Lee just smiled slightly as she saw realization dawn on Dante's face. Not so much horror at the idea that he'd been hitting on someone who was pregnant, more like a realization that she obviously wasn't available because she was pregnant.

And it was kind of cute how he blushed about that fact.

”It's ok,” Lee said as she watched Dante pick up the electric again. ”It was kind of flattering, to be honest.” And, even though the music Dante was starting to play again didn't quite sound like a song yet, it was still damn good. ”It's been quite a while since someone as young as you hit on me when alcohol wasn't involved.”

Well, his failed attempt at flirting had made her day, apparently. Too bad he couldn't make her night too, but it was obvious she already had that position filled. He'd used his best lines on her too, which while it was nice he lifted her self esteem, it was still a damn crying shame. But that was just the way life worked sometimes.

As young as him? Now she was making it seem like he was just some teenage boy who just discovered hormones. But he didn't take it personally, merely chuckled as he continued to play. "Well, at least I could make you day," he said with a slight nod as his playing began to mellow out. This encounter did help him feel a lot better than he had. Even if his end game sort of failed.

"Well, if it helps I don't normally drink this early, so I was in my right mind when I said it."

Well, Dante didn’t seem like he was taking it poorly that she was flattered by his hitting on her but otherwise wasn’t interested. In fact, he even chuckled slightly as he played the guitar. ”You have made my day,” Lee said, giving Dante a slight smile. ”Though, it’s not just the flattery. You’re a damn good guitarist.”

Then he said that he wasn’t a day drinker, so he was in his right mind when he he’d hit on her. That was a good thing, but it also gave Lee another thought, a much different thought, and she looked over at Dante, her head tilted slightly. ”If you ever want to play in front of people, the Trasheteria has a decent open mic night on Tuesdays you may want to check out.” Could that mean Lee would see him again? Possibly, but Lee was more concerned with the possibility of hearing him play again.

He smiled an actual sincere, not flirty, not charming or witty smile. "Thanks. You made my day too. I mean, I wasn't really expecting an audience. I just really missed playing an electric," he said with a shrug, opting not to go into details about his life. Hell, he didn't tend to do much of that with the people he slept with.

Open mic night? He'd never really thought about that, but...it'd be an option. "Well, that could help me build a little bit of a foundation, even though I never intend to get 'famous' or anything. But hey, every little bit of money helps, right?" he said with a shrug. But then he had a thought.

"Oh, and I'm not one of those homeless struggling musicians. I got here from California about a month or so ago, and I work at a nearby tattoo shop. I just play in the park to supplement my income while I build up clientele and on days when I don't have anything scheduled," he clarified.

Though, it would be nice to see her again, even if there was no chance of getting with her. She was nice. And a friendship minus sexual tension was always good, wasn't it? Most likely.

Lee smiled in return when Dante said that she’d made his day, too. She certainly hadn’t been thinking that when she’d told him how good he was. Lee had simply been telling the truth, the truth about something she would have thought whether she had come over to listen to him up close, or whether she had simply listened to the music from across the store. ”Well, I’m glad to have caught the show, even if it wasn’t intended as such,” Lee told Dante.

And he wasn’t looking to get famous? That was a bit different for Lee to hear. Recently, it seemed everyone who played an instrument she met wanted to become famous. But maybe that had more to do with the bar than anything else. ”Whether you’re looking to go further or not, an open mic can be useful,” Lee told him with a slight shrug as she finally took the guitar off her shoulder. ”Years ago, I tried out a song I wrote there to a good response. Plus, I know there are bands that ask management when they’re looking for musicians.”

He was a tattoo artist? At that, Lee’s eyebrow rose in both surprise and interest. She knew that she couldn’t do anything about it now, not being pregnant, but Lee had always wanted and planned to get more than just the one tattoo she had on her shoulder blade, it had just never actually happened.

”I’ll have to check out your work at some point,” Lee said, taking another look at the tattoos Dante had on display. ”See if you’re as good of an artist as you are with that guitar.”

"Yeah, nice to have someone around to appreciate the music that isn't my dog," he said with a dry laugh.

He nodded. "Sounds like a pretty good move, either way," he said after thinking it over a spell. Reputation was a valuable thing to build, so maybe it wasn't such a bad idea, regardless of his intentions behind it.

"Yeah, I'd like that. Though, considering tattoos are my career choice, I'd hope I'm better at that," the younger mutant said with a shrug, smirking slightly. "I specialize in fantasy and surreal stuff, but I can just as easily do lettering. If you want something more realistic, I'd have to refer you to someone else at the shop." Finally, he unstrapped the guitar, and walked over to hang it back onto the wall.

