17259/Last Call

Last Call
Date of Scene:	24 February 2024
Location:	FDNY Rescue 1 House
Synopsis:	Cloudy with a chance of rain, perfect weather for dinner and a mystery.
Cast of Characters:	Luca Bandoni, Olivia Gaudin, Blue GhostEyes
Tinyplot:	Little Fires Everywhere

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Luca Bandoni has posed:
It would end up being the last call of his shift before Luca had a short break and then back to it. He'd already said he'd be pulling a double this weekend, but with the weird fires happening out there, he might be at the firehouse more often than not.

Tonight's call was a house fire, persons trapped. He's just backed the rescue truck in and the apparatus bay doors are both still open. When Luca hops down from the truck, his face is all sooty, all the guys smell like smoke from a mile away.

"I'm hitting the showers!" One of them calls out. "Me too." And so on and so on until only Roscoe and Luca are left. "You sure you don't want to get checked out, man? That beam hit you pretty hard," Roscoe asks. "I get what you can do and all, but still."

"Nah, I'm good," Luca replies while pulling off his coat. Helmet's already gone off, probably still in the rig. But otherwise, he's dressed in full turnouts.

Here's to hoping that question from Roscoe wasn't overheard. One can only hope that Olivia isn't just sitting around in the bay area waiting.

Olivia Gaudin has posed:
    Olivia had plans to come see Luca at the firehouse, but she can't show up without food. And she cannot show up with just food for her guy and none of his brothers and sisters. So she ran to get chicken. Lots of it. Plus cheese. And an assortment of veggies and spices and well, everything she needs to cook the cuisine she knows best: French.

    It takes her all the time between shows to plan it out and place the orders so she can just swing by and pick it all up. It dawned on her early on, though, that she was never gonna be able to do it herself. She needed a friend.

    Liv could have called a variety of people she knows on Broadway, but well, that gets a bit complicated. Instead, she calls a new friend. She calls Blue for help. So in the food-packed Uber, she is going to stop and pick-up Blue before heading to the station.

    "Sorry to be so last minute," is the first thing Liv will say to Blue as they are ushered on to the station. "I just figured, well, it would be nice to talk some more. And cook. A lot of cooking, really."

Blue GhostEyes has posed:
Blue exits the Uber hastily and while her expression is one of mild interest and she's listening to Olivia with a smile, the keen observer might note the Native woman's hands are shaking. As soon as they get inside and she sets down all the bags she's carrying Blue reaches into the leather satchel resting against her chest and pulls out a flask. Furtively, when Liv's back is turned, Blue downs several sips of 100 proof peppermint schnapps. The entire ride she feigned being fine all the while just sitting there trying not to die. It's not that she's a control freak it's just.. she absolutely does not trust anyone else to drive. It freaks her out. Not that she'll ever admit it.

After swiftly dropping the flask back into the satchel and setting it aside, Blue grins. "It's okay. I don't mind. I'm not great in the kitchen but I can probably follow instructions. On my street, people are always leaving food for me and when I'm out I do take out or I.. uh. I find food." Not ready to admit to more than that yet. Blue is dressed a bit differently than before. She's wearing a pair of tan buckskin leggings and moccasins with a tightly knit turquise sleeveless tunic over top. She still doesn't have on any jewelry or belts or other accessories.

Her nose wrinkles at the scent of smoke but Blue looks around the firehouse with interest. "I hope I'm more of a help than a hindrance." She smiles.

Luca Bandoni has posed:
Shit, Liv. Luca wasn't quite ready for her to see him /straight/ after a call when he's all grimy and smelly with all the evidence of the fact that he runs into burning buildings still so fresh.

But she's here, nothing to be done about it now. "Hey, babe!" he calls out from where he's standing nearer the back of the rig. He's still holding his turnout coat casually over one shoulder, dangling from his fingers. "I should probably go shower, yeah?" He's smiling, but it's not quite reaching his eyes.

"Blue, what'd she rope you into? You two better not burn down the house, we'd never hear the end of it from Ladder 8." Still, even with the quips, something isn't right with him. For the first time since he met Olivia, Luca is obviously 'faking it'.

