Second Time's the Charm?

[Black Philip]

Jake almost felt envy at Rachel, with her normal life, nice home and ancient boyfriend. However, then he remembered what Lisa-Joe had told her, and what Damien had mentioned as well. Rachel had things to envied, but her day to day life wasn't one. He felt a fair amount of guilt for his envy, and then it transformed into respect, and for some reason gratitude. He could easily see how Rachel helped Damien. Jake couldn't shake Damien's comment about becoming less human, and how it was phrased as a positive. From what Jake was seeing, some of Damien's best qualities were in fact his most human ones; humor, love, family, and commitment. Damien was wise, but somehow he imagined Rachel's wisdom was just as valuable.

"I think it's clear who's the spark of life in your home," he said, before quickly adding, "no pun intended of course." He gave another nervous laugh, although this one had a high amount of silliness mixed in, and so it sounded closer to the general mood of their table. "My boyfriend Murphy can have a similar effect on me," he admitted, thinking of Murphy's pretty eyes, calming voice and disarming presence. Of course, Jake still hadn't heard from him, but was trying not to focus on that.

[The Cedar Witch]

Rachel was still grinning, any puns that could have been made went over her head but she just went along with the joke. 

"Good.  I think it's really important, especially for you Old Ones so you don't get too stuck in your heads."  She gave him a cheeky, playful smile.

"Wait, Murphy--the journalist?"  she paid attention to things, caught enough of the content of talks around the lineage when she was within earshot.  Murphy, the journalist, the one who published the article that turned the city upside-down.  Yeah, she'd heard that name a couple of times even if she never set eyes on the publication.  Really, she was too nosy for her own good.  Maybe Jake didn't want to give too many details.  Shit.

[Black Philip]

"Old," Jake said with a raised brow and cocky smile, his tone showing his surprise. He felt the need to explain. "Sorry, I'm not used to being called old. Most humans think I'm in high school, and every vampire in the city likes to tell me how young I am. It was amusing." He liked this human more and more. Damien had good taste. He'd brought up Murphy, but realized he was unprepared to talk about him. He had a lot of mixed emotions, and it showed on his face.

"Yep, that's the one," Jake confirmed. He assumed she knew him from the trial story. Damien had attended after all, and Murphy had written the most prominent piece on the subject. "We met at a party," he shared, remembering their walk through Charon's gardens, and the first time he'd fed from him. Whatever nerves were present were dulled away by the fond memory.

"How did you and Damien meet?"

[The Cedar Witch]

Rachel giggled at his amusement of her word choice.  He was, what, two hundred?  Definitely old enough to her.  After being around Damien, who looked twenty-something when he was trying, it wasn't too hard to get used to young looks.  Though, at first, Jake's apparent age was surprising.  Why was everyone claiming fledges so young, anyway?  Seemed rude.

She was pretty adept at picking up on nonverbal cues, and between the tone, the look on his face, and the change of subject that was plenty enough for her to understand that it wasn't the time to talk about Murphy.  Which, admittedly made her curious--but Jake was far from being her friend enough to excuse any pressuring.  Not to mention the fact that she didn't have the slightest clue how he would react to the same sort of prying that she could get away with doing to Quinn.  Damien did say that Jake had the tendency to fly off the handle when provoked.  Well, he didn't exactly say that but it was the same sort of thing.

Really there was no polite way to describe how she first met Damien, and she couldn't blame Jake for asking that question but it was really really not the best topic to jump to.  She smiled tightly, a squeezing sensation creeping into her chest.

"It's not really a good story..."  she said softly, not wanting to entirely spoil the lightness of the conversation but also unwilling to deny him an answer.  "I'll just say that I, uh, wouldn't be here if it wasn't for him."  She laughed awkwardly, wishing she hadn't said that because it came out more dramatic than she wanted it to.  Even though it was the truth. 

"Sorry,"  She inhaled sharply, not entirely sure what she was apologizing for.

[Black Philip]

Jake felt a wash of shame. He hadn't meant to make her uneasy, and her deflection of his question and subsequent follow up told him he was treading on sensitive ground. He looked nonplussed, and smiled warmly. "No need to be sorry, and I'm glad you're here," he said, both meaning generally and at this moment. A pause happened for the first time, and while it might've been awkward, it felt like a period. Jake decided to follow it up with a new sentence, and new topic. Jake could be theatrical at times, often to Lisa-Joe's amusement and annoyance, and he decided to use some of that on Rachel.

"So I have a really important question," Jake said, looking as serious as possible. He leaned in, like this was sensitive material, for her ears only. "Like, what has Damien said about me," he joked, taking on the voice of a valley girl, and playing with long hair that wasn't really there. He smiled and followed up with a quick, "don't feel like you have to answer that. Spouse confidentiality and all that."

He was curious if Damien talked about him, and secretly hoped he'd told Rachel good things. He doubted it though. Most people in this city didn't have good things to say about him. The whole bit was more a joke than a serious question, a way to move on from the heaviness of the previous moment. He wouldn't stop her from sharing though.

