15621/Late Night Coffee in The City

Late Night Coffee in The City
Date of Scene:	15 August 2023
Location:	The Coffee Bean
Synopsis:	Richard Stadler and Phoebe Beacon have a late night coffee talk. Stadler offers to be an ear for Phoebe, who is keenly aware of what happens to... pretty much everyone in her life.
Cast of Characters:	Phoebe Beacon, Richard Stadler

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Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    It wasn't unknown for any of the Wayne kids to go out of their way for coffee late in the night. It's just some of them were wearing kevlar and carrying a couple thousand dollars worth of tech on them at any time.

    Tonight though? Phoebe's hanging out in New York City. She was supposed to meet a friend, but... sometimes things get in the way. So the self-styled 'Wayne Spare Heir' who usually did the Children's Galas and occasionally accompanied one brother to tech convention outings was seated off to the side, nursing a cup of black coffee, her pink hair braided carefully into shoulder-length braids asshe monitors traffic outside, using the darkened window as a mirror to watch the coffee shop.

    You can take Phoebe out of Gotham, but you can't take the Bat out of the girl.

Richard Stadler has posed:
     It was fair to say Richard kept late hours, though it would perhaps have been more accurate to say 'all hours'. Setting up for the start of a new school year, maintaining contacts, visiting friends, and... 'extracurriculars' all took time to conduct and prepare, and the only place he could borrow the time was when his body /said/ it needed sleep.

The best way Stadler knew to quiet that urge (outside of Schedule II drugs that were complicated to acquire) was caffeine, and a change of place, hence his visit here, where there was some student energy. His hands were full, from the look of it, lap top, text book, notes, and a large cup of the, qoute 'blackest coffee you can give me'.

He stiffled a yawn, moving to sit at a table next to the pink haired girl, before taking a rather large sip of his coffee. Eyes closed for a moment.

"Oh, thank God."

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    Phoebe pauses a moment, the young woman looking over to Stadler with an amused expression as she lifts her coffee cup up so that it doesn't get upset when Richard Stadler flops down to the table, and she gives a wry smile over to him.

    "Richard Stadler, right? From Happy Harbor?" she questions thoughtfully, pursing her lips as she sips her coffee and looks at Stadler over her blue acrylic frames.

Richard Stadler has posed:
     The reaction is... 'restrained', in the purest sense. There's a tension of his body that builds, a quick look over to Phoebe, an apraisal. and only have some dawning recognition does he return back to a more relaxed form he had when tasting some actually rather good coffee.

"Yes. Miz... Beacon, is it? I'm a bit suprised to see someone like you here. Well.. you see everyone in New York, but not at the witching hour, as it stands. Visiting from Gotham?"

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    "While I'm not repping Bruce Wayne, yes." she gives a smile to Richard, though the mention of the Witching Hour makes her check her phone for the time.

    "Yes. I was going to meet a friend for coffee, but they had to cancel. Something came up. And I keep weird hours anyway." she gives a small smile over to Stadler.

    "BUrning the midnight oil with lesson plans?" she asks in consideration.

Richard Stadler has posed:
     "I wasn't aware Mr. Wayne needed that amount of repping." He notes, before frowning a bit. "Though whatever he's doing, I do wish I'd actually seen him at the school- Well. Neither here nor there." He notes, before tapping his papers on the table.

"Oh, yes. They changed the blasted Human Anatomy book again. Same information, just in different places and an excuse to bilk us out of a few thousand dollars, I assume, but a Regent's class is rather strict, so not much I can do." He remarks, shaking his head... and pausing.

"Sorry about your friend, though. I do hope it wasn't anything serious." His curiousity is evident, however. In the realm of cellphones, traveling out to New York from Jersey, even with the 'loop, seemed a bit much when a friend could have cancelled with a text.

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    "Meaning I fill in for him or one of my adopted brothers when they can't make an event." Phoebe gives a grim smile. "The Wayne Name will get me a great table at a crowded restaurant, priority seating on a plane and freebees when I have to attend fashion shows, but Beacon's the one that means the most to me." she pauses, and then her expression softens. "Still means the most to me." she corrects herself. She's had a lot of last names.

