Participants:
| Scene Title | Market Walk |
|---|---|
| Synopsis | Tamsine and Sebastian go for a walk in the Market |
| Date | May 31, 2009 |
A small street market filled with vendors.
It's a sunny and bright Sunday morning in Greenwich Village. Tamsine called Sebastian to head to a little street market set up on one of the side alleys of the Village — fresh produce and bread goods, hand-made crafts and jewelry, that sort of thing. She waits for him at the corner, at the start of all the stalls, holding two cups of coffee from the nearby cafe. She looks lighter in both mood and attire; she wears a skirt with a t-shirt and flip flops, and her hair's thrown up in one of those artfully-messy twists held with something that looks like chopsticks.
Sebastian rounds the corner, his own coffee in hand, wearing a mix of work and casual - his jacket open to reveal a comfortably casual blue shirt beneath. He carries a cup of coffee as well, his sunglasses lowered in a goofy, yet playful, fashion as he takes a look at this lighter, brighter, Tamsine. His smile comes naturally as he approaches, "Hey there," he offers stopping just a bit shy of moving in for a more intimate touch, "You look… good," he comments happily.
Tamsine glances down at her two cups of coffee. "Need a refill?" she asks with a wry smile. "Thanks. So do you," she adds. "So you ever been to this? It's pretty nice. They do it the last weekend of every month," she adds with a gesture to the little market. "How was your week?" she asks, reaching up, coffee still in hand, to push a strand of hair out of her face with her pinkie, the rest of her fingers curled around the paper cup.
Cheeks color and he grins, "Sorry. And here I am only showing with a single cup." He looks around and turns, his own cup tossed into the nearest trash - given the faint slosh it makes it was mostly empty, "Love a refill," he says turning back, taking a second look at her, "It was good, kind of boring." He shrugs and glances past her to the market beyond, hand moving to take the cup from her hand, fingers brushing hers, "How about you? See your bar yet?" His gaze turns back and he moves to stand beside, offering an arm.
"I actually have, yes," she says with a smile. His coffee is made to his liking — having had coffee with him a few times, she knows his preferences. "It has some potential. We're going to spruce it up a bit, give it more character. Add some flatscreens for sporting events and all that, too." She turns to walk into the alley, which is teeming with shoppers, but the marketplace feel makes it more social and friendly than being at a supermarket or mall.
"Cool…" he comments off-hand, and grins, "Sports bars are fun, if a bit rowdy. You'll love it I'm sure." He looks around and grins, "Let me know when it's open. I'll have to come by and take a look around." His arm slides back to his side, his coffee lifted to his lips and he takes a sip, followed by a thankful 'mm' sound. He peers around at all of the teeming folk and moves perhaps a bit closer to the woman at his side.
She nods toward the stalls. "Just let me know if there's anything you want to look at. Need any fresh veggies or fruits? You're probably like the typical man with just mustard, beer, and hot sauce in your refrigerator, right?" she teases him, moving closer to a stall displaying hand-made candies and dried fruits.
He remains nearby, keeping away from the majority of the crowds, looking over the goods in the stall. At her words his cheeks color and he grins, "Maybe," is all he'll stay about that one, "My house is kinda… messy still, so." He eyes a couple pieces of candy and glances over, "Want something?" He is currently looking at some chocolate covered gummy bears.
"I'm teasing you," she says with a shrug. "I don't grocery shop much. My parents make me come get stuff from their store once a week since I can pay wholesale, but all I get are things I don't have to cook. Fruit, cereal, milk. I don't cook much now," she says softly. She doesn't tear up, however, regarding the reason she doesn't cook anymore. She's making progress. "No, just looking. Coffee's my vice." She taps her cup and grins.
He nods a bit, "I cook a bit. If…" he then blinks as the worker behind the stall walks over. He hands the worker a small bag of the candy and glances over, "Well. I mean, I cook a bit. If you know…" He shrugs a shoulder though, and leaves it quite open ended. "Maybe you can have a couple of my candies then." He lifts his own cup, "The chocolate goes good with the coffee."
