A Familiar Face

who: jesse and lily
where: The Apollo, around town!
when: late morning

Lily stood outside the old theater, looking enviously at the movie poster in front of her, even she tried not to. Veronica Lake, looking appropriately pouty and sensual, with her long, wavy blond hair and soft skin and the figure... She thought about her own hair, dark brown and wavy, actually done up for the meeting she had this morning. Her nose still twitched at unfamiliar scent of roses, but at least it wasn't her grandmother's fuchsia she sprayed on. Is this what it took to get somewhere in the fucking world? Breasts and blond curls and to-die-for red lipstick?

Jesse happened to be walking along, glancing at the movie playing to see if maybe it was appropriate to take his daughter to. There was a definite amount of sucking up he was going to have to do, considering the fact that he'd come home in some manner of beat up like two nights in a row. Baby J was unimpressed to say the least. So, he had to make up for it. That included spending time with her and doing whatever she happened to want, which he recalled she'd wanted to see a film. So, he was seeing what was available.

What he saw instead was a woman that looked familiar to him, though he couldn't quite place her. He knew he'd seen her before, right? So, he stopped and eyed her curiously for a few moments, wishing his one eye wasn't nearly swollen shut. You could do a hell of a lot better recognizing of people when you had both eyes in working condition.

She tried to repress the sudden urge to start methodically hitting her head against the wall of the theater, both out of frustration and a bit of self-loathing. It took a little bit for her to realize she was being stared at -- rather intensely at that -- and Lily turned her head slowly, hesitantly, to look at who was staring and her eyes widened. She couldn't help it. It took a minute to register more than the mask of bruises and swelling (which she suspected was a lot worse the day before) to recognize certain features. The hair was relatively the same. The stance... "Jesse...?" Lily asked hesitantly. She took a hesitant step forward.

His first thought was shit! because she clearly recognized him as well, and he was left for a moment to internally flail and wonder if she was an ex girlfriend or something from ages ago. But he didn't think so, and he generally remembered his girlfriends, even if he did have a kind of impressive list of them. "Um...hi?" he suggested, reaching up to rub at the back of his neck a little. Now tell me your name, girly, so I can start figuring out where we know each other from. he mentally urged her, hoping to hell she did that. He'd take any clues, really.

"What the hell happened to you?" Lily didn't take another step forward, both because holy Moses it was Jesse James who used to sit one row up and one chair to the left in history class and even when he was beat the hell, he still had nice eyes and Christ, did he get beat up for a friggin' two by four? "Is your daughter okay?" Her thoughts went to the leggy blond that was the probable cause of some poor 9th grader's miserable math grades.

"Um...y'know, kinda...got into a bit of a scuffle..." he said evasively, not really wanting to come out and say 'bar fight over a woman who kinda hates me anyways'. That probably wouldn't go over well, and besides, it sounded insane. He recognized that about the situation. Then she mentioned his daughter, and he lit up, flashing a grin at her. "She's good!" he said. "Mouthy, pissed at me for getting into a fight, y'know...teenagers. I'm kinda in the process of finding ways to make it up to her. Any suggestions?" he asked.

Damn, that grin... Lily was rather proud of herself for her non-reaction and she jammed her fists into the pocket of her jacket. "Well, I remember Veronica was kind of like that, especially in science class... but I've never met Jessie personally." She smiled then, warmly. "But I've heard good things about her, if that helps any." Lily had the sinking feeling inside of her that he didn't remember, but should she be surprised? They never hung out together or did the same things. She was the quiet girl in the classroom who was too "Lily White" to be anywhere but a damn convent. But then, he must be embarrassed about not knowing her name, if the neck rubbing was any indication. "When I was tutoring David yesterday, he kept saying "Miss Mayfair, what do I need to know about math anyway? It's not as interesting as heeeerrrrr." She added the whine on the end, hoping that he remembered her last name that way maybe his awkwardness would subside. And maybe he'd know what she was trying to do and not make her feel completely mortified.

