4501/Country Song Christmas KFC

Country Song Christmas KFC
Date of Scene:	26 December 2020
Location:	Brooklyn
Synopsis:	Katsumi engages in the holiday tradition of eating KFC alone. Peter Parker happens by, and she dares him to engage in a little make-believe.
Cast of Characters:	Katsumi Oshiro, Peter Parker

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Katsumi Oshiro has posed:
Christmastime in America is weird. Katsumi got to see a lot of people milling around, caroling, making with the merry. And not everyone seemed to be couples! Sure, not everyone single remained shut indoors back home either, but it seemed the sheer volume of people was considerably higher. But the most glaring thing Katsumi noticed was how everything seemed to be closed. She couldn't do anything. There was nowhere to go that wasn't some event of some kind. Shopping options were extremely limited. What the heck, Uncle Sam!

So Katsumi's Christmas tradition had to wait until the day after. Fortunately, it isn't a time-sensitive tradition, and it isn't particularly complex. She's parked herself in the local KFC of Brooklyn, alone. The food is absolutely awful for an athlete, but screw it.

The noon sun hangs high in the air, and the city isn't as busy as it seems to be on most days. Likely reeling from the holiday past, she figures. But it makes for a nice, quiet, if somber, crunching on a drumstick.

Peter Parker has posed:
Peter, on the other hand, is no stranger to fast food, but he seldom partakes. Aunt May is simply too good a cook, and his budget allows for fast food only when it's free.

However, Harry Osborn gave him a $50 gift certificate to KFC, as a gag gift. He figured he might as well use it since Aunt May is recovering from working her butt off for Christmas dinner. Prime rib and ham, with all the sides.

So, Peter Parker, looking very much not like a superhero, steps into the restaurant and gets in line. He looks around, hmming to himself and...

And there she is, the Punk Princess her ownself. It has been awhile since he had taken her pictures, which had gotten a lot of mileage.

She probably didn't know him from Adam, though...

Katsumi Oshiro has posed:
And that's where Peter would be wrong! Peter may not constitute a 'fan', but Katsumi's pretty good with faces and names. Though admittedly she doesn't have too many to keep up with, she mentally tracks people within her vicinity. Perhaps it's because she doesn't have many in her personal circle.

While gnawing on chicken, her near-unblemished magenta gaze trails the interior of the restaurant. And in short order, she spots Peter. He was fairly complimentary, she recalls. SHe's pretty sure the interview she gave was lame, but whatever! She raises her hand with fingers a-twiddle in greeting. She doesn't intend to shout across the room, though!

Peter Parker has posed:
Holy cow, she recognized him. He blinks in surprise as the extraordinarily-fit young woman waves. He waves back, then points to the counter, then to her. "Let me order, then I'll be over there."

He orders quickly (Two Double-Doubles, tall root beer) and then grabs a little metal numbered sign to take with him to the table where the female wrestler sits. "Hey there...is this seat taken?"

Katsumi Oshiro has posed:
Katsumi Oshiro removes her booted heel from the chair in question. "Not anymore," she chirps. The remainder of the drumstick she'd been gnawing on is set aside as she quickly grabs up a napkin to be a little less unseamly. Once satisfied, she nods to him. "How's life behind the camera?"

And from the incidentally festive red and white bucket, she pulls another chicken appendage - this time a wing.

"And is it just me, or does the Colonel look like he owned a plantation?"

Peter Parker has posed:
Peter chuckles as he sat down. "Oh, keeping body and soul together. Hustling to keep all the plates in the air." He looked around. "Actually, the Colonel was sixty-five when he found himself unemployed, too old to be hired by any company. The only thing he had was a family recipe for fried chicken. So he opened a stand to sell it. A second chance at success."

Katsumi Oshiro has posed:
"Ooh," says a Katsumi who was mostly being cheeky.

She chomps onto the chickenwing unabashedly, despite the previous deferment to a napkin. Fried chicken just can't be eaten politely. Not that she ever pained herself on tablemanners; some things just become ingrained. Once swallowed, however, she furthers, "Sounds awful. Do you at least like what you do? You seemed into it earlier." And back to gnawing on the poultry.

Peter Parker has posed:
Peter smiled wryly. "I find I'm pretty good at it. If you saw the pictures on the website and read the comments, most of them liked them, so there's something to be said about that. After all, you do something for long enough, you get pretty good at it. Like with anything. I hear that you spend 10,000 hours doing anything, you get good at it."

Katsumi Oshiro has posed:
Katsumi Oshiro chews slowly, eyebrows raising again as if challenged by the statement. She finishes chewing on the chicken, whittling it to the bon and setting it aside. She returns to the napkin, cleaning off her hands, and then immediately produces her cellphone. Fingertip slides across the screen, taps against the screen, and turns it around to Peter. She lays it on the tabletop, showing the display - a Youtube video! Before Peter has a chance to speak, she adds, "Say that again," and taps the screen.