It sounded like Dante was decided on stopping by at some point for the open mic at the Trasheteria. That was good, Lee just hoped that she would actually be there so she could hear what he played when he was expecting an audience. So Lee looked into her purse, but she couldn’t find any business cards from the bar. It was actually kind of horrible, but the only paper she found that she didn’t need was a scrap piece she’d grabbed days earlier with Haven’s letterhead at the top. Grabbing a green marker, the only writing instrument she could find without further digging, Lee wrote the information for the bar on the back of the paper before handing it to Dante.

”Well, we’ll have to see, won’t we?” Lee said with a shrug of her own, though she did have a bit of a smile on her face as she said it. If he was working at a tattoo shop, he probably was a better artist, and Lee couldn’t help but think that was saying something. ”I don’t have anything specific in mind, so I guess it’ll depend on whether I like your work.”

He took the piece of paper, glancing at the information before putting it in his pocket. While it wasn't her number, he figured this was the next best thing. Besides, if he played at this bar one night, maybe it'd help him take someone home. So it could help him in a number of ways, couldn't it?

"I guess we will," he said smoothly, returning the smile. "Well, you have plenty of time to come by, and even more time to think on it," he said as he pulled a business card from the shop out of his wallet and handed it to her. "Though, if you don't mind me saying, kids' names are pretty popular among parents, especially moms," he said with a shrug. "I mean, I tend to advise against spouse or boyfriend and girlfriend names, but your kid will always be your kid."

The young man picked his leather jacket up off of the floor, putting it on as he looked at her. So this day didn't go quite how he'd expected, but in his book it was still a win.

Taking the offered business card from Dante, Lee glanced at it and nodded. She did have a while to think about it, it was true. Though she had already had a lot of time to think about what she would get at her next tattoo. It had been almost ten years since she had gotten the treble and bass clefs on her shoulder blade, though she hadn’t gotten any more ink since then.

”I guess you and I have differing opinions on that,” Lee said softly, keeping her eyes on the card for a moment before tucking it away. And if that’s what Dante thought, they clearly did. She had gotten the simple, green tattoo as a way to remember Tarin, while they had been broken up and living in different countries after her time in the mutant concentration camp. ”But then again,” Lee continued, finally turning her eyes back up to Dante. ”I’ve never exactly been normal, no matter how hard I’ve tried. I’m sure we’ll be able to figure something out, though.”

He shrugged. "Well, ultimately it's your body. I only ever talk someone out of a tattoo if it's a completely dumb idea," he replied, stuffing his hands in his jacket pockets. Despite learning she was pregnant and therefore he had no chance, he still couldn't help but look her over.

Dante gave a slight chuckle. "Normal's overrated anyway. But I do look forward to hearing from you, and we'll discuss things. Oh, and if you like my work be sure to spread the word," he said. After all, thank yous and good intentions didn't pay his bills. If they did....well let's face it, he'd probably still be broke.

Lee nodded her understanding when Dante explained his thoughts on names more. That was all well and good, but then again, Lee’s tattoo wasn’t your typical name tattoo that you’d regret later. She hadn’t even been with Tarin when she’d gotten the tattoo, after all.

And then Dante told her that normal was overrated, and Lee couldn’t help but laugh a bit at that. ”I have heard that before,” Lee said with a slight shake of her head. ”Though, you wouldn’t even realize to see it that my tattoo was for my ex. It’s not your ‘normal’ name tattoo.

“But you will definitely be hearing from me,” Lee continued, giving Dante a nod and small smile. Even if it would talk some time before she could get another tattoo herself, she fully intended to check out Dante’s work.

He nodded as she spoke. "Like I said, I'm looking forward to it," he said with a smile. "Even though you can't until you have the baby, I'd still like you to come check out my work. The way I see it, that gives us time to perfect everything," he said, and then he had a thought that clicked perfectly into place in his head.

She said ex. Never mentioned a boyfriend. That could work in his favor after all, right? Maybe. "If you need anything then, let me know, okay?" he said, sort of dropping the hint. Maybe it would work, maybe it wouldn't.

"I mean, no need in going this alone, right?"

Maybe it was the businessman in Dante, he had to have some form of that for what he did, but he really appeared to earnestly want her to come by his shop to see his work. Even though Lee had already decided to do such, his eagerness kind of made her want to go there that much sooner.

And he made a good point, one that Lee hadn't initially thought of. Though meaningful, the tattoo she had really hadn't taken all that work, and she had known what she wanted. This time, well, she really wasn't sure. Really, the only thing she knew was that she wanted to get a tattoo for her son, likely with Kevin's name on it somewhere. But that wasn't a whole lot of help, and it would take some work to get it figured out, both in her mind and Dante's, if he ended up being the person to do the tattoo. Stopping by soon would give them the time to figure that out.

Lee was so busy thinking about this that she hadn't even noticed Dante's hint, she had simply heard his offer. "Thanks," Lee said, flashing Dante a smile. The offer was something she certainly would not have expected, not with having just met him, not with how he had backed right off at the first indication that she was pregnant. Maybe, Lee thought, he was that good of a person? "Though, no on should be alone, regardless of their reason."