Jesse chuckled a little. "She takes after her old man in some ways, and her mom in others. Thankfully she's a little less trouble oriented than I am. I sort of just have a rule of when in doubt, I do what she says to and that works." he admitted, always happy to talk about his daughter. He was starting to recall now too, the bit about knowing Veronica and class certainly gave him the 'we went to highschool together' clue. Then she obliged him by giving up her last name which clicked it for him. Lily! Huzzah, he recalled. She'd been a quiet little thing, he remembered. Cute, one of the girls that the guys tended to like to fantasize about deflowering because she came off as so uptight. He recalled a few people claiming it, but he doubted that it had actually happened. "You're tutoring? That's interesting. And David, huh? I'll have to ask her about some guy named David. You can just pass along that you have it on good authority that her father answers the door with a shotgun if any boys come calling." he told her, his demeanor very much shifting to relaxed and much less 'I'm searching for your name'. "That all you been up to, Lil?" he asked, proving he remembered her name.

Lily cursed the blush spreading over her entire face, feeling 14 years old again having him say "Hi," to her. "Y-yeah. Tutoring. Can't stay in the Alexandrian all the time, can I?" Or home... Oh, she just wanted to melt into the sidewalk under her and she glanced at the movie poster, once again wishing she was as memorable as Veronica Lake. "Nothing much else, really. Not much of a social life although one of the girls at work keeps wanting me to go get drunk or something. My gran would kill me though." Uhg. Potentially ruin every conversation by bringing up that infernal woman. "Not that... so you!" She grinned at him, clearly wanting to change the subject, feeling pathetic and mortified. "What have you been up to? You know, besides epic battles where you were what? Fighting off five burly dockworkers with only a piece of gum and a shoelace?"

"You living with her still, I take it?" Jesse asked. He also caught the little trip in her words there at the start, and it made him grin at her. There was a blush there too, so he was amused. Of course, he didn't exactly look his best at the moment or anything, but apparently that wasn't holding him back as much as it could be. "I say go out, get a drink. The old bird can deal." he told her. "Live a little." Since from the sounds of it, she was still a bit uptight, and a cute, quite thing. She was a tutor and apparently lived at the library. He smirked at her last comment. "Not a lot. Raising a daughter, that's kinda it-ish." If one didn't count the bank robbery that went bad, which apparently meant he ripped off the fucking mob, and he'd gotten shot for it. Right. She just didn't need to know any of that. Like ever. "Sorry, it's been mostly dull. Well, except that whole fighting off guys with gum and shoelaces thing, I try not to do it too often, but there's always some assholes hanging around that deserve it..." he said, trailing off and winking at her.

And the blush kept on coming but now it was starting to trail down her neck and she couldn't help but keep smiling and dammit, why couldn't she be calm and collected and mysterious and anything else that would help her in this situation? "Part of it is that I just don't want to go to the bar with Jessica," she admitted. "Especially after, you know, this thing with her and my boss and unlocked doors." She shuddered eloquently. Jesse seemed to have to have the more exciting life. The kind that she wanted.

The idea of disobeying her grandmother was thrilling, as it always was whenever the thought crossed her mind. "You know, if I did disobey her, she'd probably have a heart attack." And she didn't intend to let him know, but it was clear that giving old Agatha a heart attack was actually rather appealing. "She almost did when I said I wanted to be a lounge singer. Yeah. Exciting conversation there."

"A lounge singer? Really?" he asked. "Can you sing?" was the most obvious next question. He'd actually just helped a girl get out of her life and she'd gone to singing. He wondered if something like that couldn't happen to Lil. Just not at the same place. Because he was avoiding anything that had anything to do with the O'Malleys. At least, he wasn't going to put her in any position like that. Fuck no.

Lily was surprised that he latched onto that and she didn't hide that surprise at all. "Yeah," she said softly. "I love to. I actually used to have voice lessons when I was little before I was considered "unmarriagable"." She said it with finger quotations and a mimic of her grandmother's low, rough voice. "Then it was "why should I waste money on you yada yada yada I'm a gigantic bitch who smokes too many cigars." Lily didn't realize what she was doing and if she did, she'd run away as fast as she could to go and hide somewhere. "So it's practicing in the shower and singing to colic-y babies when Gran has a party." She sounded bitter there, angry and so very lost.

Jesse didn't say anything for a few long moments, noting her tone, her posture, pretty much everything. When he did speak, it was with a laid back tone, but he phrased things in a way that didn't give the impression he was asking permission. "Lil, I'm going to buy you a drink." he told her. "Right now. C'mon." he said, nodding his head up the street a little bit.

