somedaylove (somedaylove) wrote in solsticerp, @ 2009-12-14 20:19:00 |
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Entry tags: | cordelia, june 13 2009, santiago |
Saturday: Mixing Pleasure with Business
Who: Cordy and Santiago
When: Evening
Where: Vapor
After Cordelia had managed to get into the club, she went directly over to say hello to Ashley before she grabbed a drink and found herself a nice non-quiet corner to hide out in for awhile. She wore the knee high black boots she'd bought with Ashley a few days back along with a black minidress that rarely saw the light of day. At least she had an excuse to wear it now, right? Her camera was in the bag resting on her shoulder, and she was itching to pull it out and use it. Sipping on her cranberry and vodka, Cordelia was content with people watching for awhile. She was waiting to see something, or someone, that she could take a photograph of. Not that she would get the best results, being in the dark, and it wasn't as if she could haul in all of her equipment, but she would see what happened. Maybe she would get a few interesting shots.
Santiago had been the subject, or one of the subjects, of a few photos so far tonight, and he fully expected to be the subject of more. He stood out even in this varied crowd, given he was wearing a vibrantly blue dress, despite being tall and flat like the man he technically was, his hair and face were colored fantastically with magenta and blue, and he was covered in silver, gold, and steel jewelry. Sweeping back into the main room after his interview with Eden, he was already on the lookout, amidst the crowd and noise and strobing lights, for someone else to capture the attention of. He didn't notice Cordelia right away, tucked off in the corner by the tables as she was, but he was making his way in that direction.
Cordelia was sipping her drink when the woman - man? - came walking by. Well, she supposed at a place like this it wouldn't be so shocking to see that sort of thing. And clearly whoever they were dressed up that way to get noticed. Though with all the teenagers around, Cordelia wasn't sure everyone would find it fascinating. She set her glass down on the table and pulled out her camera to try and sneak a quick photo. Her flash would go off, but there was plenty of lights so she doubted he would notice.
Unfortunately-- or perhaps fortunately?-- Cordelia was mistaken, there. Santiago knew what colors belonged in his ever-changing patterns, and that brilliant white was not only the wrong color, it was out of sync with the general pattern. Besides, you didn't live as long as he had without learning to recognize the flash of a photographer.
He turned towards the light after it'd faded, wearing a winsome smile and looking for the culprit. ... There, the lovely redhead with the camera in hand. He lifted one hand, himself, and gave her a little finger-wave. His nails were painted to match the dress.
She lowered her camera and smiled. "Sorry," she said loudly, over the music. "Couldn't help myself." Hopefully he wouldn't be too offended. Some people were, and some people weren't. And some people just loved getting their photo taken.
Laughing, Santiago altered course a little to intercept. "It's no trouble. Do you really think I get dressed up like this and then expect to not get my picture taken all night?" Of course he didn't. Quite the contrary. "So what do you think?" He gave her a playful little spin so she could get the full effect of the gown. Since he hadn't yet tied up the train in the back, it trailed on the ground a bit behind him. On a woman, it would have been a beautiful if eye-catching dress; on a man, it was just eye-catching, though it did fit him beautifully.
"You look great," Cordelia assured him, setting her camera down. "I guess if there's any night to pull off a look like that, it's this one, right? It seems like a lot of people have taken advantage of the opening to dress up more than they would on any other day." She arched an eyebrow and grinned. "Unless you do dress that way every other day." Which was totally fine by her. Everyone had their own sense of style, right?
"If there's any place to pull off a look like this one, this is it, as well," Santiago said smugly, looking around at his nightclub with satisfaction. While there weren't actually any other clubbers in drag, like he was, there was quite a variety. "I wouldn't wear this every day, that would be a bit over the top--" Oh, the irony, as if he wasn't over the top now. "--but I must admit don't like to be constrained by the typical styles of either gender."
"Hey, if you can pull it off, which you can, then I say wear what you want." She wanted to take another picture, but she didn't want to be rude. "My friend Ashley is the DJ," Cordelia stated, motioning toward her friend. "Personally I think she would love what you're wearing. She's the only person I know who could wear anything and look fantastic. Well, now you're the second!"
"Oh, are you one of Ashley's friends?" Santiago smiled. Not only was she very flattering, she was well-connected. Well, for a small town, which wasn't all that hard to do. "She did mention she'd invited some friends to come by." He shifted his drink to his left hand and offered his right for a handshake, introducing himself, "My name is Santiago. I'm the new owner, and let me say, flattery will get you everywhere here." Especially flattery to his own person.
Nodding, Cordelia picked up her drink. "I am. We've been friends for awhile now. She's great." Smiling, Cordelia offered her free hand to shake his. Oh! The owner? She hadn't even considered this guy could be running this place now. A man who dressed in drag. That was just... awesome. "You own Vapor? That's amazing! Everything looks great so far. Probably a wise idea opening the place up to younger kids every now and then. I'm sure it'll help your business three fold." She would have loved a place like this when she'd been sixteen.
"That was the plan," Santiago agreed, smiling. "Increase business, increase popularity, and give the kids a little taste of being grown up." That, and he thought it was particularly backward to force sixteen year olds to still be children, when he remembered a time when girls and boys were married and had two children by sixteen. Perhaps it was not necessarily a better time, but he never agreed with keeping them so young for so long. "Though apparently it's not as popular with everyone else. A few articles have come out rather scathingly on the topic, and my bartenders are furious with me."
