Post Jezebel

@postjezebel

You found my blog. I assume you've bought my albums?

315 posts

Jonar and the Whale

“Yeah, you did.” Ben answered, then added quickly, “No breakfast this morning.” to the man as some kind of an explanation.

People were starting to stare and having him fussing over Sasha was going to keep drawing attention so he guided her to the nearest bench.

“We’ll take the water. Thanks.”

The uniform nodded and left on his mission as Ben sat down beside her.

“You okay?”

“I didn’t faint,” she insisted as Ben sat her down. “I’m not going to faint because of some stupid--”

She gestured towards the fish, making the mistake of glancing at it. As soon as she caught sight of those dead eyes and rows of teeth the colour drained from her face again. She quickly looked away, grabbing Ben’s thigh tight like he was her safety line.

She took a few deep breaths. He was right, they needed to eat something.

“If you tell anyone about this I’ll-” she started, putting up her usual wall of bravado. Except, Ben already knew about her little... insecurity problems now, didn’t he? She’d shared that with him at the hospital. So what was the point of bullshitting? He knew her better than that. “Just... okay, so I’m scared of it.”

Jonar and the Whale

He hadn’t noticed what was happening until her hand slid from his.

There was a shout as he turned, and a bearded man in a unappealing brown uniform hurried towards them.

“Is the young lady sick?”

Ben stared blankly at him for a second, while his brain caught up.

They both knelt, and while the man checked her pulse, Ben pushed her hair back from her face to help cool her down. “I think she just fainted?” he started, as Sasha began coming around and trying to sit up.

“You okay sweetheart?”

The colour flushed back into her cheeks as she stared up at Ben leaning over her. Close enough to kiss.

But before she could work out what the hell she was doing on the floor, someone was hoisting her up by the elbow. “Can I get you some water?”

“Uh... no. Thanks. I’m fine,” she said, taking the hand that Ben offered her. “What happened?”

“You fainted,” the man answered, drawing her attention away again.

Sasha just scoffed in response and retaliated, “No I didn’t.”

First Date

justdontcallmeanthony

"Well they caught him, so shit’s not exactly the word I’d use," he said.

The waitress came over and set the entree’s down in front of them. “Besides,” he continued, “It’s not as if you can give them anything they don’t already know. I mean, he’s right there on camera doing it and you were out of it pretty quickly after that.”

"I guess..." she conceded, still mulling it over as she appraised the food in front of them.

"But I mean, doesn't that seem a little sloppy to you? Shouldn't they make me do a line up to check they caught the right guy? Or at least notify me that they've got him?"

First Date

justdontcallmeanthony

"They have him," he said, taking a large mouthful of Long Island. "They pulled the security footage from the bar and someone must have recognised him because they pulled him in apparently. I had a friend look into it."

"Huh..." she mused, taking a sip of wine. She preferred the Long Island.

"That's weird. Aren't they meant to ask for a statement or some shit like that? No one's even spoken to me... how am I meant to know when the trial is? They're doing a pretty shit job."

First Date

justdontcallmeanthony

Okay so he’d apparently just chose to go skipping through a minefield. Her smile said one thing but her little dig felt a hell of a lot sharper.

Fun times.

"You being in that bar that night waiting for me I suppose," he said. "If we hadn’t broken up, we wouldn’t have been meeting there in the first place and superfan wouldn’t have been able to spike your drink.”

"Uhuh..."

She really didn't want to talk about the break-up, so she took the first change of subject she could think of.

"What happened to that guy anyway? Did the cops catch him or are they just sitting around on their asses like usual?"

First Date

justdontcallmeanthony

"Dresses on my bedroom floor sound good to me," he said, running his finger idly around the rim of his glass.

"So…." Where the fuck did he start?

"I kinda want to address the elephant in the room since we’re both doing our best not to talk about it, and I don’t want anything else getting in the way of having a good time."

"The whole hospital thing sort of shook me up, and I wanted to apologise - properly, for being a jerk the night we broke up and putting you in that position.”

This was ridiculous. She shouldn't have agreed to a date in the first place - she should've told him to fuck off and not come back.

But through all her bluster, she knew she could just walk out. And she knew she wasn't going to.

In truth, the break-up cut too fucking deep. The betrayal and resentment still lingered there. She'd worked through three months of thinking he was dead but he couldn't get past one night of the fallout.

Her wineglass suddenly became much more interesting as she twisted the stem in her fingers, "Jerk is kinda putting it mildly, don't you think?" She asked, but forced a smirk to try and keep the mood light.

"So what position are we talking about?"

First Date

justdontcallmeanthony

Goodwill, that was never going to leave them now, was it?

"Yeah well, Goodwill looks good on you."

