long overdue talk

who: evie and jesse
where: her place/out
when: noon

Jesse, after his daughter and that little punk left, was not a happy bunny. In fact, he was a wildly unhappy bunny. And even if he was still pissed at his sister about shit, he wanted to talk to her about the situation, so he went over to her building, and headed to her door to knock--and even his knock sounded impatient and harassed. “Evie--you in?” he called, before anyone would even have had the time to answer.

Evelyn was in. The rare beauty of the day had prompted playing hooky in a young woman who had never done such a thing for such a reason before. But that beautiful day she had supposedly skipped work for had yet to be enjoyed considering she was still inside the small apartment in the same nightclothes she had (again) failed to get a decent sleep in. Instead she had bounced between cleaning, and perusing the newspaper classifieds, and fiddling incessantly with the radio, and a whole host of things that had little to do with either outside air or the sunshine; but had manage to upset some of the previous tidying up. In fact, when the knock came, she was trying her hand at the model Zhen had bought in a mental state that fared no better than her brother’s.

Her brother... who she had not been expecting, and it took a couple seconds of shocked stillness and blinking to collect herself enough to call out, “Yeah--yes. Just a second.” Leaving the model where it was, she pushed herself away from the desk and headed down the small hallway. But a momentary glimpse of herself in the bathroom mirror and a recollection of just what time it was had her ducking in to hurriedly run a brush through her hair before continuing the last few steps. There was the smallest of internal breaths before she opened the door, and again Evelyn needed a second before words came out.

“Hey,” she greeted, the word halfway between the cautious greeting and an apprehensive question -- she had caught on the harried state of his arrival. Then, after another brief moment of awkward dumbstruck silence, she took a small step back, pushing the door away further, “Come in.”

“Hey, you got a few? I’ll spring for lunch or something--what’s going on with you?” he asked, all of that sort of bunched together along with the realization that something seemed a bit off. Like Evie still looking like she wasn’t properly awake yet. That wasn’t at all like her.

She looked confused for a moment, and that apprehensive undercurrent hadn't gone away -- of all the possible reasons he would have to be here, she doubted a simple lunch was the main one. But she nodded, not in the mood to tread on anything or prematurely bring up those weighing issues just yet, "Yeah I got a few." The reiteration of his phrasing was meant as a half-hearted attempt at lightness that just fell flat and un-invitingly limiting of her time, and even Evelyn could hear it. "I mean -- I can do lunch. Definitely," she clarified, not at all wanting to let Jesse think she'd only spare him a few minutes with everything that had gone on. "I'd just need to get ready -- do you want coffee or anything?" She started heading back down the hallway, casting a glance back, leaving the door open for him.

She left the question of what was going on with her unanswered for the moment. She was all too aware that her standard practice of answering 'not much' or shrugging unpleasant issues off wouldn't go over well. But her thoughts really weren't ordered enough to tackle a decent answer. She didn't even know where to start: it seemed everything in her life and head was just a huge mess, and it was one she wasn't fully capable of navigating through. But something like coffee was doable.

"No, I'll just wait." Jesse said, aware that she'd dodged the question, and he was hoping they'd get back to it. But at the moment, he just wasn't going to needle her about it, he'd ask later. When they weren't in her place, and they were off someplace that was else, where there could be a whole lot more of other types of talking going on too. He recognized in the back of his mind that he was kind of freaking out a little. It had been a long time since he'd done anything of the kind, but right now? With everything going on in his life? Yeah. He could be considered frazzled, even. Definitely frayed around the edges, that was for damn sure. Not even just angry or at a loss for things to do with his issues, but honestly a little past that, towards the 'not dealing at all' end of the spectrum.

Evelyn watched him for a moment, quiet, taking that in. She could see it -- that something was wrong, that Jesse was bothered. But the knowledge that she had done quite a lot to cause that, and the lack of knowledge on the additional contributing factors, made it hard for her to just ask and get him to unload the issues -- like she might have had she not felt so horribly at fault. But she did feel at fault, and that made things a lot harder. Enough so that instead of going with that impulse, she tabled it for later and simply nodded at his response, "Alright then." Then, it looked as if she would've added something more, something of actual value, but changed her track half-way and only added, "the juice in the fridge is mine, if you change your mind." With that she turned her head back and headed towards the bedroom, mentally wishing the heartbeat thudding in her ears wasn't so loud.

Jesse didn't go to look for it, instead he just paced. He didn't have that much room to pace either, which meant he just made little circuits around the room, and waited. It felt like she took far longer than she actually did, but he managed to refrain from asking her to hurry up. It wasn't like anything was urgent. Nothing was going to happen within the next ten minutes that was going to change anything at all. Time was not of the essence by any stretch of the imagination, he was just agitated as hell and it felt like it was. Which generally sucked, really.

She wasn't full-on dragging out getting dressed, but she wasn't moving with her usual efficiency either. A part of it was intentional, as she tried to use each second she had to think of what to say -- for when she met him back in the common room, or during their trek to lunch, what to say when the inevitable issues were brought up, or of new thoughts and burdens she debated bringing up... unfortunately, his sudden appearance had blindsided her. And even the ritual of pulling on her stockings and straightening the creases of clothing nothing offered nothing useful in the end. It didn't help that she could hear him pacing -- had been hearing it actually. And Evelyn, though she wouldn't mind the simplicity of it right now, wasn't an indifferent creature. The pacing had her hurrying up despite herself and despite his refraining from telling her to; ultimately, she simply pinned her hair loosely, and hardly bothered with anything more than lipstick in way of makeup. And then she took another breath, trying to still her nerves, realizing that her current demeanor just wasn't going to do -- especially when they headed out -- and stepped out the bedroom.

"You ready?" he asked, though he was already headed for the door. He was figuring she was and if she wasn't, then maybe he'd just wait outside, where at least it was a halfways decent day. Or, that was the running theory at any rate. That was his story and he was sticking to it. Calm the fuck down. he told himself, not that that worked even in a slight measure. Nope, not a bit. Look at that.

"Yeah," she answered, another look at him enough to squelch any temptation to duck into the bathroom and attempt to fix herself up more properly. She followed him out the door, stopping to pull her keys out the coat pocket and lock the door -- just because she had been fiddling with the radio earlier didn't mean she had paid enough attention to listen to it, especially on the warm weather. The entire time locking the door though, she watched Jesse out of the corner of her eye, concern evidently growing further as she did so. To the point that she wondered whether anything else might be going on, and the impulse she had earlier in regards to him resurfaced, "Jess, what's wrong?" She finally asked, no longer tabling that hurdle, not even waiting for them to get past the first flight of stairs.

"A shorter list right now would be what isn't wrong." Jesse admitted. "Can we just walk, maybe? To wherever we're going to eat?" he suggested, the weather and his own twitchiness making him think that walking was the way to go. "Do you mind?" he asked, because he didn't want to make her, just because he was bugging, and he'd try to sit still in a cab ride to wherever or something if he had to.

Actually, walking around on the street was something Evelyn had developed a problem with, one she had been working very hard to just push away or bury somewhere. And she wasn't going to admit to it now -- because it was just ridiculous. Especially during today, especially on a day as nice as today with the sun out and everything. And, hell, she was with her brother. Despite the understandable awkwardness and discomfort in the moment, there was absolutely no reason to be so apprehensive about her safety. But yet she was. Even as she shook her head, murmuring a "I don't mind." She could feel that anxiety clawing at the back of her head. She could feel the constant urge to whip her head back, just to make sure nobody was there. But she didn't, and just kept her eyes straight ahead, the combined awkwardness hanging between them and the concentration to not freak out keeping her quiet for the time being.

Jesse was twitching, but not totally oblivious. "...or not." he said. Then he just walked to the curb to hail them a cab, because he wasn't going to make her do something she didn't want to do. And he might not know why she wasn't looking thrilled to be out and about in the current weather, but he could see going for a walk wasn't the best idea for her. And he just wasn't that much of an asshole to force the issue when it didn't matter all that much in the first place.

She didn't want to admit it at all, but Evelyn felt relieved when he changed his mind for a cab. And the fact that she felt relieved was an overwhelming defeat. She could have mentioned how she actually had a car now -- especially since Jesse would be more experienced in driving than she was -- but held back as a cab pulled up. Mentioning the car would require mentioning Dutch and asking her brother just what the hell had happened there -- it wasn't lost on Evelyn that Jesse had to have told Dutch something. So, she mentally dropped that issue in favor of throwing as much of her focus as she could control on her brother -- it seemed her mind was forced between trying to find the less daunting of its current issues. "What isn't wrong?" she asked, seeing as how he had pointed out it was a shorter list and might be one that could be discussed in a cab... and maybe calm him down, a little bit. Then again, she was flying a bit blind to the facts here, and really had no idea.

"Seems to be a nice day." Jesse stated, getting into the cab as it pulled up, and he kept the door open for her. He also gave the cabbie their destination, his favorite little hole in the wall eatery near his apartment building, figuring after they were done eating they could go back there and keep talking if he wasn't finished, and he didn't guess he would be. It felt like there was so much going on he didn't even know where it started or ended.

