There was no effort extended yet so the apology wasn’t needed but he managed a small head nod. Not everyone enjoyed the ice slide, he moved quick and randomly often. It was something he was trained to do harder to hit a moving target.

Sam eyed the pasta sauce then his shirt. He frowned for a minute and waited till she had a mouth full of food. ”I made a terrible mistake.” he laughed and then attempted to maneuver his way through the sauce to the noodles. Using a fork he started the twirl method then added a spoon for extra protection doing his best to not decorate his white shirt.

One he managed a few bites in he asked, ”So is it like a light switch, you just look at the lamp and snap?” he asked snapping his fingers, ”Took years to figure out how to make the ice disappear after I make it but it kinda works like that now.” Sam offered not going into detail about it. It was more muscle memory at this point for him.

”How’s the food?” the icemancer asked.

It was a little comical watching him try to maneuver the pasta into his mouth while avoiding getting anything onto his shirt. Mae smirked a bit at the effort. "See, solid color would have at least been less noticeable. Lessons for next time," she teased.

Mae considered his question as they returned to the talk of powers, and then shook her head. "It's like a bubble? I guess? I mean, my power itself is never 'off', I just sort of condense it so it's not impacting anything it shouldn't. So if I want to turn off a light I would just, put it in the bubble." Well, this was awkward to explain. She was horrible with metaphors.

"It helps that you can sort of see it. She let the dead zone expand so it was more visible, resting in the air between them. There was a bit of a shimmer to it, almost like a soap bubble. "See that little, reflection? That's my powers."

She returned it to the spot on her neck and went back to eating.

The icemancer smirked when she demonstrated her powers again this time making it visible for him. Another bite of pasta and still making sure his shirt was clean. He made a mental note to wear red as a solid color next time he was in the field like pasta sauce it would hide into his clothing perfectly.

”Must have been pretty freaky trying to figure out what was going on.” Sam summed up not only speaking from his past experiences. His power he had since he was child so it was kind of hard to picture growing up with out it. Most kids develop mutations in their teens meaning it would be a little freakier to try and explain what was happening to them.

His food now mostly gone he Sam took a moment to appreciate how well the evening was going by his standards. His normal standards he’d be trying to rush to the nearest private location with Mae. However he was trying something new something his older self probably wouldn’t have done enjoy the company.

It was then he realized his tie took some damage in his last spin of the fork. Trying his best to ignore it he then asked, ”So what’s your favorite part of the city?” trying his best to continue on with the conversation.

Mae laughed slightly at his comment, and waited until she was done chewing to answer. "My parents were the one who had to deal with that situation. From what I understood, there was a lot of screaming but no sound until they got close enough. The first few instances of walking into the bubble were probably a shock. And I imagine it freaked out the hospital staff when I shut off all the monitors within a certain radius."

Mae didn't get a lot of details about that part of her life. By the time she had memories she had already been taught to be careful where she walked, and mindful of what she would turn off if she came too close to something.

She watched his tie take a hit, and tried not to smirk. That would have been mean, but it was pretty funny.

"My favorite part of the city is probably the park. I like being able to just enjoy where I'm at without being an inconvenience to anyone. Plus, the park is super pretty when you don't have to hear the city noises." There were still the city smells, but she could tolerate that.

"There are a few people who walk there regularly who like to come and sit for a bit in the quiet. I like that part most. Having someone who enjoys being around you is nice." she admitted.

Chewing more of his food and washing it down with water he nodded quickly when she said she shut down quite a few monitors. ”That would be a problem.”

Smirking when she said the park Sam cleared his throat, ”Crazy how the best part of the city is the park right? People travel thousands of miles to the city and their favorite place is an escape from it.” Sam summed up, ”Favorite place as well, a lot different from the city. Makes me miss camping. More trees and green.” Sam said. Out in nature was his favorite place to be, just survive and enjoy the surroundings away from the stalker bots and former teammates hunting you down. Sam let out a little sigh into his water.

”Quiet? Couldn’t you just always make it quiet or do you prefer the sound of nature? Birds, squirrels the occasional overly aggressive swan.” Sam asked with a little smirk. Sam raised his whiskey glass. ”Here’s to another who is enjoying your company then.” Sam said giving another toast.

He sipped his drink then smirked, ”I was talking about me.”

Mae was actually surprised he agreed with her opinion of central park. Most guys would think that was a terrible think to actually enjoy. But maybe there was something more appealing about the green space than people gave it credit for. She ate a few more mouthful of food, cleaned her mouth, and smiled. Thankfully, she had been careful enough not to get something stuck on her teeth. That would have been her luck.

"If you miss it, just go. I am not big on actually roughing it, sadly. Taking a hike? Sure. Sleeping on the ground? That's never been as appealing." She wasn't spoiled, but she wasn't jumping to embrace the discomfort.

"I can always make it quiet, but there is a difference between the sort of stale quiet sitting by yourself and the just, natural quiet. Maybe it's those aggressive swans," she laughed.

She blushed slightly at the compliment, then smirked back, wagging a piece of her bread at him. "For a blind date, I will admit, you aren't bad. A little cheesy, but I've met worse." She finished her pasta and pretended to consider how things had gone.

