Jay sighed, walking down the sidewalk, brushing elbows and shoulders with the assholes fellow citizens of the city. Occasionally, one would blindly bump into the bass guitar case he was carrying by his left side, then get mad as if it was his fault. It was clear: The more he spent around people, the more he enjoyed being in dog shift. (At least then he had it worked out where he could bite someone and make a clan getaway.)

He sort of wished he could have been in dog shift right then, running around carefree as the sun was only mere hours from setting. But alas, he had rent to pay, and so, he was on his way to a gig. This time the band he was filling in with wasn't half bad. A good seven or so years younger than he was, but they were more into classical stuff, and were pretty respectful to him.

He gave another sigh, wishing he had a canine form that could carry his bass, but...that wasn't the case. Oh well, he only had a few more blocks to go, and then had to help set up, and get ready for the actual gig. Hopefully this time, they'd pay better. As his thoughts wandered, he wasn't paying much attention anymore. The silhouettes of people began to blur and run together as he focused on the buildings and the street signs.

Thanksgiving, the holiday break. She was happy enough to have some time off of teaching kids and all that fun stuff, but it was still strange. She usually never had time just 'off.' Not that it was a bad strange, either. She just didn't really know what to do with herself - she usually was busy doing this or that. She already had her lesson plans, backup lesson plans, everything else planned until the next semester.

So, she had spent her day doing other things - she went for a jog in the morning, ate at a diner for breakfast. She spent a few hours talking to her mom over the phone. She really needed to plan a visit to see her, but she really didn't have the time... But didn't she, though? At least now, she did.

In either case, she was busy walking down the streets of New York City. She had a cup of hot chocolate (it was totally the season already) and took a few sips as she walked. She was wearing a black dress with silver designs. A black coat made it an even cuter outfit. It was the perfect weather for it, too – chilly, but not quite to the point where it was freezing. 

It was a pretty great walk, too. It was, at least, until she accidentally bumped into some guys shoulder, fairly hard too, as she tried to evade another guy that apparently had no respect. The impact made her accidentally drop her hot chocolate and with a small gasp, "Oh crap, I'm so sorry. That freaking jerk wouldn't move," she muttered. Luckily for them both, it didn't seem to get on either of them. Darn, though.

He was jolted from his trance when someone bumped into him, and he turned to see a slightly frazzled--and really attractive--woman, who'd dropped her...coffee? Or something like that. "Oh! It's...it's fine," he said with a slight shrug. "I've actually been knocking people left and right with this thing," he said with a chuckle.

"What'd you have?" he asked. "I can buy you another one, but I can't stay long; I kind of have a gig I have to get ready for, but it's the least I can do." He flashed another smile, occasionally dodging the oncoming jerk that would almost bump into him.

"My name's Jay, by the way," he said, extending his free hand.

He seemed a little unaware of her at first actually, which made her feel a little better. Once her focus had turned more towards him and not the hot chocolate, she was able to finally get a good look at him. Pretty cute, actually.  Cuter than most other guys that have been bumping into her. And he actually talked, which gave him tons of points in her book.

She nodded and sighed a little, “It’s a part of life in this city. I was hoping it’d calm down a little bit with the whole holiday thing going on… But, here we.” Awe, that was sweet of him to offer. She was more interested in the gig though – she presumed he was playing the instrument he had in the big case. “It was just some hot chocolate, not a big deal or anything.” 

She gave him a sweet smile, “A gig, though? That sounds pretty interesting.” She couldn’t just ask if she could follow him, though. They did literally just meet. But if he wanted to get something to drink first, that would be a good way of getting to the point of asking.

She extended her hand and gave him a firm handshake, “Zelda. It’s a pleasure to meet you, Jay. Let’s get out of crowd, eh?” It was pretty annoying dodging people, not to mention the more rude ones.

"Heh...yeah. It doesn't get better, ever." he replied dryly. "It may have been, but it's the least I can do. Besides, how can I get to know you if I don't?" He gave a charming smile.

"Yeah, I'm playing bass with a band at this wing joint a few blocks down in a couple hours. I've gotta go set up, go through sound-check, and all that happy routine crap. Getting out of this crowd is a great idea, though..." He wasn't about to tell her that he was just filling in; after all, second-string wasn't nearly as cool or interesting as varsity, right? Granted, maybe if he showed up on time more often, he'd have a more steady position.