His answer had actually told her quite a bit in its omissions. Mainly in the glaring one of Baby J -- generally, despite whatever trouble or screwups Jesse found himself in, Baby J was nearly always the forefront of what was going well. So the fact that he didn't mention his daughter -- or anything other than it being a nice day -- kicked Evelyn into a more mentally effective gear. She may have done poorly in showing it, but her family was one of the most important things to her, and that new knowledge was able to push away the haze of preoccupation with her own issues at the moment. Enough for her to reach a hand out and rest it on his shoulder by means of comfort; it was something that had been almost impossible to act on moments ago -- when she had only seen the issue as it only being the mess she had made, and there was something incredibly daunting and almost vulgar in trying to comfort somebody who she had messed up.

He looked over at her, and reached up to squeeze his hand over hers. "I'm sure things'll be fine." he said, knowing no such thing. But he said it, because he was the big brother, and that was what he did, even if it was a backwards sort of situation, and he was the one bugging. Though something was clearly the matter with her too. He was still overly aware of it. He lapsed into silence at that point, looking out the window, watching the city go by in it's messed up glory. The neighborhoods got seedier, the incidents of broken windows got higher, everything that indicated they had left behind a nicer part of town, and were back into worse neighborhoods. Not that his own was all that terrible, it wasn't nearly so bad as it could have been, but that wasn't the point. Though it reminded him that Baby J had mentioned them getting a new place, and now he was wondering if she wanted that so she didn't have to sneak people past him to her room. Which was a terrible, ugly thought that he stamped hard down on as soon as it had risen to mind.

When the cab pulled up outside the place, he paid the driver, got out, and then held the door for Evie. He looked at the eatery, which was as empty as it usually was, which was partly why he liked it. They knew him there, and if no one else was around to overhear, all the better.

She was well familiar with the place, although her memories of past visits had a considerably more lighthearted and carefree feel to them than the current one did now. Now she felt more worry and anxiety, piled atop a heap she thought couldn't hold anymore, as she stepped out of the cab. She only spared a second's glance at the place before moving it back to Jesse. His 'I'm sure things'll be fine' had the opposite of its intended effect, making her worry more about just what the hell was going on. Because she also knew her brother, and just because he said things would be fine didn't mean they were. Or that something like more bruises or an arrest or getting shot might not be around the corner. Of course, Evelyn was well aware that Jesse was trying to keep on the straight path... but with how frantic he seemed, and how little she knew, and his history, and the revelation but no explanation of the account(s)... her mind couldn't help going there.

But even if a part of her certainly wondered whether he had fallen back into old habits and old trouble, she sure as hell didn't voice it. She was aware that, right now, she was working on all assumption anyway, and that the problem could have been anything. But he had brought her here to Talk, for better or worse, so she forced some patience at the moment and stamped down the unpleasant thoughts of her own with small talk. "Feels like forever," she murmured, glancing back at the place. Which she realized, had she put more forethought into what she would say instead of just saying something, probably wasn't the most innocuous starter.

"Yeah, you haven't been by in a while." Jesse said. He shouted back that he'd have his usual, and the waitress that seemed to live there she was always on staff, smiled and waved, saying she'd be back in a minute. Jesse picked the table he always sat at, in the back corner where he could see the exits. He didn't even think about why he chose there, it was just his table. "You dated boys dad didn't like, right?" he asked, looking at his sister.

Well. That was unexpected. And her face showed it, as she briefly eyed him with the scrutiny of someone not quite sure if their eyes and ears were getting everything right. But, as she double-checked that, yes, Jesse had asked what he asked and that his anxiety was still very much there and unusually high, she took a moment to seriously consider things before answering.

"Yeah, I guess there were some he wasn't too fond of," she answered, omitting a short laugh that normally would have gone with the recollection. Surprising though the question had been, it wasn't lost on her that there was a situation here that required more of her serious focus instead of attempts at levity. She didn't add that, really, she wasn't the best sister to talk to if he wanted to discuss rebellious dating practices fathers didn't approve of; nor did she mention that, generally, her and her sisters hadn't had just their dad to worry about or keep in the dark when it came to such things. Evelyn may not have known exactly what was going on, but she had a pretty good idea that such additions wouldn't be helpful.

"What did you do?" he asked. "Did you just not tell him?" he asked. Because he was aware he was out of the house for at least part of Evie's dating life, so there were things he probably didn't know. But right now it was damned important. "Did you do it anyways, behind his back? Keep in mind that he didn't like them? Sneak around?" He was also aware he probably needed to be giving context here for Evie's sake, but he also knew Evie was bright enough to probably put two and two together, what with him having a daughter that was getting into the dating age range.

Yeah, she was getting the idea alright. And had Jesse not seemed so distressed she would have quirked a small smirk at this scene. It was a moment that had been long speculated on in the family: just how was Jesse James -- who had been overprotective enough as a brother -- going to handle it when his daughter hit that dating age? But Jesse was distressed, so she didn't smirk. But she did shoot him a Look that didn't appreciate the phrasing of those questions, thank you very much. Then she let it gave way as she answered the question, "With school and friends... there wasn't much serious dating in high school." Attempts, certainly, that had been largely foiled with her endless working towards getting a scholarship and getting Out of the City, whatever boyfriend be damned. "But, if dad didn't like somebody... I didn't sneak around." In fact, up until the fiasco with the lawyer that lead to the Drake?, Evelyn had never been the type to sneak around about anything.

"I mean, I understand now there might have been some things dad saw that I didn't... but I also saw things he didn't. I wasn't out to date guys dad wouldn't approve of, just to be rebellious. I dated guys I liked. I wasn't out to give dad or anybody grief about who I dated -- but in the end, it was up to me to decide who I liked." She paused a moment, considering. "Although, if I really liked them? Then I didn't keep them in the shadows -- I brought them home, for dinner and things." Sometimes it had helped, and there had been common ground, and other times her father had merely settled for toleration... if that. She fell silent there, watching Jesse carefully as he processed the information.

Jesse was listening, watching Evie as she spoke, trying to take it all into consideration. Some of it was comforting, other parts weren't, but he still appreciated the honesty either way. He wasn't looking for reassurances, he was looking for truth. How the truth made him feel was irrelevant. "Jessie's started hanging around this arrogant little bastard who's got a reputation. Enough of one that I've even heard it, even if it's just in passing. But anyone like that's trying. And he shows up today dressed like some little mafioso, and doesn't even have the sense to pretend to respect the fact that I'm her father." he said, shaking his head. "He's a little criminal player, and I don't like it."

Evelyn could have pointed out that, going on part of the description, it almost seemed a bit like the pot calling the kettle black; but that observation would have further support Jesse's point. She loved her brother, but that didn't make him blind to his faults. One being that, boyfriend-wise, she wouldn't wish him on any of her friends. And she sure as hell wouldn't wish someone similar on her niece. She looked at him for a moment, before finally coming out with the next thought that came to the forefront of her mind, "That does sound like trouble. But I also think that partly, at least, some of it is being spoken by a father who loves his daughter -- but it also undoubtedly on the overprotective side." She wasn't discrediting his observation, but Evelyn had personal experience that, yeah, Jesse's protective nature could shift into hyperdrive at times. Like how she was pretty certain he had said something to one of her early dates back in high school that had the poor boy terrified of holding her hand at a school dance.

"You know, in most cases I'd agree with you, but not this kid. Not when he stood there, just looking like not a damn thing I said made the slightest bit of difference." he said. "How exactly do I deal with a kid like Dodge around my daughter?" he asked.

There was dead silence on her end for a moment; and unreadable expression overtook her features, and it seemed to harden as the gears in her head turned. And those gears churned out nothing particularly pleasant as it was Evelyn's turn to take things into consideration, going back to when Jessie had dropped by her place. "Dodge?" she repeated, voice distant, not that there was any doubt. But then her jaw visibly tensed a bit. She could have schooled her expression better, but this was hitting particularly close to home and dawning some particularly disturbing ideas and she also hadn't had a decent non-sedative induced sleep in weeks... so it was more than evident that there was something else she was getting at when she asked, pointedly, "How long has been hanging around Baby J, exactly?"

Jesse frowned as he watched the reaction Evie had, and it certainly didn't make him feel any better. If anything, her tone, and demeanor made him wonder what the fuck he'd missed, because it certainly seemed like he'd missed something. "...you know something." he stated, it not being anything like a question. "And I don't know. She mentioned him the other day, that was the first I'd heard of it. But that doesn't mean that he hasn't been around before then--Evie, what's going on?"

She didn't answer immediately, mentally trying to calculate things in her head. When had she seen Dodge last, exactly? With all the stress the days had merged together, separated only by periods of greater anxieties and personal catastrophes, it seemed. And last time... it had been after she had seen Jesse last... so the last time she had seen Dodge had been Sunday, and she definitely recalled the entirety of that conversation. And it hadn't gone well. And she hadn't seen him since, which in and of itself hadn't been to surprising, considering matters of rejection were often awkward. But it hadn't been lost on her that the timing of it all... Dodge's crush -- culminating in asking her out, she refusing him, and suddenly he's walking her niece from school and stopping by her home? The timing of it... when Jessie had first mentioned Dodge the idea had bothered Evelyn on the basis of it was just disturbing that somebody who would hit on her would flirt with her niece. But now suspecting that hadn't been some random encounter, and knowing that it had built up to him picking up Baby J from her home was just... a fucking whole host of things that left Evelyn feeling sick.

