Dreamcatcher (sugarplum and DontxBlinkk)

Allison was sitting at one of the round white outdoor tables at her favorite café, inhaling the scent of her spiced chai as she people watched with a rather bleary expression on her soft features. More than anything, she just wanted to sleep… that was most of what she did these days, even if she was wide awake she would try mixing a cocktail of medicines to force her to get some shut eye… it was her only escape from an unfortunately painful reality.

To say she had a run of bad luck was an understatement… she had once been a part of a very wealthy and well-to-do family that everyone respected. Now, everyone would sooner spit at her than offer as much as a smile. The money had run out, and her father was in prison for a Ponzi scheme that had cost a lot of people their entire life savings and retirement. Though Allison had no hand in the scheme, she was treated as if she had and she had lost a lot of people who were close to her… she felt utterly alone. Coming from money… and going into a life below the poverty line was painfully drastic.

Allison had left home to strike out on her own, and had to work two jobs to make ends meet- she wanted to go to college, but could not afford it. Her college savings had been seized, no surprise, to be distributed among the people her father had robbed- even with this, though, she knew those people would probably never recoup their losses. She blamed her father, not the victims… but it didn't make her any less bitter about the turn her life had taken.

Sipping her tea slowly, she was suddenly taken a back and reached to give her arm a pinch. Nope, she wasn't dreaming… but if so, who was that man she saw sitting at another table? He looked strikingly like the man from her dreams. Someone she had gotten much comfort from… he had not noticed her, but she was staring at him like she’d seen a ghost- her heart skipping a beat. Was it him? Of course it couldn't be! But… she felt herself reacting as if it was, even if logic told her that was silly. All she could do was stare as she tried to think about how she might approach him.

Allison was pretty, and he probably wouldn't recognize her since she’d moved… so maybe he wouldn't mind if she just casually walked up to say hi! But… she was shy, and had been increasingly reluctant to make contact with anyone, especially given the utter and complete rejection she had suddenly endured. Without realizing it, she began to fidget with a coppery strand of her long, wavy hair, blue eyes still fixed on him as she chewed on her lip with an expression of determination and concentration while she tried to make up her mind!

Screw it, she thought! Getting to her feet and setting her drink aside, she approached him. “Oh, hello!” she chirped in a painfully bright tone that felt strange coming from her. “I’m Allison, nice to meet you! I know this probably sounds like a line, but do I know you from somewhere?” Somewhere besides her dreams, anyway…. Maybe she did know him? It was worth a shot!

Nathan had slept in that day; which was odd for him. Most mornings, the brunette was up at the crack of dawn and ready to take on the day head first. But the last few days he had been sleeping in later to the point that he was at now. Something was wrong. For nearly a month now, he had been invading someone's dreams simply for the fun of it. Never before had he entered another's mind so many times. He blamed his exhaustion on that fact and slid from his bed. The man wasted no time showering and leaving his apartment, rushing down the stairs of the two floor building to the cafe that waited below. His friends were already resting outside and immediately began attacking him with the idea he was late and harassing him for sleeping in again. Nathan simply chose to ignore it and dashed inside, purchasing his coffee and returning to the table.

The group that sat around the table were all members of the recording studio Nathan was currently employed at. His boss sat to his right while two of his college buddies were on his left, all going over the latest reports and information on what jobs they were getting in. Nathan listened, removing the dark sunglasses from his eyes to rest them on the table around the take out cup he had his morning drug in. The meeting was routine, making it into a general check up on the employees from the boss. It didn't last more than an hour and the other three quickly vanished from Nathan's sight.

With a sigh, the hazel-eyed man sat back, watching the cup in front of him. His right hand drummed against the table as he sat in thought. He couldn't help but think of who he 'invaded' each night. With no memory of the other, it was hard to guess what they might even dream of. Nathan, from the earliest day he could remember, always used his natural powers as a game; to entertain himself. Only when he knew the person did he remember what happened during the linking. When it came to his entertainment, he rarely knew who it was. Something told him the poor victim was getting bombarded each night with him though. But the chances of meeting them were slim.

His thoughts were quickly interrupted when a copper haired woman approached his table. Nathan didn't raise his eyes until she stopped and quickly greeted him. He certainly didn't recognize her, not right away at least, but she seemed to be forcing the cheer out of her mouth. He turned his body, hanging his arm over the back of the chair and cracked a smile as a response.

"Well, I don't know," he admitted with a playful tone. "How many other men do you 'know from somewhere'?"