"I like gummies. And I like chocolate. I don't think the twain should meet, however," she says with a smirk and shakes her head. "Thank you, though." Once he's paid for his candy, she moves to the next stall, where there are fresh fruits and vegetables. She does pick out some apples and a basket of blueberries here. "Antioxidants. Good for you." She winks at Sebastian.
Sebastian strolls alongside her, his stride kept even and slow. "Chocolate has antioxidants too, you know," and he winks. He looks at the fruit though and hmms softly, then takes another drink of his coffee, "But I might steal a couple of those blueberries later. I love 'em. Pie, pastries, whatever. Cereal." he chuckles, but doesn't buy any. "Is it all food?"
Tamsine nods. "It does. Cocoa is very good for you, if you have it with, you know, skim milk and very little sugar. But then it doesn't taste that good." She points down a bit to the farther end. "No, there's crafts, jewelry, artwork, stuff like that. Some of it's junk, but some of it's pretty decent stuff. They have to be local to sell and they need a permit, so it's controlled. No fake Rolexes and crap like that." She holds out the blueberry basket for him to take a handful, before putting it back in the bag.
He takes a few and pops then into his mouth, chewing them thoughtfully with a small smile growing on his face. "Thank you." He nods and looks in the direction she points, "Cool. I mean, I been to this sort of thing before, but I wonder if New York has some different sort of things in it…" The hand holding his coffee moves to his side, his knuckles brushing Tamsine's hand. Nonchalant, unplanned, he moves along the walk. "So when does the bar open?"
"I'm not sure. We have to do some paperwork and such. It's ready to go now, but we'd like to make it better. I'll let you know," she murmurs. She brings her coffee to her lips and moves along, stopping at a table with various fresh breads. Jalapeno-cheese, cranberry-orange, lemon-poppyseed, shepherd's loaf, sourdough, pumpernickel, rye… "This is the best bread in New York. You need to get something here," she says with a grin to Sebastian, much to the pleasure of the old couple behind the table. "Good to see you, Tamsine," the man says with a nod, glancing at Sebastian with some appraisal, and some approval, in his eyes.
Sebastian nods a bit, and then looks at the stall, the breads. he chuckles, "I do, huh? Fair enough." He nods to the old folk behind the stall and offers them a soft, "Hello." Then looks about, "What's best? I mean… what do I get? What's your favorite Tam?" He looks over the proffered goods, but glances at the girl sideways. "Actually…" he comments, "I'll take a loaf of Pumpernickel. And one of whatever it is she picks out for me, please."
Tamsine smiles. "Mr. and Mrs. Davidson, this is my friend Sebastian," she says, and nods to Sebastian. "They lived across the street from me growing up. It's a shock I wasn't a chubby little thing, with all Mrs. Davidson's cookies and brownies and whatever else," she says warmly. "Give him a loaf of the cinnamon swirl," she says thoughtfully. "And I'll have some as well." She pulls out a bill as they utter their "nice to meet yous" to Sebastian.
Sebastian holds out a hand and stops Tam's hand from getting there with payment, "I'll get it this time." He grins and looks back, handing over the money, "A pleasure to meet you," he says. "You'll have to share some stories next time we come around. I'm sure she was a perfect little angel though." He beams at them and offers another soft 'pleasure' and 'thanks' before waving and taking his goods into one of his bags. "Did I mention thank you for the coffee yet?" he asks.
She leans to give a kiss on the cheek to each of the Davidsons. "Whatever you do, lie," she says with a wink. She straightens up and shakes her head. "No, you ripped it out of my hands like a barbarian with no manners," she teases him. "I'm sure you did." They've reached the crafts section of the little fair, and it's an eclectic mix of a variety of cultures' arts. "Just yell if there's anything you want to look at. Want a tie-dye t-shirt?" she teases, pointing to a man making them as people watch, while finished ones hang ready for sale. "I can just picture you in one."
Sebastian laughs and nods, "I thought I did," he says and grins a bit, "But in case I didn't, thank you. And thanks for inviting me out." He doesn't need to say that this is probably the only time he's been out since… well. Since the last time they were together. "Tie dye?" he lifts a brow and loks over the shirt, then lifts a hand to dip those glasses low again, "Do I look like a tie-dye guy?" He grins though and looks at the shirt again, "Why not…" he takes it and shows it to the vendor, "I'll take this one."
