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[verbal_vomit_1]

You know, they say hypothermia's not a bad way to go. Sure it's cold for a while but then you get really warm and drift off to "sleep". The Hudson is way too disgusting to find out the truth though. Who wants to freeze to death in what's basically a giant toilet bowl?
Now I feel sort of bad for all the fishies I've flushed down an actual toilet. I

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[deadwhitemale]

The rented bike, a buzzy little Yamaha that reminded Ellis in multiple ways of a bumblebee, hummed along the streets towards the Hudson. Ellis had insisted Val wear the bike helmet, since it was after dark which meant he didn't need it.

He'd also insisted Val hold on tight, which instruction Val was obeying. Val was also wearing a backpack which was stuffed with a coat and a thermos.

Ellis turned off on 105th and slowed the bike to a putter, scanning about with his excellent night vision for a far-too-tiny-to-be-out-here-on-her-own kinda girl.

"She say exactly whereabouts here she'd be?" he said loudly to Val.

[vavarner]

"Riverside Park, around 105th," Val called back, louder than he probably needed to with Ellis's hearing, but it was hard to hear himself think over the sound of the bike. Not that he minded in the slightest - riding in the 'biker bitch' position with his arms around Ellis holding on tight was just fine by him. Exciting! He'd enjoyed buzzing around the city like this.

Right now though, his mind was on other things- like finding Chuck. He was really worried about her being out in the cold, and being out alone in the city at night. Heck, he didn't want to be alone in the city at night ever himself.

"It's hard to see anything with the helmet!"

[verbal_vomit_1]

She was there, in the park as she said she would be, leaning against the cold iron railing and staring towards the water. Dark as it was, Chuck didn't see much more than the reflection of the city's multitude of lights--they looked like living flecks and dots of energy as the water rolled in gentle, wind-stirred waves. She wasn't thinking of lights though, just fish. Happy, carefree little creatures allowed to be who they were and just swim, dance through the water without anyone bothering them or making them feel like misfit freaks.

Of course, they also had little to no memory retention. Chuck probably envied that even more at the moment. Life would be easier if you could forget all of those mortifying moments than made you cringe and shudder.

[deadwhitemale]

There was a small figure standing near the water's edge, leaning on the railing. Ellis steered the bike thataway, even his vision not letting him see whether it was the young woman from the open mic or not, at least not until they were closer.

He drove as close as possible-- yes, that looked like the girl-- and parked the bike, gesturing over at Chuck for Val's benefit if he hadn't seen her yet.

He'd let Val do the hailing, or going over and greeting her, or whatever-- seeing as she was his friend.

[deadwhitemale]

Ellis sighed (under his breath) at Val's cheerful little request, but turned and came on back, civil and pleasant smile on his face.

He took a seat at the piano, pushing the lid up and watching Val bustle around playing host. Cute.

"I don't know, Val, you sure y'all don't want to talk or nothin'?" He inclined his head Chuck's direction to include her too. "I mean I don't want to interrupt like if y'all have got deep affairs need discussin' or somesuch..."

Ellis fingered a few notes absently on the piano, barely conscious he was doing so, then said abruptly, "What th' hell is with this Edith an' Nancy thing, anyhow?"

[verbal_vomit_1]

There was little chance of getting Chuck to open up about the real reason she was upset enough to be wandering along the river all afternoon if she had to do it in front of a third party who was both much older than her and far less known to her than Val. At seventeen, there were just some things you didn't think adults could possibly understand and take seriously

[deadwhitemale]

"Oh yes," Ellis said, solemnly. "I am familiar with th' senility an' decreptitude an' all those other risks of old age."

Faint twitch of his lips as he looked down at the piano, plinking out a few chords.

"Let us hope, Mister Val, I do not never start gettin' you confused for no one else as I get older yet and my mind decays into mush. Of course, if it does, I guess Edith is a real nice name."

Straight face, throat clearing. "Anythin' y'all in the mood for?"

[vavarner]

"Figure we can talk in a bit, after Nancy warms up and you get tired of indulging me with the piano," Val said. He thought maybe Chuck would appreciate a bit of distraction and unwinding before serious talkage.

"And darlin', you have to pick your own senility name for me," he said cheekily. "You only get one per person. Like, I couldn't just start calling you Nancy too - don't work that way. I'd have to start calling you, oh I don't know - Clovis or some such. After the Merovingian king and/or the prehistoric culture."

Which implied there was a reason he'd picked Nancy to call Chuck, but he didn't, of course, give that reason - merely contemplated on what Ellis should play. Though really he'd had something in mind all along. Something that certainly helped him through his tough times anyhow. "Can you play A Place in the Rain, sugar? This way she can hear my song."