Before he can be questioned further, he waves in the direction of the kitchen. "Meet you there."

From said kitchen area, Rigatoni (aka Rigs a Belgian Malinois) comes trotting out to greet Luca with an excited tail wag.

Olivia Gaudin has posed:
    "Hi Luca," she replies. Should he go shower? Maybe, but she's not hesitating to kiss him. Pampered life? Yes, she has had one. But that's not going to stop her from showing how happy she is to see him alive and well.

    Olivia is momentarily thrown off by Luca's expression, but she doesn't let it show. She's an actress, and he's obviously been through quite enough without her adding to his day.

    "Hah, well, I will do my best to avoid a fire, but no promises!" She kids! Probably. Liv looks over to Blue, "Yeah, I kinda did pull Blue into this mess, but I promise it will be fun! It's just some cooking. I'll keep it simple." French food... is not known for being simple!

    She will follow to the kitchen, hauling what food isn't immediately taken off her hands by Roscoe. She's got cooking wine in there, too, so it is pretty heavy. And it is a lot of food.

    "Ohh, Blue, Rigs is here, too. Have you met this handsome gentleman yet?" asks Liv.

Blue GhostEyes has posed:
Blue's face scrunches up. Great Creator, the scents. She smiles at Luca though. Not his fault. A shower would be good though. "Oh. A dog." She waits patiently to see how it will react to her. Sometimes there's a bit of a dominance dance to do since they can always smell her otherself. Cats on the other hand, always hate her. It's a mutual feeling though.

"Liv has a plan. I'm just the muscle." Blue jokes and flexes an arm. "I like dogs. Sometimes we gotta work things out first though." Blue smiles at Olivia and then crouches down to Rigs eye level and slowly holds out a hand.

Luca Bandoni has posed:
Luca returns the kiss, but it's quick and man does he reek. The stench of smoke alone is something entirely different than the stench left behind after crawling through a burning building. There's not another word from him before he heads for the showers.

Rigs? Well Rigs is one of the best puppers in the whole wide world. At least Luca thinks so. But it also helps matters that the dog's a trained search and rescue canine that's also had a little police training thanks to Luca's K9 officer brother.

The dog sits, tail swishing lazily back and forth. He shows no signs of aggression whatsoever, just guarded curiosity. The guarded part could likely be easily overcome with some sort of treat.

Olivia Gaudin has posed:
    Olivia pauses to give Rigs the attention he deserves. Which is a lot of pets and a hug. Then she has to get to work. First, it's about assessing where everything is. And sure enough, guys put stuff up way the heck out of reach. She gets help as needed, though.

    "Okay, protein time for these boys... lots of protein." By the time Blue has smoothed-things out with Rigs, Olivia has groceries organized and sorted. Hopefully no one is mad that she plays music on her phone. The mix she listens to is best described as insane, bordering from heavy metal to disco to showtunes. She does not, however, play a single track with her own voice on it.

    "Blue, do you like cutting things or cooking itself?" she asks absently. She's already in game mode, and she's very comfortable in a new kitchen.

Blue GhostEyes has posed:
After considering Rigs for a moment Blue rises from her crouch and fishes around in her satchel to find a leather pouch. It's full of pieces of pemmican. One of the few things she is good at making. She returns and offers the meat and berry treat to the dog.

"Have a good shower." She tells Luca before turning to Liv and smiling. "Okay what should I do first." She watches Liv with interest. The music draws an occasional odd look. Blue is not a fan of disco but the woman doesn't comment. "I'm good at cutting things. The actual cooking not so much. I tend to get bored and wander off or distracted by something." Of course she's always on her own and it's easy to do that then.

It doesn't take Blue long to find the knives and set to swiftly chopping things in whatever manner Liv wants them. She even tosses the knives around and juggles them a bit in between rounds of chopping.

Luca Bandoni has posed:
One by one, the guys all start making their way out smelling fresh as daisies, that is if daises smelled like cheap soap. First there's Benton, then Ratliff, then Evens and finally Roscoe. No sign of Luca just yet.

"Man, if we'd known Luca was capable of finding a pretty girl that can /cook/ too, we woulda been bugging him to settle down a long time ago," remarks Benton as he steals something that's edible raw, like a veggie from one of the trays.