"Solid 8/10. Maybe 9. Could get you a better score if someone gives you some fashion help," she taunted.

Sam feigned offence as he loosened his tie. ”In her defense I was only have listening, I heard button down and just assumed the tie was expected.” he said with a smirk. ”Honestly. Dress clothes aren’t my thing. Suits and the occasional tux but other than that.” he said with a shrug, ”More of a jeans and ratty t-shirt.” other clothes had a tendency to become expensive to fix when he ripped a seam dodging a knife or catching a tooth.

”I’ll take it though.” Sam said laughing, ”A solid eight is usually my better score.” he nodded, ”And don’t knock cheesy it got me a solid eight.” he said as he took off his tie deciding he’d be less cheesy with out it. He placed it into his jacket pocket and then leaned forward again into their table.

”I do go, been a bit but the city is a nice change of pace for me. I feel like I’ve been gone for years.” he said with a shrug. ”Don’t knock it till you try it. Some of the best nights I had sleeping was next to a fire hearing the sounds of nature. Wind in the trees, howl of a wolf the occasional owl and of course the drunken rednecks that randomly drive by.” Sam said with a little laugh. The last one only happened twice.

”Would it be weird calling you for fashion help if I’m just gonna meet you on the date?” Sam said grinning into his whiskey. ”I mean, if I play my cards right of course.”

Mae had to admit, the outfit wasn't as horrible without the tie. It was still a while shirt at an Italian restaurant, but it WAS better than a ratty t-shirt would have been. "Ratty t-shirt would loose you 3 points of the bat. Your friend saved your face a little."

She rolled her eyes, and finished her cup of water. "Do I want to know how this would have gone if we had done fondue? I feel like you would have unleashed actual cheese jokes." She couldn't decide if that was horrifying, or hilarious. Probably somewhere between the two.

Then he went on to explain the appeal of camping. Most of it sounded good. Then there was...the rest. "Ahhh, the musical calls of rednecks. I'm surprise they can even find you in this state. If you wore a pair of cowboy boots, maybe I would understand better," she chuckled slightly, and paused, giving an evil grin. "Can you imagine sneaking up on them and cutting power to one of their vehicles? Not to play stereotypes, but any drunk man who can't get his car working would be a hoot." She surveyed him, and gave a small nod. "Don't worry. As long as you didn't tick me off I wouldn't play such a trick on you. And no, if you went on a date with me again, you would have to sink or swim. I reserve fashion advice for after the early date grading has finished."

”I have some awesome ratty shirts.” Sam said, ”Three might be a bit steep. Such rich history.” Sam said laughing at her idea of fondue. ”I’ll just have to brush up on some jokes. Maybe even wear a yellow shirt. It will be gooda.” he did his best not to smirk.

”If there is woods there is a way.” he said with a shrug. It was there natural habitat… did that mean he was a redneck? No couldn’t be, the icemancer dismissed the thought. ”I think I can find some boots that fit, can even do that hat.” he gave a small wink.

Sam sipped the water and then gasped at her suggestion. ”That’s how country songs get made and I do not want to be a part of that.” he gave a smirk. Country was indeed his least favorite genre. All of the songs were about a break up, a beer, a dog or a truck.

Still smirking, ”Also, even sober it takes me a few minutes to figure out what’s going on. I can rig something to fly with spare parts but a car? I feel personally attacked.” Sam said not lying about his abilities with a car. He could drive one, well but when it came to the actual in and outs. It took a little longer for him to grasp.

”I’m excited to see how I did.” Sam said nodding his head slightly, ”Solid eight.” he chucked. ”Down for desert?” Sam asked before the waiter exited the kitchen again.

Mae made a face at him, and tried to hold back a laugh. "As cool as your shirts might be, I would wait for a certain type of date for that. Find you a girl to go on a hike with, who wants to go outdoors, and wear whatever ratty t you need. Just, don't wear it to Italian food. Rich history and marinara are not friends."

He made a gooda joke. Mae almost choked on her water, which she made the mistake of taking another drink of. A nearby waitress had refilled it, and Mae regretted drinking so fast. She made a very unladylike snort into her hand, and shook her head. Oh hell, he made a woods joke too. It was getting worse.

"Working at a school has already armed you with dad jokes. Oh my gosh. That's great," she laughed.

After a few moments, Mae nodded at the offer for desert. "Actually desert would be nice. I'll let you pick even."

The snort was cute, unexpected but cute. Sam smirked hoping no water shot out of her nose, he better cool it with the dad jokes.

Once the choice was Sam’s he waited till the plates were gone then pointed at the menu. Taking a shot in the dark, he didn’t bother looking at the prices of everything nor did he read the descriptions he just found the word’s super and chocolate. Sam kept his eyes on Mae then waited till the waiter was gone. ”Man, worried about what I picked now. Lot of pressure, don’t want it to bump my number down kinda cool with the solid eight.”

He raised his whiskey glass and finished the last bit of the contents before reaching for his water. ”So back to the messing with the rednecks car… sounds like you can get into some trouble. What’s the worst or best prank you ever pulled?” he asked curiously. He didn’t bother mentioning he was once a police officer, then again he didn’t mention a lot about his past. He decided if the date was going to continue as well as it has he’d best keep his mouth shut about anything that might scare her off.

