Sophia’s secret – GS.

 

Scene setting : Jax’s Coffee House.

co-written with Moo & VunG.

 

VunG:  It was so adorable to see the girl react to Frank’s unintentional flirts, a small smile creeping onto her face at the sight. Of course, really she just enjoyed watching anyone enjoy themselves, she didn’t get jealous or anything like that, and this girl was kind of cute. The fact that the girl was asking their names was fine by her, but of course Elissa’s vocal problems tended to be a bit of an issue, she let the more talkative Tommy handle that situation. When the reporter complimented her, Elissa’s reaction was definitely more subdued than what Frank or Sophia were doing, but she still blinked rapidly with surprise, looking at him with a slight blush. She was able to recover quickly enough and waved her greeting to the girl, but it still threw her for a loop. Did he really think she looked ‘lovely?’ That was… an interesting note.

Letting it go with no more than a continued blush, she watched the banter between the lot with a smirk. When the subject of Tommy being jabber, she snickered a little and made a *blab blab blab* gesture with one of her hands, of course smiling at the reporter the whole while and showing that she was just playing with him. Like Tommy, she was just as shocked by the change in haunts for Frankie, looking at him skeptically before laughing quietly into her hand when it was suggested that it was because of a pretty girl. Reaching up, she pulled out her notepad and pencil and passed them both to the man, giving him a smile and looking meaningfully towards Sophia. She was trying to tell him to get her number, if he really was interested.

However, even as she was recovering from doing that, she caught the tail end of the strange expression on the girl’s face. It raised her curiosity, but she didn’t put two and two together, thinking she’d just seen a stain on the floor or something of the like. And then… oh Tommy… Tommy, Tommy, Tommy. Elissa had been in the middle of taking another gulp of coffee, and would wind up swallowing this one prematurely with surprise, sputtering a little afterwards and rubbing her neck in pain, again the scarf getting disturbed as she just tried to get the worst of the pain out. What the heck was he thinking?! Was he out of his mind?!

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At about this moment, another fellow would come into the coffee house, all smiles with an oblivious spring in his step. A brand new pewter cross bounced against his chest as he went and he was whistling an unidentifiable tune. He’d just gotten some good news: his sister had found herself a job in Savannah and was a nurse at the moment. It had been a real turning point in his day, and while he hadn’t told her anything about what had happened to him the last couple of days, it was good to hear from his family again. Of course, as he entered the place, he didn’t even realize that Sophia was there, he wasn’t even going for coffee at this point, he was just coming in for the Wi-Fi and only noticed that there were the three people at a table talking to a barista. He didn’t even look close enough to realize that it was Sophia, he was just doing his thing. And so, while all the drama was happening over there, he sat at a table, opened up his laptop, and went to work.

 

Moo:  Sophia had gladly listened to each introduction. Of course the only name she thought was familiar was Tommy’s…a given, really. Though the public she’d been around usually listed him as a bit of a nut, what with the cases he attempted to publish in the newspapers. Looking at him now, she didn’t feel that he was a nut in the least. And given her own circumstances, he wasn’t a nut for believing in the supernatural. Merely inquisitive…and it wasn’t as if he were wrong. Not in the least. No…this man was definitely well suited with intuition and intellect. Even while she smiled in a care free manner, her eyes roamed over his face and body for a moment while allowing these thoughts to flow.

Elissa was introduced next, causing Sophia to smile politely while she gave a brief nod. “It’s nice to meet you.” Given the woman’s bashful reaction, she found herself chuckling. Rather enjoyable to watch, as she clearly couldn’t take a compliment very well. Did she know how beautiful she was? Truly? Sophia admired the woman from where she stood, even her smile turning a bit sheepish while she nodded, agreeing with Tommy. “A real beauty, that one.”

Turning her attention to the man introduced as Frank Malone, she nodded with a brightening smile. “Frank,” she repeated. “I will remember that.” Extending her hand, she had to bend slightly in order to reach his, giving it a nice shake before straightening once more. Really, this guy didn’t look as old as Tommy made him sound. Maybe his mid twenties. In any case, Sophia only looked younger than she really was, currently at age 23 and a senior in college. Though, due to Tommy’s commentary, the girl began to blush rather sheepishly, tucking her fingers tightly around the tray she held while she bit her lip, averting her attention to the floor nearby. Not that she could really help it, as she was never use to this kind of attention. Perhaps she wasn’t any better than Elissa when it came to taking compliments, as she wanted to hide her face completely.

