ArchivedLogs:Gravitational Forces

Gravitational Forces
Dramatis Personae Doug, Iztali, Felix
In Absentia	16 May 2013 Tali works on more abilities-practice time with Felix, and they run into a Doug. With cookies. ^_^
Location <NYC> Evolve Cafe - Lower East Side
Tucked down an alley, this out of the way coffeeshop is easy to miss if you don't know what you're looking for. Unassuming from the outside, its inside makes up for it -- spacious, with abundant seating and plenty of plush couches and cosy armchairs along the room's edges. The coffee is good, the prices are cheap, and there is a definitive alternative vibe to the room, from the music they play to the art that hangs on the walls. The real draw to this place, though, stems from its client base -- one of the very few businesses in the city that is welcoming to mutants, Evolve has become widely popular as a hangout with that crowd, and it is quite common to see them among clientele and employees both. At night, the thump of music can be heard from above, coming from the adjoining nightclub of the same name that sits over the coffeehouse. It's early evening in New York in the spring time, and the heavy afternoon clouds have finally opened up to release their torrents. As a result, Evolve is busier than usual, with its usual mix of mutants and the mutant-friendly. Above, the thumpa thumpa of the nightclub's Thursday night just getting warmed up makes the coffee shop thrum with an energy that defies the wet weather outside. The figure coming in the door just after the rain has really gotten going good is a familiar figure around here, usually about this time of night. Doug wasn't expecting the rain to come this early, though, and he's a bit water-logged when he pushes through the door. Dressed in snug-fitting patched jeans and a grey Columbia sweatshirt under his vintage Army flak jacket, the blonde shakes himself like a dog when he's inside, carefully holding his laptop bag's strap so that it doesn't bounce too much against his hip. Once he's shed of the excess water, he steps towards the counter. He's so money that the barista knows what he wants, and Doug grins when the cup is set down before he even finishes his order, which includes a plate of cookies that look soft and delicious. Then the teenager is moving for the tables, grinning at the various customers, and stopping to talk to a girl with neon-pink hair. "Hey, Rosalie, I found that hard drive you were looking for. But you're gonna /have/ to stop burning through these so fast." The pink-haired girl makes a dismissive noise, and Doug grins. "Okay. Don't say I didn't warn you. I'll have it for you sometime by the end of next week." That settled, he's free to move on, dropping into his usual table and setting down his cup and plate so he can reach into his laptop bag and get to some hard-drive grinding of his own. Tali has the look of someone who has been settled in for some time. She is perched in a chair opposite a young man at a table in one of the shop’s quieter corners. Dark hair hangs loose around her shoulders, curling a bit at the ends as it dries after exposure to the damp outside. Her navy raincoat is slung over the back of her chair to dry as well, leaving her in a long-sleeved turquoise blouse and black slacks. The space in front of her at the table contains a yellow hardcover book that shows all the signs of being well-loved, a half-finished cup of chai, and a single black glove. The glove’s mate is still on Tali’s left hand, though the right is bare. The other man sitting at the table is Felix, who is looking just as 'nerdy professor' as he usually does. Today it seems that he was prepared for the rain as there is an umbrella leaning up against the comfortable chair he is occupying. In front of him on the table are a nice pen, an old picture, and a half-empty cup of coffee, black. He looks up when the door opens, and sees Doug enter, but waits until he has settled himself in, "Hi there, Doug," he says with a smile. Obviously he knows this person. Doug looks up when Felix speaks, and offers a bright grin as he slides his laptop onto the table. "Hey, Felix!" he says cheerfully, and rakes a hand through his damp hair. "I didn't expect to see you here." He sounds pleasantly surprised, and bobs his head as he shrugs out of his coat. "Although I don't know why not. It's a good place to come and chill out, if it's not a weekend night." The coat gets draped over the back of his chair, and Doug nods at Felix's companion. "Ma'am." Felix’s greeting and Doug’s response seem to draw Tali’s attention more to the present location and situation. Oh, and remind her that there are other people around. Reflexively, the bare hand grabs at the discarded glove in a manner