Summary:After previously aiding Betty and sharing a drink with her, Kate asks Betty out on an 'official' date. Log Info:Storyteller: N/A |
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Kate Kane arranges to pick up Betty at 6:00PM. She'll arrive at the given address driving a red convertible. Sleek, Italian, and wickedly fast. She's wearing a little black dress that leaves her arms exposed and has a fairly low cut neckline, her short red hair parted left in a carefully coiffed bob. It's a cool evening with a light breeze. Perfect for dramatic entrances.
The restaurant in question is Guiseppe's, a little place in Midtown that's far away from where one would expect the illustrious Katherine Kane to take a date. Brick walls, small tables, and intimate lighting that imitates candle light. It's not white cloth and black tie. In fact, it's operated by a second generation Italian couple in their late fifties.
All of this would have been easy to look up had Kate actually told Betty where she intended to take her beforehand. But that would be too easy. Instead, it's just a wicked grin, a proffered hand, and some intimation of trust.
The journey simply starts with a knock at the door. And if Betty is so inclined she'll be simply whisked away by the hand.
Queens. The place she gave the red-head was a simple location, an apartment over a shop. Who new how long Brant had lived in that building. The sound of the car was enough to set her off, it was an odd one around that part of town after all. Greeting Kate on the sidewalk, she giggles at herself and looks down, almost matching save for her dress being white. Reaching up, she brushes her dirty blonde hair back and blushes. "I was about to say one of us needs to change."
Slipping into the car she doesn't ask where they're going. The push and pull of the car was enough to make her smile and move a hand up to try and keep her longer hair from whipping about haphazardly. Once, they're done, however, it's a wild mane of gold and bronze.
Stepping out, she accepts Kate's hand and follows her lead.
"Apparently not! You read my mind. ANd you look *stunning*." Kate seems to mean it to. She'll quickly help Betty into the car and soon they are stepping through the heavy wooden doors of Guisseppe's. "Georgie! It's good to see you tonight. How is your wife?" The man who answers the door is a heavyset Italian fellow, graying hair and a large belly. He's robust and muscular, even if his paunch is growing in his later years from too much of his own pasta. He offers a toothy grin to the two women.
"Katherine Kane! Lucia is doing well, thank you. I have your table ready, in the back." The man turns to Elizabeth as well and smiles, bowing his head slightly. "Giorgio Bianchi. It's a pleasure to meet you, miss. Welcome to my grandfather's home away from home." Giorgio lacks an Italian accent in favour of the more local Bronx, but you can't have /everything/.
Kate keeps Elizabeth's hand and stays fairly close. Those lightly calloused hands are warm, cradling Betty's fingers gently, relatively near her side. In this particular outfit Kate's tattoos are on full display. A rose vine winding around her left bicep. The Nautical Star between her shoulder blades. A butterfly tucked away among the blossoms like it might be hiding. She has a lot of art.
The redhead flashes her blonde companion another grin as they navigate the relatively narrow walking space past the rustic wooden tables over toward the more private booth in the back of the restaurant. "What do you think so far? I hope you weren't expecting something more extravagant." That self-assured smile is unwavering the whole while, red lips lightly pursed while Kate gauges Betty's reaction to her words.
"It's wonderful to meet you as well, Mr. Bianchi. Thank you." Betty greets in kind, linking her fingers with Kate as the pair walk and she is lead. The hearts of New York were very special to Betty, even if she wasn't a native herself. Her mother was, and that was enough. At the glance, Betty nods, a flush of pink staining across her features. "Oh, it's lovely. Honestly, you could have taken me out to Big Belly Burger and it would have been just as amazing."
She notes the ink, the styles and patterns. It was something to ask about later for sure. Where Kate's hand was rough, Betty's was softer. She worked in an office and it was noticeable. What Kate could do, what she had seen already, the woman's touch was understandable. And amazing. "I'm sorry," she starts up, "I forgot to tell you how beautiful you look. I guess I'm a bit dumb tonight. It's been awhile since I've been on a date." Red faced, eyes wide, she stares toward Kate. "Unless this isn't a date…"
"You don't need to tell me how beautiful I am. I'm just glad you're here," Kate responds with a soft laugh. She studies Betty's expression intently for a second, shifting slightly so that she can better meet the other's eyes given the near six inches of difference between their heights. She doesn't respond immediately to the question about their 'date', those jade eyes glimmering with a hint of mirth as the redness in Betty's cheeks spreads.