"I'm usually good at placing people," Allison admitted, looking a little sheepish- but she was glad that he was talking to her, and he did seem friendly. Not friendly enough that she was going to blabber on about how she had dreamed about him- that was all kinds of crazy, and she was not interested in chasing him off before they'd even exchanged names!

"I don't think I know you, but you look so familiar anyway that it's bugging me. I hoped you might recognize me." the last part was a bit of a lie... she did not want him to recognize her, because if he did... he would probably recognize her because of her father, and that wasn't a good kind of recognition.

"Do you mind if I sit and talk to you for a bit?" she asked hopefully, still feeling a little shy with some color in her cheeks because she felt she might be being a little too bold. "It might jog my memory." or at the very least, shake the images from her dreams out of her mind when she established he was nothing like her dream guy. She'd feel better once she could see that, once she could accept that no one like that could exist anyway!

But... at the same time, her heart ached at the notion that it was impossible. It was painful to think no one real could offer her the warmth and comfort her dreams provided, that only her imagination could accept her and treat her with love and respect as she desired. If that was true, what could keep her grounded and give her a reason why she shouldn't just sleep forever?

Nathan let out a thoughtful hum as his eyes danced over Allison. He would be lying if he said he didn't give her a once over, but he did his best to keep his hazel eyes on her face. He turned again in his chair and nodded towards the seat beside him. "If you think it would help," he told her with another friendly smile. If she thought he looked that familiar, he might as well give her a chance to remember. She was cute, after all, which only heightened her chances of being invited to take a seat.

Casually, the man leaned back, locking his fingers between each other and stretching his arms above his head, allowing his back to softly crack on the back of his chair. He gave out a soft groan and lowered his arms once again, glancing at Allison again. "Do you remember me enough to know my name?" he joked, folding his arms onto the table in front of him. "Or must I introduce myself to you?"

Allison had no idea what his name was, not even the dream version of him... so she shook her head, looking all the more sheepish. "I don't know your name, but like I said before- my name is Allison. I don't look familiar to you?" she asked as she took a seat. "I'd say maybe you just have one of those faces, but..." well, he was good looking. Her cheeks reddened slightly as she mentally finished her sentence but didn't say it out loud. Maybe he'd guess what she was thinking... but she'd be embarrassed if he did!

Part of her wanted to burst out the truth, but she held her tongue... she felt so awkward approaching him like this, and it seemed to be taking all of her effort not to make a complete fool out of herself. "Have you ever been to Naples? I just moved from there." she explained, "If you have, that's probably where I know you from. I've only been living here for a couple weeks to be honest... so I don't really know anyone here." it didn't help that she spent all of her time sleeping. She wasn't looking to get to know anyone!

"Well Allison, I apologize, I've never been to Naples. I haven't left the city much since I moved here." He leaned his upper torso forwards, inching ever so much closer to the woman at the table. He had a playful smile on his face as his eyes danced over the new blush sitting on Allison's cheeks. "I've heard I have 'that sort of face' though," he agreed. With a smooth movement, he lifted his hand, extending it towards the woman beside him. "Nathan. Nice to meet you." He didn't waste any time in continuing the introduction, as the girl had already performed her half of the ritual.

"No desire to meet others, or simply too ashamed to?" The brunette sat back once again, as the girl's image clicked somewhere in the back of his mind. He remembered seeing her in a newspaper some time ago, but simply couldn't remember why or what had happened. It must not have been important in that case.

The two briefly shook hands when he extended his to her, and another smile crossed her lips... this one more relaxed than the ones that preceded it. He hadn't recognized her, he hadn't been to Naples... so maybe they could be friends after all! It wasn't like the newspapers here were going to suddenly reprint the story, right? If he didn't know now, maybe she could count on the fact that it was unlikely he'd find out and judge her.

"I just need my beauty sleep!" she laughed, but... she wasn't kidding. "Between work, I just... sleep. A lot." she admitted, avoiding telling him that yes.. she was ashamed to meet others, there was a constant fear that she could be recognized by someone whose life her father ruined. The last thing she wanted was to hear another rant about how his sentence had been too light, that he needed to rot in jail for the rest of his life... and of course, anger directed at her too, simply for being related to him.

He didn't know that she was serious about the sleep too. She did sleep a lot, probably unconscious more often than she was awake when she could get away with it. He didn't need to know the gritty details either, how she forced sleep on herself even when her body was beyond needing it...