He held his wine glass up to toast her. “I’m Tony, Sagittarius, I like cheeseburgers, inventing things, flying around the world and taking my girlfriend out to dinner.”

The wine was good but he quickly went back to finishing his Long Island while it still had ice.

“So this dress, which I actually think is from anywhere other than Goodwill… It’s a good look on you. Maybe you should go on stage wearing it. You know, show it off a little? Since it looks like we’re going to be eating a lot of pizza in the future.”

Jez grinned at him. Tony never failed to put her at ease. It was pretty rare to find a man who could go from dining on caviar to eating trashy pizza. He was so laid back; not like other people on his pay grade. That was one of the things she loved about him.

Liked about him.

“Well, next time you need someone to bail your pianist out, give me a call and I’ll wear it for you. This kind of thing would be really out of place on my stage."

She took another mouthful of wine, swirling it around her tongue while she thought of things that'd make the patrons here blush. "You know, maybe we don’t have to eat too much pizza. Maybe just like… eighty-five percent. The other fifteen can be excuses for the dresses you want on your bedroom floor.”

First Date

justdontcallmeanthony

The expression on her face made him skip the caviar list entirely and move straight to the appetizers. Crab cakes looked good, as did the ribs but after flitting around, he eventually settled back on the crab.

He already knew he was having a steak. He always had a steak at 21, had for years because it was the best steak in a thirty block radius.

“Will you please stop glaring at the menu like it ran out on you?” he smirked, after the waiter brought their wine and discreetly backed off to let her finish choosing. “It’s just food. They can make something off-menu if you want. Oh, and you can have my dessert too if you want because I don’t think I want it.”

“I’ll stop glaring at the menu on the provision that our next date involves sitting on some steps eating take-out pizza.” Jez grinned, peering at him from over the top of the menu.

In the end she decided to just keep it simple. A salad, burger and side of fries. She had no idea what ‘frisée’ was, but how many ways were there to fuck up a burger? Surely they could manage this much without shoving fish eggs into everything.

The moment she locked eyes with the waiter he nodded and came over. “Just order something to take back. We can share it later,” Jez muttered before he took their order, deciding on the cheesecake. Tony didn't order any caviar, thank god.

As soon as the waiter took their menus and disappeared, Jez took a large gulp of her wine. She’d never understood how expensive wine was meant to taste any better than the cheap stuff. She wasn’t meant to be drinking so soon after her hospital trip either, but fuck it.

“So, I’m Jezebel. I’m in a rock band. And I steal all my clothes from Goodwill. Nice to meet you.”

She pretended that mentioning the goodwill thing didn't sting, remembering the last time he'd used it a moment too late.

Be safe, goodwill...

First Date

justdontcallmeanthony

“Over priced? Debateable. Freaky?” he shook his head as he stood up and grabbed what was left of his drink, “nah.”

He leaned in as she stood up and kissed the side of her head gently before heading across the room to the stairs leading up.

The girl smiled brightly and nodded. “Follow me Mr Stark and I’ll take you and your guest to your table.”

Upstairs was as beautiful and as busy as always, but despite the fullness of the room, it was quieter up here since everyone was talking in hushed, polite tones.

They were shown to their table in double quick time and left to peruse the menu since they already had drinks. Tony ordered wine for the table anyway, just in case. He’d made sure he’d booked the second sitting so they wouldn’t be thrown out at the end of their meal to make room for someone else but he doubted they would be lingering for long. Jez was starting to look uncomfortable.

“You alright?” he asked, putting his hand onto top of hers as he glanced down at the menu. He lowered his voice so he wouldn’t be overheard and tried not to laugh. "We can go and have sex in the bathroom if it’ll make you more at home."

For the most part, the desserts were written in English. Everything else was fucking ridiculous. Were all rich people supposed to speak French? What the fuck were chanterelles? And ‘haricots verts’… weren’t they just green beans?

She scrunched her nose as she scanned the menu, like it was personally offending her. Why the fuck did everything need clarification? They didn’t just serve turnips they served Tokyo turnips. As well as Bloomdale spinach, Napa cabbage and Thumbolina carrots. Heaven forbid they give you lettuce without letting you know it’s fucking 'Bibb' lettuce.

The meal was charged per person, $75 each but that didn’t include tax or tips. She decided that anything she didn’t finish could get boxed up for Ryan to prod at and laugh about later. Keeping leftovers probably wasn’t the ‘done’ thing here, but the price was just about within her means so she was determined to go halves. The staff could just suck it up and do what she asked if they wanted to get their precious tips at the end of it.

“You know, sex sounds great…" She sighed irritably, still trawling through the menu, "And I’m only half joking.”