"You're blushing," Kate observes with a soft lilt in her voice bordering on a drawl. She then bobs her weight lightly from left to right for a second as if considering something. A second later Kate uses her free hand to pull her chair out from the table. Giorgio, to his credit, lays out the menus and quietly slips away to allow the women to talk.
"I guess it depends. May I call you Liz? Because if I'm allowed to give you a pet name it's definitely a date." There's barely restrained laughter now. Kate will seat herself as soon as Betty has done so as well. "I was hoping this would be a date anyway." The amusement continues to light up Kate's gaze, and she quickly signals to order them both a bottle of wine. She only has to point at the shelf, it seems, to get that message across.
"Huh, am I? Here I thought I was the investigative one." Rolling her eyes she continues on, brushing down her skirt as she accepts her seat. She gives a soft voiced 'thank you' and begins looking over the menu. To the question, she gives a nod, that soft, slow smile returning to her own ruby lips. "Liz is fine. No one's ever really called me that before." Swallowing, hard, she watches after the wine choice and then looks across to Kate once more. "I-well, if I'm nervous I'm sorry. I haven't really, well ever, been on a date with a woman before." Her choices were made, and menu down, she rests back and settles her attention completely on Kate. Sighing, she shakes her head. "Ok, that sounded horribly backwards. It shouldn't matter, I just…" Eyes shut tightly, she takes a breath. "May I start over?"
"Of course it matters," Kate replies, shrugging lightly as she does. "It's something new. For years people said it was wrong, or evil. And now…" She pauses them, pursing her lips for a second before giving a firm nod. "Of course you can start over. Go ahead." Kate takes a deep breath and studies herself, forcing that amusement out of her features for at least one long second. Taking Elizabeth's anxiety seriously.
"But just for the record, Liz, you have nothing to apologize for." When Giorgio comes back Kate will nod at Betty to show she was heard and then order for them both in lightly accented Italian.
Betty Brant seems to relax once Giorgio shows back up. Giving him a brilliant smile, she places her order (dessert first) and then settles back in. Claiming her glass of wine, she sips casually, keeping herself silent before she starts again. "I should say that who you are shouldn't matter. It doesn't honestly or I wouldn't have agreed to begin with. I think my issue is I haven't been on a date in about a year?" Quirking a brow, she smirks, a dimple pressing into her cheek. "That's really not what you talk about on a first date, is it? I promise I'm not as much of a mess as I'm coming off to be." Another sip, she sets her glass down, her lip print left behind.
"You work too hard, in other words," Kate suggests, nodding quickly as she reaches out to take up her own glass. "I'm flattered that you chose me then. I'll try not to make you *too* uncomfortable… No matter how much I like seeing you blush." There's another of those soft laughs and then it settles into a quiet grin. "I could listen to you talk for hours. Go ahead and keep going. I'll be over here staring." Kate waggles a brow and then sets her glass down on the table. She reaches out to take one of Betty's free hands into her own. "Maybe we should start easy. Tell me a little bit about you. You're a reporter for… The Bugle? Right?" A beat. "Tell me a bit about that. I want to get to know Elizabeth Brant. We can worry about the dating thing whenever. A few more glasses of wine might help." She'll take another sip.
"I, huh, maybe. I've always had work." She decides, nodding smoothly and taking another drink. Mock glaring in Kate's directions, she tsks her way and downs another mouthful. Hand in hand she tenses, relaxing after a moment and then rolling her own over to allow fingers to brush against palms. "I'm not sure you'd like all I have to say, but sure. I'll play along." Pause. "Well, no, actually. I am a writer but rarely for the place I work. At the Bugle, I just do a lil help column. Otherwise, I'm executive assistant for the Editor-in-Chief." Everyone knew of JJJ. Everyone. "I've been there for years, since I was 17. Born in Philly, grew up there, and moved to Queens after my family ran into some troubles." Mouth open, then shut, she thins her lips and allows them to fill out naturally. "I think that's all there is to know about me, really." Pause, "Oh! I ah, have a mom and a brother."
