11103/Flashing Lights

Flashing Lights
Date of Scene:	21 February 2020
Location:	Central Harlem, Manhattan
Synopsis:	Rave and Flash swap names, talk about dancing and life. Selfies are taken, numbers exchanged.
Cast of Characters:	Flash Thompson, Rave

---

Flash Thompson has posed:
    Deep in the city, late at night it's often alive and active with the steady flow of traffic and people walking along the recently snowswept streets. There is usually a vibrance to things as the evening begins. People heading into the converted warehouse with its brilliant lights and thumping music. It's a palpable pressure on the chest as one draws closer and closer, a heavy 'oontz-oontz-oontz' that can be felt in the deep tissue of the chest and collar bone. For some it's like a siren call, summoning and bringing people forth.
    And the night scene off of Harlem is no different. It's there at The Nation, the club gathering and party scene pulses steady with the night into the small hours of the morning. Though anyone who has spent that much time in the depths amongst the cloud of cigarette and clove smoke, around all the drinking and closeness and heat from all the bodies packed in so close, they can tell you how the mood changes as the night draws out.
    Things become slower, a little more sedate. The parties break up into groups all gathered around, smoking, talking. The music is still there, omni-present and thumping but not as strong as the times before. But enough that words can be shared on the edges, and staff no longer is focused entirely on making sure there's no trouble. The bouncers are more cleaning up bits and pieces of detritus or doing a final sweep of the area.
    And of course that's the time when the tall blond man, who might seem a little older than the usual crowd, makes his appearance. Moving into the place, heading across the dance floor that before had a ton of people jumping and exulting with the music and vibrancy as all sorts of chemicals raced through their bodies. And somehow, that one guy... he looks like this whole thing was new to him.

Rave has posed:
Not every night in a club was one under the performance or music that Rave offered, sometimes one had to indulge in experience and music rather than simply create it themselves. Or at least, that was Rave's excuse for why she'd been out dancing on a night she didn't have a gig.
     Short skirt, practically glowing blue hair and the rest of her 'clubbing' attire, the neon metahuman had been there through the peaks of the music and the wild abandon of people on the dancefloor. Now that it was breaking up? She too had begun to drift over towards the bar where many and most would linger, but she didn't seem in a hurry to break into the groups of conversation. Instead the 'bluenette' moved signalled for a drink of her own and turned to rest her hip against the side of the counter, coming to spot the newcomer making his entry.
     "First time?"

Flash Thompson has posed:
    And that blond man, with his open smile and bright eyes. He's looking the place over with such a warmth of appraisal. Shaking his head as he simply takes joy in the act of strolling along the edge of the dance floor. He's not dressed for clubbing, that much is clear. What with his cargo pants and sneakers and a tight grey shirt that hugs his chest closely. His jacket must have been left up front at the check area, though most regulars know that's a bad idea with how they go through the pockets... and keep the ones they like.
    Then she speaks to him and the former quarterback of Midtown High turns to look at her, at the people around her, then the bartender. "Oh. Hey. No. But yeah. Kinda. Been years. This place used to be something else right?"
    The tender looks up from dealing with the mugs and getting some of the mess out of the way. "The Rathskeller, hell yeah man. That was five, six years ago."
    "Oh man this place was rad then. I used to come in all the time."
    "Yeah, times change."
    But Flash Thompson he sort of shakes his head and grins, then looks at Rave. "I'm too late aren't I?" Then he blinks as he looks at her hair, then back to her eyes. "You are the perfect example of how much things change though." Then past her he asks, "You got any beer left, lady?"
    "Sure, ten bucks."
    "Ten bucks!" That actually carries with the music still thumping, but he shakes his head. "Here." And gives a twenty. "I'll take two."

Rave has posed:
"No idea," Rave admits of Flash' question, thankfully the bartender was to the rescue. When she was working Rave kept track, but even before her powers emerged she'd been more than a little guilty of going to 'this place' or 'that other place'. Adding the ability to cross the city in heartbeats didn't really improve the little 'flaw' for her. With her drink arrived, it's something almost as bright blue as her hair and sweet enough he could probably smell it beside her, yet it was clearly alcoholic. Watching the exchange over her glass as she drained the beverage through a simple straff, when she's addressed Rave gives a little shrug.