"What?" The offer -- was it an offer -- caught her so off guard that she didn't blush or stammer. Lily felt herself take a step forward, but she was confused. It just... didn't compute. "You don't have to buy me anything, Jesse," she said plainly. "Seriously. I'm not worth it and you don't want me wasting your time." She should've been trying to coyly agree or just say yes, but no. There was no reason he should buy her a drink or be kind to her and it was making her feel strange.

He blinked and looked at her. "...huh?" he asked. "What the hell do you mean you're not worth it? Or that you'd be a waste of time? That's bullshit if I ever heard it. I can't want to buy a friendly face from the past a drink? That'd be a cryin shame, darlin and I can't let that fly on my watch. So, how about you just back up a little bit, take all that back, and just say 'sure, Jesse, I didn't have anything to do this afternoon' instead?"

Lily looked at him blankly, trying to read his face. He must be pulling her leg or he was trying to get her drunk and dump her in an alley or do something terrible. It had been years since she talked to Jesse. He could secretly be a terrible person. He was using such nice words and it all sounded so nice and Lily found herself nodding even though she didn't remember giving her body permission to. "Alright," she said, ashamed and guilty. "I didn't have anything to do this afternoon anyway." Was that good? Or did he want her to repeat exactly what he'd said?

"Good." he said, giving her a little smile, and he reached up to tip her chin a little. "That's better. Now c'mon. You can catch me up on the lifestyles of the old, rich and bitter." he said, nudging her along by the elbow as he started up the sidewalk. He took pains to hide the limp he had, even if he couldn't cover entirely. But really, with his current state, it could be easily written off to that.

She followed him obediently, like a scolded puppy. "It's not all that interesting, really," she tried warn. "I'm not all that interesting. Heck, I don't even know how much I can drink before you've got me drunk." She was clearly nervous at that prospect. Clearly unsure of his true intentions because a girl like her was always unsure but she seemed to trust him enough to try. "But I guess I could add this under the midget porn," she mumbled under her breath, quiet enough that he most likely didn't hear but she wasn't really thinking about that as they headed to the bar.

"I don't recommend shots." Jesse told her. Plus, it was a little early in the day... "And...er....huh?" he asked, thinking he caught the word 'porn', but he couldn't be sure. And coming out of her mouth in particular it seemed even more ludicrous. But he had to ask, because...seriously? The fuck?

"Midget porn," she clarified, thinking of Frankie and the discussion in the bathroom. "There's stripping involved. Let's leave it at that." Lily looked up at him with a wicked grin. She couldn't help herself. "You'll have to get me drunk to find out about all the sordid details." She patted him gently on the arm, careful not to hurt him, to pretend to comfort him, as if he was missing out on something exciting.

He winced, only faintly, since she picked the arm he'd gotten stabbed in, but he shrugged it off easily enough. "The real question is what do you have to do with midget porn, and do I actually want to know anything about it? Are you stripping with midgets and then...can we rewind this conversation a little and clean it up slightly? Aren't I supposed to be the one who ties sex into the conversation somehow and you're meant to blush about it all?" he asked, only half joking. His tone was joking, though.

Lily frowned up at him. "Am I suppose to blush at everything you say?" she asked. She did already, yes, but did that mean he was intentionally saying things to make her blush? "And would you want me to be the one stripping?" Her eyes widened as her brain registered what she said and she blushed this time. Deep red at that and she tilted her head forward a little to hide her face with a curtain of wavy hair. She nearly covered her face with her hands but there was an advantage with being thirty years old versus fifteen. She had a little more self control now.

"You do seem to be rather blushy in general." Jesse pointed out, smirking a little. "And hey, don't turn this around on me. You're the one talking about porn and stripping, not me. So maybe it's you with the dirty mind that's thinking about stripping." he told her. "I claim no responsibility for the turn this conversation has taken." he said firmly. "I was just talking innocent drinks, and you're bringing porn and stripping in...."