"So, what's for dinner, ladies?" Ratliff asks, leaning against one of the counters.

It's Roscoe that chides, "Hey guys, back off, we don't want to scare them off." He focuses on Olivia then and says, "He's in a mood, never easy to be Lt. in Charge on a call and lose someone. Especially hard when we've lost four total in a few weeks." He figured she needed fair warning.

It brings up another topic, Olivia and Luca have never talked about his rank. Seems he's one step down the ladder from running the crew and a few steps down from running the house.

It's Benton that approaches Blue, looks her up and down without making it seem lewd and introduces himself, "I'm Andy, Andy Benton." He extends his hand and does a good job of looking her in the eyes and not... well, letting his own eyes wonder.

Olivia Gaudin has posed:
    "Cutting it is then!" Olivia leaves Blue to it. The knife flipping at first is a bit of an alarming experience. Once Liv realizes that Blue is really, really good at it, though, she pauses to clap. "Oh that's amazing!"

    But she's so busy she can't just watch. As soon as blue has things cut, Liv is putting them in pots, pans. She mumbles things about braising, boiling, she's got it all going on. Simultaneously. But she's done this before for her family and for a larger crew at the theatre. Granted, these guys are a lot burlier and probably eat far more. So it's yet another scale of cooking.

    She is all smiles for the guys. "We have chicken chasseur, coq au vin, some quiche, a salad will be ready shortly. Blue is kind of a dynamo with those knives." Blue is a godsend, frankly. Liv can cut effectively. Blue is a miracle worker.

    Then Roscoe brings that up. Liv's upbeat personality dies and she immediately stops the music. "My god. I'm so sorry, Roscoe. That's.. that's horrible. I had no idea." She notices immeidately that they aren't falling apart, though. Only she feels like she's about to.

    In her head Liv is trying the old trick. It suposedly works on stage. The show must go on. The show must go on. The show must go on. It... doesn't really work. Another lie the old hands tell people like her that have yet to face much real tragedy.

    "Is there anything? No. Of course there's not. I..." She needs a moment.

Blue GhostEyes has posed:
Blue pauses to shake hands and snorts in amusement. Unless one of them starts flinging around magic, she isn't likely to be scared off by anything. They are polite though and she totally gets the urge to look. As long as one doesn't *leer*, it's fine.

"Ah. That must be rough." She comments softly. "I could and would run into a building on fire if I was walking past it and heard someone inside but there's no way I'd do it for a job. You guys are admirable." No way in hell would she do it. Burning is one of the things that can cause her to need an entire new body and life rather than just falling into a regenerative coma after dying. No thanks. Been there, done that. Not looking to do it again.

"Practice. Lots and lots of practice." Blue smiles at Liv. Once she gets things chopped up she watches the other woman cooking. If she knew what Liv was thinking about her, she'd actually probably blush. "Hey. It's alright." Blue moves and puts a hand on Olivia's shoulder. "It'll be okay. Just breathe and then try to refocus on the cooking. Later, just listen if he wants to talk about it and if he doesn't, just be there. It'll be alright."

Luca Bandoni has posed:
"He'll work it out, Liv, he always does. I just wanted to give you the heads up on his mental status, but, y'know, don't tell him I did." Way to go Roscoe, make the lady keep a SECRET!

Rigs is sitting, quietly, next to the counter. He's such a good boy, he doesn't make a sound but one look into his eyes and a person will see what a beggar he can be.

Ratliff tries, and fails horribly at repeating the menu and the mumbles to himself, "What's a chicken chaser?"

Andy's really not a bad guy. He actually offers, "Need any help there?" It's directed at Blue though, not Liv. Liv is off limits for anything that even remotely might seem like flirting.

Finally, Luca makes his way back in, all showered and clean, barefooted, wearing a pair of jeans and a white wife-beater.

"So, do I need to bitch slap any of these clowns or are they behaving?" he asks and he's /half/ joking.