"That can't be all there is to know about you," Kate suggests in a rich, almost throaty voice. She has a pleasant alto, powerful but also soft, and well suited to seductive murmurs and teasing laughter. "What do you like to write about, if not for Jameson?" Yes. Everyone does know the Bugle's famously abrasive Editor-in-Chief.
"Or, alternately. Do you want to go dancing after dinner?" Kate keeps Elizabeth's hand right to the moment when food begins arriving at the table. She'll only release her in time to take plates and help lay them out between the pair. Enormous portions, along with plenty of warm bread.
"If you'd rather I stop putting you on the spot you can ask me about me. If you've read the gossip columns you know I love talking about that."
"I'm sure there's not it, I just…everyone has secrets, right?" She doesn't answer for a time, watching the woman's face and trying to pick out every line and hint of emotion. Pulling away, thankful for the food, she takes up her plate of dessert and starts digging in. For once, she sets that full dish aside and instead goes for something warm and heavy.
"I like writing the truth. Jonah is a good man, but I know what passes and sells at the Bugle, so I…write for other outlets." Glancing up, there's a hint, a plea, for her not to tell anyone. Tending to her meal, she begins to eat, her eyes going wide as she moans contently. "This is amazing. Thank you so much for bringing me here." Smiling, more relaxed than before, Betty starts becoming a bit more of herself.
"I'd love to go dancing. And…I don't read gossip columns. Like I said, I like writing the truth and I like knowing the truth better." Another smile, another mouthful, she samples some bread. "Mmm, I love my mom. She's the reason I got my job. She use to work with Jonah when she was in New York. He helped us out when we needed it. I…still pay my rent to him, actually. My mom's in a home, though. She suffered a brain injury when I was 16 and I couldn't take care of her myself anymore."
Both of Kate's eyebrows loft gently at the moan, and there's a teasing grin setting in once more as she picks up her fork to go after the chicken parmigiana in front of her. "I'm glad you like it. This easily one of my favourite places in the whole city." She takes a deep breath and holds it for a few seconds. "It's nice to be able to talk without people listening in. Just be ourselves."
Kate rolls her shoulders slightly, stretching as she leans back against her seat. She arches her back a little bit before settling back into her seat again. "I'm sorry to hear that. I, um. Lost my mom when I was young." Kate pauses here, sobering as she speaks. Green eyes finally drop back to her plate. "My dad tried to get me to call my stepmother that, but… I couldn't." She pokes at her food for a second.
"Also not ordinarily something I'd say on a first date. But that's good. That we can talk to each other? Right?"
"Honey, I'm so sorry…" Betty frowns gently, finishing off the food in her mouth that was resting in a rounded cheek. Cleaning off her lips, she rests her hand over and grips the other woman's wrist. A squeeze, she pulls back and starts eating once more. "I understand that. I'm jealous you had a good dad, though. At least it sounds like you did." A smile, timid as it was, she offers it none the less.
"We don't have to talk about our moms. Or family, honestly." She had yet to even mention her brother again.
"So, tell me about your ink? Do they have stories or did you just enjoy their look?"
"No, it's fine. I asked you first. I said I wanted to know." Kate looks up then and flashes Betty another of those smiles. "My dad is- interesting. He's so frustrating. ANd rigid… But he's strong, and loyal. Taught me everything, since mom wasn't there." She glances down at her food and stabs at the chicken again, a bit more forcefully. "It's kind of nice to get these things out in the open. And when we're done talking we can dance until we can barely remember our names to work off the stress."
Kate takes another sip of her wine, letting that settle in before she continues. "I… Take it your dad wasn't so great."
"Y'know, I never knew him." She shrugs, working at her food once more, giving a light slurp of her noodles. She looks apologetic there, cleaning off any stray splatters of sauce. It was out in the air, after eyeing Kate, measuring her, she smiles and continues. "Um, yeah, never knew him. My brother was a bit weak willed and got us into some trouble. I haven't seen him since I was younger and mom and I got hurt." Shrugging again, she turns somber but steady.