Mae shirked. It was kinda funny to watch him sweat over the desert. Well, not really sweat because ice mutant, and he seemed to be joking still. There may have been a little bit of genuine concern under the surface. It seemed this date as out of his element and while the joking and puns were natural, she suspected the good behavior may have taken more effort. He wasn’t a bad guy, though. 10/10, could have been worse, knowing her coworkers.

”Frankly as long as it’s a desert I don’t think you could screw that part up. Most of them are a mountain of chocolate and whose complaining there?”

Ah, pranks? Mae considered. ”One year I hid this little noisemaker in my coworkers office. Basically made a little chirp every few minutes, and the amount of time between them changed. Found it online. When it would make the noise, she’d call me into the room to listen and help her find it, but I would shut it off. When nothing happened I would leave and the noise would start again. Pretty sure she spent most of the day just thinking she was losing her mind before she realized I was behind it.” Mae laughed.

”That got me bumped out to reception though. She hadn’t realized what my powers really did to that point because I kept them compressed at work. It was worth the look on her face though. We’re solid friends now.”

Sam smirked, ”Chocolate was in the name.” he agreed. Then listen to the story oh how she mind ****ed one of her co-workers. Sam started to crack up over the thought of the mental warfare and use of her powers. ”That’s a pretty good one.”

”Mine’s not to far off from that. So I can coat my self in ice right? Acts like an armor.” he raised his hand up and coated it in ice to show it off what he meant. ”So, whole body.” he shook his hand and the ice started to dissipate to water vapor.

”Had my body armor follow around my old supervisor he thought it was me for a few hours when he complimented me on how silent I was being. I forced the thing to break apart then and there. Soooo much trouble. I no longer work there.” Sam laughed.

His ‘old supervisor’ was actually his handler. Agent Jackson did not take the joke well in fact Sam was put into isolation after every training session for a few months till he had his next mission. T.A.T. life sucked no one ever had a sense of humor.

The waiter arrived with the dessert towards the end of his story and set the large plate of brownie, ice cream loaded in what he could assume was the chocolate part. It looked like it was hot fudge. Sam raised an eyebrow then opened his hands directing it to the plate. ”Ta-da” Sam smirked, ”Figured I’d play it safe. Hopefully it doesn’t change the score.”

The desert looked good. Frankly he hadn’t made a bad choice, but she wasn’t lying when she said she would have been pleased with anything chocolate.

Listening to his own prank story, Mae smirked, laughing a little, ”See? You have a useful power. Having an ice clone just do things for you would be amazing. My power is just, more of an inconvenience for people.”

Picking up a spoon, Mae took some ice cream before losing her own question, ”Lets have a test first and we can decide the final score after. What is the worst way you’ve ever tried to pick up a woman. there was a look in her eyes that was almost devious. As if she knew he was on good behavior and may not always be so clean cut. Maybe it was the shirt. Or maybe the bad jones. Something made her want to hear something about the other side of him he kept under wraps.

So maybe his clones didn’t operate like that, he had to be within view of his ice clone at the moment apparently his older self was able to just feel the body heat and direct the clones from there but seeing as he didn’t have full control or at least as much control of his older self he had to make due with being in sight.

”It’s what you make of it.” Sam said reciting the words from memory it was pretty much ingrained in everything around the mansion. Some people viewed their abilities as an curse others a gift then you had those like Mae who viewed it as an inconvenience. Honestly her powers would be amazing at stealth missions and interrogation tactics though he didn’t voice his thoughts. Something told him that would lower his score.

Sam followed Mae’s spoon with one of his own into the dish. He quickly shoved it in his mouth and then almost choked on the dessert before it melted. ”Oh… seems like a loaded question.” Sam paused and thought about what to say next. ”Just gonna lower my score here.” he paused for a minute thinking, he had used some good pick ups and he had some terrible ones. ”Unsuccessful or…?” no he wouldn’t’ kiss and tell on the first date he’d use one that was unsuccessful.

”So, first time I pulled someone out of a burning building.” he was twelve and didn’t start said fire. ”So, ice powers great at putting out fires, thought naturally I wouldn’t need to do any prep. Ran in quickly realized that I didn’t think too much about the smoke. Inhaled almost blacked out managed to grab someone and start dragging them out. It was a older woman who fell asleep while smoking anyways as she’s wrapped in blankets and I’m pulling her out I start noticing it’s getting warmer. Keep in mind at this point I inhaled some smoke so I’m a little loopy. Next thing I know I’m getting mouth to mouth by this female fire fighter. When I come to, I look at her thinking she’s the most beautiful woman in the world. Had to say something right?”

Sam smirked, ”Turns out the fire ended up burning off most of my clothes, realizing I’m pooh bearing it from the waist down I say the first thing that comes to my mind. “Like what you see? Maybe we see if we can get another fire going?” Sam smirked, ”I was twelve.”

He took another bite hoping the story was funnier than he hoped. ”What about you? Best way someone picked you up?” it was only fair she got a few questions as well.