Tamsine raises her brows as he decides to buy a shirt. "No, you don't, but… hey, I'm impressed," she says, watching the old hippy rinse his hands so he can complete the transaction. He winks at Tamsine and takes Sebastian's money, giving Sebastian the shirt. No bag, because that would be wasteful. "You are actually going to wear that somewhere?" she asks, nodding to the colorful garment with a grin. She moves to a stall nearby, to look at some handmade bags and purses.
Sebastian laughs a bit and drapes the shirt over his shoulder. "Hey, I might. Maybe next time you see me, I'll be in a smaller pair of shades, and wearing this here lovely shirt." He grins and lifts a corner, eyeing the shirt some before he looks over at her, "I'll wear it the very next time we go out," he promises. He then moves to look over the bags, putting on an air of disinterest which isn't exactly feigned.
She glances up at him and laughs. "Why smaller shades?" she asks, with a shake of her head. "I'll be sure it isn't anywhere too fancy then. Maybe the zoo or something." She fingers a batik-print hobo bag and laughs at his lack of interest, before standing and moving on. The next stall is artwork — some of it original, by the man behind the stall who is sketching while he waits for customers, some reprints of famous paintings framed and ready for hanging or in a poster tube. She watches the man sketch a moment, more interested in the exhibition than in the prints.
"Hippy shades, duh," he says and grins. "What… about dinner? My place?" He purposefully doesn't look at her, keeping his gaze averted, "I actually can make a halfway decent roast…" He glances over, but quickly averts his gaze, looking at a few of the sketches. "Or the zoo," he says, purposefully giving the word a playful hint of disdain.
"Oh, you mean, like John Lennon glasses," she says with a laugh and a shake of her head. "I suppose dinner… if you don't want to go to the zoo. Have something against animals, do ya?" she teases him, though there is a touch of uncertainty in her eyes. She hasn't been to a man's house for dinner since… well, ever, really.
Sebastian nods, "Ya. Those," he agrees. He glances over, one of the smaller five-by-seven sketches in his hand, a view of Central Park… before. "I do want to go to the zoo. Just… Well. if you'd rather?" He places the picture back, "I love animals, actually. Lemurs are like… the coolest things ever." He chuckles, and looks over, "What's that stall?" The one in question seems to be wooden toys - trucks, trains, all hand-carved.
"Dinner's fine," Tamsine says with a shrug, smiling at the man and putting a couple of dollars in his tip jar. It's hard to make money on art. His work is good, but nothing she wants to decorate her home with. She moves to the next stall. "Handmade toys," she says, reaching out to touch a little pull-string Scottie dog. "Very cute."
Sebastian nods, "Dinner it is, then," he says, sounding a little happy, "How about… a week from now?" He lifts a train and smiles at it, a shadow of pleasant memory crossing his features. He glances over at Tamsine, and his mouth opens a moment then closes. He simply grins and puts it back, then looks at another small wooden robot, "Heh, this one is great.." The vendor of course walks over at hearing that and begins talking to Sebastian about how much his boy would love it. Taken aback, Sebastian can only just stand there and listen.
"We don't have any children yet," Tamsine says quickly to shut the man's mouth. The "yet" there to take away the bluntness of the statement that "we don't have children," which is all too painfully true. Somehow the "yet" makes it seem like they're planning to, that they're a new couple just starting their lives, as opposed to parents who've lost their most precious treasures. "Thanks, though." She takes Sebastian's hand and tugs him away, knowing the painful space that such an assumption can throw one in, trying to break him free from that.
What an odd mix of feelings. He looks over at Tamsine and his eyes widen a bit, something sparking inside before he looks back, and hands the toy back, "Sorry," he says, and grins, "None yet," he agrees. As he's tugged away he can't help but say, "Good… thinking, and thank you." He slides his hand around her own and comments sheepishly, "To make it look good, of course," And grins more to himself than her. As they move along he glances at another stall, "Oh.. come here…" he turns towards a stall with some handmade jewelry in it.
