out.
“...a bounty? Like to hurt you?”
Mia’s eyes snap back to the woman in front of her and shrugs her shoulders. “Yeah, I guess. ‘Take me out’ as it were. It’s not the first time something like this has happened and probably won’t be the last. But…?” She raises her arms and smiles at the trio, “Each of them have failed and I am still alive and healthy in front of you.”
“...I don’t want any of it.”
Mitch’s words were practically a mumble, his gaze flicking from the tabletop to the bag of cash and back. Part of him did. Part of him really did. But he could practically see the strings attached. Nobody gives away that kind of scratch for free, least his logic said so.
“I can take care of myself. Thanks.”
“Maybe Mitch means,” Adrienne interjected, “Is someone going to be looking for this? I haven’t really met this guy but he’s out there putting bounties on his own employees and it's rumored that the Stan guy who was stalking me was hired just for those sort of purposes.”
Mia’s face turns sour at the mention of Stan’s name, “Inspector Stan is no mas. Turns out he wasn’t cut out for in ring work and hasn’t been seen since he was in the ring with Amelia and that other chick whose name escapes me.” Mia thinks on it for a second and shrugs, “Don’t really care at the moment. In terms of people looking for that bag of money? You have nothing to worry about. In the state of Maryland, permission is required to place a bounty on anyone, let alone a current employee. C$J had no such thing and was all talk. I’m sure the punishment for doing such a thing, ESPECIALLY had anything happen to me, would be steep and all it took was a little prodding with that info for him to drop the bounty and give me the money. What happens to it from here? Not his concern.”
Matthew, through all this has remained silent and taken to rolling a cigarette between his thumb and forefinger, listening intently. He does eventually speak, not long after Mia finishes, “Okay, but Christopher isn’t an idiot. Much as he plays one on TV. He probably didn’t give a shit about legality before, and now? I imagine he just wants to hurt people,” Matt adjusts in his seat, a frown taking over his features “The money, you two take it if you want it but Mia if anyone asks either you say you kept it, burned it, or hell. You gave it to me.”
He shakes his head, disgusted, “Sorry Mitch, Ade. Didn’t know there was this much attached to it.”
Adrienne considered all of this. Every time she tried to drop a line about her contract situation, it was summarily ignored. Maybe she wasn’t being aggressive enough. Despite being in a fortunate situation, her wallet still was coughing mothballs. Her fingers apprehensively touched the bag.
“Mia. I’m thankful that you considered us. I can’t understand what you’re going through with this but perhaps Mitch and I will talk about this privately. It’s a big decision.”
She paused, looking at Mia directly. Adrienne didn’t have the best knowledge of what had been going on. However what she saw was a conscious effort to reach out. To just have someone to talk to possibly.
“In the meantime, don’t be a stranger.”
Mia nods and stands to leave. “Just… I didn’t come here to get anyone in trouble, I didn’t come here to set anyone up for a downfall. I’m not walking out of here with that bag. For all I care, you can leave it there, you can toss it to the next panhandler you see, hell you can even leave it for the next lucky patron. I promise each of you…” She looks at each one, her gaze lingering on Adrienne perhaps a second longer, “I wasn’t lying when I said that I come in peace.” She winks and proceeds to head up the the register, cashing out for her food and ordering a slice of the peanut butter pie to go.
Matthew watches Mia depart, before turning his attention to Ade and Mitch “Sorry I sprung that on you two. Didn’t know if you’d have heard her out otherwise.” he explains, shifting in his seat.
“Would’ve been nice to know. But it’s cool.”
He exhales, the iron curtain around him seeming to lift, his posture relaxing as he flags down a waitress for some coconut cake and coffee.
“Sorry about the phone, and me being late, I was just getting set up at the hotel, making sure Pen’s settling in okay. Kid’s having a ball, you’d think we were at Disneyland. Gotta bring her back some of that sugar-free cherry pie though.”
Sighing, he poked at the bag of cash.
“So yeah. I guess we have to think of something to do with this fu-- this thing.”
"Well, you got options. None of which is her taking it back, though," he sighs, rubbing the bridge of his nose "How are you two holding up, anyway? Feel like it's been ages."
“Okay. Like I said, you shoulda seen Pen on the way here. Had her cute lil’ nose pressed to the window the whole time, even the real boring parts. She can’t wait to meet all of you- ‘specially you, Ade- but I thought it’d be best she just rest up after all that excitement.”