The familiar chords of Dancing Queen begins to play. But the voice is definitely not ABBA.

Be ye warned: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XqBWvmhS-AY

Peter Parker has posed:
Peter winces at the opening words. "...Okay...maybe for some it takes *20,000.* Myself, I've not tried for very long. Harry describes my singing as 'Walrus Giving Birth to Farm Equipment.'" He chuckles, then hits the Play/Pause on the phone. "That's enough of that now. Maybe she should try culinary school, instead."

Katsumi Oshiro has posed:
"Whaaat?," facetiously balks Katsumi. "Wing is a national treasure! For whatever the f*** planet she's from, because humans don't make those noises."

She takes her phone back and repockets it. "Your humblebrag aside," she teases, "you do good work. And I don't play fast'n loose with the compliments!" She bobs a drumstick menacingly at Peter. When did she fish that out? "Anyway, what're you doing wandering around by yourself?"

Peter Parker has posed:
Peter smirks. "My best friend in the world, Harry, likes to give me gag gifts. It's actually for the best. He's...fairly well-off. He wants to give me stuff, but he know how I feel about extravagant gifts, so he gives me funny gifts so he shows he cares without it looking like he's buying my friendship. It's kinda nice, really. Anyway, this year it is a 50-dollar gift certificate to KFC."

Katsumi Oshiro has posed:
"Psh, whatever. Milk that cow while it lasts," chides Katsumi. But she doesn't pressure him on it. That's his business, and she was (mostly) joking. "Anyway, doesn't change the point," she admonishes, drumstick still bobbing in hand. "Christmas is supposed to be about couples'n stuff. So where's your couple'n stuff?"

She starts to angle the drumstick back to bite on it, only to pause, "And I *know* it's technically not Christmas anymore, but I mean, come on. Get jolly or whatever."

At last, the drumstick makes its way to her pearly whites. Chomp.

Peter Parker has posed:
Peter sighed. "No one with the title of Significant Other for a few months now. She got a good job that dovetailed with an acting career, and I loved her too much to hold her back. Sad Song #87, I guess. It isn't even something I can get bitter over. No one cheated. No one lied. And no one went crazy. So...here I am, an eligible bachelor. There are a couple of girls I'm fond of...but nothing's gone anywhere with them. Yet." He looked to Katsumi. "How about you? Anyone ringing your bell?"

Katsumi Oshiro has posed:
A bright giggle escapes Katsumi as the proverbial guns are turned on her, and she quickly chews the bite to swallow. "God, no. Someone like me should come with a warning label - hazardous material." She flashes a toothy grin, then shakes her head and adds a little more discreetly, "I've been on like two dates in my life. Not in the cards for me," before quickly chomping again.

"Mm! Hey!," she swallows again. "We should make something up. Being single with no drama is, like, zero fun. C'mon. Lie about'er. Like that time she, uh..." Katsumi doesn't even know who the chick is. It's irrelevant for the game she's goading him into, anyway. "...the time she over-exposed all your film in your jank-ass old people camera. It's why you went digital. Asked her to do *one simple thing*, my god. Next thing you know, screwed up photos."

Peter Parker has posed:
Peter thinks for a moment.

Single with ne drama...

"Well, I can't say there's no DRAMA. I mean, there's the fact that I'm the primary breadwinner for my home. My uncle was killed two years ago, so there's that. And I go to college full-time, plus hustling every day...one way or another. Hmm. I guess that's *my* drama, not hers. So I guess I'm the one with the baggage, looks like?"

He winks. It's all true, but it's laugh or cry and crying is a downer.

Katsumi Oshiro has posed:
Katsumi Oshiro's expression faults, disappointed that he hasn't picked up the ball. "F***'s sake, Peter," she laments with all the casual profanity of a Richard Pryor standup routine. "You're starting to sound like a country song. This is supposed to be fun. Now make some s*** up about your ex already. Or-"

A song? A song!

With a wide grin, Katsumi quickly plucks the phone from her pocket again. Her fingers blaze across the screen, and soon, a lone, somber guitar melody begins to play in preamble.

"Look, buddy. Lemme lay it out for ya..."

Katsumi's voice is remarkably melodious and clear, well-trained and smooth. The subject matter, on the other hand, might be a little on the ironic side. And yet, the expression she adopts is so sincerely heartfelt.

"You'd been together for so... very long~"
"But then were changing, oh you wond'red what's wro~ng..."
"Seemed she didn't want you around."

He shoulders lift in a sympathetic, theatric shrug.

"The passion was gone, and the flaaames diiieeed down, I guess ya-"
"Lost a little bit of, self-esteem-"
"That time that she made it with the whole hockey team."

She gestures a hand towards him, "She used to think you were nice. Now she tells all her friends that you're the - Antichrist~"

"Oh~"

"Why did she dis-con-nect the brakes on your ca~ar? That kind of thing is hard to igno~ore..."
"Got a funny feeling... she don't love you, anymore."

