2013.08.20 - Trying Something New

Into it's second week, the Stark Expo is still going strong. The visitors aren't just limited to New Yorkers, no. People have come from all over the country, even from all over the world, to see the show of technology that Tony Stark has assembled. Large sections house displays from the names you would expect, Hammer Industries, LexCorp, Wayne Enterprises, and of course Stark's own company. There are also smaller displays from smaller companies, and FOOD. There is food galore, representing just about any culture that a person can think of. While she's been spending a lot of time working at the Anita Bella booth, Fern has found ample time to get out and explore, even coming by on her time off. This is one of her off days, but she's wandered in again, and finds herself standing before a booth serving Indian food. The young waitr.... actress hesitates, looking at the menu, but unsure what to order. She digs one hand into the bag slung at her hip, pulling out a wallet and opening it. No moths fly out, but there's certainly room for them. Still, she has enough to get something to eat and drink, if she can just figure out what.

What with stuff going on around the school, Jubilee's had to put her plans to come on hold a couple times. But today she was bound and determined to go, and one bus and taxi ride later, here she is at the Stark Expo!

Never a dull moment here... or a dull aroma, for that matter. There's plenty to eat and drink here, and the melange of cultural dishes and cooks makes the show just as interesting to smell as it is to see. She pauses to check her phone for messages while waiting in line at an Indian food booth, frowning at the screen. Signal interference... which is only normal in a place with so much wireless tech on display, but that doesn't make it any less annoying.

Oddly, it takes Fern a couple minutes to realize that Jubilee is in line. She's been a bit preoccupied the past couple days, after a bit of danger in the park. Sure, she's been in danger before, but never heard the words 'Kill her.' directed at her. When she finally notices, she steps up at once, her smile coming, "Jubilee?"

Jubilee, a bit absorbed in her phone, is a bit slow to realize someone's talking to her. She blinks and looks up, then her face lights up with a brilliant smile when she realizes who spoke. "Fern!" she cries, throwing her arms around the taller girl and hugging her tight. "Omigosh, it's been weeks! How are you?"

The hug is returned warmly before Fern steps back, her smile matching her younger friend's. "I'm good. Been really busy at work, and had a couple auditions. How are you doing? Has school started back up yet?"

"Not yet, thank goodness! But it should be any day now," Jubilee replies, shaking her head bemusedly. "I'm trying to enjoy my freedom while I still have it. How are you? Good luck with the auditions!"

"Thanks," Fern grins, the single word heartfelt. "One audition was for a tv show, and I've not heard back from them yet. At least it's not a no," she says, the eternal optimist. "Oh hey! And I saw Ben... maybe two weeks ago? He was going to a play and didn't have anyone to go with him, so I went." She leans in, nudging Jubilee lightly, "I made sure no one tried to get their claws into him. Boy, he sure misses you, though."

"Here's hoping there's a part with your name on it," Jubilee says, holding up her hands and crossing her fingers. "I'd love to see you on TV."

She winces at the mention of Ben. "I miss him, too," she says at last. "Between everything and anything, we've barely seen each other all summer, and I know it must be getting to him twice as bad as it's getting to me. Those people who say long-distance relationships are easier than local don't know what they're talking about!"

There's a sympathetic sigh as Fern nods, "I don't think any relationship is easy, but at least getting to see each other and talk to each other is a bonus. Maybe when you settle back into a school routine things will get a little easier?" Her tone is hopeful, she's been through this kind of thing and it didn't end with sunshine and rainbows, so she wants something different for her two friends.

"I don't know... things'll be more regular, but I won't have nearly as much time," Jubilee replies, frowning. "I don't know what to do, Fern. He's at least as crazy about me as I am about him, but we almost never see each other. Sometimes it seems like phone calls and emails just remind me of the fact more than they help."

She glances up and nods, seeing the line moving. "Here we go. Want anything? My treat." She's aware of just how tight her friend's finances can be sometimes.

The younger girl's words bring a soft frown to Fern's face as well. "That can't be easy," she says softly. She looks up as well when Jubilee points out they're moving, and her first reaction, as always, is to decline. "Oh no, I've got some money stashed. Do you know what's good? I've never had Indian food before. I thought I should try it though, since it's here."

Jubilee chuckles. "I'm Chinese, not Indian. Your guess is as good as mine!" she replies teasingly. "But I doubt anything's bad, as good as this area smells. I'm thinking curry..."

