9402/Ringing In The Year With Diner Food

Ringing In The Year With Diner Food
Date of Scene:	01 January 2022
Location:	Fred's Diner
Synopsis:	Alison Blaire and Mike Hannigan stop by Fred's Diner after attending a New Years Eve event.
Cast of Characters:	Alison Blaire, Michael Hannigan

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Alison Blaire has posed:
~All alone, I have cried
Silent tears full of pride
In a world made of steel
Made of stone~

If there is one thing Fred's diner is known for, it is its collection of 'oldies' in its jukebox. This now, of course, includes the eighties, a fact which many people to this day find troubling and often prompts questions of "where did the time go?'

Which is terribly a propos, since New Year's Eve has come and gone, and now the streets are full of merry-makers and booty shakers. Late night diners are booming with bands of friends and family out partying and in search of that sobering meal.

~Well, I hear the music
Close my eyes, feel the rhythm
Wrap around, take a hold of my heart~

One Alison Blair, barely recognizable under her New Year's Eve regalia (oodles of LEDs, knitted cap to protect from the cold, and the obligatory new year-shaped glasses) slides into the booth that has now become available, swiveling onto her spot and giving her New Year's eve companion a grin as she bursts into the chorus in time with the jukebox.

"What a feeling Being's believin'!"

Being's believing? Well, Keith Forsey is remembered mainly as a percussionist and producer and not as a lyricist for a reason. Dazzler slams her palms on the tabletop, clearly still vibrating with excitement from the concert. "What a concert! What did you think of it?" there hadn't been much time for talking after, the two of them, because there was the requisite backstage meet-up, a general sense of disappointment that Togawa hadn't been able to attend the concert due to travel complications, and then the mad dash out of the venue and onto the cold , looking for a place to eat and, hopefully, crowded enough and still too dizzy from the celebrations that they wouldn't be easily recognizable.

Michael Hannigan has posed:
The man who slides into the seat across from Alison is bedecked in a similar manner. Nick Drago, known as Mike Hannigan to friends, is also a little unrecognizable with the current garb. The knitcap he tends to use for his off time has been switched out with one of somewhat higher quality. It's still black but the pompom on the top is a similar color to the ball that gets dropped in Times Square. Some small lights have temporarily been wrapped around the pom pom to give it the light up effect. The '2022' of the light up glasses he wears goes right across his face, his eyes peek out of the glasses through the zero and second two.

"I think it was interesting." Mike replies, bouncing his butt over to take up the center of the bench seat, "I liked a bit of the instrumentation. And the stage production was great." He reaches over to grab a menu, "I had fun. Thanks for inviting me."

Mike takes a cautious look over towards the grill area. Upon seeing items sizzling away already, he gives a relieved look and turns back to Dazzler. "How about you? Was it all you were expecting?"

Alison Blaire has posed:
"Just about! Jun Togawa's a genius and she doesn't get the recognition she deserves," the blonde woman says, almost vibrating in her seat, clearly fidgety. Was it because of all of the sonic energy she absorbed, or the adrenaline of the concert? A combination of both, maybe? "She challenged so many norms in Japan and went for the Idol Culture with claws out. She's great."

A mischievous grin appears on her face, "It takes a very special person to decide to raw-throat scream her way through Pachelbel's canon to portray emotional instability. If I could get away with half of the stuff she did..."

There's a glimpse of the rebellious Dazzler a few years down the line, "After all, the best pop is transgressive!"

Michael Hannigan has posed:
Despite the how, the aftereffects of the concert indeed has a visible effect on Alison. The display is one that Mike now has a front row seat to. The side of Mike's lip curls upward. The head tilts to the side causes for the curl to go a little higher. "That's a definite yes." He determines aloud.

The lips part, exposing teeth as Mike's expression mirrors Alison's. "I think that applies beyond pop as well." Head straightening, Mike reaches over to grab a second menu to lay it down in front of Alison. "It does come with risk and some form of sacrifice though. Like most good things."

Alison Blaire has posed:
Despite her protestations of being hungry, Alison glances at the menu without reading it at first, hands moving the laminated rectangle this way and that. "Right. I have to ask myself that sometimes- am I chickening out by playing it relatively safe now, in the hopes that I can go Gaga later once I'm established?"