Mitch chuckled fondly in spite of himself, thanking the waitress for the cake and coffee before setting to filling the mug the rest of the way with cream.
Adrienne smiled at that. She had exchanged a few brief calls with Mitch’s little sister. The first was her thanking Ade for the signed chair. Others were just brief small talk. Adrienne would listen, answer her questions, tell her a little bit about herself and they’d be right as rain. Looking to Matt, she replied honestly, “I haven’t slept well recently but maybe it's just nerves. I talked to Axton recently. I don’t expect you two to understand but,” she paused, twirling a lock of her hair around her finger, “things will be okay eventually.”
"I try not to think of Gunn. But your optimism is refreshing" his gaze shifts to Mitch, "She ever traveled this far? Even that boring shit was new awesome to us, the first few times at least."
“No, never.”
Mitch shook his head, plucking the vibrant red cherry off the top of his cake with two fingers and popping it into his mouth.
“Never really had the means to take much of a vacation. Did scrape together enough to take her to Michigan’s Adventure once. She rode every ride she wasn’t too short for and couldn’t have been happier if she’d been a millionaire’s kid.”
He seemed happy, speaking this way. As if merely mentioning happy memories with his kid sister briefly was enough to cut through dozens of hardened layers of cynicism and strife. It seemed to slide back into place as he changed subjects, though.
“Anyway. I try not to think of Axton a ton either, but if he was cool to you? Maybe there’s hope for the kid yet. Or maybe you’re just good at bringing out people’s chill. It’s a nice quality to have.”
“I’m personally going to be putting my confidence in the latter,” Matt spoke with the bluntness that either endeared him, or made him one of the more infuriating people on the roster “But, on to happier stuff. Not as happy as Pen and her world travels, I confess,” he paused, paying Mitch a smile.
Knox enjoyed seeing The Broken so...together? Talking about his kid sister was like a whole new person. Made him almost as bubbly as Ade could be, “Divorce should be final, and after a lot...a lot of liquidation, and dealing with lawyers and bankers and people who make C$J look like the paragon of virtue and ethics...I am officially homeless, and looking to move to Baltimore, as keeping with the trend Ade has set.”
“To be fair, I sort of ran away.”
Adrienne knew how ridiculous that sounded but she wasn’t too sure how to put it.
“It was the only way.” She cleared her throat before continuing, “But, this is good, right? Closure?”
“Yeah. And, lets face it. If I haven’t tanned by now, it’s never gonna happen. No, I think the drear suits me much better.” He said thoughtfully, staring out the window and not-so-subtly dodging the deeper question posed, “Come on, lets eat up. If neither of you two take that, we’ll call it a tip.”
Adrienne eyed the bag. Then Mitch. Then back to the bag.
“Some of it could help, Mitch.”
Mitch gave a glance to his left, then his right. Out the window. Mia was long gone. The bag was just sitting there. Nobody was offering it directly now. She wouldn’t know.
As surreptitiously as possible, Mitch snagged a few stacks of bills from the back, jamming them in his hoodie pocket, going back to cake and conversation as if nothing had happened.
Matthew took a beat to watch Ade and Mitch talk, a smile creeping onto his face as he lifts the reuben to take a bite. Yeah..
This was home.
Inside the place was empty. Behind the counter an older gentleman was counting a stack of bills for what would have been the dozenth time. The large man had come in and paid a full day’s worth of sales for him to close up, except for a short guest list during the lunch rush. And he meant pre-pandemic sales.
At a booth, Matthew Knox sat with his eyes half closed, contemplative and quiet. In front of him, a glass of iced tea and a half devoured reuben sandwich.
Mia had never been one for fancy cars. In fact, if she had always had a knack for picking out old Subaru station wagons and making them her own. Her current incarnation, a midnight blue, four door, comes to a stop in one of the corners of the diner’s parking lot. She eyed the Jaguar curiously, but disregarded it, it wasn’t anything that she wanted to contend with. The fancier the car, the more that could go wrong with it. She stays seated, puffing on her e-cig and blowing the air out, watching it disperse within the confines of her car. She felt her heart beating through her chest, it wasn’t everyday that you met people to try and befriend, half of which didn’t have the best of pasts with. Getting out Mia takes another hit, pacing for several seconds before exhaling. Marching to the front of the building, Mia glances sidelong through the glass and only sees Matt Knox waiting patiently by himself. Breathing a sigh of relief that she didn’t have to go in and be on her heels already, Mia takes one last deep breath off her e-cig and savors it before exhaling and entering the building after putting her mask on. Upon entering, Mia is met with the smells and sounds associated with a small hole in the wall diner. The sights, sounds, and smells that always carries the promise of amazing home cooked food and amazing pie to follow. Nostalgia takes hold of Mia briefly but she shakes it away with a shudder. Now wasn’t the time to go down those particular rabbit holes.