After shaking her hand, he led her to a coffee shop that thankfully wasn't far. "Much better. So, what do you do?" he asked, looking at her as they got in line. He readjusted his grip on his case, surveying the shop. It wasn't really that crowded, all things considered. Thankfully.

She nodded, a little bit exasperated, “Yep… It only gets worse, apparently.” She dodged another guy who nearly ran into her – by bumping into him again. She mumbled a sorry again. But she heard some flirty words and a charming smile. She gave a playful grin and her cheeks blushed, “Great plan, actually. I'd love to get to know you more.” 

She nodded, impressed. A musician? Wing joint? Yummy. It sounded like a band gig, that’s for sure. She actually hadn’t been to one before. “Very nice, sounds like it’ll be lots of fun. What’s the name of your band?”

Once they were inside the coffee shop, Zelda relaxed. It was nice to finally not get bumped into and have her personal space continually violated. Plus, the coffee shop wasn’t busy – that was always a plus. 

As she waited in line, he asked her what did, “I am a doctor. Well, I use to be. I teach genetics and biology now.” She wasn’t too sure if she wanted to mention which school – some people weren’t too keen on mutants, so hopefully he wouldn’t ask about that. “You know, I’ve never been to a wing joint concert.” She wasn't exactly sure what it was called. A gig? But that seemed to be more of the musician, not the customer. In either case, she gave him a playful smile, hopefully he’d catch her hint.

 

"Well, it's not my band, exactly, but they're called Wyvern," he answered. He also wasn't going to mention that he was the oldest 'member' of the band by about...five years, either. "We play a lot of classic rock, mostly. Every now and then something a little heavier. I have no idea what the set is tonight, though, but since we're not really big, they're all going to be covers. Not quite ready for original songs yet, heh."

"Really? Wow. Where do you teach?" he asked, realizing that he was a total loser compared to her. Well, he could turn into a dog, and that was worth bonus points, right?

"It's just like eating anywhere, except the music is live, and you can always sit closer to the band."

After no time at all, they were next in line. He paid for her hot chocolate and inwardly hoped this gig tonight paid well. "I'm playing at Wynona's Wings around seven, if you aren't doing anything," he finally said. "But as much as I hate to, I need to go get things ready." He looked at her, a slight gleam in his eye.

She perked a brow but nodded. A man knowing an instrument was great, band or no band. “Huh, Wyvern? I’ll be honest, I haven’t heard of them. I do like the name, though.” She smiled. Everyone, including bands, had to start somewhere. No one became stars overnight. “I’m sure they’ll get there eventually.”

He seemed pretty impressed that she was a teacher. That made her feel some sense of pride, but he asked her where. She’d never hid her support for mutants before and if this was something that would have him running away, then nothing would ever come of them anyways, “Xavier’s Sister School for Gifted Youngsters.” She mentioned it mostly nonchalant.

She gave him a playful grin, “It's a lot easier to appreciate the view when you're up close to the band.” She groaned on the inside. Her flirting game was so… Bad, honestly. It had taken a deep dive after the SUPER situation. In either case, she had her hot chocolate in hand, “Well, thank you, but again, you didn’t have to do this.” 

She gave him a very playful grin and shrugged her shoulders, “Well, I’ll see if I can squeeze 7 in tonight.” Zelda gave him a quick wink, “See ya later.”

So she taught at Xavier's...hopefully she didn't hear anything about a chihuahua loose in the building recently. "There's a lot of things I don't have to do. But...I wanted to do this. Hopefully I'll see you tonight, then." He smiled, turning and walking out the door.

------

Soundcheck went well, setup was easy, and soon the sun was set and the band took the stage. Jay had his black bass strapped on, standing just in front of the drums, manned by a bald drummer. The lead guitarist was a blond woman, maybe early twenties, and there was a redhead woman on keyboard. Lead vocals was shared between the two of them.

Wyvern opened up with a very familiar guitar intro, starting with AC/DC's "You Shook Me All Night Long." Jay found his rhythm pretty quickly, but was busy scanning what crowd there was, looking for Zelda.

Zelda showed up about 5 minutes late. Part of it was where she liked to keep them on their toes but mainly it was because there was barely any parking, so she had to park a couple blocks away in an overpriced parking garage. Not a big deal, but it delayed her. Extensively.

Once she was inside Wynona's Wings, she glanced around, quickly seeing the stage where Jay was performing along with the other musicians. She slipped to the bar area and ordered a beer and some hot wings. She leaned against the bar as she took a sip of the beer and watched the performance, preparing to give him a little wave once he caught sight of her.