     "You're a little late," she confirms, giving a little laugh. "Most people are getting tired, sore, uncomfortably drunk or worried about their day tomorrow around about now." A shrug of her bared shoulders, the mention of change directed at her? It earns a snerk and she grins. "I'm a little 'different' huh?"

Flash Thompson has posed:
    "Well, in my day blue hair was a rarity." Flash offers as he sits against the bar, looking across the place. He just wears this mask of... perpetual amusement, as if today was Christmas, Halloween, and his Birthday all wrapped up into one and he just opened only the first of his gifts. Then he smiles sidelong at her and adds, "And nobody had blue hair quite like yours. But I suppose I shouldn't be surprised by anything in this day and age."
    Considering the cross section of people that live in the city alone.
    He lifts his first bottle of beer toward the bartender, saluting her then tilts it back and takes nice long gulps, his Adam's apple working several times as he downs the whole thing then lowers the bottle to look at it, exhaling a soft, 'aahhhhhh,' before he adds. "Man."
    Then, sidelong toward her he says, "So whether it's welcome or not, I'm going to offer you a piece of advice." Daunting words to some, but the smile he wears might steal any possible trepidation they cause. "That whole cliche of live every day like your last, since you don't know what might happen later? It's so fucking true."

Rave has posed:
"It still kinda is," the girl laughs, nodding a little at his comment and reaching up to where the ties hold the mane of bright locks in place. "Thankfully, they don't really have this in a bottle, far as I know anyway." A pause to sip her drink again, she seems to find consideration of the idea amusing. "Maybe there's an idea in that. Glow in the dark hair color...it might make more money then music does."
     Another sip, the drink was drained and yet only the slightest hint of flushing suggested she'd even -felt- the hit of the drink's alcohol.
     Flash is at least permitted to finish his drink before she leans forwards, giving a little laugh and nodding. "Pondering times lost?" she questions, looking the man up and down, "you don't look like you're about to keel over just yet anywany."

     Another shake of her head, she offers a little wave of her hand towards herself. "I'm Rave by the way," a beat, there's a little smirk. "Yes, that is my name."

Flash Thompson has posed:
    The tall man in the too too mundane clothes, at least... when compared to her, he just leans there and smiles, looking down into the depths of his remaining beer, now claimed from the bar. When she drains her drink down he gives her a sideeye and twists a smile before he murmurs, "You can really put them back. Good constitution? Or just know how to pace yourself?"
    But then he's taking a sip of his own and looks across the way as she asks him of times lost. "Oh no, just..."
    He sort of lets his features twist and for a moment she might see this myriad of emotions as they flicker through his blue eyes, across his smile, it has him shaking his head. But it's when she leans forward, closer to him that she'll feel the warmth of the man so near, and he can feel that vibrance from her, that flush of skin a palpable thing. But it's close enough that he can whisper to her, can smile into her eyes and smell that nectared sweetness of her drink and her as well.
    "I know this is going to sound weird. But..." He looks to the side, at the bright dancing lights, his surroundings. And he tells her gently, "This time last year, I figured I'd never walk again. And tonight..." His head bobs a few times as he nods, more to himself than anything else, "Is the first time since then that I've been able to go out and about and... just be."

Rave has posed:
"Good genes?" Rave answers, giving a little wink that's punctuated by a light 'pulse' of the glowing light that flows through her bright blue locks. Some people tried to hide away their mutant or meta nature...others didn't really have much of a choice, and Rave seemed to embrace that. Either that, or she liked to show off.
     Tilting her head as he drinks and speaks, there's a little twitch at the tickle of the whisper so close, but she blinks a little at the admission and leans back just enough to look him up and down. "Were you are in an accident or something like that?"

Flash Thompson has posed:
    "You know Rave is a nice name, memorable. Mine's Flash." But then his smile grows. You see, there is nothing quite like asking a military guy to tell a story, even when one doesn't wittingly know they're doing so. And she can see the reaction she gets, the easy smile and the open approval even as he shifts his bottle to the other hand to make it easier to talk to her at this range. "I was a foolish young kid, thought I would go off and join the military."
    He turns on his seat a little, just enough to meet her gaze as he rests an arm there on the countertop. One rough hand lifts to push through his hair, and to be fair he has that classic American boy from next door looks. Wouldn't be a stretch to imagine him as a darling High School quarterback being carried around on a field after a big game.
    "Six tours and entirely too many fallen friends later, on my last rotation and while we're out..." Flash opens a hand toward her and says, "IED went off, and when I woke up... I got the bad news."