Walking silently up to Knox’s table, she slides quietly opposite him, taking the same paper bag out and putting it on the table next to the window. Eyeing Knox, she nods in greeting before saying, “Was going to apologize for running late, but it looks like I’m right on time.” Matthew responds with a small smile, and nod. He rubs his face, which upon closer inspection shows all the telltale signs of having not slept. His right arm is in a cast which has been heavily doodled upon, and his hair is pulled back in a loose ponytail.
“They’ll get here soon, i’m sure of it. Unless Adrienne has tripped and fallen down a manhole somewhere.” He pays his own joke a small chuckle, and Mia smiles slightly, awkwardly. She realizes in that moment that up until now, she had never really reached out to get to know people outside of The Forsaken. What exactly was she doing? She blinks at Knox, unsure how to proceed but then realizes the effects of her THC pen were starting to take hold and her stomach grumbles unhappily. Oh yeah, it had been a little bit before she ate. “So… What’s good here?”
“The Key Lime pie is like a sexual experience. Everything else is wonderfully greasy, and unhealthy. I’d go with whatever your trainer told you never to eat again.” He smiles friendlily at this, leaning back into the booth and taking a drink of his iced tea, “I’d like to come here after smoking a bit of California green, but then I'd never fit back into my ring pants.”
Hearing the mention of the green stuff, Mia relaxes a bit. Former smoker or not, it has been Mia’s experience that anyone who smoked pot was a person that could be trusted. Looking over at a nearby menu, Mia orders some hash browns, covered in cheese, onion, and ham, with a grilled cheese with dill pickles on it. A vanilla shake with a glass of water completes the order, but her eye never leaves the case filled with various pies.
Presently, a sleek, jet black Dodge Challenger pulled into the Silver Moon’s parking lot. It was pristine, the sun glinting off the curves. It also had a small green sticker with a stylized white ‘E’ affixed to the back.
The bell on the door rang as Mitch Heart strode in, shooting off a text as he walked before flopping unceremoniously into the booth.
“Hey, Knox. Hey, A--”
His gaze shot up, eyeing the unfamiliar- to him, anyway- woman across the table, his head swivelling to the older man with a raised brow. His body seemed to tense somewhat, losing the relaxed demeanor it had before.
“...Knox? Thought it was just gonna be you, me, and Ade.”
Obviously this was the Mitch Heart Knox had been talking about. Mia looks him up and down while taking a drink, setting down her glass and washing it down with a swig from her milkshake. She smiles politely after wiping her mouth off and stands, offering her hand to Mitch in the process.
“The name is Mia. I uhm… Come in peace?”
“She’s good people, Mitch. Comes in peace, bearing gifts,” He waves a hand “I wouldn’t have brought her here if I thought it was shady. Had to be semi secretive because..well. Ade DDT’d her last time they saw each other. But after she says her piece, it’ll just be the three of us. Swear.”
Mia takes her seat again and pulls her shake close to her, taking another swig and savoring the sweetness. “Speaking of… Where’s the last member of this wonderful party of ours?”
A hooded figure on a beat up 10 speed cruised by slowly. That person had taken a few moments trying to secure a chain around the frame and a nearby light pole. That person was Adrienne. She stuck out like a sore thumb with knock off Jackie O’s, hoodie, and leggings. Entering the diner, she had seemed to come right into some tense standoff with the expected company and someone she had only met in a tense and physical encounter a few months back. Keeping her hands in her hoodie pockets, Adrienne stepped towards the occupied table.
“Hello?”
“Hey.”
Mitch looked relieved to be in mostly familiar company, and yet, despite that and Knox’s vouching, he still seemed on edge, his hands gripping the sleeves of his red and white Anthony Mantha jersey, occasionally picking up his phone and checking it before putting it back down again.
“So… what’s going on?”
Taking a sip of his iced tea, Matt motioned with his hand before speaking “Mia, I believe this is your cue. And Hi Ade. Nice hoodie!” he remarks, before settling in. He felt like he’d need to smooth this over after, but hopefully Mia would make his job a little easier.
Adrienne took a seat next across from Mia and Mitch. She took off her shades as it would have been rude to have them with company.
