Who: Shawn Hunter & Neal Caffrey What: Matchup Where: Community Center When: Friday Afternoon Warnings: nah Status: complete gdoc
The more Shawn did to prepare for opening his photography studio, the more excited he got. Filling out the paperwork to rent a space in the community center was a lot easier than he anticipated and he was looking forward to getting everything ready to hopefully open within the month. If he could be up and running by the beginning of October, then he could capitalize on the holiday season and hopefully get a bunch of people wanting portraits. Thanks to Liz and her abilities, he would be able to keep his overhead low when it came to offering seasonal backgrounds.
Right now the space was completely empty and he was there in a pair of worn jeans and a t-shirt, taking measurements and trying to envision where everything would go. At least to start he planned to do everything on his own, but if he got enough business, he might need to hire someone to help with the front desk and he wanted to make sure there was a separate workspace available for that and that he had a private place where he could view and touch up photos.
Getting a business started was a lot of work and he found himself wishing again that Cory was here to offer his support, but Shawn was confident he could do this even without his friend at his back.
***
Neal didn’t venture into the community center often, or at all really. He had passed the building more times than he could count, but never once had he entered. So why he had on this day was beyond him and could only point to his growing curiosity. The space was nicely lit and had a variety of small shops and services that were offered. He had a notion that this would be a nice spot to host an art show, or maybe even open a gallery to sell art. He laughed at himself at the thought - New York this place wasn’t. Art, original or otherwise, wasn’t in high demand in Madison Valley. People weren’t rushing to find chic or avant garde pieces to place in their homes. No, for now Neal would be content with his classes and selling whatever art he was commissioned for.
He strolled through the space, and came upon a work in progress. Curious, he stopped and watched the other man bustle about as he took measurements for what was going to be a shop of some kind.
“Don’t you look productive,” Neal said with a grin before he stepped forward. “What are you planning on opening here,” he asked with sincere curiosity. Maybe he could offer up some ideas once he knew what was going on.
***
Shawn was so caught up in his preparation that he didn’t even hear the other man approaching until he spoke and it startled him enough that he dropped his pencil. “Uh, sorry, I didn’t hear you,” he said. “I’m going to be opening a photography studio.”
It took him a moment, but then he realized that he recognized the guy.
“You teach art, right?” He remembered Maya talking about what a good teacher he was.
***
Neal was sure he hadn’t met the man before, and yet there was some familiarity there. At least enough of it that he knew that Neal taught art. The thief grinned, and nodded. “That I do,” he admitted. “I don’t think I’ve had you in class.” Neal would have remembered. “Neal Caffrey,” he finally said as he took a step forward, hand outstretched.
“Photography, huh?” Neal could appreciate that. It was a form of art, after all, and he did love the arts. Though Neal was never a fan of sitting down in a studio for it. It reminded him too much of class photos in grade school, and when he was getting booked for a crime. Neal could see the value of it, though, and he thought that Madison would enjoy having a place where a sit-down photo could be taken.
“How long have you been a photographer?”
***
“Me? No,” Shawn laughed at the idea. “You had my daughter ward, Maya Hart. She really enjoyed your classes.” Though Shawn had seen the post asking about nude models and that was most definitely a class he wasn’t comfortable with Maya taking. Especially in light of her admission during the whole truth thing that she was thinking about having sex with her boyfriend.
He paused for a moment to shift gears. Photography was a much safer subject. “Oh, I guess about… fourteen years or so?” he said. “I started writing a travel blog and taking my own photographs for it. Obviously there’s not much of a need for that skillset around here, so I figured it was easier to focus on the photography.”
*** Neal recalled Maya, and smiled at the mention of her name. “She’s very talented,” Neal said. “Not quite ready for the nude class I’m going to give,” he mentioned casually though with the timing it would seem as if he was reading Shawn’s mind. “But she’s very good. I think I’m going to have a figure drawing class geared toward the younger students. You know, with fully clothed people.” Hell, they could use dolls for all he was concerned. The point of the class was to draw a human form accurately, nude or not.