First Date

justdontcallmeanthony

He laughed and shook his head when she slid across to him. She’d shuffle off this mortal coil being remembered by future patrons for a crappy old phone, when she could be remembered for her music. Something she was actually passionate about.

“We’re really going to have to rethink this,” he laughed and stood it on it’s end.

He took another drink and chewed absent-mindedly on a chunk of ice as he looked up.

“I haven’t given them anything, actually. Not personally anyway. My dad gave them something back in the fifties. He was working his ‘car of the future’ for a while and he gave them a model of one. Could have been worse. He could have sent a nuclear rocket or something I guess.”

He craned his neck to look for it. “I think it’s at the far end somewhere.”

Just then, he spotted a member of staff look over and smile. Table was ready upstairs.

Jez laughed enthusiastically at his joke, causing a few of the more high-hat patrons to cast scornful glances at her and Tony. She hadn't even noticed and she was still smiling as he nodded at someone. She followed his gaze to find a member of staff dressed in a uniform probably more expensive than her entire wardrobe.

Jez picked up her drink and slid her phone back into her bag, following Tony's suit because this was his world, not hers. She wasn't completely looking forward to it. "Off to eat some freaky overpriced cuisine then?"

First Date

justdontcallmeanthony

“That’s the plan.” He pointed to the bartender, who was now serving someone else further down the bar. “And I watched him make your drink too, so we should get to talk for a little longer this time without you passing out on me. Maybe break the ten minute mark.”

He laughed it off, trying not to show her how much that whole episode had bothered him. It probably didn’t help that he had a little reminder throbbing in his side either.

“Anyone who’s anyone has given this bar a gift,” he said, changing the subject. “So the question, Ms Jezebel Tate, is what would you give?”

She smiled at him, reminded of the interview he'd given her the first time they'd met. His brain worked in inspired ways and he always fired straight at the interesting questions.

So what would she give them? Her keyboard was way too big to fit up there but she didn't have anything else worth giving. Nothing unique to her anyway. Well... except one thing.

She fished her battered phone from her pocket and set it down on the bar, sliding it over to Tony. "They'll get that and they'll be fucking grateful for it." She laughed, "So what about you?"

She glanced back up at the trinkets to try and spot anything Iron Man related, because it went without saying that Tony was the kind of 'anyone' who'd have something up there. "What have you given them?"

First Date

justdontcallmeanthony

“Yeah it’s uh..”

He fished his phone out of his pocket and snapped a few pictures of the ceiling on her behalf. “It’s interesting.”

He knew it wasn’t nearly as interesting to him as it was to her. It wasn’t like he didn’t like old stuff, far from it. Most of his car collection was made up of cars from the fifties, sixties and seventies and he had a couple of retro arcade machines in the workshop for when he wanted to unwind, but there was a difference between old and classic.

Most of the stuff hanging above them (with the exception of the baseball bat signed by Joe DiMaggio and a few others, was old.

He took a slug of his drink and held it in his mouth for a few seconds to let the burn of the alcohol sting his tongue before swallowing. His side was aching like fuck from standing so he perched on the edge of the nearest stool.

“Please tell me you’re not planning on writing a song about this date because I’m not sure I can live up to your fan’s expectations.”

"Oh yeah? And what expectations might they be?"

She took another sip, her gaze roaming back to the ceiling. She was kind of glad they weren't staying down here because she was struggling to keep her eyes on Tony with all this inspiration surrounding her.

She finally looked away long enough to grin at him, nudging him playfully, "Just show me a good time and I won't have to."

First Date

justdontcallmeanthony

“Oh I am,” he joked. “But that’s upstairs and about twenty minutes from now so you’ll have time to prepare for the final exam.”

Her expression was priceless and he put his hand on her arm for reassurance. “Relax, it’s not that bad. It’s fancier than this, but not so fancy you need a six figure bank balance to eat there.”

He looked up at the toys and trinkets that hung above them as the bartender left them the drinks and moved on to someone else.

“You like?”

Six figure bank balance? Jez couldn't even imagine what that would look like. In fact she was kinda glad Ryan offered to move in with her because she would've barely had enough money left over to eat after the rent was due. Luckily she still didn't have to worry about that for another two months though.

She grabbed her drink from the bar and started sipping it, glancing around at the ceiling. There was a FedEx airliner not too far away from a faded Good Year blimp. All the old stuff mingled with new. Like time had just got lost here.

"It's beautiful." She smiled, heart beating excitedly. She was transfixed, drinking in every item.

"So many mementos from so many different times. It's like childhood is just hovering above everyone while they drink and pay tabs and do their adult shit. Completely unable to touch it. Like there's this invisible barrier that you can't break back through... a whole other world that you've lost. You pretend you can't see but it's right there, just out of reach... It's perfect..."