Nathan caught the difference in her smile this time around and went so far as to give her a genuine smile in return. Although his face was typically painted with his signature cocky smile, there were times when he could be at peace with what he was doing and give out a more natural-looking smile. "Oh, you don't seem to need that much beauty rest," he commented, lifting the coffee up to his lips for the final sip. "What field do you work in, if you don't mind me asking."

His firm hand set the cup back down on the table before his forefinger began drumming against the side as his eyes smoothly slid down to his phone sitting on the table in front of them. While he had to get to his own work place, he also wanted to continue this conversation. It wasn't often that a woman was brave enough to approach him like Allison did outside of a bar setting. Many would rather sit to the side and gawk with their friends, hoping Nathan would come to them and whisk them off their feet. Sadly, Nathan wasn't about to do that to any woman. Or at least he didn't plan on it.

"That, my friend, is because it's working!" she laughed in response, absently fixing her hair with one hand. She didn't know he needed to leave soon, or she might have bowed out and left him alone. While she had relaxed a bit, she still proved to be a bit shy and it had been along time since she had just walked up to some guy to say 'hi'. It was nerve wracking, even though he didn't seem bothered by it. What if he was just being polite?

"I work at the local credit union. Basic data entry, records clerk." she nodded a little, "it's not very interesting, but it pays the bills." what she liked about it most was that there was no customer service whatsoever. It was scanning paperwork, filing, data entry... but there was little to no contact with anyone, even other employees. That made the job ideal for her, since she could be left alone with nothing but the hum of her scanner... though it did leave her with a lot of time to think. Her mind wandered often between batches of massive paperwork... and usually, her mind wandered to something painful. If she was lucky, she'd remember her dream... but seeing his face today, she was sure to be able to have a nicer train of thought.

"It's my day off," she told him. "Do you mind if I ask you what you do for a living? Maybe I'll be able to figure out why I recognize you. If I've been to the place you work..." she trailed off thoughtfully, considering the places where she had actually been in this town. The gas station, the grocery store, this cafe... she was so introverted, that it ended up being a painfully short list.

"I doubt you have," Nathan commented. "Not many people get into the recording studio for no reason." His smile slowly began to fade and he gave the girl a slight shrug. "But hey, there's nothing wrong with working in a credit union. People need places like that. You're probably doing more good than I am at your job." It was hard to tell if he was joking when he said that, but either way, it was true. Many people believed that music 'saved their life', but in reality, credit unions were far more helpful to most.

His phone began to vibrate along the table and he swiftly picked it up, unlocking it with his thumb with a familiar click. The man he was working on a project with was beginning his texting spree and Nathan let out a frustrated groan. He set his phone back down and looked back to Allison. "I hate to do this, hun, but my work is summoning me." He took his sunglasses from the table and set them on top of his head. "Busy tomorrow?" he asked.

Allison blinked in surprise by what he said, she had never really thought someone would tell her she was doing 'good' anywhere. "Well, in this economy it's important to be financially sound..." she admitted, "but I think it would be cool to work in a recording studio. You're right, I haven't been there before. I didn't even know there was one around here." her eyes moved to the cell phone as it began to vibrate on the table, a humming sound drawing his attention as work summoned him. Allison felt a twinge of disappointment that he was leaving already, when they had just started to get on friendly terms with each other.

"I'm not busy tomorrow," she told him. "It's currently my weekend, so I have tomorrow off too." the greatest threat to her schedule was that she'd sleep. A lot. This was the most social interaction she'd had in weeks, and it was just a brief conversation. "Would you like to exchange numbers?" she asked, hoping he didn't think she was too forward- if he didn't already. She pulled out her cell phone, a cute pink flip phone. It wasn't anything fancy, but it was functional and she thought it was pretty.

Nathan smiled. "You read my mind," he informed her, already typing in her first name on the touch pad screen. He passed the phone to her and held his hand out for her own. He entered his name and phone number before saving it and handing the small device back to Allison. He took his phone back once she had finished and flashed another smile. "Perhaps we can meet up later, if I get out in time." He slid his glasses down over his eyes and gave the girl another short look over before he stood up from his seat. "Have a good day, Allison." With a small wave of his hand, he stepped away from the table, giving the girl a chance to respond before he approached the street and waved down a taxi cab.

He swiftly ducked inside, gave the man instructions to where he needed to go, and sat back against the seat. His fingers casually ran over the top of his phone, lightly rubbing the ear phone jack before he pulled his finger away and unlocked the screen. He lifted it back to the proper position and began typing out a message to the girl he had just met.

