Do I Know You? // Phee //

Phoebe stretched out and yawned as her boss told the morning staff about the new event they would be hosting. It was some strange fashion-show-but-not-near-as-good-as-a-fashion-show event that sounded like a huge waste of time to everyone involved. The store was making good enough money. Their normal advertisements worked enough, though they were getting kind of boring. Sadly, however, the blonde's manager was focused on trying to "shake things up a bit" which was nearly impossible in a large chain store. Still, she was paid to grin and bear it.

"Huge event, don't miss it!" she said with a smile as she handed a customer a flyer. Stuck handing out the invitations, she figured she might as well be productive. The stranger returned her smile, blushing, and Phoebe felt a nudge at her side. Her friend and coworker next to her was making faces at her and she just pretended to be clueless. "What? I didn't do anything."

"You might as well have flirted with him."

"I was copying your bambi eyes from when tall, dark and totally married came around." Phoebe laughed as she got another nudge in her side. In her distraction, however, she got straight in the path of some passerby. Stumbling back and dropping her flyers, Phoebe was completely taken by surprise. Catching her breath after the scare, she immediately apologized as she scrambled to pick the papers up. "I am so sorry, that was completely my fault."

The blonde could not be more mortified over what happened. She'd actually made the man fall. His friend was extremely amused though, helping her with the last flyer. He recognized their fundraising objection and Phoebe smiled at him kindly before her friend answered.
 
"Yeah, something like that. Boss is trying to get the store some more business."
 
"This is one of her most drastic attempts. Usually they're just terrible sales," Phoebe added. Her friend laughed and the blonde noticed the googly eyes Jane was giving the taller of the two men. Turning to the man who'd run into her, she noticed the smile he was aiming at her and it took all she had not to shyly look away. Instead, she offered him a small smile back and pretend he was not, in fact, moving near her. The blonde was rarely shy, but she was when she was caught off guard.
 
His invitation especially surprised her. Phoebe had no idea what to say and almost stumbled over a reply when her friend took over. "Well, we do get out for lunch in like two minutes," the brunette offered. "I think it's a great idea. You, Phee?" Turning quickly, she noticed her coworker smiling up at the tall man. Phoebe knew that look anywhere and if Jane hadn't been volunteer her time as well to this plan, she would've found her little antics cute.
 
"Sure," she agreed as if without hesitation. There was no way to back out of this anyway without sounding rude , so she didn't really feel she had a choice. Lately, she'd been feeling like a bit of a shut-in with all the headaches that have kept her home. Going out did not seem like the best idea for her, especially not with strangers. Jane excused them to go grab their things and Phoebe just followed her inside. Before the blonde could even open her mouth and complain, the brunette defended herself immediately as they got into the staff lounge.
 
"We're just going out for lunch. You didn't have anything better to do considering we have lunch with each other anyway. Debby isn't going to care considering we're on break. Those guys are just being nice and they're new in town and they're really cute, so you have no leverage here. We have to go, Phee!" The  blonde was going to argue until she saw her friend pouting at her. Putting on her sweater and picking up her purse, she agreed before heading back out the door.
 
Jane immediately began telling the two men about a diner nearby having the best fries, how a stop there before a quick show around town would be nice. Soon, they were walking and Jane quickly took to doing most of the talking. Finally when she turned her attention solely to the taller man, Phoebe finally felt ready to start talking again.

"Dean, was it?" she offered him another smile. "What brings you boys to Boston?" Her accent was nearly gone, she noticed as she said the word 'brings'. There was a bit of hesitation, but she at least pronounced the words correctly. The thought made her a little more confident, even if she was talking to a total stranger.

((hi sami, just realized I somehow got it in my head that dean at one point said his name. which he didn't. I'm super sorry! Fixing that now. :)after having fixed it, i realized she'd heard it from sam. oops xD changing back!))



The taller man seemed hesitant, which only made the girl feel better. She had hoped she was right to be so nervous. Though she was typically okay with socializing, the presence of these two made her feel like her friend would make this into something more than hanging out as friends and the thought panicked the blonde as it always did. She was great with casual dating as long as she could define it herself, but the whole picking up process made her so nervous. She didn't want to feel like she was reacting to a pick up, so she played oblivious to the flirty looks her friend gave the taller man and the same looks the shorter man seemed to just ooze. She wondered briefly if he just naturally gave to everyone he met or if he was actually trying to flirt with them. The charming smile did no good to convince her otherwise.