Olivia Gaudin has posed:
    Liv nods to Blue. It takes her more than just a moment. She's only encountered death once in her life. And that... she doesn't tell people about that. So she'll stay focused. And be extremely distracted. It takes her a few seconds to register what Ratliff says. "Oh, it's a stew. You'll like it, I think. It's good after a hard day's work." It's also rustic, not some fancy thing that doesn't fit the situation.

    She nods to Roscoe, "Of course, Luca's tough as hell." Liv just has to not bring him down. Keep a secret. The usual.

    By the time Luca is out, Liv is in better control of her emotions. Better at hiding them, certainly. But it's a tightrope and she knows it. Casual, but not normal exactly.

    "No, no slapping needed. They are behaving suspiciously well." She smirks and looks at Andy. "I mean, this guy is flirting with Blue, but the way she handles knives I think she's in no danger."

    It takes time to prepare everything, but Liv is efficient. While cooking is going on, salad is getting tossed together. It's rarely what guys love, but she's doing her best to make it appealing. A bit of cheese, a dressing she makes on the spot, and its up on the counter ready for them in no time.

    "Oh, and Blue, feel free to relax. You kinda flew through everything in record time. We're kind of at the waiting game state of things."

Blue GhostEyes has posed:
Hm. Able to see that Luca is only half joking, Blue slips Rigs another piece of pemmican and then looks around the room. Should she do something to prove her strength, like say, lift up the fridge? Nah. Doesn't want to invite questions. Instead she just grins at Luca. "They aren't so bad." She eyes the other men and winks. "'Sides. I can handle myself. I'm not worried."

The only thing that would actutally bother her if is they messed with Liv and none of them have tried that at all so Blue isn't worried. "Thanks, Andy but I got it." She laughs at Olivia's comments over the knives and just nods in agreement then settles in a chair to watch when Liv tells her to relax.

"It sure smells and looks great. Yesterday I tried to boil some eggs for breakfast but some of them are still embedded in the ceiling. I just drank them down raw this morning since the godsbedamned raccoons got into what the neighbors left me on the porch when I was out." She scowls briefly but then grins a bit like the cat that ate the canary. Those little bastards are gone now.

Luca Bandoni has posed:
Andy barks out a laugh at Blue's tirade about eggs and raccoons, but it's a genuine, laughing with her, not at her thing. Ratliff pipes up with, "When's dinner?" right before his stomach audibly rumbles.

It's only Roscoe that could ever ever get away with what comes next. His attention has been on Luca from the second the man appeared on the scene. Quietly, but not so quietly as to not be heard, he says, "Hey kid, you're off shift for what? Five hours and some change? I got some beers stashed in a cooler under the bed, I'll go grab one or six." He called Luca /kid/. As he wanders by the 'kid', he cuffs him on the shoulder affectionately.

"Yeah, only a lightweight old man like you would hide /beer/ under your bunk," Luca quips in return. But look, there's a little more smile in his eyes now.

He wanders up behind Liv and wraps his arms around her waist. "Something smells a little bit like heaven and I'm not talking about the food." Although it smells good too!

"Hey Blue, if I gave you some names, how fast could you find out if there was any connection between them?"

Olivia Gaudin has posed:
    Liv is at that stage of just trying to make sure things work properly in the kitchen. Distraction can be masked by an actress, but it does not cease to be. If anything, it only gets worse in some ways. Regardless, she has timers on her phone for everything.

    Her eyes are on Luca, and she lets out a breath she didn't know she was holding when his eyes start to look more they should. Like Luca, as she would put it. His eyes. She's staring for a moment, then she snaps out of it.

    She is just turning to the over to check something when he's holding her. She looks back over her shoulder, smiling. "I missed you," she says gently. The words are meant for him, but others nearby would probably hear it. "I hope you've worked up a really good appetite on all these shifts you are pulling." She is not talking about food.

Blue GhostEyes has posed:
Blue grins at Roscoe. He's got the right idea she thinks but of couse he knows Luca much better. Andy also gets a smile. She knows he's not really laughing at her and it *is* funny. Now anyway. Though she does gotta get that ceiling taken care of before a smell starts to set in.

"Uhm. Depends. I got access to websites for stuff like that but I have this guy that does it all for me since I'm not great with computers."

