1736/Drinks and Dinner at the Dragon

Drinks and Dinner at the Dragon
Date of Scene:	19 May 2020
Location:	Royal Dragon Restaurant - Hell's Kitchen
Synopsis:	Sam and Nicole have a good date, and retire for nightcaps.
Cast of Characters:	Sam Wilson, Nicole Adams

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Sam Wilson has posed:
Since he was the one that opted to ask Nicole out -- escalating the offer she had made, really -- Sam made the decision to have a meal near where he grew up. Waiting outside of the restaurant for Nicole, he's dressed for the warm weather with a nice polo shirt of dove grey, black blacks with leather belt and shoes. And a pair of sunglasses, just to hide his appearance further after what happened at the good room.

He wasn't sure if Nicole was going to come or not after what happened but the text messages they had shared seemed positive enough.

Nicole Adams has posed:
     This wasn't Nicole's usual neighborhood, but she was going to trust Sam's judgement. Besides, she knew she'd be safe enough just on her own--but even more so in his company. She couldn't remember the last time a man had stood up for her honor like that. It was rather old-fashioned and sweet, and she liked it. So at the appointed time, Sam feels a light tap on his shoulder, and hears a soft chuckle. If he were to turn around, he'd see Nicole in black slacks, black wedge heel sandals, and a black spaghetti strap tank top that is loose and flowing, the soft, silky material swirling and fluttering about her hips with each step. She's left her hair long and loose, and wears a simple, single long strand of freshwater pearls for a necklace.

     "Hope I'm not late," she says, grinning at him. To be honest, she hadn't been sure herself if he was going to be there. She couldn't remember the last time she'd been on a date at all, so she was worried he wouldn't be there. It seems those fears were unfounded.

Sam Wilson has posed:
Turning around to face the buxom blonde, Sam's brows rise, a sign of his eyes widening beneath the glasses. "Wow. You look amazing, Nicole." he manages with a warm smile to her - it's toothy, that unmistakable little gap in his teeth. "I know it doesn't look like much, but the dumplings here are amazing, and the atmosphere is low-key. Good for getting to know each other better, right?"

Turning, he leads the way to open the door for Nicole so that she can enter ahead of him, before he follows suit, where they are greeted warmly by a hostess, "Nai-ho!" she smiles to the pair before Sam nods. "Table for two, please?"

They're lead through the restaurant interior to a small table near the kitchen. An aquarium nearby has colorful fish that are swimming around a tiny replica of the Great Wall. The waitress sets the menus on the table and Sam pulls out Nicole's chair for her.

Nicole Adams has posed:
     From drinks to dinner, and here Nicole was already getting spoiled! Sam was proving to be quite the gentleman--well known to be a dying breed. Her cheeks darken a shade or two as he first lets her in ahead of him, then pulls out a chair. "Thank you," she murmured, smiling warmly. The only makeup she appears to have on is a little bit of lip gloss, which shimmers faintly in the ambient light.

     Nodding in agreement, she tucks a stray wisp of honey gold behind her left ear. "It is. How'd you know I like Chinese? Checking up on me?" she teases him a little bit.

Sam Wilson has posed:
"I figured for first date fare, Chinese was a safe bet." Sam admits with a laugh. "It's not so expensive that you feel like you're expected to have more than a good date, while not so cheap that it shows interest. At least that's what I was told." There's amusement in his tone after he's settled in. When the waitress returns to take their drink orders, he decides to start with a water with lemon.

"I would perfer to learn about you in your own words, instead of looking up your facebook or what have you."

Nicole Adams has posed:
     Nicole, for her part, keeps to a Sam Adams beer, the summer seasonal brew. She winks at Sam as she tells the waitress her order, a little nod to that night in the Good Room. "You might just have helped me find my new favorite eating spot. Especially if the steamed dumplings are as good as you say!"

     While they wait for the waitress to return with their drinks, she smiles, dipping her head in agreement. "I hear you. Sure, there's the legend, but I'd rather know the person behind it." She smiles some, and shrugs. "Even if you did check my Facebook page, you wouldn't find some things on it. Like my family." By her voice, it seemed there were definitely some mixed feelings there. "I hate bullies and bigots."

Sam Wilson has posed:
"Calling yourself a Legend? This I have to hear about." Sam says teasingly when she makes that comment. He downplays himself so easily and quickly. But when he hears that tone in her voice, he looks thoughtful. "I have to confess. I've not been in that boat you have to be in. So I'm not gonna try to compare myself to it. My parents passed when I was pretty young and I had my own unresolved issues that haunt me." he draws in his breath.

"So there's no juding, no preaching, or any of that. Just a guy and a girl on a date, trying to figure out if there's anything more than that there." he finally finishes, the waitress bringing their drinks and he grins. "Normally I'd have a beer, but I have work in the morning and I rode over here on my bike, so need to keep my wits about me."