Rave has posed:
     Well crap, the bluenette gives a little nervous glance away at that. What can one say, especially a Metahuman who'd recovered from crippling energies while needing little more than a light source. As far as she knew, the man drinking and sharing stories with her beneath the lights and harsh music of the club was a human who'd made their own miraculous recovery.

     Gaze coming back, the girl dressed for her namesake gives a tilt of her head. "Still, it sounds like you beat the odds. That's awesome, to have bounced back a single year later?" she trails off, shifting a little nervously on the spot and biting her lip. "Man I...feel like I should be buying you a drink or something."

Flash Thompson has posed:
    A laugh comes from him and he says simply, "Nah. I mean..." Flash looks down and then to the side, back toward the door through whence he came. He shakes his head as he exhales still smiling the while. "I was just enjoying, you know, walking around. And I felt the music in the air and I just... took this walk in here and it was. Just great."
    Then he cocks his head to the side, "And to be sharing a drink with a beautiful wild-haired gal. I'm just..." He shakes his head again, eyes lifting a little, then looking back toward her. "Just feeling grateful I can do that."
    There's a beat then though, as his smile slips mischievous as he murmurs, "But hey, I'd never..." He seemed about to say something, then instead says, "Well rarely turn down free booze. I just figured two is my limit tonight. Since I'm drivin'."

Rave has posed:
"Ah...fair," she speaks, but there's a pout to her face even at those words. Frowning for a moment of consideration, there's a sudden 'ah-ha' moment and she reaches down, digging into the rather small pocket of her skirt and retrieving her phone. A few rapid-fire taps and swipes, the girl draws up her camera and twists. Back to him, pressed in close contact before he can probably even blink, she was raising the device for a 'selfie' with poor Flash.

     "Smile!" she's already instructing, but who knows if he'd manage it before the photo was taken. Flipping the smartphone back over, Rave was still grinning as she raises a hand to rest against her own cheek. "If you're wanting to enjoy better music, you should come to one of my gigs. If I tag you in the post, assuming you're on social media anyway, I'm sure you can get a free drink or something."

Ever the neon whirlwind of energy, there's a flash of a wink. "Can't have you getting hurt after someone leads you astray drinking too much, but there's always a raincheck!"

Flash Thompson has posed:
    "Think I do?" Flash replies as to the social media question, but then he doesn't give the impression of someone too savvy with it. Though for the photo he does sort of grin. And after that quick flash and electronic click she'll see in the image he's sort of just starting to smile and his bright blue eyes catch the light a bit so that there's that glow of red in the background of them. He leans over her shoulder to take a look at it then when she starts speaking to him again he laughs.
    "Alright, it's a deal." Then she can almost see the visible shift in his manner, as if he was starting to walk down an old mental path that hadn't been trod in a long time. "You uhh," He takes another sip of his beer, then leans closer.
    "You mind if I get your number?" And as he says that he reaches for the phone in his back pocket, keying it to life with the swipe of a thumb, letting the screen flicker awake.

Rave has posed:
     "Number?" she repeats, seeming bemused by the request before nodding her head. A little more traditional, but she's quick to offer her hand out towards him to take the phone and type the number in rather than say it aloud.

     Assuming it's passed, there's another rapid-fire typing and sure enough her details are saved under 'Wild Hair girl' on his phone and then he'd find it being passed back to him. "Don't go handing it out now," she adds with a wink, "don't want to get a heap of calls from 'weird' people, y'know?"

Flash Thompson has posed:
    "Yeah," Flash tilts a smile her way and then looks at the number in his cellphone. For a time he sort of just looks at it, one eye scrunching up a bit as he does so, then he shakes his head and looks at her. "Thanks Rave. I think..." He tilts the bottle back and then sets it on the bar, as well as pulling out a few bucks for the bartender.
    "I think I'm going to go out and take a walk before I head on home. Just enjoy this sorta moment." She likely has no idea how much that sort of meant to him. How he's going to save the memory and hold it close. No matter what happens down the line. Since she gave him the first hint that life for him might be different than he had resigned for himself.
    And it was good.
    "I'll catch you later," He lifts his hand in a wave and starts to step back and away, likely going to head on to the coat check.