Peanut Butter Sandwiches

Participants:

maddie_icon.gif roderick_icon.gif

Scene Title Peanut Butter Sandwiches
Synopsis Roderick offers up some company to Maddie. They have a chat over peanut butter sandwiches and realize that neither is what they seem to be.
Date May 23, 2010

The Corinthian: Rose Garden


The stars, through the glass top of the greenhouse of the Corinthian rose garden, are actually visible for the first time in weeks. The temperatures outside are still frigid and unsafe; the streets still un-passable with giant drifts of snow; the power grid is obviously not restored, as a glance outside beyond the lights of the Corinthian reveals darkness but for a few random lights here or there. Still, spring is on the horizon.

Maddie Hart, in search of some quiet, has lugged a blanket and a pillow out with her to the Rose Garden. She lies on her back on one of the benches, blanket wrapped around her and knees bent. A magazine is propped up on her bent knees, and she turns the page once in a while, enjoying the respite and quiet from the crowded room she shares with too many people — though she's lucky to have it, of course.

He had spotted her, but he didn't decide to approach til several minutes later. A tray in hand, Roderick Sweeney makes an attempt to break the ice. "Ah… mind a bit of company?" He asks quietly, teeth bite his lower lip briefly, before holding out the tray a little. "I… ah… tried to pull a few strings," His features turn sheepish, his shoulder coming up in a bit of a shrug. "But… best I could do was tea and some peanut butter sandwiches. Hope you don't have a nut allery." His mouth pulls a touch nervously to one side.

The scruffy man is clad in a pair of jeans that look like they have seen better times, except chances are they are worn and torn on purpose. A bright yellow t-shirt with 'the Beatles' in bold black lettering, peaks out from under the black leather of his jacket. Finished off with a pair of clunky black boots. In general, he looks like some British rocker, rather then some Linderman henchman.

"I mean… if it's okay. All you have to do is tell me to sod off and I'll go." He motions back the way he came with his head, brows lifting in an innocent look.

Pale aquamarine eyes flit from magazine to scruffy Brit and her brows raise a little with surprise — she hadn't heard the approach — which could have been dangerous, with someone other than Roderick approaching, if the most dangerous thing he wields is warm tea and peanut butter sandwiches. "Oh!" she says, sitting up, and swinging her blanketed feet around so that there's space on the bench for him to sit if he chooses.

"Hi," she adds, a little stupidly, glancing at the tray, and then back up at his face. "No, I wouldn't tell you to sod off. I'm just reading this very riveting magazine from," she closes it and turns it over to look at the cover, "March. You know. Keeping up with all the current events. 'S part of my job to be well informed."

She sets the magazine down and offers a smile. "I haven't had a peanut butter sandwich for years. No allergy, though."

"Oh good." Roderick sounds relieved setting the tray down, on the bench before settling down on the bench himself, arm resting along the back of it as he slouches against the back. "Wouldn't want you to think I'm tryin' to off you or nothin'." He flashes her that slightly goofy grin before glancing at the magazine.

He reaches over to take it, a glance to her brows lifting, the painter asks, "It's your job to know…" He glances at the cover. "How to keep your man happy in ten easy step?" He gives a little huff of amusement, giving her a sideways glance, and a mischievous grin. "Rivetin' indeed." The arm comes off the back of the bench, so he can flip through it. "How to keep from gettin' cottage cheese thighs?"

His head shifts towards her his look amused. "What do you do?"

Her mouth opens and then shuts, and her cheeks grow pink. "I already read all the Times and Newsweeks and USA Todays, all right? And I was being sarcastic. About the current events thing," Maddie feels compelled to explain. Now sitting up, she lets the blanket pool around her waist, revealing a cream Irish fisherman-style sweater.

"I'm a reporter, though. New York Times. Or I was before this crazy storm. Hopefully I still have a job and an apartment when it clears up. I've got a feeling we should have build an ark during our downtime. Once all that snow melts, we're all going to be flooded out to the Atlantic, yeah?" She reaches for one of the cups of tea, wrapping her hands around it. "My name's Maddie."