    "I will pass on that he needs to visit the school. I know it receives funding from grants, even if Damian's graduated." she replies, and she blows out a little breath.

    "Well. We broke up, so now he thinks it's awkward to have coffee late at night." she mutters quietly.

Richard Stadler has posed:
     Richard gives a bit of a chuckle. "Oh, now that's a power I wish I had; restaurant wise, at least. Anywhere worth going seems to have an hour long wait these days; at least near West Central." He notes. "Not that I attend a lot of fashion shows. But.. ahh... well. I can..." He frowns. "I mean. I think I can understand that; you have a few lives lived, it sounds like."

But there's a shake of his head, a firm one, when it comes to passing on a message. "Kind, but no need. I wanted to see more of him when his son was in class. Not that Mr. Pennyworth isn't a class act, just... Well. I shouldn't judge." He says, obviously judging.

But there was talk of a break up, and Stadler winces slightly. "...Ahh.. Tonight? Or just... something you're still getting used to?"

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    "I'm afraid I'm rather used to relationships ending on awkward notes." Phoebe admits quietly, and she looks down at her phone.

    "At least this one wasn't because of --" she pauses, and she shakes her head 'Neither here nor there, I'm sure you don't want to hear about the poor little rich girl getting dumped." she waves her hand, a very practiced motion, as if she were following a script, her shoulders sagging downwards.

    A few lives lived. So many half-lives. Every six months.

    "Alfred unfortunately has to stand in when Bruce is unavailable. It's definitely not from lack of concern or attention, I promise. He made sure I finished highschool privately and continues to be adamant about my college courseowrk."

Richard Stadler has posed:
     "Well, I'm certainly glad he's having you focus on college; It's more common these days, certainly, but it's an important step for young adults. I'm sure, though, that he just hadn't the time to visit Happy Harbor." He notes. Unspoken, of course, was the implication that, as far as his son was concerned, he should have /made/ the time, and it seems Rick might not be easily debased of the notion.

"But, ahh. Well. I wouldn't consider myself an expert on relationships. Haven't had anything serious in..." He paused again, before shaking his head. "A while. Though you are right; poor little rich girl getting dumped isn't very interesting. Girl at a coffer shop after midnight getting dumped, though. I think I can lend an ear for that." He notes. "Please. I'm trying for guidance counselor as a back up carrer."

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    Phoebe gives a look of *abject horror* at Richard as he makes an offer to lend an ear to her current problem.

    How do you say 'I'm still stupid in love with a man possessed by his Santanic Serial-Killer Uncle who occasionally catches on fire and turns into a flaming metal skull'd demon but makes a damn good vegan enchilada'? 'The last guy who wanted to play Guidance counselor abandoned me to recover from the trauma of dropping a ceiling on people while nearly perfectly emotionless and risking my best friend to contain a metaphysical archive of the sum of human knowledge?' 'My adopted dad and mentor ended up being a demon in a meatsuit and I have abandonment issues from this' 'Batman adopted me because I was going to attempt to become a minor god'?

    She reaches for a cookie placed on the table (which she is definitely paying for), and busily fills her mouth with it for a moment as she she weighs her thoughts, her shoulders rising up and she tilts her head back, and then drains half her coffee.

    "He's the only caregiver for his younger brother -- between that and his two jobs he felt like he wasn't giving the amount of time I deserved." she explains.

    "And that was it. You can't have a relationship when someone wants out of it."

Richard Stadler has posed:
     Stadler is, at this point, unable to piece the veil into the realm of thoughts and dreamscapes; he's unable to catch the rather mad kalidescope of experiences that flashed through Phoebe's mind in a matter of seconds. Certainly, a man like him isn't incapable of picking up nonverbal cues, but there's simply no way he could guess at the depth of her shock and terror at thinking about divulging such insane information.

