Little world

Quinn parks out on the street, eying the building where people were coming and going. He had received directions from the gas station attendant, therefore successfully finding the hotel he'd been looking for and also the bar and karaoke cafe. A couple hours ago, he'd decided not to come. He'd rather hibernate in his hotel room after the earlier events of the day. Axel was on his mind now, and it didn't make for pleasant feelings. But, after a short nap and finding absolutely nothing worth watching on television, Quinn had finally decided to head over to After Hours and just see what was happening. Maybe it would be a good distraction.

So, now that he was here, he eventually exits his car, locking it and heading inside. He'd cleaned up a bit since earlier - showered, trimmed up his beard and combed his hair. At least now he didn't look like a hobo. He'd switched out his cargo pants for a pair of dark blue fitted jeans and his t-shirt was a clean black one now. The chain around his neck was just visible above his collar.

His dark sneakers were quiet on the pavement, and his eyes roamed everything around him. Nodding to a couple people standing outside, he enters on the cafe side of the building, just taking in the activity for a moment. He never really felt nervous in crowds... sometimes it was a rather good place to disappear, though ironic. Fitting in though... that was a different story.

Eventually, Quinn orders a cherry coke and finds a small, round table in the back corner where he could see the entire room, but be away from too much of the hubbub. Listening to a few daring karaoke singers, he grins once in a while, sometimes amused at the efforts of untrained voices, and sometimes thinking some weren't so bad. Mostly though, he simply sits... listens... thinks... and tries to relax. Both elbows rest on the table as he watches the stage and listen to the music, singing and laughing.

As a woman goes onstage to sing, a slow song starts, and she didn't have too bad of a voice. The song was a bit sad, and it seemed to mellow out the room. Quinn spins the cherry that had been served in his drink, staring into the carbonation bubbles. His eyes move to the dogtags that he'd removed from his neck and set on the table. This was supposed to be a fun little stopover and it had turned into so much more. Or had it? Axel probably wouldn't even call.

His eyes remain down, lost in his own little world.


The ringing phone startles Axel and he reaches up over his head to grab it and answer it. Hearing Jess' voice, he relaxes a little, setting his head back down on the cushion, and pulling the pillow a little closer. No, he wasn't ok. "Yeah... yeah, I'm alright."

No, he didn't feel up to company. "You think maybe you could just come over here for a bit tonight?" He bites his lip. He knew he couldn't pull away from her... none of this was her fault and he couldn't make her feel badly for any of it. "I know we were gonna go out but... would that be okay?"

Receiving a "yes," Axel winds up the short conversation and hangs up. Instead of getting up and ready for company though, he just stays where he is. Curling up again, he remains on the couch, his arm still around a pillow. He was used to running away from times like these, but he knew he couldn't this time.

Not feeling like getting up, Axel knows that his front door is unlocked and that Jess can let herself in when she arrives. For now, he just wanted to stay here a while longer.