Understatement of the year that. She can't even hardly use one of today's cell phones. The kid had to hack the thing down to the very basics and arrange just a few simple buttons for her and still had to go over it about five times before giving up and just telling her it worked by magic. Which she knew was a lie but honestly it might as well be for all she can understand the shit.

Blue politely takes a sudden interest in getting a soda from the fridge when Liv turns her attention to Luca. They are cute. So cute.

Luca Bandoni has posed:
Luca presses a kiss to the back of Liv's head before murmuring back, "I missed you too." But the statement doesn't hold any of the flirtatious nature that her's did. No, his is more like an ache in the soul kind of missing someone. When a firefighter's had a night like his, there's nothing he misses more than someone they care about, someone who's arms they want to fall asleep in.

Roscoe comes back out holding a bottle of .... Tequila! "You didn't think I'd really come out with beer? For you? Four shot maximum though, shift in five hours and a little less change."

He pulls a few shot glasses from behind his back, holding them between his fingers.

French food and Mexican booze, it's a fusion night.

But Luca's still focused on Blue more than he is the bottle. Sure, that bottle gets a grin, but he has other things on his mind, heavy things even. "Can I text you the list? There's only four names." Dog with a bone, even with the NYPD doing the same, checking names for connections, Luca wants more.

"Bandoni," Ratliff begins, tone warning, "...not. your job."

Olivia Gaudin has posed:
    That tone is understood. Olivia smiles and lets out a relaxed sigh. Another shift between her and him. It's funny how much that stings right now. Her mind already is plotting it out over time. That little gnawing bit of her barely gets a whisper into her thoughts before she stamps it flat.

    No. None of that nonsense.

    She turns in his arms and wraps him up in a hug. It takes her a moment to find anything that needs to be said. "I'll be counting every second," she whispers gently.

    The moment does have to get interrupted though, by an alarm. Olivia ignores it for a good few seconds, which probably sets a few stomachs into a panic. She knows her business, though, and she knows the guys are hungry!

    "Time for me to save the day I suppose," she murmurs to Luca. It's a lame joke, and her heart's not really in it, but she is smiling at him. Damn she just wants to wait there a bit more.

    Eventually she will get to it, and food is served up. It's probably not the way things are usually done, but she prepares every plate. As if it were a restaurant. Yes, she garnishes everything, too! She is not a chef exactly, but one gets the feeling she has the talent to explore career options in the future.

    "Alright, you lot, no fighting. There's plenty for everyone."

    She is very curious just what Luca and Blue are talking about. She'll have to ask later. Liv isn't sure she'll be told the full story, though! Something seems odd.

Blue GhostEyes has posed:
Blue easily ignores Ratliff and nods at Luca. "Sure thing. I'll tell him to put a rush on it." It's what she pays the boy for afterall. As soon as Luca texts her the list she'll forward it to her little lackey. She's finally mastered that at least and if she messes up she'll just call the kid and read him the damn names. "I'll see what I can find out." Eyeing Ratliff again she explains "It sounds like a job for me and it's not a problem. Now drink your damn tequila." Her attention returns to Luca with a wink.

She doesn't ask any questions because she doesn't want to be biased. If there's anything to find and she finds it, it'll be by looking at it from a fresh or different perspective. Heh.. perhaps a *very* different perspective.

Blue watches Liv serve up the food with a quiet smile and waits to take her own plate last. These guys have been hard at work afterall and still have more coming later. "Wow. This smells amazing, Liv." Her table manners are sorely lacking and while Blue doesn't chew with her mouth open or anything, she also doesn't bother with silverware and eats with the speed of one having missed a week of meals. Might put the guys off of flirting with her but that of course doesn't occur to her. She simply just doesn't tend to care what people think and is used to having to eat in a hurry.

Luca Bandoni has posed:
Luca's heart beats steady and even in his chest when he pulls Liv further into that hug. For the most part, he's always steady and even despite what's going on around him. But he can't quite hide that little tightening of his back muscles, that little twinge of pain. It was a rough call.

With Liv all off plating food, Luca pulls his cellphone from his back pocket and fires off a text to blue. Four names - Ronald Sanderson, William McConnell, Brian Oliver and Cliff Masters. Four rather boring and average names.