"Aren't guys supposed to like that, though?" They had reached the bar and headed inside. Lily looked around as she waited for him to answer her or say something else because now the blush wasn't as noticeable. Because it was early, the bar was relatively quiet. A few men in a back corner and a couple already downing shots at the bar itself. She suddenly felt nervous, being in there, and took a step closer to Jesse, pressing slightly against his side and holding onto the sleeve of his jacket, trying not to meet anyone's eyes. She could no longer melt into the pavement. She was there. She was a bumbling, foolish little child and Lily still didn't think she was worth it.

Jesse didn't mind her getting in closer. She'd already sort of pointed out that she didn't go out much, so she likely wasn't used to a place like this. Being the overprotective type in the first place, it was kind of a natural sort of inclination to shield her when she was behaving like she needed it. So, he put his arm around her, and headed up to the bar, ordering them both drinks. He got her something mild, and what was generally a girly kind of drink. Something with fruit juice in it or something. Then he led them over to a back corner away from everyone else. "Depends on the guy." he told her, picking up their conversation after he sat down. And when he did, he made sure she was in the corner, and he was sitting where he could see the rest of the room easily. It was habit, really. He didn't sit places where he could be jumped. And with her there and with that 'protect me' vibe, it just kicked into gear all the more. So she got the corner which meant she was protected on two sides, and he got to see anything that was coming.

She looked at him gratefully at his consideration and took off her jacket. Lily continued to feel childish and overdressed; the sleeveless plum silk blouse and thin silver necklace from her meeting. "Well, I wouldn't know," she said and started drinking. She only meant to take a sip, but she hadn't eaten for awhile and she was thirsty and it tasted good. And, well, Lily hadn't really had alcohol before and didn't realize how you shouldn't try drink down half the mug in one swallow.

Jesse did though and his goal wasn't to have to hold her hair back as she emptied her stomach. "Hey, slow down a little." he said, reaching out to put her glass back on the table. "Hit that too hard and I'm going to be carrying you home and I'm in no condition to do that." he said, smirking faintly. Then he propped his arm on the table, and eyed her. "What do you mean you wouldn't know?" he asked. She couldn't possibly have just never had a man in her life, right? Sure, she'd been a little nun in school, but that was ages ago now.

Lily licked the alcohol from her lips, feeling embarrassed and a little lightheaded. "Exactly as it sounds, I guess." She plucked at her necklace out of nervous habit. "Never really had alcohol before. Never been kissed. Never fucked anyone. Never actually had a life." She didn't blush this time, the alcohol and dim lighting making it easier to swear. Her next turn at her drink was more controlled, just a small mouthful to avoid looking at him. She felt like such a little kid playing dress up in grown-up clothes. What he must think of her... but then, he was pitying her it seemed, not pulling her leg. "Not really much of a wonder why you weren't interested," she mumbled quietly and he wouldn't be able to catch it.

Jesse was most certainly surprised to hear the word 'fucked' out of her mouth. Though the admission was a bit more disturbing. "You're not shitting me." he said, just to be clear. But she looked serious. "Why?" he had to ask. "You're a pretty girl. I know there were guys who would probably have lopped off significant body parts to have you back in school. How could you have not done...anything since then?" He didn't get it.

She snorted, bitter and unladylike. "Yeah, well that's news to me. I was too busy trying not cry out of humiliation when Kevin Waverly and his friends cornered me in the school library trying to ask me all sorts of of things related to oral sex and handcuffs and no offense but your girlfriend and her friends were complete bitches about it too." She lifted her drink. "But I guess that's just the high school version of tugging on someone's pigtails to say you like them, then, hm?" Another small swallow. It seemed that if she wanted a refill, she'd have to get it herself. "What is this anyway? Because it's good."

"A Pink Lady." Jesse said, frowning a little as she spoke. It was hard to watch, really. Her just going off, that bitterness shining through so clearly. It was pretty obvious that she'd not let go of things that had happened then and still held grudges, apparently. That was a long ass time to hold onto something like that. Was that why she'd not found herself a guy? Because of that? Seemed out of left field, but he just didn't know now. It was a little like the girl who he'd first bumped into on the street had entirely taken her leave and she'd left a bitter old woman in her place.

