Tom was starting to think that maybe he was going to have to rely on his less savory skills for the foreseeable future. Thing about playing on a corner was that it wasn't anywhere near as profitable as it was usually shown to be on TV. If you picked your location and time correctly, you could make some pocket money, but if you needed money to survive you probably weren't going to get it playing songs on a street corner. If you were lucky, you got heard by the manager of some bar or bowling alley or two-bit hotel who would maybe hire you to play their place, but the chances of getting enough to make rent, utilities, and groceries on that were slim.
Still, beggars couldn't be choosers, and right now he was pretty much a beggar. He just did it more creatively than the stereotypical guy with a coffee can or cardboard sign. Like a lot of beggars, he didn't initially notice much about the girl that gave him money beyond a rough description of what she was wearing - green hoodie and black shirt stood out - and that she was kinda cute. When she didn't move on he tilted his face up toward her to give her a grateful smile, which was both genuine and an important bit of the routine. If someone gave you money and then waited to listen to the music, they wanted to see some sort of acknowledgment from you. It was only fair. The glance proved that his initial impression of her was correct, she was kinda cute. More importantly, she had an appreciation for live music, which any musician could appreciate. The fact that she'd dropped a few bills didn't hurt either.
Most people usually didn't start conversations with their street performers, though. That caught his attention, but not in a bad way. When she commented on his song choice, he couldn't keep the wry smirk from his face as he answered, "If the shoe fits..." He continued to play as he talked, his fingers remembering where they needed to be without him really directing them. He gave her a genuine smile at the compliment. "Thanks. Not selling out the Garden, but y'know." Then things got weird. She kept looking at him like she was trying to figure something out, and a second later she was calling him by some other name. "Uh, nope, sorry." Arthur? A boyfriend, maybe? Probably an ex, from the butting heads comment. "Name's Tom, and I'm pretty sure this is the first time we've met, Ms...?" He was pretty sure it was Ms., at least. She looked a little young for this Arthur guy to be a husband, though Tom supposed weirder things had happened.