For a brief -- very brief -- moment, Evelyn seriously considered not telling Jesse. Respecting the confidences of others was a big thing for her, and she didn't go around divulging others' business easily. But if Dodge might have been playing some game or whatever that involved her niece, then those confidences were certainly superceded. "I know him," she started, crossing her arms as she felt a mix of anger and shame and guilt course through her, "pretty well, actually -- a couple years now. He always hung around the grocer's I worked at." Back when his antics, coming from a young boy, had been merely exasperating or amusing. But they had occasionally tread on her good humor the past weeks, and this business with her niece now had killed that humor completely. "He had a crush on me. Enough so to think himself in 'love' and ask me out -- but I turned him down. That was Sunday." Which was why she needed to know exactly how long Dodge had been hanging around Jessie; because if it was immediately afterward? Evelyn couldn't bring herself to think it coincidence.

Jesse stared. He heard the words that were coming from his sister's mouth. Really he did. They lined up, in nice order, and he understood their meaning as individual words. It was putting them together and understanding the meaning that made his brain want to rebel. So it was clear he was struggling with things for a second as he stared at her, blinking, before his expression changed. And it went from a clear 'what the fuck?' to something a whole lot darker than that. "I'm going to break his fucking neck." he said in a low, rage laced tone.

Evelyn really didn't know what to do here: it wasn't like there was a clear handbook of 'What To Do When You Turn Somebody Down and They Start Flirting With Your Niece' or whatever. But she did lean forward, elbows propped up on the tabletop, and buried her face in her hands and let out a muffled, pained groan that sounded something very much like 'Fuuuck.' It was impossible for her to accurately gauge just what emotions were hitting. There was certainly some hang-up in there, in trying to reconcile the image of somebody she had let fall into the category of 'friend' when she had been feeling so isolated, and vulnerable in moments, and trusted, to the image of somebody who immediately switched onto her niece. And the guilt, of course; that she was to blame here. And that, if Jessie did end up falling for Dodge?, that Evelyn would be responsible for a mess of a situation that was considerably more fucked up than just a typical heartbreak amongst teenagers.

And hearing Jesse's declaration, and glancing up to look into his expression, didn't help things either. Because Evelyn had considered Dodge a friend, and had trusted him, and wasn't quite capable of just erasing everything from her memory and being completely okay with the idea of her brother unleashing his unbridled fury on the kid either. "Jess," she called out, softly. She didn't have any plan of something to say -- or any idea of what she could say -- other than his name in hopes of, maybe momentarily, pulling him away from a mindset that wasn't easy to witness.

"What?" Jesse asked, looking at her. "What you've just told me is the little bastard is even worse than I thought. That he was after you, then you shot him down and he just switched to your niece, my baby girl. What kind of fucked up person does that? Especially if he dropped the word 'love' on you. Honestly, Evie, what the hell do you have to say to that? There's nothing that makes that not absolutely fucked up on so many levels. And I'm sure Jessie doesn't know any of it. I'm sure she's snowed entirely by that kid, and--" he broke off, shaking his head. "Jesus H. Christ." he swore beneath his breath.

Evelyn closed her eyes for a long moment, taking a few breaths, before opening them again. The fact was that this situation was just painful. On numerous levels. Enough so that she could almost feel the emotional pain turning into a physical stab into her chest. It seemed she just couldn't avoid making messes that just fucked with people she cared about, could she? Her brother, her niece... and the confusion and betrayal in regards to Dodge didn't help either. She had always considered herself a fairly decent judge of character, and even now just had trouble with managing that the same person who had been there for her was the same person who would switch over to her niece after being rejected. But the fact that he had, apparently, switched over to her niece this past week was just a glaring fact at the moment.

She opened her eyes, and looked back at him. The fact was she didn't have anything to say. She couldn't quite say 'he's not that bad' when the past week's event seemed to unequivocally say that, yes, he was. Not to Jesse. Not to herself. Not to Baby J -- she did, however, have a whole host of things she could say to Dodge, if she saw him before Jesse did. But that didn't help her in this exact moment, did it? Finally after a long moment that revealed that, yes, she had nothing, she asked, forcing her tone even, "What are you going to do?" Because, really, with Baby J being concerned... Evelyn had no idea what Jesse was capable of. But she did know that he wasn't going to be in the most clear-headed of states, of which she was certain no good would come from.

"I have no idea." Jesse answered honestly. He looked away for a long moment, then back to his sister. "Did you believe him? Did you buy into everything he was selling?" he asked. It would directly affect the way he dealt with things. "If you did, I think you need to talk to her. Because I can say all I want, and she can still sit there and think there's just something I'm not seeing--like you said before, with dad. But if you know him, and know what the hell he just pulled and you were manipulated by him yourself, and then once you shot him down he just went for the next James girl he could find...maybe that'll actually hit home with her. Better than me just putting him so close to death's door he should start looking for pennies for the ferryman."

Evelyn was quiet herself for a moment, considering things. Really, a talk like that with Jessie wasn't something she was remotely looking forward to. But this was a situation that lacked any pleasant easy-all solutions wasn't it? An inner part of her winced at the idea of being manipulated -- because a part of her wasn't able to fully accept it was all manipulation. Or maybe she just didn't want to believe it -- because wasn't that the art of manipulation? It wasn't like it came with a huge frickin' neon sign to broadcast its presence, was it? Most of the time it was the dupe never even realizing there was a con. It was a game Evelyn had no desire to play, but she could still see it; the way it worked; how it was most effective. "I'll talk to her," she agreed, voice back to going soft. Because agreeing to the talk was admitting that, yeah, she had bought it. Because she did; the fact that she was still doubted whether it was manipulation proved that, didn't it? But the shame of admitting that and the uncomfortable talk looming with her niece was better than the alternative.

Jesse did catch what that meant. He looked at his sister for a long, long moment. "I'm sorry, Evie." he told her. "I'm sure this sucks for you too, and you probably aren't jumping at the chance to talk to Jessie. But I don't want this happening to her. I don't want her getting slowly manipulated into sleeping with the guy. And if a kid that age can pull something over on you, then he knows all the right things to say. We need to protect Baby J. She'll give people the benefit of the doubt. And this asshole will ruin that. I don't really want her to lose all of her innocence, or faith in people, or anything, and I don't want her stuck in the same situation her mother was. Not that that was entirely my fault, but you know what I mean. She's a good girl. A guy like that could ruin that so. Easily."

"I know," she murmured. She didn't need to be told twice just how one asshole could ruin things in a person; Evelyn had experience there. Enough so that one of the first thoughts that popped through her head? was that, save for locking her away in a tower or dying young, getting screwed over seemed inevitable in this city -- and even then, dying young wasn't always a guarantee.

Disturbed by such a dark streak of cynicism in herself, it wasn't a thought she gave voice to. But there was a certain jaded edge around her mouth that echoed the sentiment despite herself. She thought briefly of Shoshannah, who hadn't even been out of her tower days when her camera had been stolen. She thought of her old boss, of that attack, of Dutch's allegations against her current boss... she had left home well-prepared to face the world and find her way, and somewhere between then and now had become a woman with an inner cynical edge, unable to walk down the street or into the dark without a stab of anxiety, and depended on drugs to sleep through the night.

Jesse was watching his sister, and didn't say anything for a few long moments. Most of his concentration was still on his daughter, and worrying sick about her, but it wasn't like he wasn't stupidly family oriented by nature. And he could see something was really hitting Evie hard. "...what happened to you, little sister?" he asked in a gentle tone, specifically using that instead of her name. Because she was. She was Jesse James' baby sister, and yes, for quite a lot of years he did put the fear of god into anyone who might think twice about hurting her. But something had happened along the line. Clearly something bad enough to get drawn in on a line of bullshit from a kid for chrissakes. So he was thinking 'bad'.

Sometimes, around her family, Evelyn felt her childhood stir within her mindset; like now, where a part of her recalled the state of a youngest child's sense of neediness and protection, before she grew into wanting independence from either. There was very much that initial instinct to just play down his question, deflecting it, and it was one she even opted to go with... except she couldn't. Somewhere between her brain and her mouth there was a hang-up, and whatever words she had been aiming for just wouldn't come up. In fact, it seemed she had trouble really getting any words out -- for a brief second Evelyn opened her mouth but, finding it not so effective outside of looking akin to a fish, closed it again. It seemed even trying to give a decent answer wasn't working out. Which left her feeling a little lost, and for a moment that showed. Really, lack of sleep wasn't working with her particularly well; and being around Jesse wasn't helping with her guard -- not when she knew how observant he was, and when appearing completely un-bothered around him involved a level of focus she just couldn't achieve right now.

So Evelyn sat back, leaning against her chair with arms crossed as she flicked her gaze out the window. "How do you mean?" she asked, softly, in a tone that lacked the energy to be defensive. Clearly it aimed to sound merely conversational... but it just tended toward distracted. She shifted her gaze back to him, aware that the question probably wasn't particularly coherent in its context. She wasn't entirely certain of the context; save that there just seemed to be so many problems going on her life and things falling apart, and there was a complete lack of anywhere to start trying to verbally untangle the mess. It didn't help that there was a blanketing sense of resignation -- that all her problems were her own doing anyway -- dismissing the notion of using her brother (with his own issues anyway) to try to untangle things for her.