"Miss me yet?"

Allison watched him go for a few minutes, feeling... relieved. That hadn't been so bad, she probably hadn't embarrassed herself too much. She had somehow managed to avoid saying something like 'Hey, I dream about you every night. It's really romantic, I think it might be a sign that we're meant to be.'

Men tended to run away when women used terms like 'meant to be' 'it's a sign' 'we were fated to meet'... and she wan't going to make that mistake, even if such thing had occurred to her. Allison could only be described as a hopeless romantic, and while he wouldn't say this was a love-at-first-sight kind of moment... it would be a waste to let things end before exploring the option!

A cheerful ringtone coming from her pocket got her attention, and she was surprised to see he had texted her already. She picked up the cell and read the message with a smile, typing up a quick reply a she considered how to spend her day. Maybe catch a movie before bed?

'Look like I'm not the only one that can read minds!' was her typed reply to his message, complete with a cheerful smiley emoticon. It didn't look like he planned on blowing her off, and she couldn't be happier!

A smile played at the corner of Nathan's lips as he read over the woman's response. Wasting no time, he responded and tucked his phone back into his pocket in favour of taking out his wallet.

"Well well, good to know I'm not the only mutant around."

If only the girl knew. As Nathan paid for the ride and slide out of the cab, his mind shifted to what he had just commented on. Nathan's entire family fell under the category of 'supernatural creature', despite what many people would believe. Most mortals, as they were called, didn't believe it was possible for a whole other civilization living right under their nose that they couldn't control.

Some how, Nathan doubted that Allison was apart of that world, but he had been wrong in the past about such and idea.

Either way, he headed inside of the building and began shouting towards his coworker.

Of course Allison did not know he really was supernatural, her comment had been playful and innocent. Like most people, she did not believe in a supernatural world... but the idea of one did not frighten her. Anything seemed better than the world she lived in now, though she could usually shake her head and tell herself she was just depressed. But knowing she was didn't really change how she felt...

'That, or maybe we're the only normal ones. Everyone else is crazy!'

Allison replied to his text. She opted out of the movie, since she wanted to be able to use her cell if he texted her back. She chose the library, because she had a fondness for fantasy novels- and comic books, her guilty pleasure! Besides, the brightly colored bean bag chairs that were scattered about were pretty comfy. She settled in a bright red one with a stack of books, and dove into a book about faeries wreaking havoc, and a strong heroine solving the problem. She loved books that had strong women! IT made her aspire to be a stronger person, too! The problems in the book made her own worries seem quite petty, too...

But, books still weren't nearly as good or effective as those dreams. Apparently her subconscious knew just what she needed, better than she could really consciously realize.

There was a bit of a break between the next text message, as Nathan now had work to do. His boss remained in the room for nearly an hour, which cut back how often he could text the girl on the other side of the conversation. But as soon as he could, he picked up the phone and sent back a response. His co-workers spoke around him as they reviewed what they had just recorded with the band and while Nathan was paying attention, a small part of his mind was breaking free from his work.

'Oh some how I doubt that. I'm quite insane at times : P'

He laid his phone back in his lap and turned to the rest of his office. He took a minute before picking up his phone again and sending another text.

'So tell me, how are you spending your day?' The man's eyes traced over the clock on the wall and he let out a soft sigh. He was called in nearly an hour earlier than he should have, which meant being in the studio for quite a bit longer than he meant to be. If things went as he planned, he'd still have plenty of time to have dinner with Allison.

Allison always felt her heart leap up a bit when she got a text, though she told herself she was acting like a giddy school girl... she couldn't help her reaction. She told him he was at the library relaxing with a few books, telling him a couple titles- mentioning the bum that came in and fell asleep on the beanbag in the biography section (and snored loudly.)

But... hey, the beanbag chairs were comfy, how could she blame the guy? With an open book teepeed on her chest, she thought about catching a quick nap herself! But, she resisted temptation and checked out the book she didn't finish reading to take home with her. The sky was much darker by then, with street lamps flicking to life one by on in their uniform lines on either side of the road.

It was... a little creepy, actually. She hadn't been out this late in a long while, but she just shook that off- she had her cell phone flipped open, so the screen cast a bluish light over her as she kept up her conversation with Nathan. She didn't mind the pauses- she knew he was at work!

