696/Early morning cup of something

Early morning cup of something
Date of Scene:	22 March 2020
Location:	The Coffee Bean
Synopsis:	Peter's quest for employment hits a speedbump. Douglas and Mike cheer him on
Cast of Characters:	Michael Hannigan, Peter Parker, Douglas Ramsey

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Michael Hannigan has posed:
There seems to be a cardinal rule that anything breakfast related will be packed in the mid-morning, especially on a Sunday. And this rule appears to apply at the Coffee Bean as well.

Persons dressed in their Sunday finest are taking up almost ALL of the tables and the sofas are not much better. Seems coffee and an overpriced muffin is the thing to do these days.

Mike was fortunate in that he was able to secure a table for himself near the counter area. Perhaps because it was a noiser spot. But hey, a seat is a seat. His attire, like other patrons, is a little dressier than norm. Sunday best as it's typically termed. Dress slacks and a simple dress shirt. No knit cap so his cut short hair and small groomed beard are on display. No tie either. It's the dress attire of someone who doesn't much care for designer labels in their time off.

He does have a decent, albeit slightly worn dress coat slung on the back of a chair to the side of him. Taking advantage of the extra seats at his table. Unlike the others, it appears that he is on his own.

Peter Parker has posed:
The door marked EMPLOYEES ONLY opened and an average-looking young man walked out. He doesn't look happy.
The tall man walking out behind him is wearing a nametag that says LUCAS - OWNER. He has an apologetic smile on his face. "Mr. Parker, I am sorry we could not see fit to offer you a position here."
The young man turned back to face him. "Mr. Davenport..."
The voice became slightly sterner. "Peter...you realize we value attendance very highly here. Ninety percent of this job is being here when we need you to be. You get that, right?"
The young man, Peter Parker, deflated. "...Yessir."
Lucas Davenport sighed. He beckoned to the barista. "Peter, have a drink on the house. Relax a little. It's not the end of the word. Personally, I'm surprised you would want to work here instead of a place like Stark Industries."

He could still hear the HR guy, Blevins. "The only reason we haven't fired the unreliable and eccentric genius we HAVE is because HE OWNS THE COMPANY."

"Well...thank you for the interview, Mr. Davenport."
Lucas nods, then gives Peter a gentle smile, proving that he isn't a complete jerk. "Good luck, Peter."

Douglas Ramsey has posed:
The blond guy? Yeah, he's nobody special. He tucks his black and yellow scarf back from where the wind caught it, adjusts his leather gloves, and maintains meticulous social distance as he steps up to the counter to order a drink.

"Double espresso, steamed goat's milk, no sugar, I'll have one of the sugar free lemon merengues though," He murmurs, and then he looks up, and his eyes go half-lidded.

'He had something else to do. Something very important. He really needed this job though. Someone's depending on him.'

"...Could you add two of the chocolate chunk cookies to that? Thanks."

He shifts the way he's standing, so as to almost but not quite bump into Peter as he leaves the counter. "Whoops. Hey, sorry. ...I overheard, man. That sucks." He holds up the cookies. "Here, I was gonna grab these for my girlfriend, but I'll take the long way home and stop by the Russian bakery she likes -- please. I insist. Bono malum superate."

Michael Hannigan has posed:
Ah the noise factor once again. Mike didn't mean to listen in to Peter getting the bad news, but when the door is RIGHT THERE it is hard not to. He glances over, not moving from the high end real estate as he sees Peter getting intercepted by Douglas.

The performer blinks. He seems to recall that kid from church awhile back during a debate on science being a form of art- or something like that. Some genius kid.

He looks to the two nearby guys, "If you guys need a seat, I got some extra spots at this table." He looks to Peter, "The science genius, right?"

Peter Parker has posed:
Peter blinks, startled. It's a little welcome, though. Being startled without the Spider-Sense to go along with it. "Defeat evil with good?" He chuckled. Something he can relate to VERY well. "Well, I was going to get a hot chocolate, actually. But there's never a thing as too much chocolate, right?"

He extends a hand. "Name's Pete. Thanks."

Peter turns as the dark-haired guy with the angular face speaks up. His face colors slightly in a blush. "Uhm...trying to be, yes. I didn't know I was well-known in...well, ANY circles."

Douglas Ramsey has posed:
Doug grips Peter's hand firmly -- his handshake is firm with a strong grip, though his right hand seems exceptionally sturdy underneath his glove. He withdraws it quickly enough, and then he says, "Doug. Douglas, if you're being formal or you're my Nana Ramsey--" He glances up, briefly, and then he gestures, with one hand. "It's the only way we're going to get a table in here."

He beams, briefly, and then drawls "I can't hang around too long, my girlfriend's a real demon if she doesn't get her morning fix, and she's super particular. Cookies from here, coffee from a place a few blocks away..."