“Right. So…” Mia puts her the shake she was working on down. “Don’t know how closely anyone has paid attention, but several weeks ago, our kind and benevolent DICKtator, C$J put a bounty on my head; or Amelia’s to be precise.” She pauses and shifts her weight, uncomfortable with all eyes on her but soldiers forward, “So when I took hold of my own contract from C$J, I also went back and claimed the bounty on myself.” She pushes the paper bag into the middle of the table and waits dramatically, working on her shake as she does so and finally finishing it up. “Ten thousand dollars right there gentlemen and lady. C$J gave me quite the contract and I’m sure he’s regretting that decision now. I don’t need the money and I want to make sure at least a little bit goes to the people on the roster that actually DESERVE to have good things happen to them every once in a while.” She shrugs, “So I went to Knox since I’ve only met him and asked him about who deserves this kind of payday. Lo and behold the two of you were the names he said without hesitation. So, I’m here to gift you both with the contents of that very bag.”
She sits back and casts another glance at the pie case, wondering exactly what kinds there were, but decides to wait until after her food shows up. She eyes Mitch; deciding to get it in a “to go” container seems to be the best bet.
Adrienne broke the silence. While that last encounter had been violent, a lot of things had happened recently. And maybe it would be worth just hearing her out.
“...a bounty? Like to hurt you?”
Mia’s eyes snap back to the woman in front of her and shrugs her shoulders. “Yeah, I guess. ‘Take me out’ as it were. It’s not the first time something like this has happened and probably won’t be the last. But…?” She raises her arms and smiles at the trio, “Each of them have failed and I am still alive and healthy in front of you.”
“...I don’t want any of it.”
Mitch’s words were practically a mumble, his gaze flicking from the tabletop to the bag of cash and back. Part of him did. Part of him really did. But he could practically see the strings attached. Nobody gives away that kind of scratch for free, least his logic said so.
“I can take care of myself. Thanks.”
“Maybe Mitch means,” Adrienne interjected, “Is someone going to be looking for this? I haven’t really met this guy but he’s out there putting bounties on his own employees and it's rumored that the Stan guy who was stalking me was hired just for those sort of purposes.”
Mia’s face turns sour at the mention of Stan’s name, “Inspector Stan is no mas. Turns out he wasn’t cut out for in ring work and hasn’t been seen since he was in the ring with Amelia and that other chick whose name escapes me.” Mia thinks on it for a second and shrugs, “Don’t really care at the moment. In terms of people looking for that bag of money? You have nothing to worry about. In the state of Maryland, permission is required to place a bounty on anyone, let alone a current employee. C$J had no such thing and was all talk. I’m sure the punishment for doing such a thing, ESPECIALLY had anything happen to me, would be steep and all it took was a little prodding with that info for him to drop the bounty and give me the money. What happens to it from here? Not his concern.”
Matthew, through all this has remained silent and taken to rolling a cigarette between his thumb and forefinger, listening intently. He does eventually speak, not long after Mia finishes, “Okay, but Christopher isn’t an idiot. Much as he plays one on TV. He probably didn’t give a shit about legality before, and now? I imagine he just wants to hurt people,” Matt adjusts in his seat, a frown taking over his features “The money, you two take it if you want it but Mia if anyone asks either you say you kept it, burned it, or hell. You gave it to me.”
He shakes his head, disgusted, “Sorry Mitch, Ade. Didn’t know there was this much attached to it.”
Adrienne considered all of this. Every time she tried to drop a line about her contract situation, it was summarily ignored. Maybe she wasn’t being aggressive enough. Despite being in a fortunate situation, her wallet still was coughing mothballs. Her fingers apprehensively touched the bag.
“Mia. I’m thankful that you considered us. I can’t understand what you’re going through with this but perhaps Mitch and I will talk about this privately. It’s a big decision.”
She paused, looking at Mia directly. Adrienne didn’t have the best knowledge of what had been going on. However what she saw was a conscious effort to reach out. To just have someone to talk to possibly.
“In the meantime, don’t be a stranger.”
Mia nods and stands to leave. “Just… I didn’t come here to get anyone in trouble, I didn’t come here to set anyone up for a downfall. I’m not walking out of here with that bag. For all I care, you can leave it there, you can toss it to the next panhandler you see, hell you can even leave it for the next lucky patron. I promise each of you…” She looks at each one, her gaze lingering on Adrienne perhaps a second longer, “I wasn’t lying when I said that I come in peace.” She winks and proceeds to head up the the register, cashing out for her food and ordering a slice of the peanut butter pie to go.