reminiscent of a person pulling a bathrobe tighter about herself when someone unexpectedly enters an otherwise empty apartment. Her fingers grip at the leather tightly. She blinks several times before realising that Doug had addressed her and she should respond. “Hello.” Her head nods slightly in Doug’s direction, a faint hint of a smile managing to trace across her lips. "Actually, I found this place by accident. On a rainy night similar to this actually." Felix takes a sip of his coffee, "The coffee is good, and I made a friend." he looks at Tali and smiles, but then he gets the look like he make a slight mistake. "Oh, sorry Tali, I should have warned you first." He moves the pen and picture closer to Tali, perhaps making room at the table. Then realizes the two have not been properly introduced. "This is Doug, he lives across the hall, and we share the same interest in computers." This introduction seems proper since he was seated with Tali. "This is Tali, a friend of mine," But, he seems to be waiting for Tali's /ok/ before inviting Doug to actually join them at the table. "It's nice to meet you, Tali," Doug says, dropping back into his chair. The tables are close enough that talking isn't much of an issue, and he flips his laptop open. "You had a lucky day, then," he says with a grin. "The coffee here is the best, and they've got pretty good cookies." He grabs the plate and holds it out in offering. "You should try one." Tali pulls the glove on, her expression shifting to one of sheepishness. “I’m…sorry. I’m just. Still a bit jumpy. I’m not used to…” she trails off, flexing the fingers of her newly gloved hand in lieu of further explanation. “Likewise, Doug. I did not intend to startle at you.” Her second smile is a warmer offering. Felix seems more at ease since Doug took a nearby table. But, now that the little moment has passed he returns to his cheerful self. He accepts one of the cookies, sits back in his chair a bit and takes a bite of the cookie. "Mmm, yes, very good. Thank you." Running his eyes quickly around the room, just to see who is here, as though he had been occupied before. "Working on anything interesting there?" he adds, with a nod towards the laptop. Doug waves a hand as he settles back, offering the plate in Tali's direction before he puts it on his own table. "Oh, don't worry about it," he says amiably. "I can be a little boisterous, sometimes. I'm sorry if /I/ startled /you/." His smile is smooth and genuine, and he shifts his fingers to the keyboard, flicking it on and waiting for it to power up. Felix's question gets a pop of the blonde's eyebrows. "I didn't tell you about my pet project?" he asks. "That's weird. Usually, I can't shut up about it." His fingers begin to skim over the keys when screen lights up with a desktop image of a spiky-haired robot. "I'm working on building a video game. It's still in its early stages, though." There's a snort of a laugh. "/Very/ early." Tali's movements are still hesitant as she carefully takes a cookie from the plate, as if she is afraid it might bite her. That she takes it at all is a testament to Felix's assistance in tightening down the spigot of her ability, which would typically be /gushing/ information at her as she contacts new things. "Thank you." She looks at the cookie for a minute, like she isn't certain what to do with it, then peers at the computer screen. Video games? This is practically a foreign concept. "I believe you did mention it." Felix replies with a smile. "I have a feeling you will end up with something great," he adds, almost as though he knows something about Doug that has not been mentioned yet. Looking back at Tali, he realizes that she may not be so interested in such computer things. Though he is clearly interested in computers, and would probably talk about them all day, it appears he does not want to leave Tali out of any conversations. He is a bit puzzled on what to say next though as he looks back to Doug, his face indicating perhaps computers later. Maybe Doug senses the sudden unease, because his fingers pause on the keyboard. "I /hope/ it's great. I've been working on it for a couple of years. I keep having to adjust for advancements in gaming engines." That seems to be the end of his computer talk, because he shifts his attention to Iztali. "Aaaand, now that you know I'm a hopeless geek...what is it that you do, Tali?" His fingers resume their motion, albeit slower now. "For a living, I mean. Or for fun,” he amends with a wide grin. "Whichever makes the question sound less intrusive." Tali has busied herself for a moment with nibbling, mouse-like, at the cookie. The blessedly /emotionless/ cookie that only bothers to be sweet and tasty. She swallows before proceeding to