"I've always had a certain taste in men, maybe because of my brother and lack of dad. I, well…is it bad that I've only had two boyfriends?"
"I haven't had any boyfriends unless you count tripping over myself in junior high. Is that bad?" Kate's crimson lips form into a positively wicked smile and then she shakes her head firmly, just barely resisting the urge to give another carefree laugh. She seems to have relaxed completely nod. She nods as she sips at her wine.
"I'm the opposite. I like to go out, have drinks, have a good time… The social columns aren't *all* exaggerating when they say I'm out with a new person almost every week. But- you know. I don't normally bring people here. Or even go out on 'dates' much at all. Usually society functions or raves. Excuse to get drunk and scream my lungs out. It's fun. But… This is really nice." Kate looks up now to gauge Betty's reaction.
"Certain taste in men, though, hm? Bad boys? People you'll regret later? Because if that's it I think your taste in women might have turned out to be kind of similar."
Betty Brant chuckles now, it was her turn to laugh. Where Kate was soothing and smooth, Betty was bubbly and bright. "No, not at all. I just…I had Eddie and then Lucas. Both, anyway, don't need to talk about that just yet. I have rules whenever I go out with someone. Dessert first and no horror stories." She'd probably get to those later.
Sipping, eating, the conversation is casual and comfortable. Her reaction is simply a smile. No judgement in her warm eyes. "I'm thankful, grateful, to be here, Kate. This is wonderful, really." Chew. Swallow. "Bad boys? Well, no, not really. I like strength. Security. Even so, you're not wrong. I just get that silly girl flutter in my chest and…" Smiling, she shakes her head and takes another bite. Soon her plate would be empty. Such a pity.
"I'll bite. What's your taste in women?"
"No horror stories," Kate replies rather drily. "I can drink to that." Kate then makes a point of it by tipping back the rest of her glass of wine before moving to our for each of them again. Betty first, of course.
"Did you get that with me then? That flutter in your chest, like your heart sprouted wings and tried to fly away?" She leans foward now, half across the table, closing the distance between them until they are scant inches apart. Kae speaks in low, throaty voice, quietly enough that Betty almost has to lean in to hear. Just for her.
"I like the sound of that." Then Kate offers a quiet smile, shifting her gaze to better meet Betty's eyes. "Would you like to try some of my chicken? Because this? Is amazing." She'll let the spell fade just like that, once again reaching for her fork.
Downing her wine she pushes it closer, waiting for the refill. Is that what she felt? "Well," then the redhead was close now, extremely close, so much so that Betty wasn't sure if the woman could smell her fear, or her perfume more. "My heart was racing but for other reasons." Granted, she was pre-mugging. "But I was awestruck. Does that help?" Eye to eye, she lingers and breathes.
"Chicken?" She blinks, eyes fluttering before she chuckles. Without another word, her mouth gapes softly and she waits.
"No, it's fine. I am just- curious." Kate's slow smile is returning as she carves off a piece of her chicken parmigiana and raises her fork toward Betty's lips. Slowly, carefully. She delivers the cargo with a great deal of gentleness, her green eyes alive once more with self-assured amusement.
"About why you picked me. The first girl you ever went on a date with? It's quite a compliment. …There. How is it?" Kate leans back slightly to watch for Betty's reaction to the food. "Amazing, right? I would probably eat that five times a week if I could. And then I'd blow up like a balloon, but… Small sacrifices."
Betty Brant giggles and covers her mouth, chewing away and sitting back. "Mmm," she answers, still chewing the mouthful, her eyes glimmering. "Swoffot." She swallows and takes a drink. "Sorry, it's worth it." She doesn't answer her just yet, eyeing her left over dessert and then moving the plate closer. Repaying her in kind, she takes up a spoon full of a soft, lemon like cake, cupping under it so nothing spills. Slowly, it moves toward Kate.
"Why you? I…horribly? Why not? I've had a few rough nights and I wanted to get out. Remember what it's like to go out. You were fun to talk to at the bar. I wanted to get to know you better. I know you're a badass, but…there's more to it."