"You just talked about what I'm afraid will happen to Jessie with an authority that says it happened to you." Jesse said, tone still gentle. "So...what happened to you?" He had more there, like he wanted to know if it was why she'd gone off the deep end. If it was why she'd gotten so fucking distant, and started lying to her family, if the current mess she was in was because of whatever happened to her. But he didn't want to pile on the questions, he wanted the single answer there. From there, he'd figure out what else to ask, if he was left with questions. But for right here, right now, he needed that bit of information first.

Can't we just talk about something else? Really, that would be completely alright with her right now; even if the other options for Talking were about as pleasant. Evelyn shifted a slight bit, really in internal despair at the current situation -- though she kept that behind a tight-lipped expression. But, really, she wasn't an idiot. This was the third time or so Jesse had posed the question or one similar. Save for just standing up and walking out? She wasn't going to be able to keep dodging it... and doing something as drastic as that sure as hell wouldn't convince Jesse to just bypass the issue. If anything, it'd be the exact opposite.

So, forcing her eyes to remain steady onto Jesse's, she finally gave a little shrug, "My old boss was an ass." Which, really, was a gross under-estimate of the situation. There was being an ass, and there was playing fucked up mind games. But just because she had touched onto the issue didn't mean she was any more comfortable with going into the details -- like how she had utterly failed to handle things.

Jesse looked away for a moment, then back to his sister. "Don't downplay this, okay? That shrug? You know I know it's more than that. Don't treat me like an idiot you know I'm not. And don't treat shit like it isn't important when it is. Jesus, Evie, you started lying to your entire family, you got yourself into shit with everything else...is he why? Please don't keep doing this. I'm your brother. I love you. I want to know what the hell happened. Don't cut me out. If nothing else, you know about a lot of the fucked up shit Ronnie's pulled on me over the years."

That stung, the part that tied her in with Ronnie. A lot, actually; enough so for a wince to immediately strike her features. But that was the guilt talking, because a moment later she clued into how he had really meant that. But the wince could have been applied to everything he had said anyway. Both in how it was right, and how it was wrong. Because fucked up though the situation with the boss had been, he hadn't held any guns to her head -- he hadn't been there at the Drake, forcing her to lie to everyone. That had been all her. Just because, sometimes, she couldn't pinpoint why she had done things didn't change the fact that she had done them. A hand came up to run against her hair -- not helping the lose job she had done on it to begin with -- and she let out a breath because she really didn't know what to say.

She had been aware of the possibility that this moment would arrive -- he could read her tells on a good day, and could be tenacious as hell in getting to the bottom of them -- but being aware beforehand and being prepared when the moment arrived were two different things. "Maybe. Partly -- I mean, in the end it's nobody but me making my decisions, so..." She brought her hand back down to rest on the table, and this time shut down on the urge to shrug (or maybe it was just to hunch) her shoulders. She didn't complete that thought though, not really knowing where it had been going herself. "He was just... at some point, interested in things other than office skills. Or, well, that was probably always the main interest I guess." She paused for a moment, wholly unsure how to articulate things. "And he didn't really take rejection well? Yet he seemed to or... well, if rejection is really what it could be called -- because nothing was ever really asked or stated..." ...so there was nothing to verbally shoot back 'no' to?

Evelyn gave another sigh as her hand moved back up to rub at her neck, feeling a bit like she was raking herself over dry hot coals as she bumbled through an explanation that was confusing even her. She needed a moment to collect her thoughts, to recollect just what exactly had happened. Just how had she let herself go from where she started, to feeling like she was backed into a wall and close to doing something she regretted even considering?

Jesse tried to be patient as she fumbled through her explanation, gave him half formed sentences that didn't have endings. But really all it served to do was articulate just how much it had impacted her. How bad it threw her. Because Evie was usually a hell of a lot more outspoken than this. Or at least articulate. Also, the picture she was painting left him feeling like someone needed to have a hospital visit. Possibly a nicely extended hospital stay. He could hear where she was faltering and with it could fill in the blank for the behavior. He'd known people like who she was vaguely describing. In fact, he had put a couple of them in the hospital before, because something in him just couldn't handle knowing they were doing that to some poor girl. Jesse wasn't good at being a long term boyfriend but he wasn't a manipulative fuck, either, and it was never on purpose that he started slipping.

Still, that same thing that sparked up in his life before that had him taking a swing at people he was even working with at the time was there now. He didn't say anything about it, he just listened, trying not to go over the top. Yet, anyways. "It's a manipulation. If they don't give you something solid then you can blame yourself." he said, tone quiet. "I'm sure you do, right? You put a lot of it on yourself, because of how things went. That doesn't mean that's how it is, though, Evie. That means that's how it was presented specifically so you would behave that way."

There was another moment of quiet, as she still tried to mentally go over things. Yes, there was a lot she could blame herself for, even though she could only be held responsible for her actions -- not his. In the end, it was on him. She knew that, she did. But it was a sentiment that she just couldn't fully commit to emotionally. Because, again, she could be held responsible for her actions, and looking at it now a good part of her thought her actions had been piss poor. There had been plenty of outs she could have taken, instead of letting herself feel trapped and cornered against some imaginary wall. The guy had been a man -- a fucked up one, certainly -- but not some god. And he was a kind of man she had seen before -- in potential relationships, or friendships -- and been able to confront and just cut out the moment she saw the signs. "It wasn't like I was oblivious..." Evelyn murmured, finally forcing herself to voice that sentiment. "There wasn't anything to know in the beginning? But I could have... I mean -- I saw signs, or at least had some intuition, or noticed things; I mean..." Unfortunately she couldn't really pinpoint examples of what she meant, not even now, despite the seeming clarity she had toward everything else in hindsight. So the sentence drifted off into a shrug, this one slipping through despite herself. And she didn't look too happy about that either. A shrug to downplay things she was fine with, but one of genuine uncertainty? Not so fond of.

It took her another moment, of mentally sorting through the drudges of memory and feeling, to try to figure out just what she meant, and to push herself to explain it. "It just... it wasn't enough to be sure, at first. And after a closer look nothing ever really held up, and it just seemed to be imagining things -- because in trying to point something out... there just wasn't anything." Which, really should have been a red flag itself. There's only so many instances where you can be 'imagining' things before noticing something really was off or you're just crazy. At some point she noticed her gaze had drifted away from Jesse, just to the side of him, and she forced it back to his eyes:

"But then some things seemed more obvious -- like there suddenly were issues with the records: paychecks going missing, or being less than what they should be, or days requested off forgotten, or schedule suddenly switched around. All 'accidental' of course, and then fixed the moment they were pointed out, or about to be... and then things left on the desks -- jewelry, flowers, gifts given to somebody's girlfriend or mistress--" and there was a dark frown, there, recalling that, "--only they were meant to be sent to some client, or for society event, or a charity donation." And the memo for those had always been small, tucked out of the way, or sometimes (again, 'accidentally') forgotten. And she stopped there, again; not enjoying talking about her issues for so long without a break (not that she hadn't interuppted herself with more than enough pauses and half-thoughts).

When he was sure she wasn't saying more just now, he started thinking over what to say. He could picture it all well. And again, part of that was because he was familiar with the type. He could see the manipulations because he could see the angles. He knew the sort of mentality that would go behind something like that, the worst sort of emotional and mental manipulation that got tossed out there far too often. Even more he was thinking that this guy needed to spend a little time in the hospital. He could deal with charges if they were presented. Really he could. And considering the source, and what could possibly be brought to light on his end of things, maybe charges wouldn't be coming at all. Still, that was where his mind was.

"It's still all a play, Evie. You sound like you know that, but still sort of seem like you're not acknowledging it." he observed. "Like you get it but aren't quite on board. Which is part of it too." Yep. His baby sister didn't deserve that, and he was willing to bet trust issues of massive proportions had cropped up because of it. He could see it all pretty clearly, in light of what she was saying. God did he not want that happening to his baby girl.

Oh, there were definite trust issues. Ones she was aware of. With herself. With people. Enough so that she just couldn't tell whether the doubts popping up were genuine intuition or just her own issues. Like with Sullivan, who she had been so cautious around despite him not giving her a reason to. And then the what Dutch had told her, and now it wouldn't go away... And she just couldn't tell whether that was from cautious sense or just her paranoia. Not that getting attacked helped. And this business with Dodge? She knew that one was going to throw her for a loop, it already was. Things had expanded from relationships in the professional world into those in her personal one. And now they bled into things she definitely knew to be irrational -- like not trusting the dark itself, even when it was in a familiar apartment; or the busy street on a beautiful bright day like this.

Or how she just still couldn't trust Jesse's words, even though it made perfect sense -- and she could see how they made sense. She just couldn't accept that it was just a play and she was just the pawn. There was an inability -- or unwillingness -- to release the the guilt and responsibility she had hoarded; keeping the whole event into something that could have been within her control to avoid or fix had she just... not been so stubborn, or seen more clearly; just handled it better. She sighed a little, coming off a bit defeated. "I don't know," she admitted, soft, letting her eyes drift away to an empty table. But, then, she took another breath and collected her composure, straightening up and back to facing him. "But... I needed to get out --" Not liking that phrasing, she amended, "I needed another job. But nobody seemed to be hiring -- or they were just, somebody else always seemed to get the job before I did. And then I finally found one, waitresing." Which brought them to the Drake. ...Lovely.