[The Cedar Witch]

Whether or not the intended effect of the act was to make Rachel feel more at ease, it did.  She laughed and mirrored his body language, leaning in and giving him a sly look.

"Why--got the hots for him?"  She smiled playfully, eyes twinkling.  It was almost a serious question but said with the intonation of just going along with the joke. 

Her mind was running through the talks she'd had with Damien regarding Jake.  That night the two had a meeting about the campaign in the beginning, Damien coming home in a quiet rage over "turning up empty"--that Jake wouldn't be helping hunt the Demon that tormented her.  The frustration, questioning if he made the right choice with tossing his support to Jake over Ben, anguishing over having no more resources to catch Laurent than before.  It was a preemptive judgment, of course.  Who knew what this alliance would bring down the line--it was too early to tell.  And they'd talked about that, with her soothing him as much as she was able, even though she felt the sting right along with him.

It was her horror, her life, after all.  Of course, she wanted that part of it gone.

Damien had described Jake as impulsive and inexperienced, not to mention young.  His actions were frustrating, but he had good intentions behind them--if only the execution could be different.  Central was doing well enough under Jake's leadership.  Ultimately, he could be malleable if Damien played his cards right.  A risky investment, but hopefully worth it in the end, so long as Jake could learn a few things from him.

Her expression had grown serious with all of her thinking, and she belatedly realized that her mind had the potential of being an open book to vampires.  Hopefully, he didn't catch any snippets from her--that would be...bad.  Probably.

"He thinks you've done good things in Central,"  she smiled, "and that you have a lot of potential."  Hopefully, that wouldn't be an offensive thing to say.   

[Black Philip]

Rachel's accusation that Jake had the hots for Damien got a quick and obviously defensive, "oh no. Ugh. Of course not. He's a valued colleague."

He knew he sounded about as convincing as a redhanded burglar. He gave that nervous laugh again, and said rather shly, "he is very handsome."

He felt so awkward, but luckily Rachel's report back was favorable. Considering what most people had to say about Jake, an ancient thinking an almost three hundred year old having potential was high praise. He ate the compliments, choosing not to examine their more left handed qualities. He decided information was worth information, and shared a little of what he'd taken away in his time with Damien. "He loves you very much. That's about the first thing I learned about him." 

[The Cedar Witch]

The defensiveness granted Jake a raised eyebrow and a wide smile.  Valued colleague indeed.  She definitely wouldn't be telling Damien about this at all, even though it was such a juicy bit.  It would totally affect the way he interacted with Jake and she didn't think that was a good thing. 

Maybe something to tease Jake about later, if the opportunity presented itself.  She giggled mischievously at the thought, right after Jake admitted he thought Damien was very handsome. 

He loves you very much.

"Yeah?"  That last bit got her blushing fiercely.  Especially because...well...they hadn't said those words to each other yet.  Even though she felt them, and was pretty sure he did too.  But they were moving at a slow pace with that sort of thing.  He was still so sensitive and complicated when it came to how their relationship was developing.  Dead sire and centuries of celibacy and all that.  Somehow they haven't entirely gotten away from walking on eggshells around certain things.  Soon, she knew, that would change.

Hopefully.  She had seriously fallen for him, without a doubt.  Rachel hugged herself, fighting the heat in her cheeks.

[Black Philip]

Jake nodded slowly, assuming this was something she already knew. He decided he liked Rachel. He wanted her to come visit him again, with or without Damien. He flagged down a bartender, and one of the newer Brujah girls came skipping over.

"Want some big red boos," she asked, her tongue piercing and purple afro fitting in nicely at the White Rabbit. Jake nodded and thanked her. "How about you, miss? Want a cocktail?"

Jake nodded for her to accept. "I'd like to make a toast if you don't mind."

[The Cedar Witch]

She stared blankly at the purple-haired bartender that Jake summoned over. 

It took her a second to realize she'd been spoken to.  "Uh--yeah okay!"  Rachel still hadn't quite recovered from thinking about love and feeling all gross and mushy.  "Something small and, uh, fruity and not too strong."  She laughed, sharing a knowing look with Jake.

[Black Philip]

The waitress nodded and strut off back to the bar, looking poised. Jake turned back to Rachel. He debated assuring her that he was looking into Laurent, that he’d find and kill him for her. However, he remembered his earlier question about how she and Damien met, and didn’t want to spoil a lovely visit. He would find Laurent though, and now he was doing it not just for Damien or the common good. He was doing it for his new friend Rachel.

The drinks arrived, and after tipping the waitress with a twenty, he raised his glass of hot blood. “To you and Damien,” he proposed. Rachel had been given a fruity cocktail, with a rum base. The drink even had a little umbrella.

[The Cedar Witch]

Rachel raised the glass, blushing with renewed intensity and feeling suddenly put on the spot. 

"To your success with the election," she said pointedly, intent on making this a little less about her.  Unsure if they were going to "clink" glasses or just raise them, she ended up extending her glass a bit further out just in case before taking a drink.  Fruity and rum--the best combination.  After taking a sip, she made a little noise of contented pleasure before setting the glass down. 