She nodded her head as she listened to the song. They were actually pretty good, especially Jay. It kinda took her by surprise (mainly the band as a whole.) They seemed to rhythm very well together. 

When he finally caught sight of Zelda, he gave her a wink, keeping up with Paige and her guitar riffs almost seamlessly. He may have been the oldest by a few years, but he seemed to meld with these kids rather well.

The first song ended, and after the instruments faded out, there was a brief silence before the sound of Jay's bass took the spotlight, soon joined by Paige's light guitar, the backing of the keyboards, and finally the booming drums took it up to tempo. Jay may have been subtly showboating just a little; just getting into the groove of the music. Really there was only one person who's attention he was vying for, so the lead females shouldn't mind too much.

A few more songs went by, mostly well-known classics, and they called a brief intermission. So, Jay set his bass down and walked over to where Zelda was sitting. "Glad to see you made time. What do ya think so far?"

Zelda gave Jay a little wave with her free hand when their eyes caught each other – and she noticed the wink. Things she wasn’t expecting to happen today? Being at a little wing place watching an attractive guy perform with a band. Not that she was complaining, quite the contrary. It was turning out to be a very rewarding day. 

Of course, she paid some attention to the other musicians. They were pretty good, too. But, also, she wasn’t really paying that much attention to them. Her focus was much more on the bass player, after all. The rest she probably wouldn't ever talk with or care too. 

She took a sip of her beer as Jay came over during the intermission. She gave him a smile, “I couldn’t miss it.” She thought for a moment, articulating a review for him, “They’re pretty good, actually. Better than I was expecting, to be completely honest. You’re amazing, of course. I expected nothing less from you, though.” She winked. Her wings had just arrived so she motioned towards them, “Wing? They’re hot.” 

"Glad you enjoy yourself,and that I'm meeting your expectations," he said with a sly smile as her wings arrived. "The wings aren't the only ones," he said, again with the sly grin that seemed to be plastered on his face from the time he met her. "I might better wait til after the show though. Shouldn't be more than a handful more songs."

With that, he returned to the stage, strapping on his bass as the rest of the band began getting back into formation. His black bass blended well with the red tee shirt he had on, and his faded jeans really matched the overall style of the rest of the band. While focused on the music, he was eager to talk to Zelda again. After all, they clicked pretty well, even if they met by sheer luck.

One more song ended, and then silence, followed by an almost haunting guitar melody from Paige as they did a rendition of "Fade to Black" by Metallica. However, this time, one thing was slightly different. The girls were still sharing lead, but Jay leaned into a microphone, his baritone voice complimenting the females' quite nicely. And then, just as quickly as it had happened, it was over. Not that Jay was complaining; he didn't really fancy himself a singer, but they wanted his backup on that one song, and they were his source of pay for the evening, so he tended to obey the money.

She giggled and nodded a little bit, “Yeah, it’s impressive. Not everyday someone can blow my expectations away.” She grinned and gave him a little, playful grin at his comment. It was nice to know for sure that he liked her – not like it wasn’t obvious between the two of them, though. “Just wait till you taste them.” 

With that, he was back on stage performing the last little bit of his show with the band. It was a pretty good show – plus, the wings were actually pretty good from the place. She’d have to make a mental note to come back here at some point.

She nearly clapped when he began to sing with the other ones. That was even more impressive – musician and a singer. They didn’t always compliment each other. But, him and the band worked well together. She and the rest of the establishment clapped at the end of that one song. 

He flushed a little at seeing her reaction, especially when the whole establishment reacted to the one song. Singing wasn't really his forte; he preferred to keep his mouth shut and hide behind his bass, letting his fingers do the talking. Though he was starting to think maybe they should have saved that particular number for the finale.

They played about three more songs after that, then finished on a rendition of "Sweet Child o' Mine" which showcased everyone at their best, and Jay stuck to bass, once again blending perfectly with the guitar, especially during the solo. When the final notes played, Paige went through the introductions, then bid everyone a good night as the band began to pack up. Jay put his bass in its case, leaving it on the stage for now before going back to find Zelda. He was pouring sweat, and he was slightly winded, almost as if he'd run a marathon. But, very few people realized how much work actually went into performing like that.

Sitting next to her, he ordered a beer of his own and grabbed a wing. "Glad to see you enjoyed yourself," he murmured, taking a bite of the wing. After a few minutes, his beer was waiting for him, and he took a swig.