"Well, at least that makes sense." Jesse said. "Instead of you just not bothering thinking things through before you did it. Or ignoring things." He exhaled, dragging a hand through his hair. "You still need to get out of there, and as soon as you can. But at least it makes more sense in context." He looked at her for a long moment. "Evie, why didn't you tell me any of this before?" he asked. "You just...at my apartment, you just stared coldly, like nothing mattered at all, like you didn't give even a slight bit of a damn about anything or anyone. What the hell?" he asked, tone light. "I don't get that part. I don't get why you'd do that. Or why you'd stop trusting me, your family, after something like that happened to you. We're not him. And I understand lack of trust...it's a little hard for me to trust a lot of women, even if they remotely remind me of Ronnie, but that never included you. Or our sisters, or anyone else."

That surprised her, and it showed. Because for being called cold and not giving damn, Evelyn remembered the entire counter she was on the verge of a complete and utter breakdown -- one that had, in fact, hit before she could even get in the cab. One she hadn't really ever recovered from, not even now. "I..." It took her a moment to process that, staring at him, too surprised to reign in the stricken expression that came with it. "I wasn't -- I didn't... it did matter, everything." And her voice broke a little there, and she hated the sound of it; and, like last time, she refused to let tears or another breakdown follow... only this time it wasn't nearly collected enough to appear indifferent. And her hand came back up, fingers running through her hair instead of against it, accidentally undoing a pin there. "I do trust you -- which I know sounds stupid, with everything," she closed her eyes for a moment, opening them again, "...I don't know, why -- I just... couldn't." And she recognized how pathetic that sounded, because it was her own mouth. It was entirely under her control to open it up and put words out, after all. But yet -- whenever she tried -- she just couldn't get the words past her head.

He watched her, seeing that things were clearly affecting her now, but then? Really not. "Evie, you stood there, and said nothing. You just stared, like absolutely nothing was even mattering to you. There wasn't even a flicker of emotion you showed. What the hell was I meant to do with that? I don't know what it is you think you're doing at that point, but what it is on this end is you not giving a shit. It's you just standing there like a statue. Like nothing matters, like you don't care, and no matter what you're witnessing, pain from family or otherwise, it's not hitting you at all." he told her, because it was quite clear she didn't get that. He looked away for a moment, then back. "I don't know what it is you're trying to do there, or why it is you're behaving like this, but whatever it is? Whatever you think you're accomplishing? You're not. Unless you just want the people who care about you to think you don't give a shit. About them or anything else."

That hit home painfully, especially hard. With everything she had done, hurting people had never been her intention -- her family the least of all. Which, hey, was kind of exactly what had happened. But was what she hadn't wanted. Not at all. She had wanted... what? What had been the goal? "I just -- I didn't want to fall apart, or break down, along with..." everything else. "...everything else," she finished, pushing that thought past her teeth. Her philosophy had always been that, while she couldn't always control her circumstances, she could control her reactions to them; she could control herself. Just because things were falling apart didn't mean she had to. Which she would, once these things were voiced. Which was kind of what was going on now, actually; and, yeah, it was sucking just as much as she thought it would. And, as she had always known, it was more painful and nerve-wracking in front of family. In front of her brother. Because Jesse, and her sisters and her parents, could tell when things were wrong with her even when most people couldn't; and they really didn't need much to go on to do it most of the time. And they knew who she was, the strength and sense and control she should have possessed, who she should have been in that moment... making it all the worse.

"If you'd done that at least it would have made it clear it mattered to you. That you weren't completely un-moved by anything that happened. Hell, Evie, right then, that day? With you just showing absolutely nothing?" He sighed. "It came off like that's just how it was, you didn't give a damn how it impacted me or the rest of the family at all, and if you don't give anything at all? Well then it leaves a hell of a lot of room to interpret the other way. Because if you don't care, then maybe you did it on purpose. Or maybe you just can't be bothered to give a damn what your actions do to other people around you. I don't know what it is with you and what seems like some obsession with holding it all together, but if you do too good a job there, then all you're doing is making yourself come off like a stone cold bitch." he told her. "Which I'm pretty sure is not the way you want to go. Not with your family or anything else either, because if you do...things don't end well, Evie. I've seen it, okay? I'm older than you. And I know I don't play that card a whole lot, and it's because you're a smart girl but in this case it kind of seems like you've been entirely missing a whole hell of a lot of shit so I'm going to tell you." he continued. "People like that, it either makes them incredibly unliked--which won't help you in your personal or professional life, or someone gets it in their head that they want to take you down. Also not exactly something you want to set yourself up for. You need to think about how you come off to other people. How however you're behaving is going to appear from the other end. You need to have perspective, Evie. I think you're too stuck inside your own head to even realize you don't have it."

She didn't say anything immediately. What could she say, save for dropping her head down and finding some way to bury it into the table? Which was an overwhelming urge that she managed to fight against; which kind of flew in the face of what Jesse was saying about holding it all together but, really, it wasn't like she was managing to hold it all together; and she sure as hell wasn't doing 'too good' a job of it right now; ...or any job of it, maybe. Like how she caught that her gaze had fallen down to the table, and this time she didn't put the effort to bring it back on to Jesse's face. Like how, right now, Evelyn felt very much like a small, shamed and guilty child -- and the 'I'm older than you' card hadn't been needed to manage it. "I'm sorry," she finally murmured, after a long moment. Which she meant, and it was long overdue. And with it she did bring her eyes back up -- despite how painfully, incredibly uncomfortable it felt -- because she didn't look away on an apology.

He looked at her for a few moments. "I don't know if you actually even said that that day. Maybe you did, but even if you did, it didn't come off as genuine with how you were acting." he said. "And you're forgiven." he added. Because that was the main point there. "I don't want to see you get hurt, and I don't want to see you digging yourself into a hole you can't get out of, either. Right now that's what I'm seeing. From here, it looks like you're already pretty far down. I don't know what needs to happen to help you out, but if I can do anything, I will." he said. "Like, Baby J's bringing up that we should probably have an apartment with more than one bedroom in it, I don't know if that's just so she'll have an easier time sneaking around me or if she really figures it's time I had my own room or something, but she brought it up. I could always look for a place with three bedrooms."

It was funny, how the things she didn't want most of all seemed to be what happened despite the constant effort to the contrary. Like how getting herself into a mess for somebody else -- her brother -- to untangle had always been an idea she railed against. It never struck her as fair, for her to do that to somebody; that -- if she got herself in a mess -- she should be the one responsible for taking care of it. But, really, her focus shifted from her self-centered self-flogging at his last part -- particularly the part about Baby J -- which brought a frown.

"Her concern is for you, not sneaking around you," she stated, in a voice that was far steadier on that than on anything else she had discussed today. In fact, its tone explicitly said: 'cut that shit-ass thinking out'. Baby J hadn't talked to her about any apartment, but she didn't need that conversation to know that, if her niece brought up another apartment? She sure as hell wasn't plotting to subvert her father. Evelyn didn't respond to anything else he said as of yet, wanting to make sure her brother got that before tackling anything else. Because Jesse saying something like that in regards to his daughter? Was pretty damn important.

He quirked a half smile that didn't last very long. "Sorry." he said, actually feeling the need to apologize there. "The bullshit with Dodge has me in a cynical frame of mind. I know she's a better daughter than that. I just also know she's a very smart, beautiful girl who probably has a hell of a lot more male attention than I hear about." Which generally, was probably good for his blood pressure and her social life in general. It just didn't mean he was blind to the fact that she was growing up, and wasn't, actually going to stay a little girl forever. Even if if he had his way she sure as hell would. And she wasn't allowed to date til she was thirty.

Evelyn quirked a half smile of her own in response, although it faded faster. She knew Jesse well enough to take a good guess at where his thoughts had went. "Well, growing up doesn't have to be too terrible -- Dorothy seems quite happy with it after all." Then, gauging the mood a little bit, added, "And when Baby J's married -- at forty-five, of course -- and has her first child I'm certain you'll embrace spoiling your grandchild with complete grace." Her tone was lighthearted, although not as fully so as it might have been, considering it came at the tail end of an emotionally wrecking conversation. ... Or maybe it was still in the midst of one.

"She's fifteen, Evie, don't talk about her having kids already...when the day comes, yeah, sure, you know I will spoil the hell out of that kid or children or whatever, but please--hold off on that til she's at least graduated high school..." he pleaded. He didn't even want to think about his baby girl going on dates let alone anything else. Which still had them back on the original topic. "Are you going to talk to her?" he asked. "I know it'll suck no matter what, I just...I really still think that she'll take it more seriously from you, especially since you've even had it from the very same kid." he said. "Also, you didn't say anything about the apartment thing. Maybe I'll just find one, and you can take your time to make up your mind on it." he told her, to take the pressure off. "Though honestly, right now, I think Baby J could benefit from having a female in the house with her. Someone she can go to with things she might not be able to go to me for." And he wasn't directing her towards her mother. No way no how. Hell would freeze over first. Which he actually decided to share. "...and the less she even thinks about going to her mother for anything ever ever ever the better."

