Demons Ascension - Dennys

[Posted by Ted H]

...because who doesn't love them some dennys?

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[Demons Ascension - Dennys]

            It was after 11:30 when James and Amanda finally left the apartment. A block away was a Dennys and the two were at a table in no time. James ordered the biggest pot of coffee available and Amanda requested tea. "So are you relatively new in town?" James asked "Cuz there were some unpacked items in your living room."
            "I've been here almost a year," Amanda said "I just, I dunno, never get around to finish unpacking. I have too much stuff, I only unpack something if I need it."
            "What brought you to Chicago?"
            "Fresh start I guess. I mean, I've had like three fresh starts in the last decade, but I was pretty sure this time would stick."
            "How many jobs have you had?"
            "I've had eight jobs, four boyfriends and three cats since I began...or, will it be five boyfriends?"
            "You're not very good at being subtle, are you?" James said as the waitress dropped off a cup of tea and a mug of coffee then took their orders. Amanda ordered some complicated dish that the waitress didn't bat an eye at. James, feeling unoriginal, ordered a grand slam.
            "Subtlety is no fun," Amanda said as the waitress left "The time I spend around some guys is short enough, I don't want to lose any time by doing a will-they won't-they dance. I like you, I knew you like me, I figured why not?"
            "Aren't you afraid I won't stick around?"
            "If you don't, then you don't. At least we got something good out of it while we could."
            "Interesting," James said as he drank from his mug "I like you for that."
            "I know," Amanda responded with a wink before she sipped at her tea.
            "I'm not really a cop," James suddenly decided to confess.
            "I still would have liked you," Amanda said without missing a beat "But if you're not a cop, why the interest in Crow?"
            "That friend of mine is a cop though, and he might have an issue with me telling you about Crow."
            "Why are you involved then?"
            "Added perspective. I don't think like a cop."
            "Are you even from Chicago?"
            "Nope. New York."
            "The city? I was there for a couple years. Which borough were you?"
            "Uh, upstate New York, not downstate."
            "How big a difference?"
            "Less personal respect, a lot more trees and an uncanny amount of rednecks for an area north of the Mason-Dixon."
            "When are you going back? After whatever case you're on is finished?"
            "Hopefully," James said as he placed his mug down and had an idea "I'd actually go back today if you're willing to come with me."
            Amanda stopped mid sip at that statement. She placed her cup down and maintained eye contact. "Go to New York, with you?" she asked as James nodded. "Ok."
            "Really?" James asked "Just like that?"
            "Yup. What's another change in scenery?"
            "I don't live glamorously."
            "Don't care."
            "My jobs are sporadic and prolly worse than yours."
            "Don't care."
            "The winters are crap and the summers unbearable."
            "Don't care."
            "What do you care about?"
            "That you're not a criminal, and you can't be if you're hanging around that cop so much, and that what you and I did back in my bedroom will become a regular thing."
            "What about your job now?"
            "I'll call right now and quit."
            "Let's go pack your stuff right now. We can be at my place before dawn tomorrow."
            "Then what, finally sleep?"
            "Later, I figure we could make a routine out of what we've done so far today."
            "Early morning sex followed by Dennys? I knew there was a reason I like you."
            James sat back with a smile as he raised his mug to drink. As he began to lower it, he spied the familiar black face of Bradford, flashing a smile of his own as he approached the table. "Here comes another real cop," James said as Bradford stood over them. "You need to come with me, Blake," he said as Amanda looked away from him and sipped her tea. "What if I told you I'm leaving for good this time?" James asked as Bradford shook his head.
            "You can either walk out with me now, or I bust out some handcuffs."