'Walking home right now. Isn't is weird how it seems like a whole different world at night? I almost feel like the only person in the world when it's like this.'

By this time in the day, Nathan had begun to pack his things up. When the sun went down, if there were no appointments, the studio closed and everyone headed home. Things seemed to move along much quicker than he had planned but he wasn't about to complain about it. Instead, he slipped things back into his sidebag and started home, hailing a cab once again. It was at that point that he checked his phone. He couldn't resist. While he felt the need to wait for the joke, Allison had also opened herself up for it and Nathan was about to park a Mack truck where she left the space. Metaphorically speaking...

'Except for the guy behind you.'
'Mwahahah'

The brunette never said he was the most mature member of society, nor did he say he was the most polite. The chances of having someone walking behind Allison was very slim, but Nathan felt the need to joke about it anyway. Nothing like that could really harm her.

'Planning on doing anything fun when you get home?'

When she received his playfully foreboding text, she couldn't help but turn around just to be sure there was no one there. There wasn't, and she snorted to herself for being gullible- even though she had known he'd been kidding from the very beginning. Curiosity killed the cat! Either way, she quickened her footsteps as she followed the sidewalk to her neighborhood. Out of a habit from childhood, her feet carefully stepped to avoid the cracks which caused her hips to move with a subtle twist, giving a graceful cadence to her step.

'No plans,' she confirmed. 'I checked out some books from the library. I might take a girlishly long bath but other then that, I only have sleep planned.' but for her, sleep still proved to be the most enticing of all the activities, even though she had met a likeness to the man from her dreams.

Her soul still craved the soothing comforts that sleep provided, and the bed almost called to her. The pillows were so fluffy and inviting, as if to say 'lay your head here, get comfy!' but of course she knew that she was just imagining it.

'Breakfast tomorrow then?' Nathan responded, returning his gaze out the window of the cab. His mind was slightly unsettled with the idea of talking to a girl as bold as Allison, but he didn't think about it for much longer. She certainly was an odd one, but the brunette wasn't about to turn the girl away. A part of her, although he was unsure as to what part, interested him and gave him the odd craving to want to learn more about the girl; or at least speak to her more.

After paying for the taxi, the man slid out and started past the cafe's outdoor seating to the front steps of his apartment. The building was a simple one, with a grand opening, still there from when the building was a single home. There was no elevator inside, meaning Nathan had to drag himself up the flight of stairs to his floor each night, no matter how long. He was lucky though; he had an entire floor to himself. Out of three floors, he had the best, in his opinion. The third floor had far too many stairs up and the first was taken by the cafe. The second was perfect for his needs. And even better, other than a small area on the side of the floor taken by the stairs, he had the level all to himself.

He entered his home, removed his bag and hit the play button on his phone. His music picked up right were he had paused it the night before and a smile slid across his lips before he fell onto his couch with a soft hum of pleasure. If there was one thing he prided himself on, it was picking out some of the most comfortable furniture for his home. After all, he was a creature that survived off dreams. If he couldn't sleep well, there was no way he could enter other people's minds at night, meaning he'd be completely out of luck that night.

'Breakfast? Sure! Sounds good to me. Time and place?'

Allison felt excited that he was inviting her to breakfast with him, though hopefully she would still get to sleep in like she wanted. The girl had the next day off as well, so it wouldn't be a real problem whatever time he asked... she just loved sleeping.

But first... cleanliness is next to godliness! She walked into the bathroom- it was cramped, with a faded pink floral wallpaper. Her apartment was not nearly as roomy as his, she lived in a tiny, cramped apartment that consisted of three rooms, each smaller than the last: living/kitchen room, bedroom, and the bathroom. The bathtub took up most of the space in the bathroom, but there was still a toilet and a sink, even if there was only enough floor space for her to take two steps in any direction.

After a nice long bubble bath with one of her library books, he dressed into a long flannel nightgown and flopped into her bed to be ushered in to the world of dreams, setting her cell on the night stand by the alarm clock.

Her bed was wonderful- a queen sized bed, with an ornate white frame with roses coiled into the headboard. The mattress was a plush pillow top, and her sheets were silk with a thick, burgundy and purple comforter across the top that also had a rose theme.

There was a bottle of sedatives next to her on the nightstand, but she ignored it tonight because she actually was tired. Then she fell asleep, and slept like a rock!

