Mateo Rojas | Poe Dameron (blacksquadron) wrote in dunhavenic, @ 2018-08-07 22:57:00 |
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Entry tags: | !log, c: elijah marshall, r * chel, r * laura, r: mateo rojas |
WHO: Elle Marshall and Mateo Rojas
WHEN: Not too long after Mateo's arrival
WHERE: The Pourhouse
SUMMARY: Mateo starts to meet his neighbors
WARNINGS: N/A
With an easy twist of his wrist, Mateo shut the door and flicked down the shade on his office door. Just today, the gold-leaf lettering spelling out his fledgling Virginia practice had been installed, and though he didn’t have even one client, he figured that this move (this chance) would be worth it. It seemed all the more fated the moment Diego started bringing up things like dreams. And though they hadn’t gone too deeply into it (not deeply enough for him to admit his own misgivings regarding reality), he felt not so entirely crazy. So that meant it was time to get a drink. He walked into the nearest bar, acknowledged the bartender with a lift of his chin and tapped his fingertips on the weathered wood. “Elijah Craig 12 year. Neat.” Elle set down the pint glass in her hand when she saw the man approach the bar, and tossed the towel over her shoulder. “Nice choice,” she answered, offering him a smile. Over the last year in particular, she’d gotten good at remembering faces and at sensing what each person needed. This man was unfamiliar to her, but she could practically feel the turmoil rolling off him. He was someone with weight on his shoulders. As Elle poured his glass, she wondered if she could be the one to help alleviate that. It was another side of a bartender’s job that she was better prepared for than her dream-counterpart would have been. “Haven’t seen you around before,” Elle commented, sliding the glass across the bartop to him. “I’m Elle. Welcome to the Pourhouse.” Mateo gave the bartender a twist of a smile in greeting and took a sip from the glass before he spoke. “Just moved to town,” he told her. “Glad to meet you, Elle. You’re the first person that isn’t family I’ve talked to. My name’s Mateo - you probably know my brother, Diego.” He imagined Diego as looming large in this very small town, having no idea whether or not his brother kept to himself or not. “We’re neighbors … kind of? Took me about ten minutes to walk here from my apartment.” Even though she was sorting through her memories to find one of a man named Diego, there was still a warm smile on her face. Mateo didn’t need to know that she wasn’t sure. Despite having grown up in Dunhaven, there were a lot of people she didn’t know - people who’d moved there in the years she’d been gone. “I think you’ll find most places are about a ten minutes’ walk,” she told him. “We’re a bit insular, even as the suburbs grew all around us. Kept our charm.” It was one of the things that felt like home to her, that the town hadn’t changed even though other towns and cities grew towards its borders. “Not in a creepy way, of course. That sounded creepy, the insular thing.” “Hey - no judgements here! You be insular as you want, as long as you keep pouring the good stuff.” He smiled, finishing up the bourbon in one good swallow. Knowing he should tell her a little about himself, he found it easier to let the thoughts that had been hounding him go with a little liquid encouragement. “I’m from Chicago. We’re pretty insular when it comes to neighborhoods … like a bunch of tiny Dunhavens.” “Yeah?” Elle stole a glance around the bar to make sure no one else was waiting on her, but it was a slow night, so she had time to spare. “I’ve never been.” She’d been to California, Arizona, but she’d never made it up to Chicago. “I think if you include all of the Washington metro area, we’re all a bunch of tiny Dunhavens clustered together. Linked by highways and suburban sprawl.” She nodded at his glass. “Another?” He nodded. “You lived in Dunhaven …” his smile canted to one side “ … forever? It’s pretty, but there’s a whole world outside this very pretty neighborhood. Don’t necessarily know that I’d choose to see outside it.” Mateo was imagining here. Of course, he’d meant to stay in his own neighborhood and look out for the kids being oppressed by the unfair law system. It was his luck that his brain went haywire. “Almost forever.” Elle smiled back at him, but there was a quizzical arch to her brow, like she was trying to figure him out. “We’ve got a lot of folks who’ve lived here forever. I went down to Virginia Beach for college, and then headed out west for a couple years before coming back home,” she explained. Looking back, she wasn’t really sure what had called her home -- it was just a feeling she couldn’t fight. Something called to her. She’d thought it was just homesickness, but maybe it was something else. “So,” she continued, “if you need any tips, suggestions, I’m basically an expert.” He nodded brisky -- “Dunhaven subject matter expert. You got it.” Elle’s trip out west piqued his interest, though he let it lay for the moment. He wanted to come back and thought it was a good idea to not be too nosy about the things she said to him. “Storybook perfect - the local bartender, knows everyone and knows everything about the pretty small town.” Elle started to protest - “Oh, it’s not- ” but she caught herself and thought about it for a moment before laughing. “Okay, you got me. My boyfriend’s a goddamn Olympian. It is a damn fairytale.” Especially, she thought, compared to Wynonna’s life. “So is that what brings you here? Seeking your own fairytale ending?” He snorted. “Nah. Just a little peace and quiet are on order, gotta get out of my head and let the rats race with or without me.” Though, he was starting to think Dunhaven just wasn’t going to be as quiet as his Mama had hoped. “You ever need somebody to represent you, though? Call me. I’m starting a practice in town.” “Yeah?” Elle’s brows shot upwards. She almost told him that he wasn’t going to find any peace and quiet in a town like Dunhaven, not with the memories circulating, but she didn’t want to give that away if he didn’t already know. She didn’t want to scare him off, or be the one to break those news. It was awkward and personal, and not something a stranger should introduce to him. “You got a card yet? We got a bulletin board over there,” she inclined her head towards a hallway near the back of the room, by the sign pointing to the bathrooms. “You could hang a flyer up there, too.” A nod. He scratched his chin idly. “ … business cards. Definitely going to need those.” But what he could do was throw back another glass of bourbon and let the liquid coat his chest in ambery warmth. “When I get them, I’ll bring one over and pin it up. Thanks Elle.” “Anytime, newbie.” Elle grinned. At the corner of the bar, another customer gestured for her, so she looked back at Mateo for a second. “Lemme grab this, then I’ll come check on ya, all right? Think you can survive?” Mateo nodded, pulling some bills from his wallet. “It’s a good transition honestly. I need to get home since I am an honest businessman and all.” He smiled his goodbye and backed away, before turning to make his way out of the bar. He took a moment to breathe on the sidewalk, letting the liquid gold he drank ease his tired limbs. Everything would be okay. The dreams would end. He would get some peace then, go back to Chicago to do what he meant to do. |