"Perfect. That's the best answer. I could think of." There's a soft laugh from Kate, who nods firmly. "I'll take responsibility for making sure you have the best night you've had in *months*. Do you have to work in the morning?"
It's then that Kate leans forward, her lips parting to allow Betty to feed her that rich dessert. She breathes a soft sigh of contentment as her lips close over the spoon. "Mmm." A pause. "I could eat all of that if you're not careful."
"Don't promise if you can't keep it. What if I'm a high-maintenance girl?" She wasn't. Sitting back and spooning up a bite for herself, she relaxes almost completely. "Well, if you want it, I'm happy to share. Small sacrifices, right?" Winking, she takes another bite, offering more toward Kate. "I'm turning the questions around," she decides. "Why did you want to go out with me? Is that something you normally do? Save a girl and take her out dancing? I mean…not a bad idea."
"That doesn't sound like a bad plan. I should have thought of it sooner," Kate replies with a wink, studying Betty's features while she considers the question with a bit more care than her initial nonchalance might suggest. "If you're high maintenance I'll have to give you the world. Promise is a promise." She leans forward to capture the spoon again, accepting the offered bite easily. Kate licks her lips slowly and leans her head back again. She takes another deep breath.
"I was curious if you'd accept," Kate admits after a moment. "I could tell girls weren't usually your thing and I love a challenge." She pauses to consider something for a second before giving a brief shrug. "And you have *gorgeous* eyes. You can't blame a girl for trying, right?"
"I really don't need the world." She clarifies, sharing her dessert as she starts finishing it off. Her plates done and dusted, she sits back and now nurses from her glass idly. "Thank you for the compliment. You're lovely as well." Another sip. "I did ask about your ink, though. I'd like to hear those stories if they have any. No, I can't blame a girl for trying. I completely understand that want to try." Another drink, she sits up straighter. "Kate, I'm having a wonderful time so far. I want you to know that, regardless of whatever happens, this is wonderful and I'm eternally grateful."
She promised no horror stories, but they had been rather open with one another already. "May I…I guess spill things out?"
"You don't need to be grateful for coming out with me," Kate replies with a laugh. "Just enjoy yourself. After what happened you definitely deserve a chance to just let your hair down and relax." Kate shrugs again, leaning back in her seat as she slowly starts to relax. She offers that glass to Betty across the table again.
"Go ahead and spill. Tell me what's on your mind, Liz. And then I'll tell you about a few of my tattoos." Kate breathes a soft sigh then. "I got the nautical star tattoo the day I got into West Point, for example. Though it has… More than one meaning."
"Thanks." She repeats, not being able to not be humble, perhaps. Another sip, she crosses her legs in a smooth motion. "Fair." She agrees and nods again. "I, um…I have to deal with something in my life and I'm working on that. Like I said, everyone has secrets. Someone else helped me out of the blue and will be teaching me something new. Another way to protect myself. I'm…honestly unsure how to go about it. I'm afraid, I think, of risking my mom's safety." Shrugging, she swallows. "A boy I knew growing up, I was with him for a long time. Six, seven years I think? He ah, had his issues, but never against me. Did something bad and tarnished his reputation. Left one day while I was at work. I came home to a letter." Pause, sip, "I met him again last night."
Katherine listens to everything that Betty has to say with a certain degree of care. Those jade eyes latch onto the blonde's hazel green ones, taking in her every expression as she makes her confession. Then Kate nods once at the end, pursing her lips. She breathes a soft sigh. "I hope that doesn't mean you're planning on backing out of our dance tonight? You're not getting away while we can still wak straight." Kate shifts slightly in her seat then. "I'm glad you told me. Now… About the tattoos. Let's see." She glances at her left arm. "My mom used to call me her little butterfly. I used to hide behind the rose bushes. I kept comingback inside all scraped up. Beth used to-" Kate pauses there and shakes her head. "…Anyway, people always tell me that one isn't really like me. I usually ask them if we've met."
"Oh no, it's just, I guess I'm explaining where I'm coming from. Why I'm stressed, I think? Not stressed, um…hmm, what's the word I'm looking for? Reluctant?" She makes a face "That sounds horrible. But, no, no, I'm not baking out of anything. Just if something's on my mind, that's what it is." She attempts to explain. Another sip, she smiles at the story. "I like it. Especially if it makes you happy and gives you a connection to your mother. That's all that matters, right? What you think about it? What it means to you?"