There is a touch of surprise at what she does, Roderick's brows shooting upward yet again. "Really?" He draws out the word, giving her a once over in consideration. "A… reporter?" A glance goes to the side, as he can't help but wonder if everyone knew a reporter was holed up there. After a moment, he figures, they must have known.

Turning sideways on the bench to face the blonde, Roderick picks up his own cup, fingers decked out of silver rings, wind around the liquid warmed china. "Roderick." He offers in return, a crooked smile offered to her. The cup is lifted and he watches her over the rim as he takes a sip.

"I'll be glad to get out of here. I'm stuck in a room with the bear whisperer." His eyes widen in wonderment. "Not sure how we haven't killed each other yet. Not to mention stayin' here I get called down to work whenever they need me." Brows furrow, eyes casting down to his cup. "The biggest downer about being stuck here is I can't paint." That's right, the scruffy man is an artist.

"Yes, realllly," Maddie echoes, perhaps a touch annoyed, as if she's gotten that tone of surprise more than once. That's because everyone acts surprised to find out the petite and youthful blonde woman works for the New York Times. "I've only been here a couple of months. Just in time for the delightful weather, lucky me, right?" She takes a sip of her tea and sets it down, before picking up a sandwich, turning it in her hands.

"Yeah, the kids sharing the room I'm in — a family of four, me and a college kid, fun times — have a cold and are whining and agro and I couldn't take 'em anymore so I came down here. Figured I'd sleep under the stars and get a better night's sleep for it." Maddie takes a bite of the sandwich, chewing for a moment. "What do you paint?"

Head tilting back, Roderick glances up at the glass roof and the barely seen stars beyond. "Nice to see the stars back again. I was startin' to forget what the night sky looked like." Muses softly, before glancing back down to her again.

"I like the classics. Monet, Rembrant… So I try to get my style to reflect that." His round nose, scrunches up slightly "No money in somethin' like that, which is why I work for Mr. Linderman. Working for him…" His cup is lifted and stopped, "…keeps me in supplies for my addiction." His ears shift upward as he grins. Another sip taken he sets it on the tray again, picking up a sandwich square.

She tilts her head back to look up at the stars herself. "Not as clear as the ones I grew up with, either back in Oz or in Colorado, but they're still a lovely sight. And not so much smog as usual as it's been all cleared out by the wind and snow," she says, staring up for a long moment as she takes another bite, chewing slowly.

"Classics. That's a surprise. I'da thought you were into something more … edgy. Not all soft impressionist water lilies and tea parties. I guess it's true you can't judge a book by its cover, right?" Maddie glances back at him and gives a slightly chagrined smile. "No offense and all. It's a nice surprise. What do you do for Linderman?"

His head nods a little as he admits cheerfully. "No offense at all. It's not the first time I heard that." Fingers pluck at the bright yellow shirt, "I don't exactly look the part. But… it's my passion. My father once thought I'd be an art major, not…" He catches himself before the word 'thief' passes his lips. Instead he somewhat quick says, "…a… security guard."

That's the best way to describe what he does, well, at least the part he can admit too. "That's what I do… sorta. I'm one of Linderman's security guards… bodyguard…" He takes a bite of his sandwich square, "…somethin' of that sort." Brows furrow slightly at his assessment of what he does, while finishing chewing that bite.

"You're a bodyguard?" Maddie echoes, again surprise on her heart-shaped face as she assesses him. "You don't seem… I mean… I'm sure you're capable and all, but…" Her cheeks color a touch more as she tries to find a nicer way to say that he doesn't look very formidable. Or that he looks like a hobbit.

She clears her throat and takes a sip of tea to buy a moment of time to think. "Just that someone as artistic as yourself — you know. That's not something I'd think you would do. But I guess we don't all get to choose what we do, right?" Except her. She'd wanted to be a reporter since she was small.