speak. “Oh, you don’t have to…not.” She indicates the computer by gesturing at it with the cookie. “I don’t mind if things go a bit over my head. I believe I do the same to others often enough.” An actual, genuine grin tugs the corners of her mouth upward, bringing a hint of sparkle to her deep chocolate eyes. “I have been for some time in the anthropology doctoral program at Columbia. Focusing in archaeology and Mesoamerican studies.” With a little smile, but more like a 'whew, thanks for catching that', look on his face now, Felix takes another sip from his mug of coffee. "She also introduced me to some interesting reading, I guess I would call it philosophical in nature." He looks at Tali, "It came this week and I am about half done with it," he adds, and then finishes off the cookie. Doug grins, and shakes his head with a small scrunch of his nose. "Nah, it's okay. Computer speak really /is/ another language, and it can be a little overwhelming." He doesn't sound bothered, his fingers finalizing something before coming to a rest. "Another Columbia person, huh?" he says as he pulls his laptop shut. "That's cool. I'm a freshman there. Just wrapping up my first semester." He grabs his own coffee, taking a deep sip before he nods. "Hey, I'm always up for a good book, although I'm not much on philosophy. What book is it?" Tali nods at Felix’s announcement. “I hope you have found it enjoyable so far. The publishers arranged the stories in what is supposed to be an order of increasing complexity.” Her tone implies that means that the /best ones/ are toward the end. Another nod and a slight smile answer Doug. “Yes, I seem to run into Columbia students quite frequently… You are studying computers?” she assumes, but lilts in her tone to make this a question more than a statement. Doug’s question has her fingers tracing the image of smoky blocks forming a vague spiral on the cover of book by her. “/Fin/—“ she cuts herself off, though the title on the book, /Final del Juego/, may give a hint to what she had started to say. “/End of the Game/ it is, in English. Julio Cortázar.” "I am enjoying the book." Felix answers, with a little smile and a glance at his watch. "I may have to go back and get a degree in philosophy," he adds with a little chuckle, as though he has not been to enough school in the past years. Glancing over to Tali, he points at his watch, perhaps indicating that the time for something is almost up. He gives her a questioning look, and shoots a quick look outside, as if trying to get an indication if she wants to do the next part here or elsewhere. Doug takes note of the name of the book with a small twitch of his eyebrow. "Final del Juego," he repeats, and he nods. "I'll remember it. Was it written in Spanish, originally?" He grins. "If so, I may look it up. I prefer to read books in their native language, so the original meaning isn't lost." The question gets a bob of his head. "Yeah, Computer Science major with a minor in Business. Gonna make my passion work for me." He winks, and leans back in his chair. "One day." The tapping of Felix's watch is not unnoticed, but the teenager doesn't remark on it, preferring instead to dunk a cookie into his coffee. "You just like school," he teases Felix before taking a bite. "That's my working theory, anyway." Tali finishes a bite of cookie. “It is a thing that degrees do...starting to attract other degrees toward a person. And the more you have, the more they attract, like building gravitational forces from increased mass.” She chuckles softly at her own imagery. “Yes, the original writing was in Spanish,” she confirms for Doug. “And that is the ideal, to do what you love.” The young man’s additional comment incites her to add with a smile, “Even if what you love is just /learning/.” The smile falls with Felix’s gesture to his watch, her expression that of a child being told recess is done and it is time to return to class. She forms this into something more resolute, and nods. Her eyes do dart toward the door. Perhaps it is still safer to be less public? “Should we…go then?” Felix cocks his head to the side slightly at the mention of reading books in their native language. Can Doug read any book in any language, that’s curious, make a mental note of that. "I may be addicted to it," he comments with another little chuckle before turning his attention back to Tali with a little nod to acknowledge leaving. The pen and the picture are tucked into the pocket of his jacket as he stands up and grabs his umbrella and then waits for Tali to rise. "Good to see you again Doug, we will talk computers another time." Once Tali is ready he escorts her to the door, and gentlemanly holds the door for her as they exit the coffee shop for the night.