"Ahhh, migrant workers, huh?" she asked in response to his story about the company he was going to work for. That sounded like terrible news. He seemed used to it though, so she didn't push it. "Where are you guys from originally? " She tried to think of whether or not she heard a familiar accent. Having lived in Texas, she was better than most at hearing accents other than those she'd heard from her various classmates.

"I hope you'll like Boston as long as you're here," she commented, looking fondly over at the park they were passing. The neighborhood was familiar. "It's a city for the most part but that's sort of an illusion. It's almost more like this group of towns, each different and very friendly. I still feel new to this place, it is so different from home…in a good way." She was rambling. He asked her for a name and she seemed almost surprised she'd forgotten.

"Name's Phoebe," she asked, mirroring him and keeping an eye on her brunette friend.

"Kansas?" she replied, a bit questioning. Trying to brush it off, she shrugged. "I never would've guessed, you don't sound like it." The blonde had a good ear for accents too, as she'd had to train her own away. It was a bit of a habit of hers to try to guess a stranger's. "What do you guys do?" she asked curiously. She'd never really met a migrant worker before. She couldn't imagine having to bounce from city to city for anything other than music. That was her plan, after all. She wanted to sing, but she didn't dream to be famous or anything. She was hoping to just city hope for city musicals and then leave, making her way back to New York. With any luck, she could catch a musical that makes it to Broadway. That was her highest dream.

It was far-fetched, but she knew that. She planned for it, happy with anything that kept her away from home. After her parents tried to get her sent away, she promised them she wouldn't come back. She wasn't crazy, the voices weren't real and she knew it. For now, she just had to stay away from Texas and keep her problems to herself, and maybe then she'd have a normal damn life.

That and if Jane doesn't kill her first with these silly whims. The blonde could not help a laugh at his next comment on her friend. "I never thought Jane would read like a book," she said quietly, sparing another glance at the pair. "But I guess you're right. She's nothing if not bluntly honest, so I would assume so." Quiet now as Jane and the taller man stopped when they arrived at the diner, Phoebe entered without another word of Jane's obvious crush. Sitting together at a table, it was really hard not to glance at the other pair and smirk so she just tried to keep her eyes away from them.

"Ahhh," Phoebe replied before nodding to let him know she understood. Deciding not to push the subject further, she went on to ask about the job though that hadn't been the best thing to ask about. They didn't seem to have set jobs, just temporary ones. She wondered what that was like. She may have left home, but Boston became her second home and she didn't really think of travelling away from it. Of course, she would have to soon. She'd be graduating and she couldn't stay in Boston for so many years.

When they arrived, the silence made Phoebe want to laugh though she tried to contain it. The look on Jane's face was hilarious and she knew the grown girl would kick her under the table if she gave her a funny look. Jane ordered her salad as always and Phoebe followed Dean's lead and went for a dessert. "I'll have a slice of chocolate cake, please," she asked with a bright smile. The waitress nodded and continued on as Jane gave her a smile. Phoebe had a few weeks off of class, so she felt free to eat whatever she wanted for a few liberating days without the fear of judgment by her professor. She remembered the time she walked into dance with a mega Hershey bar. She still never heard the end of it.

"So, you guys thinking of anywhere specific to head next or do you guys do more of a 'dartboard with a US map' kind of thing?" she asked Dean but left it open for either of them to answer.

"Sounds like fun," she mused silently. She could never understand such a migrant life, though. She grew entirely too attached to her surroundings. That was why she adored Boston so much more now, despite having lived in Texas her entire life. The taller of the two brothers ordered the same plate as her friend and Phoebe immediately pretended to look out the window to avoid any look Jane could be giving her. If the blonde laughed or rolled her eyes, she knew she'd never hear the end of it.

"What was your favorite stop, over the years?" she asked Dean, suddenly curious as to what kind of location would stick to someone who traveled so much. Her experience of the country went as far as a trip to New York, a few years in Boston and a life in Texas. She'd never visited anywhere else except the Disney states as a kid.

The cake arrived and Phoebe's was absolutely elated. Unlike her own friendly avoidance mechanisms, Jane very outright chuckled at her out loud. She at least didn't make a comment, or she would've warranted a death glare from the younger girl. It had been so long since she'd had cake in any form outside of a birthday party. Theater majors should be illegal, she decided, as they did not allow for enough of a food life.