She sets the glasses down to take a better look at the menu, even though she knows very well she's just going to go for the chili. "And the danger is that you always go 'okay, I can do this once I am x', and then x arrives and you feel comfortable, so you say 'y' instead..."

Michael Hannigan has posed:
Mike nods, looking to the menu and frowning. A hand reaches up to the side of the frames to flip a small switch on the frames. The lights on the glasses shut off. Glasses still on, he looks to the text. But he's probably going to end up getting a grilled cheese and tomato soup anyways.

"The thing is, you can't play the comparison game with other people to determine that. That's a trap right there. Everyone's got their own pace." Mike comments, simply confirming the presence of his go to choice still being on the menu. "There is merit to waiting. Getting enough oomph to your word to have a bigger impact. But on the other hand, there's something with doing stuff now." Finger stopping on one entry, Mike looks back up to Alison. "But, if you want to weather the biggest of storms, it's good to have a strong foundation. Be it financial, emotional, or support wise."

Alison Blaire has posed:
The blonde woman blows some air through her lips, and smirks. "There you go, being reasonable again. I guess it's hard not to chomp at the bit when you feel you've lost time already," she sets the menu down. Yep. Chili it is. "Hard not to feel like I wasted all those years in pre-law instead of going full steam ahead on music."

She reaches for a napkin to set it by her on the table, as she is wont to do. Soon, she will order some hot cocoa, because the celebration merits it, "Especially when the notion of 'the world might end tomorrow because an alien invasion might just happen' is a real possibility. We are living in the weirdest timeline, after all."

Michael Hannigan has posed:
Mike's brows raise at the mention of being reasonable again. "Well, I can't be speaking out my ass all the time." He responds, "Which, I can do from time to time." The finger taps in consideration, "Nothing you do in life is a waste. Everything you do is what makes you who you are. And maybe that time spent learning pre-law is the experience you need to know when an active law maker is full of shit. So, in that sense, the pre-law is an advantage."

He glances over in time to see a server start heading their way. "I'm not exactly proud of my fighting growing up but it sure as hell helped my sense of rhythm."

Alison Blaire has posed:
"And in punching ghosts in the face. Don't forget about that," Alison answers impishly. When the server approaches them, she orders herself the chili she has been craving, and some hot cocoa. Oh, and some french fries, because why not?

"You are right, of course. But still... sometimes I want to do something truly wild. Something that will make my agent clutch his chest and call me at 1 AM to yell at me." She chuckles, "Rock the boat a little, show brighter colors." She taps a fingernail on the tabletop, "Aside from the light show, I mean."

Michael Hannigan has posed:
Mike pauses at the reminder of the Gentleman Ghost incidents. "Ok yes. That was very therapeutic." He admits, smile widening. He pauses to look over to the arriving server. After Dazzler's order is taken, Mike puts in his own order for the grilled cheese and tomato soup. And water, no ice. With all the hot foods it might be good to have something not steaming hot to drink.

When the server heads off, Mike looks back over to Dazzler. "Well if you want to give your agent a heart attack you could probably ask Wade for some pointers. But. If you're wanting to rock the boat, but don't feel secure enough doing that yet. Maybe make the changes to get that form of security. If I end up torching my public image, I still got session work and songwriting left."

Alison Blaire has posed:
Alison takes this into consideration as her hot cocoa is delivered, and she nurses it for a few moments, breathing in the scent before she takes a sip. "... Ask Wade for some pointers you say? Hmm. Now that's an idea." Whether Wade might want to allow for Alison to become even more of a troublemaker remains to be seen.

"You know, we should take a selfie. It's the New Year. It'll make people go crazy." She fishes for her phone. "... but, you know, won't post it until we're on our way out. What do you think?"

Michael Hannigan has posed:
Mike rests both arms on the table as he looks to the server setting the glass of water on the table. "Thank you." Hearing the suggestion he glances back. "Oh yeah! Let's do that."

Reaching up to his glasses, he takes them off to flick the lights back on before resting them up on his forehead, juuuuust under the lit up pom-pom. "There. Times Square on the head." As Alison readies the camera, Mike shifts over, taking advantage of the mostly empty to lean over the table to make it easier for her to frame the shot. "Happy New Year!"