“That’s quite a long time,” Neal said, clearly impressed. Anyone that could dedicate themselves to what most would consider a hobby was probably very good at what he did. Neal’s eyes lit up when Shawn mentioned travel, and he grinned. “No, there’s not much of a need for it here,” he said. “At least not one that updates frequently. But it might be nice to talk about the places you’ve been since no one knows for sure if they’ll ever be able to go.” It was a bleak thought, and despite the fact that he had found a smidgen of happiness here it didn’t detract from the fact that he (and everyone else) was trapped.
“What’s been your favorite place?”
***
Shawn appreciated that Neal realized he might be concerned about Maya in a nude class and he nodded at the other man’s words. “I’m willing to pay for any lessons she wants to take,” he said. “Because she is very talented and I want to make sure to foster that.” Plus any time she spent on her art was time she wasn’t spending with the boyfriend. That was a win/win in Shawn’s book.
“Huh, that could be something to think about,” he mused at the suggestion. Maybe he could even have guest bloggers write about places they were from and had visited on other planets or whatever. That might be interesting. Of course, at the moment, he had his hands full with the studio, but that was a project to consider for later.
He always hated the favorite place question because every place he visited was special in its own way. “I’m partial to South America,” he said. “Brazil, Rio, those kind of places.”
***
Neal was partial to countries with no extradition treaties, but that wasn’t something he was going to share with Shawn. He nodded, however, since he had visited those countries. He liked them, but his heart had always loved Europe especially Paris. It was why he chose to live there after he had faked his death.
“So you’ve been to Carnivale I take it,” Neal asked with a grin. “I went a few years back,” it was more like ten but who was counting? “It was crazy, but fun. The women were stupidly attractive.” Like many of the women in Madison, he had found, but he wasn’t willing to risk what he could have with Pansy for a quick fling.
“But Maya! Yes, if she’s interested in some private classes then I’d be willing to go over those details with you. Until then she’s always welcome to the class at the store. I’ve been thinking of about hosting an art show. Showcasing the talent we have in town. You’d be more than welcome to present your photos there. It could be a good way to bolster business.”
***
“Oh, yes, I’ve been to Carnivale,” Shawn said, a smile spreading on his lips as he thought about those memories. Being a young, single, carefree American writer/photographer was a great way to see the world and meet some very interesting people. He had a lot of stories that were more appropriate to share over a pint of beer than in a semi-professional setting.
He would definitely talk to Maya about art lessons though. The more he could focus her attention away from her boyfriend, the better. “I will be in touch about lessons for Maya,” he promised. “And an art show sounds great. Were you here in the spring when we had the art and music festival? That was great.”
***
Neal remembered his young, carefree days. Partying until dawn or waking up next to a different woman every night. It was all so long ago. Before Kate. Before Peter and Elizabeth. Before he decided to make a change in his life. It almost seemed like a scene from a movie - a memory he had that wasn’t his own, but one he watched. He smiled along with Shawn, however, because he knew of the experiences that a single American could have in those countries. Yes, that was a conversation to have with some beer.
“Well great, let me know,” Neal said. “I’m free most days actually. But here’s my contact information just in case.” He produced a business card from the breast pocket of his jacket, and handed it to Shawn between two fingers. “It’ll be good to put another one on,” he said in transition. “The one in the spring was great. I kind of want to make it a regular thing. The arts are important, but I’m sure you know that.”
***
Shawn smiled as he slipped the card in his pocket. “Thanks,” he said. “I should probably get back to work if I want to get this open in the next couple of weeks, but I’ll definitely contact you once things settle down.”
Making the arts more of a priority around here sounded good to him. It would definitely be good for Maya and that was important to Shawn.
*** “Oh yeah, sorry man. I didn’t mean to hold you up for so long.” Neal grinned, and shoved both of his hands into his pockets. “It was good talking with you, Shawn. It’s always nice to meet parents that are supportive of their kids.” He grinned and started walking away to let the man finish up his work. Before he got too far, however, he turned around and spoke loudly.
“And hey, if you need help with your studio let me know,” Neal offered. “I may not look it, but I’m pretty handy.” He held up a hand to wave goodbye, and then turned back around. It turned out to be pretty fortuitous that he stopped by the community center that day, and Neal made a mental note to do it more often.