Her mouth drew into a dark frown at the mention of that. Jesse knew damn well what her opinion of Ronnie was, and it wasn't a particularly patient or forgiving one. She kept her tongue still around Jessie -- because the last thing her niece needed was to hear such opinions on her mother, regardless of how much the woman deserved it -- but Evelyn wasn't shy about giving her brother an exact piece of her mind there. Especially as he managed to just get reeled in time and time again by that bitch's woman's antics. And, while she was careful about not kicking him when he was down? It didn't mean the topic wasn't brought up and the point not made. But she didn't address it. Well, not immediately.

"I'll talk to Jessie," she confirmed. Then, after a pause added, "At the very least... it'll be nice to not take either her bed or yours while visiting," she offered in regards to the apartment, appreciating the pressure being put off. And then, finally, she brought up who she thought was the least important issue -- if the most annoying, "Have you heard anything on her, recently?" Not that Evelyn particularly cared how the woman was, more how Jesse was -- because she knew he tended to keep tabs.

Sighing and propping his chin on his closed fist, he gave a scowl. "Yeah, she showed the other night, and then left me a note to meet her at her hotel the next day." he said. "...I'll admit that part of what I'm upset about lately is her too. Everything seems to kind of be piling in at once." he said. He did feel overwhelmed, that was very true. It was clear, too, in his voice and demeanor. "She came by wanting what she always does. Money. I went to see her because I didn't want her showing up at the apartment again." he added. "I don't know. I feel like I usually do when I've had to deal with her again. Like my head doesn't make nearly so much sense as it should."

If Evelyn wasn't too thrilled about hearing how Jesse kept tabs on Ronnie? She was incredibly None Too Happy to hear, hey, look at who had been dropping by... and Jesse in that moment exemplified why. Because while the woman was a selfish, pathetic trainwreck worthy of being despised of on her own merit? It was what she did to her brother that really pissed Evelyn off. "What happened?" she asked, a hard edge in her voice that obviously wasn't pointed at him. Although the question was slightly pointed -- because, yeah, Evelyn was pretty damn aware that Jesse himself tended to get stupid around Ronnie. Actually, her brother tended to get more stupid around woman in general. The women may have been manipulative in their own right, sure, but it wasn't like Jesse himself made it especially hard. Which was why, many times, Evelyn had the urge to try to shake the man to his senses. Which may or may not still be one the table, it just wasn't the most important topic. Before bothering with anything else her focus was on what had happened, and assessing the damage as far as her brother and possibly Baby J were concerned.

He rolled his eyes but clearly it was at himself. "What usually happens. She sticks around for a bit, asks about Baby J, fucks with my head something fierce, then she goes along her merry way with the contents of my wallet." he said. He knew it, he was fully fucking aware of the truth of things. That just didn't help him in the moment. "Then the next night..." he frowned, not even sure what that was. "I don't know. she was all dolled up, I think she wanted me to be jealous or something." he said. "She told me she got some job or some shit. I don't know."

"Two nights in row? There's a record -- maybe she'll stay away for a good year now," Evelyn muttered, crossing her arms and leaning back a bit and -- as per usual on this topic -- her full feeling went undisguised. Hell, maybe Ronnie could stay away forever; that would be wonderful. Evelyn wasn't heartless enough to actually go anything so far as to wish the woman dead, or hurt... but at the same time Ronnie herself kept putting herself in such situations time and time again that Evelyn was of the opinion that -- after the thousandth time or so -- she wouldn't be inclined to do anything to stop her. She observed her brother for a long moment and then, sighing, sat up and leaned forward and rested her elbows on the table, "Jess, why give her the money? I know you can't help, well, helping... but is it really helping anything? You and I both know what she spends the money on. And nothing changes and, honestly?, I doubt anything is going to change -- even if she somehow managed to find another job." It wasn't like Ronnie didn't have a spectacular record of failing to hold on to jobs, after all. "And she may have given birth to Jessie? But she hasn't been a mother to her in a long long time; and I don't think you're doing your daughter any favors by opening the door to her, even when she isn't aware of it."

"What am I supposed to do?" he asked. "And what if I turn her down, and the next thing she does is show up to talk to Jessie?" he asked. "I know she'd hate that. She found a locket that I'd given to Ronnie a little while after she was born...in a pawn shop, she was pretty upset about it." he said. "I think she expected me to be upset about it too, but for me, I just expect it. I guess I don't want to risk her hunting down our daughter to punish me for not giving her something she wants when I can afford to." Sort of.

Another frown sharpened the corners of her mouth at the bit on the locket; but -- like her brother -- she wasn't anywhere near Fabulously Surprised. And Jesse did have a point, because Evelyn had no idea just how Ronnie would act to him finally taking a stand. "If I had to bet? I'd say she'd probably just slink away -- it isn't like she's one to stick around when something or someone makes things hard for her. And she knows it's easy for her to get money out of you, so she keeps coming back." And Evelyn would need pigs to fly and do the hula before she believed that Ronnie held any attachment more than that. If you cared about somebody? You didn't pull the kind of shit she did with Jesse. "But, who knows, she just might be petty enough to pull that with Baby J." Again, Evelyn wouldn't cross into Fabulously or even Least Bit Surprised in that case.

She focused onto Jesse, surveying him for a moment, before finally adding, "Is that all it is, Jess? I mean, hypothetically speaking, if you had an absolute hundred percent guarantee she wouldn't come near Baby J -- hell, that she'd stay away forever, if you didn't just give in... would you do it?" Although, really, she knew the question would have been better phrased as could he do it. Because as much as she really, really wanted him to say, yes, he could and he would and believe it... she couldn't honestly wager on that.

"I think she'd hit me where it hurt, because she knew it would get to me." Jesse said. "If I didn't give her what she wanted. I think she'd fixate on that." He had to consider her question before he answered, however. "And I don't know. She just...I can say right now right here sure, I'd love that, but when she actually comes around, when she's physically present...you know me. I'm a fucking idiot." he said, well aware of that fact.

Evelyn sighed, leaning back again. And so this cycle would continue, it seemed; and she really wished she knew the way to throw a wrench into it. Because it was just fabulously unhealthy, and the only way she could see it changing was with it getting unhealthier. At the very least -- if she did end up taking the offer on the apartment -- she knew she wouldn't have any qualms with shutting the damned door in the damned woman's face. But despite everything Evelyn couldn't see herself finally accepting and saying that yeah, she'd move in. Jesse had opened her eyes to some things earlier, certainly; but that didn't just erase who she was... or whatever unfathomable core desire colored her every thought and action. But, well, she could visit more. And, even though she still couldn't help the frustration that came with the fact, there was a certain neediness that called out to her for spending some days at home, in her own bed, or at least just surrounded by her family.

"No chance you've been seeing someone else who isn't Ronnie?" she asked, hopefully. Not that Jesse was the greatest boyfriend, or that him seeing another woman held much hope for the long-term future considering the three ex-fiances; but at least some other non-Ronnie female presence in his life would be better than that tramp being the only one around. That was Evelyn's opinion, anyway.

"No. I mean, I saw Helena the other day, but that went how it usually does, and I wouldn't go there anyways." Jesse said. Even if Helena was beautiful. "I haven't met anyone I really...I'm just not interested. Trust me, I wish someone would come by I was interested in. But lately there's been no one at all." Though Ronnie sometimes even threw wrenches into that too. It wasn't like the only times she'd showed up in the past he'd been single at the time.

Evelyn wasn't normally one to divulge in the 'What If' games if she could help it. Which was yet another reason why talking about the serious issues that bothered her was so unpleasant -- because she always found herself going over things, and What If, and What She Should Have Done in excess. But a part of her couldn't help wondering and asking 'what if' in regards to his past relationships. What if Ronnie had just gotten over herself, had held off being selfish long enough to let Jesse be whenever he got into a relationship? What if that had happened? Would Evelyn be sitting here, asking him about his wife then? Granted, she knew that even without Ronnie, Jesse was perfectly capable of falling out of a relationship himself... but she knew the woman seemed to do all in her power not to help.

"You know," Evelyn started, tone aiming for lighthearted and joking in contradiction to most of their conversation thus far, "most of the staff itself at the Drake isn't half bad. There's Marjorie -- she's a hostess at the restaurant, and Toni-- yes she's a girl -- who is a very pretty and clever bartender, and of course Danielle the cheeky maid..." She grinned a little there; she hadn't given serious consideration to setting up any of these woman with her brother before, Evelyn was really just listing the women she knew that fell into his age range and hadn't come off quite so oblivious as much of the staff. Then, considering, she finally add, "Or Kess -- she works the front desk."

Jesse sat up a little straighter at that. "Kess? Hey, I know her." he said. "At least, if it's the woman I'm thinking of. Really pretty, wavy hair, has a daughter she never sees?" he suggested. He hadn't known she worked at the Drake. Or maybe she hadn't when he'd last seen her, since it had only really been the once, after all.

"Sounds like the same woman, yeah," Evelyn replied, surprised, and then frowning a touch. "She never sees her daughter?" She had generally avoided going into much in-depth conversation about family and the sort, seeing as how she hadn't wanted any such topics volleyed back onto herself. So the situation about Kess and her daughter was news, there. But, then, adding onto that the next question at the forefront of her mind: "How do you know her?"