So far, this went way better than she thought it would go. 

[Black Philip]

He clinked glasses, happy she observed the gesture. People in bar culture always did, and Jake thought it was bad luck on a toast if the glasses missed. That was not the case here, and a light hum filled the booth before fading back into nothingness. Jake took a long swig, pleased with the taste and temperature. Lady Leather acted as their watch, and let Jake know the club was about to change.

"And ve hawe a vinner," she exclaimed, throwing up her hands. The bar cheered with her, and Jake clapped for the poor woman who was now subject to the drag queen's torments. She was crowned with a penis balloon hat, and held a scepter with a vibrating dildo at the tip. She beamed, and looked embarrassed. Lady Leather dismissed the game, and then began to preform a number. Jake whispered, "let's watch the number." Despite a lot of queens lip syncing, she preferred to use her own voice.

Mein Herr from Cabaret played, and the queen worked her way through the number, using the chair to dance with a vampire's grace. Half way through the number, Jake caught her eye, and pointed subtlety to Rachel. Lady Leather made no indication she'd seen the gesture, but worked her way over to their booth in the back. She sat next to Rachel, acting like she was one of her girlfriends, and Jake was the Mien Herr in question. She playfully slapped at him, looked to Rachel for sympathy, but also remembered to open it back up to the crowd. It was all in good fun, and Jake hoped Rachel enjoyed being briefly worked into the number. The queen went for an elaborate finish, jumping into a split and slamming her torso to the ground and then back up. Jake clapped, and leaned in.

"We should head downstairs," he advised. "The atmosphere is about to change. Downstairs it's Indie music night. It's a better scene."   

He neglected to mention that the whole upstairs would soon be a wild circuit/sex party. Some things were better left unsaid.

[The Cedar Witch]

The cheering was enough to draw her attention and she turned toward the spectacle with a child-like fascination.  She could only imagine what Damien's reaction would have been to this--he would've been mortified.  This was the sort of thing she'd have to work him up to or get him drunk for. 

Rachel glanced at Jake when he whispered, then obediently returned her attention to drag queen at the front while sipping idly at her drink.  The tune was immediately recognizable--she knew Cabaret!  Memories of splitting a bottle of wine with Quinn while watching it on their shitty TV in their shitty apartment flooded back to her.  They'd definitely gone back and forth trying to out-sing each other (more after they finished the wine) and usually ended up collapsing on the couch in a fit of laughter.  It made her miss her friend, even though she'd be seeing him soon enough.

She completely missed the fact that Jake had pointed the drag queen her way, so enwrapt in her own memories and delighted with the performance.  By the time she realized that, yes, Lady Leather was indeed coming over to their table, blood filled her face and she averted her eyes as if that would dissuade her.  When it did not--and Lady Leather went so far as to sit down with them--Rachel succumbed to a silly smile, glancing at Jake and fiddling nervously with her drink.  When the drag queen moved on, Rachel was visibly relieved that the attention of the room had followed her away from the table.  She made sure to give Jake a reassuring smile before watching the finish--and she laughed and clapped with delight when it was over.

"Okay!" she brightened, taking another sip of her drink and sliding out of the booth.  She liked Indie music and was surprised that he'd invited her downstairs instead of saying goodbye.  Did that mean she wanted to hang out with him more?  Well, it'd been fun so far.

But shit, how long had she been out?  What time was it?  Still following Jake downstairs, Rachel reached into her pocket with her free hand to check the time on her cellphone, something like worry in her expression.  Didn't Damien say he had to be somewhere tonight?  Who did he say was going to watch her at the house?  She couldn't remember if it was going to be Greg (hopefully not) or Pierre (who'd been busy with Nadia lately). 

[Black Philip]

The black lights, and strobes came on just as Jake led Rachel to the stairway. The deep thump of the base, and the dancers taking their polls told him the party was starting. He looked at it almost longingly, before continuing his decent to the first floor. Downstairs was also busy, and he saw Tyler had taken his position on stage. After his little folk number a few weeks ago, Lisa-Joe had offered to let him start hosting the party. It had proved a wise decision. Tyler, and that stupid guitar, had brought in a new kind of crowd. He called them the bus stop people because they were all drifters. They fit in at the Rabbit, and they came to hear Tyler play.

Tyler launched into something by Led Zeppelin, and Jake found a table near the bar. Two patrons had just vacated, and so Jake helped Rachel weave through the crowd. Jake launched himself into the first seat, cutting off another pair who'd been eyeing the spot. He gestured to Rachel's chair. Tyler finished, and introduced a Kurt Vile cover band. It was a chill vibe compared to Tyler's high energy hard rock and folk. Jake had decided he would stay with Rachel as long as she liked. Damien would walk in, and find her, and then they'd go downstairs to work. If she chose to leave, he wouldn't be offended. They'd had their moment. What they had now was a lovely desert.

He didn't feel the need to small talk. The music and each other's company was fine for the moment.