Nicole Adams has posed:
     "Duty calls, huh?" Nicole wrinkled her nose, and she grins, raising her glass in salute. "I'll enjoy this for both of us then, and just owe you one on another day." She takes a sip of her beer, and nearly chokes when he calls her a legend. "Not a legend. Just a..." She actually hesitates over the word, and drops her voice in volume a few notches. "...mutant." She pauses a moment, peering over the edge of her glass at him to gauge his reaction to confirmation of what he likely already suspected.

     "So, by 'work', do you mean saving our skins out there, or what do you do on a more 'normal' day?" She smiles, curious about this one. What /would/ the Falcon be up to when not on the wing?

Sam Wilson has posed:
"You're a woman. A pretty one. No tags. I mean, we could go with me being black, a minority... or that n word." Sam doesn't use it, he never would, but he wants her to understand that he's not judging her on what she can do.

"I do some contract work for SHIELD. I also have a combat veterans group that meets once a week, helping soldiers adjust to being home. It's actually how I met Steve in the first place." He gets that out of the way, he's used to being asked 'How do you know Captain America?'. He takes a long draw from his water. "When it comes to the Avengers, I help where I can. I'm not the big leaguers like Tony and those that repellec the attack in New York..."

Nicole Adams has posed:
     Nicole's smile is brilliant, when she hears of the veteran's group. "That is flipping awesome." Yeah, she totally glosses over the fact that he knows Captain America, or that he's even an Avenger. Or at least, she tries to, until she hears him start to play down his own part. Her brows furrow, and she sets down her glass. Her upset is not enough to set off her telekinesis, but her tone brooks no opposition. "Look. You just said it yourself. You help where you can. It doesn't take being in the big leagues to be a hero, okay? You do your part. You reach out, you try to touch lives for the better. So you want to try telling me again how you don't measure up to the rest?"

     She tilts her head slightly to one side, taking a sip of her beer. "Do you ever need help with the veteran's group? I mean, I'm just a barkeep. But I wouldn't mind pitching in sometimes."

Sam Wilson has posed:
"Most of the veterans are pretty shy about it." Sam admits between drinks. "No offense meant, but it's discussion about combat and trying to adjust to what's normal again. But I'll see if they don't mind a visitor. You have rather friendly ears." he smirks. "Plus, you know, if this date turns into a total fail, you may change your mind." There's a wink at her. When the waitress comes over to set their orders, he orders the dragon and phoenix plate, then waits for Nicole.

After she's ordered and the waitress leaves, Sam asks. "Any hobbies or such that you have?" he asks her. "I have .., well, you may find it odd, but when I was little, I real connection with birds. I still do. So I train them. I have a red-tail hawk I work with a lot."

Nicole Adams has posed:
     For her part, Nicole orders the vegetable delight, some hot and sour soup, and a double order of the steamed dumplings to share with Sam. "I don't see a fail here. Honestly, I'm enjoying hearing about you." She peers over the edge of her glass at him, taking a small sip of the golden brew within. "What's so odd about connecting with animals? So what if it's birds? That's actually pretty cool." She grins a little sheepishly, shrugging. "I played piano up till I moved to New York. Haven't been able to for a few years, because I don't have an instrument. But I'd love to again someday... if I even remember how."

Sam Wilson has posed:
"I'm told it's like riding a bicycle, you don't forget. Kinda like dating." Sam says with a little laugh, a glance at Nicole, before looking back at his water. It's not that he's avoiding her gaze. She just seems to be ... too good. Taking out his phone, he thumbs through a few pictures, then slides over a photo or him with a red-tailed hawk on his wrist. "This is Redwing." he explains.

"So. I know... somewhat of what you can do. I don't just fly around and stuff. I also can communicated with birds. Like see through them and stuff. You know. Like Aquaman. But with birds." And when he says it outloud, he realizes how lame that really sounds.

Nicole Adams has posed:
Nicole Adams smiles as she looks over the photo, reaching out with one fingertip to gingerly touch the picture of the hawk as if stroking those gorgeous feathers. "Do you know how many times I wished I could do something like that as a kid? You are really lucky." Her smile is wide, and genuine. She's not freaked out in the least by this gift of Sam's. "Handsome, that photo. And the hawk isn't too bad-looking, either," she quips.

Sam Wilson has posed:
As if she could make Sam's cheeks darken any further than they already are. "When I was a kid, had the biggest pigeon roost in Harlem." As if that's something to brag about. His hand brushes hers as he takes the phone back, their fingers touched together before he returns to his side of the table. "You said it has been a while since you've done something like this?"

Nicole Adams has posed:
     "Go on a date? Yeah." Nicole smiles somewhat, shrugging. "I think my last attempt was my senior prom in high school. It was pretty well a let-down, so I swore off dating for a long time. I was getting set to cut ties with my family anyways, and I had to focus on making sure I'd land on my feet okay." Her own cheeks go rosy as his fingers brush against hers, and for a moment, she captures his hand and gives it a very brief squeeze.

Sam Wilson has posed:
His hand squeezes hers in return, and Sam considers her words and thoughts. He presses his lips together in a thin line. "I'm thirty-four." he finally allows. He realizes she may not have realized how old he was and that may be an issue. "I was in a really short dating thing recently. Our schedules just didn't work out."