Peter Parker has posed:
Peter chuckles, startled enough to let a little of that Spider-Man Snark out.

"Wow...that's a little Weird. Al like the song, though."
He shakes his head. "Don't worry about me, Miss Oshiro. I always seem to land on my feet. Besides...onward and upward, right? There's one girl who seems to follow me around..."
Over rooftops, between buildings, and always with someone else's property...
"And one other girl who seems nice..."
Who turns into a paragon of justice in the blink of an eye.

"...and I can say there's one girl who I think I have a genuine attraction to..."
Course, that could be the pheromones talking.

"...Anyways, don't worry about my love life, such as it is."

Katsumi Oshiro has posed:
A blink! "If you know the tune, the right move is to take the next verse!," Katsumi fusses.

With a deflated sigh, she taps the phone to end the guitar melody, then stuffs the phone right back into her pocket. She shoots a glance over to Peter, eyebrow arched. "Look at you. Cup runneth over and stuff." She can't decide if she's a little jealous about this or not. On the one hand, she has more than her fair share of admirers. On the other hand, her job involves physically tangling with other women in skimpy clothes. So is any of that sincere? Likely not.

"H'okay," Katsumi says as she leans back in her chair. "Which one are you actually shooting for? Or are you the type of guy to try to get all three?"

Peter Parker has posed:
Peter sighed. "Truthfully...all of them seem as elusive as smoke. I never know when I'll see any of them. I guess I'm still trying to sort out my feelings about each of them. Heck, I'm not sure if any of them like me for who I am. I'm still in the process of finding out. And all three of them? Jeez Louise, I am not yet clueless enough to star in some kind of harem anime. Besides, it usually ends with all of them getting mad at you."

He looks up as his order arrives, then picks up the Double-Double - bacon and cheese between two chicken breasts. He smirks and takes a bite.

Katsumi Oshiro has posed:
"Really? Anime?," asks the Japanese girl, affectedly making a big deal out of it. "Raaacist."

If there were any concerns of sincerity there, it will likely disappear when she grins. Katsumi is easily provoked, but not by anything like that. A snicker follows, and she lifts a drumstick anew from the bucket. "Anyway, who are they? If you're not gonna play my game, you can at least gush about'em. Out with it."

Peter Parker has posed:
Peter hmms. "I don't name names or talk about people behind their backs. Let's see...There's...'Katya.' She's a criminal, but she seems as curious as her namesake about me. I don't think she is interested in the real me, though. Another one...well, 'Maria,' she is something special, but I get the feeling I'm not her type. Then there is...'Sonia.' I think her attraction to be is...jeez, how do I say this without sounding like a meathead...I think it's purely physical, and I want to make sure it isn't."

Katsumi Oshiro has posed:
"Two out of three Russians," Katsumi comments dryly. "One a known criminal. Like, okay, what the heck? Are these people actual spies or something? Why the secrecy?" She starts nibbling on the chicken again, watching him with curiosity. It takes a moment to work through the bite, but she adds soon enough, "Not that you need my approval or whatever, but it's just kind'a weird."

Peter Parker has posed:
Peter chuckles. "Story of my life. Where all the women in my life are at least one step ahead of me. So much for an IQ of 270, eh?" He takes a sip of root beer. "But that's okay. People who date in haste repent at leisure. And if it's going to happen, nothing's going to stop it."

Katsumi Oshiro has posed:
Katsumi Oshiro blinks slowly at Peter as he waxes philosophical. Her gaze dips to his 'sandwiches', then back up to his face. She glances then to the chicken in hand contemplatively. "...Two-seventy, huh?," she asks.

She doesn't remark past that. The chicken is raised to nibble on again in silence. If she's troubled, she doesn't really explain it. She just focuses on polishing off that chickenbone and putting it away. A napkin is used afterwards, and she exhales a soft sigh. "Guess I should start headin' back."

Peter Parker has posed:
Peter nods. "It ain't all it's cracked up to be. I may be smart about a lot of things, but I'm still stupid about a lot of others." He smiles encouragingly to her. "Hey...you take care of yourself, okay? I'll just finish my meal then head home..."

Katsumi Oshiro has posed:
Katsumi Oshiro turns to scoot to her feet, nudging her chair beneath the table. Her tray is taken to the trash, and she promptly returns. "Yeah, I will. And you too. Try not to be such a pimp." The last bit is added with a tiny smirk as she lifts the remainders of her bucket. "And also try not to have a cardiac arrest from those." She squints at the double downs. Two of them! He's a madman.

Peter Parker has posed:
Peter grins. "Oh, I get a lot of exercise. Believe me. A lot of hustling, a lot of running around..."

Webslinging for hours at a stretch.

"Don't worry about me. And when your Big Event comes 'round, I'll get a ticket."