"I'm sorry," she said softly. "Like I said, I've never really had drinks before. I don't..." Her shoulders slumped and she seemed to deflate in her seat. "It's not..." Lily wanted to apologize and was trying to find the words. The way he was looking at her scared her, made her feel pathetic and ashamed of herself. "There was... a guy or two I would've liked to be with, you know? Everyone wasn't that bad, I'm not trying to say that." She bit her lip. "Sorry for what I said about Veronica. It was uncalled for and I was out of line. I don't socialize much, like I said. Gran doesn't exactly tolerate me going out and stuff." Lily smiled sadly. "I'm lucky she lets me tutor and work at the library, so there's not much to complain about." She was so ashamed of herself and she looked it. "I'm sorry. You're here trying to be nice and you get psycho lady."

"...I wouldn't say 'psycho'." Jesse said hesitantly. "Just...seems like you've got a whole lot built up there, Lil." he pointed out, tone gentle about it. "And you can quit apologizing. Just...if that's really the case, with your grandmother...you're in your thirties. You don't have to listen to her anymore. You don't have to do anything you don't want to. And you are entitled to do anything you do want to." he told her, thinking that it was insane that he had to tell a woman his own age something so simple.

The smile she gave him was small and wan. "I sound like a child, I swear." Lily shook her head. No one had ever called her "Lil" before. "And I've completely freaked you out, don't deny it. I know I have. That's not how I meant for this to go." If she ever saw him on the street again, she knew he'd hightail it in the opposite direction. She wanted to try be glamorous and grown-up. Instead he thought she was a disturbed, childish freak. "But she's all I have. I don't have anywhere else to go." Lily laughed a little. "God, I'm so humiliated."

"First of all--don't tell me how I am." Jesse told her, gentle but firm. "I'm harder to freak out than that. I have a fifteen year old daughter, trust me, growing up and raising a daughter makes you a lot harder to unsettle than this." he said. Also, dealing with criminals for all of that time tended to make one's freak out levels a lot different than other people's. "You have a job. Find an apartment. Go audition at some of the clubs, get a singing job. It's not impossible." he told her. "Just because she's all you know doesn't mean it's all there is."

Lily nodded, catching her bottom lip between her teeth. Yeah, it made sense. She had a healthy savings because she really never had anything to spend money on. "Let's start over," she suggested and she smiled up at him. She straightened her shoulders and extended her hand. "My name's Lillian Mayfair. I'm thirty years old, I get a lot of "naughty librarian" jokes and I'm prone to fits of freaking out and apparently I'm the blushing type." As if on cue, she blushed and her smile became hesitant and bashful.

He looked at her hand, then took it, but he didn't shake it. He kissed the back of it. "Jesse James, at your service, ma'am." he said, humoring her. He smirked, and winked at her to continue the show. "Thirty three, father of one amazing daughter, general champion of ladies in distress, and occasionally people refer to me as 'the outlaw'. Or some variation thereof." he said. "Pleased to meet you."

The blush deepened and she slowly drew back her hand. "Or 'the player'?" she teased with a giggle. She felt better now and she smiled warmly at him. "Speaking of your daughter, you mentioned that you were trying to make something up to her?"

"Hey." He said with a good-natured smile. "I don't recall that nickname." he said. Even if he'd been called that numerous times in his day. He didn't try to. Really he didn't. It just kind of happened sometimes. "And yeah." he said, making a vague gesture at his banged up face. "She doesn't like it when I fight." That was understating it. Jessie hated it when he came home in anything less than perfect condition. And he'd been keeping promises to her since he'd come home shot and she'd had to help him recover from that. Lately, unfortunately, he was just in positions that weren't healthy for him, and they had everything to do with women who couldn't keep good sense in their heads and stay clear of dangerous situations.

"Well, does she like the theater at all?" Lily ventured casually. "Because I could help you there..." Agatha was staying with friends during a new performance at the theater and so the box was free... and if she was going to be honest, she didn't want to sit in there by herself.

"I don't know, I've never really been able to take her." Jesse admitted, wincing slightly. It was clear that he viewed that as a bit of a personal failing. That he wanted to be able to afford it, but he couldn't. Hell, he couldn't even afford an apartment with two bedrooms, he crashed on the couch.

Lily looked at him softly. "Well then let's fix that. Treat her to a night out. Limo. Private box. I can even throw in dinner if you want." She wanted to do this for him after what he did for her.