All of this having taken place even before she’d caught a glimpse of that picture. Whatever that thing had been, Tommy clarified it for her. After commenting to Elissa, she’d been asked a question she hadn’t understood right away…until he very bluntly threw in the bit about a ten tonne slug; the same as in the image she’d glanced at. While Sophia had a fit of discomfort run through her body, her stance was easily changed due to the mute woman’s sputtering on coffee. “Oh- Are you okay?” She moved to grab a few napkins, bending to offer them to the woman, before catching a glimpse of her bared neck. It was a simple flash, but enough that Sophia saw it clearly. Something tragic had happened to this woman…but the scar itself would not bother Sophia; simply the story behind it, whatever it had been. Moving her eyes to the woman’s face, she smiled and held out the napkins before turning to look at Tommy. “Is this a fan club? The X Files is a good enough show for the attention.” She grinned, playing dumb for the time being. Hopefully the man wouldn’t prod further. But she had been right; he truly was someone she would have to be careful around. Whatever Gantz was capable of, she didn’t know the extent of. And it was obvious it was meant to be kept a secret, so for her to go blabbing her mouth would be dangerous. She felt it…deep in her gut. Luckily enough though, the opening of the door meant a new guest, and an escape from this awkward situation. “Excuse me,” she said lightly, waving her hand just a bit.

Upon turning to greet the new customer, she’d actually paused in her step to find herself looking at none other than Sasha. “What a pleasant surprise,” she greeted as she stepped closer. Her tray was still nicely tucked against her front while she hovered near him. “Can I get you anything, Sasha?” Perhaps in hearing his name, he would turn his attention to her. And while it looked as though he were hard at work, she really wanted to escape any questioning from the trio on the couch just behind her.

 

Razorbackwriter:  Why is it reporters have such a way of asking probing questions at the worst possible time? Tommy’s question to the barista created a chain reaction of events at the table, that left all either covered in coffee or choking on it. All except Tommy of course, who waited with baited breath to see if the girl HAD noticed the picture of the monster on the table. Her reaction however, was swift and well thought out. “Is this a fan club? The X Files is a good enough show for the attention.” Tommy’s smile faded as it appeared the girl wasn’t fazed at all. Perhaps he was just thinking she noticed the picture. Was he losing his touch? The barista was on the job, offering napkins to Elissa, which was a kind gesture. Frank simply grabbed one off the center napkin holder and dabbed at his shirt, but it was a useless gesture. He had stained his shirt. Great. He’d need to run back to his apartment to change, since he didn’t have his car. Tommy let out a half nervous chuckle, putting the photos back in the envelope and answered Sophia, while Frank shot daggers at him with a glance.

“No, this is more like Nancy Drew and the Hardy Boys. We like to do detective work off the clock.”

Frank groaned, as he started to slink in his seat. The more Tommy spoke, the more stupid he was feeling. As luck would have it, a new patron entered the coffee house, and this would have the young waitress excuse herself, leaving the trio to either have it out, or Frank to berate his friend.

“What are you, nuts? You don’t just ask some poor waitress if she has seen a ten tonne slug like that? Seriously, man.” Frank ranted, then taking out his wallet and putting down a twenty to cover their coffees. He hadn’t had a wink of sleep, and the fact that they still hadn’t been to Rory’s murder site was grating on him. The school stop off having taken up a lot more time than he had anticipated. Frank rose to standing, and then ran his fingers across the coffee stain on his shirt. A muttering of obscenities followed. “Nancy Drew and the Hardy boys? Really? Couldn’t have said something cooler…..I don’t know…like…Scooby Doo and the mystery gang?”

Tommy could now see that he had really pissed off his friend, not that he had meant too. He kept shrugging his shoulders, as if words weren’t going to be enough. “Frank….come on.” But the Detective already was now looking at Elissa. “Going to head back up to my apartment to change, thanks to Tommy. You wanna catch a cab?”

~RB~