Jesse shook his head. "No, I guess her ex is an asshole, and she's kind of...well. Let's just say if it was me, I'd be a little more pro-active, but it's hard to talk about something like that. And I just ran into her when Lily-" his voice twitched a little on the name, what with her recent death and all "-was going to take Baby J to the theater, and I was buying her a dress for it. I got Kess to help me, because I really don't have any idea what to get for a fifteen year old girl that isn't going to make her feel like she's dressed like a nun."

Evelyn remembered about the trip to the theater, and a part of her twitched in response as she recalled her own failure as an aunt in regards to a trip of her own. But, at the time, she hadn't quite held onto the name of the woman Jessie went with. But she certainly caught it now, and she did recall Miss Mayfair asking Evelyn to call her 'Lily', and her mind normally would have started churning enough to take a guess there and ask about that... except that function had halted; because she had definitely caught the catch in his voice there, and chose to address that before anything else. "Lily?" she asked, gently.

"Yeah, she worked at Baby J's school and the library and such. Went to school with me, actually, I saw her a few times more recently before her death." he said. "Baby J was hanging around her quite a bit." he added. He hadn't been interested in the woman even if she'd showed clear interest in him, at least at first. But then, he had told her a few things he knew other people really wouldn't have and that sometimes really just totally didn't work in his favor.

And at that Evelyn's mind pieced some things together, and formed a very likely possibility of just how her brother had come across the information about her at the Drake. And, she wasn't proud of it?, but the first thing that instinctively flared up was a sense of anger -- not violent, but still there inside her -- and betrayal, even though Evelyn hadn't actually told Lily anything but she did remember the woman saying she wouldn't tell anyways... but immediately after that crest her rational and admonishing self kicked in. Particularly because the words 'before her death' had sunk in and she felt a wave of mourning for a woman she recalled had been so nice and helpful to her back in high school. Not to mention she could have very well just been jumping to conclusions -- Jesse knew a network of people, any of whom could have found out about the Drake and passed it on to him. And, anyways, railing against the dead was a petty thing to do in Evelyn's opinion. What was to be solved by dealing with ghosts?

"I'm sorry," she murmured, keenly aware that Jesse and Baby J had lost somebody, and dealing with the living took precedence over accusing the dead. And, had she been more involved and less distant, she wouldn't have been hearing about it just now; and could have been there when the issue was more recent and they might have been more in need. And that ate at her, that she had let herself do that; get so distant, when so much had been going on within her family. But, really, focusing on Jesse here meant Evelyn didn't lose herself in excessive berating on the past, and was just trying to be there for him now.

"Thank you. But I think Baby J took it harder than I did. For me...I don't know." he said with a sigh. "Obviously I never wished her ill or anything. She just...well. She kind of came off like she was Jessie's age. It was...kinda disconcerting." he admitted. "But I don't want to really talk about it, if you don't mind." he said. Really, for his part, he'd even forgotten that he'd found out about Evie through Lily. If pointed out he'd remember, it was just the most insignificant part of the whole mess that it wasn't prominent enough for him to remember as a part of the ordeal at all.

Evelyn nodded, letting him drop it. But then that left her with silence and, untypical of being with her brother, it wasn't the comfortable kind. Not to her anyway. Their conversation thus far had left her feeling raw, not relieved; even though a part of her couldn't deny that it was needed, that it had to happen at some point. But for as much as they had covered there was still more to go. At least there was on her end. And again she knew it couldn't be bottled up forever. That, hell, now would probably be the best out of a list of bad times to bring any of this stuff up; and she knew that, definitely by the end of the day, she was going to have to come out and voice things she had preferred to keep buried even from herself. And she knew that it was better she bring things up on her own instead of having to have things forced out of her. But really she just couldn't do this exact second. She just... needed a moment, or a breather. But unfortunately she couldn't think of anything to fill it up with either, so she just let the moment continue in quiet.

He did too, and then noticed belatedly that the waitress was sort of hovering behind the counter, looking like she was trying not to be in the way. He gave her a little smile. "Everything done?" he asked. "Sorry about that, darlin." he said.

She smiled at him, and then brought over two plates, even if Evelyn hadn't ordered anything. "If you want somethin else, it's no problem honey." she said to Evie, smiling at her brightly.

She smiled back at the waitress, although it didn't linger long after the woman had left. She did glance over at her brother, quirked a brief half-smile, and started in on her plate. And, really, she was grateful for food. Less because of the life-necessary sustenance it provided, and more because with her mouth chewing she couldn't really feel pressured to talk. She wasn't one for talking with her mouth full, after all. So she busied herself with just focusing on this moment, chewing her lunch carefully.

And, though it wouldn't be obvious to most?, she was probably chewing too carefully. She did it absently, but each bite was about the exact same size as the other. And if Evelyn were to take up a fork and knife in that moment and cut something, each piece could probably lay one on top of the other without overlapping. It was something that had started as a childhood game once: cut the pieces into the exact same size, finish each piece in precisely the same number of chews, with each chew lasting the same number of seconds. It was something her mother had recognized could turn unhealthy if indulged, and had gently derailed before it became a detrimental habit. And she was successful there, for the most part. Except when sometimes, in times of stress or anxiety or just generally uneasy moments like this, that old ritual would pop up again; sometimes without Evelyn noticing.

Jesse noticed, because it had been the weirdest habit to have. "Are you just trying to avoid saying anything else to me, and figure you can go through this whole meal without another damn word if you cut your food and chew it all the same?" he asked, tone a little bland, a definite tone of 'sigh' in there. "You realize that that just takes us backwards from where we were, right? When we got to a better place? What the fuck are you playing at?" he asked, though it wasn't toned harshly.

It took Evelyn about a half second before catching on. She glanced down at her food, and then up at Jesse. "Nothing," she replied. Then, considering her credibility was somewhere in the negatives, added, "Really." To emphasize it, she took another bite -- one that was significantly disproportionate to those before -- and swallowed it quickly with few chews. All of which, really, went directly against her instincts at the moment. If she hadn't noticed it a moment ago, she certainly noticed it now that she had to fight the urge to micromanage her meal. "I wasn't really thinking about it," she admitted after a moment, letting her eyes fall down to her plate as she picked up a fry, tracing it along part of the plate edge before picking it up and taking a bite. Again, she found herself fighting the urge to control that before swallowing, but with Jesse having pointed it out she managed it.

"Which has nothing to do with the fact that you're sitting there in dead silence like a child." he added. "Come on, Evie, I'm tired of this shit, okay? I've got more than enough to deal with without having to continually fight against whatever the hell is going on in your head that's making you behave like a bloody stranger. Or a little kid, because seriously." he said, giving her a Look. "Jessie hasn't played the quiet game since she was five."

And this time Evelyn sighed, even if she knew hers wasn't nearly as justified. "I'm not trying to avoid you," the sigh carrying on into her tone. Even though she understood his frustration, it didn't change the fact that she was starting to feel some of her own. Talking about any of this hadn't been easy, even though she knew it was needed and a talk was what Jesse deserved. Hell, he deserved more. And she was trying to meet him there, give that to him, but she just couldn't blurt everything out. She just... needed a moment, and needed something to keep her sane long enough to get that moment, even if that something was merely micromanaging her damn meal. Which, she figured, was an explanation she should share. Because he was right, if she gave him nothing? He had nothing to understand.

So she cut back on the sigh that had filtered through her demeanor, aware that it toed -- and maybe crossed -- the line of the defensive. So she expelled a breath, to release that defensiveness, and started: "I'm sorry I'm quiet. And, yes, there is a lot going on in my head right now. Enough that if I just start blurting it out... I'm probably just going to confuse myself and you. And just... mess everything up in my head more," she finished, pausing for a moment there. That last tidbit had been neither easy nor pleasant to fess up -- that, yes, her mind was rather fucked up at the moment. "So I just need a moment, to try to sort the mess going on my head right now before I can try to articulate it."

"Fine." Jesse said. "But if you're going to do that? Say something first, don't just sit there and act like a pouting kid." he told her. "Because out here, we're not psychic and don't know that. I get needing a second, all you had to do was ask for it. Again--perspective." he said. "Take your minute." Which he didn't mean literally, it wasn't like he was going to be timing her.

And Evelyn did, although now she felt a bit bad about it even if that wasn't Jesse's intention, and focused on her food. Although she took care not to invest too much focus on her food. But she took a bite, and tried to mentally envision herself relaxing with each chew; tried to imagine her mind just emptying out through an imaginary filter, keeping only the most important topics in clear detail against the filter. It wasn't the most successful mental exercise, but it actually did help. "Dutch found a car," she stated, finally breaking the silence. That topic seemed the best, really; more in how she could start to see it as a segue into others. "Two nights ago. I guess you guys have met, huh?"

He looked over at the name. Right. "Yeah, we met." he told her. And okay he found a car, which meant that he was going to be owing Dutch money. He'd promised to pay for it, after all. He'd have to hunt the guy down at the Round or something. Wait, he'd mentioned the garage, too. Either way, ge needed to get that taken care of. "Do you have it then? Or not yet?" he asked.