That brings back Fern's grin, and she leans to lightly bump Jubilee, "Well, I'm not Chinese but I know the food. I thought you might have tried Indian. So... let's be adventuresome. We'll each get something and share. I think I might try.... the chicken tiki marsala. That sounds fun." There's a pause, before she asks dubiously, "Isn't curry hot?"

"So Chinese hot mustard, but I can eat that without any trouble," Jubilee says confidently. "Anyway, small bites would help. Looks like they have a nice pork curry available." She smiles at the cook and places her order.

Fern nods, adding her order for the chicken dish. Both come with saffron rice to round it out, and Fern steps aside to wait for their food to be put up. She returns easily to their last topic, putting her usual good spin on it. "Well, you both adore each other, and that's half the battle right there. It's not easy to be patient, but maybe that's just what you both need to be?" The only other alternative is to break it off, and she doubts either of her friends want to go that route.

"I know what you mean, but I do wish it were easier," Jubilee says with a sigh. "Hopefully we'll both have more time than we're expecting to this fall." She puts away her phone. "I'm seriously thinking about upgrading this clone. I've heard the new Sphones are fantastic, but I'm a little worried about the price tag." Stark gear is top notch... and top dollar.

Fern slings an arm around Jubilee's shoulders, giving the girl a light squeeze. "Everything will work out exactly as it's supposed to. It always does." Talk of phones gets a grin, "Oh jeez, I'd never be able to get an Sphone. I'm lucky to have the crappy little phone that I do have. We could go over to the Stark building and look at them, if you have time." She pauses, frowning, "I wonder if LexCorp does phones. They have that LexBox game system. You'd think phones would be in the same vein."

Jubilee manages a shaky smile and nestles closer to the taller girl, glad of the moral support. "I hope that means it'll be good. But telling how it'll go in advance is like guessing what color underwear somebody's wearing. No way to know unless you see for yourself." She reaches down and playfully pulls out Fern's waistband in back. "Guessed wrong!"

At the mention of phones, she stifles a giggle. "I won't need this one if I upgrade. Want it? It's still a good model, just doesn't have /all/ the Sphone features."

Fern eeps as she's given a mini wedgie, and surprises Jubilee with red underpants instead of white for a change! She laughs, wiggling to try and get everything back into place, "I didn't even know I'd run into you today, so I'm glad it's not white again." Again, her first reaction is to decline, but it sure would be nice to have a phone that does anything more than simply be a phone. "If you upgrade, I may just take you up on that. You'll have to teach me how to use it, though." Their orders are put up, and she thanks the young guy at the booth, then looks around. "There's some tables over there," she points, indicating an area just a few steps away. "C'mon."

Jubilee laughs as well, glad as always of Fern's good naturedness. "It's different," she agrees. "I'm glad you're glad, but as always, it doesn't matter what you wear. I'm still glad to see you."

Claiming her own plate, she nods and leads the way to a table where they can watch the entire restaurant area, along with many of the booths. She sets down her plate, then sets her phone on the table so she can show Fern a few things. But first, she settles her coat over the back of her chair and pushes Fern's chair out with her foot. "If I upgrade, consider me your teacher."

Fern plops into the chair Jubilee pushes out, setting her plate down on the table. "That would be really cool, thanks Jubes." For a moment, her eyes wander, shifting to look toward the LexCorp pavilion. Realizing what she's done, Fern rolls her eyes at herself, and puts her attention onto her food. She leans forward, taking a deep breath in. "It sure smells good." The meal also came with Naan, and she picks it up. "I didn't know they had pitas."

"Pitas? Not quite, but they sure look a lot like 'em, don't they?" Jubilee comments, picking up some napkins from a dispenser at a neighboring table. "I can't wait to try this. The smell's making my mouth water."

She stifles a giggle, reaching down. "Oh, one thing... you wearing colored undies means we're exactly backwards from usual." And she undoes a few buttons on her jeans, folding the top down and back so Fern can see her own undies. Bright white!

There's a giggle as Jubilee points out their channeling of each other when putting on their delicates this morning. "Will miracles never cease? Jubilee has white underpants." She takes an experimental taste of her chicken dish, eyes widening in surprise. "Holy cats, this is delicious! You're gonna have to try it." She's got no qualms about sharing food, not worrying that Jubilee has 'cooties'. Fern isn't what you might call germphobic in the least. "So you haven't caught any of the demonstrations so far?"

"What? Is something wrong with white?" Jubilee asks, giving Fern a mock-worried look, though she's having a hard time keeping in giggles. She sits down and does up those buttons again, then picks up her fork, aiming it at her friend like a weapon. She's only about as germophobic as Fern. "This is a stickup! Fork over a bite!"