"I said my piece," Ratliff replies. Nothing quiets a bunch of firefighters quicker than good food. Well, mostly quiets outside of the usual moans and groans of pleasure and the occasional comment such as, 'This is soooo good and Luca, you better hang on to this one.

"It does look good, babe," Luca himself replies. He eats and he eats /a lot/. He seems to enjoy it but that cloud's back again.

Finally, Ratliff speaks up again to address the elephant in the room. "Those names, they're the victims that died in the four fires that've happened in two weeks." Way to ruin the mood, Ratliff.

Roscoe quietly pours a round of shots for everyone. But silences Ratliff with a glare.

Olivia Gaudin has posed:
    Liv makes sure everyone has enough. There's a LOT of food. She didn't really cook /a/ meal. She cooked enough for two. Granted, the second meal may not be quite as generous as the first, it'll at least make things simpler for whoever has duty. She wants to do more, though. And she could. All she has to do is reveal a bit more about herself in the process. Like how she literally does not sleep.

    "You guys need me to come make you some breakfast later?" she asks. Luca's compliment gets a smile from her, and she notices that the gloom is back. And then made worse by Ratliff. She can't help but share glaring duty with Roscoe.

    It doesn't last long, though. She settles in next to Luca, staying close as she can. She eats, too, but, well, less than anyone else. That figure isn't from indulging. She clearly prefers the salad, which puts her in the minority.

    Liv is quiet. She's thinking. About how she can help her man recover from all this. She's young, but not so naive that she thinks she can just pounce him after his shift ends to make it all better.

Blue GhostEyes has posed:
Blue huffs softly and rolls her eyes. "I know." She's not an idiot. She makes a living investigating things. The bartending and bouncing, that's just for fun. There was no need to upset Liv or Luca more. She scowls a bit at Rafliff but doesn't say anything else, just continues eating. Of course she drinks the shot too and eyes satchel, thinking of the flask hidden inside it with longing. Can't get too out of sorts anyway, she's got something dangerous to track tonight.

"I was in France once." Blue says after searching for a lighter topic. "Wasn't for long though and didn't really get a chance to sample the cuisine." Hm. Perhaps it wasn't the best choice of topics but it was the first thing that occured to her. "That was a long time ago." Another lifetime. Really. She offers Liv a sympathetic smile but doesn't say anything. This is what these guys do and death is a part of it. Oh. Death. Well then. "Although. I need you to take me to the places Luca. Where the fires were. There's something I want to try. I can't promise anything. It might not work. Or be of any help.. it's worth a shot I think though."

Luca Bandoni has posed:
Despite wanting to warn Luca off again because well, taking a civilian to a location that's still being actively investigated is soooo beyond not okay, Ratliff keeps his mouth shut - by shoving it full of food. It doesn't stop him from giving Luca a long stare and a slight shake of his head.

Ratliff would NEVER turn Luca in, they're truly like brothers, graduated academy together. It's more his fear of Luca being caught by some other means.

Everyone's quiet now, pretending not to notice a thing, lalalalala, nothing to hear here.

"I think I can do that, it'd have to be at night though and when I get off my next shift," Luca offers while Ratliff just about has to bite his tongue right off to keep silent.

It's Benton that tries to break the tension with, "Eggs and bacon?" for breakfast that is. "Please, for the love of Pete, no spinach in the eggs and Gods, don't poach them." A beat and he adds, "Or pluck them from Blue's ceiling."

Olivia Gaudin has posed:
    Olivia gets the sense of tension, but she trusts Luca. With life and heart. She just hopes nobody screws with things for them.

    "I promise, no spinach in eggs! Who does that?" Liv seems offended. "America perfected breakfast. Eggs, bacon, sausage, pancakes, and coffee," she says simply. Prove her wrong!

    She looks around, wondering where the coffee pot is, anyway. "You guys have good coffee, right? Or are you drinking sewage like all the PDs have?"

    Liv is hunting for ways to relax things. She gives Roscoe a curious look. He seems to be the one guy who can actually give her useful advice. She will definitely be seeking him out. Better, she'll see if she can get his wife's number.