"You said it yourself there. Can't judge a book by it's cover." Roderick point out helpfully, a finger wipes at peanut butter oozing from the edges of the sandwich, before sucking it off his finger. "I wouldn't have thought you a reporter, to be perfectly honest. But then as lovely as you are, I imagine getting' answers would be pretty easy, yeah?"

After a moment he realizes how that sounded and his eyes widen slightly and he holds up his hands, still holding the little bit of his square that is left. "Sorry. Didn't mean it that way. Just…" The struggles for better wording on how to describe what he's thinking. "..your easy to talk to. Not saying you'd… you know… slut it up to get what you want…" He trails off and gives a small bark of laughter.

"I'm goin' to stop talkin' right now before I put my foot much deeper into me gob." He looks genuinely flustered and embarrassed for what he just said. Yes, let's insult the pretty reporter. Kain would smack him upside his head for that.

Maddie's brows rise as she watches him babble, taking another bite of her sandwich to keep herself from laughing. It's hard to laugh with peanut butter and wonder bread in your mouth. She chews slowly, and then picks up the cup of tea to take an unladylike gulp, still trying to keep from smirking.

"I don't know about being lovely or anything, but I guess… sometimes it's easier that people don't think I'm your typical reporter type. They tend to say things thinking maybe I won't understand them or pick them up, maybe? I donno. But other times it gets a lot of condescension and head patting, ya know? Like, 'oh aren't you the cutest little thing, now be on your way.'" She shrugs, and changes the subject. "Do you live here when it's not Antarctica?"

His head tilts to the side as she talks, eyes narrowing slightly as he watches her, it's hard to now what he's thinking. "Shame that. Can't see past the pretty surface. I mean… Time's reporter, that can't be the easiest job in the world to get."

Roderick is happy to let the subject shift to something else, however, to maybe move away from his embarrassing moment. "Here? No no… I have a flat elsewhere in the city." The words spoken around the last bit of his square that he popped into his mouth. "I wouldn't want to live here. I mean… It's been a bloody nightmare being here." The tea cup it gripped again and lifted for a quick sip, tongue touching his lower lip to catch a stray drop of it.

"Like I said, they have been bangin' on the door constantly when they need security." He makes a face at the thought of it. "I was happily snoozin' away before they got me up to deal with an argument in one of the rooms." The painters eyes rolling. "Worth it I guess since I spotted you on the way back." He flashes her a toothy grin, before taking another much bigger sip of his tea.

The compliment has her glancing down into her tea cup, swirling it a little in her hand as if it were wine instead, before bringing it to her lips to sip again, then taking the last bite of the sandwich. "Well, the company's nice and the peanut butter's ace, so … thanks," Maddie murmurs, a little uncertainly.

"So they get that bear put back where he belongs or — I never really thought about it… are all the animals at the zoo … frozen?" Her eyes widen at the thought.

"Not sure, honestly." Roderick admits thoughtfully, brows furrowing a bit in thought. "I know animal control was called, so probably, yeah."

Fingers scratch at the scruffy dark hairs on his jaw in thought. "I would think they have the animals all cared for honestly." A motion over the blonde's shoulder catches his attention. His head turns to look at the doorway, spotting someone standing there gesturing at him and any smile he had fades away.

"Oh… bloody hell. Can't they give me a moments peace?" Roderick gives a heavy sigh and glances back at Maddie, his look turning apologetic. "Seems I'm needed again. I would almost bet the same room."

"No rest for the weary," Maddie says with a sympathetic smile. "It's kind of the same with my job. Problems mean work for me, but I can't complain. I like it and chose it." She shrugs, and sets down her empty tea cup on the tray.

"Thanks for the cuppa," she adds, smiling up at him, and reaching to pick up the magazine, lifting it with a nod. "Back to my important current events," the reporter adds with a bit of a smirk, pulling the blanket up around herself a bit more snugly, clearly intending to sleep there for the night.

"I was only on step seven."


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