Michael Hannigan has posed:
Mike gives a small smile in reaction to Pete's response, "We kind of met once before over at St. Patrick's." He offers in explanation, "Your aunt was very clear on your brilliance. But I can understand you not remembering. Name's Mike."

He gives a nod over to Doug, "Best of luck on your quest then. A happy girlfriend is...better than one on the warpath."

Peter Parker has posed:
Peter glances to the barista, who nods to him and mouths "Hot chocolate, regular?" He nods, then follows Doug to the table.
As Mike speaks up, he recognizes him. "Hey, yes. You and I believe that lady Aunt May called 'the Nubian.' I looked up the designs on her clothing. They were WAKANDAN. Can you imagine that?"

He takes a seat, looking between Doug and Mike.

Douglas Ramsey has posed:
Doug pauses. Wakandan? Well, that's interesting.

He pulls out his chair. "She'll be fine. I'm exagerrating." He's underselling it. He slips into his seat and curls his fingers around his coffee cup, before he takes a bite out of his sugar-free treat.

"...I know someone who spent a lot of time in that region of Africa -- I wonder what she knows about Wakanda...?" He muses over that, but then dismisses that thought. "Well, I've seen a little bit of the Wakandan language. Its drift from the other languages around it is really fascinating, in some ways it's closer to--" He pauses. "Uh. Nevermind."

Michael Hannigan has posed:
"Well, New York is a highly diverse and traveled city and St. Patrick's is probably on a list of places to visit somewhere, so it's not too far of a reach." Mike muses.

He looks over to Doug as he goes off on a tangent. "...Linguist?"

Peter Parker has posed:
Peter unwraps the cookie and nibbles. It is a good cookie. As good as you can get without it being homemade.

"Languages? That's a useful skill. They say speaking to another nationality using their language is a sign of respect."

If that's the case, then every computer in New York must respect him.
"What kind of work do you do, Doug? Interpreter for the U.N.?"

Douglas Ramsey has posed:
"...It's a hobby." Doug says, before he seems... somewhat abashed. "Well, I'm between jobs right now. I have a little money put up but I'm just sort of living for the sake of living, you know?" He's not that much older than Peter. "I've done a little translation work for people in the past but I've never worked for a high-level organization like the UN, no."

He sips his coffee again and then he says, "I mean, not that I wouldn't LIKE to? It's just not in the cards. I'm into computers, too-- I just wrote a new app that collects masked vigilante sightings real time off of social media and news outlets... with a ten minute delay. On one hand, I don't want this to be used by law enforcement and criminals for entrapment purposes? On the other hand, I feel like civillians should be able to steer clear of a Punisher sighting. That's the problem with technology--it's a double-edged sword, you know?" He holds up his phone, showing the app. Right now he has it set to look for sightings of the Batman, in Gotham City. "He's almost impossible to track -- unless he's in his car."

Michael Hannigan has posed:
Mike looks at the display on the phone, looking a bit impressed. "Interesting. Does it also keep track of sightings based off of common appearance or is it more of a named theme? Kind of a 'I THINK it is this guy, but he could possibly be this guy. They look a lot alike' type of thing?"

Peter Parker has posed:
Living for the sake of living. It must be nice, having no responsibilities.

Peter looked at the screen. If it's real, then it's the smoothest app he's seen in awhile. No lag, no stutter, quick response.

"You're pretty good, Doug. But yeah, there can be such a thing as too much information. Maybe if you only shared it with groups like the Avengers or the Justice League...they might find it helpful."

Douglas Ramsey has posed:
"I mean, possibly. You could also use it to track meta-criminal sightings, which could be done in more real time--" Then Doug sighs. "I'm not a mercenary... I can't just SELL these things to people. It's not how I was taught." He taps his gloved fingers on the table as he gives that a thought, and then says, "But just the movement trends are fascinating. Spider-Man covers long distances in incredibly short periods of time, for instance. He demonstrates an incredible street-level knowledge of the city, especially Queens, where he's the fastest."

"The Daredevil of Hell's Kitchen is impossible to track. The best you get is police reports. His ability to avoid civillian sightings is uncanny--" He turns the app off, and then says, "But in the end I'll probably shelve it. But if I can write this app now, someone else will eventually--and that... I don't like the thought of that."

Then he glances back up at Peter. "You seem pretty savvy. And I do know a guy with connections -- what exactly do you *do*, Pete?"

Michael Hannigan has posed:
"Hmm. What about just displaying the sightings of the just the high risk, 'you should definitely leave the area while they're doing their thing' types? I think Hulk having a bad day and Punisher doing his thing is something that would merit alerting others no matter their connections." Mike considers, both in reaction to Peter's comments and Douglas's description.

"It'd probably make things easier on those involved on downgrading the situation if they had less people in the area to worry about." He sighs, leaning back,"But then again, you have the Looky Lous to contend with."

Peter Parker has posed:
Peter chuckles. "It would also be nice to know when allies are in the area, too."