Blue GhostEyes has posed:
"Or you could just give me the addresses. I don't wanna get you in trouble and I can be discreet. Finding out who is doing this is more important than anything else." There are reasons Blue said she doesn't get along with the law. From her point of view Ratliff would rather someone get away with murder because its against the rules than do something to stop it. It's not a thing she understands or wants to understand and while they might think of her as just a civillian she isn't. Of course she can't just explain that either so..

Blue's lips quirk. "I go to this diner a lot and they put spinach in the omellettes. It ain't so bad really. Course it has a lot of other stuff in it like onions and tomatoes and peppers and cheese and ham and a buncha herbs and stuff." She suspects regular people wouldn't even notice the spinach.

Luca Bandoni has posed:
Roscoe stands up, takes his plate to the sink and washes it. Not that it likely needed it, he mostly licked it clean. When he passes by Liv on his way to his bunk, he leans in close behind her and whispers, "If he says he needs space, hold him tighter. Space is a short step into the darkness." That's all the words of wisdom he has and he covers it by saying, "I'll tell you the rest of that one when I'm not gonna embarrass the kid in front of the whole crew."

"Get your mouth out of my girl's ear," Luca shoots back. He laughs along with it, but it's pretty clear he knows he was being talked about right in front of him.

"I can't do that," Luca tells Blue. "I can't risk you accidentally messing up the scene. It's gotta be done careful."

Ratfliff stands and flatly says, "Bandoni, help me check the tanks?"

That's code for 'we need to talk'. So, Luca stands up, plants a kiss on Liv and walks back out to the apparatus floor with Ratliff.

...it leaves Benton all alone with he girls. "So... who's up for some poker?" The 'strip' is implied in his tone. Of course he wouldn't, not really.

Olivia Gaudin has posed:
    Olivia nods to Roscoe. She will answer gently, "I can do that. He's not going to get away from me." No matter what it takes. No matter what it costs. The last part is unsaid, but her tone may be enough to convey her intentions. Woman has a keeper and she's smart enough to know it.

    Olivia shares that kiss with Luca and smiles. She watches him go with a distant look, though. She's not admiring his butt this time. No, she's got a lot on her mind.

    Which is why it's probably for the best that Benton throws that silliness out there. "I'm afraid I'll have to pass on that poker, Benton. They'll never let me back if I win, and they'll never let me leave if I lose."

    She will clean up her work, put away the food so it'll be easy to prep later. She even takes the time to label it all. She really thought ahead. Benton gets one reward for staying, though. "I'll be back in.. five hours to make breakfast? Something like that. And I'll make real food. Have no fear."

    How will she manage to do that kind of schedule? That's a secret. She'll be the least tired of the bunch though.

    "You ready to get out of here, Blue? I think we'll walk and use public transit this time around, though." Try to hide that issue with driving as you might Blue, Liv can hear heartbeats and 'see' blood pressure.

Blue GhostEyes has posed:
Blue looks at Luca and just barely refrains from growling and rolling her eyes. The kid has a stubborn streak a mile wide and she knows arguing won't do any good. She wouldn't leave a trace of herself at the scene. She never does. She takes her work seriously. Maybe if she explained what she is but.. nope. Blue isn't willing to do that. She'll help if she can of course but it'll depend upon them actually accepting that help.

"I know how to not fuck a crime scene." She does mutter as Luca walks by her. "I'm not allowed to play cards with.." she almost said mortals. "People anymore. I got into trouble for that." Blue grins. "And I need to get to work. There's someone I gotta find tonight." Or rather.. something. "Thanks for inviting me Liv and it was good to see you guys and where you work." While it might not have been so much for the others, it was a pretty good end to the evening in her book and she's happy. Blue smiles and starts gathering the dishes, whistles an unfamiliar melody softly as she does so, her mind already on tonights hunt. Of course she'll go with Liv first and make sure the woman gets home safely. Oh if only she knew how Liv's powers worked. There will be *so* much chagrin and cursing of herself if she finds out! "I'm ready." Blue smiles. "Let's get you home and me to work. Night guys. Hope the rest of your shift is quieter." And with that, she gathers up her satchel and leaves with Olivia.