Tamsine gives a sad smile and nods, squeezing his hand. "No problem," she says. She follows him to the jewelry stall, a bit surprised as he had no interest in the purses of course. This would be even worse, wouldn't it? She looks down at the array of rings, necklaces, bracelets and the like, murmuring hello back to the merchant behind the stall.
No doubt one catches her eye - or at least, it's caught his. He touches a necklace - a plain looking thing really, a black leather tonga with a stone hanging from it, polished to a fine shine. It's the stone that caught his eye, a red that nearly matches Tamsine's hair perfectly, veined with the same brown as her eyes. Or … close enough. He takes the box and smiles, looking up, "How much?" Given the price he's already reaching for his wallet, "She'll take it."
"Sebastian," Tamsine says, in that tone women use to warn and dissuade. "I … it's too much, and you don't need to buy me anything. The coffee was a dollar, if you're trying to pay me back for that." She knows it's more than that, but she doesn't want to embarrass either of them much more. "It's lovely, and thank you, but…"
"Bah, I insist. It'll look…" he turns back and thanks the man for the change and then lifts the necklace, "It'll look great," he says. It was hardly /expensive/, but certainly more than a coffee, "And no complaints. besides, it's paid for." The man behind the counter grins and makes a comment in agreement with Sebastian, then moves off to talk to another customer. "And I didn't buy it because you bought me a coffee, or for… any bad reason. I bought it cause it'll look good on you."
She blushes a bit and murmurs her thanks to the man for his compliments and help, and moves along with Sebastian to the next section of stalls. "Thank you. It's lovely," she says with a smile. "And very nice of you. But then you have to let me at least bring dessert or something along with me to dinner. I don't want you to spoil me too much, if I don't get a chance to repay it in some way."
He nods, "Blueberry pie," he states with a wry smile. "Please. And I like it sweet." He chuckles and moves along, "Besides it looks lovely, matches your hair." He looks over, his fingers shifting, once more finding hers and twining together. "Is… this OK?" he asks, glancing down at the hands held. His coffee cup was thrown out and empty a few stalls back, the other hand holding his purchases.
"Blueberry pie… I've never made it, but if I can't, I'll buy some. Or ask Mrs. Davidson's help," she says with a laugh. She glances down at their hands. They're friends… there's the possibility for more… there's Adam… all of these thoughts go through her head. Why can't it be a simple yes or no? "It's fine," she finally says, cheeks coloring as they are wont to do.
He lifts a brow, "No? Well. I won't expect much," he teases with a large smile. He too thinks of all the complications, but then ignores them - today is just not the day to worry about those. He gives her hand a soft squeeze and looks around, "So. Now what?" He looks over at his inquiry, and seeing the pink in her cheeks smiles a bit more, "Or should I count my blessings and call this an end to a lovely morning?"
Tamsine glances down, watching her flip-flop-clad feet maneuver the street for a moment. They're at the end of the alley and thus the market anyway. "Well, that's about all there is to see…" she says with a glance to the last stall, one selling Kettle Corn. "At least you have some bread now and a groovy new shirt." She smirks a bit. "What night for dinner?"
"Groovy," he says, his voice taking on that hippy drawl. "Thank you. I'll be sure to wear it. What about say… Wednesday? Be at my place around 7?" His body turning and facing hers, "I'll even serve a bit of bread with the meal." He grins and says, "Just… my place is still kind of messy. But I'll have it cleaner by then. Promise."
"You'll need to give me your address, and all," she points out, never having been there. "Sounds like a plan." They've managed to turn the corner, and are now on the street that leads to Tamsine's apartment. "Thank you for the morning. And the lovely necklace," she says, lifting the bag that contains the jewelry. She stands on her toes to give him a kiss on the cheek.
That spot will remain as warm as the press of her lips for hours. "Dorchester Towers," he answers, his voice light. He gives the apartment number as well. "Thank you for inviting me. I'll talk to you soon, and see you Wednesday." he grins, "Don't forget the pie." He winks.