Nathan felt around for his phone and lifted it enough for him to read the message. He calmly returned the text with a kind '12? Same cafe?' and returned it to it's home on the table. He remained still for another moment or two, thinking to himself before feeling his bed calling to him. The brunette didn't wait another moment climbing to his room and swiftly stripping himself of his clothes, dumping them into the hamper sitting in his closet. He rested on the edge of his bed, his legs curling up below his body, and with a soft sigh, he double checked his phone. Something told him Allison might have gone to sleep, so he abandoned hope and fell back, shimming under the plush comforter sitting on his dark oak, queen bed.

He flipped on his television, giving him some background sound as he stared at the ceiling above him. Sleep was already running from him, frustraiting the man deep in his stomach as he remained unsettled for quite some time.

Allison's dreams didn't come to her as easily as they would; at least not ones that Nathan was in. It took the man nearly an hour before he finally fell asleep. A part of him drifted away to return to his mystery woman, entering her dreams just as he always did. He had no say over what happened in her dreams, he was just another character, flowing with the story and reacting in his own special way. And in return for the joyful dreams, Nathan got to fill his 'darker side', to satisfy the hunger his animalistic side craved every night. What he did never harmed his prey, in fact it typically pleased them.

Allison had normal dreams before they changed and Nathan entered. He always became a key component, and she always unconsciously began to seek him out and pull him to the forefront. Her memories of the dreams weren't always sharp and clear, it had that insubstantial quality that all dreams did... but it still left an impression, enough that her heart felt settled bit by bit each morning she rose.

Her alarm beeped right on time, she had set it to 10, which gave her plenty of time to get ready and work on looking nice for meeting him. Unable to help it, she wondered if she was supposed to consider it a date. If she showed up 'too obviously' dolled up and it wasn't a date, that would be kind of awkward. So, she dressed up nicer than usual without going to the 'little black dress' level- selecting a feminine pink chiffon top that was off the shoulder so it was flirty but nice for the warm weather. Her lucky jeans, and some girly sequinned flats completed the look.

She gave herself a fishbone braid and some natural make up... before she walked to the cafe, arriving early with one of her library books. She read until it was about time for him to arrive, sending him a cheerful good morning text and assuring him she would be meeting him at the time and place he had chosen.

Nathan's alarm went off bright and early at nine A.M. He didn't react at first, but after several taps of the snooze button, the brunette began to move, shifting in place enough to wake himself up and finally dare to leave the warm cocoon he had tangled himself in during the night. With a slow raise of his head and a deep breath, the man sat up and gave out a long hum, glancing around the empty room. Not that there was anything wrong with being alone, but often times, he felt lonely more than he enjoyed it lately.

He didn't waste any time in beginning his morning routine; a jog, shower and a short breakfast. Not much was needed, as by the time he returned, it he was going for lunch in an hour, but it was always nice to get the day started on the right foot. He settled on an outfit for the day; a light weight blue plaid shirt, a pair of faded wash jeans and his favourite, white converse. Slipping his sunglasses onto his head and his wallet and phone into his pocket, Nathan started down to the cafe.

He peaked out of the side window sitting next to the front door and quickly spotted Allison. He had resisted returning the text in favour of letting her know he was coming when he simply showed up. He opened the door and started out, calmly descending the stairs to the side walk and quickly over to the table where his 'date' was waiting.

"Morning," he greeted with a smile.

"Good morning," her smile widened when she saw him, glad he had not forgotten or had something come up- yesterday had indicated that he was a very busy person, but that was just proof that he wasn't a deadbeat kind of guy so she was fine with that. Allison worked hard, too, because she wanted to go to college... but beyond that, she had no idea what she planned to do with her future. Originally she had planned to follow in her father's footsteps, but in light of the recent events- that wasn't going to happen. The loss of purpose had hit her pretty hard too, but... she'd find something, right?

Allison was sitting at one of the outdoor tables like the day before, she had had to shoot down a couple people who'd asked if they could sit with her- but that was just esteem-boosting proof that her choice of clothes had been quite flattering. Or maybe, it was her change in disposition? Usually she was gloomily staring off into the distance as she thought about how far she'd fallen. Today, she was quite happy to be meeting someone who she was sure she was fated to meet. He was a sign, she wouldn't let herself think she was grasping at straws. This meant something! What, she wasn't sure... but she wasn't going to brush it off if she could help it.

Allison gestured to the empty seat opposite her, she had a cup of latte in front of her, but hadn't ordered any food yet. "Glad you could make it." she told him, sincerely. It was a breezy day, but the sun was up and the world was illuminated beautifully.