The question draws a frown and a shake of the Chinese girl's head. "I wish I had, but I only got here ten minutes ago. I skipped breakfast to make the train, so I figured I'd deal with my growly tummy first." She smiles. "But that just means we can see 'em together, right?"

Fern gives her plate a nudge toward Jubilee, letting the girl have at for a taste. "Absolutely we can! Wow, you should have been here for the Hammer Industries demo, though. It was really exciting, and Justin got me a pass to the VIP section so I was right down in front." Which would have been bad if that rogue drone had actually malfunctioned more, but it turned out alright in the end. "It was really exciting, and stuff blew up. I heard that LexCorp blew stuff up, too."

"Now I'm sorry I wasn't here," Jubilee says, nudging her plate closer to Fern even as she takes a tiny forkful of Indian-style chicken goodness. "They're blowing stuff up? Wow. I hope there's footage on YouTube! Which this phone'll get, by the way. I'll show you how."

She tastes the chicken, and her eyes widen. "Whoa... I might have to hold a retrial for my second-favorite dish. My favorite's still chocolate cream pie. But this is good!"

"Mmmmmm... I wonder if there's a pie booth here. That sounds so yummy." Even in the midst of eating something, Fern isn't above trying to figure out what to eat next. "I did see a lot of people with their phones out. Oh! And Millie Collins said she took some video that she'd send me. I'll pass it along to you when she does."

"Thanks, Fern. I'll feel less guilty about missing that. And I'll totally owe you one." Jubilee takes a bite of pork curry, frowning thoughtfully. "It /is/ hot... the pork's good, but I think this gets most of its flavor from the spices."

Thinking about pie, she stifles a smile. "Bat-Pies. If there's an exhibit from any of the Gotham companies, they'll have a Bat-Pie seller. Those come in lots of flavors, and chocolate might be one of 'em!"

Fern reaches over, taking a small sample of the pork. At first... nothing. Then her eyes widen. "Holy cats! Yeah, that's a little spicy," she says, fanning her hand in front of her tongue, stuck out of her mouth. How elegant. "Ok, I think I'll stick with the chicken tiki." Sure, it was written out right in front of her on the menu board, but that doesn't mean she'll get the name right any time this century. "Bat-Pies? What are Bat-Pies?"

Jubilee tries to hold in the giggles. She really does. But the spectacle of Fern trying to wave some cool air onto her tongue just pries them right out of her. She blushes and covers her face with both hands. "Fern... oh Fern, I'm so sorry, but if you could see your face..!"

It's a moment before she can speak again, brushing at her eyes with a finger. "Bat-Pies... well, they're kinda like the Gotham version of fried fruit pies, but they're bat-shaped. Some of the local bakeries make 'em, and they're good enough to be pretty popular in Metropolis, too. I'll bet Wayne Industries'll have a pie chef along."

Fern wrinkles her nose at Jubilee, but it's teasing and her lips are curved in a smile. "Well, it was HOT," she protests weakly. Still, it's probably a good thing that there were no males sitting across from her at that moment. She'd never get another date again. She waits patiently for Jubilee to pull herself together, unable to resist giggling herself, because they're contagious. "We'll have to have a Bat-Pie for dessert, then."

"I'll pencil it into our schedule," Jubilee promises, giggling again, since they really don't have one. She finishes her curry fairly quickly, trying to fill up space in her hungry stomach. "You know, I don't see why those producers don't hire you more often. You're expressive, you're witty, and you're gorgeous. Maybe they just want taller actresses... which you could totally be, with the right costumer and shoes."

"Put it into your fancy phone," Fern teases lightly, going back to her own chicken which doesn't result in a tongue sticking out of her face. "From your lips to God's ears, Jubes. I think that all I really need is one break. But, everyone says that, don't they? And they use short actresses on a lot of things. Just not me."

"I hope God's talking to the producers," Jubilee says, making a praying gesture with her hands for good measure. "I hope you get that break." Then she leans over and kisses Fern on the cheek. "But whatever happens, I'll always be a fan as well as a friend. Pinky-promise. Even panty-promise, if it comes to that."

Fern grins, tilting her head for the cheek kiss, then holding up her hand to link pinkies with Jubilee. "It all starts out with one fan," she quips, grateful for the moral support. "They better have chocolate Bat-Pies, because now you've got me wanting one. Lets eat up and go see."