"Well, then, that's okay." He instead holds his hands up defensively at the look. "I'm certainly not one to pry- well, no. I enjoy knowing things. I respect wishes, for the most part. I'll take whatever information you're willing to give."

He takes the moment of thought to move to his own coffee. It's cooled down a bit, but when the taste wasn't there, the pychoactive drug was, and that's what counts.

"Ahh. Mixed blessings on that, it seems. Sometimes it is easier to make them villains; a cleaner break. Things simply not working out... that's harder. Especially if the time crunch means the 'friends' part isn't working too well either. I... imagine it hurts."

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    "Be careful Mr. Stadler. He who increaseth knowledge increaseth sorrows. And sometimes once that cat's out of a bag, it becomes a tiger -- and it's very difficult to put back in." Phoebe comments quietly, and then she looks down into her coffee.

    "... he was the first guy who made me feel like I was Someone. He didn't care about my past. I didn't care about his. When we were together, it was just... like the puzzle pieces fit perfectly. Like you got a glimpse of the image behind it all. For the first time in forever I felt like I could just breathe." she explains. Her lips press together as she brings a hand up and wipes at her eyes a little bit.

    "I've been abandoned so much that you'd think it'd stop hurting, but this was the first time neither of us wanted it, but we had to agree to it. But you know, I'm nineteen. What do I know about relationships." she states, and she downs the rest of her coffee.

    "I could throw up a post on social media and have guys and girls beating down the gates to Stately Wayne Manor."

Richard Stadler has posed:
     Stadler pauses for a moment, before nodding, slowly. "Oh, I know. Ignorance is... comfortable, much more than knowing things. But one can't help anyone from a place of ignorance, can they?" He asks. "Sadly, I know how fragile the world can be; after that, the rest... well. Easier to take."

That was personal. This was... not. And Rick is quiet. Quiet for some time at that. His eyes peering through spectcles to the middle distance, out the window of the coffer shop itself.

"I... don't like hearing hat it happened to you that young. Really, anyone. like that. One of the... most frustrating things about soulmates and true loves is the world never tells you quite how much time you're going to get with them. And after they're gone, it's... tough. Time helps. it scars up something fierce, but it heals. Though... I don't think he abandoned you, for what it's worth. The world forced a retreat. I.. the only advice I can offer is to remember what made you smile. Hell, throw up that post, grab the shallowest person you can, and distract yourself for a bit. Time's the only thing I've found for it."

Phoebe Beacon has posed:
    "Ugh, that was a sarcastic statement. I really can't stand shallow people." Phoebe murmurs and then she tilts her head back, and she breathes out.

    She looks over to Stadler, and then pushes the cookie plate over to him.

    "Have some cookies. They go real well with the caffeine." she offers as a joke, and she gives the gentleman a nod.

    Another two coffees also appear for him, via the server who definitely shouldn't be doing table service, but when a Wayne Enterprises black card appears at your coffee shop, you find a way.

    "Everyone's coffee's on me tonight." Phoebe states, digging a crumpled up couple of bills out, straightening them and setting them on the counter. A crisp one hundred dollars for each server, dish washer, and person on the crew tonight.

    "Have a good night, Mr. Stadler. And..." she looks at him warily.

    "Be careful about what information you let in. Last guy I knew who wanted to know everything went South quick. And I hope he's enjoying his retirement."

    She turns to head out the door, with a mutter of 'poor guy earned it.'

Richard Stadler has posed:
     Stadler begins to hold up a hand, an attempt to wave off that cookie plate, mentioning something about carbs and blood sugar, but it seems there doesn't seem to be fighting off gifts from poor rich girls who got broken up with recently. So he simply takes his own black-gold-in-a-cup largesse, holding it in silent salute to the woman whose buying coffee for the night owls (certainly cousins to phoebes).

"I will, Miz Beacon. He's hoping you get the time you need." He says. Before taking a swallow of the new coffee. Good kid. And hopefully she wouldn't have any more hardship for a long time.