"You don't need to stress so much. This is our second date, if getting roaring drunk the other night counts, and it sounds par for the course for me." There's a wink from Kate, who offers anotehr one of those self-confident smiles to Elizabeth then. "You don't 'owe' me anything. We'll have some fun, do some dancing…" she sets her fork down now and finishes off another glass of wine. "And yes. That's all that matters. Some people don't see it that way, but fuck 'em." Kate lifts a finger to tap it against her bottom lip then, apparently pondering. "Do you have any tattoos, Liz? …Ellie? I'll settle on a nickname eventually."
"Me? No. I always thought about it but never did. I wasn't sure what to get, honestly. When my mom passes," she pauses at that, but continues. "When that happens, I'm sure I'll get something for her. Otherwise, I never had the inkling to settle." Sipping, she chuckles. "Whatever you want to call me is fine. Mom calls me Beth, and everyone else calls me Betty or Bets. As long as it doesn't make me want to punch you through a wall, I'm fine." Finishing the rest of her glass, she pushes the flute aside and gives a deep exhale. "So the last one you have to tell me about is the star. You served?"
"Okay, Liz," Kate agrees. "For me, it's Kate. Not Kathy… Or Kitty…" She makes a face at that. "Katherine if you must, but that's my dad's thing." She doesn't refill her wine this time, instead pressing the glass away. "There are actually a bunch more to tell you about but we should probably preserve /some/ semblance of mystery." She glances at her other arm, then shrugs. "I was in the Marines for a bit but I managed to get myself in trouble. Honorable discharge, but…" A beat. "But the tattoo is about more than that. It's, mmm." Kate clears her throat. "It was used as a code for gays to single eachother out back in the 40s. It was usually put on the wrist, but… I didn't need to be able to hide it during the day." Kate gets to her feet then. Slowly. She offers Betty her hand. "Shall we head toward the club? Catch some music. Dance after we've had a chance to let our stomachs settle?"
"I was going to say, no need to hide at all. Those that think you should can go die in a fire." She smirks, offering a sly wink and standing as well. Brushing her dress down, she accepts Kate's hand, only to saddle up beside her and hook their arms together. "Lets. I'm glad you said our stomachs could settle, if I get too crazy out there, it will not be pretty."
"Then let's *go*." Kate will drag Betty right out of the restaurant without even leaving time for her to consider the fact that Katherine never asked for a check - not that Giorgio seemed to care, as she did call out a goodbye to the man and he laughed as the women went past. She seems to be intent on getting Elizabeth to the car and into it so that they can be on their way.
"So, we basically have two options for tonight. We can go dancing or we could go someplace a little more laidback. Listen to some music. It's open mic night at one of my favourite spots. Your choice."
"I'm…shit at singing." Betty warns, even after yelling a 'thank you' toward the couple they left behind. In the car, she buckles up and brushes back her hair, pulling it all together in a twist to keep it down. "Lets go singing." She offers then. There are fewer ways of getting to know someone better than stiff drinks and loud vocals.
"You can sing or you can wait for karaoke to start, which is pretty much whenever everyone's too drunk to care," Kate shoots back, laughing. "You don't have to do open mic. I just like hearing everybody show off what they're thinking. Lot of spoken word and even just monologuing into a mic too, not just music." Kate adjusts her carefully parted, short bobbed hair with a finger, buckles in, and away they go. It won't even take ten minutes to get where they're headed. Luck is on their side, it seems.
It's a nice bar. A small stage at the back (just enough for a and), a number of tables, and an antique bar that might have been here since prohibition proudly set up against the left wall. The place is about half full, but everyone seems to be pretty focused on the young man currently up on the stage finishing up the tail end of what seems to be a comedy set.
If allowed, Kate has once again found Beth's hand. Not so she can pull, really. Just so she can hold onto it.
"Tells you how long it's been since I've done anything fun." She murmurs, sitting back and just enjoying the right. She accepts the hand, and like before, she finds herself hugging up and around Kate's arm. Stride for stride, her heels click as they move in and find a place to sit within the club. Glancing toward the stage, she only pulls away once they have found a place to nest down for however long they're going to spend here.