Evelyn nodded, "Although it's largely just been parked, I wouldn't really trust myself behind the wheel yet." It wasn't exactly like she had spent any portion of her life driving around. It was only her interest in technology, and the fact that she was actually fairly adept with such things, that she had figured enough to get the car home on untrafficked streets. Although, really, the fact that she had gotten into the mess that Dutch had saved her from by passing out hadn't left her memory. And if she did something like that in a car it wouldn't be just her safety she'd be risking. She was then quiet for a long moment, but this time it wasn't the absent looking away kind. Her eyes were very much on Jesse, watching him, obviously considering something that she did end up voicing, "You guys ran into each other at the Round." It wasn't phrased quite like a question, because she could guess as to what he (or anyone) was doing at the Round. But there was still something open-ended about it, leaving him to elaborate if he wanted.

"If you had a car, why did I pay for a cab?" he asked, though it was rhetorical. He pushed his plate aside and then regarded her as she said it. "I was completely fucking beside myself over all the bullshit with you." he told her. "So, I wanted a drink. And when I got home that night, Baby J had opted not to go to mom and dad's for some insane reason, and I got a hell of a lot of grief for it there too. It wasn't a good night, to put it mildly."

It was hard, really hard, hearing how the repercussions from her actions had so wholly fucked with her brother. But she forced herself to bear witness to it, not turning away or trying to shift off that weight from her shoulders. "I'm sorry," she said, again, meaning it. And, even if she had wholly meant it before?, she felt and meant it even more now; and it showed. Yes, Jesse had said she was forgiven before, but that didn't mean she was anywhere near forgiving herself. And hearing what he said, about what had happened because of the stupid stupid stupid decisions she had made, she couldn't not say that.

"Just...stop pulling bullshit and you won't have to be sorry." Jesse said. He still had forgiven her, and that much was clear in his tone, he just figured if she was still apologizing, he could give her that. "It shouldn't be that hard to just think things through a little better on your end before you do things. And keep in mind that nothing effects just you." he continued. "Because it doesn't. I learned that a long time ago. You have a kid, and that becomes so amazingly obvious. You're just figuring it out the hard way."

She didn't say anything, there wasn't really anything to say, save for just nodding. Then there was a little bit more quiet -- not especially long -- filled with her starting to shift and fidget and her eyes moving towards the window. And she stared out it, hand reaching up to absently rub her neck; and then the rubbing became a bit incessant, all too easily recalling that -- hey -- up until not too long ago she had to keep it hidden behind a scarf or neckerchief. And then she brought her eyes back onto Jesse -- hand still at her neck, more slowly rubbing it -- and asked, quiet, "Dutch said... you were asking about..." she paused, there; always at a lost as what to say. Asking about the mugger? the attacker? the 'guy', like it was just any guy she might have happened across in her daily life? whatever she chose there seemed to be something -- different for each option -- that just managed to hit at some raw point.

"... that night," she finally settled. Then, managing to at least still her hand even if she didn't pull it away, her gaze and tone became more pointed. "Have you gotten anything, yet?"

"I had a lead on the guy though then everything kind of went to hell in other ways. But I think I know where I can find him." Jesse said. His tone was darker when he said it, too. But then he'd hurt his little sister, there was a whole lot of pain and suffering owed for that shit. He did not approve.

She took a breath, steadying herself for a request she knew would sound odd and was one she did not want to make. Not at all. But she needed to. It was an idea that had formed and haunted and nagged at her ever since she found out from Dutch that her brother was still looking for the guy, that Jesse hadn't just completely dropped her. Because she just wasn't somebody who could be content with passive existence in her own misery; she had to do something. There was no guarantee that this something would make her feel better, and a whole lot to say it might make things worse... but she wasn't going to let her budding phobias turn her into some recluse. She didn't want to impose a faceless attacker on every face she did or didn't meet.

"If you find him," she started, looking at Jesse as she made every effort to steady her voice to make up for just how incredibly shaky the thought actually left her. "Let me know? I want --" no, that wasn't the case at all "-- I need to see him." And, for the moment, she didn't add anything more; just fixed onto Jesse with focus that said she was absolutely serious, even if there was enough to tell that she wasn't exactly at peace with what she proposed.

Jesse didn't say anything for a few long moments, just staring at her. "You need to see him. What the hell for? So we can drag him to the police station and throw his ass in jail? That works for me, we can do that." It hadn't necessarily been what he'd planned to do in the first place, but he could work with it. He could bring the asshole right to their doorstep, and have Evie there, and she could tell them what was what. Not that he was sure that would work, but it was worth a shot.

How did she explain her reasoning behind that, really? Especially considering how, of all the things through her head, this was the one she had really tried to push down, in hopes of overcoming it, not letting herself that it was very much a problem that had nowhere near faded when the bruises had. "It's... walking down the street, or sometimes just in any public place... I don't know how to explain it, it's..." this time both hands dragged through her hair, elbows propped upon the table, head down facing the table before the lifted it back up, continuing, "It's just... not easy." She really didn't want to just come out and say she got scared, or anxious, or could at times feel panic clawing at her mind; she just wanted to give enough to get Jesse to understand without explicitly voicing that, making it all the more real. "I mean, I have no idea who or what he looked like; and it just becomes any, every, face and it doesn't matter if the street or room is crowded and if it's empty then it's just worse and I just can't..."

And, for once, words had actually fallen away in a rush where she didn't even stop to catch her breath until her voice starting cracking. And then she needed another moment, one that she didn't need to announce as her needing to collect herself to talk was obvious there, and took in a shaky breath and continued. This time at a slower, still shaky but getting a bit steadier, pace, "And I can't just do nothing, and I'm not going to lock myself away from the world." No matter how bad the phobia got, Evelyn would not let herself succumb to that. "And I don't know if it'll help... but if there's a definite face, then I can't really turn it into anybody's." Or, that was her theory and what she hoped for. But a part of her knew that it was possible that, despite knowing the face, she might still do just that.

Jesse reached out to put a hand on her shoulder, giving it a squeeze as he watched her. Which was really difficult to do. With the way that she was looking, how wrecked and all...it reminded him of some people he'd known. women who's boyfriends knocked them around. They all had that frightened sort of quality to them, that waiting for the next wrong step feel. He absolutely hated seeing that in Evie. Nodding, he could understand what she was saying even if he didn't like it. "And bringing him to the cops?" he said, voice light. "I'd like to do that. I don't care what you have to say or make up about having caught a glimpse of the guy, let's let him rot in jail."

She didn't say anything, feeling like one more word at this moment would have her sobbing. More so than the sobbing, it was that final debilitating break-down that she felt just around the corner that worried her. She hadn't really recovered from the last one, and inside she knew the one looming nearby would be significantly worse. She was quiet, eyes fixated on some spot on the windowsill, not saying anything for a long moment. She didn't move her hand to squeeze Jesse's as he had done previously to her, still using both hands to prop her head up, fingers curled just before her mouth. But she did lean slightly in, not really in a state of mind to shirk a comfort she had trouble asking for. And her response was considerably belated; only a slight nod finally breaking through as she still kept her gaze focused where it was. Honestly, Evelyn didn't bother thinking over the idea too much as she was too busy trying to push her mind into numbness. But, in that moment, any idea that involved the guy rotting and locked away was one she would agree to.

He didn't rush her at all, just letting her do whatever she was going to do. When she nodded, he did in turn. "Then I'll find him and call you. Then we can go together." Which wasn't to say that Jesse wouldn't knock the hell out of him before they got there. It also didn't mean that he was going to require that the guy be conscious when he did bring him in. The cops didn't like him a whole lot, but he'd never once in all his life been accused of mugging anyone. He didn't do crime like that, never had, never planned on it. he was hoping it would afford him a little leeway especially with the accusations they were going to be leveling at the lowlife.

He kept his eyes on her, then dropped some bills on the table. "Want me to bring you back home?" he asked. "Or do you want to come to my place for a while?" Since really he'd feel better if she was at his place, but he wasn't going to make her do anything right now.

It almost seemed as if she hadn't heard him, as she didn't react to the question at all. But she had heard it, Jesse's voice had filtered through the raw haze her mind was in. It just took her a while, longer than normal, to figure out her answer. Really, what it came down to was just how tired she was. She hadn't been sleeping well this week, not at all. She hadn't even actually slept last night, just tossed and turned before getting up and keeping busy in hopes it would tire her out... and it had. It just didn't mean she'd managed to fall asleep because of it. And if she returned back to her apartment, back to the same bed she had been failing to find sleep in this week, she doubted it would come now. Not after every awful emotion that had surfaced. Not that she thought heading to Jesse's would fair any better... but trying the same thing over and over hadn't been working out and Jesse's apartment was much, much closer anyway. So Evelyn finally pushed herself up, the movement undoing the last of the pins that had been clinging to her hair, and made a small step from her seat. "You're place is closer," she gave as an answer, voice just quiet and tired.

Jesse stood, and nodded. "Alright, Evie. We'll get you there, then." he promised. After that? Well, he wasn't all that sure, but winging it hadn't ever done him all that wrong in his life. Right now he just wanted to take care of his sister as well as he could, and in turn, take care of his daughter...after that everything else could fall into place. In theory.