Matthew watches Mia depart, before turning his attention to Ade and Mitch “Sorry I sprung that on you two. Didn’t know if you’d have heard her out otherwise.” he explains, shifting in his seat.
“Would’ve been nice to know. But it’s cool.”
He exhales, the iron curtain around him seeming to lift, his posture relaxing as he flags down a waitress for some coconut cake and coffee.
“Sorry about the phone, and me being late, I was just getting set up at the hotel, making sure Pen’s settling in okay. Kid’s having a ball, you’d think we were at Disneyland. Gotta bring her back some of that sugar-free cherry pie though.”
Sighing, he poked at the bag of cash.
“So yeah. I guess we have to think of something to do with this fu-- this thing.”
"Well, you got options. None of which is her taking it back, though," he sighs, rubbing the bridge of his nose "How are you two holding up, anyway? Feel like it's been ages."
“Okay. Like I said, you shoulda seen Pen on the way here. Had her cute lil’ nose pressed to the window the whole time, even the real boring parts. She can’t wait to meet all of you- ‘specially you, Ade- but I thought it’d be best she just rest up after all that excitement.”
Mitch chuckled fondly in spite of himself, thanking the waitress for the cake and coffee before setting to filling the mug the rest of the way with cream.
Adrienne smiled at that. She had exchanged a few brief calls with Mitch’s little sister. The first was her thanking Ade for the signed chair. Others were just brief small talk. Adrienne would listen, answer her questions, tell her a little bit about herself and they’d be right as rain. Looking to Matt, she replied honestly, “I haven’t slept well recently but maybe it's just nerves. I talked to Axton recently. I don’t expect you two to understand but,” she paused, twirling a lock of her hair around her finger, “things will be okay eventually.”
"I try not to think of Gunn. But your optimism is refreshing" his gaze shifts to Mitch, "She ever traveled this far? Even that boring shit was new awesome to us, the first few times at least."
“No, never.”
Mitch shook his head, plucking the vibrant red cherry off the top of his cake with two fingers and popping it into his mouth.
“Never really had the means to take much of a vacation. Did scrape together enough to take her to Michigan’s Adventure once. She rode every ride she wasn’t too short for and couldn’t have been happier if she’d been a millionaire’s kid.”
He seemed happy, speaking this way. As if merely mentioning happy memories with his kid sister briefly was enough to cut through dozens of hardened layers of cynicism and strife. It seemed to slide back into place as he changed subjects, though.
“Anyway. I try not to think of Axton a ton either, but if he was cool to you? Maybe there’s hope for the kid yet. Or maybe you’re just good at bringing out people’s chill. It’s a nice quality to have.”
“I’m personally going to be putting my confidence in the latter,” Matt spoke with the bluntness that either endeared him, or made him one of the more infuriating people on the roster “But, on to happier stuff. Not as happy as Pen and her world travels, I confess,” he paused, paying Mitch a smile.
Knox enjoyed seeing The Broken so...together? Talking about his kid sister was like a whole new person. Made him almost as bubbly as Ade could be, “Divorce should be final, and after a lot...a lot of liquidation, and dealing with lawyers and bankers and people who make C$J look like the paragon of virtue and ethics...I am officially homeless, and looking to move to Baltimore, as keeping with the trend Ade has set.”
“To be fair, I sort of ran away.”
Adrienne knew how ridiculous that sounded but she wasn’t too sure how to put it.
“It was the only way.” She cleared her throat before continuing, “But, this is good, right? Closure?”
“Yeah. And, lets face it. If I haven’t tanned by now, it’s never gonna happen. No, I think the drear suits me much better.” He said thoughtfully, staring out the window and not-so-subtly dodging the deeper question posed, “Come on, lets eat up. If neither of you two take that, we’ll call it a tip.”
Adrienne eyed the bag. Then Mitch. Then back to the bag.
“Some of it could help, Mitch.”
Mitch gave a glance to his left, then his right. Out the window. Mia was long gone. The bag was just sitting there. Nobody was offering it directly now. She wouldn’t know.
As surreptitiously as possible, Mitch snagged a few stacks of bills from the back, jamming them in his hoodie pocket, going back to cake and conversation as if nothing had happened.
Matthew took a beat to watch Ade and Mitch talk, a smile creeping onto his face as he lifts the reuben to take a bite. Yeah..
This was home.