"Next place, next boyfriend. A cop. He's an amazing man and…it ended weirdly. I think." Leaning closer now, her elbows on the table, arms crossing casually. "He got hurt and wouldn't let me take care of him. In a way, it was a repeat of my first boyfriend. I…guess I have a type and they like to pull the same things."
Kate pauses at that pronouncement from Betty but then she gives a slow nod. "My dad is like that. I get it," she replies slowly, scanning over the club as they settle into their seats near the front. Not quite first row, but they did arrive just a little late. It's close enough to count.
"Okay, fine. Another boyfriend, another tattoo? You can ask other questions if you want. We have a thing going. ANyway." Kate shifts her weight slightly. "On my back. I have a tattoo of a falcon. Wings spread. Maybe you'll get to see it some time, but suffice to say… I have some scars. A few places, actually. Been in a couple- mmm. Accidents. A lot of the tattoos are covering scars like those. That one was from a fall I took learning to parajump. It's of a bird I saw on the way down."
"Well, I'm out of boyfriends." She smiles weakly, rubbing her arms as a sliver of self-conciousness sweeps over her. She listens about the mark, the story behind it, her brows sloping gently. "Why?" She asks after the fact. "Why do you want to cover your scars?" A glance toward the stage, Betty's attention is quick to return to Kate. The conversation was gripping and she was learning. It was something Brant always enjoyed about the people around her. "I only have one scar. It's pretty much gone now, though." She offers out, showing her right arm. "Broke my arm when I was younger. Pretty badly. They set me right, though. Stitched me up. It's fading but it still feels tender sometime."
"Oh, come on. Who wants to see me all covered in scars?" Kate asks in a playful tone. She shrugs lightly then, looking over toward the stage as she does. "Each one is related to how I got the scars. Like, I had little scars on my arms from all the scratches I got falling into that damn rosebush." She laughs softly at that, then quickly shakes her head. "I have a lot of scars," she finishes simply.
"Anyway, you're out of boyfriends. That's fine. You can keep asking things if you want to. Or… You mentioned the mic. Did you want me to go up and sing something?"
"I like scars. I know ink has its stories, and that's fine. You do whatever makes you feel better about yourself. I just think they have their own stories. Or shouldn't be something to hide away." Nibbling her bottom lip, she smiles gently. She knew she wasn't speaking well anymore, her tongue going dumb, but she was trying. "Oh, no, you don't have to sing for me. I'm having fun, but if we're stepping into a place you don't want to go, we don't have to." A pause, she smiles. "Tell me, how do your dates usually go, Kate?"
"I still have some scars I haven't covered up yet," Kae admits quietly. "You can ask me about those another time." With that stated, she rather more seriously glances toward the stage. "I don't mind singing for you. Or talking. I''m having fun too." Even if something's apparently sobered up her idisposition a fair amount. Kate pauses at the question, turning to glance back at Betty. She gives a slow shrug. "You really want to know?" A beat. "I take a cute girl to a rave or a dance club and we end up dancing til we can barely walk and drinking til we can barely stand, and then we get ourselves a ride somewhere a little quieter," she'll admit then. "I don't know if I'd /really/ call those dates…. I'm not sure I go on what you'd probably consider 'date' very often, to be honest. And yet… Here we are."
"Hey…I'm sorry. I didn't mean anything by what I'm saying…" Not negatively at least. Apologetic, she reaches over, her fingers resting on the woman's arm supportively. "Yeah, I'd like to know." She nods and then listens. Somber now, empathetic, her voice is even softer. "Here we are." Swallowing, she licks her lips and brushes her fingers once more. "Hey, would you rather go for a walk? Get out of here and get some air? This place is wonderful but I think I'd rather just walk with you."
" "Yeah. Let's get some air." Kate comes to her feet then and once more offers her companion her hand to help her to her feet. Whether it is necessary or not. "I don't know what it is," she'll confess as they're preparing to depart. "But something about you makes me want to talk about myself. That's a new sensation. Is this some sort of reporter magic?"