She had a habit of doing this - seeing poetry in everything. This would mean nothing to him and she knew it so she laughed it off, but still couldn't tear her eyes away. "You know this might be the first time I really wish I had a camera phone."

First Date

justdontcallmeanthony

He did a mocking laugh as he glanced automatically up at the security camera covering the bar. “You’re hilarious. They’re gifts or something. Bit like the things hanging on the ceiling.” He looked up. “I think my Dad gave them something once. No murdering tonight, I swear. Just drinks, food and whatever I can convince you of later.”

He made his way through the bar holding her hand. A few people nodded and waved greetings in their direction but were polite enough to avoid interrupting his evening when he was clearly occupied. This was a place where, despite its quirkiness, politeness ruled supreme.

Tony rested his arm on the bar as the bartender moved down towards them. Leaning in, he slid the drinks menu towards Jezebel as he ordered.

“I’ll have a Long Island, not so much ice, and whatever the lady’s having, thanks.”

"No problem" the bartender said, opening a tab. "What can I get you, Miss?"

“Uh…”

What the fuck kind of cocktails were these?

There weren’t even any prices on the fucking menu and she didn’t know what half this shit was. What the hell was ‘Whistle Pig Rye’ supposed to be?

“Uh, yeah, I’ll have the same as him thanks.” She smiled at the bartender, casting one last scathing look at the menu before she pushed it to one side and stared up at the ceiling. “You know, this is amazing. I kinda thought you were going to take me to some overpriced, stuffy restaurant with lobster and champagne and caviar but this is awesome. Drinks are a little weird though.”

First Date

justdontcallmeanthony

Now it was Tony’s turn to look like an idiot as he stared at her in her dress. “Mine,” he said, a little taken aback. “We’re taking mine, maybe getting a cab later, I don’t know I haven’t worked it out yet, wow.”

He walked up to her and took her hand, hooking his fingers under hers and pulling her hand towards him a little. “You look incredible… just… wow.”

He remembered himself and kissed her cheek, lingering so he could whisper better late, than never, in her ear.

“Let’s go show off.”

Jez gave Tony a side glance as they walked up to the bar. It would've looked pretty fancy if it wasn't for the row of creepy jockeys waving at her. They reminded her of the murder cat origins and she almost made a joke about it but stopped herself just in time. That was something best left unmentioned.

"So you know, if you wanted to film my murder we could've done it somewhere more private. Statues are a bit much."

First Date

justdontcallmeanthony

“She’s what?”

He frowned, as he walked past Mac and into the warm apartment. “She entertaining other men on my time now — oh.” He smiled as is dawned on him what Mac was probably talking about.

“—right.” She was still getting ready which means she was…

“Don’t worry buddy,” he said, patting him on the shoulder. “It happens to all of us.”

He clapped his hands together and raised his voice. “Come on honey, we gotta go or I’ll have to come in there to get you and we’ll end up dying of starvation.”

Mac’s face turned bright red as he turned back to him and mouthed. “Where’s Ryan?”

Mac couldn't help giving an awkward laugh at the thought of Ryan being in there with Jezebel. "He went out."

Jezebel walked out of her bedroom, hair brushed over one shoulder and grinning to herself. "I'm ready. Just wanted to give Mac the joy of telling you what I was doing."

Tony looked... hot. He was wearing a proper suit, but it wasn't a crappy business suit or something to please the interviewers. It was really nice and she bet once she got close enough to smell his cologne, he'd get even hotter. An urge to ask if she looked okay came over her, but she didn't want to look like she needed someone else to validate her self-confidence. She took Mac's reaction as a positive instead.

"I'm.. um... have a nice time." He murmured awkwardly, backing out of the apartment with a smile much closer to a grimace. Jez grabbed her keys with a knowing smile at Tony, "So we taking your car or mine?"

First Date

justdontcallmeanthony

He was nervous.

At first he couldn’t work out why, because he’d been on plenty of first dates before and he’d been relaxed about all of them. It was just a date.

But the others had carried no expectations and this one, most definitely did. This one felt like the final chance to get it right and start something good. So far they’d had one no-show and a race to the hospital; not a great record by anyone’s measure.

He gave himself a pep-talk in the car on the way over when he realised that the last time he’d been inside her apartment was the night they’d broken up.

He pushed it to the back of his mind. “Enough drama already, just smile and be fun and we’ll have a great time.”

This little mantra was still running through his mind when he knocked on her door.

Mac opened the door with a shaky hand, distracted and mildly disturbed. He didn't even look at Tony as he moved to let him in. "She's... um.... she's um... g... she's getting... um..."

Stumbling over his words was only making him more flustered. He gestured awkwardly towards the bedroom, cheeks burning up again. "She's..."

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