"I....really can't afford any of that. I wouldn't be able to pay you back." Jesse said. "And a whole night out, that...I couldn't accept that, Lil." he said. He'd feel terrible. He'd have to dig into his ill gotten money and see if he could fence something to pay her back, or something. It was quite a lot that she was saying there. A limo? Jesus. Jessie would adore it, but he really just couldn't swing it. Unfortunately.

"I don't want to be paid back. It's my money and I can do with it what I want," she said primly. "If it makes you feel better, you'll be tagging along with me, how about that? Because I was going to be by myself. And if you want to pay me back..." Lily took a deep breath. "And since you say I haven't scared you... take me to the movies or to the bar on a busy night and corrupt me some more or something. And you can tell everyone you took Lillian Mayfair out on her first date." She quickly took a swig of her drink, feeling her heart pumping. Did she actually suggest a date? Well, it wouldn't be a date, she reasoned. She was just letting him call it that... or something.

Jesse considered, and mostly was swayed by the idea that his daughter would get to experience something he'd never be able to do for her on his own. "...alright." he agreed. "You do that and then I take you out sometime. Not that I really consider that much of a payback either, I'd take you out anyways." he told her. Girl needed to get out as far as he could tell. In a really desperate way.

Lily raised an eyebrow at him. "You make the prospect sound so enjoyable," she told him dryly, not believing him when he'd say he'd take her out anyway. "You don't have to take me out. Forget about it." One of the men in the corner glanced over at them and she slunk down in her seat.

That's right. They weren't alone here. Everyone was witness to her humiliation. So she reached over to her purse and started digging through for paper and pen. "Let me just give you my contact information. If you don't have a suit, I have one you can borrow. Really, the whole point of it is to get from the car to the box. And if Jessie needs a dress, I can get something together for her. Every girl is supposed to have a nice dress... or so I hear." She was rambling again as she dug through her purse. She felt the blush -- that stupid, stupid blush and the shame.

Jesse looked at Lily for a long moment, and he didn't really look amused. He didn't say anything for a long moment, just studying her. He'd dealt with women like her before, and it was always just exhausting. Sometimes that low self esteem thing was just so entirely draining to try and deal with, because every three goddamn seconds, there was a deprecating remark, or, like she just had, she just randomly took his statement about taking her out--which he'd meant--and turned it not only around like he was being a dick and sarcastic about it, but also made it out to be something that he was only doing because she'd said. And she was the one who'd fucking brought it up in the first place. In the end, he didn't say anything about it, he just waited for her to be done prattling on. "I don't have a suit. Jessie doesn't have a dress. I can get her a dress. Why don't we call it even if you just take her." he suggested.

"Wouldn't it be a little weird if some random stranger was taking her out to the theater?" she asked, scribbling her work phone number and hours on the piece of paper. The idea of Jesse not going with them definitely put a dapper on the night and she was actually feeling proud of herself for asking him out but getting him to ask her out. "And... I would like to go out drinking with you," she tacked on, quieter. "I m-mean..." Oh, God, what did she mean anyway. "If you have noticed already, I'm pretty bad at this whole social scheduling thing."

No, what you seem to be bad at, woman, is listening to people. If you did that a little bit more, maybe you would quit fucking going back on everything I say like you don't believe me or I'm being an asshole to you. Jesse thought, but again, didn't share. Really, he didn't want to berate her or anything. It just made him massively uncomfortable. "Lily," he said slowly, pausing to knock back a bit more of his beer, "You kind of seem to be playing a whole lot of turnarounds here, and I'm a bit at a loss as to what to believe. I think it'd be weird if you make it weird, other than that, it's no one's business. And that's if you still want to take her. If you don't, I never asked you to, so it's okay." he said, letting her off the hook for things.

Lily nodded slowly. Insert foot into mouth. Dammit. Damn. Damn.. "Okay." How the hell was she going to salvage this? But... he hated her. But... he was actually going to take her out to drinks. Dammit, Lily, you're an idiot. It had all been going so well... "I wouldn't mind going back to the original plan," she offered, gently. "Where I sit in the back of the box while you play hero for the daughter that you owe and then later you can teach me more about this whole drinking thing. And I promise to keep my mouth shut this time and not try to ruin a perfectly nice gesture from a friend?" So... Dear God, if you exist, please tell me I didn't completely fuck this up. Please let this be salvageable. "Since I seem to mess up new starts." She grumbled this, clearly feeling like an idiot.