"I don't think there's anything wrong with it. So your bartenders have to pay a little more attention to the ID and the face... plus, if they find a fake ID, they get to confiscate it." She sipped her drink and set it back down before picking up her camera. "Even teenagers need a place to hang out and if they're smart, they won't try anything illegal. This isn't like a big city... if you toss one out, you're going to remember their face the next time they come in, right?"
"Exactly. And I am paying my bartenders to work, so I might as well make sure I get my money's worth." He was paying them pretty damn well, too-- New York wages, since he hoped this place would rival his old club in New York from a couple decades back, at least in style and class. "I certainly would have liked a place like this open to me, now and then, when I was that age." ... well, metaphorically speaking. Since nothing even remotely like this had existed when he was that age.
"Especially in a town where there's not much to do as it is. I think you'll be just fine, and once a lot of the kinks are worked out, things will be running so smooth, no one will remember why they were complaining." She lifted her camera to snap his picture again. "So far, so good though! It seems like people are having a great time."
When she brought the camera up again, he of course gave her his best sultry smile, just for the picture. And for her. "I certainly hope people are. And the night is barely begun, so hopefully it will only continue to get better. You certainly do enjoy taking pictures." Though his tone and expression was amused, it was obvious he didn't mind, either. "Is that merely for personal enjoyment, or are you an unofficial member of the press tonight?"
"I'm a photographer," she explained with a sheepish smile, watching him over her lens. "I just like taking pictures, I promise I'm not from the press. I work at the studio in town. I really can't go anywhere without my camera... there's always going to be someone, or something, begging to be photographed. It's like a disease, really, since I can't help myself. You don't mind, do you?"
"My dear young woman, do I look like I mind?" Santiago laughed. "I would pose for you if you let me. I am terribly vain. If you couldn't tell." He brushed his long hair back with a smile touched a little by self-disgust, but it was fleeting. "I shall have to investigate your work. Is it on display?"
Hey, anyone who could admit they were vain was okay in Cordelia's book. It meant he was honest, which she always appreciated. "Oh, there's some of my stuff in the studio in town. None of it is anything I'm extremely proud of, since it's mostly portraits and things. Eventually I want to open my own studio, but of just photography that I do, rather than family and graduation photos and things like that." She smiled and sipped her drink again. "I've always got a portfolio if you ever want to check it out."
"I may have to do that. Even if not for my own edification, a club owner could always use a photographer for advertising or even decor." And if she was unconventional enough, he could certainly use her in decor-- long exposures of people dancing or of the light displays, perhaps. He did love long exposures that showed movement in that way. If he really liked her work, he could organize a showing in the back hall for guests. "I would love to see what you're capable of." And while at the moment he didn't necessarily mean it as a double entendre, it certainly could be taken as such. The thought was rarely far from his mind.
If there was any possibility that Cordelia could get some business, she was going to take it. "I like to think I'm capable of just about anything," Cordelia told him with a grin. "Maybe on a quiet night, I'll bring my portfolio over and you can see what kind of photography I do. And if you're interested, I would love to be able to do some work for the club, if that's what you're looking for." She would probably pop into Vapor again beforehand, just to take some test shots of the place so he could see for himself what she could do.
"We will have to plan for it," Santiago said cheerfully. He did need more things and people in this small town to throw his money at, after all, and local artistic talent was probably the best way to go. "Should I ask for your number, or shall we simply find each other again?" Which probably wouldn't be hard to do. They each knew where the other worked now, after all.
"Here." Cordelia reached into her bag for her wallet and flipped it open quickly to snatch one of her business cards. She handed it over to Santiago with a bright smile. "You can reach me here. Uhm, if you have anywhere to stick a business card." He was wearing a dress, after all. Which looked better on him than it ever would on her!
Santiago took it, looked it over, then folded it in two for volume and tucked it into the bracelet on his right hand. It was thick enough to stay put, for now, and in a moment he'd go hide it away behind the bar with the various other business cards he fulled expected and intended to pick up tonight. "It will keep there, well enough. How clever of you to bring some, even to this." He chuckled lightly, mostly at his obvious it really should have been to bring business cards to this. He had his own, of course, but they were safely behind the bar-- because yes, there were no pockets anywhere on this gown.
"You never know where you might find some business," Cordy pointed out with a grin. "Even in places like this." Especially in a place like this. If it weren't so damn loud, she would be handing out her card right and left. You know knew when someone might be looking for a photographer. "Give me a call and we'll work out a time to meet. I'd love to be able to sit down and talk when I can hear you a bit better!"
That made Santiago laugh. "If you want somewhere to talk, go upstairs and out onto the patio, or through the back to the marina!" But not right now. Right now, he had to deliver this card before he lost it, and seek out one or two other members of the actual press to deliver statements and photo ops to, before he could finally let himself actually have fun. "I do hope you enjoy the rest of the evening. Get out and dance a little. I promise it'll be fun."
"Don't worry, I'm having plenty of fun right where I am," she assured him, lifting her drink in a small salute. "But I'm sure I'll have plenty of fun the rest of the night. It's been great so far. It was great meeting you!" Which it was. It was always a benefit to know 'people' in town and if Santiago owned Vapor, well, it seemed like they got off on the right foot. Especially if it meant bringing her some more business.