He glances over to Doug for a moment, then looks thoughtful. "I freelance. I...take pictures of Spider-Man for the BUGLE. I wash cars...shop for people in the neighborhood...tinker with stuff. And..." He grins suddenly. "I have been told more than once that I'm the best dog-walker in Queens."

Douglas Ramsey has posed:
"...I went to school with the son of Emmanuel da Costa. CEO of da Costa International? It's a Brazilian company, big into construction but expanding aggressively into tech and engineering. It's HUGE in South America and aggressively expanding into Africa, the US, and Europe."

Doug puts his finger over his mouth. "...And they're in a hurry to play catch-up with Stark, LexCorp, and WayneTech. It's a shame you only wash cars, tinker with stuff, and walk dogs, Pete -- because if, say, a scientist and engineer was looking for a job, a guy who went to school with Roberto da Costa might be able to get him to make a call? He's only the boss's son, but I've known the guy for years, and if you can sell him on what you can do, *he* can sell ice cubes to Inuits."

Michael Hannigan has posed:
"Well, there's not saying there can't be more than one app. A free one for safety reasons and then another for ... verified persons." Mike considers, "It's only sending information, not receiving, right?"

Peter Parker has posed:
Peter chuckles. "Yeah...except I'm only 18. I don't even have my high school diploma yet. I am still trying to figure out the logistics of how I'm going to pay for college. I can't see what credentials I could possibly provide that could convince a multinational corporation to take me on in any capacity. And to tell you the truth, da Costa will have to do a background check...and when they do, they will take one look at my work record and do the same thing Stark Enterprises did when they got the results." He ticked off his fingers holding the cookie. "Unreliable. Uninsurable. Inexperienced."

Douglas Ramsey has posed:
"Eh." Doug says, "Don't sell yourself short. Because I'm *pretty good* at reading between the lines, Pete? Some would say it's one of the things I do best. He," he gestured to Mike, "Mentioned you're a science whiz. You took a deeper look at my app in a couple of seconds than most people could do in an hour. You mentioned you interviewed for Stark...? That means that you, eighteen, with no college education, brought something to the table that got you in the door, right? So why would you assume that something has *no* value? That's just... defeatist language."

Michael Hannigan has posed:
Mike's consideration of the app is soon lost in interest as he looks over to Peter in consideration. Besides, his own phone is not app friendly. "Also, as you said, you're 'only 18'. You have plenty of time to build up that resume." He looks to Doug, "And sometimes the first step to building it is to take the hand that's offered to you."

Peter Parker has posed:
Peter sighed. "Look...I wouldn't turn it down. But it has to be a PAID internship, and my education has to be taken into account. If you can make the pitch to him and sell him on the idea, I'll come in for an interview. I'm just...a little jaded."

Douglas Ramsey has posed:
Doug perks an eyebrow. "YOU have to sell him on it, Pete." He reaches into his pocket and jots down his phone number on a note. "You're also the guy with enough chutzpah to take pictures of Spider-Man for the Daily Bugle." He shrugs his shoulders, and says, "I can't make you any promises, Pete. You're the one out here hustling... you know how it works." He curls his fingers around his coffee. "...But I've had to punch above my weight class a few times in my life. I know how it works, too. Sic vita est, right?" He glances over at Mike, and beams. "Thanks for the backup."

Michael Hannigan has posed:
Mike looks back to Peter, listening to the requirements before looking back over to Doug. It feels like he's sitting in on some negotiations right now.

He gives a nod to Douglas, "No problem."

He glances back to Peter, "Sometimes you get knocked down a lot. But, it's not really defeat until you decide not to get back up. Be stubborn."

Peter Parker has posed:
He figured he would have to sell it...but he needed to get TO the person to make the pitch to, and until Doug provided his number, he didn't have evben THAT.

But he does have it now. So that's progress, at least.

"Okay. I'll call tomorrow. Today's Sunday, after all. And...we'll see what happens." He took a deep breath. "It would be nice to know what kind of work I'd be doing, or in what particular fields. I am better at Neuroscience and Microtech than I am at, say, genetics."

Because having it done to you isn't the same as being an expert.

Douglas Ramsey has posed:
"I'll talk to him." Doug says, before he gets a text message and gets up. "Now if you'll excuse me, my girlfriend is five minutes from growing horns and a tail and breathing fire for wont of her morning coffee."

He pauses. "...That's a joke. She doesn't breathe fire. Mike, pleasure to meet you. Pete, keep the faith, okay?"

Michael Hannigan has posed:
"Oh my. Then by all means, get the requested items before she pulls you into hell as punishment." Mike jokes, giving a nod, "Best of luck to you keeping the peace."

He sips his coffee, watching Doug prepare for departure.

"And best of luck to you as well, Pete."

Peter Parker has posed:
Peter nods. "I think I'll sit here and ponder my existence for awhile. With my hot chocolate."

Because he could always try scoping out theis area. It's been a few days since he ran this route.