He noticed she did that a lot too. She mumbled shit under her breath, little side comments and whatever. Not all of them he caught, and he wasn't sure he wanted to. "It's not really my crowd. I probably wouldn't know what to do with myself in the first place." he said. "No, if you're still on board with it at all, you can just take Jessie. I'm sure she'd love every minute of it." he told her. He still wasn't quite sure what to do here. Things had been going well and he'd been thinking he'd like to see more of her, but well. She was coming off as a bit crazy to him at the moment, and he knew the type. They generally were pretty crazy. Not Bedlam-crazy, but definitely 'make you want to tear your hair out' crazy. He'd had girls in the past he'd tried with before. Really attempted to work on the issues with, but they always made it such hard work. And there was the trust thing. Like they were always looking for the angle, the way that what was going on was really just a new and creative way to fuck them over. It wasn't pretty, that was for damn sure. And in this specific case, apparently he'd have thirty years of repression to combat. That was...quite a lot to even consider tackling. Even just on a friends level--even if she'd done more than enough blushing to clue him in that she was likely attracted to him.

Yep... totally lost it. She totally did. Fuck. "Well, it's all up to you," she conceded with a shrug and a small smile. Let it slide, just like that stupid book said. She was just... going to remove herself with as much dignity as possible. "Anyway, yeah. That's my library information. The house is a bit eh." She reached for her jacket. "I should probably get going then. I'm feeling a little lightheaded from the drink, actually."

He took her information and tucked it into his wallet before he re-pocketed it. "You should probably get something to eat. That should help. And next time, don't drink so fast." he said, quirking a faint half smile at her. "It was nice seeing you again." he told her. He would offer up contact information of his own, but it wasn't like he could afford a phone. There was just the building one, and half the time people couldn't be bothered to go get other tennants for calls. And messages? Ha. A good half of his building were illiterate anyways. It'd be a bit pointless, and if she did call and he didn't know, he didn't want to add 'you didn't call me back!' into the mix of things.

Lily shrugged, getting up and slinging her purse over her shoulder. She opened her mouth to reassure him that she would but instead she found herself saying: "You're the first person to ever tell me I was pretty." Her mouth went dry. "And the first one to tell me that I was worth something. So... I don't want to believe you but I actually kinna do and that's saying something. Because I liked hearing it and I want to hear it again." She took a deep breath and went on before he could say anything. "So thanks, Jesse." And thank you, Elizabeth Bennett.

He didn't expect that, and didn't know what to say to it either. Honestly, he had incredible amounts of trouble believing her. He thought she believed it. But he had to wonder if she'd been told, she just hadn't been listening. Because she was in her fucking thirties, and she was a beautiful girl. He couldn't be the only person in the entire city who'd noticed that. "You're welcome." he told her either way, not giving away what he thought in either tone or how he looked at her. In fact, he gave her a little smile. "I'm sure some day you will." he added.

At least she'd heard it from him and she could deal with that. "And... on Saturday, I'm going to come in here, get myself a Pink Lady, and I'm going to be sitting here in this corner." Her knees were shaking so hard she was surprised she was still standing. "With that drink. So... you can show up and tell me how Jessie was too excited to go to bed and you can tell me how you got into the bar fight with the gum and the shoelaces and I'll tell you about... something made up and exciting like getting into fights on the docks or, you know, don't." She shrugged and took another deep, calming breath. "I'll talk to you later, Jesse."

"What time?" he asked. He wasn't sure if he'd show. He really, really didn't. But if she was going to be waiting around...Saturday was a whole twenty four hours long so he needed it narrowed down for him a little. He killed the rest of his beer, and set the bottle down, waiting for her answer.

"Eight in the evening," she said. "I'm gone at midnight." Her lips quirked up a little. "My grandmother be damned." Nothing to lose, Lily. Nothing to lose.

He nodded, and gave her another little light smile. "Good to know." he said. "See you 'round, Lil." he said. "I'm glad I ran into you." He wasn't entirely certain if that was true, but it hadn't been the most horrible time he'd ever had in his life. She was fine if she would just knock the bullshit off. Maybe she would. Who knew.