Electrifying Lunch

[seawalled]

Who: Ellie Wright & John Smith
What: John brings Ellie a UK outlet converter and shows her around Manhattan. She buys him lunch.
When: The day after Ellie's arrival
Where: Various spots in Manhattan
Warnings: Cavity-enducing cheerfulness and enthusiasm. Possibly talk of Cybermen or murder scenes if they get into inciting memory talk.

Ellie couldn't help but feel a little odd as she was getting ready to meet John down in the lobby. He was so sweet, and bright, but ... he was also the spitting image of her cousin and her stepbrother. She'd already had to spend her life thinking before she called out a name, or referred to a conversation that may not have happened to the one she was speaking to. Adding a third into the mix who wasn't as familiar - in every sense - might be a tricky little bit of mental gymnastics. But she was well prepared to try.

She threw a camel-colored shell over her comfy black jumper and jeans, then double-checked that she had everything she needed in her bag. Money changed at customs, credit card, passport, room keycard, lip gloss, smattering of bandages, a couple of pens, pack of gum, mobile phone. The headphones from her flight got pulled out so they wouldn't tangle up in anything and tossed onto the bureau, before she slipped her feet into her trainers and breezed downstairs. Once she was there, she stood in the middle of the lobby rug like a meerkat on patrol, scanning for that far-too-easily-recognizable face.

Comments

[madman_with_a_box]

The subway had been right on time - but the bus had been a bit early. John had ended up just narrowly missing it when he had emerged from the underground station, and had been forced to wait for the next. When he arrived at the stop near the hotel that Ellie had given him as her location, he hopped off the bus and sprinted down the busy sidewalk. He wasn't in poor shape, being thin as a rail and biking daily, but when he burst through the door into the lobby, he was a bit winded.

Straightening a little, he ran his fingers through his messily styled hair and readjusted the shoulderbag he wore that carried the converter and his affects. It didn't take long before he spotted her, looking for him much in the way he was looking for her. His eyes brightened and he raised a hand in greeting, approaching her readily.

"Oi! Ellie! Sorry I'm a few minutes late, the bus was early - or the tube was late, I'm not sure which. But I'm here! And - hello, I'm John." He extended a friendly hand to shake, smiling warmly.

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"Of course you are," she beamed, unable to help laughing a little at how much he'd rushed. She fought back the urge to hug him on sight, as she did with her brother and cousin, and shook his hand warmly instead. "You didn't have to run on my account, I know how banjaxed transport can be. D'you need a minute to get your breath?"

[madman_with_a_box]

"My breath? Nah, I'm just fine. It was only a short run from the stop at the corner."

John looked ruffled, but not displeased. It was nice, meeting other Different who were also from his native country - though he supposed deep down he might have also been from somewhere else. He had yet to really uncover much more about all of that yet. Still, Ellie's handshake was warm and friendly, and he adjusted the bag on his shoulder once more.

"Right! Lunch and a tour of this part of the world. They say you shouldn't skip out on some really good Italian food while you're here in New York, and they're really not wrong. I know a place a few tube stops up if you're game? Oh!"

He reached into his bag then, and rifled through for a moment before producing the converter.

"Here you are - just in case you need to charge while we're out."

omg my inbox ate this I am so sorry!

[seawalled]

"Bless," she said with a smile, tucking it into her bag. "Italian sounds amazing, let's start with that then. Is it a pizza place or something different? I mean, really, I'm up for either. ... Family jokes I'm their little goat."

It wasn't the sort of thing most people would share with a new friend, but Ellie had no shame. "What about you, got a lot of family missing you across the pond?"