Nicole Adams has posed:
     "Twenty-three in July." She chuckles a little bit, not letting go of his hand. "Fourth of July kid. What about you?" There, in that little hole-in-the-wall Chinese restaurant, Sam and Nicole were just two normal people having a normal time, and it felt wonderful. Okay, so each of them had a little something extraordinary about them, but who's counting, right?

Sam Wilson has posed:
"Nope, Fourth of July kid is Cap. I'm in September." Sam explains as the waitress returns with their food, setting it down in front of them for the pair to enjoy. "Oooh, this looks really good." he says. He tucks into his meal after she starts on hers, Sam apparently enjoying the company perhaps more than the food.

Nicole Adams has posed:
     Nicole shakes her head and laughs. "No, no, /I'm/ the Fourth of July kid... whoah, wait. Are you serious? The Captain's... ha!" She grins, lifting her glass in an absent salute to a fellow July kid. "It's fitting." She smiles warmly, tucking away that bit of information about Sam away in the back of her mind. September, hmm? We'll see about that.

     The talk of birthdays is cut short as the food arrives, and Nicole makes certain that the dumplings are set right in the middle between the two. She goes after hers with a pair of chopsticks, deftly plucking one from the plate and dipping it in the accompanying sweet soy sauce. "Bon appetit, cheri!" The look on her face as she takes a bite is one of pure bliss. "You weren't kidding about these... they're fantastic!"

Sam Wilson has posed:
July's much closer. And now it seems that Sam will have two birthdays to figure out. "Looks great." he says, offering up some of his own meal in return. "Are you a vegan?" he asks, realizing he should have asked that first before offering up chicken and shrimp. His smile at her reaction to the food is warm and Sam watches her before continuing to work on his own food.

"What days do you usually have off... in case you want to do this again?" He doesn't know how the evening is going to go, but there is a clear interest there - and he decides to see if she feels the same.

Nicole Adams has posed:
     "Sundays, Mondays, and Tuesdays. Wednesday through Saturday nights, I'll be at the club, most nights around 10 till 4 in the morning." Nicole smiles, and shakes her head. "No, not vegan or even vegetarian. Those just happen to be some of my favorite things at a Chinese restaurant. Heck, I love a good barbeque as much as anyone. Who knows, maybe one day we could do a picnic or something, with the weather getting better and all."

     Oh, yes. There was definitely interest on her part!

Sam Wilson has posed:
Sam makes a note of her days off and admits. "My schedule can be pretty sporadic with things." Missions and the like. He wants her to be aware of that at least. "But a barbeque sounds like a plan." He grins. "I know a place in Harlem that does fall off the bone ribs that just melt in your mouth and make you want to suck on it..." And then he realizes how that sounds and he ahems. "I mean. And the figurative sense." he manages to correct.

Nicole Adams has posed:
     Somehow, Nicole manages to turn every shade of beet red possible, coughing into a napkin. But there is a mischievous twinkle in her peridot green eyes that belies any seeming innocence. "Uh-huh. Right." There's an almost imperceptible wiggle of her eyebrows, which she quickly covers by taking a sip of her beer. "I hear you about the schedule, though. When duty calls, you just have to go."

Sam Wilson has posed:
Coughing slightly at Nicole's retort, Sam has to hide it with a drink of water. "If you're okay with that, then? We can definetly make time to see each other again. If you want." As he works on finishing off his meal, the waitress returns with the check and a pair of fortune cookies for the pair. Sam takes the check immediately so that he may pay for the meal.

Nicole Adams has posed:
     "I do want to. This has been a really nice evening, and I don't want it to end." Nicole's blush ramps up a notch and she smiles, her fingers brushing against Sam's as she reaches for one of the fortune cookies. Cracking it open, she plucks the little slip of paper free, and reads it out loud. "There is a prospect of a thrilling time ahead for you." She coughs again, and giggles softly behind her hand. "C'mon, what's yours say?"

Sam Wilson has posed:
"My place isn't far from here, if you're interested in a nightcap." Sam offers to her quietly. "And if you don't mind riding a motorcycle." His hand catches hers, holding onto it, and then he decides to open up the other cookie. Cracking it open, he glaces at the fortune and reads. "All the troubles you have will pass away very quickly." he announces to her.

Nicole Adams has posed:
     Oh, man. A nightcap? Well... she was free and over 21, and to be honest, for once Nicole wanted to throw caution to the wind. She smiles and inclines her head, her eyes sparkling. "First time for everything... never been on a motorcycle. Never owned one, and never took up with anybody who had one." What else hasn't she done? It seemed there were to be many a new road explored by the two of them in their time of knowing each other. "But I don't mind it at all!"

Sam Wilson has posed:
This is a little fast. But really, Nicole just feels right. After paying the bill for the pair, Sam leaves a tip for the waitress and moves to stand up. He helps Nicole to her feet and leads her from the restaurant to where his old motorcycle waits to take them back to his place.